Exposition of Romans 3:21-26
David Istre
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Welcome
Welcome
Introduction
Introduction
We’re now approaching the point in Paul’s writings that scholars refer to as Paul’s thesis recapitulation and expansion; he is going to summarize and expand his main idea. This summary spans verses 21 to 31, and lays the foundation for understanding the superior righteousness that comes by faith. This gives us the logical framework to understand the paradigm of righteousness by faith in contrast to the righteousness of works.
In this sense you can see how Paul has been refuting both gentile and Jewish claims to justification based on the paradigm of the kind of righteousness that comes by their works. This way of thinking leads to condemnation because everyone sins. And any failure in human righteousness according to this paradigm justly brings condemnation. So all who want to stand before God on their own terms will be condemned before him based on their own sin. In this way the whole world will be silenced before God’s throne and made justly accountable to him for their actions.
I hope this makes it clear why we are slowing down at this point: this is where Paul brings his main idea forward to give us the logic of gospel-righteousness! So we really want to understand what Paul is saying here. No pressure, right?
Exegesis
Exegesis
I think we’ll benefit from three brief exegetical observations.
First: Paul opens his summary by combining two very important terms “Νυνὶ δὲ”.
By now everyone is familiar with “δὲ” (but), which serves to extend and continue the previous thought. But today we’re introduced to the first of nineteen occurences in Romans for the word “Νυνὶ” (now). This word is theologically important to the New Testament because it is used to reveal the current status of a Christian’s relationship with God.
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For example,
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light—
Although the world was once blinded by the darkness of our sin, we are now children of light through the grace that has been poured out upon us by Jesus Christ.
Likewise,
9 How much more then, since we have now been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath.
This word describes the Christian’s state of righteousness in the blood of Jesus.
And, not only that, but in this justified state:
11 And not only that, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received this reconciliation.
And this use isn’t unique to Paul. Peter also uses it this way:
10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
The present emphatic nature of this adverb gives it this force. So we should listen for when “now” or “but now” is used to describe the Christian’s present condition in light of God’s redemptive work. These “Νυνὶ” clauses give us great insight into the powerful redemption of the new creation that the Holy Spirit works within those who trust Jesus.
Second: I’ve referred to this section as Paul’s “thesis recapitulation and expansion” because, in technical terms, “recapitulation” is a form of speech used to summarize.
This form of speech is notable by an emphatic statement and a return to the main idea of the speech. So we can know Paul is using this form of speech by the strong, “But now” (Νυνὶ δὲ), followed by the return to his main idea about “the righteousness of God” (1:17).
A key observation that we should make here is that after first stating his main idea, Paul’s first two supporting arguments were characterized by dialogues that address non-Christian objections. Notice how little Christ is referenced throughout these first two arguments? This is because he’s refuting the objections of his gentile and Jewish interlocutors. He speaks much more as a missionary than a theologian in these first two arguments.
But now Paul’s reason for calling on the Christians in Rome to deliberate about the appropriate, and right course of action in view of God’s righteousness will be best served by returning to view Christ himself.
So Paul begins preparing his audience to see how they, as a small and weak group of despised disciples, do in fact fit into the story of God’s plan for the salvation of the whole world. And this is a most notable theme since there is a real temptation, I think, for us to imagine that because of our littleness we do not fit into the grand scheme of God’s great Kingdom. And it is this knowledge that makes me certain that our work here, in view of Christ’s resurrection, is also worth whatever sacrifice we are called on to make.
Third: our final exegetical observation is that Paul’s recapitulation can be divided into two parts: today’s “proclamation” (vv. 21–26) and next week’s “diatribe” (vv. 27–31). You may remember how diabribe refers to dialogue with theoretical opponents (interlocutors), and is meant to show the weakness of your opposition in contrast to your own strength. So today’s “proclamation” contains the expanded recapitulation of 1:16–17, and next week’s “diatribe” sets out in brief fashion the practical and theological consequences of Paul’s thesis statement.
For these reasons, recognizing this section as the amplified summary of Paul’s primary propositional statement is essential to recognizing how important this section is to the whole of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome. What Paul says here will lay the framework of gospel-logic that Paul will build on in his remaining arguments through chapter 11. So whenever Paul engages the logic of works-based righteousness from here on out, he will stand on the logic of his first two arguments from 1:18-3:20. And whenever he uses the logic of gospel-righteousness, he will stand on what he explains in 3:21-31.
The Righteousness of God: Realized Through Faith
The Righteousness of God: Realized Through Faith
I have frequently referenced the visceral weight felt throughout the two prior arguments. What Paul says strikes us to our core and forces us to feel the weight of God’s just condemnation for sinners.
And as much as we don’t like starring this reality in the face, I think there is no arguing with the fairness of God’s standard:
1 Therefore, every one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth.
6 He will repay each one according to his works:
11 For there is no favoritism with God. 12 For all who sin without the law will also perish without the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.
God judges each person in truth. Divine retribution will be proportionate to what each person has done, and based on the standard available to them that they themselves used to judge others, being dispensed without any favoritism or corruption on God’s part.
Yet Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome began with the good news of Christ:
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.
So Paul’s return to this theme begins to answer how Christians enter into and realize the righteousness of God through faith. This is the much anticipated message that every humble and contrite heart yearns to hear; “how am I, a broken sinner, to be made right and reconciled to a holy God?”
21 But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, attested by the Law and the Prophets.
“But now”(Νυνὶ δὲ): Paul takes up the task of bringing the idea of humanity’s universally condemned state into the good news of salvation in Christ; “how can those who have absolutely no justified standing before God ever enter his holy presence?”
“apart from the law”(v. 21): One of the first imperatives of the gospel is that we come to God without help from the law. He has charted a way for us to return to him in Christ on terms separate from the kind of the righteousness that comes by our works.
“the righteousness of God has been revealed”(v. 21): This is the singular moment towards which all of human history has been moving; the revelation of God’s righteousness in Jesus Christ satisfies every human need, heals every wound of sin, and restores peace to the weary.
This is the point to which the whole prophetic witness testifies:
22 “Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: It is not for your sake that I will act, house of Israel, but for my holy name, which you profaned among the nations where you went. 23 I will honor the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations—the name you have profaned among them. The nations will know that I am the Lord—this is the declaration of the Lord God—when I demonstrate my holiness through you in their sight. 24 “ ‘For I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25 I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances.
In Christ God has vindicated his holiness and revealed his righteousness to the world. A careful inquiry into the writings of the prophets shows how they anticipated a new kind of fulfilled righteousness that would be experienced in the new creation, when God would pour out his Spirit upon his people. The prophets anticipated and longed for the day when they would be renewed from within by the grace of God and enabled to walk with him in his righteousness. And this is the subject of Paul’s writings.
“attested by the Law and the Prophets”(v. 21): We must here affirm that neither Jesus nor his apostles believed that they were teaching anything that the Old Testament did not tell us about. Even though they acknowledge that these mysteries were hidden from plain sight, they believed that they were contained in the Law and the prophets, and understood by the heroes of our faith.
Jesus said:
44 He told them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
And Peter explained:
10 Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that would come to you, searched and carefully investigated. 11 They inquired into what time or what circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating when he testified in advance to the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you. These things have now been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—angels long to catch a glimpse of these things.
So Paul tells us that “God has shown us his saving power without the help of the law. But the Law and the Prophets tell us about this” salvation (NIrV).
22 The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction.
“The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ”(v. 22): The good news of the gospel is that the righteousness of God is realized through faith in Jesus Christ. “Faith”, not “the law”, will be the means by which you and I are able to realize and live out the righteousness of God.
So I want to make the first in a series of important comments that I will offer throughout the next few weeks: when someone says they believe in salvation through faith alone, and by that they have in mind the kind of faith in Christ through which the righteousness of God is revealed, and realized by the grace of God that is poured out within us through the Holy Spirit, then I wholeheartedly agree. And we do violence to the gospel whenever we are found to be fighting against this. However, if someone means that salvation comes merely through an intellectual acknowledgement God’s existence while we continue living as if he didn’t exist, then I think they have something entirely different in mind than Paul.
But we absolutely must not allow theological error to provoke equally erroneous reactions within us. Sometimes I have encountered hostility towards the idea of righteousness by faith. And this hostility leads to returning to the basic paradigm of righteousness by works, at least in practical terms, that leads only to our condemnation.
So we must, as Christians, learn to think about righteousness in terms of the paradigm of faith. For this is the paradigm by which God’s righteousness is revealed and ultimately realized in our life.
This is what Paul refers to in his letter to the Christians in Galatia:
6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through love.
15 For both circumcision and uncircumcision mean nothing; what matters instead is a new creation.
“To all who believe”(v. 22): Therefore, because salvation is not based on our works, there is no basis for the tribalism that separated Jew from Gentile. God’s righteousness is revealed and realized through faith.
“Since there is no distinction”(v. 22): This becomes one of the most important gospel principles, which we see Paul explain in greater detail to the Christians in Corinth:
10 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, that there be no divisions among you, and that you be united with the same understanding and the same conviction. 11 For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers and sisters, by members of Chloe’s people, that there is rivalry among you. 12 What I am saying is this: One of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in Paul’s name?
In other words, this isn’t just relevant to first century Christians who were struggling with the Jewish / Gentile divide, but it remains relevant to modern day Christians who are still, to our shame, divided against one another into different tribes and denominational camps. God makes no distinction between peoples. Instead, he simply looks to those who believe and trust him with their life.
So Paul tells us that “we are made right with God by putting our faith in Jesus Christ. This happens to all who believe. It is no different for the Jews than for the Gentiles” (NIrV).
23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; 24 they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”(v. 23): We need to bring the full weight and force of Paul’s two prior arguments forward to this point so that we can set them into their gospel context.
“They are justified”(v. 24): The whole world is guilty before God, therefore, in order for the world to be reconciled to God we must humbly approach his grace with faith that God will set us right. And that is what “justified” means; “to be set right” with God.
Paul will make it clear in chapters 4 to 6 that this justification is meant to be understood in light of Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, and, ultimately, in Jesus. In light of Adam because the whole human race has joined him in sin. And the justification of Christ restores to the human race what was lost in Adam. In light of Abraham, because faith is the means by which humanity is restored to God. Moses, because the law excludes all other options for human salvation. David, because our salvation comes by the faithful mercy of God. And Christ, because his victory over sin and death secures our salvation.
So, looking forward in Romans, we are going to see how the whole redemptive work of God pointed towards Christ, who would reveal the righteousness of God upon the cross.
“freely by his grace”(v. 24): We are set right with God entirely and exclusively by the work of Christ upon the cross.
Even a cursory survey of Christian history is sufficient to say without reservation that this is Paul's most controversial statement. And I believe the reason for this is because so many people who want to come to Christ simply refuse to let go of the paradigm of righteousness by works, and accept the righteousness that comes by faith. And, although Paul will make clear in chapter 6 what he does not mean when he says that we are “justified freely by his grace”, he does not change, alter, or adjust the gospel in order to accommodate people’s reticence towards God’s grace.
We either wholly trust God’s grace for our salvation, or we will be condemned in our sin.
Paul is very forceful on the issue of God’s free gift of grace:
4 You who are trying to be justified by the law are alienated from Christ; you have fallen from grace. 5 For we eagerly await through the Spirit, by faith, the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through love.
I was raised in the church under what was functionally nothing more than the paradigm of righteousness by works: you were righteous if you did good and unrighteous if you did bad. And much of my early ministry persisted with these impressions even though my eyes had been opened to God’s grace.
So I can speak to the damage this conception of righteousness will do to one’s faith from firsthand experience. It robs us of our joy, and steals peace from our life. And I guarantee you that you will never meet someone who lives by the functional logic of works-based righteousness that is known for their joy.
“through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus”(v. 24): To understand Paul properly requires us to understand that these things are accomplished and realized in our life through the redemption that came from Christ Jesus on the cross. And just that one truth alone is sufficient to dispel all the errors that we see about grace.
So Paul tells us that “everyone has sinned. No one measures up to God’s glory. So it is the free gift of God’s grace makes us right with him. Jesus paid the price to set us free” (NIrV).
25 God presented him as the mercy seat by his blood, through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed.
“God presented him as the mercy seat by his blood”(v. 25): You will notice that we have had no “conjunctions” or anything of that nature since our opening verse; these six verses lay out one unified thought explaining how God’s righteousness has been revealed outside the paradigm of the law. And everything, not surprisingly, comes back to the cross.
This language shifts focus for the first time in Paul’s letter to the Romans to the template of the Temple and its sacrifices.
God "presented Jesus" in much the way that a priest would place the show bread on the altar in the Temple.
This draws on the language of the law:
8 The bread is to be set out before the Lord every Sabbath day as a permanent covenant obligation on the part of the Israelites.
Paul combines this imagery with an important word that refers to one of the pieces of Temple furniture designated as the "mercy seat". This seat was the “place of mercy” that was placed between the carved angels where God would meet with his people in grace and forgiveness. So, Paul is saying that Jesus himself is now both the place where and the means by which the God of Israel meets with his people to forgive their sins! And this forgiveness is effectuated through his blood that immutably proved God’s love for the world.
“through faith”(v. 25): We must make this point with the force that Paul uses. What has just been described comes through faith. You can live a life of near impeccable integrity, but all your righteousness does nothing to give you standing in God’s presence because of your sin. Paul attaches the dispensation of God’s mercy to our faith.
Therefore, the superior advantage of the righteousness that comes by faith is that it leads to the mercy seat of Christ!
“to demonstrate his righteousness”(v. 25): I have listened to sermons where the preacher bold pronounced his rejection of “salvation through faith”. I am quite sure that what he meant by this was that he rejected the modern version of “easy believism” that would use God’s grace as a means to sin. But the unfortunate byproduct of this reaction was the functional rejection of God’s grace in practice. And this is why I say that it is dangerous to shape our beliefs based on reactions to other people’s theological errors!
What should stand out to us here is that rejecting the righteousness of faith amounts to rejecting the righteousness of God himself since it is his grace that is dispensed to those who believe that demonstrates his righteousness to the world.
“because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed”(v. 25): God presented Jesus as his mercy seat because of the great restraint that he has shown in passing over the prior sins of the world.
Someone might object, “but the Gentiles never atoned for their sins!” God has shown great mercy in forgiving their sins and bringing salvation to the Gentiles through Christ even though they did not previously know him or understand his righteousness.
So Paul says that “through his faithfulness, God displayed Jesus as the place of sacrifice where mercy is found by means of his blood. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness in passing over sins that happened before” (CEB).
26 God presented him to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be just and justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
“God presented him”(v. 26): This language carries forward all the symbolism previously explained into the last point.
“To demonstrate his righteousness at the present time”(v. 26): God’s longsuffering tolerance of the world’s sins in times past was for the purpose that he might demonstrate his righteousness in Christ Jesus now. His wrath was only exercised in the world to the extent that it was necessary to bring about this plan.
I believe the manner in which Jesus taught us to pray reflects this understanding:
9 “Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy.
One of the symptoms of anemic prayer are prayers that are not at all concerned with the righteousness of God. When our prayers become anchored to our temporal requests, they cease to be true gospel prayers that realize the full purpose of God’s redemptive plan in Christ. They become weak. True gospel prayer has at the outset God’s mighty power to display his righteousness in Jesus Christ!
Much more could be said on this point, and has been said, but this is what most impresses me: Christians should be so captivated with the righteousness of God that has been demonstrated in Christ that even our prayers are saturated with these truths!
“so that he would be just and justify the one who has faith in Jesus”(v. 26): And so we have the conclusion to the summarizing proclamation of Paul’s thesis recapitulation.
NIrV: God did all this to prove in our own time that he does what is right. He also makes right with himself those who believe in Jesus.
CEB: 26 during the time of God’s patient tolerance. He also did this to demonstrate that he is righteous in the present time, and to treat the one who has faith in Jesus as righteous.