Who bewitched the Galatians? And are they still around?

[Ken Rank]

Ten tribes of Israel were taken into captivity by the Assyrians. Some may have fled to Jerusalem as refugees before being overrun by the Assyrians. Those who remained were Judah, Benjamin and some of the Levites according to the Bible. If I convert to Judaism I may need to observe the Jewish holidays and all these other Torah commandments. Jesus specified there are Jewish laws that I must not disobey. I have stated some of them in my previous post. Jesus even advised his fellow Jews to pay Roman taxes. When the Jews rose up against Rome in 66 AD instead of remain as submissive tax payers, many thousands of them perished as they were overrun by the Roman army.

I could spend hours without taking a breath going over example after example as to why you have reached a conclusion that is not in harmony with ALL of Scripture. But like I said, I don't seek to make you believe as I do so please, just let it go. Thanks.

IOW... I am not getting into this. Not because I can't, but because A. I don't have the time and B. even if I did, you are not wanting to hear it anyway. So please, just let it go.

 

[Hank77]

There is a verse in Acts that shows, in the Greek, that 1/4 of the Jewish population of Jews in Jerusalem in that day believed he was the messiah.

What verse is that? Thanks

 

[Saint Steven]

EPHESIANS.6: = 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ...

HEBREWS.10: = 15 But the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us; for after He had said before,

16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,”
17 then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” 18 Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _

Where do the Spirit-indwelled Christians find truth about spiritual matters and righteousness.? Do the Spirit-indwelled Christians have God's laws put into their hearts and written in their minds by God.?

Hebrews chapter ten begins with this.

Hebrews 10:1
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. …
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And let's add verse eighteen.

Ephesians 6:17-18
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

 

[discipler7]

Hebrews chapter ten begins with this.

Hebrews 10:1
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. …

HEBREWS.10:26-31 = The Just Live by Faith
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _

Yes, the Law does not save people from hell but the Law, when appropriately written by God on the hearts and minds of Spirit-indwelled Christians, will keep them from willfully sinning/evil-doing/law-breaking.(cf; ACTS.15:24-29 for new Gentile Christians)

The Hyper-Grace doctrine falsely teaches Christians that they can even sin willfully and confidently without any risk of losing their salvation because they already have faith in Christ(= Grace) = the license to sin.
....... Gentile Christians who have also been wrongly taught to ignore or neglect or discard/destroy God's laws are easily "bewitched" by such a false doctrine and fall into sins/evil-deeds/law-breaking.

It is a fact that even pastors have fallen into the sins of adultery, homosexuality/sodomy, cheating/lying/fraud, etc. How come.? What will happen to them, will they still be saved until the end.?

We also have progressive Churches condoning homosexuality, eg gay pastors or bishops.

New Gentile Christians need to be wary about this, ie falling into willful sins and risking their salvation when God pours out His vengeance/curses against them.

 

[Ken Rank]

What verse is that? Thanks

Acts 21:20 in English says, "many thousands of Jews believed and remained zealous for the Law." The word for "many thousands" is murias, which is the word for 10,000 and in is in plural form. The Jewish population of Jerusalem according to a a number of sources was around 80,000... so at least 1/4 believed. Not sure that should surprise us at all... how many times did many thousands go to meetings he held? We (Christians) have made it sound like they all rejected him when the truth is the power elite rejected him and then stacked the deck in the courtyard when it was time to free one prisoner.

Interestingly... BarAbba was freed... bar means son, Abba means father. His name was, "son of the Father," so I tend to think he was one of the MANY false messiah's that were around at that time. But that is a personal belief only.

 

[klutedavid]

HEBREWS.10:26-31 = The Just Live by Faith
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _

Yes, the Law does not save people from hell but the Law, when appropriately written by God on the hearts and minds of Spirit-indwelled Christians, will keep them from willfully sinning/evil-doing/law-breaking.(cf; ACTS.15:24-29 for new Gentile Christians)

The Hyper-Grace doctrine falsely teaches Christians that they can even sin willfully and confidently without any risk of losing their salvation because they already have faith in Christ(= Grace) = the license to sin.
....... Gentile Christians who have also been wrongly taught to ignore or neglect or discard/destroy God's laws are easily "bewitched" by such a false doctrine and fall into sins/evil-deeds/law-breaking.

It is a fact that even pastors have fallen into the sins of adultery, homosexuality/sodomy, cheating/lying/fraud, etc. How come.? What will happen to them, will they still be saved until the end.?

We also have progressive Churches condoning homosexuality, eg gay pastors or bishops.

New Gentile Christians need to be wary about this, ie falling into willful sins and risking their salvation when God pours out His vengeance/curses against them.

Interesting post.

Do you sin?

Is your sin willful sin?

If you sin is your sin repeated over and over again?

Is your sin viewed differently by God to the sin other people commit?

 

[Hank77]

Acts 21:20 in English says, "many thousands of Jews believed and remained zealous for the Law." The word for "many thousands" is murias, which is the word for 10,000 and in is in plural form. The Jewish population of Jerusalem according to a a number of sources was around 80,000... so at least 1/4 believed. Not sure that should surprise us at all... how many times did many thousands go to meetings he held? We (Christians) have made it sound like they all rejected him when the truth is the power elite rejected him and then stacked the deck in the courtyard when it was time to free one prisoner.

Interestingly... BarAbba was freed... bar means son, Abba means father. His name was, "son of the Father," so I tend to think he was one of the MANY false messiah's that were around at that time. But that is a personal belief only.

Here's what Adam Clarke wrote about that verse back in the 1700s.
How many thousands - Ποσαι μυριαδες; How many myriads, how many times 10,000. This intimates that there had been a most extraordinary and rapid work even among the Jews; but what is here spoken is not to be confined to the Jews of Jerusalem, but to all that had come from different parts of the land to be present at this pentecost.

Other commentators have written the same information. Many Christians are aware that thousands of Jews were converted. We are also aware that for approx. 10 yrs. that almost all Christians were Jews. Anyone who has read Matt. 23 knows what Jesus said about the elite leaders. This verse is interesting.

Mat 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

 

[Dkh587]

The Galatians were Sabbath keepers & obeyed the law. They weren’t “Christians” who went to church on Sunday & celebrated Christmas and Easter And ignored the law/commandments

Paul was writing to the Galatians earning them about people teaching works-based salvation vs faith-based salvation.

 

[RDKirk]

Chapter three of the epistle to the Galatians begins with this sobering question.

Galatians 3:1
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What foolishness are we talking about here? And who are these bewitchers?
But first, how do we define "bewitched"?

Definition: bewitched
transitive verb. 1 a : to influence or affect especially injuriously by witchcraft. b : to cast a spell over. 2. : to attract as if by the power of witchcraft : enchant, fascinate. bewitched by her beauty.

Someone cast a spell over the Galatians. An injurious influence to enchant and gain power over them. The Apostle Paul is furious. He calls them foolish!

So, who are these spellcasting monsters that are trying to devour the church at Galatia? And are they still around today? Let's review the context.

Galatians 3:1-6
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? 4 Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? 5 So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? 6 So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There are several questions asked of the Galatians by the Apostle:
1) Who has bewitched you?
2) Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard?
3) Are you so foolish?
4) After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?
5) Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain?
6) -- question #2 is repeated here, thus giving it extra emphasis.

This doesn't identify the perpetrators, but identifies the problem. Someone was trying to get them under the law. To entice them to do the fleshly works of the law instead of continue as they had begun, by the Spirit.

To find the perpetrators, we need to back up to the pervious chapter which ends with this.

Galatians 2:21
I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In chapter two the offenders are named in the situation with Peter (Cephas) and the Circumcision Group. (Sabbatarians in today's terminology)

Galatians 2:11-14
When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. 13 The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. 14 When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

These are the same group of which Paul once was--Hellenist Jews, Jews of the Diaspora, and not necessarily Christians. It was always Jews of the Diaspora that Paul contended with throughout his ministry, and they opposed him so bitterly because he had been one of their stars, but had betrayed them.

Remember that at this time there was not yet a clear division between Judaism and Christianity (there isn't today, with us still claiming to be "Judeo-Christian"), and the new Gentile Christians were not necessarily savvy enough in their own theology to withstand the "to be true Christians, you have to become Jews" argument.

 

[Saint Steven]

These are the same group of which Paul once was--Hellenist Jews, Jews of the Diaspora, and not necessarily Christians. It was always Jews of the Diaspora that Paul contended with throughout his ministry, and they opposed him so bitterly because he had been one of their stars, but had betrayed them.

Remember that at this time there was not yet a clear division between Judaism and Christianity (there isn't today, with us still claiming to be "Judeo-Christian"), and the new Gentile Christians were not necessarily savvy enough in their own theology to withstand the "to be true Christians, you have to become Jews" argument.

As I understand it, the Galatians were gentiles, not Jews. Read an introduction to the book to confirm this.

 

[RDKirk]

.

 

[RDKirk]

As I understand it, the Galatians were gentiles, not Jews. Read an introduction to the book to confirm this.

The Christian congregation at Galatia were gentiles, but the Judaizers who descended upon them were Hellenist Jews, maybe/maybe not wholly accepting Jesus.

 

[RDKirk]

.

 

[2Timothy2:15]

Acts 21:20 in English says, "many thousands of Jews believed and remained zealous for the Law." The word for "many thousands" is murias, which is the word for 10,000 and in is in plural form. The Jewish population of Jerusalem according to a a number of sources was around 80,000... so at least 1/4 believed. Not sure that should surprise us at all... how many times did many thousands go to meetings he held? We (Christians) have made it sound like they all rejected him when the truth is the power elite rejected him and then stacked the deck in the courtyard when it was time to free one prisoner.

Interestingly... BarAbba was freed... bar means son, Abba means father. His name was, "son of the Father," so I tend to think he was one of the MANY false messiah's that were around at that time. But that is a personal belief only.

Just for the sake of correct math, 10000 of 80000 is not 1/4 it is 12.5% which is far from 25%. So that is not a correct translation unless you are saying the Greeks were that bad at math which they were not.

 

[2Timothy2:15]

The Christian congregation at Galatia were gentiles, but the Judaizers who descended upon them were Hellenist Jews, maybe/maybe not wholly accepting Jesus.

We can also glean from Acts 15 that these were not saved "Jews" in Galatia at all.

 

[Saint Steven]

The Christian congregation at Galatia were gentiles, but the Judaizers who descended upon them were Hellenist Jews, maybe/maybe not wholly accepting Jesus.

Thanks for that clarification.

 

[RDKirk]

We (Christians) have made it sound like they all rejected him when the truth is the power elite rejected him and then stacked the deck in the courtyard when it was time to free one prisoner.

Yes.

Maybe a prisoner would be freed. More likely one or more would go to a cross.

Ordinary working Jews were preparing for Passover, staying ceremonially clean, getting into a religious mood. How many of them were going to pack the courtyard of a hated foreign despot to watch him condemn one of their own? How many ordinary working Jews were going to run the risk of getting killed or captured by Pilate's troops if trouble flared up from the zealots?

Not to mention that not many ordinary working Jews would even know about Jesus' prosecution. Scripture makes clear that the authorities kept His prosecution quiet and quick. They wouldn't want an uncontrolled mob standing behind them while they were making their plea to Pilate.

We know that there were thousands of officials and guards under the authority of Herod and the priests--more than enough to pack Pilate's courtyard and be under command to go along with the authorities.

 

[Ken Rank]

Just for the sake of correct math, 10000 of 80000 is not 1/4 it is 12.5% which is far from 25%. So that is not a correct translation unless you are saying the Greeks were that bad at math which they were not.

When you're going to publicly correct somebody, you should read what the other person actually said. What I said was, that murias is the Greek word for 10,000 and that, in the verse in question, it's in PLURAL FORM. That means at least 20,000.

 

[AlexDTX]

Chapter three of the epistle to the Galatians begins with this sobering question.

Galatians 3:1
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What foolishness are we talking about here? And who are these bewitchers?
But first, how do we define "bewitched"?

Definition: bewitched
transitive verb. 1 a : to influence or affect especially injuriously by witchcraft. b : to cast a spell over. 2. : to attract as if by the power of witchcraft : enchant, fascinate. bewitched by her beauty.

Someone cast a spell over the Galatians. An injurious influence to enchant and gain power over them. The Apostle Paul is furious. He calls them foolish!

So, who are these spellcasting monsters that are trying to devour the church at Galatia? And are they still around today? Let's review the context.

Galatians 3:1-6
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? 4 Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? 5 So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? 6 So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There are several questions asked of the Galatians by the Apostle:
1) Who has bewitched you?
2) Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard?
3) Are you so foolish?
4) After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?
5) Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain?
6) -- question #2 is repeated here, thus giving it extra emphasis.

This doesn't identify the perpetrators, but identifies the problem. Someone was trying to get them under the law. To entice them to do the fleshly works of the law instead of continue as they had begun, by the Spirit.

To find the perpetrators, we need to back up to the pervious chapter which ends with this.

Galatians 2:21
I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In chapter two the offenders are named in the situation with Peter (Cephas) and the Circumcision Group. (Sabbatarians in today's terminology)

Galatians 2:11-14
When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. 13 The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. 14 When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

They were Messianic Jews who had received the new birth but did not understand the gift of grace. This influence still exists and is found in both gentile and messianic sources within the Church.

 

[Chris V++]

I don't connect those ceremonies with law-based organizations. Neither baptism or communion have their roots in the old covenant law.

I might be wrong but isn't communion rooted in Passover and baptism rooted in ceremonial bathing (Mikveh) still practiced today. Weren't these traditions sort of repurposed by example of Jesus? Maybe 'repurposed' isn't the right word.