SEV Biblia, Chapter 1:15
Mas cuando quiso Dios, que me apart desde el vientre de mi madre, y me llam por su gracia,
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Galatians 1:15
Verse 15. Who separated me from my mother's womb] Him whom I acknowledge as the GOD of nature and the GOD of grace; who preserved me by his providence when I was a helpless infant, and saved me by his grace when I was an adult persecutor. For some useful remarks on these passages see the introduction, sec. ii.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 15. But when it pleased God , etc..] Here begins his account of his conversion, and call to the ministry; all which he ascribes entirely to the sovereign good pleasure, and free grace of God: who separated me from my mother's womb . By his mother is meant, not in an improper and figurative sense, the Jewish church, or the old synagogue, the mother of all its members; the Jerusalem which then was, and was in bondage with her children; from which bondage, blindness, ignorance, superstition and bigotry, he was delivered, when called by grace: nor the church at Antioch, which is never called a mother church; and though he was by that church, with Barnabas, separated for the work of the ministry, yet not from it: but by his mother, without a figure is meant, his real natural mother, whose name is said to be Theocrita; and this separation from her womb is to be understood either of that distinction made of him in Providence, as soon as born; which not only took him, and safely brought him out of his mother's womb, but ever since took special care of him, and saved and preserved him to be called; for all the chosen vessels of salvation are distinguished from others, in a providential way; they are more under the special care of Providence than others are, even whilst in a state of unregeneracy; God's eye of Providence is upon them, his heart is towards them, he waits upon them to be gracious to them, and many are the remarkable appearances of Providence for them; (see Psalm 22:9,10). Or rather this designs divine predestination, which is a separation, a setting apart of persons, for such and such purposes, as here of the apostle; and the eternity of it, it being very early done, from his mother's womb; whilst he was in it, before he was born, and had done either good or evil; from the beginning of time, from the foundation of the world, and before it, even from eternity: all which phrases express the same thing, and intend either his predestination to grace and glory, to holiness and happiness, to sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth, and to the obtaining the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ; or his predestination to apostleship, to the work of the ministry, to the Gospel of Christ, to which he was separated in eternity, and in time; reference seems to be had to ( Jeremiah 1:5) or indeed both, and his separation or predestination to both was owing to the sovereign will and good pleasure of God, as was also his after call: and called me by his grace ; which follows upon separation, as it does on predestination, in ( Romans 8:30) and is to be interpreted either of his call at conversion, by powerful and efficacious grace; when he was called out of Jewish darkness, blindness, and ignorance, into Gospel light and knowledge; out of the bondage of sin, Satan, the law, and traditions of the fathers, into the liberty of Christ; from conversation with the men of the world, among whom before he had it, into the fellowship of Father, Son, and Spirit, angels and saints; out of himself, and off of a dependence on his own righteousness, to trust in Christ: in a word, he was called into the grace of Christ here, into a participation of all the blessings of grace, and to eternal glory by him hereafter; which call was not of men, but of God, as the efficient cause of it; and by his grace, as the moving and procuring cause of it, and without the use of means, the word, which is the ordinary way in which God calls his people; so that it is plain his first light into the Gospel, was not of man, nor so much as by the means of man: or this call may respect his call to the ministry, which was at the same time he was effectually called by grace; and which also was not of man, nor of himself; he did not thrust himself into this work, but God called him; and that of his mere grace and good will, without any respect to any merits, deserts, or qualifications in him.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 15-24 - St. Paul was wonderfully brought to the knowledge and faith of Christ All who are savingly converted, are called by the grace of God; their conversion is wrought by his power and grace working in them. It wil but little avail us to have Christ revealed to us, if he is not als revealed in us. He instantly prepared to obey, without hesitating as to his worldly interest, credit, ease, or life itself. And what matter of thanksgiving and joy is it to the churches of Christ, when they hear of such instances to the praise of the glory of his grace, whether the have ever seen them or not! They glorify God for his power and mercy i saving such persons, and for all the service to his people and caus that is done, and may be further expected from them __________________________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
οτε 3753 δε 1161 ευδοκησεν 2106 5656 ο 3588 θεος 2316 ο 3588 αφορισας 873 5660 με 3165 εκ 1537 κοιλιας 2836 μητρος 3384 μου 3450 και 2532 καλεσας 2564 5660 δια 1223 της 3588 χαριτος 5485 αυτου 846
Vincent's NT Word Studies
15. It pleased (eudokhsen). See on eujdokia good pleasure, 1 Thessalonians i. 11.
Separated (aforisav). Set apart: designated. See on Rom. i. 1, and declared, Rom. i. 4. The A.V. wrongly lends itself to the sense of the physical separation of the child from the mother.
From my mother's womb (ek koiliav mhtrov mou). Before I was born. Others, from the time of my birth. A few passages in LXX. go to sustain the former view: Judg. xvi. 17; Isa. lxiv. 2, 24; lxvi. 1, 5. That view is also favored by those instances in which a child's destiny is clearly fixed by God before birth, as Samson, Judg. xvi. 17; comp. xiii. 5, 7; John the Baptist, Luke i. 15. See also Matt. xix. 12. The usage of ejk as marking a temporal starting point is familiar. See John vi. 66; ix. 1; Acts ix. 33; xxiv. 10. Called (kalesav). See on Rom. iv. 17. Referring to Paul's call into the kingdom and service of Christ. It need not be limited to his experience at Damascus, but may include the entire chain of divine influences which led to his conversion and apostleship. He calls himself klhtov ajpostolov an apostle by call, Rom. i. 1; 1 Cor. i. 1.
Robertson's NT Word Studies
1:15 {It was the good pleasure of God} (eudokesen ho qeos). Paul had no doubt about God's purpose in him (#1Th 2:8). {Who separated me} (ho aforisas me). aforizw is old word (from apo and horos) to mark off from a boundary or line. The Pharisees were the separatists who held themselves off from others. Paul conceives himself as a spiritual Pharisee "separated unto the gospel of God" (#Ro 1:1, the same word aph"rismenos). Before his birth God had his plans for him and called him.
