Galatians 2:13-14 13 And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
Paul’s rhetoric gets stronger in these verses. The other Jewish Christians in Antioch saw what Peter was doing by no longer eating and fellowshipping with the Gentile believers, and they followed his example. This broke the fellowship and unity of the church. This was the potential consequence and problem with James’ attitude of trying to impose Jewish regulations upon Gentiles. This approach put the heavy yoke of the law upon people’s shoulders. Even the Jews could not hold up to this heavy weight.
The situation got so bad that even Barnabas was led astray. Barnabas had witnessed the conversion of Gentiles and how the Holy Spirit had filled them and worked in their lives. This statement is surprising, and Paul likely adds it here to emphasize how rampant and influential this Jewish push was in the early church. Legalism is a subtle danger that can enter any church fellowship. It is especially a temptation for those who have been part of the church for a while, just like it was for the Jewish Christians. We usually bring our cultural baggage with us. This baggage may include how we were raised, our personal convictions about certain behaviors or political views. Holding up a high standard is a good and necessary aspect of being a believer in Christ. It can be difficult to balance holiness and freedom. This letter to the church in Galatia helps with this balance. One of the most challenging aspects of Christian growth is to see how the law can be transformed from a burden to a blessing through the grace and freedom of Christ.
Paul uses some strong words in v. 13. Hypocrisy is putting on a false face before other people, pretending to be something one is not. This is often done out of shame, embarrassment, or guilt. People hide behind something that is not their real person. Peter, Barnabas, and other Jews had not fully embraced the gospel of freedom because they hid behind their Jewish mask. They did not break free from the burden of the law and felt shame before those who came from James in Jerusalem. Led astray means to cause to go astray in belief because of pressure or association. Barnabas was caught up in the hypocrisy and social pressure from the Jerusalem Jews. This was the same type of situation facing the churches in Galatia.
Paul had strong convictions that came from his encounter with Jesus Christ and grew over the years as he interacted with Gentiles. These convictions show up in v. 14 as he confronts this situation. Paul stood up in front of the whole assembly and rebuked Peter. This took courage and conviction. Paul felt so strongly about the truth of the gospel that he dealt with this in a way that would be strong enough and obvious enough to make a lasting difference. This was not something that could slide by. Paul switches here to Peter’s real Jewish name of Cephas, possibly on purpose to highlight the Jewish situation. Cephas was a Jew but had been living like a Gentile. This was not necessarily a wrong thing, since Paul wrote to the Corinthians that he became all things to all people as part of his mission (1 Corinthians 9:19-23). The problem was that Cephas reversed and forced the Gentiles to take on Jewish practices. It was easy to give up Jewish regulations and practices because they were a heavy burden to everyone. But then, Cephas was forcing the Gentiles to take on this heavy load when he himself had given it up. This is essentially what was happening in Galatia also. The Jewish agitators were forcing the Gentile believers to take on Jewish practices that were impossible for even the Jews to live by. The law is a burden if it is used as the definition of righteousness.
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