<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: A Classic Historical Commentary
Review: Like many of Paul's other letters, the Epistle to the Galatians spoketo an immediate controversy...Sir William Ramsay's commentaryaddresses the resulting historical perplexities: When was the letter written? To whom was it addressed? What were the precise points in controversy? Who were the opponents of Paul's views? How were the issues actually resolved by the infant Church? Or did they, as 19th Century German scholarship posited, lead to a fatal breach between Jewish and Gentile forms of Christianity? Ramsay (1851-1939) was well-equipped to delve into this area by virtue of his extensive knowledge of the history of Asia Minor, to which he devoted his archeological career. Though the present work is now a century old, it has never been superseded as a source of background information essential to seeing the epistle in historical context. Ramsay's most noteworthy contribution was to make a powerful case for the view that the "Galatians" whom Paul exhorted were inhabitants of the cities of Phrygia and Lycaonia (in South Central Anatolia) that he had proselytized during his first missionary journey... Ramsay's "South Galatian" hypothesis has remained a minority opinion, though a review of mainstream commentaries suggests that the "North Galatian" alternative rests largely on prejudice... particular, it is not easy to fit a Pauline visit to North Galatia into the narrative of Acts, and many modernist commentators, convinced that Acts is of little historical value, seem to see that as a point against Ramsay... Ramsay is normally a clear writer, but this particular book suffers from the fact that injuries sustained in an accident prevented him from making final revisions to the manuscript. As a result, the discussion is in places disjointed. Also, the reader will need to refer frequently to the text of Acts in order to grasp the argument fully. This commentary is not, in short, for casual reading, nor will it profit those whose interest lies solely in the doctrine of Galatians rather than its place in history. But for those who study it with care, it will offer abundant fruit. END
<< 1 >>
| 
