Study mode · 2 sessions

Romans 4:1–25: Abraham Believed God (two sessions)

Session 1 · Rom 4:1–12

Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness

Aim

See from Abraham and David that God credits righteousness apart from works, to the one who “believes in Him who justifies the ungodly” (4:5), and that Abraham was credited before he was circumcised, so that he is the father of all who believe, circumcised and uncircumcised.

Outline

Abraham believed God; wages and giftRom 4:1–5
David: blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against himRom 4:6–8
Credited before circumcision; the sign and seal; the father of all who believeRom 4:9–12

observation · 4

Read 4:1–3 and Gen 15:6. What question does Paul ask about Abraham? What would Abraham have if he had been justified by works? What does Scripture say instead?

Rom 4:1–3 Gen 15:6

In 4:4–5, how does Paul contrast a worker's wages with a gift? Whom does God justify, according to 4:5? What is credited to the one who believes?

Rom 4:4–5

Read 4:6–8 and Ps 32:1–2. What does David call blessed? Which verb from Gen 15:6 appears again in the psalm?

Rom 4:6–8 Ps 32:1–2

Read 4:9–12 with Gen 16:16 and 17:1, 11, 24. When was righteousness credited to Abraham: before or after his circumcision? What did he receive circumcision as? Whose father does that make him?

Rom 4:9–12 Gen 15:6 Gen 16:16 Gen 17:1 Gen 17:11 Gen 17:24

interpretation · 5

How should 4:1 be read: “Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh,” or “what Abraham found by the flesh” (literal), or “Have we found Abraham to be our forefather according to the flesh?” (literal) Why might Jewish readers have praised Abraham for his works (compare 1 Macc 2:52, non-canonical)?

Rom 4:1–2 Rom 1:3 Rom 9:3–5

What does it mean that God “credits” righteousness (4:3–6)? Is faith itself the righteousness, or the way it is received? Read 3:24–26, 5:18–19, 2 Cor 5:21 and Phil 3:9 with 4:4–5.

Rom 4:3–6 Rom 3:24–26 Rom 5:18–19 2 Cor 5:21 Phil 3:9

In 4:4–5, is Paul excluding only the works that marked Israel off (circumcision, food laws, Sabbath), or working of any kind? What does the wage picture suggest?

Rom 4:4–5 Rom 3:27–28

How do crediting righteousness (4:6) and not counting sin (4:7–8) relate? Why is David, a forgiven sinner, a fitting second witness alongside Abraham?

Rom 4:6–8 Ps 32:1–5

What does it mean that circumcision was a “seal” of a righteousness Abraham already had (4:11)? Christians have used this verse in debates about baptism. What do the two sides say?

Rom 4:9–12 Col 2:11–12

application · 3

God “justifies the ungodly” (4:5). Where are you tempted to think God accepts you because of your record? What would it mean this week to rest on God's crediting instead of your own performance?

Rom 4:4–5

David calls “blessed” the one whose sin the Lord will never count against him (4:8). How does knowing your sin will not be counted against you change the way you face guilt and confession?

Rom 4:7–8

Abraham is “the father of all who believe,” circumcised and uncircumcised (4:11–12). How should that shape the way you welcome believers whose background differs from yours?

Rom 4:11–12

Quotations from LXX (Swete) are used under CC BY-SA 4.0 · Credits

Rom 4:1–12 · BSB

1What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has discovered? 2If Abraham was indeed justified by works, he had something to boast about, but not before God. 3For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” 4Now the wages of the worker are not credited as a gift, but as an obligation. 5However, to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness. 6And David speaks likewise of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: 7“Blessed are they whose lawless acts are forgiven, whose sins are covered. 8Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him.” 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. 10In what context was it credited? Was it after his circumcision, or before? It was not after, but before. 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. 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.

Certainty Says Implies Uncertain