Galatians 2:1
1 Then [epeita] fourteen [dekatessares] years [etos] after [dia] I went up [anabaino] again [palin] to [eis] Jerusalem [Hierosoluma] with [meta] Barnabas, [Barnabas] and took [sumparalambano]
Titus [Titos] with me [sumparalambano] also. [kai] KJV-Interlinear
1 Then after an interval of
fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along
also. NASB
Whereas Paul in the last chapter made his case for
learning or receiving instruction on the true gospel (all doctrine) from Christ
alone, now in this chapter he will make his case for the consistency of what he
has been teaching, as the same as what the apostles have been teaching.
A period of fourteen years had passed since his
last trip to Jerusalem for which he went to discuss matters of doctrinal
concern.
Paul had traveled to Jerusalem on missions of mercy,
carrying offerings of money to help aid those who were financially hard
pressed.
But interim trips are not the focus here in this
chapter. There have been two trips
documented. One in Acts 11 and the other
in Acts 15. There may have been more undocumented
trips but they are irrelevant to this subject.
In the Acts 15 trip, the question of whether or not
being true to the law of Moses was required in order to be saved, rather than
simply believing in Christ. This question was brought up in Jerusalem. And without going much further, Paul and all
of the apostles agreed that salvation had no requirement of circumcision prior
to being saved.
Needless to say, circumcision was a male related
thing and that would cause all women to be excluded from salvation. So the question was somewhat ludicrous.
Circumcision is a subject that will be brought up
later, but this trip to Jerusalem as related in Acts 15, was for the purpose of
settling that question.
Paul was not trying to match his story with anything
documented in Acts, nor vice-versa.
Needless to say, Acts had not been written at the time of this
writing. Acts was written about ten
years later, after Paul had written Galatians.
But a few things are brought out in this
verse. First, Paul knew Barnabas and
Titus at this early time, and they accompanied him on this trip.
And second, the question being raised and its
answer, documents the continuity of the teachings of Paul and the apostles,
with whom he had not been in contact.
And thus the consistency and continuity of the Christian doctrines that
were being taught in those early years of Christianity.
