From Paul, an ·apostle [messenger]. ·I was not chosen to be an apostle by human beings, nor was I sent from human beings [^L…not from men/humans or by a man/human authority]. ·I was made an apostle [^L…but] through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead.

who gave himself for our sins to ·free [rescue; deliver] us from this ·evil world we live in [present evil age], as God the Father ·planned [willed; desired].

·Really, there is no other Good News [^L…which is not another]. But some people are ·confusing [troubling; disturbing] you; they want to ·change [distort] the ·Good News [Gospel] of Christ.

Do you think I am now trying to ·make people accept me [seek human favor/acceptance]? ·No, God is the One I am trying to please [^L…or (the favor of) God?]. Am I trying to please people? If I still wanted to please people, I would not be a ·servant [slave; bondservant] of Christ.

Paul’s Authority Is from God

Brothers and sisters, I want you to know that the ·Good News [Gospel] I preached to you was not ·made up by human beings [devised by man; of human origin].

I did not get it from ·humans [a human source; man], nor did anyone teach it to me, but ·Jesus Christ showed it to me [^Lby a revelation of/from/about Jesus Christ; Acts 9].

and ·showed [revealed] his son to me so that I might ·tell the Good News [preach the Gospel] about him to the Gentiles [Acts 9:15; 22:21]. When God called me, I did not ·get advice or help from [confer/consult with] ·any person [^Lflesh and blood].

I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was. ·But [Instead; Rather] I went away to Arabia [^Cprobably the Nabatean kingdom south of Damascus] and later went back to Damascus.

·God knows that [or I swear before God that; ^LBefore God,] these things I write are not lies.

They had only heard it said, “This man who was ·attacking [persecuting] us is now preaching the same faith that he once tried to destroy.”

I went because ·God showed me I should go [^Lof a revelation]. There I met in private with ·the leaders of the church [or those who seemed to be leaders; or the prominent/influential ones] and I ·told [presented to; set before] them the ·Good News [Gospel] that I preach to the Gentiles. ·I did not want my past work and the work I am now doing to be wasted [^L…to make sure I was not running or had run in vain].

Titus was with me, but he was not ·forced [compelled] to be circumcised [Gen. 17], even though he was a Greek.

But we did not give in to ·those false believers [^Lthem] for a minute, so that the truth of the ·Good News [Gospel] would ·continue [be preserved; not be compromised] for you.

Those leaders who ·seemed to be important [or were prominent/influential] did not ·change the Good News that I preach [or add anything to my message]. (It doesn’t matter to me if they were ·“important” [prominent; influential] or not. To God everyone is the same.)

[^LBut] When I saw they were not ·following [acting in line with] the truth of the ·Good News [Gospel], I spoke to ·Peter [^LCephas; v. 11] in front of them all. I said, “You are a Jew, but you are living like a Gentile and not a Jew. So how can you now try to force Gentiles to live like Jews?”

We were not born as Gentile “sinners,” but as Jews.

Yet we know that a person is ·made right with God [justified; declared righteous] not by ·following [^Lthe works of] the law, but by ·trusting in [faith in; or the faithfulness of] Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus, that we might be ·made right with God [justified; declared righteous] ·because we trusted in [through faith in; or because of the faithfulness of] Christ. It is not ·because we followed [^Lby the works of] the law, because no ·one [human being; ^Lflesh] can be ·made right with God [justified; declared righteous] by ·following [^Lthe works of] the law.

·We Jews came to Christ, trying to be made right with God, and it became clear that we are sinners, too [or But if we ourselves, also, by seeking to be justified in Christ, were found to be sinners…]. Does this mean that Christ ·encourages [^Lis a servant/minister of] sin? ·No [Absolutely not; May it never be]!

·It was the law that put me to death [or Trying to keep the law condemned me to death; ^LFor through the law I died to the law], and I died to the law so that I can now live for God [^Cno longer depending on the law for salvation, Paul now depends on God’s grace].

I ·was put to death on the cross [^Lhave been crucified] with Christ, and I do not live anymore—it is Christ who lives in me. I still live in my ·body [flesh], but I live ·by faith in [or because of the faithfulness of] the Son of God who loved me and gave himself ·to save me [^Lfor me; on my behalf].

By saying these things I ·am not going against [^Ldo not set aside/nullify] God’s grace. ·Just the opposite [^LFor…], if the law could make us right with God, then Christ’s death would be ·useless [in vain; for nothing].

·Were all your experiences wasted [or Have you suffered so much for nothing]? ·I hope not [or Surely it was not for nothing; ^L—if indeed for nothing]!

So all who ·believe as Abraham believed [rely on faith; have faith; ^Lare of faith] are blessed ·just as Abraham was [^Lwith faithful Abraham; or with Abraham, the man of faith].

·But [^LFor] those who depend on ·following [^Lthe works of] the law to make them right are under a curse, because the Scriptures say, “·Anyone [All; Everyone] will be cursed who does not ·always obey what [keep doing everything that] is written in the Book of the Law [Deut. 27:26].”

Now it is clear that no one can be ·made right with [justified/declared righteous before] God by the law, because the Scriptures say, “·Those who are right with God will live by faith [The righteous will live by faith; or Those made righteous by faith will live; Gen. 15:6; Hab. 2:4].”