King James Version
Romans 4
25 verses with commentary
Abraham Justified by Faith
What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?</strong> Paul launches his exposition with a rhetorical question that would arrest any Jewish reader: What did Abraham discover <em>kata sarka</em> (κατὰ σάρκα, "according to the flesh")? The phrase carries layered meaning—Abraham as physical ancestor, but also achievement through human effort. After de...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
**IV.**
(1-25) The subject of the chapter is an application of the foregoing to the special (and crucial) case of Abraham, with particular reference to two ideas that are continually recurring throughout the last chapter: (1) the supposed superiority of Jew to Gentile (and, *à fortiori,* of the great progenitor of the Jews); (2) the idea of boasting or glorying based upon this superiority. Followi...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.</strong> Paul introduces a critical distinction: human glory (<em>kauchēma</em>, καύχημα) versus divine approval. The conditional "if Abraham were justified by works" is contrary to fact—Paul is stating what is <em>not</em> true to make his point. Were Abraham's right standing based on performance, he cou...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) We know that he obtained justification. If that justification had been earned by his own works it would then have been something to be proud of; it would be a pride that he might fairly hold both towards men and towards God; for to men he could point to the privileged position that he had gained, and in the sight of God he would be able to plead a certain merit of his own. But he has *not* thi...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 28 Ac 28:1-31. The Wintering at Malta, and Notable Occurrences There--Prosecution of the Voyage to Italy as Far as Puteoli, and Land Journey Thence to Rome--Summary of the Apostle's Labors There for the Two Following Years.
**1. knew the island was called Melita--**(See on Ac 27:39). The opinion that this island was not Malta to the south of Sicily, but Meleda in the Gulf of Venice--which...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.</strong> Paul appeals to Genesis 15:6, the hinge text of his entire argument. The verb <em>elogisthē</em> (ἐλογίσθη, "it was counted/reckoned/imputed") is a financial term meaning to credit to one's account. God credited (<em>logizomai</em>, λογίζομαι) righteousness to Abraham's account based...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) The Apostle gives a proof of this from Scripture. Abraham was not justified by works, and therefore had nothing to boast of in God’s sight. He was justified by faith. His righteousness was not real, but imputed. His faith was treated as if it had been equivalent to a righteousness of works. It met with the same acceptance in the sight of God that a righteousness of works would have done. But—t...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. the barbarous people--**so called merely as speaking neither the Greek nor the Latin language. They were originally Phoenician colonists.
**showed us no little--**"no ordinary"
**kindness, for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain--**"the rain that was on us"--not now first falling, but then falling heavily.
**and because of the cold--**welcomed us ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.</strong> Paul shifts to an analogy from the marketplace: the worker who earns wages. The verb <em>ergazomenō</em> (ἐργαζομένῳ, "the one working") describes labor that merits compensation. The wage (<em>misthos</em>, μισθός) is <em>not</em> reckoned (<em>logizetai</em>, λογίζεται—same root as "counted" in v. 3) accord...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) This, then (the righteousness attributed to Abraham), was an act of grace on the part of God, and not of merit on the part of man. It therefore carries with it no ground of boasting.
The proposition is put in a general form. Those who base their claim on works have a right to their reward. It is not conceded to them by any sort of imputation, but is their *desert.* On the other hand (Romans 4:...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks--**"a quantity of dry sticks." The vigorous activity of Paul's character is observable in this comparatively trifling action [Webster and Wilkinson].
**and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat--**Having laid itself up among the sticks on the approach of the cold winter season, it had suddenly recovered from its torpor by the hea...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.</strong> Paul now states positively what he established negatively: the one <em>not</em> working (<em>mē ergazomenō</em>, μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ) but believing has faith credited as righteousness. The object of faith is crucial: <em>ton dikaiounta ton asebē</em> (τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) But to him who puts forward no works, but has *faith* in God, who justifies men, not for their righteousness, but in spite of their sins, &c.
**The ungodly.**—A stronger word is here used than simply “the unrighteous,” “the impious,” or “ungodly.” Their impiety is condoned to them in virtue of their single exercise of faith. It is characteristic of the Apostle not to flinch from the boldest ex...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4-6. No doubt this man is a murderer--**His chains, which they would see, might strengthen the impression.
**whom ... vengeance suffereth not to live--**They believed in a Supreme, Resistless, Avenging Eye and Hand, however vague their notions of where it resided.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,</strong> Paul summons a second witness from Torah: David, Israel's greatest king. The particle <em>kathaper</em> (καθάπερ, "even as") links David's testimony to Abraham's experience—both received imputed righteousness. The verb <em>logizetai</em> (λογίζεται, "reckons/imputes") appe...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6-8) A further instance of the nature of the justification which proceeds from faith is supplied by David. From his evidence it will appear that such justification implies, not the absence of sin, but its forgiveness; not its real obliteration, but the forbearance of God to impute it. It is an *amnesty,* not an *acquittal.*
(6) **Even as.**—In strict accordance with this description of the justif...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4-6. No doubt this man is a murderer--**His chains, which they would see, might strengthen the impression.
**whom ... vengeance suffereth not to live--**They believed in a Supreme, Resistless, Avenging Eye and Hand, however vague their notions of where it resided.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.</strong> Paul quotes Psalm 32:1, David's beatitude on forgiveness. The Greek uses two terms for sin: <em>anomiai</em> (ἀνομίαι, "lawlessnesses/iniquities") and <em>hamartiai</em> (ἁμαρτίαι, "sins/failures"). Both are plural, emphasizing the totality of human transgression. Two corresponding verbs describe G...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Forgiven.**—The stress is upon this word; “whose sins are not abolished, but forgiven; not annihilated, but covered up, removed from sight, hidden by the absolving grace of God.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4-6. No doubt this man is a murderer--**His chains, which they would see, might strengthen the impression.
**whom ... vengeance suffereth not to live--**They believed in a Supreme, Resistless, Avenging Eye and Hand, however vague their notions of where it resided.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.</strong> The third beatitude from Psalm 32:2 completes Paul's quotation. The verb <em>mē logisētai</em> (μὴ λογίσηται, "will not reckon/impute") is the negative form of the key term throughout this chapter. God <em>imputes</em> righteousness (v. 3, 6) but does <em>not impute</em> sin—this is the double imputation at the heart of just...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7-8. possessions of the chief man--**"the first man."
**of the island--**He would hardly be so styled in the lifetime of his father, if his distinction was that of the family. But it is now ascertained that this was the proper official title of the Maltese representative of the Roman prætor to Sicily, to whose province Malta belonged; two inscriptions having been discovered in the island, one ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.</strong> Paul now pivots to his most explosive question: Is this blessedness exclusive to the circumcised (<em>epi tēn peritomēn</em>, ἐπὶ τὴν περιτομήν) or does it extend to the uncircumcised (<em>epi tēn akrobystian</em>, ἐπὶ τὴν ἀκροβ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9-12) What is the bearing of this upon the relation between Jew and Gentile? Is the blessedness of the justified state reserved only for the former? Is it limited to those who are circumcised? On the contrary, the state of justification was attributed to Abraham himself *before* he was circumcised. Justification is the result of faith, not of circumcision. Circumcision is so far from superseding ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7-8. possessions of the chief man--**"the first man."
**of the island--**He would hardly be so styled in the lifetime of his father, if his distinction was that of the family. But it is now ascertained that this was the proper official title of the Maltese representative of the Roman prætor to Sicily, to whose province Malta belonged; two inscriptions having been discovered in the island, one ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.</strong> Paul answers his own rhetorical question with devastating simplicity: Abraham was justified while still <em>en akrobystia</em> (ἐν ἀκροβυστίᾳ, "in uncircumcision"), not <em>en peritomē</em> (ἐν περιτομῇ, "in circumcision"). The chronology of Genesis is irrefutab...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. this ... done, others ... came and were healed--**"kept coming to [us] and getting healed," that is, during our stay, not all at once [Webster and Wilkinson].
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:</strong> Paul defines circumcision's proper role: <em>sēmeion</em> (σημεῖον, "sign") and <em>sphragida</em> (σφραγῖδα, "seal") of rig...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **The sign of circumcision**—*i.e.,* circumcision *as a* sign. The expression is an instance of what is known in Greek as the “genitive of apposition,” but it is common in English. Thus we speak of the City *of* London, the County *of* Kent.
Abraham is the father (1) of faithful uncircumcised—he himself being so—and (2) of circumcised, *but only* of faithful circumcised.
**A seal of the right...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. who also honoured us ... and when we departed they laded us, &c.--**This was not taking hire for the miracles wrought among them (Mt 10:8), but such grateful expressions of feeling, particularly in providing what would minister to their comfort during the voyage, as showed the value they set upon the presence and labors of the apostle among them, and such as it would have hurt their feel...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.</strong> Paul completes his thought: Abraham is also father <em>of circumcision</em> (objective genitive—father <em>to</em> the circumcised) but only to those who do not merely possess physical circumcision. T...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) And on the other hand, the mere performance of the rite was no guarantee for justification, unless it was attended with a faith like Abraham’s. Of the two things, faith itself, and circumcision the sign of faith, the first only was essential, and the second was useless without it.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. we departed in a ship of Alexandria--**(See on Ac 27:6).
**which had wintered in the isle--**no doubt driven m by the same storm which had wrecked on its shores the apostle's vessel--an incidental mark of consistency in the narrative.
**whose sign--**or "figurehead"; the figure, carved or painted on the bow, which gave name to the vessel. Such figureheads were anciently as common as now....
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 4
Chapter Outline
The doctrine of justification by faith is shown by the case of Abraham.
(1-12)
He received the promise through the righteousness of faith.
(13-22)
And we are justified in the same way of believing.
(23-25)
**Verses 1-12**
To meet the views of the Jews, the apostle first refers to the example of Abraham, in whom the Jews gloried as their m...
Read full commentary →The Promise Through Faith
For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.</strong> Paul expands the scope: the promise (<em>hē epaggelia</em>, ἡ ἐπαγγελία) was not merely Canaan but cosmic—<em>klēronomon autou einai kosmou</em> (κληρονόμον αὐτὸν εἶναι κόσμου, "for him to be heir of the world"). This reaches beyond...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) Abraham was the father of *all* who walk in his steps. For this *all* is not limited by the Law any more than it is limited by circumcision. The promise of that world-wide inheritance was not given through the agency of the Law (which at that time did not exist), but as an effect of the righteousness which proceeds from faith.
**Heir of the world.**—This promise was explained by the Jews of t...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-13. landing at Syracuse--**the ancient and celebrated capital of Sicily, on its eastern coast, about eighty miles, or a day's sail, north from Malta.
**we tarried there three days--**probably from the state of the wind. Doubtless Paul would wish to go ashore, to find out and break ground among the Jews and proselytes whom such a mercantile center would attract to it; and if this was allowed...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect:</strong> Paul poses a hypothetical syllogism: if inheritance comes <em>ek nomou</em> (ἐκ νόμου, "from law"), then two catastrophic consequences follow. First, <em>kekenōtai hē pistis</em> (κεκένωται ἡ πίστις, "faith has been emptied/made void"). The perfect tense indicates permanent voiding—...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14-17) This Messianic kingdom cannot have anything to do with law; for if it had, faith and the promise would cease to have any office. Faith and law cannot co-exist. They are the opposites of each other. The proper effect of law is punishment; for law only exposes sin. Faith, on the other hand, is the real key to the inheritance. It sets in motion grace; and grace, unlike law, excludes no one. I...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12-13. landing at Syracuse--**the ancient and celebrated capital of Sicily, on its eastern coast, about eighty miles, or a day's sail, north from Malta.
**we tarried there three days--**probably from the state of the wind. Doubtless Paul would wish to go ashore, to find out and break ground among the Jews and proselytes whom such a mercantile center would attract to it; and if this was allowed...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.</strong> Paul explains why law cannot be the means of inheritance: <em>ho gar nomos orgēn katergazetai</em> (ὁ γὰρ νόμος ὀργὴν κατεργάζεται, "for the law works wrath"). The verb <em>katergazetai</em> (κατεργάζεται) means accomplishes, produces, brings to completion. Law's function is not to enable obedience but ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) But in reality the Law is unable to admit them to this. It has an entirely contrary function—namely, to call down punishment upon the offences that it reveals. The Law and faith, therefore, mutually exclude each other, and faith is left to be the sole arbiter of salvation.
**Where no law is.**—Transgression is *ex vi termini* the transgression or breach of law, and therefore has no existence ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14-15. Where we found brethren--**not "the brethren" (see on Ac 21:4), from which one would conclude they did not expect to find such [Webster and Wilkinson].
**and were desired--**"requested."
**to tarry with them seven days--**If this request came from Julius, it may have proceeded partly from a wish to receive instructions from Rome and make arrangements for his journey thither, partly fr...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,</strong> Paul states his conclusion: <em>dia touto ek pisteōs</em> (διὰ τοῦτο ἐκ πίστεως, "therefore from faith"), <em>hina kata charin</em> (ἵνα κατὰ χάριν, "in order...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **Therefore it is of faith.**—The words “it is” have to be supplied. “It” stands for the Messianic inheritance, or, in common phrase, salvation. Faith on man’s part is correlative with grace on the part of God, and salvation being thus dependent upon grace is as wide and universal as grace itself. It knows no restriction of law.
**Not to that only which is of the law.**—Not only to that part ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14-15. Where we found brethren--**not "the brethren" (see on Ac 21:4), from which one would conclude they did not expect to find such [Webster and Wilkinson].
**and were desired--**"requested."
**to tarry with them seven days--**If this request came from Julius, it may have proceeded partly from a wish to receive instructions from Rome and make arrangements for his journey thither, partly fr...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. before him: or, like unto him
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.</strong> Paul quotes Genesis 17:5, but in its original context, this statement was made <em>after</em> circumcision. Paul's point is that the promise itself defines Abraham's role regardless of circumcision...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **Before him.**—Rather, *in the presence of.* These words are to be connected closely with those which precede the parenthesis: “Who stands as the father of us all in the presence of that God in whom he believed.” Abraham is regarded as (so to speak) confronting the Almighty, as he had done when the promise was first given to him.
**Who quickeneth.**—“Who gives life to that which is dead, and...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. when we came to Rome--**the renowned capital of the ancient world, situated on the Tiber.
**the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard--**the Prætorian Prefect, to whose custody, as commander of the Prætorian guard, the highest military authority in the city, were committed all who were to come before the emperor for trial. Ordinarily there were two such prefects; bu...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.</strong> Paul describes Abraham's faith with paradoxical language: <em>par' elpida ep' elpidi episteusen</em> (παρ' ἐλπίδα ἐπ' ἐλπίδι ἐπίστευσεν, "against hope upon hope he believed"). There was no human basis (<em>para</em>, παρά, "contrary to") for...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18-22) Extended description of the faith of Abraham.
(18) **Who.**—It must be noticed that the relative here refers to Abraham, whereas in the previous verse it referred to God.
**Believed in hope.**—The force of the preposition gives rather to the sentence the meaning of “grounded his faith upon hope”—that internal subjective hope that was strong within him, though there were no objective ground...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17-20. Paul called the chief of the Jews together--**Though banished from the capital by Claudius, the Jews enjoyed the full benefit of the toleration which distinguished the first period of Nero's reign, and were at this time in considerable numbers, wealth, and influence settled at Rome. We have seen that long before this a flourishing Christian Church existed at Rome, to which Paul wrote his ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb:</strong> Paul details the obstacles to faith that Abraham overcame. The phrase <em>mē asthenēsas tē pistei</em> (μὴ ἀσθενήσας τῇ πίστει, "not being weak in faith") uses the aorist participle, emphasizing decisive action rather than gradual p...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(19) **Considered not.**—The negative should, in accordance with the evidence of the best MSS., be emitted. “Who, because he was not weak in faith, considered indeed—took full account of—the natural impediments to the fulfilment of the promise, and yet did not doubt.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17-20. Paul called the chief of the Jews together--**Though banished from the capital by Claudius, the Jews enjoyed the full benefit of the toleration which distinguished the first period of Nero's reign, and were at this time in considerable numbers, wealth, and influence settled at Rome. We have seen that long before this a flourishing Christian Church existed at Rome, to which Paul wrote his ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;</strong> Paul states negatively then positively what Abraham did. Negatively: <em>ou diekrithē tē apistia</em> (οὐ διεκρίθη τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ, "he did not waver in unbelief") at the promise. The verb <em>diakrinō</em> (διακρίνω) means to be divided, hesitate, doubt—Abraham was not double-minded ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **In faith.**—Better, *through* or *by faith,* corresponding to “through unbelief” in the preceding clause. Unbelief did not make him doubt, but faith made him confident and strong.
**Giving glory to God.**—This phrase does not necessarily refer to a verbal ascription of praise, but may be used of anything which tends to God’s glory, whether in thought, word, or deed (comp. Joshua 7:19; Ezra ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17-20. Paul called the chief of the Jews together--**Though banished from the capital by Claudius, the Jews enjoyed the full benefit of the toleration which distinguished the first period of Nero's reign, and were at this time in considerable numbers, wealth, and influence settled at Rome. We have seen that long before this a flourishing Christian Church existed at Rome, to which Paul wrote his ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.</strong> Paul summarizes Abraham's faith: <em>plērophorētheis</em> (πληροφορηθείς, "being fully assured/convinced"). The verb compounds <em>plēros</em> (πλήρος, "full") with <em>phoreō</em> (φορέω, "to carry/bear")—faith that is fully carried through, complete conviction. The content of this assurance has tw...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17-20. Paul called the chief of the Jews together--**Though banished from the capital by Claudius, the Jews enjoyed the full benefit of the toleration which distinguished the first period of Nero's reign, and were at this time in considerable numbers, wealth, and influence settled at Rome. We have seen that long before this a flourishing Christian Church existed at Rome, to which Paul wrote his ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.</strong> Paul returns full circle to Genesis 15:6, his keystone verse. The particle <em>dio</em> (διό, "therefore") makes Abraham's faith described in vv. 18-21 the <em>reason</em> for imputation. The verb <em>elogisthē</em> (ἐλογίσθη, "it was reckoned/imputed") appears for the eighth time in this chapter—Paul's signature term for fore...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21-22. We neither received letters out of Judea concerning thee, &c.--**We need not suppose (with Tholuck and others) that there was any dishonest concealment here. The distinction made between himself, against whom they heard nothing, and his "sect," as "everywhere spoken against," is a presumption in favor of their sincerity; and there is ground to think that as the case took an unexpected...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 13-22**
The promise was made to Abraham long before the law. It points at Christ, and it refers to the promise, Ge 12:3. In Thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. The law worketh wrath, by showing that every transgressor is exposed to the Divine displeasure. As God intended to give men a title to the promised blessings, so he appointed it to be by faith, that it might be who...
Read full commentary →Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;</strong> Paul begins his application: Genesis 15:6 was <em>not</em> written <em>di' auton monon</em> (δι' αὐτὸν μόνον, "because of him alone"). The historical narrative about Abraham has universal significance. The verb <em>egraphē</em> (ἐγράφη, "it was written") uses the divine passive—God caused it to be written. Paul...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23-25) Application of the foregoing. The history of Abraham is a type of the dispensation of grace; his faith, the imputation of righteousness to him, and his reward, each severally a type of the same things in the Christian. Even in details the resemblance holds. Abraham put faith in a God “who quickeneth the dead,” and in like manner the Christian must put faith in God as the Author of a scheme...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21-22. We neither received letters out of Judea concerning thee, &c.--**We need not suppose (with Tholuck and others) that there was any dishonest concealment here. The distinction made between himself, against whom they heard nothing, and his "sect," as "everywhere spoken against," is a presumption in favor of their sincerity; and there is ground to think that as the case took an unexpected...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 23-25**
The history of Abraham, and of his justification, was recorded to teach men of after-ages; those especially to whom the gospel was then made known. It is plain, that we are not justified by the merit of our own works, but by faith in Jesus Christ and his righteousness; which is the truth urged in this and the foregoing chapter, as the great spring and foundation of all comfort...
Read full commentary →But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;</strong> Paul makes the explicit connection: the imputation declared over Abraham extends <em>alla kai di' hēmas</em> (ἀλλὰ καὶ δι' ἡμᾶς, "but also because of us"). The relative clause <em>hois mellei logizesthai</em> (οἷς μέλλει λογίζεσθαι, "to whom it is about to be reckoned") ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **That raised up.**—It is an association of ideas which leads the Apostle up to this point. The birth of Isaac resembles the resurrection of Christ in that it involved the exercise of Omnipotence, and in that Omnipotence Abraham believed and we are to believe. The Apostle is further led to allude to the Resurrection (though he has not laid so much stress upon it hitherto) because of the place...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-24. there came many--**"considerable numbers"
**into his lodging--**The word denotes one's place of stay as a guest (Phm 22), not "his own hired house," mentioned in Ac 28:30. Some Christian friends--possibly Aquila and Priscilla, who had returned to Rome (Ro 16:3), would be glad to receive him, though he would soon find himself more at liberty in a house of his own.
**to whom he expounde...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 23-25**
The history of Abraham, and of his justification, was recorded to teach men of after-ages; those especially to whom the gospel was then made known. It is plain, that we are not justified by the merit of our own works, but by faith in Jesus Christ and his righteousness; which is the truth urged in this and the foregoing chapter, as the great spring and foundation of all comfort...
Read full commentary →Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.</strong> Paul concludes with a compact creedal statement about Christ's saving work. <em>Hos paredothē</em> (ὃς παρεδόθη, "who was delivered") uses the divine passive—God delivered up His Son (cf. 8:32, echoing Isaac's near-sacrifice). The preposition <em>dia ta paraptōmata hēmōn</em> (διὰ τὰ παραπτώματα ἡμῶν, ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(25) **Was delivered**—*i.e., to death,* as in Isaiah 53:12 (LXX. version); Matthew 17:22; *et al.*
**For our offences.**—*Because of our offences*—*i.e.,* in order that He might atone for them.
**For our justification.**—*Because of our justification*—*i.e.,* that justification might take effect in us.
The death of Christ is the proper cause of justification, or means of atonement, according to S...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-24. there came many--**"considerable numbers"
**into his lodging--**The word denotes one's place of stay as a guest (Phm 22), not "his own hired house," mentioned in Ac 28:30. Some Christian friends--possibly Aquila and Priscilla, who had returned to Rome (Ro 16:3), would be glad to receive him, though he would soon find himself more at liberty in a house of his own.
**to whom he expounde...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 23-25**
The history of Abraham, and of his justification, was recorded to teach men of after-ages; those especially to whom the gospel was then made known. It is plain, that we are not justified by the merit of our own works, but by faith in Jesus Christ and his righteousness; which is the truth urged in this and the foregoing chapter, as the great spring and foundation of all comfort...
Read full commentary →