Romans 4
Fragment c to h containing parts of the Epistle to the Romans in Papyrus 40, written about AD 250.
BookEpistle to the Romans
CategoryPauline epistles
Christian Bible partNew Testament
Order in the Christian part6

Romans 4 is the fourth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It is authored by Paul the Apostle, while he was in Corinth in the mid-50s AD,[1] with the help of an amanuensis (secretary), Tertius, who adds his own greeting in Romans 16:22.[2] The focus of this chapter is on Abraham, whose faith "was accounted (or imputed) to him for righteousness" (Romans 4:3). The Geneva Bible's chapter summary states that "ten times in the chapter [Paul] beateth upon this word, Imputation.[3]

Text

The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 25 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are:

Old Testament references

  • Romans 4:3 references Genesis 15:6
  • Romans 4:7–8 references Psalm 32:1–2[4]
  • Romans 4:17 references Genesis 17:5[5]
  • Romans 4:18 references Genesis 15:5
  • Romans 4:22 references Genesis 15:6

Abraham's faith

Verse 3

For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness."

— Romans 4:3, English Standard Version[6]

Heinrich Meyer explains that the citation from Genesis 15:6[7] ("he believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness") is quoted according to the Septuagint (LXX), which renders the active וְיַּחְשְׁבֶהָ, wa-yaḥ-shə-ḇe-hā, 'and he counted it'[8][9] by the passive και ελογισθη, kai elogisthe, 'and it was accounted'.[10] Paul quotes the same verse in the same way in Galatians 3:6. Meyer also disputes the charge from theologian Leopold Immanuel Rückert that Paul "made an unwarrantable use of the passage for his purpose",[11] because here Paul definitely understood δικαιοσύνη[12] "in the dogmatic sense", justifiable in doing so, since "the imputation of faith as צְדָקָה, tsə-ḏā-qāh, 'for righteousness'[9] was essentially the same judicial act which takes place at the justification of Christians".[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Hill 2007, p. 1084.
  2. ↑ Donaldson, Terence L. (2007). "63. Introduction to the Pauline Corpus". In Barton, John; Muddiman, John (eds.). The Oxford Bible Commentary (first (paperback) ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 1077. ISBN 978-0199277186.
  3. ↑ Geneva Bible, Romans 4, Introduction
  4. ↑ Kirkpatrick, A. F. (1901). The Book of Psalms: with Introduction and Notes. The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges. Vol. Book IV and V: Psalms XC-CL. Cambridge: At the University Press. p. 838. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Biblical concordances of Romans 4 in the 1611 King James Bible".
  6. ↑ Romans 4:3
  7. ↑ Genesis 15:6
  8. ↑ Genesis 15:6 Mechon-Mamre version
  9. 1 2 Hebrew Text Analysis: Genesis 15:6. Biblehub
  10. 1 2 Meyer, Heinrich August Wilhelm (1880). Commentary on the New Testament. Romans 4. Translation by Peter Christie from Meyer's sixth edition. Accessed February 14, 2019.
  11. ↑ Rückert, L. I., Commentary on Romans, 1831, referred to by Meyer in his NT Commentary on Romans 4, accessed 10 September 2016
  12. ↑ Greek Text Analysis: Romans 4:3. Biblehub

Bibliography

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