Understand, then,This phrase serves as a call to comprehension and reflection. Paul is urging the Galatians to grasp the significance of his argument. In the context of the letter, Paul is addressing the Galatians' confusion over the necessity of following Jewish law for salvation. This imperative to "understand" is a common rhetorical device used by Paul to emphasize the importance of the teaching that follows.
that those who have faith
Faith is central to Paul's theology. Here, faith refers to belief and trust in Jesus Christ as the Messiah and Savior. This concept of faith is contrasted with adherence to the Law of Moses, which some Jewish Christians were insisting upon. Paul emphasizes that it is faith, not works of the law, that justifies and connects believers to God's promises. This aligns with the broader biblical narrative, where faith is consistently highlighted as the means by which individuals are counted righteous before God, as seen inHebrews 11.
are sons of Abraham.
This phrase connects believers in Christ to Abraham, the patriarch of Israel. In Jewish tradition, being a descendant of Abraham was a source of pride and identity. However, Paul redefines what it means to be a "son of Abraham." He argues that true descendants are not determined by physical lineage but by sharing in Abraham's faith. This is a radical redefinition that opens the covenant promises to Gentiles. It echoesGenesis 15:6, where Abraham's faith is credited to him as righteousness. Paul further elaborates on this inRomans 4, where he explains that Abraham is the father of all who believe, both Jew and Gentile. This connection to Abraham also points to the fulfillment of God's promise that all nations would be blessed through him, as stated inGenesis 12:3.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
Paul the ApostleThe author of the letter to the Galatians, addressing the churches in Galatia to correct false teachings and emphasize justification by faith.
2.
AbrahamA patriarch in the Hebrew Bible, considered the father of faith, whose belief in God was credited to him as righteousness.
3.
GalatiaA region in modern-day Turkey where Paul established churches and to whom this letter is addressed.
4.
JudaizersA group within the early church advocating that Gentile converts must adhere to Jewish law, including circumcision, to be true Christians.
5.
Gentile BelieversNon-Jewish converts to Christianity who are being reassured by Paul of their inclusion in God's promises through faith.
Teaching Points
Faith as the Basis of RighteousnessJust as Abraham was justified by faith, believers today are called to trust in God's promises rather than rely on their own works or adherence to the law.
Spiritual HeritageBeing a "son of Abraham" is not about physical descent but about sharing in the faith that Abraham exhibited. This spiritual lineage is open to all who believe in Christ.
Unity in ChristThe message of
Galatians 3:7 emphasizes the unity of all believers, Jew and Gentile alike, under the promise of faith, breaking down barriers of ethnicity and tradition.
Living by FaithBelievers are encouraged to live by faith daily, trusting in God's guidance and provision, just as Abraham did, even when the path is unclear.
Rejecting LegalismThe Galatians are warned against returning to legalistic practices that nullify the grace of God. Christians today must also guard against legalism, focusing instead on a relationship with Christ.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Galatians 3:7?
2.How does Galatians 3:7 define who are the true children of Abraham?
3.What role does faith play in being considered Abraham's descendants according to Galatians 3:7?
4.How can we apply the principle of faith from Galatians 3:7 today?
5.What Old Testament promises connect with the message in Galatians 3:7?
6.How does Galatians 3:7 challenge cultural or ethnic views of spiritual inheritance?
7.What does Galatians 3:7 mean by "sons of Abraham" in a spiritual context?
8.How does Galatians 3:7 relate to the concept of faith over works?
9.Why is Abraham significant in understanding Galatians 3:7?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Galatians 3?
11.Why does Genesis 15’s promise of innumerable descendants appear to conflict with other biblical passages that suggest a smaller, chosen lineage?
12.Is there a right time for every action?
13.How do Psalm 112:1–2’s promises of blessed descendants align with historical records showing many faithful believers who faced familial hardship or extinction?
14.Psalm 105:8-11 states God’s covenant lasts “a thousand generations.” How do we reconcile this indefinite timeline with known historical and genealogical records?What Does Galatians 3:7 Mean
Understand, then• Paul has just quotedGenesis 15:6: “So also, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’” (Galatians 3:6). The “then” invites a logical conclusion from that citation.
• Scripture expects thoughtful engagement. Jesus “opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45). Paul urges, “Reflect on what I am saying” (2 Timothy 2:7). We are called to let the Bible settle how people are made right with God.
that those who have faith• God’s requirement has always been faith, not works or heritage.
– “A man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:16).
– “For by grace you are saved through faith … not by works” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
– “To the one who does not work but believes … his faith is credited as righteousness” (Romans 4:5).
• Faith is personal reliance on the Lord’s promise and provision in Christ. This was true for pre-law Abraham and remains true for every believer today.
are sons of Abraham• “Sons” speaks of family, inheritance, identity. Faith links us to Abraham’s covenant family.
– “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29).
–Romans 4:11-12 calls Abraham “the father of all who believe.”
– Jesus said, “If you were children of Abraham, you would do the works of Abraham” (John 8:39)—namely, believe.
• The result is real participation in the blessings promised to Abraham: righteousness, divine favor, and an eternal inheritance (Genesis 12:3;Hebrews 6:17-18). Ethnicity or law-keeping never grant this status; faith alone does.
SummaryGalatians 3:7 teaches that, because Abraham was counted righteous through faith, everyone who trusts God in the same way is counted as Abraham’s offspring. The true family of God is gathered not by bloodline or religious effort but by simple, saving faith in the crucified and risen Christ, receiving the full inheritance God promised to Abraham.
(7) The main point of the Apostle's argument in the present passage is the superiority of faith over the Law. He has, however, also in view the ulterior consequences of that superiority. Unlike the Law, faith is open to all Gentiles as well as Jews. The promise, therefore, being annexed to faith, contained the death-blow of all those exclusive privileges which the Judaising party in Galatia claimed for themselves, and of all those burdensome regulations which they were for imposing upon the Galatian Christians. This, too, the Apostle brings out by showing that the believers in Christ, whatever their nationality, are the true spiritual descendants of Abraham.
Know ye.--The verb here may either be in the indicative or in the imperative: "know ye," or "ye know." Perhaps, on the whole, the imperative, as in the Authorised version, is best.
They which are of faith.--Those whose principles of action are derived from faith; those whose master-motive is faith.
Children of Abraham.--This idea of a spiritual descent from Abraham is found also inRomans 4:11-12;Romans 4:16;Romans 9:6-8.
Verse 7. -
Know ye therefore (
γινώσκετεἄρα); or,
ye perceive then. Critics are divided between the two renderings, the imperative and the indicative, both here and
Matthew 24:43;
1 John 2:29. In
Luke 10:11 and
Hebrews 13:23γινώσκετε is certainly imperative. The categorical imperative seems of the two the more suited to the apostle's impetuous temperament. The verb
γινώσκω, like the Latin
nosco, properly denotes "to come to know," "learn," "perceive," "get apprised;"
ἔγνωκα or
ἔγνων, like now, having more properly the sense of "knowing." But this distinction does not always hold, as
e.g.Romans 7:1.
That they which are of faith (
ὅτι οἱ ἐκ πίστεως);
that the men of faith; that is, who derive their position from faith, belong to faith, are above all things characterized by faith. Compare the expressions,
τοῖς ἐξ ἐριθείας, "the men of factiousness,
i.e. "factions men" (
Romans 2:8);
τὸ ἐκ πίστεως Ἰησοῦ, "the man of faith in Jesus," taking his stand thereupon (
Romans 3:26). Closely affine to this usage of the preposition, if not quite the same, is,
ὁ ω}ν ἐκτῆς ἀληθείας, "that is of the truth" (
John 18:37);
οἱ ἐκ νόμου, "they which are of the Law" (
Romans 4:14);
ὅσοι ἐξ ἔργων νόμουεἰσίν, (ver. 10 of this chapter).
The same are the children of Abraham (
οῦτοί εἰσιν υἱοὶἈβραάμ);
these are sons of Abraham. The form of expression is precisely the same as in
Romans 8:14, "As many as are led by the Spirit of God (
οῦτοί εἰσιν υἱοὶ Θεού) these are sons of God." In both cases the absence of the article before
viol suggests the feeling that the apostle is simply stating a predicate of the class before defined, but not now affirming that this predicate is confined to that class, although, again in each case, he knew that it was so confined. Just here, what he is concerned to affirm is that the possession of faith is a complete and sufficient qualification for sonship to Abraham. There is, perhaps, a polemical reference to the teaching of certain in Galatia, that, to be sons of Abraham or interested in God's covenant with his people, it behoved men to be circumcised and to observe the ceremonial Law. This error would be satisfactorily met by the affirmation of the present verse, that the being believers, simply this, constitutes men
sons of Abraham. In the tenth verse the apostle goes further, aggressively denying to those who "were of the works of the Law" the possession at all of Abrahamic privilege. The class, "men of
faith," did in fact include Jewish believers as well as Gentile; but just hero, as seems probable from what is said in the next verse, the apostle has in view Gentile believers only. The writer's thoughts are hovering round that promise of God ("So shall thy seed be") which had been on that particular occasion the object of Abraham's faith. That this was the case we may infer from his citation of the words in
Romans 4:18, the explanation of which had been prepared for by him in what he has said before in ver. 16, "To the end that the promise may be sure to all the seed: not to that only which is of the Law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all." It was this that led him to speak of being sons of Abraham. This train of thought is pursued further in the next two verses.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
Understand,Γινώσκετε(Ginōskete)Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 1097:A prolonged form of a primary verb; to 'know' in a great variety of applications and with many implications.then,ἄρα(ara)Conjunction
Strong's 686:Then, therefore, since. Probably from airo; a particle denoting an inference more or less decisive.thatὅτι(hoti)Conjunction
Strong's 3754:Neuter of hostis as conjunction; demonstrative, that; causative, because.those whoοἱ(hoi)Article - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.haveἐκ(ek)Preposition
Strong's 1537:From out, out from among, from, suggesting from the interior outwards. A primary preposition denoting origin, from, out.faithπίστεως(pisteōs)Noun - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 4102:Faith, belief, trust, confidence; fidelity, faithfulness.areεἰσιν(eisin)Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 1510:I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.[the] sonsυἱοί(huioi)Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 5207:A son, descendent. Apparently a primary word; a 'son', used very widely of immediate, remote or figuratively, kinship.of Abraham.Ἀβραάμ(Abraam)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 11:Abraham, progenitor of the Hebrew race. Of Hebrew origin; Abraham, the Hebrew patriarch.
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NT Letters: Galatians 3:7 Know therefore that those who (Gal. Ga) 
