What law is referred to all thru the third chapter of Galatians? Some apply the 19th verse to the moral law, and some to the ceremonial law; which law is referred to? No. 771.
In Galatians sometimes law is referred to in general, sometimes in particular. Law is referred to in general to impress the fact that man is not justified by law; but law is referred to in particular to show that the moral law of God condemns us, and therefore we are under the law. Take the beginning of the third chapter, "Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" Of course they could not do it by the works of the law, because man's works are imperfect, and the Spirit does not come to work in the unrighteous; and so with the man who works miracles, he does not do it by law but by faith. Tenth verse: "For as many as are of the works of the law," depending on the works of the law, "are under a curse," because they can not lift that curse by doing imperfect works; therefore man is not justified by law. Verse 11. Yet if a man could do the law perfectly of himself, he could live in it, but he has sinned and can not. The law is weak thru the flesh, because the flesh is mortal and sinful. Rom. 8: 2. What then is the law for? Why did God speak the law, if it could not save man? The 19th verse tells us, "It was added [spoken, given in that special form] because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise hath been made." Now there ought to be no question in regard to the law referred to. After calling to remembrance that law in the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy, Moses tells us that God spoke those Ten Commandments, "and added no more." Rom. 5: 20 tells us that the law came in that the trespass might abound; that is, that sin by the coming might become exceeding sinful. Rom. 7: 13. Man's conscience had become dead; sin had obliterated to some extent the law that was originally written in his heart, it needed the written law to convince him how sinful he was; so Paul tells us, "Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law; for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet."Rom. 7: 7.
Who is the Seed?—Christ. Gal. 3: 16. What is the promise?—That He should be Heir of the world. Gen. 22: 17; Rom. 4: 13. He has not yet come to receive that inheritance, has He? That will not occur until His second coming, for when He "shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory." Matt. 25: 31. Therefore God's law is given to make sin seem exceedingly sinful, to point out sin until Christ shall come the second time. Pointing out the sin, it forces man to the Saviour. God reveals that we are sinners in order that He may reveal Himself to us as our Saviour. He shows us that we are in misery in order that He may reveal His mercy. He reveals to us that we are under the law, in order that He may write the law in our hearts, so that we shall not be bound as slaves, but be free, as willing, loving subjects of His. Before faith comes, we are under the law, but when that law is written in our hearts, then we are fulfilling the fruits of the Spirit, against which there is no law. Gal. 5: 22, 23.