οὐ... πᾶσα σάρξ (A discourse analysis of Gal 2:14b-16)
Posted: January 29th, 2022, 5:22 pm
Re: ὅτι ἐξ ἔργων νόμου οὐ δικαιωθήσεται πᾶσα σάρξ (Gal 2:16b)
Christopher J. Monaghan wrote:
"Is Paul saying that no Jew will be saved? By no means! It is for this reason that translating the text as 'not all flesh will be justified by works of the Law' is a better reading avoiding the otherwise inevitable conclusion that translating πᾶσα σὰρξ as 'no flesh' leads to. Might it be that Gal 2:16 could simply be a statement of fact, that is, not all flesh – all humanity, would become Jewish?"
https://repository.divinity.edu.au/2846 ... sitory.pdf
Having tentatively accepted Monaghan's interpretation of οὐ... πᾶσα σάρξ, I'm attempting an alternative to Runge's (2019. High Definition Commentary: Galatians.) discourse analysis of Gal 2:14a-16.
This is how I'm seeing the flow of Paul's logic:
εἶπον τῷ Κηφᾷ ἔμπροσθεν πάντων
Εἰ σὺ Ἰουδαῖος ὑπάρχων ἐθνικῶς καὶ οὐκ Ἰουδαϊκῶς ζῇς,
πῶς τὰ ἔθνη ἀναγκάζεις ἰουδαΐζειν;
Ἡμεῖς φύσει Ἰουδαῖοι καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἁμαρτωλοί, εἰδότες δὲ ὅτι
οὐ δικαιοῦται ἄνθρωπος ἐξ ἔργων νόμου
ἐὰν μὴ διὰ πίστεως Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ,
except through the faith of Christ,
a person [i.e. a Jew by birth] is not justified by works of law,
"WORKS OF THE LAW + FAITH IN CHRIST = JUSTIFICATION" (Runge)
καὶ ἡμεῖς εἰς Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν ἐπιστεύσαμεν,
ἵνα δικαιωθῶμεν ἐκ πίστεως Χριστοῦ
Καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων νόμου,
Even we [i.e. Paul and Peter, Jews by birth] believed in Christ Jesus
so that we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ
and not by the works of the law
"FAITH IN CHRIST (WITHOUT WORKS OF THE LAW) = JUSTIFICATION" (Runge)
ὅτι ἐξ ἔργων νόμου οὐ δικαιωθήσεται πᾶσα σάρξ.
Because all flesh will not be justified by works of the law.
i.e. Paul was living like a Gentile since "not all flesh – all humanity, would become Jewish" (Monaghan, contra Runge's "no flesh" reading).
Paul's reason for living like a Gentile (breaking away from "works of the law" and relying on the "faith of Christ" alone) was his recognition that "not all flesh" was going to become Jewish. The "all" in "all flesh will not..." links back to the opening "all" of this discourse unit ("I said to Cephas in front of them all..."). In refusing to participate in Peter's withdrawal from table fellowship with Gentiles, Paul was loyal to his mission to "all"-- "all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some." Nevertheless, Paul does not deny that some Jews by birth had been "justified" through a combination of works of the law and participation in the the faith of Christ.
Is this a credible analysis of Paul's discourse?
Christopher J. Monaghan wrote:
"Is Paul saying that no Jew will be saved? By no means! It is for this reason that translating the text as 'not all flesh will be justified by works of the Law' is a better reading avoiding the otherwise inevitable conclusion that translating πᾶσα σὰρξ as 'no flesh' leads to. Might it be that Gal 2:16 could simply be a statement of fact, that is, not all flesh – all humanity, would become Jewish?"
https://repository.divinity.edu.au/2846 ... sitory.pdf
Having tentatively accepted Monaghan's interpretation of οὐ... πᾶσα σάρξ, I'm attempting an alternative to Runge's (2019. High Definition Commentary: Galatians.) discourse analysis of Gal 2:14a-16.
This is how I'm seeing the flow of Paul's logic:
εἶπον τῷ Κηφᾷ ἔμπροσθεν πάντων
Εἰ σὺ Ἰουδαῖος ὑπάρχων ἐθνικῶς καὶ οὐκ Ἰουδαϊκῶς ζῇς,
πῶς τὰ ἔθνη ἀναγκάζεις ἰουδαΐζειν;
Ἡμεῖς φύσει Ἰουδαῖοι καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἐθνῶν ἁμαρτωλοί, εἰδότες δὲ ὅτι
οὐ δικαιοῦται ἄνθρωπος ἐξ ἔργων νόμου
ἐὰν μὴ διὰ πίστεως Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ,
except through the faith of Christ,
a person [i.e. a Jew by birth] is not justified by works of law,
"WORKS OF THE LAW + FAITH IN CHRIST = JUSTIFICATION" (Runge)
καὶ ἡμεῖς εἰς Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν ἐπιστεύσαμεν,
ἵνα δικαιωθῶμεν ἐκ πίστεως Χριστοῦ
Καὶ οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων νόμου,
Even we [i.e. Paul and Peter, Jews by birth] believed in Christ Jesus
so that we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ
and not by the works of the law
"FAITH IN CHRIST (WITHOUT WORKS OF THE LAW) = JUSTIFICATION" (Runge)
ὅτι ἐξ ἔργων νόμου οὐ δικαιωθήσεται πᾶσα σάρξ.
Because all flesh will not be justified by works of the law.
i.e. Paul was living like a Gentile since "not all flesh – all humanity, would become Jewish" (Monaghan, contra Runge's "no flesh" reading).
Paul's reason for living like a Gentile (breaking away from "works of the law" and relying on the "faith of Christ" alone) was his recognition that "not all flesh" was going to become Jewish. The "all" in "all flesh will not..." links back to the opening "all" of this discourse unit ("I said to Cephas in front of them all..."). In refusing to participate in Peter's withdrawal from table fellowship with Gentiles, Paul was loyal to his mission to "all"-- "all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some." Nevertheless, Paul does not deny that some Jews by birth had been "justified" through a combination of works of the law and participation in the the faith of Christ.
Is this a credible analysis of Paul's discourse?