The passage
      v1-3. Paul, having outlined the way of right-standing before God by faith, now seeks to illustrate this truth in the life of the patriarch Abraham. What did Abraham discover about standing right with God? If (as Jewish believers claimed) he maintained his standing before God through his own effort, through his own perfection with regard obedience to the law, then he would have ground for boasting. Yet, like all humans, he had no such ground, for he was sinful and without personal righteousness. For this reason, he could certainly not boast before God. Scripture proves this to be the case. The scripture says of Abraham that he believed God, and it was this act of faith which was credited (reckoned) to him as righteousness. By the way, "one should never forget that it is the object of faith, and not the faith itself, that produces the result", Gordon Clark.
      v4-5. Abraham's righteousness, which was accounted to him, was the product of faith, not obedience; it was a gift of God's covenant mercy, not a due to be paid. Right-standing by works is earned; it is not something given, rather it is earned by obedience to the law. On the other hand, right-standing by faith is received as a gift; it rests on the principle that God reckons righteousness to the sinner who believes in Christ. Under this method, justification (judged right with God) is certainly not something earned, rather it is something given.
      v13-15. Paul now explains the central plank of his gospel. The promised blessing of a worldwide family of God, a kingdom, made to Abraham, is not appropriated on the basis of a righteousness earned by obedience to the law, but rather on the basis of a righteousness (right-standing before God) given ("reckoned") as a gift through faith. God's way of salvation is by grace, by promise, not by law. The simple truth is that law and grace are mutually exclusive; they cannot function together. All the law does is expose our sinfulness and thus hold us to the wrath of God. Without the law we are unaware of our sinfulness and our condition of loss. The law serves to show us what we are - rebels against God and under his condemnation.
      v16-17a. From his argument in v13-15 Paul draws out an obvious conclusion: the promise of an eternal right-standing in the sight of God depends on faith, not on obedience to the law, it rests wholly on God's covenant mercy ("grace") appropriated through faith. As such, right-standing before God applies to all Abraham's descendents: Gentile believers without the law and Jewish believers with the law. Paul supports this point by quoting Genesis 17:5 - in the sight of God, Abraham is the father of us all.

Faith alone
      Charles Wesley sums up the teaching of this passage from Paul's letter to the Romans when he says: "Faith, mighty faith, the promise sees, And looks to that alone". The Reformers made a similar point when they proclaimed, "by grace alone, through faith alone." Simple!
      In our passage for study, Paul makes three points: First, Abraham stood right before God, righteous before God, on the basis of his faith and not works of the law, v1-5. Second, God's promise, to Abraham and his descendents, of a kingdom, of "eternal life" and all that this entails, rests on this right-standing before God, a righteousness which is given ("reckoned") as a gift through faith, rather than earned by obedience, v13-15. Third, this righteousness of faith rules out any idea that some denominational extra can improve our standing before God, v16-17a.
      If we follow the example of Abraham and put our trust in God, we will find that our faith is accounted to us as righteousness. God "reckons" us, on the basis of the righteousness of Christ, eternally right and worthy in his sight. As worthy sons, we inherit the kingdom promised long ago to Abraham - we all inherit eternity, as a gift of grace appropriated through faith.
      Faith alone is the instrument through which we appropriate the grace of God. No other instrument assists it. Holy living, or denominational faithfulness (baptism, confirmation, etc.), .... all worthy in themselves and expected of the Christian walk, play no part in appropriating God's grace. Our standing in the kingdom of God is through faith apart from good works. We see the promise of eternity and by resting on it we are given it.

3:31
      Paul's gospel of right-standing before God on the basis of faith, rather than works of the law, does not devalue ("nullify") the law, but rather it "fulfills (Heb. qiyyem) the law", as we shall see in the example of Abraham, ch. 4. "Abraham fulfilled the law .... or `upheld' the law ..... through receiving God's gift of righteousness by faith", Bruce. Paul may have in mind a gift of righteousness, as Bruce puts it, or Christ's obedience which the child of faith possess in Christ, or faith counted as obedience, or obedience which is the fruit of faith... At any rate, what the law pointed to, justification, faith "fulfilled / completed", or reversed, "faith is confirmed by the law", Cranfield. Paul's phrase "the law of faith" in 3:27 assists in our understanding of "fulfills the law." Clearly "law" here is "the law of Moses" (although this is disputed by many). Paul's question "by what kind of law?" is answered "by God's law", "that is, by God's law, not misunderstood as a the law which directs men to seek justification as a reward for their works, but properly understood as summoing men to faith", Cranfield. Thus Paul's gospel fulfills the law.
      katargoumen (katargew) "do we, [then] nullify" - do we annul, make of no affect, render inactive, render powerless. Probably not "do away with it", but rather "suggest that the law is worthless."
      nomon (oV) "law" - "Law", in the sense of "the law of Moses", although there is no article which may imply that Paul is referring to natural law as well as the law of Moses - all divine law however or wherever revealed. Note Turner's view that the first use of "law" in this verse means "the law of Moses" and the second, "principle", but this is unlikely.
      mh genoito "not at all!" - An emphatic "no".
      iJstanomen (iJsthmi) "we uphold [the law]" - [law] we confirm. "We establish the law", "we are giving the law its true value", JB, or probably better, we "fulfill the law", Bruce. see above.

4:1
      Paul now turns to the example of Abraham to support his contention that his gospel (right-standing in the sight of God by faith apart from works of the law) "fulfills" the law. For a Jew, Abraham is the perfect example of a person who was approved before God because of his faithful attention to God's commands. Paul sets out to show that Abraham's approval before God was based on his faith, not obedience - "faith" in the sense of trust in / reliance on God's promises, not "faith" as a good work, a response action to a divine command.
      oun "then" - [what] therefore. Paul is not about to draw a conclusion, but rather to support the argument made in 3:21-33, "a kind of scriptural proof", Kuss. "From the point of view of physical descent Abraham is our forefather. What are we to say his special discovery was?" Barclay.
      eroumen (eipon) fut. "shall we say" - will we say. The "we" is obviously "we Jews."
      euJrhkenai (euJriskw) perf. inf. "discovered" - to have discovered, found. Textual variants exist, both of position and omittion, JB, NEB, indicating that it may have originally been a marginal note. Best retained, as NIV. Properly an infinitive forming a dependent statement indirect speech of stating, "what will we say that Abraham discovered?" The NIV ties this infinitive with the adverbial phrase "in this matter", literally "according to the flesh". It seems better to read the infinitive before "Abraham" and arrange the sentence as Barclay above. So, "according to flesh" is a comment about Abraham as the ancestor of Jews, a comment that is probably disparaging. Abraham discovered that nothing is gained by "flesh", but by faith, and if that was true for Abraham it is true for Paul and his fellow Jewish believers.

v2
      ei "if" - Introducing a conditional sentence, 1st class, where the condition is assumed a reality, although here in the sense, "for argument sake." The force of the argument is clearer if we set aside the condition, eg. "does Abraham really have a matter of boasting before God? Not at all, for scripture says ...." Morris.
      edikaiwqh (dikaiow) "was justified" - declared/made right/righteous. Granted "covenant status", Dumbrell, "count/treat as right/righteous", Barrett; or in reformed terms, "confer a righteous status on", Cranfield, although better "acquit." It is clear that Paul does not intend an ethical sense such as "make virtuous."
      ergwn (on ou) "works" - "Works of the law."
      kauchma "something to boast about" - a boast [negative] / a reason for boasting / glorying [positive]. Usually in the sense of the content of the boast/glorying, or the object of the boast/glorying. "He hath whereof to glory", RV. Paul has already used this word of "the weak", referring to the boast of their standing before God on the basis of "works of the law." New perspective commentators argue that the boast is of their possession of the law.
      alla "but" - A strong adversative, "but certainly not before God."
      ou proV qeon "not before God" - Paul's point is illusive: i] Abraham has something to boast about before men (indeed, he was held in esteem), but not before God, Sandy & Headlam; ii] the phrase serves to refute the condition stated in the "if" clause (protasis) of the conditional sentence, Cranfield; iii] If Abraham had been justified by works he would have ground for glorying, but not toward God, but rather toward himself. Only if his justification stemmed from the grace of God would his glorying rightly be directed toward God, Chrysostom .... Myer. "Only faith justifies and enables one to glory in God", Davies.

v3
      Within Judaism, Gen.15:6 is tied to Gen.22 producing the idea that Abraham was justified on the basis of his faith and his faithfulness. Paul's exegesis of Gen.15:6 in v4-5 seeks to separate the two ideas, tying justification to faith, and not works. The traditional view that Judaism saw justification in terms of law-obedience, is counted by new perspective commentators who argue that faithful Jews saw covenant inclusion as a matter of grace, not works, although Sanders has shifted somewhat toward a synergy of both (according to Cranfield). Sanders' contention is that the law served to maintain covenant standing ("covenant nomism", "sanctification"; Dumbrell). For myself I am inclined to the view that Paul is confronting the heresy of nomism, that although getting in is by grace/faith, staying in is by law/obedience.
      gar "-" - for. The particle here possibly serves to introduce the counter argument to the notion that Abraham had something to boast about, and this with the support of scripture; "but that is not how God sees him (Cranfield, v2b) for what does the passage of scripture [relevant to the matter] say", Barrett. Yet, it is more likely that the proposition takes its usual sense expressing cause/reason. If Abraham was justified by works he would have no reason to glory in God, rather, he would glory in his own achievements, but in fact, he did glory in God and this because he was justified by faith.
      tw/ qew/ "God" - Dative of direct object, "believed in God."
      elogisqh (logizomai) "it was credited" - reckoned, taken into account, considered, credited as of a credit added to an account. Righteousness, right-standing before God, is credited to the account of a person who trusts God, as Abraham trusted God. "God reckons his faith to him ...... for righteousness", Godet; "one may infer from reckon that God treats faith as though it were righteousness", Kasemann. "Was reckoned to him as righteousness", Cassirer.

v4
      Paul's compressed argument in v4-5 has caused problems. Barrett suggests that Paul wants to undermine the notion that "faith [as a meritorious work] counted for righteousness." This view was certainly commonly held, but by this stage in the argument, Paul has clearly defined "faith" in the terms of "trust". Barrett argues that "credited / reckoned" aligns with the "faith / grace" correlatives, but not with "work / debt", but it surely goes with both: work produces a reward reckoned according to a debt / faith produces a reward reckoned according to grace. And this is Paul's point. Abraham's pay, which was accounted to him, namely righteousness, was the product of faith, not work, a gift of grace, not a due/debt to be paid. This, for Paul, is a substantial truth. Here is a faithful man rich in good works, yet he stands right before God, not on the ground of his deeds, but on the ground of his faith.
      de "now" - but, and. Here obviously transitional, not adversative.
      tw/ ergazomenw/ (ergazomai) pres. part. dat. "when a man works" - [the wages] to the one working. Participle as a substantive, dative of advantage. The application of effort and talent to a task receives something in kind, here wages. "A worker has his wage counted to him as a due", Moffatt.
      oJ misqoV (oV) "his wages" - the wages, pay / reward. Probably better "reward", ref. Gen.15:1.
      kata carin (iV ewV) "as a gift" - according to grace. The NIV surely misses the point. Paul has Abraham in mind whose right-standing before God rests on the covenant mercy of God rather than his own "works" for which right-standing would then be a "due." "To a man who works, his reward is not reckoned as a matter of grace but as something which is his due", Bruce.
      ofeilhma (a atoV) "obligation" - debt. There is an obligation to return kind for kind; payment for work undertaken. "Now the reward given to one who woks to earn it is not reckoned as a favour but as his due", Cassirer.

v5
      de "however" - but, and. Contrastive.
      tw/ mh ergazomenw/ (ergazomai) pres. part. dat. "to the man who does not work" - to the one not working. Participle as a substantive, dative of reference. Obviously "work" in the sense of "effort applied to the commands of God in order to earn merit (brownie points)"
      pisteuonti (pisteuw) pres. part. dat. "trusts" - the one trusting, believing. Participle again as a substantive. The same person is being referred to, as NIV.
      epi "-" - upon on. "Faith upon [God] the one who justifies."
      ton dikaiounta (dikaiow) pres. part. "God who justifies" - the one justifying. Participle again as a substantive, referring to God, as NIV. The meaning of the verb "justifies" is contentious, so for example: the one who grants "covenant acceptance", Dumbrell; "count/treat as right/righteous" Barrett; "confer a righteous status on", Cranfield. I find it hard to go past "the God who treats me JUST IF I'D never sinned", so "acquits" and therefore, as a consequence, we are forgiven. "Declares the guilty to be innocent", TEV.
      ton asebh (hV) "the wicked" - without God, impious. One who is undeserving of divine attention. A strong word which serves to compare the two ways. One works and receives their reward, another believes and receives the same reward, and this person is ungodly and not deserving of any reward. "God is the one who can make even those who are evil right in his sight", NCV.
      eiV "[his faith is credited] as [righteousness]" - [faith reckoned of him] to, for [righteousness].

v6-8
      Paul supports his thesis from Psalm 32:1-2, "the blessed man is not the sinless man, but the one whose sins God does not count, the man whose sins he forgives", Hunter.

v9-12
      Having established that the "righteousness of God" (his "covenant fidelity") is appropriated by faith and not works, Paul now identifies those who are the recipiants of God's blessings. He points out that Abraham's standing before God, Gen.15:6, was secured before he was circumcised, Gen.17:11. Abraham found God's acceptance when he was as uncircumcised as any Gentile, v9-10. Thus Abraham now stands as the spiritual father of all for whom "faith is credited as righteousness", to both Jewish and Gentile believers, v11-12. In this is God's divine purpose exposed, namely, that it has always been his intention to gather an inclusive people unto himself.

v13
      From v13-22 Paul explains the relationship between faith and obedience, with v17b-22 serving as illustration of this relationship in the life of Abraham. Verses 23-25 is Paul's application to his readers. Although obedience to God's commands is rightly the fruit of faith, when it comes to standing right before God, it is by faith in God's promises, not obedience to his commands. The primary purpose of the law is to condemn ("the curse of the law") and thus prompt a reliance on faith, not works, for right-standing before God. It is by this means that "faith fulfills the law." New perspective proponents tend to argue that this negative view of the law only applies since the establishment of the new covenant in Christ, given that the regulations of the old covenant are replaced in the new by the indwelling presence of the Spirit, a law written on the heart. The retention of old covenant regulations, which were for the faithful Jew a blessing when properly applied, only serve now to separate Jewish and Gentile believers. Yet, for the Old Testament saint, the law was never more than a guide to the life of faith; it never served to maintain or advance (sanctify) covenant standing.
      gar "-" - for. Abraham was the spiritual father of both Jew and Gentile, v11-12, for he rested on promise/grace rather than law.
      "it was [not] ...... received" - A verb must be added as Paul does not supply a main verb. So for example "the promise to Abraham and his descendents that they would inherit the world did not come through law", Cassirer.
      nomou (oV) gen. "law" - Given the context, "law" is most likely the command to Abraham to be circumcised. Note, there is no article which would be present if the Torah was intended. Of course, the principle here applies to all God's law, including the Torah. None-the-less, some commentators argue for "the Law of Moses." "Law" in the sense of "divine revelation / the books of the Law", a possible sense of "law" in 3:31, is unlikely. The best sense of the genitive following the preposition dia, "through/by means of", is instrumental and so it is "not through law", meaning "not through obedience to a divine command" or "not through the instrument of the law."
      tw/ spermati (a atoV) dat. "offspring" - the seed. Dative of advantage. Note that sometimes "the seed" refers to Christ, providing another way (other than "faith") by which a believer is related to Abraham, ie. being in Christ makes us one of Abraham's seed. This sense is probably not intended here.
      hJ epaggelia (a) "the promise" - An important word for Paul (26 of 52 NT uses) such that it can serve as a descriptive for "grace". God's gracious kindness is evidenced in his covenantal promises which are appropriated by believing (faith/trust) that God will do what he promises to do.
      einai (eimi) inf. "that [he] would be [heir of the world]" - The infinitive of the verb to-be is probably appositional, defining the "promise"; "namely, that he/they would inherit the world.", although BDF 399, suggests epexegetical, explaining "promise". The difference is minor.
      klhronomon (oV) "heir [of the world]" - Paul argues that Abraham and his seed are heirs to the covenant promise through faith rather than obedience. Yet, Gen.18:18; 22:17-18, doesn't quite say this, although the reign of God's people over the earth, with Zion (Jerusalem) as the center of the world, was the way a faithful Jew understood the covenant promise. Paul happily uses this nationalistic description of the promise because now all believers, either Jew or Gentile, share in it. Of course, inheriting the land from sea to sea, filled with seed as the stars, images Eden, the promised land, the kingdom, heaven.
      alla "but" - Strong adversative.

v14
      Paul's argument proceeds on the basis that law and promise are mutually exclusive.
      ei + ind. "if" - Conditional sentence, 2nd class, where the condition stated in the "if" clause is untrue.
      oiJ ek nomou "those who live by the law" - those of the law. Possibly as NIV, although "live" is a guess. Possibly "adherents", Moffatt; "those who place reliance upon the law", Cassirer; "they who pin their faith to keeping the law", Phillips. Possibly reflecting the technical term in Judaism, "sons of the Torah", Jewett, a term which may carry ethnic force for Paul, so Dunn. Possibly something like "those who hold by the law", REB, even "law party", Williams, in the sense of those who are nomists (better than "legalists", Morris).
      kekenwtai (kenow) "has no value" - emptied. There is no point to it
      kathrghtai (katargew) perf. pas. "worthless" - make of no effect, abolish, bring to naught. The promise is made worthless for Abraham because he rested on faith rather than law. Logically, this is an unacceptable proposition.

v15
      Rather than accessing the promise and its blessings, all the law accesses is condemnation. Certainly law has its positive side, a guide to faithful living, but primarily it ministers God's curse on sin. Such has always been the case (new perspective commentators would disagree; "Paul ministers in a new era where the law works only wrath", Dumbrell). Without this function, says Paul, there would be no transgression and therefore no need for salvation. "The prime function of the law is to condemn, not to serve as a medium of the promise. That role is filled by faith", Dunn - the law is fulfilled/completed by faith.
      gar "because" - for. As with v14, this conjunction serves to link and advance the logic of Paul's argument, so NIV; "for the law produces wrath", Dunn.
      orghn (h) "wrath" - The law serves to inculcate its appended curse - judgment.
      katergazetai (katergazomai) pres. "brings" - works. The law functions to this end, ie. exposes transgressions and pronounces the curse
      parabasiV "transgression" - a crossing of a no-go line, a falling short. Used of breaking the law of God.

v16a-b
      In v16-17a Paul makes the point that the promise depends on faith because "God meant it for all Abraham's descendents - Gentiles with a faith like Abraham's as well as (believing) Jewish possessors of the law", Hunter.
      dia + acc. "therefore" - because of, on account of. Drawing a conclusion.
      "[the promise] comes" - The verb is added by the NIV: there is no verb in the Gk. and "promise" is duplicated ie., the sentence is elliptical. This is probably not the case, see below.
      touto "-" - [because of] this. What is the "this" referring to? Possibly referring back, so "because of the nature of the law and its inability to work anything but wrath", Denny. Cranfield argues, against most commentators, that the dia touto construction refers forward ("for this reason .... namely, that it may be according to grace"), noting that for every two references backward in the NT there is one forward, usually followed by a hina clause (final, or causal) as here. "For this reason it is on the basis of faith, namely, in order that it may be according to grace", Cranfield.
      iJna "so that" - that. Introducing a purpose clause, the subjunctive verb to-be is assumed, "in order that it may be according to grace."
      eiV to + inf. "and may be" - for [to be]. This construction usually forms a consecutive clause expressing the result of an action; "so that, with the result that." "So that the promise my be certain of fulfilment for all the seed", Cranfield.
      bebaian (oV) "guaranteed" - secure, firm, durable, solid, certain, sure.... The covenantal promise rests on sold ground when it is given by God's grace through the instrument of faith.
      tw/ ek tou nomou (oV) "those who are of the law" - to those of the law. Most hold now that Paul means "believing Jews", Jewish Christians", Cranfield, so Morris, etc.; "the promise is for the Jew who is part of the seed through faith", Moo. New perspective commentators argue for "faithful Jews", Jews of the Old Covenant who applied themselves faithfully to covenant stipulations. Given the parallel phrase in v14, with a possible reference there being to the Jewish race, "Jews" here is not an unreasonable conclusion, so eg., Dunn, Jewett. If the promise is confined to the descendents of Abraham now bound under the Sinai covenant, not only is it limited by race, but in reality it cannot be realized because of the curse of the law. But, in reality, the promise is realized by the faith of Abraham and is thus for all who have faith. "The divine promise still holds good for the Jewish people descended physically from Abraham, but now all those who imitate Abraham's faith, whether Jew or Gentile, may find a share in it", Fitzmyer.