Thomas Aquinas Commentary Romans 3:21-26

"But now apart from the law a righteousness of God hath been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ unto all them that believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God set forth [to be] a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God; for the showing, [I say], of his righteousness at this present season: that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus." — Romans 3:21-26 (ASV)

1. After showing that Jews and Gentiles are equal regarding their prior state of guilt, the Apostle now shows that they are also equal regarding their subsequent state of grace.

   In this regard, he does three things:

   1. He states his teaching.

   2. He explains something he had presupposed, at or is he the God of the Jews only? (Romans 3:29).

   3. He answers an objection, at do we then destroy the law? (Romans 3:31).

   Concerning the first point, he does three things:

   1. He states his teaching.

   2. He reveals it, at for there is no distinction.

   3. He draws the intended conclusion, at where is then your boasting? (Romans 3:27).

   Concerning the first of these, he does three things:

   1. He states the relationship between justice and the law.

   2. He gives the cause of justice, at even the justice of God.

   3. He shows that such justice is available to all, at unto all.

2. First, he presents a twofold comparison or relationship of justice to the law.

   The first is that justice is not caused by the law. This is what he says: It has been stated that previously God’s justice could not exist by the works of the law, either because the Just One himself fulfills the promises about human justification—for I say that Christ was minister of the circumcision for the truth of God (Romans 15:8)—or, rather, it refers to God’s justice, by which a person is justified by God, of which it says below: not knowing the justice of God (Romans 10:3).

   This justice of God, I say, is now—that is, in the time of grace—made manifest by the teachings of Christ, by his miracles, and by the evidence of the fact, since it is clear that many have been divinely made just. And this is without the law, meaning, without the law causing justice: you are severed from Christ, you who had been justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace (Galatians 5:4); soon my salvation will come, and my justice will be revealed (Isaiah 56:1).

3. But so that no one would suppose that this justice is contrary to the law, second, he presents another relationship of justice to the law when he says, being witnessed by the law and the prophets.

   The law bears witness to Christ’s justice by foretelling and prefiguring it: if you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote of me (John 5:46). It also bore witness by its effect, for since it could not justify, it testified that justice was to be sought elsewhere.

   The prophets bore witness by foretelling it: to him all the prophets bear witness (Acts 10:43).

4. Then he identifies the cause of this justice, saying, the justice of God is through the faith of Christ Jesus. This can mean the faith which he delivered—looking to Jesus the perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2)—or the faith which is held concerning him: for if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved (Romans 10:9).

   God’s justice is said to exist through faith in Christ Jesus, not as if we merit justification by faith, as though faith originates from ourselves and through it we earn God’s justice, as the Pelagians assert. Rather, it is because in the very act of justification, by which we are made just by God, the first movement of the mind toward God is through faith: whoever would draw near to God must believe (Hebrews 11:6). Therefore, faith, as the first part of justice, is given to us by God: by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing; for it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8).

   But this faith, from which justice comes, is not the unformed faith about which James says, faith without works is dead (James 2:26). Instead, it is faith formed by charity: for in Christ Jesus neither circumcision is of any value without faith (Galatians 5:6), through which Christ dwells in us. That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith (Ephesians 3:17), which does not happen without charity: he who abides in love abides in God and God in him (1 John 4:16). This is the faith about which it is said, he cleansed their hearts by faith (Acts 15:9), a cleansing that does not occur without charity: love covers all offenses (Proverbs 10:12).

5. And so that no one would suppose that only the Jews are made just through this faith, third, he shows that this justice is common to all when he adds, unto all. In other words, this justice is in the heart, not in physical observances. Concerning these, Hebrews says that carnal observances were directed to the justification of the flesh, being regulations for the body and imposed until the time of reformation (Hebrews 9:10). He adds, And upon all, because it transcends human power and merit: not that we are sufficient of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us (2 Corinthians 3:5).

   He adds, who believe in him, which refers to the living faith by which a person is justified, as has been stated.

6. Then when he says, for there is no distinction, he makes plain what he had said concerning three things:

   1. The common availability of justice.

   2. Its cause, at being justified freely.

   3. Its manifestation, at to the showing of his justice.

7. First, therefore, he says that the justice of God is in all and over all who believe in Christ. For in this matter there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile, as it says, in Christ Jesus there is not gentile and Jew (Colossians 3:11). This means there is no distinction, as if the Jew does not need to be made just by God in the same way the Gentile does. For all have sinned, as has been shown above—all we like sheep have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6)—and for this reason need the glory of God.

   This “glory of God” refers to the justification that results in God’s glory. Furthermore, a person should not ascribe this glory to himself: not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory (Psalms 115:1); give glory to God (Psalms 66:2).

8. Consequently, because all have sinned and cannot be justified by themselves, they need some other cause to make them just. The Apostle indicates this cause when he continues, being justified.

   First, he shows that such justification exists without the law—that is, it does not come from the works of the law—when he says, being justified freely. This means it is without the merit of previous works: you were sold for nothing and you shall be redeemed without money (Isaiah 52:3). And this is by his grace, namely, God’s grace, to whom glory is due for this reason: by the grace of God I am what I am (1 Corinthians 15:10).

9. Second, he shows the cause of justification. First, he reveals the cause itself when he says, through the redemption.

   For as it is said, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin (John 8:34). A person is redeemed from this slavery if he makes satisfaction for sin. For example, if a man owed a king a fine for some guilty action, the one who paid the fine would be said to have redeemed him from the debt. This debt involved the whole human race, which was infected by the sin of the first parent. Therefore, no one else could satisfy for the sin of the entire human race except Christ alone, who was immune from all sin.

   Hence, he adds, that is in Christ Jesus. This is as if to say that redemption could be in no other: not with perishable things, such as silver and gold (1 Peter 1:18).

10. Second, he shows why this redemption is effective when he says, whom God has proposed to be a propitiation.

    Christ’s satisfaction was effective for justifying and redeeming because God had assigned him to this in his plan. He indicates this when he says, whom God has proposed to be a propitiation: according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will (Ephesians 1:11).

    Alternatively, proposed means that God put him forward for all, because the human race had no way of making satisfaction unless God himself gave them a redeemer and one who makes satisfaction: he sent redemption to his people (Psalms 111:9).

    And so, by making satisfaction, he redeems us from the debt of sin and obtains pardon for our sins, which the Psalmist pleaded for: be propitious to our sins (Psalms 79:9). This is why he calls him a propitiation (1 John 2:2). As a figure of this, it was commanded in Exodus that a propitiatory (that is, Christ) be placed on the ark (that is, the Church) (Exodus 25:17).

11. Third, he indicates how the effect of redemption reaches us when he says, through faith in his blood—that is, faith concerning his blood poured out for us.

    To satisfy for us, it was appropriate for him to undergo the penalty of death for us, a penalty humanity had incurred by sin, as indicated in Genesis: in the day that you eat of it you shall die (Genesis 2:17). Thus, 1 Peter states, for Christ also died for sins once for all (1 Peter 3:18). This death of Christ is applied to us through faith, by which we believe that the world has been redeemed by his death: I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (Galatians 2:20). For even among people, a payment made by one person does not benefit another unless the other accepts it as valid.

    And so it is clear how justification comes through faith in Jesus Christ, as was stated above.

12. Because he had stated above that God’s justice is now revealed, he now considers this revelation. First, he addresses the manner of this revelation, saying, to the showing. It is as if to say: I say that we are justified by the redemption of Christ and by faith in his blood to the showing of his justice, that is, so that God might show his justice, and this for the remission of former sins.

    For in remitting former sins—which the law could not remit, nor could people by their own power sufficiently prevent—God showed that the justice by which they are made just by God is necessary for humanity. But only through the blood of Christ could both present and past sins be remitted, because the power of Christ’s blood works through a person’s faith. This is the same faith that people who lived before his passion had, just as we have: since we have the same spirit of faith . . . we too believe (2 Corinthians 4:13).

    Hence, another way of reading it is: for the remission of the sins of those people who preceded the passion of Christ: he will tread our iniquities under foot and he will cast all our sins into the depth of the sea (Micah 7:19).

13. Second, he shows the time of its revelation when he adds, through the forbearance of God, for the showing of his justice in this time. This is as if to say that former sins before the passion of Christ were passed over through the forbearance of God, held, so to speak, under a certain divine support. This is because he neither damned believers and penitents for them nor completely absolved them, in the sense that they could enter into glory despite their sins.

    Alternatively, according to another reading, it can mean that the holy fathers themselves were in God’s forbearance, because they were held in limbo, not suffering physical pain but waiting to enter into glory through the passion of Christ: wait for the forbearance of God . For this purpose, I say, previous sins and the ancient fathers were passed over through the forbearance of God, namely, for the showing of his justice in this time. This means that in this time of grace he might reveal his justice perfectly by granting full remission of sins: now is the acceptable time; now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2). And this is what he had said above: that God’s justice is now revealed.

    Until this present time, former sins had been passed over in the forbearance of God in order to convince humanity of its lack of knowledge—since in the time of the law of nature people fell into errors and degrading sins—and of its lack of power, since even after the written law gave knowledge of sin, people still sinned through weakness.

14. Third, he shows that by remitting sins, God’s justice is shown, whether this is understood as the justice by which God himself is just or as the justice by which he justifies others.

    Hence he continues, that he himself may be just. This means that by remitting sins, God may appear to be just in himself, both because he remitted sins as he had promised and because it belongs to God’s justice to destroy sins by leading people back to his own justice: the Lord is righteous, he loves just deeds (Psalms 11:7).

    And he is also the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus Christ, that is, the one who approaches God through faith in Jesus Christ: whoever would draw near to God must believe (Hebrews 11:6).