1 Paul, an apostle, ([an office not given to me] by men or a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead),
2 and all the brethren who are with me, to the churches of Galatia.
3 May grace and peace be yours from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, Gal 1:4 who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world according to the will of God and our Father,
5 to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
6 I'm amazed that you have switched over so soon from him who called you into the grace of Christ to another gospel,
7 which is not another [Gospel], unless there be some who would trouble you and pervert the gospel of Christ.
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you other than what we preach, let him be guaranteed for God's curse.
9 As we said before, I now say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than the one you have received, let that person be guaranteed for God's curse.
Grace by Divine Revelation
10 For am I now trying to please men or God? Does this sound like I'm trying to get human approval? For if I'm trying to get human approval, I wouldn't be the slave of Christ.
11 I want it made known to you, brethren that the gospel, which was preached by me, is not of human origin.
12 Because I did not receive it from man, nor was taught it, but I [received it] by revelation from Jesus Christ.
13 For you have heard of my earlier way of life in Judaism, how violently I persecuted God's church and tried to liquidate it,
14 and outdistanced many of my peers in the Jew's religion as I was much more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors.
15 But when it pleased God, who set me apart from my mother's womb and called [me] by his grace,
16 to reveal his son to me, so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, immediately, I did not ask advice of any human,
17 neither did I go to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but went into Arabia and then returned to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went to Jerusalem to visit Peter and stayed with him fifteen days.
19 I did not see any of the other apostles, except James the Lord's brother.
20 Now, pay attention, the things that I write to you [are true]; before God, I do not lie.
21 Later, I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia
22 and was unknown personally by the churches in Christ in Judea.
23 They only had heard that he who used to persecute us now preaches the faith that he once tried to destroy.
24 So they praised God because of what happened to me.