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Galatians 4:14 14<\/span><\/sup>And my trial which was in my flesh you did not despise or reject, but you received me as an angel of God,<\/span><\/em><\/strong> even<\/span> as Christ Jesus. Truth to Learn Do not judge a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ by his appearance or his credentials. Judge him by his message.<\/p>\n Behind the Words<\/span><\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n There is a variation in the manuscripts as to whether Paul says \u201cmy trial<\/span><\/em>\u201d or \u201cyour trial<\/span><\/em>.\u201d Most likely, \u201cyour trial<\/span><\/em>\u201d is the proper reading. The word \u201ctrial<\/span><\/em>\u201d is a form of the Greek word \u201cpeiradz\u014d,<\/span><\/em>\u201d which refers to a trial, a temptation, or a putting to the test.<\/em> This Greek word is used only in reference to people.<\/p>\n The word translated \u201creject<\/span><\/em>\u201d is a form of \u201cekptu\u014d,<\/span><\/em>\u201d which is a compound word made up of \u201cek<\/span><\/em>\u201d which means out of<\/em> and \u201cptu\u014d<\/span><\/em>\u201d meaning to spit<\/em> (most likely where we get our English slang \u201cptuey\u201d). So, literally this word means to spit out<\/em>, but it is often interpreted as reject<\/em>. Perhaps in this verse, this word should be taken literally, however, since there was a custom in Paul\u2019s day of spitting out at the sight of invalids, especially epileptics.<\/p>\n \u201cAngelos<\/span><\/em>\u201d is the Greek word that is translated here as \u201cangel<\/span><\/em>.\u201d The root meaning of the word, however, is a messenger<\/em> and should likely be translated as such in this verse.<\/p>\n Meaning Explained This is another verse that is difficult to interpret and is explained in different ways by even the most eminent of scholars. On the surface it appears that Paul is saying that the Galatian Christians did not despise or reject their trial which was in Paul\u2019s flesh, but that doesn\u2019t make much sense. How does one reject a trial? The interpretation that makes the most sense is that which is explained by Marvin R. Vincent, D.D. in his book Vincent\u2019s Word Studies<\/em>. He renders the previous verse and this one together in the following manner: \u201cYe know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel to you the first time, and [ye know] your temptation which was in my flesh: ye did not despise nor reject me, but received me.\u201d In other words, it was a real temptation for the Galatians to treat Paul with contempt and \u201cspit out\u201d at his appearance because of the physical infirmity that he was dealing with at the time. Instead of yielding to the temptation, however, they warmly received Paul even as they would naturally have received an angel of God. Paul reminds them that they received him and his message with eagerness, respect, and reverence because they recognized that his message truly was from God.<\/p>\n Application Have you ever noticed that television and print commercials always use attractive, healthy individuals to portray their message? Even commercials for drugs don\u2019t show someone who is sick or wracked with a diseased condition. Instead, they show someone who looks perfectly healthy, as if it is evidence that the drug has worked a miracle.<\/p>\n Paul could not help the way he appeared to the Galatians when he first preached the gospel message to them, and their natural reaction to him would have been one of rejection. But instead of rejecting him, they accepted him graciously, much to their benefit and to the glory of God.<\/p>\n In God\u2019s service, for His glory,<\/strong><\/p>\n Copyright \u00a9 2007 <\/span>Will <\/span>Krause. All rights reserved.<\/span><\/p>\n – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –<\/p>\n <\/span>If this message or this link was forwarded to you by a friend and you wish to receive future verses directly to your inbox, you can call the church phone (618) 614-3070 and leave a message telling us your name and e-mail address or you can send an e-mail to: Galatians 4:14 14And my trial which was in my flesh you did not despise or reject, but you received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. Truth to Learn Do not judge a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ by his appearance or his credentials. Judge him by his message. 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