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Commentary on Galatians: Modern-English Edition

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Martin Luther's "Commentary on Galatians" remains, after almost half a millennium, perhaps the most vigorous and profound manifesto for the Protestant and evangelical doctrine of justification by faith alone. Within Lutheranism, it was recommended by the later compilers of the Book of Concord (also on amazon.com) as a powerfully inspired treatment of justification by faith, while in British Protestant circles, both John Bunyan (author of The Pilgrim's Progress) and Charles Wesley found their whole lives transformed by this book.

Following St. Paul, Luther sees a life and death (literally) opposition between law and faith. Under law, we believe that God approaches us as an angry judge, and we try to win this angry judge over by doing good works for him. Since we are sinners by nature, we cannot fulfill the demands of God who by nature must demand perfection, to remain under the law is to remain under sin, its death, and the devil. As Luther reads Paul, the man under law lives by works, always striving to please this angry God, yet in his heart of hearts he blasphemes Him for demanding the perfect works man cannot give. Yet in Christ God shows that He demands nothing of us but loves us and is heartily willing to forgive us, a promise He sealed in blood on the cross. When we see Christ crucified and have faith that now God is now no angry judge but a tender father eager only to give us all good things, then we are no longer under law but under grace, which brings us freedom, hope, and the desire to do good works, not of a bitter and despairing heart, but freely.

As Luther notes, church fathers like Jerome felt profoundly uncomfortable with Paul's violent denunciation of the law, and in their commentaries tried to tone it down. They insisted that by "law" Paul meant only the Jewish law with its out-dated ceremonies and sacrifices, and at several points treated Paul's categorical statements as almost scandalous exaggeration (see, for example, Luther's citations of Jerome's commentary on Gal. 3:13). Luther, however, insists that law here, as in Paul's other epistles, means exactly the moral law and his statements about the moral law for a sinner leading only to death and the curse of God must be read seriously, not dismissed as hyperbole.

I read this work in the 19th century translation published by Kregel which uses the King James Bible text and a somewhat archaic language to match. To me it seemed both powerful and suitable to the Luther's pithy and picturesque language, but others may find it somewhat off-putting and prefer the "Modern Language Version" published by Fleming H. Revell.

Martin Luther (1483-1546 AD) became an Augustinian, Roman Catholic monk where he studied the Word of God diligently while still in the monastery. His study convinced him to post his 95 theses, statements he wanted to debate within the context of the Church to restore it. The rest is history as Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Roman Catholic church and became the first "Lutheran."

Luther was convinced that: God justifies a person (declares him righteous and acquits him) by faith alone and not by works, each believer has access to God directly apart from any human intermediaries, and the Scriptures are the true source of authority for both faith and life. Many of his doctrines, especially on justification, he covered brilliantly in his commentary on Galatians. And rightly so, for Galatians was his favorite book, his "Katherine," and it was central to his understanding of the gospel.

Luther's Commentary on Galatians in the history of the Christian Church is very remarkable. It presents like no other of the central thought of Christianity: the justification of the sinner for the sake of Christ's merits alone. Luther also delineates the difference between Law (what God demands from us) and Gospel (what God has done and does for us); in this text, we understand his "simul justus et peccator," that is, a Christian is simultaneously 100 % saint and 100 % sinner.

To understand Christian theology and justification by faith, reading this commentary is proper, right, for our eternal good--for Luther explains the doctrines of the Scriptures in forthright boldness and clarity.

Not too long ago I wrapped up a year-long study of Galatians. In the process, the Spirit used the book to bring the definition and perils of legalism to bear on my life. Just as in Galatians 3:1, seeing Christ clearly portrayed as crucified for my sins, how could I foolishly even presume to think that there was something that I could add to this salvation?! God used the book to literally change my life: making me fall deeper in love with Christ, shoving me to my knees at the foot of the cross, and revealing and removing many of my personal legalistic hopes of justification other than Christ.

That is what I love about Luther's commentary. Luther was learning this stuff and loving it as he was teaching it. He was not a theologian who had the benefit of walking in the steps of bible-loving, grace-espousing mentors. He was pierced by the word and the Spirit changed his heart by it. This is what you see in Galatians. During my study I read many great commentaries, but my favorite was Luthers. Luther acts in this commentary as both an exegete and a pastor. This is a commentary that you may just want to curl up with on the couch after you finish studying a section and read and read again. His passion is contagious.

(By the way, my other favorite Galatians commentaries were MacArthur's and Hendriksen's. Calvin's and Stott's came in a close #4 and #5). I hope this helps.

This is, in my estimation, the greatest non-canonical book ever written. Luther expounds Paul's epistle to the Galatians with an insight, power and depth of emotion which is sorely lacking in modern commentaries. He is not concerned with the various potential interpretations of "problematic passages" that fill the pages of other commentaries. From the very first page Luther cuts to the heart of the epistle-the doctrine of justification-in the way that only he can. His bold words and plain-sense interpretations result in a work filled with much of the same force and passion that characterized the epistle itself. The grace of God and the love of Jesus Christ cling to every word like the scent of a precious perfume. I cannot recommend this work highly enough. This is the very essence of the gospel as understood by the one who "rediscovered" the doctrines of faith and grace as he teaches us from the words of the one to whom God first revealed those doctrines. If you are looking for an up-to-date critical commentary or a greek-focused exegetical work then you will not find it here, but if you would hear a plain declaration of the power and wisdom of God then you will not find a better treatise apart from the Bible.

Martin Luthers work on the Book of Galations surpasses most in that this is the book that lead Martin Luther to understand Grace, so he naturaly pours out in it in his great gift of understanding the teachings of God's word. Martin Luther prepared a book worthy of all the praise it has received and is of great benifit to all who seek to gain a greater understanding of the Book of Galations.
These are the books that helped the Church grow in strength, and are greatly in need of being studied today.

When faced with the ineptitude of my walk with the Lord Jesus I must turn to Luther's Commentary on Galatians! It nearly always brings me to tears of joy as Luther expounds on the love of the Lord Jesus for me a sinner. If Christians of today would make this book a constant book of study, second of course to their Bible we as a church would be able to say along with the apostle Peter,"silver and gold we have none,but such as I have give thee..." Its time for revival in America. Luther's Commentary on Galatians was good enough for the Wesley's amd Bunyan as one other reviewer stated. May I say its good enough for us today. Let's reclaim the power of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and learn the old truth of being justified by faith alone through His grace alone.

This review covers the Flemming H. Revell Commentary on St. Paul's Epistle to The Galations. This version is based upon Luther's lectures at the University of Wittenberg in 1531 and the translation is based upon the "Middleton" edition of 1575. This is the best version to my knowledge, but it is written in King James english. On the positive side, it reads very poetic, but on the negative, it is harder to follow. I personally like this writing as it is closer to the language of the 16th Century. This book was considered by Luther to be his favorite, and history rates it highly. To summarize, it has a number of messages, (1) Galations shows that a person who is in true faith can fall away if they are negatively influenced by false teaching - a real problem in today's world. (2) That Biblical teaching must be solely based upon Bible scripture, and anyone who teaches man's doctrines using random Bible passages to support his/her sermons is most likely not a trustworthy preacher. (3) That even faith is a gift of God, and not a decision that a person makes. (4) That "Justification" is based upon "faith alone. (5) That Mose's OT law condemns mankind, and that anything a person tries to add to God's grace in the way of works or self rightiousness, denies what Jesus Christ did for mankind on the cross - Galatians 5:4. (6) That good works result from heart felt faith, and that good works do not preceed or contribute to salvation when it comes to "Justification."
The world needs this teaching to be more prevalent; however, the world does not like to hear it; therefore, it is almost lost in today's religious teachings. This work is a masterpiece with few peers if any, and is highly recommended to a person familiar with the Bible who desires to grow in their faith and understanding.

Martin Luther expounds on the Truth of God's Word, that we receive grace through faith in Jesus Christ. This is one of my most highly recommended books for all Christians to read.

Dr. Martin Luther didn't want to split the Church, but at that time it was very corrupt.Faith and Salvation is the Bibles main message,and Luther was a great evangelist for Christ!!

Commentary was for a Christmas present. Receiver of the gift was very excited, and enjoys the book very much.