Romans 4.8-God Absolutely Never Takes Into Account the Sins of Those Justified By Faith
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Thursday January 17, 2008
Romans: Romans 4:8-God Absolutely Never Takes Into Account the Sins of Those Justified By Faith
Lesson # 120
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 4:1.
This evening we will continue with our study of Romans chapter four.
This evening we will note Romans 4:8, which teaches that God the Father absolutely never ever takes into account the sins of the sinner who has been justified by faith in His Son Jesus Christ.
Let’s read Romans 4:1-8 and then concentrate on verse 8.
Romans 4:1-8, “What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? ‘ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.’ Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works. BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED. BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”
In Romans 4:7-8, Paul is quoting Psalm 32:1-2, which David wrote after he confessed to God his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah the Hittite.
Psalm 32:1-2, “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.”
Let’s look at Romans 4:8 in detail.
Romans 4:8, “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”
“BLESSED” is the adjective makarios (makavrio$) (mak-ar-ee-os), which is modifying the noun aner, “THE MAN” and describes the sinner who is justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as “spiritually prosperous.”
In Romans 4:8, the adjective makarios does not refer to spiritual benefits as it did in Romans 4:7 but rather, the word describes the state of the sinner who has been justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and whose sins are never taken into account by the Father.
“THE MAN” is the noun aner (a)nhvr) (an-ayr), which refers to a male as opposed to a female.
Paul quotes Psalm 32:2 in Romans 4:8 and thus retains the Septuagint word aner referring to a man as opposed to a woman since David is writing of his own personal experience that he was justified by faith and not by the works of the Law.
“SIN” is the accusative feminine singular form of the noun hamartia (a(martiva) (ham-ar-tee-ah), which refers to personal sin in a collective sense.
As we have noted in our study of Romans 4:8, Paul is quoting Psalm 32:2.
Psalm 32:1-2, “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.”
“Sin” is the noun `awon (/w)u*) (aw-vone), which refers to personal sin in a collective sense meaning that although the word is in the singular, the word denotes the sum total of personal sins that a person commits in his life.
It is called a “collective singular.”
The noun conveys the idea of moral twisting.
The term is often translated as, “infraction, perversion, crooked behavior, iniquity.”
The etymology of `awon is a reminder that sin is often the twisting of something that was intended as good.
At times, it can denote actions that would normally be considered good but fall under the category of iniquity because a wrong bent in motivation or an attitude of self-will.
Also, the word can denote actions that are seen as the worst perversions because they are a twisted caricature of something good.
Usually, the term emphasizes committing wrongdoing.
In Psalm 32:2, the word is used with reference to David’s committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdering her husband Uriah the Hittite to cover up the fact that he had gotten her pregnant.
Therefore, it denotes David’s sin in perverting sex by committing the crime of adultery.
Sex was created by the Lord for pleasure initially and then after the fall of Adam and Eve it was used for procreation.
Marriage was established by God in the Garden of Eden when He brought the Woman to Adam to be his helpmate (See Genesis 2:18-25).
Thus, sex is good since it was created by the Lord.
However, adultery is a perversion of sex since sex was intended for marriage exclusively.
Therefore, committing adultery would be sin against God because it would violate the divine institution of marriage.
The Word of God prohibits adultery.
Exodus 20:14, “You shall not commit adultery.”
Adultery begins in the heart.
Mark 7:21-23, “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.”
Also, the term `awon denotes David’s perversion of his authority by using his authority to get Uriah killed on the battlefield since he gave orders to Joab to have Uriah placed in the thickest part of the battle.
Therefore, in Romans 4:8, the noun hamartia refers to personal sin in a collective sense meaning that although the word is in the singular, the word denotes the sum total of personal sins committed over the course of a lifetime.
Since Paul is quoting Psalm 32:2 where David is relating his personal experience of the Lord not taking into account his personal sins of adultery and murder, the singular form of the hamartia refers to David’s personal sins of murder and adultery as well as many others that he committed over the course of his lifetime.
As we noted in Romans 4:7, the plural form of the noun anomia viewed personal sin from the perspective that it is rebelling against the absolute perfection of God’s character, i.e. His holiness.
Whereas, the plural form of the noun hamartia viewed sin from the perspective that it is the missing of the mark of the absolute perfection of God’s character, i.e. His holiness.
In Romans 4:8, the noun hamartia is in the singular referring to personal sin in a collective sense, denoting the sum total of personal sin committed over the course of a lifetime.
Romans 4:8, “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”
“THE LORD” is the noun kurios (kuvrio$), which refers to God the Father emphasizing His sovereign authority and role in man’s salvation as Judge.
In Romans 4:8, the noun kurios refers to God the Father since Romans 3:25 teaches that God the Father offered His Son publicly at the Cross of Calvary in order that His Son’s spiritual death would satisfy the demands of the Trinity’s holiness that required that sin be judged.
It was God the Son’s unique role and function in the plan of salvation for mankind to become a human being in order that through His human nature He might suffer spiritual death in order to propitiate the righteous demands of a holy God that the sins of human history-past, present and future might be judged.
It was God the Holy Spirit’s role and function in the plan of salvation for mankind to empower the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union while He was separated from the Father during those last three hours of darkness on the cross.
But it was the Father’s unique role and function in the plan of salvation for mankind to be the member of the Trinity who would separate Himself from the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the cross (Hebrews 9:14).
The Father’s role in the salvation of mankind was to be the Judge who would impute the sins of the world to His Son Jesus Christ and impute His Son’s righteousness to the sinner who exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ.
Therefore, in Romans 4:8, the noun kurios refers to the Father emphasizing His absolute sovereign authority as Judge over the entire human race.
He has the sovereign authority to not only declare sinners righteous through faith in His Son but also to abstain from imputing the sins of the sinner who has trusted in His Son as Savior.
It implies that the Father’s role in the salvation of men was to act as Judge by imputing the sins of the world to the perfect human nature of His Son.
He is the member of the Trinity that separated from the Son in His human nature during the last three hours on the Cross as well as imputing His Son’s righteousness to the sinner who exercises faith in His Son as Savior.
Romans 4:8, “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”
“WILL TAKE INTO ACCOUNT” is the verb logizomai (logivzomai) (lo-gidz-o-my), which means, “to take into account.”
In Romans 4:8, the verb logizomai is negated by the double negative ou me, “NOT” and means, “to take into account” and not “credit” or “impute” since God doesn’t impute sin to the sinner since He imputed sin to His Son Jesus Christ.
Therefore, in Romans 4:8, the verb logizomai is negated by the double negative ou me emphatically denying any possibility that the Lord takes into account the personal sins of the sinner who has been justified by faith in His Son Jesus Christ since Christ received the imputation of the sins of the world on the Cross.
The subjunctive mood of the verb is an “emphatic negation subjunctive” meaning that the double negative ou me with the subjunctive mood of logizomai denies any potentiality of God the Father taking into account the personal sins of the sinner who has been declared justified by faith in Jesus Christ.
This is the strongest way to negate something in the Greek.
Thus, this construction emphasizes to the reader that God absolutely never takes into account the sins of the sinner who has received the imputation of divine righteousness and has been declared justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53:10-12, “But the LORD was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.”
1 Peter 2:21-25, “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.”
1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit.”