Why Did Paul Withstand Peter in Galatians 2?

Galatians 2 gives us a rare glimpse into the first century leadership of our faith, and in it we see that Peter and Paul had a disagreement, which culminated in Paul opposing Peter to his face. Understanding what was happening that lead to Paul confronting Peter will give us insight into a major issue of the day, and help us to better understand not just Galatians but the whole of the New Testament.

Peter and Paul are probably the two most respected gospel teachers of all time. Peter was one of the original twelve disciples and spent much time with the Messiah, even joining him to briefly walk on water! Paul had a vision of Jesus confronting his actions and explaining that he was the Messiah, he traveled extensively sharing the good news. They both authored books of the New Testament. They served the same God and mission to share his message...so what was the problem?

We are hearing the story from Paul's perspective and he doesn't shy back from telling us what happened, plainly stating, "I withstood Peter to his face, because he was in the wrong," (Galatians 2:11). If we didn't know Paul and Peter it would be easy to chalk this up as Paul insulting or disregarding Peter, but I don't think that's the case here. Scripture would not be filled with needless put-downs or complaints. Rather, this is calling our attention to the importance of the issue at hand. 

Paul goes on to explain that up until certain men arrived, Peter had been perfectly fine eating meals with Gentile believers (Galatians 2:12). But since Peter feared these men who belonged to the circumcision sect, he withdrew and made it a point to separate himself from the Gentiles. Paul considered this to be a very hypocritical thing to do.

Quick side note: in this case it's important to note that phrases like, "those of the circumcision," aren't referring to men who have been circumcised, but rather to the sect or movement that believed that circumcision was a prerequisite for salvation and being part of God's people.

What is the big deal here? Shouldn't Peter be allowed to eat with whoever he wants? We need a little background here: in Judaism at the time (and still in some sects today), eating with non-Jews was strictly forbidden. It was not done ever. And we must know that this is not a rule that God gave to his people! There is nothing in Scripture that says people from different ethnicities or religious backgrounds can't eat together. And there is certainly nothing in the Bible that says that YHWH's people must be separated according to their backgrounds or where they are from. The prohibition that Peter started following was a manmade law in Judaism. A rule designed to keep those with the 'wrong' background out of the faith or deemed they be treated as second-class citizens. This is not in line with what the Bible says.

Traditions aren't always bad, but in this case the Bible says that this "was not in line with the gospel." This why Peter's action was a big deal, because he was putting a manmade law above God's instructions, one that perpetuated ideas that were against the truth of Scripture. Peter's sudden refusal to eat with gentiles was promoting ideas and actions that weren't consistent with the good news of the Messiah, such as treating non-Jews like secondary citizens. His action said, "You can believe in Jesus, but you'll never be as good as us."

Paul could see that this went against what the Bible said, which was why he confronted Peter about it. Paul goes on to ask a simple question, which is often misconstrued to mean that all the Biblical commandments are done away with. "You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile, and not like a Jew. Why would you then compel a Gentile to live as a Jew?" (Galatians 2:14)

Now it is important to realize that Scripture does not equate 'Jew' with Israelite or God's people, so being described as a Jew doesn't just mean that your ancestors were Israelites. Like "the circumcision" the word Jew describes a specific religious sect, one that Paul told us in Galatians 1:13 was his former way of life. 

Since the word Jew was brought up in a context of commandments not found in the Bible, we see that Paul is addressing the requirement of following the rules of a manmade religion, and not just the Bible's instructions. When he says Peter was living as a gentile, he means that Peter wasn't keeping the manmade traditions. So when Paul asks, "Why pressure gentiles to live as Jews?" he means, why should we teach new believers laws and rituals that aren't found in the Bible?

The context of this alongside his rebuke of Peter keeping Jewish law tells us that Paul does not think believers need to follow Jewish law, but he's not saying that all believers shouldn't keep YHWH's commandments that are found in the Bible. The point Paul is making is to never sacrifice Biblical truths in order to stick with manmade customs. He wanted all believers to know that their human bloodline was utterly irrelevant next to the blood of the Messiah. He goes on to explain:

"In the Messiah, you are all children of God through faith, as you have been united with Jesus through baptism and have put on the Messiah like new clothes. There is neither Jew nor gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in the Messiah. If you belong to the Messiah, then you are Abraham's seed and his heirs according to the promise." -Galatians 3:26-29

This issue is a cornerstone one in the New Testament. For the disciples, it was a breaking away from the elaborate traditions and rituals of their fathers that excluded the masses. This meant embracing the simplicity of the Bible. While the religious leaders of the day taught that non-Jews were 'common' or otherwise unsuitable for relationship with God, Paul knew that was not the case. Paul withstood Peter for perpetuating this lie by honoring the traditions of men above the commandments of God.

Related posts:
The Three Types of Laws in Scripture
What You Need to Know When You Read Galatians
Commandments or Traditions - Understanding the New Testament

Why Biblical Law is For All Believers (And Not Just Jews)

I used to think that Biblical law and keeping the commandments were only expected of Jewish people, and I hear this echoed all the time. Statements like, "I don't have to do that because I'm not Jewish," "God only wants the Jewish people to keep the food laws," "Gentiles are not under the law because of Jesus," or "Those things are just for Jews," show up in my comment section all the time. If we only listen to manmade religious doctrines, this is easy to accept as truth. But if we take a look at what Scripture actually says we will find this is not the case! All believers, no matter their ancestry, are expected to keep the commandments in the Bible!

Why Biblical law is not just for Jews:

-The Bible never says this. There is nothing in the Bible about the commandments being only for Jewish people. In fact, until the New Testament Jewish people barely get a mention in Scripture. Seriously, go reread the whole thing. You will not find a phrase like that in there. There are no instructions from YHWH about limiting the gift of his word, or the expectations of keeping his commandments to Jewish people.

-The Bible expressly says Biblical law is not just for the Israelites, but also for foreigners. Exodus 12:49, "There is one Torah for the native-born and for the stranger who sojourns among you." There was no such thing as Judaism in Exodus, so this verse does not somehow mean that the Torah is only for you if you convert to Judaism or live around Jews. It's talking about people from any part of the world joining YHWH's people by serving him. No matter where you are from, the same set of commandments apply to you.

-There were no Jews present when Biblical law was given. Not a single person in Genesis through Deuteronomy (when Biblical law was given) considered themselves to be Jewish. Not one. While the tribe of Judah was present, so were eleven other tribes! We must understand that Scripture's use of Israelite is not interchangeable with the term Judaism today. There are Jews today who did have ancestors present when Biblical law was given, but many other people groups also have ancestors who were given Biblical law!

-The New Testament says there are neither Jews nor Gentiles. I really can't imagine why this statement from Galatians 3:28 would be included in Scripture if YHWH was going to hold different people groups to different standards. Recognizing this verse makes it seem rather silly to say, "God doesn't hold me to that standard because I'm a gentile"!

-The Messiah was never impressed with claims of antecedence. John the Baptist's words in Luke 3:8, "Prove by the way that you live that you have repented from sins and turned to God. Don't just say to each other, 'We're safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.' That means nothing, for I tell you that God can create children of Abraham from these very stones." The Messiah did not count relations to Abraham as some sort of extra credit or bonus. His response to those who were relying on their physical relations to Abraham was that wasn't enough, their actions should reflect that. He said that Abraham's children would do what Abraham did (John 8:39).

-Most of us don't really know where we are from. Even if you believe that Biblical law is only for those who descended physically from the Israelites who were freed from Egypt, how do you know that none of your ancestors were there? Most of us are lucky to know anything about our ancestors after the most recent five or six generations. There is simply no way of knowing for sure whether you had ancestors there or not!

Recognizing that the Living God gave one set of instructions for all people, wherever they may be from physically or whatever their religious background is, means that we should strive to honor him by keeping his commandments! Yes, we are all sinners and won't do it perfectly. But no parent would ever say that since their children won't be able to always keep their instructions perfectly, they don't expect them to bother trying. YHWH is honored by our efforts to keep his instructions, even when we fall short.

Related posts:
Why the Biblical Holidays are For All Believers
Basics of Biblical Law
Commandments or Traditions - Understanding the New Testament

What You Need to Know When You Read Galatians

Galatians is a popular book in the New Testament that everyone seems to have a different take on. Traditional Christianity uses verses from Galatians as justification for setting aside Biblical commandments. Messianic believers might tell you that it's just talking about oral or Jewish law. Others read through it and think it contradicts itself repeatedly, or just feel confused. What is Galatians about?

How can we make sense of this important part of Scripture? This post will tell you how to read and study Galatians, so that you can understand how it is relevant today!

-Galatians is not meant to be read on its own. I grew up thinking that Galatians was some sort of trump card, and even if the Bible said the opposite thing somewhere else it didn't matter because somehow Galatians was more relevant or important than the rest of Scripture. But it's not legitimate to use one Bible verse to write off other parts of God's word. The way we translate and teach Galatians needs to fit with the rest of Scripture, because the Living God did not create his word to be contradictory. All of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is cohesive. It fits together and all of the passages make sense with all of the other passages. If there is something in the Bible that seems to be contrary to other verses, that should call our attention to examine that topic more thoroughly. If something in Scripture is confusing, that's because I don't understand it well enough - not because it really is confusing.

-Different types of law are talked about in Galatians. Did you know that most Bible translations just use the word "law" for different types of law? That's about as clear as walking into a bridal dress shop and saying that you like the white dress! Specifications matter, and in this case Galatians talks about both Biblical law, and Levitical law. We need to rightly discern which type of law it talks about when. Otherwise this book will seem like it's contradicting itself and other parts of the Bible.

-The Bible says that Paul's writings are hard to understand. Peter wrote that in 2 Peter 3:16 and warned that Paul's writings often end up distorted or twisted. Here is a warning from the Bible that we need to slow down and study this book. It's unrealistic to think that a quick, cursory reading of an English translation will lead us to to proper meaning of Galatians when Scripture warns us that it is difficult to understand. That doesn't mean we can't understand it, but this indicates that the true meaning of Galatians might be different than what we've been taught!

Related posts: 
A Hebraic Perspective on Galatians
The Three Types of Laws in Scripture
Comparing the Melchizedek and Levitical Priesthoods

A Hebraic Perspective on Galatians

Galatians may well be the most misunderstood book in Scripture. When I was first learning about Torah observance and the Hebrew faith, the idea of keeping the commandments would make sense...and then I would read Galatians and get very confused. It seems to go against so much of Scripture doesn't it? Passages are often pulled out of this book to say that we no longer need to follow YHWH's instructions. But Scripture doesn't contradict itself! Having a better perspective on this book will help us to see how it fits with all of the Word.

This post will help you to learn the meaning of Galatians and better understand its main points. It will also help you study this part of the Bible!

There are a few things to remember when we read Galatians: 

-This is not meant to be read on its own but in conjunction with the rest of the Bible. Meaning, it needs to fit with what the rest of Scripture says.

-Most translations fail to distinguish between the commandments for how we are to live (love your neighbor, honor the Sabbath day, eat what Scripture permits, do not steal or murder, etc.), from the laws regarding the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system, confusingly lumping them together as "law" or "Torah." Making a distinction sheds so much light on this book!

-Paul is not writing about all the commandments in Scripture but rather hones in on circumcision and animal sacrifice.

-This was written by Paul and Scripture says that his writings are often hard to understand and end up twisted (2 Peter 3:16). It is unrealistic to think that a quick, cursory reading of an English translation will lead us to the proper meaning of this passage when Scripture warns us that it is difficult to understand. Take time to study and search out the true meaning of this misunderstood book.

Because I come from a Christian background, I have heard so many times that Galatians says that we are set free from the pointless and burdensome instructions of our Creator. These are some of the verses that used to confuse me. Let's take a closer look to see what Scripture really is saying in these passages.

Addressing 'problem verses':

Titus was not compelled to be circumcised. -Galatians 2:3
This verse is talking about circumcision and does not mean that Titus wasn't compelled to follow other commandments in Scripture. Circumcision is a weighty topic and one that we won't fully delve into in this article. Remember that Paul did encourage Timothy to be circumcised later and we have no evidence of either of them or Paul disregarding Scripture's instructions in other areas.

Peter was at fault for separating himself from Gentiles. -Galatians 2:11
Peter was at fault because the Bible doesn't say he should do this. The idea of separating from Gentiles is a man-made Jewish idea, not something found in Torah. Which is why verse 12 expressly mentions that he withdrew from Gentile believers because of fear of others. He was fearing man's traditions and rules (Judaism's laws in this case) in place of YHWH, which is what Paul called him out for.

"Why would you compel a Gentile to live as a Jew?" -Galatians 2:14
It's important to realize that Paul no longer sees his faith as part of Judaism (in 1:13 he says that Judaism was his former way of life). So yeah, why would he expect Gentiles to live as Jews who observe literally thousands of rules not found in Scripture? The context of this alongside his rebuke of Peter keeping Jewish law tells us that Paul does not think believers should follow Jewish law, but he's not saying that all believers shouldn't keep YHWH's commandments.

"Man is not declared right by works of Torah." -Galatians 2:16 
We should look at this verse from the perspective of, "Man is not declared right by animal sacrifices." This fits with Hebrews 10:4 which tells us it is impossible for animal blood to take away our sins. But even if we look at it from the perspective that we aren't saved by keeping the commandments perfectly, there is no contradiction here. Salvation is a free gift given to those who believe, regardless of my ability to serve him perfectly. However, our actions should reflect our faith!

"Through the Torah, I died to Torah." -Galatians 2:19
An easier to understand rendering of this verse would be, "Through Scripture, I died to the Levitical priesthood." It's significant that Paul says through Torah or through Scripture, because he can see that the change from the Levitical priesthood back to the Melchizedek is something that Scripture teaches. He says he is dead to the system of animal sacrifice because it can no longer do anything for him.

"If righteousness is through Torah, then Messiah died for nothing." -Galatians 2:21
This isn't discrediting the Torah but rather speaking a quite obvious truth. If we didn't need the Messiah for salvation, then what was the point in his being killed? If the Levitical sacrificial system was all we needed then that would have been an easy decision for YHWH to continue that rather than subject the Messiah to torture and murder.

"Does the Spirit come by works of Torah or by belief?" -Galatians 3:2
Did the Levitical system lead to an outpouring of the Holy Spirit? It did not, simply because the Levitical system is the not the fullness or best of YHWH's plan for mankind. That is not an insult to the Levitical temple, but an admonishment that our faith shouldn't stop there. 

You need belief to be a son of Abraham. -Galatians 3:7
This fits with what we know about who Hebrews really are. It's not about your bloodline, it's about placing your faith in the Messiah and serving him as Scripture teaches.

"Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all the Torah." -Galatians 3:10
Would Paul have bothered bringing this up if he thought we shouldn't keep any of the commandments and were off the hook of being cursed? I don't think so, and his phrasing is quite telling...he expects believers to have a question about doing 'part' of the Torah instructions because he expected them to follow the commandments given in the Book of the Covenant, without keeping the Levitical Temple system in effect. If it weren't for the Messiah, we would be cursed by not participating in the Levitical system. But now we have the Messiah and he set us free from the curse that comes from stopping Temple sacrifices.

"No one is declared right by the Torah." -Galatians 3:11
You can't sacrifice enough animals to be declared right. The blood of animals does not take away sins (Hebrews 10:4). That's not an insult to the Levitical priesthood, merely an admission that Yahusha's blood is superior. And of course we aren't declared right by our works either, but that doesn't mean YHWH doesn't want us to live a certain way. 

"Torah that came 430 years later does not annul a previous Covenant." -Galatians 3:17
Did you know that most of the commandments for how to live were given before the Levitical priesthood was established? Instructions on the Sabbath, the set apart times, and clean eating were all spoken of well before the Israelites wandered in the desert. Those things aren't annulled or done away with because of the change in the priesthood. This sentence shows us that Scripture makes a distinction of the commandments for how to live and the commandments for the Levitical system. They are not inextricably linked together. This also tells us that the "Two Torahs" are both from Scripture, and Paul is not talking about the oral law (Judaism's man made rules).

This Torah was added because of transgressions... -Galatians 3:19
Added is a key word here. What was the Levitical system and animal sacrifice added to? The instructions YHWH had already given on how to live! Transgressions here is talking about the sin of the golden calf.

"...until the Seed should come to those this promise was made to." -Galatians 3:19
Until the Messiah comes! The Levitical sacrifices were made until the Messiah. This passage is talking about animal sacrifice and circumcision, but Paul is not saying that the rest of the instructions were just until the Messiah. We see the Messiah and his followers (Paul included) keeping the Torah throughout the New Testament.

The Torah is not against the promises of YHWH. -Galatians 3:21
Meaning that his instructions go with his promises. You don't throw out the instructions to get to the promises.

Yahusha was born under Levitical law. -Galatians 4:4
Messiah was born when the Levitical system was still in operation, in order to redeem those who were under this priesthood. This is both a statement of fact (that the Temple was running when he was born), and a reminder that he comes to us where we are.

Becoming enslaved again...observing Gentile ritual days. -Galatians 4:10
Please see that this passage is about turning back to cultural holidays and man-made traditions, not about keeping the Biblical set apart times! Verse 9 talks about turning away from YHWH. Would it make more sense to view celebrating a feast of Scripture as turning away from the Living God, or turning to man-made holidays with roots in paganism as turning away from the Creator?

Two covenants: free woman/slave woman allegory. -Galatians 4:24
Take note that these women are from Abraham's time, including the free woman. The Melchizedek priesthood was in effect during Abraham's time, while the Levitical system didn't come into place until hundreds of years later. YHWH's intention was always for his people to have the free woman covenant, but that covenant was rejected by Israel at the sin of the golden calf. The Messiah's sacrifice restores us to the original free woman covenant, including the many commandments on how we are to live such as celebrating the Biblical holidays, not consuming animals that Scripture doesn't permit, and honoring the Sabbath day.

Messiah has made us free from the yoke of slavery. -Galatians 5:1
True freedom only comes from the Messiah. And going back to the allegory of the free woman and the slave woman, the Levitical priesthood is the slave woman. Yahusha set us free from having to sacrifice animals.

Declaring yourself right by animal sacrifices severs you from the Messiah. -Galatians 5:4
Yes, saying that your sins are covered because of an animal sacrifice is deeply insulting to the Messiah! But that's what severs you from him; note that this verse doesn't say, "Honoring the Sabbath day severs you from Messiah," or "Keeping the commandments cuts you off." 

"Do not use freedom as an occasion for the flesh." -Galatians 5:13
Freedom and forgiveness don't make it wise to live foolishly. The Messiah didn't set us free from sin so that we can do whatever we want without consequence.

"The entire Torah is completed in one word, love your neighbor as yourself." -Galatians 5:14
This is a summary of the instructions we are supposed to be keeping. Think of it as the description on the back of a book - here's what it's about, see inside for more.

"If you are lead by the Spirit, you are not under Torah." -Galatians 5:18
A better rendering of this would be that if we are being lead by the Spirit, we won't return to the Levitical system of animal sacrifice. The Holy Spirit accepts Yahusha's blood offering as superior to the blood of bulls and goats and will not lead you to resume animal sacrifice. This verse is not saying that the Holy Spirit would lead us away from the word of YHWH or his instructions. Paul has just spoken on the Torah telling us to love our neighbor, it would make no sense for him to mean 'Torah' in the same context here...if you are lead by the Spirit you won't love your neighbor? That doesn't fit at all with Scripture.

Galatians doesn't have to be confusing. The Creator wants you to understand this important book and see that it truly does not contradict the rest of Scripture, and it doesn't bad-mouth it either. The Word of YHWH is seamless and by taking the time to study the Hebraic perspective of the writer we can see that this book doesn't tell us to throw away the commandments.

Related posts:
Comparing the Melchizedek and Levitical Priesthoods
Why We Don't Sacrifice Animals

Faith and Works: The Meaning of James 2:26

"It's not about works." Many of us have been taught that trying to 'earn' our salvation by what we do is an insult to the Messiah's blood. Since he paid the price for us we are free to do, well, almost anything we want so long as we are trying to serve him and mean well. We can set aside the commandments of the Creator if they aren't convenient to our lifestyle today. All we have to do is believe, any expectation on ourselves to live a certain way is an affront to the Messiah himself.

Is this what Scripture teaches? James 2:26 says that faith without works is dead. This passage makes it clear that our actions and deeds are significant to YHWH. James makes it clear that faith and works go together. Works alone aren't enough, but just having faith shows there is a conspicuous lack in our lives. This used to be a confusing concept to me (and no doubt to those who tried to remove this passage of Scripture from the Bible), I would hear it and then remember Galatians 2:16, that we are declared righteous by faith in the Messiah and not by works of the law. How do these fit together?

Let's take a step back to see that a better rendering of this passage from Galatians would be, "We are declared righteous by faith in the Messiah, and not by the works of the Aaronic priesthood." Scripture is not teaching that the commandments given to  the priests are wrong or bad, but they were only a temporary covering of sins until the Messiah came. We are not made righteous by the sacrifice of animals. It is not saying that the choices we make have no consequence before YHWH or in our lives. 

Like with the animal sacrifices, our actions alone are not going to make us righteous. You could keep every Sabbath of your life and never covet your neighbor's possessions, but without the Messiah it is not enough. However, once we have faith in the Messiah our works should reflect that! He himself said that if someone loves him they keep his commands (John 14:23), so don't think for a minute that your actions don't matter to him.

The Messiah wants us to love him, and therefore he wants us to be obedient to the commandments in Scripture. Not that our salvation depends on being able to perfectly walk that out every day. Like a loving husband, he offers grace and mercy when his bride is not perfect. Not to worry, your salvation doesn't depend on you. But you showing love to the Messiah? You get to do that by keeping his commands.

Was Everyone in the Bible Jewish?

Did you know that most of the people in the Bible weren't Jewish? A lot of people don't realize this fact, and discussing any sort of Biblical commandment beyond, 'Thou shall not kill,' I hear this phrase a lot: Biblical law was only for the Jews.

I've started asking a simple question - who are the Jews? - in response to this statement. The responses mention rabbis, those living in the modern country of Israel, people with Jewish ancestry, and, you know, all the people who are in the Bible!

Somehow most of us have been lead to believe that unless you've had a bar mitzvah and find yourself as a member of the modern Jewish religion, then God doesn't really expect you to actually do what he says.

I could not disagree more with this idea because of one simple detail. Most of the people in Scripture were not Jewish.

That's an unusual thought for most of us, but that doesn't mean it's not true. I mean no disrespect to the Jewish people. Indeed there are many people in the Bible, including the Messiah, who were from the tribe of Judah. I'm not arguing that. But we should be aware that Biblical law was given to many more people besides just one tribe of Israel.

In fact, did you know the word 'Jewish' isn't in Scripture all that much? If you do a word search, jewel or jewelry will come up far more often than the word 'Jew.' The words Jew, Jewish, or Judaism actually don't appear even once in the first five books of the Bible (the Torah), and only pop up a few times in the entire Old Testament, mostly in the book of Esther. Jeremiah uses Jew once, as does Zechariah, and it appears twice in Daniel. That's it. (Depending on the translation you're using.)

But, you may be saying, the people of Judah became the Jews. But please note, that does not mean everyone in Scripture.

We've talked briefly before about the fact that Abraham wasn't a Jew. Jacob's son Judah could arguably be referred to as the first Jew, though that's a stretch. I don't call my sister a Jordanite, just Jordan. Anyway, let's take a look at some other famous non-Jews in the Bible.

In addition to Abraham and Sarah, everyone before Judah was not Jewish. Including Adam and Eve, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob, Leah, and Rachel, as well as Noah and his family. And realistically the people of Judah weren't referred to as Jews for centuries after Judah, the son of Jacob, lived.

Who else in the Bible wasn't Jewish.

-Moses. Yes, the very giver of the law supposedly only for Jews wasn't one himself. Moses, his brother Aaron, and their sister Miriam were from the tribe of Levi. (Exodus 2:1)

-Joshua. The man who lead Israel into the promised land was from the tribe of Ephraim. (Numbers 13:8)

-Caleb. He and Joshua were the spies that came back with the good report and were the only people from the generation that left Egypt to see the promised land. Caleb wasn't a natural born Israelite at all, but a Kenezite who chose to follow YHWH. (Joshua 14:14)

-Rahab. She assisted the Israelite spies in Jericho, but was not an Israelite herself. She is mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. (Joshua 2:1, Matthew 1:5)

-Gideon. He was the judge who fought in battle to liberate Israel from the Midianites, from the tribe of Manasseh. (Judges 6:15)

-Samson. Israel's most famous judge was from the tribe of Dan. (Judges 13:2)

-Samuel. Israel's last judge and a prophet came from the territory of Ephraim and was raised in the Tabernacle by a Levite. (1 Samuel 1:1)

-Saul. The first king of Israel came from the tribe of Benjamin. (1 Samuel 9:1)

-Ruth. King David's great-grandmother was from Moab. (Ruth 1:4)

-Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Both prophets were from families of Levitical priests. Jeremiah's family resided in the land of Benjamin, and Ezekiel lived in Babylonian exile. (Jeremiah 1:1, Ezekiel 1:3)

-Obadiah. In addition to writing the book of his name, Obadiah hid a hundred prophets from Jezebel and Ahab. Scripture doesn't say for sure but since he worked in the Northern Kingdom of Israel, we have no reason to believe he was from Judah. (1 Kings 18)

-Micah. Being from Moresheth he was not a biological part of Israel, but he was still counted a member of the people of YHWH. God spoke through him to the people as well. (Micah 1:1)

-Elijah. Described as Tishbite from Gilead, Elijah was from one of the ten northern tribes, and not Judah. (1 Kings 17:1)

-Elisha. He was from a city called Abel-meholah in the Northern Kingdom of Israel and was from one of the northern tribes. (1 Kings 19:16)

This list is by no means exhausting. The tribal ancestry of most of the characters in the Bible is not listed. This is also not to say that those grated in or from a different tribe are better or worse than those from Judah. There are exploits of faith and sins attributed to those from Judah and Ephraim. There is no racial superiority in the Kingdom of Heaven, and God does not give different commandments depending on your family tree.

As one of from the tribe of Benjamin wrote in Galatians 3:28, "There is neither Jew nor Gentile...for you all are one in the Messiah Yahusha." In other words, it is irrelevant if you were born Jewish or from another tribe or if you're a foreigner altogether. The Messiah makes his people one. Regardless of your genealogy, all believers are grafted in YHWH's people Israel.

Related posts:
Why Biblical Law is for All Believers
The Two Houses: Israel and Judah in Scripture
Why Paul Withstood Peter in Galatians 2