{"id":54463,"date":"2023-11-06T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-06T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/?p=54463"},"modified":"2024-08-12T07:12:12","modified_gmt":"2024-08-12T14:12:12","slug":"what-matters-is-the-new-creation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\/","title":{"rendered":"What Matters Is . . . the New Creation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>As the final part of his argument for the Galatians, Paul sums up his teaching with two words, new creation. Ultimately, what matters is the new creation. Let\u2019s look at how Douglas Moo unpacks the concept of new creation in his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=22082\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">volume on Galatians<\/a> in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=77345\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#dadada\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=77345\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament<\/a> is an excellent and detailed commentary on the New Testament by some of Evangelicalism\u2019s best scholars. We recently released two new volumes in the series so make sure to check them out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-background\" style=\"background-color:#dadada\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=36914\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1 Peter (2<sup>nd<\/sup> edition)<\/a> by Karen H. Jobes (new)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=37055\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Revelation<\/a> by Thomas R. Schreiner (new)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-synopsis-of-paul-s-argument\"><strong>Synopsis of Paul&#8217;s Argument<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul wants the Galatians to recognize and take to heart the reality of the \u201cnew creation\u201d in which they now live (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A15&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">v. 15<\/a>). Christ\u2019s death has broken the power of the old age, the world, and inaugurated God\u2019s all-embracing work of making the universe new. Recognizing that Christians by faith are participants in this eschatological project should go a long way to helping them resist the claims of the agitators, bound as they are, according to Paul, to a past age and a world already in principle judged by God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Context of the New Creation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A15&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Verse 15<\/a> explains <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A14&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">verse 14<\/a> (\u03b3\u03ac\u03c1) by rephrasing it. The first and negative part of the sentence elaborates \u201cworld\u201d in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A14&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">verse 14<\/a>, and \u201cnew creation\u201d in the second part describes what has taken the place of the world. \u201cNeither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything\u201d (\u03bf\u1f54\u03c4\u03b5 . . . \u03c0\u03b5\u03c1\u03b9\u03c4\u03bf\u03bc\u03ae \u03c4\u03af \u1f10\u03c3\u03c4\u03b9\u03bd \u03bf\u1f54\u03c4\u03b5 \u1f00\u03ba\u03c1\u03bf\u03b2\u03c5\u03c3\u03c4\u03af\u03b1) echoes a formula that occurs earlier in Galatians and in 1 Corinthians:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value, but [\u1f00\u03bb\u03bb\u03ac] faith working through love. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+5%3A6&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Gal. 5:6<\/a>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but [\u1f00\u03bb\u03bb\u03ac] keeping God\u2019s commands. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=1+Cor+7%3A19&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1 Cor. 7:19<\/a> AT)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In each case, Paul dismisses any value in circumcision or uncircumcision and contrasts this lack of value with the very great value of something else. We are justified, then, in speaking of a kind of Pauline slogan here, with \u201ccircumcision and uncircumcision\u201d standing for those \u201cworldly\u201d valuations that no longer matter in the new age. In a move typical of Paul\u2019s polemics in Galatians, he dares to associate God\u2019s old-covenant requirement of circumcision with this worldly system of values that has now been judged by Christ\u2019s death and resurrection. Significantly, it is not only circumcision that has no value in this new \u201cworld,\u201d but uncircumcision as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>New Creation = A New Distinction<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul has chosen these particular terms for specific mention here in Galatians because this contrast is at the heart of the issue in Galatia. In light of that situation, the claim that circumcision has no value makes perfect sense. But by adding \u201cuncircumcision,\u201d Paul broadens the idea to embrace all matters of purely worldly significance\u2014an idea that comes to more particular expression in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+3%3A28&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3:28<\/a>, with its reference to \u201cJew or Gentile,\u201d \u201cslave or free,\u201d \u201cmale and female&#8221;. These texts together assert that the coming of Christ introduces a whole new state of affairs in the world. Distinctions of ethnicity, social class, and gender that are determinative for this world\u2014they no longer matter. All \u201csimply human\u201d factors become meaningless in the face of God\u2019s world-transforming work in his Son Jesus Christ. The old state of affairs is ended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The other half of the contrast is stated very compactly: simply \u201cnew creation\u201d (\u03ba\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u1f74 \u03ba\u03c4\u03af\u03c3\u03b9\u03c2, <em>kain\u0113 ktisis<\/em>). The phrase occurs once elsewhere in Paul, in similarly brief form: \u201cTherefore, if anyone is in Christ, new creation [\u03ba\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u1f74 \u03ba\u03c4\u03af\u03c3\u03b9\u03c2]! The old has gone, the new is here!\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=2+Cor+5%3A17&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2 Cor. 5:17<\/a> AT). The word \u03ba\u03c4\u03af\u03c3\u03b9\u03c2 can mean either \u201ccreature\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Rom+1%3A25&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rom. 1:25<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Rom+8%3A39&amp;version=KJV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">8:39<\/a> KJV) or \u201ccreation\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Rom+8%3A19-22&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rom. 8:19, 20, 21, 22<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Col+1%3A15&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Col. 1:15<\/a> [probably]; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Col+1%3A23&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1:23<\/a> ESV [probably]). Many interpreters either opt for \u201ccreature\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A15&amp;version=KJV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Gal. 6:15<\/a> KJV) or argue that, even if we translate \u201cnew creation,\u201d the reference is to the individual believer, renewed by God\u2019s transforming grace. Some think there is special attention to the community. But most interpreters think \u201cnew creation\u201d refers generally to the new state of affairs that Christ\u2019s death and resurrection has inaugurated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Background to the New Creation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The phrase \u201cnew creation\u201d itself never occurs in the OT, but its equivalent is found in several Jewish texts (see esp. Jub. 1.29; 4.26; 1 En. 72.1; 1QS 4.25; 2 Bar. 44.12 [\u201cnew world\u201d]). As in the Pauline texts, \u201cnew creation\u201d is introduced in these Jewish texts without explanation, but the concept seems to denote the final state of affairs after God\u2019s climactic intervention on behalf of his people. Of course, we must check more than this handful of linguistic parallels when considering the possible background to Paul\u2019s \u201cnew creation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Isaiah, especially in chapters 40\u201355, makes extensive use of creation language to compare and contrast God\u2019s original \u201ccreation\u201d of Israel at the time of the exodus with his re-creation of the people after the exile (see esp. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Isa+43%3A15-19&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Isa. 43:15\u201319<\/a>, alluded to in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=2+Cor+5%3A17&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2 Cor. 5:17<\/a>). And this vision of re-creation ultimately expands to include the whole cosmos: a \u201cnew heavens and earth\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Isa+65%3A17-22&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Isa. 65:17\u201322<\/a>; cf. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Isa+66%3A22-24&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">66:22\u201324<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;Other Jewish texts give \u201ccreation\u201d language a more personal focus. Jeremiah and Ezekiel, for instance, predict that God will overcome Israel\u2019s failure to follow God\u2019s laws by giving his people a new heart (e.g., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Ezek+36%3A26&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ezek. 36:26<\/a>). Joseph and Aseneth (e.g., 12.1\u20134) uses creation language to describe conversion from paganism to Judaism. And there is some evidence that the rabbis used \u201cnew creation\u201d language to describe inner renewal and forgiveness. Yet on the whole the evidence from the background suggests, in the words of Adams, that \u201cthe expression \u2018new creation\u2019 was an established, technical term in Jewish apocalypticism, referring to the new or transformed creation expected to follow the destruction or renewal of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>New Creation = New World<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The context bears out this interpretation. \u201cNew creation\u201d most naturally functions, in contrast to the \u201cworld\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+6%3A14&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">v. 14<\/a>) and the \u201cpresent evil age\u201d (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+1%3A4&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1:4<\/a>), as a designation of the new state of affairs that the cross signifies and inaugurates. Strictly speaking, as Theodoret notes, \u201cnew creation is the transformation of all things which will occur after the resurrection of the dead.\u201d But, in a move fundamental to NT eschatology, Paul announces the inauguration of that new creation in the death and resurrection of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Foundational to this new state of affairs, of course, is the conversion of individuals; and central to it is the new community of Jew and Gentile (see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Gal+3%3A28&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Gal. 3:28<\/a> and the argument of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/bible\/?query=Eph+2%3A11-22&amp;version=ESV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Eph. 2:11\u201322<\/a>). But \u201cnew creation,\u201d while implicitly including these, is a wider concept, embracing the entire transforming work of God. It is a work that will ultimately have cosmic reverberations. Paul again draws a contrast between the more modest \u201cnewness\u201d advocated by the agitators and the sweeping and all-embracing \u201cnewness\u201d that Paul thinks is the outcome of Christ\u2019s death and resurrection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Get the Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"580\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.olivetree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/BakerExegeticalCommentaryNTBookSetSocial-1024x580.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-54461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/BakerExegeticalCommentaryNTBookSetSocial-1024x580.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/BakerExegeticalCommentaryNTBookSetSocial-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/BakerExegeticalCommentaryNTBookSetSocial-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/BakerExegeticalCommentaryNTBookSetSocial-1536x870.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=77345\">Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament<\/a> is an exceptional choice for anyone looking for solid and reliable scholarship. Each volume in this set provides an excellent resource for studying and understanding the text of the New Testament. Pick up the set in our store through the link below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-16018d1d wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-white-color has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.olivetree.com\/store\/product.php?productid=77345\" style=\"background-color:#77aa3c\">BAKER EXEGETICAL COMMENTARY ON THE NEW TESTAMENT<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the final part of his argument for the Galatians, Paul sums up his teaching with two words, new creation. Ultimately, what matters is the new creation. Let\u2019s look at how Douglas Moo unpacks the concept of new creation in his volume on Galatians in the Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. The Baker<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":54468,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7849],"tags":[5985],"class_list":{"0":"post-54463","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-commentaries","8":"tag-baker-exegetical-commentary"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Matters Is . . . the New Creation - Olive Tree Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Matters Is . . . the New Creation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As the final part of his argument for the Galatians, Paul sums up his teaching with two words, new creation. Ultimately, what matters is the new creation.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Olive Tree Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/OliveTreeBible\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-11-06T16:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-08-12T14:12:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/jenn-buxton-MzbXLLKHmN0-unsplash-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Brad Hoffman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@OliveTreeBible\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@OliveTreeBible\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Brad Hoffman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Brad Hoffman\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a5aa5788c774e9c21340b24cb3f5091b\"},\"headline\":\"What Matters Is . . . the New Creation\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-11-06T16:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-12T14:12:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1186,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.olivetree.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/10\\\/jenn-buxton-MzbXLLKHmN0-unsplash-scaled.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Baker Exegetical Commentary\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Commentaries\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/staging-blog.olivetree.com\\\/what-matters-is-the-new-creation\\\/\",\"name\":\"What Matters Is . . . the New Creation - 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