Commentary - Romans 3:27-31

Bird's-eye view

In this tightly-argued conclusion to his magnificent exposition of justification, the apostle Paul draws out the necessary implications of the gospel he has just declared. Having established that all humanity, Jew and Gentile alike, is condemned by the law and that righteousness comes only as a free gift through faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ, Paul now slams the door on any possibility of human pride. This passage is the great consequence of the gospel. If salvation is a gift received, and not a wage earned, then all boasting is necessarily and permanently excluded. Paul frames this reality not as a suggestion, but as a "law of faith." This new principle of faith levels the playing field entirely, demonstrating that God is the God of all nations, not just a tribal deity for the Jews. He concludes by anticipating and refuting a critical objection: does this doctrine of grace nullify God's moral law? Paul's answer is a thunderous negative. Far from abolishing the law, the gospel of justification by faith is the only thing that can truly establish it.

This section functions as a theological hinge. It looks back at the great declaration of Romans 3:21-26 and summarizes its practical effect on human pride and ethnic division. It also looks forward, setting the stage for Paul's extended illustration from the life of Abraham in chapter 4 and his subsequent teaching on the life of sanctification in chapters 6 through 8. The core message is that the gospel of grace rearranges everything. It redefines our standing before God, our relationship to one another, and our relationship to God's holy standard.

Outline

Context In Romans

Paul has just reached the absolute summit of his argument in Romans 1-3. He spent the first major section of the letter (Rom 1:18-3:20) proving the universal sinfulness of all mankind. The pagan Gentile is without excuse because of creation. The moralizing man is without excuse because he condemns others for what he himself does. The Jew is without excuse because possessing the law only highlights his transgression of it. The verdict is in: "every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God" (Rom 3:19). Then, in Romans 3:21-26, Paul unveils the glorious solution: "But now..." A righteousness from God has been revealed, apart from the law, which comes through faith in Jesus Christ. This righteousness is a free gift, made possible by Christ's redemptive work as a propitiation for our sins. God is both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Our passage, verses 27-31, is the immediate and logical fallout of that declaration. It answers the questions that this radical gospel of grace naturally provokes.

Key Issues

The Gospel Demolishes Pride

The first and most immediate casualty of the gospel of grace is human pride. The moment a man understands that his salvation is entirely a gift, from first to last, he has nothing left to boast about. Boasting is the native language of the sinful heart. We want to have some contribution, some little bit of leverage, some reason to feel superior to the next man. The Jews of Paul's day boasted in their possession of the law, their circumcision, and their ethnic heritage. The modern man boasts in his morality, his open-mindedness, his accomplishments, or even his religious disciplines. But the gospel comes in like a flood and sweeps all of that away. It tells us that the ground at the foot of the cross is perfectly level. The only thing we contribute to our salvation is the sin that makes it necessary. Paul is not just saying that boasting is unseemly or impolite; he says it is excluded. It is locked out, with no possibility of reentry. The door is shut and bolted. Why? Because salvation operates on an entirely different principle, a "law of faith."

Verse by Verse Commentary

27 Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith.

Paul begins with a rhetorical question that is the necessary conclusion to what he has just said. If righteousness is a free gift (v. 24) received through faith (v. 25), then what happens to our boasting? Where is it? It is gone. It has been shut out, banished. Paul then anticipates the next question: on what basis has it been excluded? By what principle or rule (nomos, or law) does this happen? He contrasts two fundamental, mutually exclusive principles. The first is a "law of works," which is the principle that a man's standing with God is based on his performance. If you could be justified by what you do, then you would have every reason to boast. But Paul says this is not the operating principle. Rather, boasting is excluded by a "law of faith." This is the principle that a man's standing with God is based entirely on what he receives by trusting in the work of another, namely Jesus Christ. Faith, by its very nature, looks away from self and to another. It is an empty hand receiving a gift. An empty hand has nothing to boast about.

28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.

This is one of the clearest, most concise summaries of the gospel in all of Scripture. It is the central thesis of the Reformation, and it is the bedrock of true Christianity. Paul says "we maintain" or "we conclude" this. This is the settled verdict. A man, any man, Jew or Gentile, is declared righteous in the sight of God (justified) on the basis of faith. And then, to make sure no one misunderstands, he adds the crucial qualifier: "apart from works of the Law." This means that our obedience to God's commands, our moral efforts, our religious observances, play no part whatsoever in the foundation of our justification. They are not the instrument, they are not the cause, they are not a contributing factor. Justification is by faith, from first to last, without the deeds of the law mixed in. This is not faith plus works; it is faith that works, but the works are the fruit of justification, not the root.

29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also,

Paul now applies this principle to the great division of his day: the wall between Jew and Gentile. If justification were by works of the law, that is, the Mosaic law, then God would effectively be the God of the Jews only, because they were the ones who had received that law. Salvation would be a members-only affair. But if justification is by faith, a capacity that all human beings share, then the door is thrown open to everyone. Paul's argument is rooted in basic monotheism. There is only one God. He is the creator of all, and therefore He must be the God of all. To restrict His salvation to one ethnic group would be to treat Him like a pagan tribal deity. The universal problem of sin (all have sinned) requires a universal solution, available to all on the same terms. And that term is faith.

30 since indeed God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that faith, is one.

He reinforces the point by emphasizing the unity of God and the unity of His plan. There is one God. Therefore, there is one way of salvation. God will justify the "circumcised" (the Jews) and the "uncircumcised" (the Gentiles) by the exact same means. He uses two different prepositions here, "by faith" and "through faith," but the meaning is the same. There are not two different paths to righteousness. The Jew is not saved by his circumcision or law-keeping, but by faith. The Gentile is not saved by his ignorance of the law, but through that very same faith. All are saved by grace through faith in Christ, or they are not saved at all. The oneness of God demands the oneness of the gospel.

31 Do we then abolish the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.

This is the final, crucial objection that Paul must answer. He can hear his Jewish opponents screaming in the background: "If you say that works of the law don't justify, then you are throwing out the law of God! You are an antinomian, promoting lawlessness!" Paul's response is the strongest possible negative in the Greek language: me genoito, which means "May it never be!" or "Absolutely not!" Far from nullifying or abolishing the law, the doctrine of justification by faith is the only thing that truly upholds and establishes it. How so? In several ways. First, the gospel establishes the law's righteous demand for perfect obedience by showing that only a perfect substitute, Christ, could fulfill it. Second, it establishes the law's penalty for disobedience, for Christ bore that very penalty on the cross. Third, it establishes the law's purpose, which was to point us to Christ. And fourth, it establishes the law in the life of the believer, for the one who is justified by faith is also indwelt by the Holy Spirit, who writes the law on his heart and empowers him to begin to obey it out of love and gratitude. The law is a terrible master, but it is an excellent guide. Justification by faith removes us from under the law as a system of earning salvation and places us under the law as a pattern for grateful living.

Application

This passage strikes at the root of all self-righteousness. The temptation to boast is not an ancient Jewish problem; it is a human problem. We are constantly tempted to build our identity and our sense of worth on something we have done, or something we are. The gospel forces us to find our identity entirely in what Christ has done for us. This is profoundly humbling, and profoundly liberating. It means the Christian has nothing to boast about in himself, but everything to boast about in Christ.

This truth should demolish all pride in our hearts. It should kill our tendency to compare ourselves with others, to look down on those who are struggling, or to feel superior because of our theological knowledge, our moral discipline, or our church affiliation. If we are saved by grace alone, then all our grounds for boasting are removed. We are all beggars at the door of God's mercy, and beggars have no place to look down on other beggars.

Furthermore, this truth should give us a robust confidence in the law of God. We are not to be afraid of God's commands, as though they were a threat to our freedom in Christ. Because we are justified, we are free to delight in the law of God and to pursue holiness, not in order to be saved, but because we are saved. The gospel does not produce lawless people. It produces a people who, having been shown immeasurable mercy, are eager to please the God who saved them. Faith does not abolish the law; it fulfills it.