Galatians 1:7 - "...do not pervert the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Lord!"

Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

Galatians 1:7 — King James Version

which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.

Galatians 1:7 — New International Version

Which does not exist, but there are some who trouble you and wish to change The Gospel of The Messiah.

Galatians 1:7 — Aramaic Bible in Plain English

But what some people are calling good news is not really good news at all. They are confusing you. They want to distort the Good News about Christ.

Galatians 1:7 — God’s Word Translation

I am astounded that you are so quick to remove yourselves from me, the one who called you by the Messiah’s grace, and turn to some other supposedly “Good News,” which is not good news at all! What is really happening is that certain people are pestering you and trying to pervert the genuine Good News of the Messiah. But even if we — or, for that matter, an angel from heaven! — were to announce to you some so-called “Good News” contrary to the Good News we did announce to you, let him be under a curse forever! We said it before, and I say it again: if anyone announces “Good News” contrary to what you received, let him be under a curse forever!

Galatians 1:6-9 — Complete Jewish Bible

Context — No Other Gospel

Galatians 1:6-9

I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!…

Cross References

Jeremiah 23:36
But you must not mention ‘a message from the LORD’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort the words of the living God, the LORD Almighty, our God.

Acts 15:24
We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.

2 Corinthians 11:13
For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.

Galatians 1:6
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel–

Galatians 2:4
This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves.

Galatians 5:10
I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty.

Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary

Galatians 1:6-9 Those who would establish any other way to heaven than what the gospel of Christ reveals, will find themselves wretchedly mistaken. The apostle presses upon the Galatians a due sense of their guilt in forsaking the gospel way of justification; yet he reproves with tenderness, and represents them as drawn into it by the arts of some that troubled them. In reproving others, we should be faithful, and yet endeavour to restore them in the spirit of meekness. Some would set up the works of the law in the place of Christ’s righteousness, and thus they corrupted Christianity. The apostle solemnly denounces, as accursed, every one who attempts to lay so false a foundation. All other gospels than that of the grace of Christ, whether more flattering to self-righteous pride, or more favourable to worldly lusts, are devices of Satan. And while we declare that to reject the moral law as a rule of life, tends to dishonour Christ, and destroy true religion, we must also declare, that all dependence for justification on good works, whether real or supposed, is as fatal to those who persist in it. While we are zealous for good works, let us be careful not to put them in the place of Christ’s righteousness, and not to advance any thing which may betray others into so dreadful a delusion.

Thoughts on Today’s Verse

By Elizabeth Haworth

Paul taught the Galatians believers that salvation is from the Lord and that it is received as a free gift of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. He taught them that salvation was only through the blood of the Lord Jesus, shed at Calvary and His glorious resurrection from the dead. Paul clearly taught that salvation was a gift of God for all who would believe in His name.

Paul had also taught that salvation was to glorify God and yet despite his clear teaching on the gospel of grace, he was shocked to discover that the Galatian Christians had turned away from the gospel of God – Who calls us all to Himself through the loving mercy of Christ.

Paul was astonished that these Galatian believers had so quickly turned away from the good news of the glorious gospel of God. Paul was shocked that having been saved by grace through faith in Christ that they were now reverting to a gospel of works, which perverts the gospel of Christ. He accused them of following a way that pretended to be the Good News of God, but which was in fact.. a different gospel; a false gospel – another “gospel”.

Paul challenged the speed with which these believers turned from the truth of the gospel of grace to this false, legalistic works-based teachings and confronted this serious error head-on. He informed them that they had replaced the truth of God’ Word with a lie from the enemy and warned that there were many false teachers within the church, who were perverting the truth of the gospel of Christ.

The error that so quickly leached into the Galatian church in Paul’s day is still polluting the good news of the gospel of God’s grace today. Today as then, men and women are removing themselves from God’s grace and placing themselves under God’s curse – because of false teachers that continue to pervert the truth of the Gospel of Christ with this false, legalistic, works-based, meritorious teachings – a ‘gospel’ that causes dear believes to fall from grace and places them back under the curse of the Law.

May we who were born again by the Spirit of God by grace through faith in Christ ..live and walk and pray in spirit and truth – by grace through faith in Him. May we who were called into the gospel of the grace of Christ by faith.. be guided by the Spirit of truth. May we who heard the gospel by the hearing of faith be careful… not to seek to be perfected by works of the flesh – but may we learn to walk in sprit and truth.. by grace through faith.

My Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for the glorious gospel of Christ and for Your grace which has brought me into Your heavenly family, by faith in His finished work on Calvary. Keep me from falling into the error of trying to perfect myself by means of my own fleshly works and legalistic acts, knowing that it is only by means of the Holy Spirit – Who works in my ‘new-life-in-Christ’ by grace, that I can live a life that honours You – this I ask in Jesus name, amen

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

Which is not another,…. It is no Gospel, no joyful sound, no good news, and glad tidings; the doctrine which attributes justification to the works of the law, or mixes grace and works in the business of salvation, which was the doctrine of these false teachers, is no Gospel; not truly so, however it may be called; nor does it bring any solid peace and joy to distressed minds. There is but one pure Gospel of the grace of God, and Christ, and his apostles; there is not one and another; there is but one faith, one doctrine and scheme of faith; the Gospel is single and uniform, all of a piece, has no yea and nay, or contradiction in it; this trumpet gives no uncertain sound, nor any dreadful, but a joyful one:

but there be some that trouble you; meaning the false apostles, whose names he does not think fit to mention, as being unworthy to be named, and to have their names transmitted to posterity. These troubled the churches with their doctrines and principles, by raising disputes and controversies among them, injecting doubts and scruples into their minds, which puzzled and confounded them, and made them uneasy, and which broke in upon that peace of soul which the Gospel brings and establishes; for no true solid peace is attained to, and enjoyed, but by the doctrine of justification by the righteousness of Christ, pardon by his blood, and atonement by his sacrifice, which the doctrine of justification by works, &c. tends to destroy.

And would pervert the Gospel of Christ; which has Christ for its author, subject, and preacher; and particularly the doctrine of justification by his righteousness, which they sought to change, to throw into a different shape and form, to adulterate by mixing it with the works of the law, and so, if possible, destroy it: to this they showed a good will, but were not able to effect, for the Gospel is an everlasting one; it is immovable, and so is that particular doctrine of it; it remains, and will remain in spite of opposition to it. Thus the apostle prudently lays the blame of the Galatians removing from the Gospel to another upon the false teachers, hoping he should be able to reclaim them by solid arguments, and gentle methods.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

Galatians 1:7. another—A distinct Greek word from that in Ga 1:6. Though I called it a gospel (Ga 1:6), it is not really so. There is really but one Gospel, and no other gospel.

but—Translate, “Only that there are some that trouble you,” &c. (Ga 5:10, 12). All I meant by the “different gospel” was nothing but a perversion by “some” of the one Gospel of Christ.

would pervert—Greek, “wish to pervert”; they could not really pervert the Gospel, though they could pervert Gospel professors (compare Ga 4:9, 17, 21; 6:12, 13; Col 2:18). Though acknowledging Christ, they insisted on circumcision and Jewish ordinances and professed to rest on the authority of other apostles, namely, Peter and James. But Paul recognizes no gospel, save the pure Gospel.