Romans 4

Romans 4:1-8

Nothing could serve be effectually to prove the argument he advanced, as to those that Abraham, in whom the Jews in highly gloried, was justified by faith only. The apostle therefore, in this chapter, 1. enters into the evidence of this fact, vers. 1—8. 2. He observes when and why Abraham was so justified, vers. 9—17. 3. He

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defenses and comments that faith of his, ver. 17—22. 4. He applies all this to us, ver. 23—24.

WHAT shall we say then, ’that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?

2. For ‘if Abraham were justified by works, he hath behaved to glory, but not before God. 3. For what faith the scripture? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4. Now ’to him that worketh, is the reward reckoned not of grace but of debt. 5. But ’to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. 6. Even as David also describes the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works. 7. ‘Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose loss are covered. 8. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

Abraham was the renowned ancestor, on their descent from whom the Jews so highly prized themselves. If therefore it can be made appear, that he who was so eminent for his obedience was justified not by works but by faith, then surely none of his descendants, who came so short of his excellent character, may expect to be justified in any other way.

What shall we say then, that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? Did he obtain justification by the efforts of his natural wisdom and strength, or by circumcision, or his other outward privileges and performances? No, in no wise. For.

1. If he were justified by works, he might have had room for boasting; but whatever excellence there was in his character before men, he had nothing whereof to glory before God: for in the Lord alone can we be justified or permitted to glory. Therefore, when speaking of Abraham, the Scripture expressly observes, Gen. xx. 6. Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness, that which he believed respecting the promised seed, who should suffer and obey in his stead, was reckoned to his account, as the ground of his justification and righteousness before God, and not any delays or duties of his own: so that he had no room for glorying, except in the Lord his righteousness.

2. If Abraham were justified by works, his reward would have been of debt, not of grace; for perfect obedience would have entitled any man to eternal life: but God called Abraham when he was (aethi) an ungodly idolatrous heathen, and justified him through faith in the promised Messiah. And to him how a worketh not, who is utterly unable to perform that perfect righteousness which God requires, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, conscious that this is his character, and perceiving the absolute necessity of a better righteousness than his own, even that which God hath provided in his Son; his faith, not the act, but the object of it, the righteousness of Jesus Christ, is counted and imputed to him for his justifying righteousness and title to God’s favour. If Abraham then must be justified as an ungodly sinner, as one that worketh not, it would be strange presumption in his descendants, or any others, to expect justification in any other way.

3. He argues the necessity of free justification from the declarations of the psalmist, who describes him as the truly blessed man, not who hath no sins to answer for, but who hath them not imputed to him, being justified from them all by the free grace of God, neither any works of his own, of whatever kind, to recommend him to the divine regard. Indeed how else could he regard us, since all have sinned, are chargeable with iniquity, and liable to wrath? But God forgives, covers, doth not impute our sins to us, but to our sorely, and reckons his righteousness in our account; and this is the ground of all true blessedness in time or eternity. From hence flows forgiveness of sin, admittance to God’s favour, and a title to the eternal inheritance: and blessed indeed and happy are they, who through a Redeemer are thus justified from all things, and shall never more enter into condemnation?

4. Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. 10. How was it then reckoned; when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. 11. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith, which he had yet being uncircumcised: ’that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also: 12. And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.

Romans 4:9-12

The blessedness above described is, no doubt, most desirable; the question is, to whom it belongs? Is it peculiar to the circumcised Jews, or common to the uncircumcised Gentiles? The former would fain monopolize it as the sole privilege of those, who were within the pale of circumcision; but the gospel declares the uncircumcised Gentiles alike capable of receiving it.

It was faith, the object of it, even the divine righteousness of a Redeemer, not circumcision, which was Abraham’s justifying righteousness, as hath before been shewn. This was imputed to him, and in consequence thereof he was a justified man, fourteen years before he was circumcised. It is evident therefore that when he afterwards submitted to this infuriated ordinance of God, and received the sign of circumcision, it was not in order to his being justified, since that he had been long before, but as a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had, being yet uncircumcised; a visible token that God had taken him and his seed into the bond of the covenant, and an assurance to him of all the blessings which were to be procured by that Redeemer in whom he had believed. Thus, in this eminent instance of him, who bore the distinguished title of father of the fastidious, and from whom the Messiah should spring in whom all nations were to be blessed, the Gentiles, though uncircumcised, might behold the way of justification freely opened to them, and find in the nearest relation to Abraham, whose faith they followed, as his spiritual children; and though they were not his natural descendants, might share in all his most distinguished blessings, through that righteousness which should be imputed unto them also, in like manner as it was to him, during his uncircumcised state.

And herein also God shewed to the Jews, that it was not their being the natural descendants of Abraham, and partakers of circumcision with him, which entitled them to pardon, but that the distinguishing privileges of that covenant of grace into which Abraham was admitted, belonged only to those who walked in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham which he had, being yet uncircumcised; and without which, circumcision, and all their other duties and performances, would never procure for them justification to life.

13. For ’the promise that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14. For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect. 15. Because ’the law worketh wrath: for ‘where no law is, there is no transgression. 16. Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end ’the promise might be sure to all the seed, not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. 17. (As it is written, ‘I have made thee a father of many nations) before him whom he believed, even ‘God who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which he not as though they were. 18. ‘Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations: according to that which was spoken, so shall thy seed be. 19. And being not weak in faith, ‘he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God: 21. And being fully persuaded, that what he had promised, ‘he was able also to perform. 22. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

Romans 4:13-22

As circumcision was not a justifying righteousness to Abraham, nor to any of his seed, neither was the law, in which the Jewish people trusted. For the promise, that he should be heir of the world, inheriting all true blessedness both here and hereafter, was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law of Moses, which was not yet given, nor in virtue of any personal obedience of his or theirs, but through the righteousness of faith. For if they which are of the law be heirs, and the title to the blessings promised arose from the fulfilling the law, whether that of Moses or any other, then faith is made void; there is no place for the exercise of it, and the promise is of no effect, since the inheritance would depend on our obedience, and if that were not perfect, the promise would be useless, which must necessarily be the case in our present corrupted state, because the law worketh wrath, and can only deliver over every man to the righteous judgment of God, as transgressors. Had there indeed been no law given, had no notice of God’s will, traditionality or reversal, been afforded, there would have been no confidence of sin, for where no law is there is no transgression; but now that there is a law, the offender is obnoxious to the truth, which is the sanction annexed to the transgression of it. Therefore, since none by their obedience to any law, moral or ceremonial, could possibly be entitled to the promised blessings, God so ordained,

that it should be of faith, that it might be of grace; that the promise, and all the blessings contained in it, of pardon, adoption, and eternal life, might appear to be given of God’s mere goodness and sovereign pleasure, without the least defect on our part, faith stretching out its empty hand to receive the inestimable treasure, and that faith too the gift of God, that it might be wholly of grace, to the end that the promise might be here; and notwithstanding our unworthiness, secured to us in our divine fulfillment and covenant head Christ Jesus, independent of any obedience of our own: for such is our frailty and corruption, that if it depended upon our own obedience as the condition of it, not a moment could we be sure of it; but now it is infallibly ascertained to all the seed, to the Spiritual seed of Abraham, even all true believers, not to that only which is of the law, who live under the Mosaical dispensation, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, though Gentiles by birth and protection, yet through faith become, in God’s account, the children of this eminent patriarch, who is the father of us all, whether believing Jews or Gentiles; as it is109, 1 have made that a father of many nations: in a Spiritual sense, before him whom he believed, now God, was he thus repaved as the father of nations; even before him who quitseth the dead, Abraham and his wife, whose bodies were now as good as dead; or the Gentiles dead in trehalos and sins; or the bodies of the covenant in the last day: and who in virtue of his almighty power, calleth the clergy which he set as though they were, have whatever he wills, at his word starts into being. Persuaded of this, notwithstanding all the difficulties which his faith had to encounter, Abraham repaved hope, if reason were confitted, believed to hope, and against all arguments which sense or experience urged, he called lavished in the fulfilment of the promise, that he should become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, Gen. xv. 5, when, pointing him to the stars, God assured him, so shall thy seed be, to numberless, so illustrious. Having this divine promise, he staggered not a moment through any improbabilities which unbelief might suggest, from the consideration of his own great age, which, with regard to his having children, rendered his body as if already dead, nor at the deodact of Israel’s name, long since past child-bearing, but was strong to faith, giving glory to God, with the fullest assurance expecting the fulfilment of what God had promised, and was also also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness; and what he saw about to be done by the promised seed, Christ Jesus, was now reckoned to his account, and he stood thereby justified before God. Note, (1.) Where God hath promised, whatever objections cereal reason and unbelief may make, it is our wisdom to turn a deaf ear to every suggestion, and confidently wait the accomplishment of his word; and this gives God the highest glory. (2.) Though unbelief will war against the soul, yet in every child of Abraham faith will get the victory.

23. ( ^(a) ) Now it was not written for his false alone, that it was imputed to him; 24. But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him: who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25. ( ^(b) ) Who was delivered for our offences, and ( ^(c) ) was raised again for our justification.

Romans 4:23-25

Great was the faith of the patriarch, great the honour put upon him thereby. But this record borne to him of his acceptance before God was not written for his false alone, historically to inform us of that which rendered him so eminent, but for an ally, as a pattern, comfort, and encouragement to us, and an assurance that the same divine righteousness shall be imputed to us, for our justification, if we, as true sons of this father of the faithful, believe as he did, as how that raised up Jesus Christ our Lord from the dead, who, as our substitute and forer, was delivered for our offences, to bear our sons in his own body on the tree, and, by his obedience unto death, to bring in an everlasting righteousness; and, having to done, was raised again for our justification; who, in virtue of his finished work, are now by faith in him entitled to pardon, acceptance, and eternal life. Note, There is but one justifying righteousness before God, even that of Jesus Christ. In that Abraham stood accepted, and all his seed must look for no other.