Day 5: Abraham Justified by Faith

Reading: Romans 4

Listen to: Romans chapter 4

Historical Context

Romans 4 is Paul’s scriptural proof for the doctrine of justification by faith, and he constructs it around the single most important figure in Jewish identity: Abraham, the father of the nation, the friend of God, the paradigm of faith. If Paul can demonstrate that Abraham himself was justified by faith and not by works, his argument is effectively won. The chapter is a masterpiece of rabbinic argumentation deployed in service of a revolutionary theological conclusion – one that opens the door of Abraham’s family to every person, regardless of ethnicity, who shares Abraham’s faith.

Paul’s opening question is pointed: “What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?” (v. 1). The phrase “according to the flesh” (kata sarka) is crucial: if Abraham was justified by works, then his righteousness was a human achievement – something gained by fleshly effort. “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about – but not before God” (v. 2). Paul concedes that Abraham’s life was exemplary by any human standard; the question is whether human exemplarity constitutes grounds for standing before God. Paul’s answer is an emphatic no, and his proof is a single verse from Genesis that carries the weight of his entire argument: “For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness’” (v. 3, quoting Genesis 15:6).

The verb “credited” (elogisthē) is the key word in chapter 4, appearing eleven times. It is an accounting term (logizomai) meaning to reckon, to enter in the ledger, to count as. Paul argues that righteousness was not something Abraham earned through obedience and had deposited to his credit as wages owed; it was something God credited to his account as a gift received by faith. “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as what is due. And to the one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness” (vv. 4-5). The phrase “him who justifies the ungodly” (ton dikaiounta ton asebē) is perhaps the most shocking statement in Romans. In the Old Testament, justifying the wicked is something God explicitly forbids judges from doing (Exodus 23:7, Proverbs 17:15, Isaiah 5:23). Yet Paul declares that God himself does this – not by lowering his standards but by meeting them through the sacrifice of Christ. This is the scandal of grace: God does not wait for the ungodly to become godly before justifying them; he justifies them while they are still ungodly, and the justification itself becomes the power that transforms them.

Paul introduces a second witness to buttress his case. Following the rabbinic principle that a matter is established by two or more witnesses, he quotes David: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count (logisētai) his sin” (vv. 7-8, quoting Psalm 32:1-2). David, like Abraham, experienced the crediting of righteousness apart from works – not by accumulating merit but by receiving forgiveness. The same accounting metaphor is used in reverse: God does not count (logizomai) sin against the person who believes.

Paul’s next move is chronologically precise and theologically decisive. When was Abraham’s faith credited as righteousness? Before or after his circumcision? The answer matters enormously, because if Abraham was justified after being circumcised, then circumcision would be a precondition of justification, and Gentiles would need to become Jews before they could be justified. Paul notes that Genesis 15:6 (the crediting of righteousness) occurs in Genesis 15, while Abraham’s circumcision does not occur until Genesis 17 – a gap of at least fourteen years in the biblical narrative. “He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised” (v. 11). Circumcision was a sign and seal of a righteousness Abraham already possessed by faith; it did not confer that righteousness. The implication is revolutionary: Abraham is “the father of all who believe without being circumcised” (v. 11) – that is, Gentile believers – as well as the father of “the circumcised who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised” (v. 12). Abraham’s family is defined not by ethnicity or circumcision but by faith.

Paul then argues that the promise to Abraham – to be “heir of the world” (v. 13) – came through the “righteousness of faith,” not through the law. “For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void” (v. 14). The law cannot be the basis of inheritance because “the law brings wrath” (v. 15) – it exposes and condemns sin rather than enabling obedience. Only faith can sustain the promise because only faith depends on grace, and “that is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring – not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all” (v. 16).

The chapter’s climax is Paul’s description of Abraham’s faith in the face of impossibility. God had promised Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars, but Abraham was nearly a hundred years old and Sarah’s womb was “as good as dead” (v. 19). Abraham “did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body” (v. 19). He was “fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (v. 21). This is the faith that was credited as righteousness: not a leap in the dark but a firm conviction in the character and power of God, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Paul’s conclusion universalizes this faith: “The words ‘it was credited to him’ were written not for him alone, but also for us. It will be credited to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead” (vv. 23-24). Abraham believed in the God who brings life from death (a barren womb); we believe in the God who raised Jesus from the dead. The structure of faith is identical; the object is the same life-giving God.

Key Themes

• Abraham justified by faith, not works – The father of Israel was credited with righteousness through faith before circumcision and before the law, establishing the paradigm for all who believe.
• The chronological argument – Abraham’s faith was credited as righteousness (Genesis 15) fourteen years before his circumcision (Genesis 17), proving that Gentiles need not become Jews to be justified.
• Faith in the God who gives life to the dead – Abraham believed in God’s power to bring life from a dead womb; Christians believe in the God who raised Jesus from the dead – the same faith, the same God.

Connections

• Old Testament Roots: Genesis 15:1-6 provides the foundational text: Abraham believed God and it was credited as righteousness. Genesis 17:1-14 records the institution of circumcision. Genesis 18:11-14 describes Sarah’s barrenness and God’s promise. Psalm 32:1-2 provides David’s testimony to forgiveness apart from works. Genesis 22 (the binding of Isaac) is the background for the theme of God providing where human ability fails.
• New Testament Echoes: Galatians 3:6-18 develops a parallel argument from Abraham’s faith. Hebrews 11:8-12 celebrates Abraham’s faith in the “hall of faith.” James 2:20-24 presents a complementary perspective, arguing that Abraham’s faith was “completed” by his works – not contradicting Paul but addressing a different question (the evidence of faith, not the basis of justification).
• Parallel Passages: Galatians 3:6-18 (Abraham and the promise), Galatians 3:26-29 (all are Abraham’s offspring through faith), Hebrews 11:8-12, 17-19 (Abraham’s faith), James 2:20-24 (faith and works in Abraham), Romans 9:6-8 (not all Israel is Israel).

Reflection Questions

1. Paul argues that Abraham was justified by faith, not by works. How does this challenge the natural human tendency to try to earn God’s approval through moral or religious performance?
2. The chronological argument – faith before circumcision – was revolutionary in Paul’s context. What are the modern equivalents of “circumcision” – the religious or cultural prerequisites we sometimes add to the gospel?
3. Abraham believed in the God who gives life to the dead, even when his own body and Sarah’s womb seemed hopeless. Where in your life are you being called to trust God’s promise despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary?

Prayer

God of Abraham, you called a childless old man to look at the stars and believe that his descendants would outnumber them. You credited his faith – not his works, not his circumcision, not his obedience – as righteousness. And now you call us to the same faith: faith in the God who justifies the ungodly, who gives life to the dead, who calls into existence the things that do not exist. Forgive us for trying to earn what you freely give. Forgive us for adding conditions to a gospel that runs on grace. Like Abraham, may we not waver in unbelief but grow strong in faith, fully convinced that you are able to do what you have promised. Credit our faith as righteousness – not because our faith is worthy, but because the One we trust is faithful. Through Jesus Christ, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Amen.