Chapter 4

Justification by Faith Evidenced in Old Testament

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

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

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

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

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

6 just 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.”

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

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

11 and 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,

12 and 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.

13 For 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.

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

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

16 For 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 3cthose 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.

18 In 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.”

19 Without 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;

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

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

22 Therefore ait was also credited to him as righteousness.

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

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

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

Chapter 5

Results of Justification

1 aTherefore, having been justified by faith, 1bwe have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

2 through whom also we have aobtained our introduction by faith into this grace bin which we stand; and 1we exult in hope of the glory of God.

3 aAnd not only this, but 1we also bexult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about cperseverance;

4 and aperseverance, bproven character; and proven character, hope;

5 and hope adoes not disappoint, because the love of God has been bpoured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

6 For while we were still ahelpless, bat the right time cChrist died for the ungodly.

7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; 1though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.

8 But God ademonstrates bHis own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, cChrist died for us.

9 Much more then, having now been justified 1aby His blood, we shall be saved bfrom the wrath of God through Him.

10 For if while we were aenemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved 1bby His life.

11 aAnd not only this, 1but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received bthe reconciliation.

12 Therefore, just as through aone man sin entered into the world, and bdeath through sin, and cso death spread to all men, because all sinned—

13 for 1until the Law sin was in the world, but asin is not imputed when there is no law.

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned ain the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a 1btype of Him who was to come.

15 But 1the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of athe one bthe many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by cthe grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many.

16 The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand athe judgment arose from one transgression 1resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions 2resulting in justification.

17 For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned athrough the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will breign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

18 So then as through aone transgression 1there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one bact of righteousness 2there resulted cjustification of life to all men.

19 For as through the one man’s disobedience athe many bwere made sinners, even so through cthe obedience of the One athe many will be made righteous.

20 1aThe Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, bgrace abounded all the more,

21 so that, as asin reigned in death, even so bgrace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Chapter 6

Believers Are Dead to Sin, Alive to God

1 aWhat shall we say then? Are we to bcontinue in sin so that grace may increase?

2 aMay it never be! How shall we who bdied to sin still live in it?

3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been abaptized into bChrist Jesus have been baptized into His death?

4 Therefore we have been aburied with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was braised from the dead through the cglory of the Father, so we too might walk in dnewness of life.

5 For aif we have become 1united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be 2in the likeness of His resurrection,

6 knowing this, that our aold 1self was bcrucified with Him, in order that our cbody of sin might be 2done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;

7 for ahe who has died is 1freed from sin.

8 Now aif we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,

9 knowing that Christ, having been araised from the dead, 1is never to die again; bdeath no longer is master over Him.

10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.

11 Even so consider yourselves to be adead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

12 Therefore do not let sin areign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts,

13 and do not go on apresenting 1the members of your body to sin as 2instruments of unrighteousness; but bpresent yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as 2instruments of righteousness to God.

14 For asin shall not bbe master over you, for cyou are not under law but dunder grace.

15 What then? aShall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? bMay it never be!

16 Do you not aknow that when you present yourselves to someone as bslaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of csin 1resulting in death, or of obedience 2resulting in righteousness?

17 But athanks be to God that 1though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that bform of teaching to which you were committed,

18 and having been afreed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

19 aI am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just bas you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, 1resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, 2resulting in sanctification.

20 For awhen you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.

21 Therefore what 1abenefit were you then 2deriving 3from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is bdeath.

22 But now having been afreed from sin and benslaved to God, you 1derive your 2cbenefit, 3resulting in sanctification, and dthe outcome, eternal life.

23 For the wages of asin is death, but the free gift of God is beternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.