The Rabbis told a tale about a king whose friend gave ten pearls to him and then died. After he died, the king married the man's daughter, and he gave the daughter a beautiful necklace of ten pearls. Sadly, she lost the ten pearls, and the king was so angry that he intended to banish her from the kingdom. However, her close friend pointed out that the woman's father had given the king ten pearls and suggested that these pearls be accepted as a payment for the pearls that she had lost.
The Rabbis used the story to illustrate the merits of Abraham's faith. According to Rabbinic tradition, God had given ten tests to Abraham to prove his faith. Abraham had passed those ten tests, proving his faithfulness to God. Those ten tests were like the substitute pearls. They served as compensation for the ten broken commandments. There is no agreement on exactly what the tests or pearls were that Abraham earned with God by his faithfulness, although circumcision was often the first pearl, and the binding of Isaac was usually the last of the pearls (Longenecker, Galatians, 111). In this way, the legalizers considered Abraham's faith to be meritorious with God, both for himself and for the sons of Abraham.
Who are the sons of Abraham?
Paul wrote, "You know, therefore, that the ones who are from faith, these are the sons of Abraham" (Gal. 3:7).
The sentence clearly shows that the "sons of Abraham" are not genealogical children but the spiritual heirs of Abraham by faith (Burton, Galatians, 155). The legalizers of Paul's day would have understood the importance of faith and that Gentiles could be spiritually sons of Abraham by faith. There is much evidence from the first century that Genesis 12, 15, and 17 were critical passages for the Jews as they taught the importance of faith for proselytes. However, faith must be joined with circumcision for the proselyte to become a son of Abraham. Therefore, Genesis 17 must be added to Genesis 15 as essential for faith to be meritorious (Lightfoot, Galatians, 158-164). Faith for the Pharisee and faith for Paul were two different doctrines. The Pharisee argued that faith must be joined to law to have merit. The legalizers argued for faith plus works, not just faith. People became Christians like Gentiles became Jews by faith plus circumcision.
Paul begins with "you know" or "know" (Γινώσκετε). The verb can be either indicative or imperative. Some take it as imperative, a command to know something or be sure of something (Bruce, Galatians, 155). However, I think it better to take it as indicative. Paul is declaring, "you know that" the sons of Abraham are sons by faith (Longenecker, Galatians, 114). Sonship comes "out of faith" (ἐκ πίστεως). The preposition ἐκ indicates the source (Burton, Galatians, 155). The source of sonship is faith. "Therefore" (ἄρα) ties the sentence back to Genesis 15:6 quoted in the previous verse. Genesis 15:6 was at the crux of Paul's argument that faith alone saves. The legalizers knew that the sons of Abraham were sons by faith, so Paul begins with what they knew.
The legalizers also knew that Abraham had not been circumcised in Genesis 15:6, and Paul will argue that faith, therefore, preceded circumcision. Faith came before law. Paul will expand this argument in Romans 4:9-13, but for now, he moves on to the fact that the gospel came before the law (Gal. 3:8-14). The legalizers tried to couple faith and circumcision by arguing that faith was not reckoned to Abraham as righteousness until he passed the tests of faith, including circumcision in Genesis 17. Faith was not faith without obedience to the rules and ordinances of the law. Faith paid for unrighteousness by obedience to the ten pearls of the law.
Paul decoupled faith and circumcision by careful exegetical arguments from the Old Testament texts. Some have said that Paul engaged in Christian midrashic interpretation here. He was reinterpreting the Old Testament in the light of the "Christ event" (Bruce, Galatians, 156). I think not! This is not Pauline midrash, but careful exegesis of Genesis 15:6 itself. Paul is arguing that God intended us to understand Genesis 15:6 as teaching that Abraham was justified by faith alone in the promise of God. God exchanged Abraham's faith for God's righteousness solely by Abraham's faith in God's promise and nothing else. Paul will go on to argue exegetically that:
1) The gospel precedes and supersedes the law by 430 years (Gal. 3:8-14, 17).
2) Righteousness comes solely from faith in the promise of God (Gal. 3:15-18).
3) God's promise to Abraham was meant for all of us who believe in his seed (Gal. 3:16, 22)
(Longenecker, Galatians, 111)
Abraham's faithfulness to fulfill the ten pearls of the law as compensation for his sins is not a condition for salvation. Therefore, any legalizer, then or now, who attempts to impose rules and regulations on people as the means of making faith meritorious is wrong.
Faith plus anything saves no one!
