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I. THE TERMS OF THIS CONCLUSION.

1. "Justification" signifies, literally, acquittal. In a court of law such acquittal may be made on the ground of —

(1) Innocence.

(2) Of a sufficient satisfaction. The Scripture view of justification is acquittal on grounds consistent with the demands of justice.

2. "Deeds of the law." "Law" is the will of a superior properly sanctioned; and Paul employs the term to denote generally the will of God.

(1) As made known by some deep and powerful impression where a written revelation has not been given.

(2) As having been made known by a written record. The whole may be called the moral law; and when the apostle speaks of "deeds of the law," he refers to conformity to its requirements, the acting in consistency with the law written in the heart on the part of the Gentiles — the acting in consistency with the law inscribed on tables of stone by the Jews.

3. "Faith" is a repose upon Jesus Christ as given for us and offered to us — an appropriating confidence on the fact that He died for us, for me.

II. THE MODE BY WHICH THE APOSTLE ARRIVES AT THIS CONCLUSION. The apostle has shown —

1. That mankind are all sinners.

(1) That the Gentiles are so morally fallen that there is scarcely a single crime which may not be charged upon them.

(2) The Jews are no less criminal. Now, look how this stands as part of the argument. If a man is justified by the deeds of the law his whole conduct must be conformed to law. It follows, therefore, that if mankind have all broken the law, a man cannot be justified by the deeds of the law. But it is more important that we make an application of this to ourselves.

2. That we are justified solely by Christ, and, consequently, by faith. The slightest attention to the perfections of God must convince us that He can never dispense mercy except in connection with His justice and truth. God, having given us a law, and that law having been broken, was bound in His righteousness to punish the sinner, unless someone were to be punished for him, and He, in His infinite wisdom and love, was pleased to set forth Jesus Christ to be a propitiation. Now it follows that if we are to be saved alone through our Lord Jesus Christ, we can only be righteous through trusting in Him.

III. THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH THE APOSTLE MAKES OF THIS DOCTRINE.

1. He vindicates the subject from the charge of novelty. Anything perfectly new in religion must be false. Paul shows that the doctrine was as old as Abraham, and that it entered into the whole Jewish system. He then cites the case of David (Psalm 32) , and shows that, as it was the experience of David, it was the doctrine of the Jewish Church generally.

2. He guards the subject against licentious abuse. What has an immoral tendency in religion must be assumed to be fallacious. It was a very natural conclusion for some people to arrive at: "Why, if we are not justified by the deeds of law there is no use for law."(1) "On the contrary," says he, "we establish the law." We are justified by faith in Him who endured the penalty of the law for us. The law is thus made good, as it was fully honoured by Him on whom we repose, who was made our Substitute.

(2) We "establish the law" in another way, for it immediately brings the soul into union with God, and God sends forth the Spirit of His Son into the heart; and as soon as we feel that we love God. Here is the principle of all holiness. There is nothing so powerful in the world as love: "faith works by love."

3. He uses the subject to excite confidence. "Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not of the Gentiles also?"

(A. E. Farrar.)

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KJV: Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

WEB: We maintain therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.