{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.025668073136427567, 'fraction_numerical': 0.006680731364275668, 'mean_word_length': 4.951882845188284, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Book Review: Obeying the Truth: Paul's Ethics in Galatians

Much of the history of the interpretation of Galatians has focused on Paul's opposition to "works of the law." What does Paul say, and why? Is Galatians a general treatise on the superiority of grace and faith to works? Or is it a response to the historical question of whether or not Gentiles should observe the law of Moses? The debate continues, but this much, says John Barclay, is clear: the focus on these questions has contributed to the relative neglect of the crucial issue of ethics in Galatians. Barclay's careful study compensates for much of this neglect. Barclay begins by cogently disputing the view that the ethical material of Galatians 5:13-6:10 is an interpolation or an unrelated addendum. Rather it is integral to the letter, a necessary conclusion to what has come before. To see the connection one must first understand the situation at Galatia, which hinges on two crucial questions. First, why would these Gentiles even consider the "uncomfortable and unpopular act of circumcision"? Second, why would they ever practice the Mosaic law? These questions, Barclay asserts, cannot be answered by theological discussion. They are sociological questions. That is, the precarious social situation of the Galatians is the best explanation for the success of the agitators. Specifically, circumcision identified them with the Jewish faith which had spawned Christianity, thereby compensating for the social dislocation created by their conversion to the faith. Similarly, adherence to the law seemed to the Galatians a way to insure appropriate behavior. These two closely related categories, identity and behavior patterns, become the lenses through which Barclay focuses on the argument and ethics of Galatians. He devotes a chapter to Galatians 2-4 (chapter 3) in which he shows how identity and behavior were approached by the agitators and how Paul responded. Then Barclay presents a detailed study of the ethical material in Galatians 5:13-6:10 (chapters 4-6), demonstrating how Paul's paranesis grows out of these same two issues which were at the heart of the Galatian crisis. The critical element in Paul's exhortation is the Spirit, which brings freedom from the Mosaic law. At the same time, the Spirit insures proper behavior by enabling Christians to fulfill the law of Christ through love and mutual burdenbearing. A final chapter (chapter 7) summarizes the study and suggests some implications for the larger issue of Pauline ethics. Barclay's monograph is a welcome addition to Pauline studies. His integrative approach to ethics vis-avis the social situation of the Galatians is a fresh approach, and it may well be for studies in Galatians what John Elliott's A Home for the Homeless has been for studies in 1 Peter. He offers helpful correctives to