Galatians 5:6

Context

This verse belongs to the Epistle to the Galatians, the letter Paul sent to the churches in the region of Galatia. Teachers had entered these churches insisting that Gentile (non-Jewish) believers must also be circumcised and keep the law. In 5:1 Paul urges his readers to stand fast in the liberty Christ has given them. He then warns that those who rely on circumcision are cut off from Christ (5:2–4), and in this verse he draws his conclusion. The KJV reads: "For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love." In Christ, circumcision and uncircumcision have no effect; only "faith which worketh by love" matters. Here "worketh" means "works" or "is operative." Beginning in 5:13, Paul exhorts his readers to use that liberty to serve one another in love.

Interpretation

• Lutheran and Reformed reading: Martin Luther and John Calvin read the verse as teaching that faith is what justifies, while love is the fruit that shows that faith is alive. The verse says only that faith works through love; it does not mean that love is the ground of justification (God's declaring the sinner righteous).
• Catholic reading: The Catholic tradition frequently cites this verse in support of its teaching on "faith formed by charity." It holds that faith without love does not fully unite a person with Christ, and the Council of Trent's Decree on Justification is reported to cite this verse.
• Wesleyan reading: John Wesley often used the phrase "faith working by love" as a summary of true religion. The Methodist and Holiness traditions read the verse as a basis for sanctification (the process of being made holy), which begins in faith and grows in love.

Debates and Issues

Since the Reformation, Protestants and Catholics have disputed the relationship between faith and works, and this verse is a key text cited by both sides. The question at issue is whether love should be regarded as the fruit of faith or as an element that completes faith.

There is also grammatical discussion of the Greek participle translated "worketh" (energoumenē). It can be read in an active sense, "working through love," or in a passive sense, "empowered by love." Most commentators today adopt the former reading.

Some commentators emphasize that the verse arose in the specific setting of the circumcision controversy. In their view, Paul's focus is on the essentials of faith and love rather than on rites or forms, and they caution against using the verse merely as a proof text in the faith-and-works debate.

Related Passages

• Galatians 6:15
• 1 Corinthians 7:19
• Galatians 5:14
• 1 Thessalonians 1:3
• James 2:15–17