Galatia

In the Bible

Galatia appears only in the New Testament.

• Acts: Acts twice records that Paul and his companions traveled through "Phrygia and the region of Galatia" (Acts 16:6; Acts 18:23). These passages belong to Paul's second and third missionary journeys, respectively.
• Galatians: This is the letter Paul sent "unto the churches of Galatia" (Galatians 1:2). Writing "O foolish Galatians" (Galatians 3:1), Paul rebukes believers who had turned to another gospel. He also recalls that he first preached the gospel there "through infirmity of the flesh" (Galatians 4:13–14).
• Other letters: 1 Corinthians 16:1 reports that the churches of Galatia were also asked to contribute to the collection for the saints in Jerusalem. 2 Timothy 4:10 states that Crescens had gone to Galatia, though some manuscripts read "Gaul" instead. 1 Peter 1:1 names Galatia as one of the regions to which the letter was addressed.

Background

The name "Galatia" derives from Celtic tribes that crossed from Europe into Asia Minor and settled there in the third century BC. The Greeks called these people Galatai, and the land they inhabited came to be known as "Galatia." They are generally regarded as kin to the Gauls of Western Europe. Their principal city was Ancyra (modern Ankara, the capital of Turkey).

Around 25 BC Rome annexed the region as a province. Because portions of Pisidia and Lycaonia to the south were incorporated into the province at that time, the province of Galatia also included cities such as Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. These were the cities where Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel during the first missionary journey (Acts 13–14).

Significance in the Bible as a Whole

Galatia is a prominent example of a region where Gentile churches were established. In these churches the question arose whether Gentile believers also had to receive circumcision and keep the law of Moses. In Galatians, Paul taught that a person is justified not by the works of the law but by faith in Christ (Galatians 2:16). This teaching became a central New Testament text on justification and on law and gospel. The same issue was also addressed at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15).

Interpretation and Debate

Scholars are divided over the location of the "churches of Galatia" to which Paul wrote. This is a matter of academic debate rather than a denominational division.

• North Galatian hypothesis: This view holds that the term refers to the original territory of Galatia in the north, inhabited by the Celtic population. On this view, the churches were founded during the second missionary journey (Acts 16:6), and the letter was written relatively late.
• South Galatian hypothesis: This view holds that the term refers to the Roman province as a whole, meaning the churches of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe founded during the first missionary journey. Some scholars who hold this view regard Galatians as Paul's earliest letter, written before the Council of Jerusalem.

Because Acts does not specify exactly which cities Paul visited in Galatia, neither view has been settled. Whether Timothy, a native of Lystra, can be considered a Galatian also depends on how this debate is resolved.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, Galatia is known chiefly through the Epistle to the Galatians. "I am crucified with Christ" (Galatians 2:20) is a widely memorized verse. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22–23 is a frequent subject of sermons and Bible studies. The phrase "O foolish Galatians" is often cited in sermons warning against beginning in faith and then lapsing into legalism. Together with accounts of Martin Luther's special fondness for Galatians, the letter is often presented as a root of Reformation theology.