Well, Scratch It!
Comments on Galatians with an ear to Luther’s commentary
Scripture Text: Galatians 1:15-17 and 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
Series: Comments on Galatians
Paul said that the time is coming when people’s ears will itch. When one gets an itch deep in the ear canal, it is frustrating because it cannot be easily scratched. Many people end up with perforated eardrums because they stick an object into their ear to scratch the elusive itch.
The apostle’s use of the phrase “itching ears” is idiomatic. He means that the ears are tickled by what people have heard and they want to hear more because it makes them feel better—by further tickling their desire. They want to hear more of what they want to hear, whether or not it is the truth.
We have been given the Gospel of Christ and need to be devoted to its message even when it does not feel good. We must sit under gospel teaching and not surround ourselves with those who say what we want them to say (2 Timothy 4:3). If we do the latter, we end up perforating and perverting the truth (2 Timothy 4:4).
God was merciful in giving us the gospel when we did not deserve to hear the truth. Indeed, many of us did not even want to hear it. Yet, in his great love for us, he sent the living gospel in his Son and the inspired teachings of his apostles and others (2 Timothy 3:16). If your ears itch, go ahead and scratch. But use the gospel; otherwise you just might puncture something.
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Rev. Dr. Mark E. Ryman has served as Pastor for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Salisbury, NC, since 2021. Previously, Pastor Ryman served congregations in North Carolina and Ohio, as well as a call to specialized ministry with Sola Publishing.
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