Galatians 5:15-26*

From Pete.

A. (15) But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

B.(16) This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

C. (17) For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

D. (18) But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

E.(19) Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, (20) Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, (21) Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:

F. of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

E’.(22) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, (23) Meekness, temperance:

D’. against such there is no law.

C’.(24) And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

B. (25) If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

A’.(26) Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

2 thoughts on “Galatians 5:15-26*”

  1. Thompson has a similar porposal in his book.
    I H Thomson, “Chiasmus in the Pauline Letters”. Journal For The Study of The New Testament Supplement Series 111, Sheffield Academic press, Sheffield, 1995.

  2. Galatians 5:14 and 6:2 can be added at the beginning at the end, which brings out a nice parallel between the old law and the ‘law of Christ’:

    5:14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.

    6:2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

    God’s character is not changed, and so the core command to love your neighbour / carry their burdens is the same.

    The whole context of the fruit of the spirit tells us that it is not developed in isolation but shown to one another.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.