nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.
Galatians 2:14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before everyone, “If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?
Galatians 2:15 “We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles;
Galatians 2:16 nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.
Galatians 2:17 But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? May it never be!
Galatians 2:18 For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I prove myself to be a transgressor.
The verse centers on "justified", "faith", "nevertheless", "knowing", "works", "through", "jesus", and "christ". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "justified" and "faith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 15's "We are Jews by nature and not..." into verse 17's "But if while seeking to be justified...", so "justified" and "faith" belong inside that flow. In Galatians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "justified" and "faith" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.