JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH

JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH:

An Exegesis of Romans 5:1-11

By: Daniel McMillin

In the Book of Romans, Paul explores the gospel message in writing that it reveals God’s righteousness (Rom 1-4), creates a new lifestyle in Christ (Rom 5-8), fulfills God’s promises to Israel (Rom 9-11), and transforms the Christian (Rom 12-16). In this paper, I will exegete Rom 5:1-11 and engage with Paul’s understanding of the doctrine of justification by faith.[1] Paul’s purpose in this pericope is to show that justification is on the basis of faith not works. Justification is the “righteousness of God” by which God makes or counts the unrighteous as righteous.[2] There are a variety of views on the subject of justification. My view on justification assumes a forensic approach to the doctrine. In this paper, I will not engage with the New Perspective on Paul and how some interpret “the righteousness of God” as God’s “covenant faithfulness.”[3]

“Therefore” (οὖν) summarizes Paul’s arguments from Rom 3:21-4:25. He has shown that mankind is guilty of sin and will soon discover what the wrath of God looks like. Paul’s point is that if humanity was able to be justified by the Old Law, then humanity would never be justified because they could not keep the Law perfectly.[4] Earlier, Paul suggested that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Humanity has failed to keep the Law perfectly. But Christ, who assumed our human nature, kept the Law and died to redeem all humanity. It is by God’s action (“grace”) and man’s response (“faith”) that the sinner may be justified by God – Δικαιωθέντες ἐκ πίστεως (“having been justified by faith”).[5] 

Paul has made it abundantly clear up to this point that he is speaking of justification “by faith” as opposed to justification by the works of the Old Law (Rom 3:24, 28). Paul previously argued that one is not justified through the Law but by faith when he examined the faith of Abraham in Rom 4.[6] Paul reminds his audience of how Abraham, the patriarch who lived hundreds of years before the Law was written, could be justified by God. He argues that Abraham was justified by faith, not works. According to Cottrell, the phrase ἐκ πίστεως “indicates the means by which we first became justified, and also the means by which we remain justified.”[7]

The word is an absolute trust and dependence on God. Faith is the lifestyle of those who are righteous (Rom 1:17; cf. Hab 2:4).[8] It is the means by which God justifies. The term δικαιωθέντες means to be declared, regarded, or counted as righteous. To be declared righteous is to be in a right relationship with God. Earlier, Paul describes justification as “the righteousness of God” (Rom 1:17).[9] God declares that the sinner is “not guilty.” They are regarded as righteous in His sight not because of their righteousness (Rom 10:3), but by the righteousness of the Son. It is because Christ bore the guilt of man’s sins and the punishment that follows on the cross that justification is made available (Rom 3). Jesus became the once-and-for-all perfect sacrifice so the sinner’s crimes may be atoned. As Kruse has written, this act of justification is “a completed act that is the basis of other blessings experienced by believers in the present and that provides hope for the future. God justifies, in the here and now, those who believe in his Son, and this will be confirmed on the Day of Judgment.”[10]

Those who have been justified through faith will receive ἔχομεν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν (“have peace with God”) which is only made possible διὰ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (“through our Lord Jesus Christ”). This is a continual peace derived from our relationship with Christ, who is the source of true tranquility (cf. Phil 4:7). Paul claims that there is neither justification nor peace found in the Law; it is only found in Christ. He further demonstrates that justification is a declaration of the sinner being treated as righteous, which is a declaration of peace. Before, the sinner was an enemy of God; however, now that they have been declared righteous the sinner may find peace with the divine. Calvin notes that εἰρήνηνis is a “serenity of conscience, which originates from the awareness of having God reconciled to oneself.”[11] In the sinner’s previous condition, they were alienated from God. However, in their current position, once they have been “justified by faith,” they are then reconciled with God. God “does not confer the status of righteousness upon us without at the same time giving himself to us in friendship and establishing peace between himself and us.”[12] This peace is “an actual and necessary effect of justification.”[13] In the Old Testament, peace was a reference to the gift of the eschaton where God’s covenantal promises will be fulfilled (Is 9:7-7; 32:15-17; 48:20-22; Ez. 34:25; 37:26; Mic 5:4-5; Hag 2:9; Zech 8:12). This “eschatological peace has become a reality through Jesus” since He alone fulfills these Old Testament promises.[14]

Jesus makes possible the Christian’s προσαγωγὴν (“access”) to grace. The Christian has access to God through Christ, the Mediator (1 Tim 2:5), who makes intercession for us (Rom 8:34). It is “by faith” that the Christian is led by Christ εἰς τὴν χάριν ταύτην ἐν ᾗ ἑστήκαμεν (“into this grace in which we stand”). The Christian stands in the state of grace, which is characteristic of their life. This “grace” was a “gift” given by God through Christ (Rom 3:24, cf. Eph 2:5), of which He shed His own “blood” that all may be justified (Rom 3:25-26, cf. Eph 1:7). Paul exhorts the Romans to καυχώμεθα (“rejoice,” “boast,” or “exult”) in this ἐλπίδι τῆς δόξης τοῦ θεοῦ (“hope of the glory of God”). Salvation is not the “result of [man’s] works” but is the work of God. Since it is not the effect of man, then “no one may boast” as though they have saved themselves (Eph. 2:9). Instead, the Christian may boast about the source of their “hope” because it is the work of God. It is, as Matera has written, “because believers stand in the sphere of God’s favor, they can boast in their hope of what God is yet to accomplish for them.”[15]

Paul suggests that all Christians may boast in whatever state they are in since they have received the grace and hope found in Christ. That is to say, the Christian may rejoice through tranquility and θλίψεσιν (“tribulations” or “afflictions”). Here, Paul speaks of the range of God’s peace (Rom 5:1). The peace that Christ gives not only sustains the Christian through the good times but also the most trying. Jesus foretold these tribulations (John 16:33), and Paul certainly experienced such hardships (2 Cor 11:23-29). And so, justification is not the Christian’s escape from the trials of life but gives a way to take the tribulations they face and allow them to be used for the glory of God.  Paul notes a positive result of tribulation when he suggests that it ὑπομονὴν κατεργάζεται (“brings about perseverance”). Luther suggests that it is “by faith in Christ” that “we accomplish and endure all things.”[16] To live by faith is to live a “God-centered” life.[17]

Paul’s formula for peace through Christ is that it results in a Christian δοκιμὴ (“character”) which is developed by “perseverance” through “tribulation.” The Christian’s character is proven through battle and molded into a reliable and trustworthy individual. This character then finally produces the ἐλπίδα (“hope”) that is required to find true tranquility. While there is suffering, Paul anticipates “the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom 8:18) because of the hope that Christ provides. Notice Paul’s argument as he begins with “hope” (Rom 5:2) and then ends with “hope” (Rom 5:4).[18] “When suffering has shaped the character of people they hope for freedom from sin and the decay of morality.”[19] Paul suggests that this hope is the only thing that will sustain Christians so they will not be καταισχύνει (disappointed or put to shame).  “Even in the midst of suffering the believer can trust God has proven himself to be faithful.”[20] The reason the Christian has no cause to be ashamed or disappointed in spite of suffering is because of God’s ἀγάπη (“love”). The Christian has every reason to rejoice because God’s love ἐκκέχυται ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν (“has been poured out within our hearts”). This is not the love that the Christian has for God but is the love that God has for the Christian.[21] It is because we have been adopted as His children that He imparts to us this familial love (Rom 8:14-17). Paul now reveals why God has given this gift of grace: God loves His children. His love is “poured out” or bestowed to all who are justified, i.e., the Christian.

Paul notes that this “love” is made possible διὰ πνεύματος ἁγίου τοῦ δοθέντος ἡμῖν (“through the Holy Spirit who was given to us”).[22] We are not told exactly how it is that this is done. However, what we do know from this phrase is that “the Holy Spirit is the medium for the pouring out of God’s love and the One who causes us to understand what God has done for us…the Holy Spirit is the channel by which God’s love has entered our hearts.”[23] With this verse, we see the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of every Christian in relation to their justification. Paul suggests that the Spirit is involved in the justification of the saints. “The love which God has towards” the believer “fills his heart, being inwardly manifested to him by the Holy Spirit, who is given to all believers–at the time of their regeneration,” that is, once one is baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38).[24] The Spirit only enters the life of one who has been justified. Notice again, “Paul does not merely say that God has given his love to believers, but that God has poured out his love, clearly showing its abundance.”[25] There is this assurance of God’s love from the Third Person of the Godhead— it is because “the Holy Spirit” has “given to us.” Christians no longer have to wonder if they are saved since “the gift of the Holy Spirit demonstrates that believers will be spared from God’s wrath on the day of judgment.” The Spirit assures them “that they will be spared from God’s wrath because they presently experience God’s love for them through the ministry of the Holy Spirit.”[26] Paul references the Spirit’s role in man’s justification to prepare the readers for what follows in ch 8.[27]

Paul displays the pre-Christian condition, that is to say, what life was like without Christ. Before, they were regarded as “helpless” (Rom 5:5), “ungodly,” (Rom 5:5), “sinners” (Rom 5:8), and “enemies” (Rom 5:10). Paul is mentioning their previous condition to emphasize that they could not save themselves. The conjunction γὰρ (“for”) is the bridge between Rom 5:1-5 and Rom 5:6-11. It “ties this sentence to what Paul has just said about God’s love and introduces Christ’s death as the concrete demonstration of that love.”[28] God’s love is “poured out within our hearts,” and the sending of His Son is the evidence of His love. Since they were ἀσθενῶν (“helpless” or “weak”) and are not anymore, because Christ has justified them, attests to the power of God’s love. The sinner is, morally speaking, weak because they are without Christ. They are diseased by their iniquities and in need of a cure and a physician. All sinners are “helpless” because “sin is helplessness.”[29] While humanity was helpless, God comes to their aid by sending His Son. He rescues the sinner because they cannot save themselves. That is why κατὰ καιρὸν (“at the right time”) the Father sent the Son to ὑπὲρ ἀσεβῶν ἀπέθανεν (“die for the ungodly”). As the sinner stands in a rebellious state, the Lord sends His Son to die in their stead. “The inward assurance that the Holy Spirit gives to believers of God’s lavish love corresponds to the concrete, historical reality of Christ’s death for believers before and apart from their willingness to acknowledge him.”[30] Similarly, Paul writes to the Galatians that “when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son” (Gal 4:4).  Christ came at the right time with the right conditions. Jesus’ coming was divinely ordained in that, He came under the terms of God’s timing and purpose. “He died at a time when we were still sinners, and at a time that fitted God’s purpose.”[31]

Paul expresses the uniqueness of God’s love through Christ’s sacrifice when he states that “one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die” (Rom 5:7).[32] Paul contrasts the love of God with man’s love. Mankind often reserves their love for those who love them. God’s love; however, is unique. God’s love is freely given to those who would not love Him; in fact, He loves those who would hate Him (i.e., His “enemies”). 

At this point, it is difficult to find any distinctions between a δικαίου (“righteous man”) and a ἀγαθοῦ (“good man”). Paul says it is unlikely that one would die for a righteous man but is more likely that one might for a good man.[33] As a rule, people are willing to die for those they know and love. But it is less likely that someone would do the same for someone they do not know or may despise. Here, Paul speaks of what man might do in such a case and so what is implied by this is that most people would not exchange their lives for the ungodly. If the roles were in reverse, no man would die for a sinner; none would die for such a guilty individual destined for death. And yet, Christ died for sinners. Before Christ was crucified, He took the place of Barabbas by suffering the punishment that was due unto him, i.e., crucifixion. Then, when He died on the cross, He took the penalty for all of our sins, which is death (Rom 6:23). And so, it follows that not only would one not die for a person guilty of sin, but they would not die for a righteous man, one who is innocent. Some would maybe die for a good man. Christ did what most would not; He would die to atone for the sins of the unrighteous and evil. Christ would die to save His enemies. Paul demonstrates that Christ’s death is unique as He would do the unthinkable to any Jew or Gentile, He would die for the ungodly (Rom 5:6).

Notice how Paul notes that the death of Christ συνίστησιν δὲ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀγάπην εἰς ἡμᾶς ὁ θεὸς (“proves God’s own love toward us”). God does the unlikely, He loves sinners while they stand in open rebellion against Him. This is demonstrated ὅτι ἔτι ἁμαρτωλῶν ὄντων ἡμῶν Χριστὸς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἀπέθανεν (“in that while we were yet sinners the Messiah died for us”). “Contrary to all normal expectations to the field of human relations, God loved those who had sinned against him to the point of death and did this before they had turned away from their sin.”[34] Paul illustrates what man is willing to do for another and then demonstrates that the measure to which God goes is far greater and more powerful than what might be expected. God reveals what true love looks like in the form of His Son. God is willing to humble Himself and die for the sins of man so that His enemies may be reconciled unto Him. The previous verse served as a reminder to the Romans as to “how unusual self-sacrifice is even when the beneficiary is an attractive person. The point is simply underscored by reemphasizing that God’s love is not determined by such considerations.”[35]

Paul highlights what humanity deserves but does not receive: ὀργῆς (“wrath”), and what humanity receives but does not deserve: δικαιωθέντες (“justification”). Paul argues that since it is reasonable to say that God will deliver those He loves, whom He has justified, then would it not follow that He would also save them from the punishment meant for the unrighteous?

Christ’s αἵματι (“blood”) is the means by which the Christian is justified.[36] Since Jesus died as a pure, blameless sacrifice, His blood has the power to justify the sins of the impure (Rom 3:21-26).[37] This recalls the blood sacrifices offered under the Old Law (Lev 17). Fitzmyer interestingly notes that before Paul ascribed justification to the resurrection of the Son (Rom 4:25), but now he attributes it “to the shedding of his blood.”[38] It is because Jesus died that the sinner may be declared righteous. Here, the act of justification is viewed by Paul as an eschatological rescue.[39] “The death of Jesus solved the problem of God’s wrath and of the enmity between God and man—by death; but God’s full purpose for man is life—life from and beyond death.”[40] God saves and reconciles His enemies to Himself through the death of His Son. The salvation that God offers not only offers a remedy for the penalties of sin from the past (Rom 5:6-11) or resolves the present issues of the practice of sin (Rom 5:9-10), but it also saves us from the presence of sin and the wrath of God in the future (Rom 5:9). Paul’s use of σῴζω here and in Rom 1:16; 8:24; 9:27; 10:1, 9, 13; 11:11, 14, 26; 13:11 refers to the “ultimate deliverance of believers at the end of time.”[41]

Paul has illustrated what God has done for those who were previously His enemies to assure the Christian of the blessings that are given to those who are currently His allies. Paul employs this relational language to elevate God’s love that was revealed in Christ toward His enemies. Previously, Paul noted that God’s “wrath” would be unleashed on those who are His “enemies” due to “ungodliness and unrighteousness” (Rom 1:18). However, now God and His enemies may be reconciled.[42] “Paul’s point in using the language of reconciliation here, however, is not merely to say that God has taken the initiative in reconciling rebellious human beings to himself but to emphasize that this initiative was costly to God and that if he has engaged in this unusual and costly actions on behalf of believers then they need not fear the future day of judgment.”[43] Man cannot reconcile themselves with God, God alone can provide reconciliation.[44]

It is important to note that justification and reconciliation are two soteriological terms that do not mean the same thing, that is to say, they are not identical concepts. Justification is a legal term while reconciliation is a relational term. “Justification,” as Schreiner has noted, “emphasizes that believers stand in right relationship with God, while reconciliation stresses that we, who were formerly enemies, are now God’s friends. Neither truth should be exalted above the other; both are constituent aspects of what God has done for us in Crist.”[45] Kruse notes distinguishes these terms by suggesting that “justification highlights the forensic aspect and reconciliation the relational aspect of the salvation made possible through Christ’s death, though, of course, justification cannot be said to be without its relational significance, and reconciliation presupposes a resolution of the forensic problem.”[46]

Up to this point, Paul has said that the Christian may rejoice “in hope of the glory of God” (Rom 5:2), “in our tribulations” (Rom 5:3), and now “in God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:11). The Christian not only rejoices in what God has done but also in who He is. In this pericope, Paul is bringing these two themes of boasting and reconciliation to emphasize his theme of justification through faith. This καταλλαγὴν (“reconciliation”) is what it means to “have peace with God.” Now the Christian may have this “jubilant exultation” as they have been reconciled with God.[47] “The reconciliation accomplished was a gift from the Father and Son, and the human response is simply to receive gratefully the gift given.”[48]

In conclusion, this paper provides at length Paul’s treatise on justification by faith to the Romans. He notices that justification by faith produces peace and supplies hope no matter what the circumstances may be in a Christian’s life. He also acknowledges the fact that justification was purchased by the blood of Jesus so that all sinners may be reconciled with God. Paul has shown that justification is the greatest declaration of the love of God since the righteous one, God, declares the unrighteous as righteous.

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ENDNOTES

1. C. D. Myers, The Place of Romans 5:1–11 within the Argument of the Epistle. Diss. Princeton, 1985; Andrew David Naselli, “The Righteous God Righteously Righteouses the Unrighteous: Justification according to Romans” in The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical, and Pastoral Perspective. Ed. Matthew Barrett (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 213-238.

2.  D.A. Carson, Peter T. O’Brien, and Mark A. Seifrid, Justification and Variegated Nomism, Vol. 1-2 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2001); Bruce Demarest, The Cross and Salvation: The Doctrine of Salvation (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 1997), 345-382; Karl P. Donfried, “Justification by Faith” JBL 114 (1995): 160; J.V. Fesko, Justification: Understanding the Classic Reformed Doctrine (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Pub., 2008); Michael Horton, Justification, Vol. 1-2 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018); Bruce L. McCormack, Justification in Perspective: Historical Developments and Contemporary Challenges (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006); Alister E. McGrath, Iustitia Dei: A History of the Christian Doctrine of Justification (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005); Thomas R. Schreiner, Faith Alone: The Doctrine of Justification: What the Reformers Taught and Why It Still Matters (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2015); “Justification: The Saving Righteousness of God in Christ.” JETS 54 (2011): 19-34; Mark A. Seifrid, Christ, Our Righteousness (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000).

3. Michael F. Bird, The Saving Righteousness of God: Studies on Paul, Justification and the New Perspective, PBM (Milton Keynnes, UKL Paternoster, 2007); James D.G. Dunn, “The New Perspective on Paul: Paul and the Law” in The Romans Debate. Ed. Karl P. Donfried (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1991), 245-250; The Theology of Paul the Apostle (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub., 2006), 334-389; Andrew Michael Hassler, “Justification and the Individual in the Wake of the New Perspective on Paul” (PhD diss., SBTS, 2011); Timo Laato, “The New Quest for Paul: A Critique of the New Perspective on Paul” The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical, and Pastoral Perspective. Ed. Matthew Barrett (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 295-326; John Piper, Counted Righteous in Christ: Should We Abandon the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2002); The Future of Justification: A Response to N.T. Wright. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2007; E.P. Sanders, Paul and Palestinian Judaism: A Comparison of Patterns of Religion (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1977); David A. Shaw, “What’s Next? Justification after the New Perspective” in The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical, and Pastoral Perspective. Ed. Matthew Barrett (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 327-350; Peter Stuhlmacher, Revisiting Paul’s Doctrine of Justification: A Challenge to the New Perspective (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2001); N.T. Wright, Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2009).

4. Thomas R. Schreiner, “Justification apart from and by Works: At the Final Judgment Works Will Confirm Justification,” in Four Views on the Role of Works at the Final Judgment. Ed. Alan P. Stanely (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2013, 71-98.

5. Robert Jewett, Romans, Hermenia (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007), 348-349.

6. Robert N. Longenecker, “The ‘Faith of Abraham’ Theme in Paul, James and Hebrews: A Study in the Circumstantial Nature of New Testament Teaching,” JETS 20 (1977): 203–12.

7. Jack Cottrell, Romans, CPNIV (Joplin, MO: College Press, 2005), 178.

8. Mark A. Seifrid, “Romans” in Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament. Ed. G.K. Beale and D.A. Carson (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 608-611.

9. Charles Lee Irons, Dikaiosyne Theou: A Lexical Examination of the Covenant-Faithfulness Interpretation. Diss. 2011.

10. Colin G. Kruse, Paul’s Letter to the Romans, PNTC (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 2012), 225.

11. John Calvin, Commentary on the Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Romans (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2010), 104.

12. C.E.B. Cranfield, Romans 1-8, ICC (Edinburgh: T & T Clark Limited, 1979), 1:258.

13. William G. T. Shedd, Commentary on Romans (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1980), 110-111.

14. Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans, BECNT (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2018), 261-262.

15. Frank J. Matera, Romans, Paidia (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2010), 132.

16. Martin Luther, Commentary on Romans (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1976), 90.

17. Grant R. Osborne, Romans, IVPNTC (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 129.

18. Douglas J. Moo, The Letter to the Romans, NICOT (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2018), 310.

19. Frank Thielman, Romans, ZECNT (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2018), 267.

20. Thielman, Romans, 268.

21. David G. Peterson Romans, EBTC (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic Press, 2020), 235.

22. Gregg R. Allison and Andreas Köstenberger, The Holy Spirit (Nashville, TN. B & H Academic, 2020); Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: Holy Spirit, Church, and New Creation, Vol. 4. Ed. John Bolt. Trans. John Vriend (Grand Rapids, MI. Baker Academic, 2006); John Owen, The Holy Spirit (Peabody, MA. Christian Heritage Publishers, 2005).

23. Paul Pollard, Romans, TFT (Searcy, AK: Resource Publication, 2018), 171.

24. J.W. McGarvey and Philip Y. Pendleton, Thessalonians, Corinthians, Galatians, and Romans (Delight, AK: Gospel Light Pub. Co.), 331. See also, J.W. McGarvey, Acts of Apostles (Cincinnati: Standard Pub. Co., 1894), 39-44.

25. Thielman, Romans, 268.

26. Scheiner, Romans, 264-265.

27. F.F. Bruce, Romans, TNTC (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2008), 123.

28. Thielman, Romans, 269.

29. Shedd, Romans, 113.

30.  Thielman, Romans, 269.

31. Leon Morris, The Epistle to the Romans, PNTC (Grand Rapids; MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1988), 222.

32. F. Wisse, “The Righteous Man and the Good Man in Romans 5:7,” NTS 19 (1972–73): 91–93.

33. Schreiner, Romans, 269-270.

34. Thielman, Romans, 270.

35. James D. G. Dunn, Romans 1–8, WBC 38a (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1988), 256.

36. Horton, Justification, 2: 195-234; Brian Vickers, Jesus’ Blood and Righteousness: Paul’s Theology of Imputation (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2006).

37. D.A. Carson, “Atonement in Romans 3:21-26: God Presented Him as a Propitiation” in The Glory of the Atonement: Biblical, Historical, and Practical Perspectives: Essays in Honor of Roger R. Nicole. Ed. Charles E. Hill and Frank A. James III (Downers Gove: IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 119-139.

38. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, Romans: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (New York: Doubleday, 1993), 400. See also, Matthew Barrett, “Raised for Our Justification: The Christological, Covenantal, Forensic, and Eschatological Contours of an Ambiguous Relationship” in The Doctrine on Which the Church Stands or Falls: Justification in Biblical, Theological, Historical, and Pastoral Perspective. Ed. Matthew Barrett (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 387-418.

39. G.K. Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2011).

40. Dunn, Romans 1–8, 260.

41. Douglas J. Moo, A Theology of Paul and His Letters: A Biblical Theology of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2021), 217.

42. E. Käsemann, “Some Thoughts on the Theme ‘The Doctrine of Reconciliation in the New Testament.’” In The Future of our Religious Past, FS R. Bultmann. Ed. J. M. Robinson (London: SCM, 1971), 49–64; Richard N. Longnecker, Introducing Romans: Critical Issues in Paul’s Most Famous Letter (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2011), 337-344; R. P. Martin, Reconciliation: A Study of Paul’s Theology (Atlanta: John Knox, 1981), 135–54.

43.  Thielman, Romans, 273.

44. Schreiner, Romans, 272.

45. Schreiner, Romans, 271; see also, Richard N. Longnecker, The Epistle to the Romans, NIGTC (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2016), 337-344.

46. Kruse, Romans, 238–239.

47. Cranfield, Romans, 1:268.

48. Schreiner, Romans, 273.