But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

But I let you know, brethren, as to the glad tidings which were announced by me, that they are not according to man.

For you have heard of my former mode of life in Judaism, that I greatly persecuted the church of God, and laid it waste;

Only they were hearing - He that was persecuting us formerly, now, is announcing the glad-message of the faith which he formerly laid waste;

And I went up by revelation; and I laid before them the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles but privately before them who were of repute, lest by any means I should be running, or had run, in vain.

And that because of the false brothers let in secretly, who came searching out our free condition which we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might make servants of us;

And the rest of the Jews also joined with him in this hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray with them by their hypocrisy.

And if, seeking to be declared righteous in Christ, we ourselves also were found sinners, is then Christ a ministrant of sin? let it not be!

This is all I want to ask of you: did you receive the [Holy] Spirit as the result of obeying [the requirements of] the Law, or was it the result of hearing [the message of salvation and] with faith [believing it]?

Brothers, let me use an example from everyday life. Once an agreement has been ratified, no one can cancel it or add conditions to it.

Why then was the Law given? It was imposed later on for the sake of defining sin, until the seed should come to whom God had made the promise; and its details were laid down by a mediator with the help of angels.

the law, then, is against the promises of God? -- let it not be! for if a law was given that was able to make alive, truly by law there would have been the righteousness,

with the result that the Law has become our tutor and our disciplinarian to guide us to Christ, so that we may be justified [that is, declared free of the guilt of sin and its penalty, and placed in right standing with God] by faith.

I am afraid for you, [i.e., for your spiritual safety], that possibly I may have spent a lot of effort on your behalf for nothing.

for it is written, "rejoice thou barren, that bearest not; break out into loud acclamations, thou that hast not the travels of childbirth, for more are the children of the desolate, than of her that hath an husband."

Christ has truly made us free: then keep your free condition and let no man put a yoke on you again.

Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you at all!

Ye did run well. Who was a let unto you, that ye should not obey the truth?

For you, my brothers, were called to freedom; only do not let your freedom become an opportunity for the sinful nature (worldliness, selfishness), but through love serve and seek the best for one another.

And if ye bite and devour one another, see ye that ye be not laid waste by one another.

This then is what I mean. Let your lives be guided by the Spirit, and then you will certainly not indulge the cravings of your lower natures.

But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Brethren, if anybody be detected in any misconduct, you who are spiritual should restore such a one in a spirit of meekness. And let each of you keep watch over himself, lest he also fall into temptation.

For if anyone thinks he is something [special] when [in fact] he is nothing [special except in his own eyes], he deceives himself.

But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.

For every person will have to bear [with patience] his own burden [of faults and shortcomings for which he alone is responsible].

Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.

Be not led astray; God is not mocked; for what a man may sow -- that also he shall reap,

And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

These men who are trying to force you to let yourselves be circumcised want to present a good appearance externally, to save themselves from having to stand persecution for the cross of Jesus the Christ.

Why, even those who let themselves be circumcised do not observe the Law themselves! But they want you to let yourselves be circumcised so that they can boast of that physical fact about you!

And for me, let it not be -- to glory, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which to me the world hath been crucified, and I to the world;

From henceforth let no man trouble me: for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.