Roma 4:1

The Illustration of Justification

4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh, ¹  has discovered regarding this matter? ² 

Roma 4:11-12

4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised, ³  so that he would become ⁴  the father of all those who believe but have never been circumcised, ⁵  that they too could have righteousness credited to them. 4:12 And he is also the father of the circumcised, ⁶  who are not only circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham possessed when he was still uncircumcised. ⁷ 

Roma 4:16-17

4:16 For this reason it is by faith so that it may be by grace, ⁸  with the result that the promise may be certain to all the descendants – not only to those who are under the law, but also to those who have the faith of Abraham, ⁹  who is the father of us all 4:17 (as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”). ¹⁰  He is our father ¹¹  in the presence of God whom he believed – the God who ¹²  makes the dead alive and summons the things that do not yet exist as though they already do. ¹³ 

Roma 9:7-8

9:7 nor are all the children Abraham’s true descendants; rather “through Isaac will your descendants be counted.” ¹⁴  9:8 This means ¹⁵  it is not the children of the flesh ¹⁶  who are the children of God; rather, the children of promise are counted as descendants.

[4:1]  ¹ tn Or “according to natural descent” (BDAG 916 s.v. σάρξ 4).

[4:1]  ² tn Grk “has found?”

[4:11]  ³ tn Grk “of the faith, the one [existing] in uncircumcision.”

[4:11]  ⁴ tn Grk “that he might be,” giving the purpose of v. 11a.

[4:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “through uncircumcision.”

[4:12]  ⁶ tn Grk “the father of circumcision.”

[4:12]  ⁷ tn Grk “the ‘in-uncircumcision faith’ of our father Abraham.”

[4:16]  ⁸ tn Grk “that it might be according to grace.”

[4:16]  ⁹ tn Grk “those who are of the faith of Abraham.”

[4:17]  ¹⁰ tn Verses 16-17 comprise one sentence in Greek, but this has been divided into two sentences due to English requirements.

[4:17]  sn A quotation from Gen 17:5. The quotation forms a parenthesis in Paul’s argument.

[4:17]  ¹¹ tn The words “He is our father” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to show that they resume Paul’s argument from 16b. (It is also possible to supply “Abraham had faith” here [so REB], taking the relative clause [“who is the father of us all”] as part of the parenthesis, and making the connection back to “the faith of Abraham,” but such an option is not as likely [C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:243].)

[4:17]  ¹² tn “The God” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity.

[4:17]  ¹³ tn Or “calls into existence the things that do not exist.” The translation of ὡς ὄντα (Jw" onta) allows for two different interpretations. If it has the force of result, then creatio ex nihilo is in view and the variant rendering is to be accepted (so C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:244). A problem with this view is the scarcity of ὡς plus participle to indicate result (though for the telic idea with ὡς plus participle, cf. Rom 15:15; 1 Thess 2:4). If it has a comparative force, then the translation given in the text is to be accepted: “this interpretation fits the immediate context better than a reference to God’s creative power, for it explains the assurance with which God can speak of the ‘many nations’ that will be descended from Abraham” (D. Moo, Romans [NICNT], 282; so also W. Sanday and A. C. Headlam, Romans [ICC], 113). Further, this view is in line with a Pauline idiom, viz., verb followed by ὡς plus participle (of the same verb or, in certain contexts, its antonym) to compare present reality with what is not a present reality (cf. 1 Cor 4:7; 5:3; 7:29, 30 (three times), 31; Col 2:20 [similarly, 2 Cor 6:9, 10]).

[9:7]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “be called.” The emphasis here is upon God’s divine sovereignty in choosing Isaac as the child through whom Abraham’s lineage would be counted as opposed to Ishmael.

[9:7]  sn A quotation from Gen 21:12.

[9:8]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “That is,” or “That is to say.”

[9:8]  ¹⁶ tn Because it forms the counterpoint to “the children of promise” the expression “children of the flesh” has been retained in the translation.

[9:8]  sn The expression the children of the flesh refers to the natural offspring.