but knowing that a man is not justified on the principle of works of law [nor] but by the faith of Jesus Christ, *we* also have believed on Christ Jesus, that we might be justified on the principle of [the] faith of Christ; and not of works of law; because on the principle of works of law no flesh shall be justified.
Read Full Chapter →Commentary for this Verse
Paul rebuked Peter in public at Antioch over a shared meal, and out of that clash came this verse. It sets works of the law against faith in Christ, and says only one of them can justify anyone.
Why a meal became a matter of the gospel
The dispute looked small — a question of who could share a meal. Paul read it differently.
W. W. FeredayRefusing to share a table with fellow believers who were not circumcised looked like a small thing. Yet Paul saw the truth of the gospel at stake. A straw is enough to show which way a stream flows, and Paul judged this the same way... Paul reminded his Jewish brother of the ground on which they all stood before God. Had they ever found justification by law? Had the law ever done anything for them but condemn them?
No advantage left to boast in
Paul begins with the people who had the most to boast about. Then he takes their ground away.
Leslie M. GrantHe speaks of what might have been an occasion for boasting, since he himself was a Jew. But God had given them light to know that no person is justified on the principle of works of law. This took the whole foundation out from under the feet of those who made the Law their support. It destroys confidence in the flesh completely. It brings all people down to the same level of spiritual helplessness and nothingness.
What "works of the law" covers
So what counts as a work of the law? The answer reaches wider than the law of Moses.
William KellyBear in mind that when the apostle Paul dwells on law, he does not limit his remarks to the Jewish law, but argues on the principle itself. He says, and means, not just that you cannot be justified by the works of the law, but by no law at all. If there were a law that could justify, it would have to be the law of God given through Moses. But Paul goes further: by works of law you cannot be justified. The law principle is opposed to justification instead of being the means of it.
The same principle appears wherever people expect God to meet their own effort halfway.
Frederick W. GrantWhat is it to be "justified by the law"? Does the person who holds that "man must do his part and God will do His" come near that ground, or not? Law works are not bad works. Its first and great commandment is, "You shall love the Lord your God." The second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself"... Yet those who are of the works of the law — standing on that ground before God — are under the curse.
"Justified" — the word itself
So what does justified mean? It is a courtroom word, and it means more than being let off.
The Christian's FriendJustification is judicial righteousness. In other words, God counts us righteous before Himself... It means that God accounts us judicially righteous, in His own presence. That is the believer's standing: positive, absolute and unchanging, now and forever. It is not just pardon or forgiveness, which is negative in character. It is a positive state of settled and permanent righteousness in Christ before God.
"Faith in Jesus Christ": from, through, in
Three small Greek words stand behind this verse. Each says something different about faith.
C. E. StuartThe Greek New Testament uses three prepositions with the verb to justify. All three occur in two verses in Galatians (2:16-17). We are said to be justified by, or on the principle of (ek), faith, in contrast to works. Justification flows from faith, not from works. Then we are said to be justified instrumentally by, or through (dia), faith. We are also said to be justified by, or in (en), Christ, in contrast to being justified by, or in (en), the law.
A verdict already in their own Scriptures
Paul's final clause is not a new ruling. Peter had read it long before.
G. C. WillisPeter and Paul themselves have no hope of being justified by works... Whether Paul or Peter, Jew or Gentile, Galatians or Chinese, there is no difference. We all have sinned. The only hope for every one of us is Christ Jesus, and only faith in Him. Why then, Peter, are you adding your own works?... Do you not remember your own Old Testament, where Psalm 143:2 says, "No man living shall be justified"?
(Willis quotes an older rendering of Psalm 143:2; the ESV reads, "no one living is righteous before you.")
Summary
- Stakes — a straw shows which way a stream flows. One small compromise at a meal showed the gospel drifting, so Paul rebuked Peter in front of everyone.
- Level — the argument starts with the people who had the most to boast about. It leaves them on the same level as everyone else.
- Law — no law at all can justify, not only the law of Moses. The works law asks for are good works, so it is easy to lean on them.
- Faith — justification flows from faith, comes through faith, and rests in Christ, not in law.
- Verdict — not a pardon on probation, but a settled standing of righteousness. Their own Scriptures had already said no one could reach it any other way.