Roma 3:20

3:20 For no one is declared righteous before him ¹  by the works of the law, ²  for through the law comes ³  the knowledge of sin.

Roma 9:27

9:27 And Isaiah cries out on behalf of Israel, “Though the number of the children ⁴  of Israel are as the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved,

Roma 11:7

11:7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was diligently seeking, but the elect obtained it. The ⁵  rest were hardened,

Roma 15:21

15:21 but as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” ⁶ 

[3:20]  ¹ sn An allusion to Ps 143:2.

[3:20]  ² tn Grk “because by the works of the law no flesh is justified before him.” Some recent scholars have understood the phrase ἒργα νόμου (erga nomou, “works of the law”) to refer not to obedience to the Mosaic law generally, but specifically to portions of the law that pertain to things like circumcision and dietary laws which set the Jewish people apart from the other nations (e.g., J. D. G. Dunn, Romans [WBC], 1:155). Other interpreters, like C. E. B. Cranfield (“‘The Works of the Law’ in the Epistle to the Romans,” JSNT 43 [1991]: 89-101) reject this narrow interpretation for a number of reasons, among which the most important are: (1) The second half of v. 20, “for through the law comes the knowledge of sin,” is hard to explain if the phrase “works of the law” is understood in a restricted sense; (2) the plural phrase “works of the law” would have to be understood in a different sense from the singular phrase “the work of the law” in 2:15; (3) similar phrases involving the law in Romans (2:13, 14; 2:25, 26, 27; 7:25; 8:4; and 13:8) which are naturally related to the phrase “works of the law” cannot be taken to refer to circumcision (in fact, in 2:25 circumcision is explicitly contrasted with keeping the law). Those interpreters who reject the “narrow” interpretation of “works of the law” understand the phrase to refer to obedience to the Mosaic law in general.

[3:20]  ³ tn Grk “is.”

[9:27]  ⁴ tn Grk “sons.”

[11:7]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[15:21]  ⁶ sn A quotation from Isa 52:15.