Background on Galatians

Who Were the Galatians?

There is theological debate about who Paul writes to in this book.
• Some speculate that it was “North Galatia” which we have no biblical evidence Paul ever visited.
• Most scholars prefer “South Galatia,” which cities included Lystra, Derbe, etc., which have biblical support of Paul having visited. 

This study of Galatians will prefer the Southern Theory, although we're not discounting the possibility that the letter was circulated farther to the north as well.)

Unlike the other letters we will study, Galatia was not a city. The letter to the Ephesians is sent to Christians in the city of Ephesus. Likewise with the Philippians (Philippi) and Colossians (Colossae). But Galatia was not a city, it was a district—an area.

Think of it like this: Paul is not writing to a city (such as New York City) but a region (like the Northeast). In this region, there were numerous cities and numerous churches. Perhaps this letter was meant to be passed along between them all. This was not uncommon in the ancient Roman Empire.

Galatia was in the northern part of what is now known as Turkey. One chunk of this district also dove south to include cities Paul visited on one of his missionary journeys. This whole region was at that time called “Asia Minor.”
 

Paul's Experience in Galatia

It is believed that his entire journey took about 2 years. During this time, a lot of things happened, from near-stonings to being revered as gods. This was Paul’s experience in Galatia.

We also know that he didn’t just go there once. He visited many of cities two and three times each. There is no doubt that the Galatians left a print on Paul’s mind, but he also had a heart for these people.
 

Galatia Mentioned Elswehere in Scripture

1 Corinthians 16:1
2 Timothy 4:10
1 Peter 1:1