Abraham Justified by Faith
1 lWhat then shall we say was gained by Abraham, mour forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to nboast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? o“Abraham believed God, and it was pcounted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now qto the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but rbelieves in1 him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
7 s“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not tcount his sin.”
The Promise Realized Through Faith
13 For the ypromise to Abraham and his offspring zthat he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14 aFor if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For the law brings wrath, but bwhere there is no law cthere is no transgression.
16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to dthe one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17 as it is written, e“I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God fin whom he believed, who ggives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
