Romans redux (chs.3-4)
3:1 Therefore what is the Jew’s advantage, or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Much in every way!
First, to them were entrusted the words of God.
3 ‘So what? If some didn’t believe, doesn’t their unbelief nullify the faithfulness of God?’
4 May it never be! Even if every human were wrong, God would be right! [lit. “Let God be true and every human false”] Just as it is written:
“so that you will be justified in your words and will have victory when you are judged.” (Psa 51:4)
5 ‘But if our unrighteousness is demonstrating the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Isn’t it unrighteous if God is inflicting wrath?’ (I am speaking in human terms.)
6 May it never be! For otherwise how would God judge the world?
7 ‘But if by my falsehood the truth of God abounds to His glory, why am I still being judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say that we should do evil so that good may come about?’ (as we are being slandered by some who are saying of us—and whose condemnation is deserved!)
9 ‘What then? Do we have an advantage?’ Not at all, for we have already charged Jews and Greeks all to be under sin, 10 just as it is written:
“There is no one righteous,
not even one,
11 there is no one understanding,
there is no one seeking God.
12 All have turned away,
together they have become worthless;
there is no one doing good,
there is not even one.” (Psa 14:1-3)
13 “Their throats are open tombs,
Their tongues were deceiving,
poison of asps is under their lips.” (Psa 5:9; 140:3)
14 “…whose mouths are full of curse and bitterness.” (Psa 10:7)
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood,
16 destruction and misery are in their ways,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.” (Isa 59:7-8)
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” (Psa 36:1)
19 Now we know that whatever Law is saying, it is proclaiming it to those who are under Law, so that every mouth may be shut and all the world may be accountable to God. 20 Because from works of Law no flesh will be justified before Him, for by Law comes knowledge of sin.
21 But now apart from Law the righteousness of God has been manifested (being witnessed to by Law and the Prophets), 22 and the righteousness of God is through the faithfulness of Jesus the Messiah to all who are believing.
For there is no difference, 23 for all sinned and are lacking the glory of God 24, being justified without cost by His grace through the redemption in the Messiah Jesus 25 who God planned beforehand to be the place of atonement through faith in His blood as a sign of His righteousness, because of the passing over of the sins that had been done previously, 26 by God’s forbearance, to show his righteousness in the present time, so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who lives out of Jesus’ faithfulness.
27 ‘Where, then, is boasting?’
It is shut out!
‘By what kind of law? Of works?’
No, but by the law of faith!
28 For we are reckoning that a person is justified faith apart from works of Law. 29 Or is He God of the Jews only? Not of the Gentiles also? Yes, of the Gentiles also! 30 Since there is one God who will justify the circumcised through faith and the uncircumcised through faith.
31 ‘Are we therefore abolishing Law through faith?’
May it never be! Rather we are confirming Law.
4:1 ‘What then shall we say Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh, to have discovered? 2 For if Abraham was justified out of works, he has grounds to boast (but not before God).’
3 For what does scripture say?
“Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.” (Gen 15:6)
4 But to the one working, his wages are not reckoned according to grace but according to what is owed. 5 But to the one not working, but believing upon the one who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.
6 Just as also David says about the blessedness of the person to whom God is reckoning righteousness apart from works:
7 “Blessed are those
whose lawless deeds were forgiven;
8 blessed is the one
to whom the Lord will by no means reckon sin!” (Psa 32:1-2)
9 Is this blessedness then for the circumcision or also for the uncircumcision? For we are saying faith…“…was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness.” (Gen 15:6)
10 How then was it reckoned to him—while he was circumcised or in uncircumcision?
Not in circumcision but in uncircumcision! 11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness of uncircumcised faith, so that he would be the father of all the uncircumcised who are believing—so that righteousness could also be reckoned to them—12 and the father of the circumcised, who are not only circumcised, but who are also following in the footsteps of the uncircumcised faith of our father Abraham.
13 For the promise to Abraham or to his seed that he would be heir to the world was not through Law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if they were heirs from Law, faith has been emptied and the promise has been abolished. (15 For Law is producing wrath; and where there is no law there is no transgression either.)
16 Because of this it is from faith so that it may be according grace, in order for the promise to be firm to all the seed–-not to the ones from Law only, but also to those from the faith of Abraham…
…who is the father of us all, 17 just as it is written, “I have made you the father of many peoples.” (Gen 17:5)
…who in the presence of God–-the One who is bringing the dead to life and calling what does not exist into being as if it does—believed.
18 …who against hope believed with hope that he would become the father of many peoples according to what had been spoken: “thus will your seed be.” (Gen 15:5) 19 And not weakening in faith, he observed his own body as already dead (being about 100 years old!) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 But about the promise of God he did not doubt in unbelief, but rather was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and was fully convinced that he was also able to keep the promise.
22 Therefore it was reckoned to him as righteousness.
23 But not only was “…it was reckoned to him…” (Gen 15:6) written on account of Abraham’s only, 24 but also on account of us to whom it is about to be reckoned—[that is,] those who are believing upon the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 [The same Jesus] who was given over on account of our transgressions and was raised on account of our justification.
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