Romans 4

Chapter 4

Justification by Faith Evidenced in Old Testament

¹What then shall we say that Abraham, ¹our forefather ^aaccording to the flesh, has found?

²For if Abraham was justified ¹by works, he has something to boast about, but ^anot ²before God.

³For what does the Scripture say? “^aAbraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

⁴Now to the one who ^aworks, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due.

⁵But to the one who does not work, but ^abelieves in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,

⁶just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

⁷“^aBlessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven,

And whose sins have been covered.

⁸“^aBlessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not ^btake into account.”

⁹Is this blessing then on ^1athe circumcised, or on ²the uncircumcised also? For ^bwe say, “^cFaith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.”

¹⁰How then was it credited? While he was ¹circumcised, or ²uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised;

¹¹and he ^areceived the sign of circumcision, ^ba seal of the righteousness of the faith which ¹he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be ^cthe father of ^dall who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them,

¹²and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which ¹he had while uncircumcised.

¹³For ^athe promise to Abraham or to his ¹descendants ^bthat he would be heir of the world was not ²through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith.

¹⁴For ^aif those who are ¹of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified;

¹⁵for ^athe Law brings about wrath, but ^bwhere there is no law, there also is no violation.

¹⁶For this reason it is ¹by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with ^agrace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to ^ball the ²descendants, not only to ³those who are of the Law, but also to ^cthose who are of the faith of Abraham, who is ^dthe father of us all,

¹⁷(as it is written, “^aA father of many nations have I made you”) in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, ^bwho gives life to the dead and ^1ccalls into being ^dthat which does not exist.

¹⁸In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become ^aa father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, “^bSo shall your ¹descendants be.”

¹⁹Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now ^aas good as dead since ^bhe was about a hundred years old, and ^cthe deadness of Sarah’s womb;

²⁰yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, ^agiving glory to God,

²¹and ^abeing fully assured that ^bwhat God had promised, He was able also to perform.

²²Therefore ^ait was also credited to him as righteousness.

²³Now ^anot for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him,

²⁴but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those ^awho believe in Him who ^braised Jesus our Lord from the dead,

²⁵He who was ^adelivered over because of our transgressions, and was ^braised because of our justification.