Romans 4

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Abraham Justified by Faith

¹Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν εὑρηκέναι Ἀβραὰμ τὸν προπάτορα ἡμῶν κατὰ σάρκα

¹What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has discovered?

²εἰ γὰρ Ἀβραὰμ ἐξ ἔργων ἐδικαιώθη ἔχει καύχημα ἀλλ’ οὐ πρὸς Θεόν

²If Abraham was indeed justified by works, he had something to boast about, but not before God.

³τί γὰρ ἡ γραφὴ λέγει Ἐπίστευσεν δὲ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην

³For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”^a

⁴Τῷ δὲ ἐργαζομένῳ ὁ μισθὸς οὐ λογίζεται κατὰ χάριν ἀλλὰ κατὰ ὀφείλημα

⁴Now the wages of the worker are not credited as a gift, but as an obligation.

⁵τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην

⁵However, to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.

⁶καθάπερ καὶ Δαυὶδ λέγει τὸν μακαρισμὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ᾧ ὁ Θεὸς λογίζεται δικαιοσύνην χωρὶς ἔργων

⁶And David speaks likewise of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

⁷Μακάριοι ὧν ἀφέθησαν αἱ ἀνομίαι καὶ ὧν ἐπεκαλύφθησαν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι

⁷“Blessed are they whose lawless acts are forgiven,

whose sins are covered.

⁸μακάριος ἀνὴρ οὗ οὐ μὴ λογίσηται Κύριος ἁμαρτίαν

⁸Blessed is the man

whose sin the Lord will never count against him.”^a

⁹Ὁ μακαρισμὸς οὖν οὗτος ἐπὶ τὴν περιτομὴν ἢ καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν ἀκροβυστίαν λέγομεν γάρ Ἐλογίσθη τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἡ πίστις εἰς δικαιοσύνην

⁹Is this blessing only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness.

¹⁰πῶς οὖν ἐλογίσθη ἐν περιτομῇ ὄντι ἢ ἐν ἀκροβυστίᾳ οὐκ ἐν περιτομῇ ἀλλ’ ἐν ἀκροβυστίᾳ

¹⁰In what context was it credited? Was it after his circumcision, or before? It was not after, but before.^a

¹¹Καὶ σημεῖον ἔλαβεν περιτομῆς σφραγῖδα τῆς δικαιοσύνης τῆς πίστεως τῆς ἐν τῇ ἀκροβυστίᾳ εἰς τὸ εἶναι αὐτὸν πατέρα πάντων τῶν πιστευόντων δι’ ἀκροβυστίας εἰς τὸ λογισθῆναι καὶ αὐτοῖς τὴν δικαιοσύνην

¹¹And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.

¹²καὶ πατέρα περιτομῆς τοῖς οὐκ ἐκ περιτομῆς μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς στοιχοῦσιν τοῖς ἴχνεσιν τῆς ἐν ἀκροβυστίᾳ πίστεως τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν Ἀβραάμ

¹²And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Abraham Receives the Promise

¹³Οὐ γὰρ διὰ νόμου ἡ ἐπαγγελία τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἢ τῷ σπέρματι αὐτοῦ τὸ κληρονόμον αὐτὸν εἶναι κόσμου ἀλλὰ διὰ δικαιοσύνης πίστεως

¹³For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world was not given through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.

¹⁴εἰ γὰρ οἱ ἐκ νόμου κληρονόμοι κεκένωται ἡ πίστις καὶ κατήργηται ἡ ἐπαγγελία

¹⁴For if those who live by the law are heirs, faith is useless and the promise is worthless,

¹⁵ὁ γὰρ νόμος ὀργὴν κατεργάζεται οὗ δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν νόμος οὐδὲ παράβασις

¹⁵because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law, there is no transgression.

¹⁶Διὰ τοῦτο ἐκ πίστεως ἵνα κατὰ χάριν εἰς τὸ εἶναι βεβαίαν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν παντὶ τῷ σπέρματι οὐ τῷ ἐκ τοῦ νόμου μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ ἐκ πίστεως Ἀβραάμ ὅς ἐστιν πατὴρ πάντων ἡμῶν

¹⁶Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may rest on grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.

¹⁷καθὼς γέγραπται ὅτι Πατέρα πολλῶν ἐθνῶν τέθεικά σε κατέναντι οὗ ἐπίστευσεν Θεοῦ τοῦ ζωοποιοῦντος τοὺς νεκροὺς καὶ καλοῦντος τὰ μὴ ὄντα ὡς ὄντα

¹⁷As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.”^a He is our father in the presence of God, in whom he believed, the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being what does not yet exist.

¹⁸ὃς παρ’ ἐλπίδα ἐπ’ ἐλπίδι ἐπίστευσεν εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι αὐτὸν πατέρα πολλῶν ἐθνῶν κατὰ τὸ εἰρημένον Οὕτως ἔσται τὸ σπέρμα σου

¹⁸Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”^a

¹⁹καὶ μὴ ἀσθενήσας τῇ πίστει κατενόησεν τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σῶμα ἤδη νενεκρωμένον ἑκατονταετής που ὑπάρχων καὶ τὴν νέκρωσιν τῆς μήτρας Σάρρας

¹⁹Without weakening in his faith, he acknowledged the decrepitness of his body (since he was about a hundred years old) and the lifelessness of Sarah’s womb.

²⁰εἰς δὲ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοῦ Θεοῦ οὐ διεκρίθη τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ ἀλλὰ ἐνεδυναμώθη τῇ πίστει δοὺς δόξαν τῷ Θεῷ

²⁰Yet he did not waver through disbelief in the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

²¹καὶ πληροφορηθεὶς ὅτι ὃ ἐπήγγελται δυνατός ἐστιν καὶ ποιῆσαι

²¹being fully persuaded that God was able to do what He had promised.

²²διὸ καὶ Ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ εἰς δικαιοσύνην

²²This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”^a

²³Οὐκ ἐγράφη δὲ δι’ αὐτὸν μόνον ὅτι Ἐλογίσθη αὐτῷ

²³Now the words “it was credited to him” were written not only for Abraham,

²⁴ἀλλὰ καὶ δι’ ἡμᾶς οἷς μέλλει λογίζεσθαι τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἐπὶ τὸν ἐγείραντα Ἰησοῦν τὸν Κύριον ἡμῶν ἐκ νεκρῶν

²⁴but also for us, to whom righteousness will be credited—for us who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.

²⁵ὃς παρεδόθη διὰ τὰ παραπτώματα ἡμῶν καὶ ἠγέρθη διὰ τὴν δικαίωσιν ἡμῶν

²⁵He was delivered over to death for our trespasses and was raised to life for our justification.