Romans 3:20
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
20 since no human being will be justified in his sight[a] by observing the law; for through the law comes consciousness of sin.(A)
III. Justification Through Faith in Christ
Justification Apart from the Law.[b]
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- 3:20 No human being will be justified in his sight: these words are freely cited from Ps 143:2. In place of the psalmist’s “no living person,” Paul substitutes “no human being” (literally “no flesh,” a Hebraism), and he adds “by observing the law.”
- 3:21–31 These verses provide a clear statement of Paul’s “gospel,” i.e., the principle of justification by faith in Christ. God has found a means of rescuing humanity from its desperate plight: Paul’s general term for this divine initiative is the righteousness of God (Rom 3:21). Divine mercy declares the guilty innocent and makes them so. God does this not as a result of the law but apart from it (Rom 3:21), and not because of any merit in human beings but through forgiveness of their sins (Rom 3:24), in virtue of the redemption wrought in Christ Jesus for all who believe (Rom 3:22, 24–25). God has manifested his righteousness in the coming of Jesus Christ, whose saving activity inaugurates a new era in human history.
Romans 3:20
New International Version
20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law;(A) rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.(B)
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