Romans 3:22

This is true, he says, that is, the justification by which God justified us, descends upon all through faith. When we bring faith, we are all justified, both Jews and Gentiles. "For there is no distinction." The Jew is not preferred over the Gentile because …

Then he assigns the cause of this justice, and says the justice of God is through the faith of Christ Jesus, i.e., which he delivered: looking to Jesus the perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2); or which is held concerning him: for if you confess …

Justification may be obtained without the keeping of Moses's law: and this is called the righteousness of God, righteousness of his ordaining, and providing, and accepting,--righteousness which he confers upon us; as the Christian armour is called the armour of God, Eph. vi. Now concerning this righteousness of God observe, (1.) That it is manifested.

Even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ,....

THE Apostle here says that "there is no difference," yet he does not mean that all men are alike in all respects. There are very many and important variations among men. It would be quite untrue and unjust to say that there are no differences of character even among unregenerate men, for there certainly are many varieties and gradations of sinners. There are some who have, as it were, sold themselves to work iniquity, and there are others who have, apparently, kept the Commandments of God from their youth up.

Ga 2:16). is manifested, being witnessed--attested. by the law and the prophets--the Old Testament Scriptures. Thus this justifying righteousness, though new, as only now fully disclosed, is an old righteousness, predicted and foreshadowed in the Old Testament.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

THE Apostle here says that "there is no difference," yet he does not mean that all men are alike in all respects. There are very many and important variations among men. It would be quite untrue and unjust to say that there are no differences of character even among unregenerate men, for there certainly are many varieties and gradations of sinners. There are some who have, as it were, sold themselves to work iniquity, and there are others who have, apparently, kept the Commandments of God from their youth up. There are some who delight in all manner of evil and there are others who, though they are not converted, hate the very mention of all the grosser vices and steer clear of such impurity. There are some people, not yet on the Lord's side, who are like that rich young man of whom it is said that when Christ looked upon him, He loved him, for He saw much in him that was admirable. But, on the other hand, there are some who are manifestly sons of perdition, like Judas, of whom our Lord said that he was a devil. All men are not demons, or demoniacal. All are not equally hardened in heart. All do not go to the same excess of evil. So when Paul said, "There is no difference," he did not mean that there are no differences of outward character. Let us not be carried away with the idea that it does not matter what our outward character is—it matters a great deal! It shall be found, at the last, that the greatly guilty shall be greatly punished. "That servant who knew his lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to His will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes." God is not unjust! Even in taking vengeance upon His adversaries, He strictly observes justice at all times.

Even the righteousness of God - The apostle, having stated that the design of the gospel was to reveal a new plan of becoming just in the sight of God, proceeds here more fully to explain it. The explanation which he offers, makes it plain that the phrase so often used by him, “righteousness of God,” does not refer to an attribute of God, but to his plan of making people righteous. Here he says that it is by faith in Jesus Christ; but surely an attribute of God is not produced by faith in Jesus Christ. It means God’s mode of regarding people as righteous through their belief in Jesus Christ. (That the “righteousness of God” cannot be explained of the attribute of justice, is obvious enough. It cannot be said of divine justice, that it is “unto and upon all them that believe.” But we are not reduced to the alternative of explaining the phrase, either of God’s justice, or God’s plan of justifying people. Why may we not understand it of that righteousness which Yahweh devised, Jesus executed, and the Spirit applies; and which is therefore justly denominated the righteousness of God? It consists in that conformity to law which Jesus manifested in his atoning death, and meritorious obedience. His death, by reason of his divine nature, was of infinite value. And when he voluntarily submitted to yield a life that was forfeited by no transgression of his own, the Law, in its penal part, was more magnified than if every descendant of Adam had sunk under the weight of its vengeance. Nor was the preceptive part of the Law less honored, in the spotless obedience of Christ. He abstained from every sin, fulfilled every duty, and exemplified every virtue. Neither God nor man could accuse him of failure in duty. To God he gave his piety, to man his glowing love, to friends his heart, to foes his pity and his pardon. […]