GAL 2:21 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, red:negative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nothing!”

UST I am not rejecting as useless what God kindly did for me, as my opponents are doing. If God considers people to be righteous because they obey the laws that he gave to Moses, then the Messiah died needlessly!”

BLB I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness is through the Law, then Christ died for naught."

AICNT I do not nullify the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

OEB I do not reject the love of God. If righteousness comes through Law, then there was no need for Christ to die!

WEBBE I don’t reject the grace of God. For if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nothing!”

WMBB I don’t reject the grace of God. For if righteousness is through the law, then Messiah died for nothing!”

MSG ^(19-21)What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

NET I do not set aside God’s grace, because if righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing!

LSV I do not make the grace of God void, for if righteousness [is] through law—then Christ died in vain.

FBV How could I dismiss God's grace? For if we could be made right through keeping the law then Christ died a pointless death!

TCNT I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

T4T I am not rejecting as useless what God did for me ◄kindly/that I did not deserve►, as my opponents are doing. I fully accept that God saved me by acting kindly towards me. If it is because people obey the laws that God gave to Moses that God erases the record of their sins, then Christ died ◄for nothing/needlessly►.

LEB I do not declare invalid the grace of God, for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.

BBE I do not make the grace of God of no effect: because if righteousness is through the law, then Christ was put to death for nothing.

Moff I do not annul God's grace; but if righteousness comes by way of the Law, then indeed Christ's death was useless.

Wymth I do not nullify the grace of God; for if acquittal from guilt is obtainable through the Law, then Christ has died in vain."
¶ 

ASV I do not make void the grace of God: for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nought.

DRA I cast not away the grace of God. For if justice be by the law, then Christ died in vain.

YLT I do not make void the grace of God, for if righteousness [be] through law — then Christ died in vain.

Drby I do not set aside the grace of [fn]God; for if righteousness [is] by law, then Christ has died for nothing.

2.21 Elohim

RV I do not make void the grace of God: for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nought.
(I do not make void the grace of God: for if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for naught/nothing. )

SLT I put not away the grace of God for if justice through the law, Christ died in vain.

Wbstr I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness is attainable by the law, then Christ hath died in vain.

KJB-1769 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
(I do not frustraight the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. )

KJB-1611 I doe not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousnes come by the Lawe, then Christ is dead in vaine.
(I do not frustraight the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the Law, then Christ is dead in vain.)

Bshps I reiect not the grace of God: For yf ryghteousnesse come of the lawe, then Christe is dead in vayne.
(I reject not the grace of God: For if righteousness come of the law, then Christ is dead in vain.)

Gnva I doe not abrogate the grace of God: for if righteousnes be by the Lawe, then Christ dyed without a cause.
(I do not abrogate the grace of God: for if righteousness be by the Law, then Christ died without a cause. )

Cvdl I cast not awaye the grace of God. For yf righteousnes come by the lawe, then dyed Christ in vayne.
(I cast not away the grace of God. For if righteousness come by the law, then died Christ in vain.)

TNT I despyse not the grace of God. For if rightewesnes come of the lawe then Christ dyed in vayne.
(I despise not the grace of God. For if rightewesnes come of the law then Christ died in vain. )

Wycl Y caste not awey the grace of God; for if riytwisnesse be thoruy lawe, thanne Crist diede with out cause.
(I cast/threw not away the grace of God; for if righteousness be through law, then Christ died with out cause.)

Luth Ich werfe nicht weg die Gnade Gottes; denn so durch das Gesetz die Gerechtigkeit kommt, so ist Christus vergeblich gestorben.
(I throw not away/gone the grace God’s; because/than so through the law the justice comes, so is Christ vain died.)

ClVg Non abjicio gratiam Dei. Si enim per legem justitia, ergo gratis Christus mortuus est.
(Not/No abyicio grace of_God. When/But_if because through the_law justice, therefore for_free Christ/Messiah dead it_is. )

UGNT οὐκ ἀθετῶ τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ; εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν.
(ouk athetō taʸn ⱪarin tou Theou; ei gar dia nomou dikaiosunaʸ, ara Ⱪristos dōrean apethanen.)

SBL-GNT οὐκ ἀθετῶ τὴν χάριν τοῦ θεοῦ· εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν.
(ouk athetō taʸn ⱪarin tou theou; ei gar dia nomou dikaiosunaʸ, ara Ⱪristos dōrean apethanen.)

RP-GNT Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τὴν χάριν τοῦ θεοῦ· εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν.
(Ouk athetō taʸn ⱪarin tou theou; ei gar dia nomou dikaiosunaʸ, ara ⱪristos dōrean apethanen.)

TC-GNT Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ· εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν.
(Ouk athetō taʸn ⱪarin tou Theou; ei gar dia nomou dikaiosunaʸ, ara Ⱪristos dōrean apethanen. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:11–21: Paul corrected Peter in Antioch

In this section, Paul told his readers what the true gospel is. It is salvation by faith in Christ alone. Obeying the law is not part of the true gospel. Doing what the law demands does not justify anyone.

Paul told how Peter had deserted the true gospel. He wanted the Galatians to understand how they too were deserting the true gospel. They had started to think that it was necessary to obey the law to be justified. Paul wanted them to read about his rebuke to Peter so that they could recognize how their own situation was similar. They must completely reject justification through the law. He emphasized that justification is by faith in Christ alone.

This section also shows that Paul’s authority as an apostle was at least as great as Peter’s was. This section is also an indirect rebuke of the false teachers who had come to the Galatian churches and required the non-Jews to adopt Jewish traditions to be accepted as true Christians.

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Paul rebukes Peter

Paul defended the truth of the gospel

Paul shows how Peter was wrong

Paragraph 2:14–21

In this paragraph, Paul asked Peter and the other Jewish believers to live according to the true gospel. This meant that they had to reject the idea that they were justified by obeying the law. Paul emphasized that justification is by faith in Christ alone. Peter’s actions had implied that it was also necessary to keep the law. That would make Christ’s death meaningless and nullify the grace of God.

In 2:14c, Paul began to speak directly to Peter. There are at least three ways to interpret where Paul’s direct speech to Peter ends:

It ends after verse 21. (NIV, NASB, CEV)
It ends after verse 14. In verses 15–21, what Paul said to Peter is indirect speech. (BSB, ESV, NET, RSV, JBP, GNT, NJB, GW, NCV)
It ends after verse 16. (NLT)

It is recommended that you follow option (1). In 2:15, it is possible that Paul began to also talk to the other people who were there. But he was still also talking to Peter. So Paul’s speech does not end until verse 21.Schreiner on page 150 says, “The first question to be asked is where Paul’s words to Peter, which began in 2:11, end. Since quotation marks are lacking in the original manuscripts, certainty eludes us. Possibly the words directed to Peter conclude after 2:14, 2:15, 2:16, 2:18, or 2:21. I personally argue that it makes most sense to see all of 2:14–21 as addressed to Peter. At least four pieces of evidence support this conclusion. (1) Verse 15 is not clearly set off from 2:11–14. (2) The first person plural pronouns in 2:15–17 most naturally refer to Jewish Christians and would speak to such people in Antioch. (3) Verse 17 may reflect the charges against Peter. (4) A new subject commences on 3:1, where the Galatians are addressed directly.”

If you choose option (2), your translation should still show that Paul is indirectly speaking to Peter in 2:15–21. For example, at the beginning of 2:15, the JBP says:

And then I went on to explain that (JBP)

2:21

In this verse, Paul concluded his rebuke of Peter and the other Jewish believers who separated themselves from the non-Jews. He said that their actions implied that Christ died for nothing.

But Christ’s death did accomplish its purpose. Therefore the actions of Peter and the other men were wrong. Paul refused to reject God’s grace as they had done. He used “I do not” as an indirect way of rebuking Peter for what he did.

2:21a

I do not set aside the grace of God.

I do not reject God’s grace,
I do not refuse God’s favor/kindness like those who return to obeying the law.

I do not set aside the grace of God: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as set aside means to “reject” or “refuse.”

The word grace means “kindness,” “generosity” or “favor” that is shown to someone who does not deserve it. This word also occurs in 2:9a. See grace, Meaning 2, in the Glossary.

Paul implied that Peter had rejected God’s grace. Peter did that when he separated himself from the non-Jews. When he did this, he acted as if it were necessary to obey the Jewish laws in order for God to accept him. That was rejecting grace as the means of being made righteous.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

I don’t reject God’s kindness. (GW)

I don’t turn my back on God's gift of undeserved grace. (CEV)

I do not refuse the grace of God like those who return to obeying the law

2:21b

For if righteousness comes through the law,

for if people could become righteous through obeying the law,
because if obeying the law could make a person right with/before God,
If a person could be made acceptable to God because of obeying the law,

For: This part of 2:21 explains why Paul does not reject the grace of God. The Greek introduces this explanation with a conjunction that the BSB translates as For.

Some other ways to begin this explanation are:

I do not reject the grace of God , because

I do not do this , because

In some languages, it will not be necessary to translate this conjunction. In other languages, it will be more natural to change the order of 2:21b–c and 2:21a. For example:

^bIf righteousness were through the law, ^cthen Christ died for no purpose. ^aBut righteousness is not through the law. It is through grace. So I do not reject the grace of God.

if righteousness comes through the law: This clause means “if a person could become righteous through/by obeying the law of Moses.”

The word if introduces a statement that is not true. Paul used this “if” sentence to show the consequences of Peter’s action. Peter’s actions implied that a person could become right with God by means of obeying the law.

Some other ways to translate this sentence are:

if a person could become righteous by obeying the law

if obeying the law could make a person right with God— but it cannot

suppose righteousness could be gained/found through the law

righteousness: The word righteousness refers to the character trait of being “upright,” “blameless” or “just.” A person can never be made right with God by obeying the law.

Some other ways to translate this word are:

right with God

acceptable to God (CEV)

uprightness/blamelessness in the sight of God

See righteous in the Glossary for more information.

2:21c

Christ died for nothing.

then Christ's death had no purpose.”
then that would make Christ’s death worthless.”
it was useless for Christ to die.”

Christ died for nothing: In this context, the phrase for nothing means “for no purpose.” This clause states the consequence that would result if 2:21b were true. Since it is impossible to be made right with God by means of obeying the law, then it is equally not true that Christ died for nothing.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

then Christ’s death was pointless (GW)

then that would that make Christ’s death worthless! But is was not worthless.

it was useless for Christ to die (CEV)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / litotes

οὐκ ἀθετῶ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Here, Paul expresses a strong positive meaning by using a negative phrase, do not, together with a phrase, set aside that is the opposite of the intended meaning. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning positively. Alternate translation: [I strongly affirm] or [I do uphold]

οὐκ ἀθετῶ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Alternate translation: [I do not ignore] or [I do not dismiss]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of grace, you could express the same idea with an adverb or you could express the meaning in some other way that is natural in your language. See how you translated the similar expression “the grace of Christ” in [1:6](../01/06.md). Alternate translation: [what God graciously did]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

δικαιοσύνη

righteousness_‹is›

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of righteousness, you could express the same idea with an adjective such as “righteous,” or you could express the meaning in some other way that is natural in your language.

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / hypo

εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν

if (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Paul is speaking as if this were a hypothetical possibility, but he means that it is not true. Paul stated two times in [2:16](../02/16.md) that no person is made righteous before God by obeying the law of Moses. Also, Paul knows that Christ died for a definite purpose. If your language does not state something as a condition if it is certainly false, and if your readers might misunderstand this and think that what Paul is saying is not certain, then you could translate his words as a negative statement. If your language does state things as a hypothetical possibility that the speaker is trying to prove false, then use the natural form in your language for expressing a hypothetical situation. Alternate translation: [since we know that righteousness is through faith in Christ and not through the law of Moses, or else Christ would have died for nothing] or [for we know that God considers us righteous because we believe in Christ and not because we keep the law of Moses, or else Christ would have died for nothing]

Note 5 topic: grammar-connect-condition-hypothetical

εἰ γὰρ διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη, ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν

if (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Paul is using a hypothetical situation to teach the Galatian believers. Use a natural way in your language for expressing conditional “if … then” constructions.

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

εἰ & διὰ νόμου δικαιοσύνη

if & (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Here, the word through expresses the means by which something happens. The phrase if righteousness is through the law means “if righteousness could be obtained through keeping the law.” If it would be helpful to your readers, you could indicate that explicitly. Alternate translation: [if righteousness could be obtained by keeping the law] or [if a person could be justified by keeping the law]

Note 7 topic: grammar-collectivenouns

διὰ νόμου

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

The phrase through the law is equivalent in meaning to the phrase “by works of the law” in [2:16](../02/16.md). See how you translated the phrase “by works of the law” in [2:16](../02/16.md) where it occurs twice.

Note 8 topic: grammar-collectivenouns

νόμου

˓the˒_law

See how you translated the phrase the law in [2:16](../02/016.md).

ἄρα Χριστὸς δωρεὰν ἀπέθανεν

consequently (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τήν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰ γάρ διά νόμου δικαιοσύνη ἄρα Χριστός δωρεάν ἀπέθανεν)

Alternate translation: [then Christ would have accomplished nothing by dying] or [then it was pointless for Christ to die]

Parallel GAL 2:21

Section 2:11–21: Paul corrected Peter in Antioch

Paragraph 2:14–21

2:21

2:21a

2:21b

2:21c