who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil age in accordance with the will of our God and Father,

I am amazed that you are so soon shifting your ground, and deserting him who called you by the grace of Christ,

But even though I myself or an angel from heaven were to preach any gospel other than that which I did preach to you, let him be accursed.

I have said it before, and I now repeat it, if any one is preaching a gospel to you other than that which you have received, let him be accursed.

Think you that I am now trying to conciliate men or God? Or am I "seeking to please men"? If I were still seeking to please men, I should not be a slave of Christ.

For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel I preach is not man-made;

and had called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me, so that I might preach his gospel among the Gentiles, without consulting a human being,

(In what I am now writing, I call God to witness that I am telling the truth.)

(I went up at that time in obedience to a revelation). And I laid before them the gospel which I am wont to preach among the Gentiles. I did this privately before those in authority, lest by any means I should be running, or should already have run, in vain.

To them we did not yield submission even for an hour, in order that the truth of the gospel might abide unshaken among you.

On the contrary, when they saw that I had been entrusted with the gospel for the uncircumcised, just as Peter has with the gospel for the circumcised

and when they recognized the grace which had been given to me, James and Cephas and John, then thought to be pillars, gave to Barnabas and to me the right hand of fellowship. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the Jews.

They stipulated only that we should remember the poor, which very thing indeed I was quite eager to do.

And the rest of the Jewish Christians also dissimulated with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.

But when I saw that they were not walking a straight path, in the presence of the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all. "If you, although you are a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, why do you try to compel the Gentiles to become Jews?

"yet because we know that no man is justified by the works of the Law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, we ourselves also have put our faith in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the Law; for "By the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified."

Notice then that the true sons of Abraham are children of faith.

but a curse rests on those who have their root in the works of the Law; for it is written. Cursed is every one that continues not in all the things written in the Book of the Law, to do them.

And it is manifest that by the Law no man is justified in the sight of God. because The just shall live by faith,

and the Law has nothing to do with faith, but declares, The man that has done these things shall live therein.

to the end that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles, so that through faith we might receive the promised Spirit.

Now it was to Abraham that the promises were spoken, and to his offspring. God did not say, "offsprings" as if speaking of many, but "and to your offspring," as of one; and this is Christ.

I mean to say that the testament which God has already ratified could not be annulled by the Law which came four hundred and thirty years later, so as to make the Promise void.

but the Scripture has shut up the whole world in prison together under sin, in order that the promise due to faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who have faith.

So the Law has been our tutor-slave our pedagogue to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith;

but now that the Faith is come, we are no longer under a tutor-slave.

to redeem from captivity those under law, in order that we might receive our sonship.

Now, however, when you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you are beginning to turn back to those weak and beggarly externalities, eager to be in bondage to them again?

on the contrary, you know that although it was illness which brought about my preaching the gospel to you at my first visit,

Why then did you account yourselves so happy? (For I bear you witness that if you could you would have torn out your own eyes and given them to me.)

These men are courting your favor to no good purpose. They want to isolate you, so that you will be courting their favor.

How I wish I could be with you now, that I might change my tone; for I am perplexed about you.

For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and one by the free woman;

But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.

For it is written, Rejoice, O thou barren one who dost never bear, Break forth in joy, thou that dost not travail; For the children of the desolate woman are many. Yea, more than hers who has a husband.

Listen to me! I, Paul, declare to you that if you are to continue to follow the rite of circumcision, Christ will be no profit to you.

I solemnly testify to every man who submits to circumcision that he obligates himself to keep the whole Law.

As for me, I am fully trusting you in the Lord that you will be no otherwise minded; but he who is trying to unsettle you will have to bear his punishment, whoever he may be.

Would to God that those who are trying to unsettle you would even have themselves mutilated.

For the desire of the flesh is against that of the Spirit, and the desire of the Spirit is against that of the flesh, for they two are antagonistic, so that you may not do those things that you wish.

envy, drunkenness, revellings, and things like these. I tell you beforehand, as I have already told you, that those who practise such sins shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Even if any one should be overtaken in a fault, brothers, you that are spiritual ought, in a gentle spirit, to restore such a one, each one of you looking to himself, lest you too be tempted.

Be not deceived. God is not mocked. Whatever a man sows, that will he also reap.

Those who are trying to compel you to be circumcised are such as wish to make a fair show in the flesh, only that they may not suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.

Even those who are being circumcised, are not themselves keeping the Law, but they want you to be circumcised so that they may glory in your flesh.

God forbid that I should glory in anything except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, upon which the world has been crucified to me and I have been crucified to the world.