Discovery BoxGalatians 3:2 
Context3:2 The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law 1 or by believing what you heard? 2
Galatians 4:9
Context4:9 But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless 3 basic forces? 4 Do you want to be enslaved to them all over again? 5
Galatians 4:14
Context4:14 and though my physical condition put you to the test, you did not despise or reject me. 6 Instead, you welcomed me as though I were an angel of God, 7 as though I were Christ Jesus himself! 8
1 tn Grk “by [the] works of [the] law,” a reference to observing the Mosaic law.
2 tn Grk “by [the] hearing of faith.”
3 tn Or “useless.” See L&N 65.16.
4 tn See the note on the phrase “basic forces” in 4:3.
5 tn Grk “basic forces, to which you want to be enslaved…” Verse 9 is a single sentence in the Greek text, but has been divided into two in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.
6 tn Grk “your trial in my flesh you did not despise or reject.”
7 tn Or “the angel of God.” Linguistically, “angel of God” is the same in both testaments (and thus, he is either “an angel of God” or “the angel of God” in both testaments). For arguments and implications, see ExSyn 252; M. J. Davidson, “Angels,” DJG, 9; W. G. MacDonald argues for “an angel” in both testaments: “Christology and ‘The Angel of the Lord’,” Current Issues in Biblical and Patristic Interpretation, 324-35.
8 tn Grk “as an angel of God…as Christ Jesus.” This could be understood to mean either “you welcomed me like an angel of God would,” or “you welcomed me as though I were an angel of God.” In context only the second is accurate, so the translation has been phrased to indicate this.
