Romans Chapter 3:21-31/Commentary

Romans Chapter 3:21-31

The first three chapters demonstrated the great need for a way to make man right with God, because both Jew and Gentile found themselves in sin. All previous religious systems, Jewish and non-Jewish, have failed to achieve rightness with God. The verses that follow present God’s remedy for this universal condition of condemnation.

“Paul has just declared that the whole world has sinned and stands guilty before God (3:19). The fact of guilt raises the problem of justification. How can sinners be justified, or brought back into a right relationship with God? Can a person work himself back into a proper relation? Perhaps with a little extra effort, we can go ‘above and beyond the call of duty’, and do enough good works to make up for our sins. Is this possible? No! In the parable of the unprofitable servant (Luke 17:710) Jesus teaches that every good work we can possibly do is already owed to God and therefore cannot be used to pay the debt incurred by our sin. There is no such thing as extra merit. What then, can we do? How can we be justified, be counted righteous, be accepted by God, and escape the wrath and condemnation we deserve? Does any provision of the law allow a sinner to go unpunished? No!” (Cottrell p. 250).

Morris writes, “In what is possibly the most important single paragraph ever written, Paul brings out something of the grandeur of Christ’s saving work. He views this salvation in three ways: as justification (imagery from the law court), as redemption (imagery from the slave market), and as propitiation (imagery from the averting of wrath)” (p. 173).

“So then, over against the unrighteousness of some and the self-righteousness of others, Paul sets the righteousness of God. Over against God’s wrath resting on evil-doers (1:18; 2:5; 3:5), he sets God’s grace to sinners who believe. Over against judgment, he sets justification” (Stott p. 108).

This short section is packed with some heavy-duty concepts: the righteousness of God, faith, sin, justification, grace, redemption, and propitiation.

Romans 3:21 “But now apart from the law a righteousness of God hath been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, being witnessed by the law and the prophets” “But now”: The picture painted of human rebellion in chapters 1:18-3:19 is depressing. In contrast to such selfishness and helplessness, God intervenes. The word now is speaking of what happened in Paul’s life time, that is, the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross (John 3:16). “Apart from the law”: The law under consideration in the context is the law of Moses (3:21). “Not by the Law, but by 1

another way” (Con). The only way that one could be justified under the Law of Moses was to keep the Law perfectly (Galatians 3:10). We need to be careful that we do not assume that this verse is teaching that the Christian today is not governed by any divine law, for the Christian is under the law of Christ (1 Corinthians 9:21; James 1:25). Clearly, Paul is not teaching that God saves people without any consideration of obedience to His laws, because the command to believe in Him is a law that one must obey to be saved (Mark 16:16). “A righteousness of God”: That is, how God will declare the sinner just (Romans 1:16-17). Chapter 4 will make it clear that God declares the sinner righteous on the basis of forgiveness (4:5-8). And the New Testament teaches that one must believe, repent, confess and be baptized in order to be forgiven (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38).

“Hath been manifested”: Brought to light, revealed in the gospel message (Romans 1:16-17).

“Being witnessed by the law and the prophets”: It is important for Paul to point out that the way in which God makes men righteous, as revealed in the gospel, is not new or novel. The prophets bore witness to the truth that men will be declared right with God by a faith that obeys (Habakkuk 2:4; Psalm 32:1; Genesis 15:6; 2 Timothy 3:15). In chapter 4 Paul will give two examples (David and Abraham), one of which lived before the law and one during it, and yet both were justified by their faith in God. “Yet this is no new-fangled way, thought up by ourselves; it has ample witness borne to it in advance in the Old Testament writings” 1 The law and the prophets represent the entire Old Testament (Matthew 5:17; 7:12; 22:40). They testify that the Messiah was going to die for our sins (Isaiah 53) and that an obedient faith would be the avenue to spiritual life (Genesis 15:6; Habakkuk 2:4). Therefore, the gospel message is not an afterthought, rather it is the fulfillment of what the law and the prophets predicted. The expression being witnessed is in the present tense and reminds us that the Old Testament continues to bear this testimony to anyone who reads it. “What Paul is saying is soundly based. It is not some minor truth tucked away in an obscure corner of Scripture, but a great truth blazoned forth in both law and prophets” (Morris p. 174).

Romans 3:22 “even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ unto all them that believe; for there is no distinction” “Even the righteousness of God”: How God will declare a sinner “right”. “Through faith in Jesus Christ”: This the condition for salvation, and of course the word faith here does not refer to a mere mental assent or faith only, rather it is an obedient faith (like that of Abraham in chapter 4), a faith that repents, confesses and accepts baptism (Romans 10:9-10; Acts 2:38). “In Jesus Christ”: The faith that results in salvation must be very specific, it must be in Jesus, and it must believe that He is the Son of God (Romans 10:9-10; John 8:24). Faith in “faith” or faith in some other person or concept does not save. Please note, people are not saved just because they claim to believe “in God”. A general faith in God’s existence or His providential care does not save. Remember, the demons also believe (James 2:19). “We cannot be saved unless our faith is specifically directed toward Him” (Cottrell p. 254). “Unto all them that believe”: Seeing that all men, both Jew and Gentile fall short, all need this salvation. “For there is no distinction”: Compare with Romans 2:11 1

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and 1:16. “For”: “This little word introduces the reason why the righteousness of God is available to everyone on the same terms, namely, because ‘there is no difference’ in their starting point or their status before God: all have sinned” (Cottrell p. 254). There is no distinction in how men are saved (all must come to Christ, John 14:6), because there is no distinction in their condemnation---all have sinned.

Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God” “For”: Here is the reason why salvation is available to anyone, Jew or Gentile who places his or her trust in Christ. The verse infers that all men can believe and that there is plenty of evidence that Jesus is the Christ. All men can believe just like all men can repent (2 Peter 3:9), and can confess or can be baptized. “All have sinned”: This is the conclusion of verses 1:18 through 3:19. The text is not saying that all men are born sinners; rather, all men eventually do sin (Romans 5:12; 7:9). “And fall short of the glory of God”: “Fall short of God’s glorious ideal” (TCNT). The term fall short means to come short of, be wanting, or fall behind. “The glory of God”: Different ideas exist regarding what this expression means: 1. It means the honor and glory due unto God through our perfect obedience. That is, by sinning we fail to glorify Him, as we should. 2. It means the reflected glory of God that creatures made in His image are supposed to display by imitating His perfect moral character (Matthew 5:48; 1 Peter 1:15-16). “This glory is bedimmed by sin, as a light bulb controlled by a rheostat becomes dimmer and dimmer when turned down” (Cottrell p. 255).

“Is His image or glory in which all were made but which all fail to live up to” (Stott p. 109). Of course, “God’s glory” is the sum total of His attributes. Sin is a violation of God’s law (1 John 3:4), but God’s law is a reflection of who He is. Lying is wrong because it is a violation of the fact that God is truthful. Therefore, every sin at some point is the complete opposite of God’s nature.

Romans 3:24 “being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” “Being justified”: The word here means to render, show or regard as just or innocent. It means to declare righteous (see Luke 7:29). In chapter 4 Paul will reveal that God justifies or declares the sinner righteous when the sinner is forgiven (4:5-8). Remember, if one is justified at the point of forgiveness, one is justified at the point of baptism, for baptism is for the remission of sin (Acts 2:38). “Justification is a legal or forensic term, belonging to the law courts. Its opposite is condemnation. Both are the pronouncements of a judge” (Stott p. 110). Please note that at baptism one is justified, but this does not mean that one is infused with a supernatural righteousness, or that one has an instant virtue or fine moral character. Following baptism the new convert needs to add virtues to his or her life (2 Peter 1:5-11; Ephesians 4:22ff). “Freely”: Or, ‘free gift’. The word freely does not mean that there are no conditions attached to our salvation, for this context has already mentioned “faith”. Jesus died on the cross, but that event did not save everyone automatically. The word freely means that Jesus died for us without asking for some type of payment in advance. God simply loved the world and freely gave His Son (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). Jesus dying for sinners was completely undeserved, unmerited and unearned. “By His grace”: “Favor bestowed on the unworthy by a God who is tender and kind…."the idea of grace is a gift, given out of the sheer generosity of the giver's heart, a gift which the receiver could 3

never have earned and could never have deserved by any efforts of his own". 2 Note that Paul does not say we are saved by grace alone, for he has already mentioned “faith”. Grace reminds us that we did not deserve Jesus’ sacrifice, neither are we worth such a price. We were not so loveable that God could not resist us, rather what sent Jesus to the cross, was God’s love and mercy.

“Thus from our point of view justification comes to us ‘freely’, but from God’s side it is anything but free” (Cottrell p. 260).

“Through the redemption”: “A 'ransoming from', a price paid for the deliverance of that which is delivered. Lutron is common in the papyri as the purchase-money in freeing slaves” (Robertson p.

347). Related ideas would be to rescue, to redeem, or liberate. “The basic idea of redemption is to set something or someone free from some kind of bondage, slavery, captivity, or obligation” (Cottrell p. 259).

“This ‘buying back’ was not accomplished with silver or gold (1 Peter 1:18-19), nor was it achieved with brains and brawn. It was not by culture or social standing. Deliverance does not lie in working our way out, or inventing our way out or subverting our way out, or carousing our way out, or thinking our way out, or warring our way out, but by admitting that Christ is the way out” 3 Consider the following passages, Matthew 20:28; Ephesians 1:7; Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 1:18-19. “In Christ Jesus”: This redemption is not outside of Christ and does not exist in any other religion or faith. Once again, it takes faith and baptism to enter into Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:26-27). See 2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 1:3,4,7. Equally note that redemption is in the kingdom (Colossians 1:1314) and is linked with forgiveness of sins, yet baptism is also necessary to enter the kingdom (John 3:5) and be forgiven (Acts 2:38).

Romans 3:25 “whom God set forth {to be} a propitiation, through faith, in His blood, to show His righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God” “Whom”: Christ Jesus. “God”: The Father. “Set forth”: Which means to display publicly or openly.

Jesus’ death upon the cross is a public display or demonstration of God’s grace and His righteousness. The expression set forth reminds us that Jesus died openly, and such an event proves that God cannot wink at or overlook sin and that the price for sin is extremely high.

Therefore, before we sin—again remember the cost. If sinners are going to be forgiven, then Jesus must suffer an agonizing death. Because God is just and the penalty for sin will be paid by someone (Ezekiel 18:20).

“To be a propitiation”: This word means satisfaction, appeasement, having a placating or expiating force. To propitiate is to appease, to render favorable. In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (LXX), this is the word used to describe the mercy seat, where atonement was made in the Old Testament. In contrast, the true "means" of appeasing the penalty that sin demands, was 2 3

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not veiled or hidden, but publicly shown to all, that is, Christ died in full public view. “The key element in the concept of propitiation is the averting of wrath. To say that Jesus is a propitiation means that He offered Himself as a sacrifice that turns God’s wrath away from deserving sinners” (Cottrell p. 260). Compare with Romans 5:9 “we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him”. Some argue that no true wrath exists in God, but this letter says otherwise (1:18; 2:5).

“Through faith in His blood”: “The results are not automatically and unconditionally applied to all sinners with a resulting universal salvation” (Cottrell p. 261). Salvation is conditioned upon a person believing that Jesus actually died for one’s sins. “Why is a propitiation necessary? The pagan answer is because the gods are bad-tempered, subject to moods and fits, and capricious.

The Christian answer is because God’s holy wrath rests on evil. There is nothing unprincipled, unpredictable or uncontrolled about God’s anger; it is aroused by evil alone” (Stott p. 115).

Consider the huge difference between Christianity and paganism. In the world men attempt to appease “gods” with their own sacrifices. In the Bible God’s own great love sent His Son to die for our sins, so we could be spared from what our sins deserved. “To show”: Or demonstrate. “Paul’s point is that God’s failure (from a human perspective) to consistently punish sin throughout the Old Testament era may have raised questions about His integrity. How could He claim to be a righteous and holy God, and at the same time forgive sins and leave them unpunished (in this life)?” (Cottrell p. 263). “His righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime”: That is, the sins committed prior to Jesus’ death on the cross. God cannot just let sin slip by. If sin in the past was left unpunished, was it because God was ignoring it? Did He think it was not very important?

This phrase teaches the truth, that if patience was shown to sinful men and sins in the past, it was in view of the coming sacrifice of Christ. God cannot deliver us by an unrighteous method (Acts 17:30). Here we encounter another passage that teaches that the benefits of the blood of Christ flow both ways (Hebrews 9:15) “That is, to demonstrate that God was not unrighteous when He passed over (left unpunished) sins committed in earlier days, in the period of His forbearance” 4 What we learn here is that God is not in a hurry to punish the sinner, rather He desires that all sinners repent (2 Peter 3:9). Justice demands that the guilty be punished just as it demands that an innocent person go free. “The cross shows us God’s inflexible righteousness in the very means whereby sin is forgiven” (Morris p.

183).  

God passed over sins in the sense that He did not bring immediate judgment upon the sinner (Acts 17:30).

God also passed over the sins of those who were seeking to be faithful, in that He forgave them prior to the cross (see Psalm 32:1ff).

Romans 3:26 “for the showing, {I say}, of His righteousness at this present season: that He might Himself be just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus”

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“For the showing”: What God did in Christ not only spoke in relation to the sins that were gone, but it demonstrates “at the present season” that God is just to declare the sinner, who demonstrates faith in Jesus, to be innocent and right with Him. Without the sacrifice of Christ, any acquittal of the sinner would be unjust. People forget that God is just and that God cannot pretend that sins do not exist and neither can He just forgive them in any way He wants. A holy and righteous God cannot violate the demands of justice, and only the sacrifice of Christ can enable the sinner to be forgiven. “His righteousness at this present season”: The sacrifice of Jesus equally demonstrates God’s justice and holiness at the present moment. “That”: Here is the purpose behind why Jesus died. “He might Himself be just”: The cross reveals God’s inflexible justice, someone always pays the penalty for sin—either Jesus or the unforgiven sinner for eternity.

Because of the cross, God is able to fully cancel our punishment without compromising His nature as a holy God. “And the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus”: The cross enables God to be both just and a justifier. “If God had simply punished sinners, while that would have left no doubts about His justice, it would have raised questions about His mercy, and the God of the Bible is both just and merciful. What Paul is saying is that the cross shows us both. Grace and justice come together in this resounding paradox. God saves in a manner that is right, as well as powerful. The claims of justice as well as the claims of mercy are satisfied” (Morris p. 184).

“In the rest of this chapter Paul returns to the question-and-answer format used in 3:1-9” (Cottrell p. 265).

Romans 3:27 “Where then is the glorying? It is excluded. By what manner of law? of works?

Nay: but by a law of faith” “Where then is the glorying?”: Or, “what becomes of our boasting?” (Mof) Why were sins left unpunished? The Jew would say, “it was because I was good!” The moral Gentile would say, “because I was not like the rank and file decadent”, and the immoral Gentile might argue, “that was because I didn’t know any better!” God rejects all these excuses. That's not why the sins where left unpunished. The acquittal of sin revealed in the gospel contains which man can boast.

“It is excluded”: “It has been shut out” (Con); “It is ruled out absolutely” (Mof).

“By what manner of law?”: “On what principle” (Mof). If one could perfectly keep the law, then one could 'boast'. But since salvation is based on the innocent dying for the guilty, and is only obtained by humble submission, all boasting has been ruled out. This obedient faith or humble submission, ‘Paul calls the law of faith'. Depending on the innocent to justify the guilty is what Paul calls the law of faith". 5 “Law of faith”: The term law refers to a method, norm, arrangement, order, rule or system. The system or law in the Old Testament does not save one, rather one is saved by a system of obedient faith in Christ. This law of faith includes hearing the gospel, believing in Jesus, repentance, confession, and baptism (Acts 2:38). Whatever people were told in the New Testament when they asked the question, “What must we do to be saved?” Is part of the 5

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law of faith. “Of works?” That is, works of the Law of Moses or works of human invention (Titus 3:5). Yet we must not make the mistake of thinking that such a verse is teaching that there are no conditions for salvation, for faith is a condition and a work of God (John 6:29).

Romans 3:28 “We reckon therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law” “We reckon”: That is, we conclude or maintain. “That a man”: Any man, Jew or Gentile. “Is justified”: Forgiven of their sins. “By faith”: Which is an obedient faith and far more than mental assent (John 12:42-43; James 2:19ff). “Apart from the works of the law”: That is, apart from following the Law of Moses—or any human law for that matter. Yet the Bible teaches that to end up saved, one needs to obey what Christ taught while trusting in Him (Hebrews 5:9).

“It is extremely important that we understand this verse aright since it is one of the main passages used to support the widely-held ‘faith only’ doctrine of salvation” (Cottrell p. 270). The text does not say that one is saved by faith alone, for such faith has never saved anyone (John 12:42-43; Luke 6:46). The expression works of the law cannot mean “anything a person does”, for “faith” itself is something that a person does. Remember, Jesus Himself linked repentance, confession and baptism to salvation, and so did the apostles. Therefore, such conditions are part of justification by faith.

Romans 3:29 “Or is God {the God} of Jews only? Is He not {the God} of Gentiles also? Yea, of Gentiles also” “Since no one has the record on which he can boast and since faith is possible in everyone, Jew and Gentile, then Gentile as well as Jew can be justified” 6 Here is another verse that teaches the truth, that only One God exists and all men are accountable to Him. It is clear that the Jews did not have a monopoly on God. God did not give the Law of Moses for the purpose of saving only Jews.

“God is God of all men, including Gentiles; and now in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4) He has made it clear that He has always intended to include the Gentiles as full partners in salvation (Ephesians 2:11-3:12)” (Cottrell p. 271). Thus the gospel message not only excludes all boasting, but it excludes all elitism and discrimination as well. The Jews should have realized that all men are accountable to God and that God would want to save all men, this being the case, it is clear that salvation would not be based on the Law of Moses.

Romans 3:30 “if so be that God is one, and He shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through faith” “If so be that God is one”: The existence of one God is a basic truth (Deut. 6:4). The very oneness of God requires that God be the God of all men, otherwise Gentiles would be left with no God. “He shall justify the circumcision”: Jews who obey the gospel will be saved. “Uncircumcision”: 6

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Gentiles who obey the gospel will also be saved. Both are sinners and thus both need the same justification. Obviously both need the same message of the salvation and both must obey the exact same conditions to be saved (Mark 16:16). There is really no difference between the expressions by faith and through faith.

Romans 3:31 “Do we then make the law of none effect through faith? God forbid: nay, we establish the law” “Do we then make the law of none effect through faith?”: “Does that mean that we are using faith to rob the law of its force?” (Knox). Does justification by faith undermine the credibility of the Law of Moses? “God forbid”: Paul emphatically rejects such a claim. “We establish the law”: Paul already noted that the gospel message is nothing more than what the law and the prophets predicted (3:21). Teaching justification by faith simply upholds what the law had said. The person who really believes what the law taught is the person who embraces Christ, because the law was pointing everyone to Christ (Galatians 3:24; John 5:46). Thus, rejecting Christ would be rejecting what Moses taught. In addition, justification by faith does not remove the need for commands, because the person who truly trusts Christ will naturally want to obey whatever commands Jesus has given (John 14:15). Faith never will argue that a command from God can be ignored, or that obedience to what Jesus said is not necessary. To establish the law means that we keep the law in its proper place. When I become a Christian, what I am saying is that the law of Moses was truthful and accurate and did its job in pointing out sin and pointing me to Christ.

Note, the verse is not teaching that the law of Moses is still in force, for that would contradict the entire chapter. Why would Paul be spending so much time on teaching that the law condemned those under it and that justification is based on faith in Christ, if at the end of the entire discussion he concludes, “We are still under the law of Moses”?

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