Romans 3 · The Lantern

God Remains Faithful

What then is the superiority of the Jew? Or what is the benefit of the circumcision?

Although there are many things that refer to the honor and merit of the seed of Abraham, he openly mentions only this, because their greatest praise is that they were judged worthy to receive the Law, through which they might learn to distinguish what is right from what is perverse, so that after this first point they could understand what the rest are like.

Having cast aside all the ordinances of the law with the words "what advantage is there in being a Jew," he sees an objection naturally arising and forestalls it. What is this objection? The following: if there is not the slightest benefit in those ordinances, then why, after all, was the Jewish people chosen? He resolves this objection with his characteristic wisdom.

After showing that Judaism, which involved receiving the law and circumcision, is not sufficient for salvation without the law's observance, through which the gentile without external Judaism and circumcision obtains the fruit of each, he now objects to his own doctrine: first, he presents the objection; second, he answers it, at much every way.

Much in every way. Chiefly, indeed, because they were entrusted with the oracles of God.

Hear the Lord saying to the centurion, a believer from among the Gentiles: "Amen I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith." See therefore how much more the Gentiles have when it comes to faith; concerning whom the Lord says in another place: "For they shall come from the east and the west, and from the four winds of the earth, and shall recline with Abraham, and…

"Much every way: chiefly, because that they were entrusted with the oracles of God." Do you see that, as I said above, it is not their well doings, but the benefits of God, that he everywhere counts up?

Then when he says much every way, he answers the objection: first, in regard to Judaism's prerogative; second, in regard to the value of circumcision, at what shall we say then? (Rom 4:1). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he shows Judaism's prerogative; second, he rejects their boasting over the gentiles, at what then? Do we excel them? (Rom 3:9).

For what if some disbelieved? Surely their unbelief will not nullify the faithfulness of God?

Never would it be! But let God be true and every man a liar, even as it has been written: “That you may be justified in your words, and will prevail when you are judged.”

After these things, what follows seems indeed to have been joined on with less orderly arrangement; for he says: "But let God be true, and every man a liar, as it is written: That you may be justified in your words, and may overcome when you are judged." Nevertheless, by a certain turn of thought we shall attempt to fit this to what precedes.

"Every man" means the majority. Paul's opponents had quoted this text as if David had meant: "For this reason have I sinned, that thou might appear just in judging me." But the true meaning is that God promised to punish sinners without showing favoritism and that some thought his delay in doing so amounted to a lie.

Then when he says, God forbid! But God is true, he shows that it is unfitting for God's faithfulness to be nullified on account of men's unbelief. First, he gives a reason for this; second, he cites a text, at as it is written; third, he excludes a false understanding of this text, at but if our injustice.

But if our unrighteousness shows God’s righteousness, what will we say? Surely God who is inflicting the wrath is not unrighteous? I speak according to man.

And God does not inflict punishment from wrath, but for the ends of justice; since it is not expedient that justice should be neglected on our account. Each one of us, who sins, with his own free-will chooses punishment, and the blame lies with him who chooses. God is without blame. "But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say?

"But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? is God unrighteous Who taketh vengeance? I speak as a man. God forbid." He solves one perplexity by another again. Yet as this is not clear, we must needs declare it more clearly. What is it then he means? God honored the Jews: they did despite to Him.

Then when he says, but if our wickedness, he excludes a false understanding of the text he cited. For someone might understand these words according to the sense that that would be taken in a causal, not a consecutive, sense. Then it would follow that man's sin would be directly ordained to commend God's justice. But the Apostle shows that this is false.

Never would it be! Otherwise how will God judge the world?

But as to what he says: "Otherwise how shall God judge the world," in this passage by "world" he means the men who are in this world, just as we read elsewhere, "that the whole world lies in the evil one"; which surely shows that the men who dwell in this world are set in wickedness.

The Apostle resolves it very wisely and to the reproach of the Jews. From the fact that God punishes you, it does not follow that you are the cause of God's victory; for it would be unjust for a victor to punish the one who was the cause of his victory. But God is not unjust: otherwise, how could God judge the world if He were unjust?

He rejects this unfittingness, when he says God forbid, that God is unjust. I speak according to man, i.e., I say these words not from my understanding but from that of a man in error, as is said: for while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh? (1 Cor 3:3).

But if the truth of God abounded to his glory in my lie, why am I myself still judged as a sinner?

After this let us now see how it was said: "For if the truth of God has abounded in my lie unto His glory." There are in this world many kinds of religions, many sects of philosophers, many teachings handed down with false assertions and composed with lying arguments, whose authors — though under a false title of wisdom — are nevertheless held to be men of no slight or contempt…

"For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto His glory: why yet am I also judged as a sinner?" For if God, he means is shown to be a Lover of man, and righteous, and good, by your acts of disobedience, you ought not only to be exempt from punishment but even to have good done unto you.

Then when he says for if the truth, he shows the same on the part of human judgment. He does three things: first, he presents the false understanding of the above words; second, he shows the unfittingness that follows, at why am I also yet judged; third, he shows that it is unfitting, at whose damnation.

And why not — even as we are denigrated, and even as some affirm that we say — “Let us do the evil things, that the good things may come”? Their condemnation is just.

These men, even as the Gentiles, have been sent forth by Satan to bring dishonour upon the Church, so that, in one way or another, men hearing the things which they speak, and imagining that we all are such as they, may turn away their ears from the preaching of the truth; or, again, seeing the things they practise, may speak evil of us all, who have in fact no fellowship with…

ON THE PERSON WHO HAS RECEIVED FAITH IN CHRIST. — It is written: “The righteousness of the righteous shall not benefit him on the day that he goes astray; and the wickedness of the wicked shall not harm him when he turns back” (Ezek. 18:26–27). And the Lord in the Gospel says: “He who does not believe is already judged” (Jn.

Then he adds two unfitting conclusions that follow: one is that man should not be regarded a sinner for lying, on the ground that it is directly ordained to God's glory.

There Is No One Righteous

What then? Are we better? Not at all; for we have already charged both Jews and Greeks all to be under sin,

Finally, in that passage where he said: “But I was alive without the law once,” he added: “But when the commandment came, sin revived.” In this he shows indeed that in childhood, before one has discernment of good and evil, a person is said to be without law; since even if he sins, because the law is not in him, sin is not imputed to him.

Paul finds no reason for saying that the Jews are better than others.… Both Jews and Gentiles are under sin—something we not only deduce by reason but also corroborate by the witness of the Jews themselves.

After showing the Jews' advantage over the gentiles so far as God's blessings are concerned, the Apostle now rejects their vainglory, by which they preferred themselves to gentiles converted to the faith. First, he states his point; second, he proves it, at for we have charged. First, therefore, he says: I have asked what advantage has the Jew.

even as it has been written: “There is none righteous, not even one;

For they are all gone aside, He exclaims, they are all become useless. There is none that understands, there is not so much as one. With their tongues they have practised deceit, their throat is an open sepulchre, the poison of asps is under their lips, destruction and misery are in their paths, and the way of peace they have not known.

The psalm from which this quote is taken speaks of the fool. Paul shows that witness to the fool will be fulfilled particularly at the coming of Christ. When he appears, not one righteous person will be found.

Then when he says as it is written, he establishes his point by the authority of the Psalmist: first, he quotes him; second, he explains, at now we know. In regard to the first he does two things: first, he mentions sins of omission; second, sins of commission, at their throat.

there is none who is understanding, there is none who is seeking after God.

All turned away, together they became worthless; there is none who is doing good, there is not so much as one.”

“All have turned aside, together they have become useless.” It seems to me that he is not said to have turned aside except one who at some time stood on the straight road. From this it appears that that first work of rational nature, which was made by God, was upright, and was set upon the straight road by the gift of the Creator himself.

Furthermore, as soon as anyone turns away from good, he immediately becomes useless. For vice is nothing other than a perversion of the natural impulses toward good; therefore, by driving a person toward what is contrary to nature, it renders him useless. For nature no longer makes use of him, just as it does not make use of those who are sick in the conduct of its affairs.

Then he removes the good works themselves. First, he cites offenses against the divine law when he says, all have turned out of the way, namely, from regulation by divine law: they have all turned to their own way (Isa 56:11). Second, failure to pursue the end; hence he adds, they have become unprofitable together. For we call unprofitable whatever does not attain its end.

“Their throat is an opened grave; with their tongues they were practicing deceit.” “The venom of vipers is under their lips.”

Anger has been prohibited, our spirits retained, the petulance of the hand checked, the poison of the tongue extracted.

Already enslaved to evil, they wanted to devour the good, if it were possible; so that, just as a grave lies open to receive corpses, so too their throat is open against the righteous. Having become accustomed to such evil deeds, whatever they spoke was in deceit. Paul says this because the words of such people are a snare.

Then when he says their throats, he mentions the sins of commission: first, sins of speech; second, sinful deeds, at their feet swift. The sins of the heart can be gathered from these. In regard to sins of speech he mentions four things. First, readiness and foulness, when he says: their throat is an open sepulchre. For an open grave has two features.

“Whose mouth is full of cursing and of bitterness.”

“Their feet are swift to shed blood;

ruin and misery are in their paths,

For both the law and the Gospel are the energy of one Lord, who is "the power and wisdom of God;" and the terror which the law begets is merciful and in order to salvation. "Let not alms, and faith, and truth fail thee, but hang them around thy neck." In the same way as Paul, prophecy upbraids the people with not understanding the law.

Since they had been quick to do evil, it declares that their path or step is troubled and unhappy.

Second, he touches on the number of injuries they inflict on others when he adds: in their ways, i.e., in their deeds, are destruction; because they crush others by oppressing them: it is in his mind to destroy (Isa 10:7); and misery, inasmuch as they deprive men of their goods and reduce them to wretchedness: they send men away naked, taking away their clothes (Job 24:7).

and the way of peace they have not known.”

“And the way of peace they have not known.” Christ is our peace. Therefore the way of peace is the way of Christ. But even if we take it that sinners, since they are always pressed by the wars of the vices, do not know the way of peace, we understand rightly.

"They do not know the way of peace," that is, of a godly life; for a godly life is a path of tranquility. "Take," says the Lord, "My yoke... and you will find rest" (Matt. 11:29): this is the way to the true peace of Christ!

Third, he shows their persistence in evil, from which men are returned in two ways. In one way by a desire to be at peace with others. Against this he says, the way of peace they have not known, i.e., have not accepted: among those who hate peace I was peaceful (Ps 120:6).

“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

For such people, being without understanding, do not have the fear of God; for "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom," says Solomon (Prov. 1:7).

In another way by the fear of God; but they neither fear God nor regard man (Luke 18:2). Hence he adds, there is no fear of God before their eyes, i.e., in their plans: the fear of the Lord casts out sin; for without fear a person cannot be justified (Sir 1:27).

Now we know that as much as the law says, it speaks to those under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may be under judgment to God.

Whose grace, if not of that God from whom also came the law? Unless it be, forsooth, that the Creator intercalated His law for the mere purpose of producing some employment for the grace of a rival god, an enemy to Himself (I had almost said, a god unknown to Him), "that as sin had" in His own dispensation "reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unt…

"Now we know that what things soever the Law saith, it saith to them who are under the Law." This then is why, next to Isaiah, who confessedly aimed at them, he brought in David; that he might show that these things also belonged to the same subject. For what need was there, he means, that a prophet who was sent for your correction should accuse other people.

Then when he says now we know that what things soever, he explains the text he quoted in three ways: first, by expounding its sense; second, its intention, at that every mouth; third, he gives the reason for his words, at because by the works of the law.

Therefore by works of law no flesh will be justified before him; for through law is knowledge of sin.

How, then, is the law still said to be not good by certain heresies that clamorously appeal to the apostle, who says, "For by the law is the knowledge of sin?" To whom we say, The law did not cause, but showed sin. For, enjoining what is to be done, it reprehended what ought not to be done.

Some think that statements like this are an attack on the law. But they must be read very carefully, so that neither is the law condemned by the apostle nor is free will taken away from man. Therefore, let us distinguish the following four states of human existence: before the law, under the law, under grace and at rest. Before the law we follow the lust of the flesh.

Then when he says because by the works of the law, he assigns the reason for these words: first, he assigns the reason; second, he explains it, at for by the law.

Righteousness through Faith in Christ

But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, being borne witness to by the Law and the Prophets —

But the servants would then have been proved false, and not sent by the Lord, if Christ on His advent, by being found exactly such as He was previously announced, had not fulfilled their words. Wherefore He said, "Think not that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets; I came not to destroy, but to fulfil.

It has been made clear that the justice of God has appeared without the Law, yet without the law of the sabbath and of circumcision and of the new moon and of vengeance; but not without the sacrament of the divinity of God, since the justice of God is from the sacrament of God.

After showing that Jews and gentiles are equal as far as the state of previous guilt is concerned, the Apostle now shows that they are also equal as far as the state of subsequent grace is concerned. In regard to this he does three things: first, he states his teaching; second, he explains something he had presupposed, at or is he the God of the Jews only? (Rom 3:29).

the righteousness of God through faith of Jesus Christ toward all those believing. For there is no distinction:

The law, then, and the prophets are witnesses of the righteousness of God; and this righteousness is manifested through faith in Jesus Christ unto all who believe, among whom there is no distinction, whether they believe from among the Jews or from among the Gentiles.

How could Paul have promised glory, honor and peace to the good works of Gentiles apart from the grace of the gospel? Because there otherwise is no acceptance of persons with God. And because it is not the hearers but the doers of the law who are justified, he argues that all, whether Jew or Gentile, shall alike have salvation in the gospel.

Then he assigns the cause of this justice, and says the justice of God is through the faith of Christ Jesus, i.e., which he delivered: looking to Jesus the perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2); or which is held concerning him: for if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved (Rom 10:9).

for all have sinned and they fall short of the glory of God,

It was for this reason, too, that the Lord descended into the regions beneath the earth, preaching His advent there also, and [declaring] the remission of sins received by those who believe in Him.

Because he had said that the righteousness of God is over all Jews and Greeks, to prove this he added: For all, he says, have sinned. This is to be taken in a general sense, so that both Jews and Greeks are understood; therefore he says: There is no distinction; for by "all" he includes everyone here, even the priests, to show that the law was of no benefit without faith.

First, therefore, he says: it has been stated that the justice of God is in all and above all who believe in Christ. For in this matter there is no distinction between Jew and gentile: in Christ Jesus there is not gentile and Jew (Col 3:11), namely who has some distinction, as though the Jew does not need to be made just by God as the gentile does.

being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

whom God set forth as a propitiation through the faith in his blood, for a showing forth of his righteousness because of the forbearance of the sins having taken place beforehand, in the forbearance of God;

"Whom God set forth as a propitiation through faith in his blood, for the showing forth of his righteousness, through the remission of former offenses, in the forbearance of God, for the showing forth of his righteousness at this present time: that he himself may be just, and the one who justifies him who is of the faith of Jesus Christ." When the holy Apostle had taught us man…

The mercy seat was gold-plated and placed on top of the ark. On each side was the figure of a cherub. When the high priest approached it, the holy kindness of God was revealed.The apostle teaches us that Christ is the true mercy seat, of which the one in the Old Testament was but a type. The name applies to Christ in his humanity, not in his divinity.

Second, he shows whence this redemption has efficacy, when he says whom God has proposed to be a propitiation. For Christ's satisfaction was efficacious for justifying and redeeming by the fact that God had assigned him to this in his plan, which he designates when he says whom God has proposed to be a propitiation: according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things ac…

for the showing forth of his righteousness in the present time, for him to be just and justifying the one of faith of Jesus.

'" Such and so great futilities of theirs wherewith they flatter God and pander to themselves, effeminating rather than invigorating discipline, with how cogent and contrary (arguments) are we for our part able to rebut,-(arguments) which set before us warningly the "severity" of God, and provoke our own constancy? Because, albeit God is by nature good, still He is "just" too.

"To declare His righteousness." What is declaring of righteousness? Like the declaring of His riches, not only for Him to be rich Himself, but also to make others rich, or of life, not only that He is Himself living, but also that He makes the dead to live; and of His power, not only that He is Himself powerful, but also that He makes the feeble powerful.

Second, he shows the time of its manifestation, when he adds: through the forbearance of God, for the showing of his justice in this time.

Where then is the boasting? It has been excluded. Through what principle? That of works? No, but through the principle of faith.

"Where then is your boasting? It has been shut out. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. For we reckon that a man is justified by faith without the works of the law." Again and yet more often we admonish those who desire to attend more carefully to Paul's writings to hold more tenaciously to that distinction which we spoke of above — how he pursues now the case o…

For who will glory, or for what, when everyone has become worthless and gone out of the right way, and nobody does good works anymore? Therefore he says that all glorying is excluded.… How? We have acquired the forgiveness of our former sins and have been justified freely by the mercy and grace of Christ.

After showing that Jews have no advantage over the gentiles either in regard to sin or to justice, he now presents the intended conclusion, by rejecting the boasts whereby they preferred themselves to the gentiles. He does three things.

For we reckon a man to be justified by faith apart from works of law.

Paul says that the Gentile is regarded as one who is certainly justified when he believes, doing no works of the law, that is, without circumcision, or new moons, or the observance of the Sabbath.

Paul did not say "we hold" because he was himself uncertain. He said it in order to counter those who concluded from this that anyone who wished to could be justified simply by willing faith. Note carefully that Paul does not say simply "without the law," as if we could just perform virtue by wanting to, nor do we do the works of the law by force.

Then when he says, for we account, he shows how the Jews' boasting is excluded by the law of faith, saying: for we apostles, being taught the truth by Christ, account a man, whomsoever he be, whether Jew or gentile, to be justified by faith: he cleansed their hearts by faith (Acts 15:9). And this without the works of the law.

Or is he the God of Jews only? Surely he is also of Gentiles? Yes, also of Gentiles,

if indeed God is one, who will justify the circumcision by faith and the uncircumcision through the same faith.

Do we then nullify law through the faith? Never would it be! Instead we uphold law.

But he had withal said above: "Are we, then, making void the law through faith? Far be it; but we are establishing the law " -forsooth in those (points) which, being even now interdicted by the New Testament, are prohibited by an even more emphatic precept: instead of, "Thou shalt not commit adultery," "Whoever shall have seen with a view to concupiscence, hath already committe…

Is the law which enjoins us to be circumcised unnecessary? Not at all! On the contrary, we enable it to stand firm when we show that what it said is true, viz., that (spiritual) law would follow after (physical) law, (spiritual) testament after (physical) testament, (spiritual) circumcision after (physical) circumcision.

Then when he says do we then destroy, he excludes an objection. For someone might claim that he is overthrowing the aforementioned law; therefore, he asks: do we then destroy the law through faith, inasmuch as we say that men are justified without the works of the law? He answers: God forbid! in keeping with Matthew, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law (Matt 5:18).

Romans3

God Remains Faithful

There Is No One Righteous

Righteousness through Faith in Christ