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The apostle employs a strong personification, investing "the righteousness which is of faith" with powers of speech in general, and of discriminative and persuasive speech in particular. The personified object is represented as "of," i.e., "from," faith. Not that it originates "in" or is identical "with" faith. It is conveyed to the soul of the recipient "by" faith, and as elsewhere represented is from God to be enjoyed by man on the condition of faith. If it were gifted with speech it would say to each man, "Say not in thy heart," etc. No such effort is required. Men who have fallen into unrighteousness can be lifted up again. It is a great work. But it is not to be effected by some supernatural effort on the part of men themselves. They do not need, e.g., to soar aloft to find Christ and induce Him to come down to save. The indispensable supernatural forthputting of energy has already been put forth by one who is "mighty to save to the uttermost," The apostle weaves the woof of the utterances of his personified pleader into the warp of some grand oratorical pleading addressed by Moses to the Israelites on the eve of his disappearance within the veil (Deuteronomy 30:11-14). In ver. 7 an alternative is oratorically introduced, not identical with that laid down by Moses, but substantially parallel. Moses spoke of "going over the sea." But the apostle, for his peculiar purpose, modifies and intensifies the representation. He desired to make the way plain for introducing a reference to Christ's resurrection; and hence he speaks of the world of the deceased, representing it, in one of its awesome aspects, as an abyss. Will it be needful to go down into that dismal region, which, as "bottomless," has never been explored. "Say not Who shall make that terrible descent?" The personified righteousness continues to speak, and as it speaks it draws attention to "the word" in which it is conveyed to the soul. In Deuteronomy it is not righteousness that speaks, but Moses in God's name. Hence there is no rhetorical personification, but the living personality of the lawgiver. And it is with, his own living voice that he specifies "the commandment which God commanded, and says, "It is not hidden, nor afar off, but nigh... that thou mayest do it." "The word" referred to is the commandment exhibiting the duty devolving on the Israelites. The apostle's reference is different. The "word" with him is the gospel — "the word of faith," so called because it is the object towards which faith points and in which it terminates. The gospel is "a word," though not necessarily or generally a mere vocable. As there may be several vocables in a word of exhortation, so in the proclamation of the word of faith harmonious groups of vocables may be requisite. Sometimes, indeed, it may be condensed into a single one such as "Jesus," "Christ," "propitiation," etc. But more frequently it expands itself into some such worded utterance as "God so loved the world," etc. Let a man study till he understands this word; or let him master the vocables referred to, and a great light will dawn on his spirit. The personified pleader says of the word, "It is near thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart." It has been brought near by proclamation, or conversation, or by some kindred modification of instrumentality, or by some more subtle influence still. Men heedlessly utter gospel words with their mouths; and both before and after utterance, the words are in the heart or mind. Like other words, however, they have both a kernel and a husk; and too often is the attention occupied with the exterior to the neglect of the interior.

(J. Morison, D.D.)

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

WEB: For Moses writes about the righteousness of the law, "The one who does them will live by them."