Lexical Data

In Greek usage the verb dikaioō, usually translated as “to justify” in the New Testament, commonly has a judicial sense of “to show justice, do justice,” though in other instances it can designate a forensic declaration along the lines of “to acquit, to vindicate” or “to recognize/declare as right” (BDAG, 249). The LXX most often renders צדק (tsdq) with dikaioō in a forensic sense, as in Gen 38:26, where Judah declares that Tamar is “justified rather than I,” and in Deut 25:1 where judges must “judge and justify the righteous one and condemn the impious.” The forensic usage of dikaioō continues in subsequent Jewish writings (Sirach 7:5; 10:29; 13:22; 42:2; Psalms of Solomon 2:15; 3:3, 5; 8:7, 23, 26; 9:2), and this certainly influences usage in the New Testament as well (Rom 2:13; 3:20, 24, 28, 4:2; 5:1, etc.). At the same time, the judicial usage of dikaioō as “to do justice,” common in Greek literature, also appears in the LXX, as in Psa 82:3 with “Give justice to the orphan and poor; of lowly and needy maintain the right,” and Isa 1:17 with “defend the orphan and do justice to the widow,” which is analogous to the usage of ekdikeō in Luke 18:3, 5 for “grant justice.” The noun dikaiōsis comes close to “justification” or “vindication” and occurs only in Rom 4:25; 5:18, where it signifies the status of one declared to be righteous.