Galatians 5:5 Commentary and Bible Study

Paul hopes for better things of the Galatians than his solemn words might imply, for he still includes them with himself and speaks of their common future hope. The subject of the Spirit’s work in the believer’s heart introduced in chapter 3:2 is still in Paul’s mind and continues to form the background to all his thinking. The Spirit has put a new hope within every true believer, a hope that will be realized at death when the body of sin is put off, but particularly at the appearing of Christ when our glorified bodies will be reunited with the soul.We do not usually think of righteousness as future, for justification is for the believer in the past. It took place at conversion and it resulted in the righteousness of Christ being imputed to us which we possess to this day. Paul however uses this unusual phrase because he is drawing attention to the great future aspect to our salvation, when we receive the full blessing of salvation. Righteousness is ours now by imputation, but righteousness will also be ours in a more complete sense when the body of sin is taken away and the work of sanctification is complete and we are made holy and fit to enter heaven. The KJV puts the words ‘by faith’ at the end of the verse following the words ’of righteousness’ but this is not the word order in Greek. ‘By faith’ does not qualify righteousness as if Paul was speaking of justification by faith, but it qualifies the act of waiting: ‘by faith we wait for the hope of righteousness.’ By faith we wait for a righteousness which we cannot yet see, a righteousness which will appear within us as well as being credited to us. As Hendriksen says, ‘Considered from God’s side, therefore, salvation is the gift of the Spirit; viewed from man’s side it is received by faith, but even this faith, both in its initiation and in every step of the way is Spirit given.’