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Martin Luther
Martin Luther (1483–1546). Born on November 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Saxony (now Germany), to Hans and Margarethe Luther, Martin Luther grew up in a strict Catholic household, his father intent on him becoming a lawyer. After earning a bachelor’s degree in 1501 and a master’s in 1505 at the University of Erfurt, a near-fatal thunderstorm experience led him to vow to St. Anne, entering an Augustinian monastery in 1505. Ordained a priest in 1507, he grappled with spiritual turmoil over sin until finding peace in justification by faith through studying Romans. Appointed professor of theology at the University of Wittenberg in 1512, he earned a doctorate and lectured with deepening conviction. On October 31, 1517, he nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the Wittenberg Castle Church door, condemning indulgences and igniting the Protestant Reformation. His works, like On the Freedom of a Christian (1520), challenged papal authority, spreading rapidly and emphasizing salvation by grace through faith alone. Excommunicated by Pope Leo X in 1521 and outlawed at the Diet of Worms, Luther stood firm, protected by Frederick the Wise, and hid at Wartburg Castle, translating the New Testament into German in 1522 to make Scripture accessible. Back in Wittenberg, he preached thousands of sermons, wrote hymns like “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” and penned The Bondage of the Will (1525), defending divine sovereignty. In 1525, he married Katharina von Bora, a former nun, raising six children in a vibrant Christian home, modeling family life. His reforms ended clerical celibacy, simplified worship, and birthed Lutheranism, though his harsh words against Jews and peasants drew criticism. Despite chronic illness, he produced catechisms, a full Bible translation by 1534, and mediated disputes until his death on February 18, 1546, in Eisleben. Luther said, “Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God.”
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Martin Luther emphasizes Paul's unwavering zeal for the Gospel, expressing his willingness to be cursed, along with angels, rather than see the Gospel undermined. Paul's deep conviction leads him to declare curses on himself and others, including heavenly beings, to protect the purity of the Gospel he preached to the Galatians, which he asserts is the only true Gospel revealed in the Sacred Scriptures.
But Though We, or an Angel From Heaven, Preach Any Other Gospel Unto You Than That Which We Have Preached Unto You, Let Him Be Accursed.
Paul’s zeal for the Gospel becomes so fervent that it almost leads him to curse angels. “I would rather that I, my brethren, yes, the angels of heaven be anathematized than that my gospel be overthrown.” The Greek word anathema, Hebrew herem, means to accurse, execrate, to damn. Paul first (hypothetically) curses himself. Knowing persons first find fault with themselves in order that they may all the more earnestly reprove others. Paul maintains that there is no other gospel besides the one he had preached to the Galatians. He preached, not a gospel of his own invention, but the very same Gospel God had long ago prescribed in the Sacred Scriptures. No wonder Paul pronounces curses upon himself and upon others, 30upon the angels of heaven, if anyone should dare to preach any other gospel than Christ’s own.
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Martin Luther (1483–1546). Born on November 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Saxony (now Germany), to Hans and Margarethe Luther, Martin Luther grew up in a strict Catholic household, his father intent on him becoming a lawyer. After earning a bachelor’s degree in 1501 and a master’s in 1505 at the University of Erfurt, a near-fatal thunderstorm experience led him to vow to St. Anne, entering an Augustinian monastery in 1505. Ordained a priest in 1507, he grappled with spiritual turmoil over sin until finding peace in justification by faith through studying Romans. Appointed professor of theology at the University of Wittenberg in 1512, he earned a doctorate and lectured with deepening conviction. On October 31, 1517, he nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the Wittenberg Castle Church door, condemning indulgences and igniting the Protestant Reformation. His works, like On the Freedom of a Christian (1520), challenged papal authority, spreading rapidly and emphasizing salvation by grace through faith alone. Excommunicated by Pope Leo X in 1521 and outlawed at the Diet of Worms, Luther stood firm, protected by Frederick the Wise, and hid at Wartburg Castle, translating the New Testament into German in 1522 to make Scripture accessible. Back in Wittenberg, he preached thousands of sermons, wrote hymns like “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” and penned The Bondage of the Will (1525), defending divine sovereignty. In 1525, he married Katharina von Bora, a former nun, raising six children in a vibrant Christian home, modeling family life. His reforms ended clerical celibacy, simplified worship, and birthed Lutheranism, though his harsh words against Jews and peasants drew criticism. Despite chronic illness, he produced catechisms, a full Bible translation by 1534, and mediated disputes until his death on February 18, 1546, in Eisleben. Luther said, “Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God.”