Philip Schaff's Popular Commentary (4 vols)

Galatians 2:16

Galatians 2:16. Yet knowing that a man is not justified by works of law (law-works, Gesetzeswerke), but only through faith in Jesus Christ, we ourselves also became believers in Christ Jesus. Here the term ‘justify' is first introduced in this Epistle. On the important doctrine of justification see the Excursus below, and the comments on Romans 1:17 and Romans 3:20. It means acquittal from the guilt and punishment of sin in the tribunal of the just and holy God, on the ground of Christ's atoning death and through the medium of faith by which we apprehend Christ's merits and make his righteousness our own. ‘By works of law,' the whole law, moral as well as ceremonial.

Shall no flesh be justified, lit., ‘shall all flesh not be justified,' or ‘find no justification.' An expressive Hebraism. The negation attaches to the verb, and not to the noun. But the genius of the English language requires such a transposition. ‘Flesh' in Hebrew is often used for man, living being. The future tense expresses moral impossibility: such a thing can never happen. The passage is an authoritative confirmation of his own statement by an allusion to Psalms 143:2: ‘Enter not into judgment with Thy servant: for in Thy sight shall no man living be justified.' Comp. Romans 3:20, where the passage is quoted in the same form with the same addition ‘of works of law.'

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Philip Schaff's Popular Commentary (4 vols)

Galatians 2:16

Old Testament

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