New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Romans 4
1
What should we say about those things? What did our father Abraham discover about being right with God?
Reference
Parallel theme
Romans 7:7
References Abraham
Isaiah 51:2
Romans 4:16
Acts 13:26
John 8:56
2 Corinthians 11:22
Matthew 3:9
2
Did he become right with God because of something he did? If so, he could brag about it. But he couldn't brag to God.
Reference
Glory
1 Corinthians 1:31
2 Corinthians 11:30
1 Corinthians 9:16
Romans 15:17
1 Corinthians 1:29
2 Corinthians 5:12
1 Corinthians 4:7
Parallel theme
Ephesians 2:9
Galatians 3:22
Righteousness
Philippians 3:9
3
What do we find in Scripture? It says, "Abraham believed God. God accepted Abraham's faith, and so his faith made him right with God."--(Genesis 15:6)
Reference
Faith
Genesis 15:6
James 2:23
Romans 4:9
Romans 4:5
Romans 4:11
Romans 10:11
Righteousness
Psalm 106:31
Word
Romans 11:2
5
But things are different with God. He makes evil people right with himself. If people trust in him, their faith is accepted even though they do not work. Their faith makes them right with God.
Reference
Faith
Philippians 3:9
Romans 3:22
John 6:29
John 5:24
Romans 4:3
Habakkuk 2:4
Righteousness
Romans 10:3
6
King David says the same thing. He tells us how blessed some people are. God makes those people right with himself. But they don't have to do anything in return. David says,
Reference
Blessing
Galatians 3:14
Psalm 112:1
Ephesians 1:3
Parallel theme
2 Timothy 1:9
Righteousness
1 Corinthians 1:30
2 Corinthians 5:21
Philippians 3:9
Isaiah 54:17
Romans 4:11
Romans 1:17
7
"Blessed are those whose lawless acts are forgiven. Blessed are those whose sins are taken away.
Reference
9
Is that blessing only for those who are circumcised? Or is it also for those who are not circumcised? We have been saying that God accepted Abraham's faith, and so his faith made him right with God.
Reference
10
When did it happen? Was it after Abraham was circumcised, or before? It was before he was circumcised, not after!
Reference
11
He was circumcised as a sign of the covenant God had made with him. It showed that his faith had made him right with God before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the father of all believers who have not been circumcised. God accepts their faith. So their faith makes them right with him.
Reference
12
Abraham is also the father of the circumcised who believe. So just being circumcised is not enough. Those who are circumcised must also follow the steps of our father Abraham. He had faith before he was circumcised.
Reference
13
Abraham and his family received a promise. God promised that Abraham would receive the world. It would not come to him because he obeyed the law. It would come because of his faith, which made him right with God.
Reference
Covenant
Galatians 3:29
Romans 9:8
Parallel theme
Psalm 2:8
Genesis 28:14
Genesis 12:3
Genesis 17:16
14
Do those who obey the law receive the promise? If they do, faith would have no value. God's promise would be worthless.
Reference
15
The law brings God's anger. Where there is no law, the law can't be broken.
Reference
Judgment
John 3:36
Ephesians 5:6
Ezekiel 7:19
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 4:8
Sin
John 15:22
Word
Romans 5:13
Galatians 3:10
1 Corinthians 15:56
Galatians 3:19
1 John 3:4
16
The promise is based on God's grace. The promise comes by faith. All of Abraham's children will certainly receive the promise. And it is not only for those who are ruled by the law. Those who have the same faith that Abraham had are also included. He is the father of us all.
Reference
17
It is written, "I have made you a father of many nations."--(Genesis 17:5) God considers Abraham to be our father. The God that Abraham believed in gives life to the dead. Abraham's God also speaks of things that do not exist as if they do exist.
Reference
Parallel theme
John 5:21
John 6:63
Romans 8:11
Hebrews 11:12
Isaiah 55:12
Isaiah 48:13
References God
1 Corinthians 1:28
1 Peter 2:10
John 5:25
Romans 3:29
18
When there was no reason for hope, Abraham believed because he had hope. He became the father of many nations, exactly as God had promised. God said, "That is how many children you will have."--(Genesis 15:5)
Reference
19
Without becoming weak in his faith, Abraham accepted the fact that he was past the time when he could have children. At that time he was about 100 years old. He also realized that Sarah was too old to have children.
Reference
20
But he kept believing in God's promise. He became strong in his faith. He gave glory to God.
Reference
Faith
Luke 1:45
1 Corinthians 16:13
Isaiah 7:9
Parallel theme
2 Corinthians 12:10
Daniel 10:19
2 Timothy 2:1
Zechariah 8:13
Zechariah 8:9
References God
Isaiah 35:4
2 Kings 7:19
22
That's why "God accepted Abraham because he believed. So his faith made him right with God."
Reference
24
They were written also for us. We believe in the God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. So God will accept our faith and make us right with himself.
Reference
25
Jesus was handed over to die for our sins. He was raised to life in order to make us right with God.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 John 2:2
Galatians 1:4
Ephesians 5:2
Revelation 1:5
Matthew 20:28
Romans 8:3
Resurrection
1 Corinthians 15:17
Righteousness
2 Corinthians 5:21
1 Peter 3:18
1 Peter 2:24
Summary of Romans 4
Romans 4 uses Abraham and David to show that people have always been made right with God through faith and God's grace rather than by earning righteousness through good works, and Paul emphasizes that Abraham believed God's promise before he was circumcised and centuries before the Law of Moses was given, making him an example for both Jewish and Gentile believers.
Paul explains that if Abraham had earned righteousness through his works, he could have boasted about his achievements, but Scripture instead says that Abraham believed God, and his faith was counted as righteousness, showing that God's acceptance is a gift rather than wages that someone earns.
Paul then uses David's words about the blessing of having sins forgiven and not having sin counted against a person, reinforcing the idea that God's forgiveness comes from His mercy rather than from human effort.
A major part of Paul's argument is that Abraham was declared righteous before circumcision, meaning that circumcision became a sign of the righteousness he already had through faith rather than the reason God accepted him.
This makes Abraham an example for Gentiles who believe as well as for Jews who share Abraham's faith, because the true family of Abraham is defined not simply by physical ancestry but by trusting God as Abraham did.
Paul then explains that God's promise to Abraham did not depend on keeping the Law, because the Law came much later, and if God's promise depended on perfect obedience, faith would lose its meaning and the promise would no longer rest on grace.
Abraham's greatest example of faith came when God promised him a son even though he and Sarah were already very old, because Abraham recognized the impossible circumstances but remained convinced that God had the power to fulfill what He had promised.
Paul ends by connecting Abraham's faith directly to Christians, explaining that believers trust the same God who raised Jesus from the dead, and that Jesus' death and resurrection are at the center of God's plan to deal with sin and make people right with Him.
Historical Context
Romans 4 is deeply connected to Jewish Scripture and the story of Abraham, whose life was understood to have taken place many centuries before Moses and the giving of the Law.
This historical order is important to Paul's argument because Abraham could not have become righteous by following the Mosaic Law when the Law had not yet been given.
Circumcision was also given to Abraham after God had already counted his faith as righteousness, allowing Paul to argue that the outward covenant sign was never the foundation of Abraham's relationship with God.
By using Abraham, Paul addresses an important question in the first-century church: Can Gentiles truly belong to God's people without becoming Jews and taking on every Jewish identity marker?
Paul's answer is that those who share Abraham's faith are his spiritual descendants, meaning that God's promise reaches beyond one ethnic group.
Paul explains that if Abraham had earned righteousness through his works, he could have boasted about his achievements, but Scripture instead says that Abraham believed God, and his faith was counted as righteousness, showing that God's acceptance is a gift rather than wages that someone earns.
Paul then uses David's words about the blessing of having sins forgiven and not having sin counted against a person, reinforcing the idea that God's forgiveness comes from His mercy rather than from human effort.
A major part of Paul's argument is that Abraham was declared righteous before circumcision, meaning that circumcision became a sign of the righteousness he already had through faith rather than the reason God accepted him.
This makes Abraham an example for Gentiles who believe as well as for Jews who share Abraham's faith, because the true family of Abraham is defined not simply by physical ancestry but by trusting God as Abraham did.
Paul then explains that God's promise to Abraham did not depend on keeping the Law, because the Law came much later, and if God's promise depended on perfect obedience, faith would lose its meaning and the promise would no longer rest on grace.
Abraham's greatest example of faith came when God promised him a son even though he and Sarah were already very old, because Abraham recognized the impossible circumstances but remained convinced that God had the power to fulfill what He had promised.
Paul ends by connecting Abraham's faith directly to Christians, explaining that believers trust the same God who raised Jesus from the dead, and that Jesus' death and resurrection are at the center of God's plan to deal with sin and make people right with Him.
Historical Context
Romans 4 is deeply connected to Jewish Scripture and the story of Abraham, whose life was understood to have taken place many centuries before Moses and the giving of the Law.
This historical order is important to Paul's argument because Abraham could not have become righteous by following the Mosaic Law when the Law had not yet been given.
Circumcision was also given to Abraham after God had already counted his faith as righteousness, allowing Paul to argue that the outward covenant sign was never the foundation of Abraham's relationship with God.
By using Abraham, Paul addresses an important question in the first-century church: Can Gentiles truly belong to God's people without becoming Jews and taking on every Jewish identity marker?
Paul's answer is that those who share Abraham's faith are his spiritual descendants, meaning that God's promise reaches beyond one ethnic group.