3:9 What then? Are we better than they? No, in no way.
For we previously charged both Jews and Greeks, that they are all
under sin.
3:10 As it is written, "There is no one righteous. No,
not one.
3:11 There is no one who understands.
There is no one who seeks after God.
3:12 They have all turned aside.
They have together become unprofitable.
There is no one who does good,
No, not, so much as one."
(Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3; Eccles. 7:20)
3:13 "Their throat is an open tomb. (Psalm 5:9)
With their tongues they have used deceit."
"The poison of vipers is under their lips;" (Psalm 140:3)
3:14 "Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness." (Psalm 10:7)
3:15 "Their feet are swift to shed blood.
3:16 Destruction and misery are in their ways.
3:17 The way of peace, they haven't known." (Isaiah 59:7,8)
3:18 "There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Psalm 36:1)
3:19 Now we know that whatever things the law says,
it speaks to those who are under the law,
that every mouth may be closed,
and all the world may be brought under the judgment of God.
3:20 Because by the works of the law, no flesh will be
justified in his sight.
For through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
3:21 But now apart from the law,
a righteousness of God has been revealed,
being testified by the law and the prophets;
3:22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ
to all and on all those who believe.
For there is no distinction,
3:23 for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;
3:24 being justified freely by his grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus;
3:25 whom God set forth to be an atoning sacrifice{or, a
propitiation},
through faith in his blood, for a demonstration of his righteousness
through the passing over of prior sins, in God's forbearance;
{sacrifice of atonement: "as the one who would turn
aside his wrath, taking away sin"}
3:26 to demonstrate his righteousness at this present time;
that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him who has
faith in Jesus.
3:27 Where then is the boasting? It is excluded.
By what manner of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith.
3:28 We maintain therefore that a man is justified by
faith apart from the works of the law.
3:29 Or is God the God of Jews only?
Isn't he the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also,
3:30 since indeed there is one God who will justify the circumcised
by faith,
and the uncircumcised through faith.
3:31 Do we then nullify the law through faith?
May it never be! No, we establish the law.
Discussion Questions
Are there any good people in the world? (Compare with Mark 10:18)
How might the word "good" be understood differently?
How can God hold accountable those who are not under the law?
What is the benefit or purpose of the law?
How does it make us conscious of sin and why is this essential?
What is different about the righteousness which is from God
and the righteousness which is from the law?
What does it mean that "a man is justified by faith apart from
observing the law"?
Comments
There is No One Righteous
Rom 3:9-12 What shall we conclude then? Are we
any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews
and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: "There is
no one righteous, not even one, there is no one who
understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have
together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even
one."
An important point to note here, which cannot be emphasized enough,
is that he is saying that all are under sin in that all have
actually sinned. Verse 10 and following are filled with evidence
that all are under sin based upon their behavior. I say this because
there those who reckon that God reckons sin prejudicially, reckoning
guilt upon those who haven't actually sinned. Such is not only not
the case, but in fact would be contrary to God's judicial nature.
The Psalmist writes, "Everyone
has turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no
one who does good, not even one." Ps 53:3 And likewise, "There is no one who does good"Ps 14:1
And yet there those the Bible refers to as righteous. For example, "Now there was a man in Jerusalem
called Simeon, who was righteous and devout." Lk 2:25a and the Psalms and
Proverbs says a great deal about the righteous in contrast with the
wicked. So also with regards to seeking God. Yet not so with regards
to a perfect standard. "A
certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit
eternal life?" "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one
is good— except God alone."Luke 18:18,19 We speak of some people being "good"
and yet by God's standard no one is good. And likewise with regards
to doing which is right and seeking God.
However the fact that bad behavior universally characterizes the
human condition begs the question as to why that is.
Bad Mouthing the Human Condition
Rom 3:13,14 "Their throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deceit." (Ps 5:9) "The poison of vipers is on
their lips." (Ps 140:3) "Their mouths are full of
cursing and bitterness." (Ps
10:7)
While by "their" the Psalmist is referring to particular people,
Paul is using these verses as indicators of what is typical of the
human condition. Jesus said, "the
things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these
make a man ‘unclean.’"Mat 15:18
Such is characteristic of the human condition.
Violence and Arrogance, it's only Human
Rom 3:15-18 "Their feet are swift to shed
blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do
not know." (Is 59:7,8) "There is no fear of God before
their eyes." (Ps 36:1)
Violence is also characteristic of the human condition. In fact
history books are mostly about war. Now much as God loves everyone,
he doesn't like everyone. One category of people he doesn't like are
those who love violence. "The
LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love
violence his soul hates."Ps 11:5 Such
sin separates us from having a relationship with God. The quote from
Isaiah 59 starts, "Surely the
arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to
hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your
sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. For
your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt." Is 59:1-3a Such is the human
condition.
But despite the consequences, people characteristically have no fear
of God. The quote from Psalm 36 goes, "An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of
the wicked: There is no fear of God before his eyes. For in his
own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin." Ps 36:1,2 And again while the
Psalmist is referring to a certain category of people, these
attributes are characteristic of society in general, and true of
each individual from time to time. And as Paul said earlier, "Although they know God’s
righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they
not only continue to do these very things but also approve of
those who practice them."Rom 1:32 People
become desensitized to their own sinfulness due the influences of
society, the sinful nature we all have, and the devil. Whether at
times, or in general, we all flatter ourselves too much to detect or
hate our sin.
The Law Exposes Sin
Rom 3:19,20Now we know that whatever the law
says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth
may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by
observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of
sin.
Paul previously concluded that everyone is in some sense under the
law. (Indeed, when Gentiles,
who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law,
they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the
law, since they show that the requirements of the law are written
on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their
thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.)Rom 2:14,15 So while the Law of
Moses is rather explicit as to what constitutes sin, even those
ignorant of the law of Moses are aware of a law by which the reckon
what is right and wrong, of which all also fail to live up to, and
consequently are accountable.
Law, whether it be the law of Moses, or the law of the conscience,
invokes an awareness of ones sinfulness, because no one lives up to
it. Also, to state the obvious, here he's associating sin with
misbehavior. For how could law invoke a sense of guilt if not with
regards to behavior. I say this again for those who have the
misconception that God reckons guilt to those who haven't actually
done anything wrong. For the standard by which people are held
accountable is with regards to their behavior in comparison to law.
The reason why Paul has spent so much time on the subject of law and
sin is because the gospel is not relevant to those who have not been
convicted of sin. Thus, particularly to those who reckon themselves
"good", Jesus especially brings up the law, so as to convict them of
sin. On one occasion an
expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked,
"what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "What is written in the
Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" He answered. Luke 10:25,26 But one can only
be saved by law if one keeps the law. Problem is no one keeps the
law, so there has to be another way to be saved apart from law.
Another Way to Righteousness
Rom 3:21-24 But now a righteousness from God,
apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the
Prophets testify. This
righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all
who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the
glory of God, and are
justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by
Christ Jesus.
These verses I would characterize as the key to understanding
Romans. Under the law, a righteous standing with God is a function
of one's behavior. But under the gospel, one's righteous standing
with God is not a function of one's behavior. There is no actual
salvation under the law in that all have fallen short of God's
standards of righteousness with regards to their behavior. It is not
that all are sinners in some positional sense, but rather all have
actually committed sin and consequently are guilty due to
misbehavior. And consequently all are disqualified from having a
righteous standing with God according to law, not having lived up to
it.
But there is a different way to obtain a righteous standing with
God. In contrast to the performance based salvation, this
righteousness is given as a gift. It is something given freely, of
which one does not work for, of which Paul will elaborate upon in
the rest of Romans chapter 3 and chapter 4. "Grace" is the idea of
God magnanimously forgiving our sins, not requiring any payment from
us, but rather absorbing the cost of our sins Himself. However,
though unconditional with regards to our behavior, this
righteousness is condtioned upon faith in Jesus Christ, a fact of
which will also be the subject of the rest of Romans, and of which
Paul wrote in Galatians, "the
Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so
that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ,
might be given to those who believe."Gal
3:22
But much as this way of righteousness is different than that
obtained by obedience to the law, the Law of Moses as well as the
prophets allude to this second way of righteousness. For example,
Jeremiah prophecied, "Behold,
the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new
covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of
Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their
fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out
of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a
husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant
that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says
the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their
hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No
more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his
brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from
the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I
will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no
more."Jeremiah 31:31-34
God's Sacrifice of Atonement
Rom 3:25,26God presented him as a sacrifice of
atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate
his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins
committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate
his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who
justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
The atoning work of Christ on the cross was all about satisfying the
demands of justice. The way the atonement works is that "God is just"2Th 1:6
and what follows that verse indicates that there are two arms of
justice. One punishes the wicked and the other compensates victims
of unjustified suffering. Jesus, dying as a victim of unjustified
suffering, was awarded compensation with which he used to pay off
the debt of others regarding their sin, one arm of justice canceling
out the other, so that the grace of forgiveness may be applied,
justice having been satisfied.
Jesus was uniquely qualified to do so. For it is written, “No man can redeem the life of another or give
to God a ransom for him— the ransom for a life is costly”Ps 49:7,9 No mere mortal can atone for the sins of others.
But Jesus was not a mere mortal. He is LORD and Creator. For “Through him all things were made; without
him nothing was made that has been made.” John
1:3 And thus the value of his unjustified suffering was so
much more than that of a mere mortal that it could pay for the
sins of the world.
"In him we have redemption
through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the
riches of God’s grace" Eph
1:7 And with regards to the extent of his atonement, "He is the atoning sacrifice for
our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole
world."1John 2:2
But to be qualified to be saved one must put faith in Christ, one
essential element of which is putting faith in his atoning work on
the cross as being sufficient for the payment for one's sins.
However prior to justice being satisfied God did forgive sin, such
as David's sin, ""Blessed are they whose
transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is
the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him." Rom
4:7,8 By doing so it may appear that God was unjust. He
forbore with such a thing in anticipation of justice being satisfied
on the cross at which time he
did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be
just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
Thus God demonstrates that he is just in that forgiveness is not
granted apart from the payment of the penalty of sin, and he is the
justifier in that he paid for sin on our behalf. Paul speaks to
overseers of the church saying, "Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his
own blood." Acts 20:28b
Justified by Faith apart from Performance
Rom 3:27,28Where, then, is boasting? It is
excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but
on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith
apart from observing the law.
Here Paul begins to segue into the implications that this
righteousness is not obtain by human effort. It is not obtained by
obedience to commands, nor by ritual, ceremony, nor by living up to
a certain standard. One is qualified to receive this righteous
standing with God simply by faith - by believing in Christ. Much of
what will follow with show that faith is distinct from works. In
fact faith is an attitude. It is not a work.
Paul reminds Peter, "We know
that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in
Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that
we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the
law, because by observing the law no one will be justified." Gal 2:16
But remember again what the Law is. The Law is the 10 commandments.
"On one occasion an expert in
the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I
do to inherit eternal life?" "What is written in the Law?" he
replied. "How do you read it?" He answered: "’Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all
your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as
yourself.’" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied.
"Do this and you will live." Luke 10:25-28 That is justification by observing
the Law. It is a performance based salvation. Such a person is saved
by perfectly and consistently loving God and loving others. But that
is not how New Covenant justification works. Under the New Covenant
a person is not saved by loving God and loving others. Rather a
person is saved by believing in Jesus.
The former could boast of saving themselves. The former could boast
of their own goodness. But those who have put their faith in Christ
cannot boast of having worked for their salvation, which is by faith
and not works.
Faith - the Same Requirement for Jew and Gentile
Rom 3:29-31 Is God the God of Jews only? Is he
not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is
only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the
uncircumcised through that same faith. Do we, then, nullify the
law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.
With regards to salvation through faith in Christ, there is no
difference between Jew and Gentile. Peter said, "We believe it is through the grace of our Lord
Jesus that we (Jews) are
saved, just as they (Gentiles)
are."Acts 15:11
and "He made no distinction
between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith." Acts 15:9 Likewise Paul said, "Here there is no Greek or Jew,
circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free,
but Christ is all, and is in all." Col 3:11
But those who believe salvation can be obtained by works
characteristically bring down God's standards of behavior to their
own. Jews today who boast in the Law don't themselves actually
follow the Law. But likewise there are whole Christian denominations
who replace salvation through faith in Christ with a system of
legalism whereby one is only saved by conforming to the standards
set by their denominational dogma.
By making a way of salvation by faith apart from law, the holiness
of God is preserved in the Law. Which is to say that God's standard
of holiness is perfection. And as such rather than bring down his
standards to accommodate sinners, he made a completely different way
for sinners to be saved, which is by faith and not by human effort.
This does not nullify the law in that if anyone never sins, they are
justified under the law. Yet no such person actually exists except
the Lord Jesus himself.