Charles Ellicott Commentary Romans 4:3

"For what saith the scripture? And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness." — Romans 4:3 (ASV)

The Apostle gives a proof of this from Scripture. Abraham was not justified by works, and therefore had nothing to boast of in God’s sight. He was justified by faith. His righteousness was not real, but imputed. His faith was treated as if it had been equivalent to a righteousness of works. It met with the same acceptance in the sight of God that a righteousness of works would have done. But—the argument goes on—faith carries with it no such idea of merit or debt as works. It is met by a pure act of grace on the part of God.

Abraham believed God.—The quotation is taken from Genesis 15:6, where it appears as a comment on Abraham’s belief in the promise that he would have a numerous posterity. The same passage is elaborately commented on by Philo and others, so that it would seem to have been a common topic in the Jewish schools.

It should be noticed that the word “faith” is not used in quite the same sense in the original and in the application. In Abraham’s case it was trust in the fulfillment of the divine promise; in St. Paul’s sense, it is rather enthusiastic adhesion to a person. This is part of the general enlargement and deepening of the Old Testament terminology by St. Paul. A writer of less profundity (though marked by striking and elevated qualities), the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, applies the word more strictly (see Hebrews 11:8 and following). In James 2:23, the word has the still thinner meaning of a merely intellectual assent. St. Paul quotes the same passage in the same sense as here in Galatians 3:6 (see Excursus B: On the Meaning of the word Faith).

It was counted unto him.—It should be observed that the same words are translated by the Authorised Version here, “it was counted unto him;” in Romans 4:9, “faith was reckoned to Abraham;” in Romans 4:22, “it was imputed unto him;” in Galatians 3:6, “it was accounted to him;” and in James 2:23, “it was imputed to him.” This is a defect in the translation, which, however, hardly obscures the true meaning.

The sense of imputation cannot be dismissed. It is distinctly a forensic act. The righteousness attributed to Abraham is not an actual righteousness, but something else that is considered and treated as if it were equivalent to such righteousness. It is so treated by God acting as the judge of men (see Excursus E: On the Doctrine of Justification by Faith and Imputed Righteousness).