Charles Spurgeon Commentary Romans 10:5

"For Moses writeth that the man that doeth the righteousness which is of the law shall live thereby." — Romans 10:5 (ASV)

For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.

And if any man did, or could keep the law, he would live by it, but no man has ever done so, or ever will. There is no hope of life by the law.

For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law,

And being the one through whom the law was given, he knew how to describe it; and we may be sure that he made no mistake.

This is his description of legal righteousness:

That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.

That is it: "Do and live." That is the law, and a very just law, too. Leave anything undone, or break the command in any respect and you die; that is the law.

For Moses–

The Holy Spirit wisely directed the apostle to quote from Moses, for he was the lawgiver, and was looked upon by the Jews as the great representative of the law.

For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth these things shall live by them.

That is the message of the law: "Do, and live." But the message of the gospel is, "Live, and do;" – a very different thing. The law says, "Work to obtain life." The gospel says, "You have life freely given to you in Christ Jesus; now work for him because you live by him."

For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, –

And he does it in very brief, concise, and satisfactory terms: –

That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.

That is the beginning and end of the law, "Do and live."