For this cause we also thank God without ceasing, that, when you received from us the word of the message of God, you accepted it not as the word of men, but, as it is in truth, the word of God, which also works in you who believe.
but as it is in truth, the word of God: Twice in this verse Paul says the message he proclaimed is the word of God. To further emphasize its divine origin, he says it is "not the word of men." To substitute the words of men for the word of God would have been for Paul a betrayal of the sacred trust reposed in him (2:4) and an invitation to be eternally accursed (Galatians 1:8-9). A similar fate awaits preachers of today who are not careful to preach "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."