This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group or by human authority. My call is from Jesus Christ himself and from God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.
All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending greetings to the churches of Galatia.
May grace and peace be yours from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
He died for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live.
That is why all glory belongs to God through all the ages of eternity. Amen.
I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who in his love and mercy called you to share the eternal life he gives through Christ. You are already following a different way
that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who twist and change the truth concerning Christ.
Let God's curse fall on anyone, including myself, who preaches any other message than the one we told you about. Even if an angel comes from heaven and preaches any other message, let him be forever cursed.
I will say it again: If anyone preaches any other gospel than the one you welcomed, let God's curse fall upon that person.
Obviously, I'm not trying to be a people pleaser! No, I am trying to please God. If I were still trying to please people, I would not be Christ's servant.
Dear brothers and sisters, I solemnly assure you that the Good News of salvation which I preach is not based on mere human reasoning or logic.
For my message came by a direct revelation from Jesus Christ himself. No one else taught me.
You know what I was like when I followed the Jewish religion--how I violently persecuted the Christians. I did my best to get rid of them.
I was one of the most religious Jews of my own age, and I tried as hard as possible to follow all the old traditions of my religion.
But then something happened! For it pleased God in his kindness to choose me and call me, even before I was born! What undeserved mercy!
Then he revealed his Son to me so that I could proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles. When all this happened to me, I did not rush out to consult with anyone else;
nor did I go up to Jerusalem to consult with those who were apostles before I was. No, I went away into Arabia and later returned to the city of Damascus.
It was not until three years later that I finally went to Jerusalem for a visit with Peter and stayed there with him for fifteen days.
And the only other apostle I met at that time was James, our Lord's brother.
You must believe what I am saying, for I declare before God that I am not lying.
Then after this visit, I went north into the provinces of Syria and Cilicia.
And still the Christians in the churches in Judea didn't know me personally.
All they knew was that people were saying, "The one who used to persecute us now preaches the very faith he tried to destroy!"