GAL 5:1 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=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
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 For freedom Christ set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not again be subjected to a yoke of slavery.

UST The Messiah freed us believers from having to obey the laws God gave the Jews in order that we would not have to obey them. So continue to be steadfastly committed to the Lord. Do not let anyone force you to obey those laws again as if you were slaves to those laws.

BSB [It is] for freedom [that] Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and {do} not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

5:1 CT It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

BLB In freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore and do not be entangled again in a yoke of slavery!

AICNT For freedom, Christ set us free; therefore, stand firm {and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.}[fn]

5:1, and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery: Later manuscripts read “therefore in the freedom by which Christ has set us free.” BYZ TR

OEB It is for freedom that Christ set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not again be held under the yoke of slavery.

WEBBE Stand firm therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and don’t be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

WMBB Stand firm therefore in the liberty by which Messiah has made us free, and don’t be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

NET For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.

LSV In the freedom, then, with which Christ made you free—stand, and do not be held fast again by a yoke of servitude.

FBV Christ set us free so we could have real freedom. So stand firm and don't get burdened down again by a yoke of slavery.

TCNT [fn]Stand fast therefore in the freedom for which Christ has set us free, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

5:1 Stand fast therefore in the freedom for which Christ has set us free 65% ¦ For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore CT 1%

T4T It is in order that we might live without ◄being obliged to/having to► obey all the Jewish rituals that Christ freed us from God condemning us because of our disobeying those rituals. So, firmly reject the false teaching that someone must circumcise you, and do not live like slaves again [MET] by letting others force you to obey those rules and rituals again.

LEB For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

BBE Christ has truly made us free: then keep your free condition and let no man put a yoke on you again.

Moff with the freedom for which Christ set us free. Make a firm stand then, do not slip into any yoke of servitude.

Wymth Christ having made us gloriously free—stand fast and do not again be hampered with the yoke of slavery.

ASV For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage.

DRA Stand fast, and be not held again under the yoke of bondage.

YLT In the freedom, then, with which Christ did make you free — stand ye, and be not held fast again by a yoke of servitude;

Drby Christ has set us free in freedom; stand fast therefore, and be not held again in a yoke of bondage.

RV With freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage.

SLT Therefore in the liberty which Christ has freed us, stand ye, and be not again held in the yoke of servitude.

Wbstr Stand fast therefore in the liberty with which Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

KJB-1769 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
(Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath/has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. )

KJB-1611 ¶ Stand fast therefore in the libertie wherewith Christ hath made vs free, and bee not intangled againe with the yoke of bondage.
(¶ Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath/has made us free, and be not intangled again with the yoke of bondage.)

Bshps Stande fast therfore in the libertie wherwith Christe hath made vs free, and be not intangled agayne with ye yoke of bondage.
(Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath/has made us free, and be not intangled again with ye/you_all yoke of bondage.)

Gnva Stand fast therefore in the libertie wherewith Christ hath made vs free, and be not intangled againe with the yoke of bondage.
(Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath/has made us free, and be not intangled again with the yoke of bondage. )

Cvdl Stonde fast therfore in the libertye wherwith Christ hath made vs fre, and be not wrapped agayne in the yocke off bondage.
(Stand fast therefore in the libertye wherewith Christ hath/has made us fre, and be not wrapped again in the yoke off bondage.)

TNT Stond fast therfore in the libertie wher with Christ hath made vs fre and wrappe not youre selves agayne in the yoke of bondage.
(Stond fast therefore in the liberty wher with Christ hath/has made us free and wrappe not your(pl) selves again in the yoke of bondage. )

Wycl Stonde ye therfor, and nyl ye eftsoones be holdun in the yok of seruage.
(Stand ye/you_all therefore, and nyl ye/you_all soon_afterwards be held in the yoke of servitude.)

Luth So bestehet nun in der Freiheit, damit uns Christus befreiet hat, und lasset euch nicht wiederum in das knechtische Joch fangen!
(So exists now in the/of_the Freiheit, with_it/so_that us/to_us/ourselves Christ befreiet has, and let you not again/in_turn in the knechtische yoke fangen!)

ClVg State, et nolite iterum jugo servitutis contineri.
(State, and don't again yoke of_slavery contineri. )

UGNT τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ, ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς ἠλευθέρωσεν; στήκετε οὖν, καὶ μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.
(taʸ eleutheria, haʸmas Ⱪristos aʸleutherōsen; staʸkete oun, kai maʸ palin zugōi douleias eneⱪesthe.)

SBL-GNT τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ ⸂ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς ἠλευθέρωσεν· στήκετε οὖν⸃ καὶ μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.
(taʸ eleutheria ⸂haʸmas Ⱪristos aʸleutherōsen; staʸkete oun⸃ kai maʸ palin zugōi douleias eneⱪesthe.)

RP-GNT Τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ οὖν ᾗ χριστὸς ἡμᾶς ἠλευθέρωσεν, στήκετε, καὶ μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.
(Taʸ eleutheria oun haʸ ⱪristos haʸmas aʸleutherōsen, staʸkete, kai maʸ palin zugōi douleias eneⱪesthe.)

TC-GNT Τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ [fn]οὖν ᾗ Χριστὸς ἡμᾶς ἠλευθέρωσε, στήκετε, καὶ μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε.
(Taʸ eleutheria oun haʸ Ⱪristos haʸmas aʸleutherōse, staʸkete, kai maʸ palin zugōi douleias eneⱪesthe. )

5:1 ουν η χριστος ημας ηλευθερωσε στηκετε 65% ¦ ημας χριστος ηλευθερωσε στηκετε ουν CT 1%

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

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 5:1–12: Remain in the freedom you have in Christ

In this section, Paul tried to persuade the Galatians believers not to yield to the pressure from the false teachers to get circumcised. He warned them that if they became circumcised in order to receive God’s approval, then they would have rejected the grace and freedom that God had given them. They would become slaves again. He encouraged them to refuse circumcision and remain free.

Some other possible headings for this section are:

Keep your freedom (NCV)

Do not become slaves again

Paragraph 5:1

In this paragraph, Paul told the Galatians to remain free. He told them not to become slaves again to the law.

5:1a

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

¶ Christ freed us^(incl) so that we^(incl) might truly be free from the law.
¶ Christ delivered/rescued us^(incl) from the law so that we would not be its slaves.
¶ We have freedom now, because Christ made us free. (NCV)

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free: There are several ways to interpret the Greek phrase that the BSB translates as It is for freedom. The two main interpretations are:

It indicates the purpose for which Christ freed us. He freed us in order that we would have freedom from the law. For example:
Christ has freed us so that we may enjoy the benefits of freedom. (GW) (BSB, NIV, NJB, NASB, NET, RSV, ESV, REB, GW)
It emphasizes the verb set us free in the sentence. For example:
So Christ has truly set us free. (NLT) (GNT, CEV, NLT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The majority of English versions and many commentaries follow this interpretation.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

Christ has set us free so that we might really be free from the law.

Christ has delivered/rescued us from the law so that we would not be slaves to it.

We have freedom now, because Christ made us free. (NCV)

us: The pronoun us refers to both Paul and the Galatians.

5:1b

Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

Therefore, stand firm and do not let a slave’s yoke burden you again.
So stand strong. Do not change and go back into the slavery of the law. (NCV)
Therefore/So, remain free and do not ever become slaves again to religious laws.

Stand firm, then: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as Stand firm means “persevere.” Paul told the Galatians to persevere in the freedom that they had. They were to remain/continue in that freedom.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

Therefore persevere in this freedom

So stand strong (NCV)

Therefore be firm in this freedom (GW)

So be strong

So remain/continue in this freedom

and do not be encumbered once more: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as be encumbered means “be loaded down with” or “be burdened by.” Trying to obey religious laws is like being weighed down by a heavy load.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

and do not let yourselves be burdened again (NIV)

and do not accept again

and do not again surrender

once more: The phrase once more indicates that the Galatians had previously been slaves to religious laws when they worshiped idols. Obeying the law of Moses was no different than their former idol worship. Both made people slaves.

by a yoke of slavery: This is a figure of speech. A yoke is a piece of wood that is put over the necks of two oxen to join them together so that they work together. A yoke is also a piece of wood that one person wears around his neck to balance and carry two heavy loads. In this context, yoke refers to the type of yoke that a person wears. It was usually slaves who wore yokes. A yoke itself could be heavy, but it also represented the hard work of a slave. Obeying religious laws is like being a slave and wearing a yoke to carry a heavy load. They are similar in that both are miserable and undesirable.

Some ways to translate this figure of speech are:

Keep the figure of speech. For example:
by a yoke such as slaves wear
Modify the figure of speech. For example
into the slavery of the law (NCV)
to obeying religious laws again. This is like being a slave
Do not let laws tie you.
Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:
Do not think that you must follow certain religious laws to be right with God

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ, ἡμᾶς Χριστὸς ἠλευθέρωσεν

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ ἡμάς Χριστός ἠλευθέρωσεν στήκετε οὖν καί μή πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε)

For freedom Christ set us free implies that Christ set believers free from being required to obey the laws God gave the Jews. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: [Christ has set us free from the law]

Note 2 topic: grammar-connect-logic-goal

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ

For here indicates that what follows is the purpose for which Christ freed believers. Use a natural way in your language for introducing a purpose. Alternate translation: [For the purpose of freedom]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τῇ ἐλευθερίᾳ & δουλείας

See how you translated freedom in [2:4](../02/04.md) and slavery in [4:24](../04/24.md).

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / exclusive

ἡμᾶς

When Paul says us here, he is speaking of himself, his traveling companions, and the Galatian believers, so us would be inclusive. Your language may require you to mark these forms.

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

στήκετε

˓be˒_standing_firm

Stand firm here refers to one remaining steadfast in what one believes. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [Be unmoved] or [Remain strong in your faith]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

μὴ πάλιν & ἐνέχεσθε

If your language does not use the passive form in this way, you can state this in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: [do not again subject yourselves to]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

μὴ πάλιν ζυγῷ δουλείας ἐνέχεσθε

Here Paul speaks of someone being obligated to obey the laws God gave the Jews as if that person were subjected to a yoke of slavery. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly or use a simile. Alternate translation: [do not go back to being obligated to obey the law] or [do not be subjected to the law like one who is under a yoke of slavery]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

ζυγῷ δουλείας

˱in˲_˓a˒_yoke ˱of˲_slavery

Paul is using the possessive form to describe a yoke that is slavery. If this is not clear in your language, you could use a different expression. Alternate translation: [a yoke, that is, slavery]

Parallel GAL 5:1

Section 5:1–12: Remain in the freedom you have in Christ

Paragraph 5:1

5:1a

5:1b