Romans 4:19–22

The word has a passive, or rather a neutral, sense as well as an active one. It does not simply mean deadness. It is not the state of death, but the act of dying. In Romans 4 it is not simply death, as if Sarah were dead. It is the loss of the power of life that had taken place: he did not think about Sarah's womb losing its vital powers.

"Abraham believed God." Here was divine faith. It was not a question of feeling. Indeed, if Abraham had let his feelings guide him, he would have been a doubter instead of a believer. For what did he have to build on in himself? "His own body now dead." That was a poor ground on which to build his faith in the promise of countless descendants. But we are told, "He considered not his own body now dead." What, then, did he consider? He considered the word of the living God, and on that he rested.

If he reasoned from himself and Sarah, the promise of God was beyond hope, and even contrary to it. Yet he believed in hope, because God had said he would have descendants as many as the stars and the sand. Faith reasons from God and His word, not from self or circumstances.

He was not weak in faith. He accepted the Word of God as true and unbreakable, without weighing the circumstances at all — whether his own dead body or "the deadness of Sarah's womb." He knew that God did not depend on natural strength, either in himself or in anyone else he might be inclined to lean on. Faith in the living God always means refusing all confidence in flesh.

"His own body now dead and the deadness of Sarah's womb" must have weighed on his mind a great deal, even though, in the main, "he considered them not."

Abraham believed that God could bring life from the dead. He believed that God had the power to touch a grave and bring life out of it… From Genesis we know that he was also weak in faith and that he acted in unbelief. But God graciously passes this by. He had, so to speak, forgotten his unbelief and remembered it no more.

If they were really his children, they must receive everything from God, on a ground that guarantees the promise to all the seed, Gentile as well as Jewish. This is all the more clear because in his case and Sarah's they were as good as dead, and they could not fulfil the promise themselves. So God alone could be looked to as the One able to give life to the dead. We Christians believe in the same way: not simply on Jesus, but on Him who raised Jesus our Lord from among the dead, who was delivered for our offences and raised for our justification.

Abraham was called to believe in the power of God that can raise the dead. The believer today is called to believe in the power of God that has raised the dead. God has shown this mighty power by raising Jesus our Lord.

"Abraham believed God." Here was divine faith. It was not a question of feeling. Indeed, if Abraham had been influenced by his feelings, he would have been a doubter instead of a believer. For what had he to build upon in himself? "His own body now dead." A poor ground surely on which to build his faith in the promise of an innumerable seed. But, we are told, "He considered not his own body now dead." What, then, did he consider? He considered the word of the living God, and on that he rested. Now this is faith. And note what the apostle says: "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief" (for unbelief is always a staggerer).

"He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief". He did not doubt or limit the grace of God, and say, "This is too good to be true".

Had Abraham been weak in faith he would have considered all the circumstances, which were against it. He would have felt that the promise was too great and so would have staggered at it. He did neither. He took God at His word with the simplicity of a little child... And this, note it, is what here is called strong faith. Strong faith, then, is not so much the faith that performs miracles. It is the faith that simply trusts God to do what He has said, even though all appearances, reason and precedent are against it.

If οὐ is an addition, the meaning would be that Abraham, instead of ignoring the obstacles, took full account of them all (Gen. 17:17), yet as regards the promise of God had no hesitation through unbelief, but on the contrary was inwardly strengthened in faith. If the ordinary reading is right, the meaning is that, far from being weak in faith, he paid no attention to the facts before his eyes whether in himself or in his wife, nor staggered at the promise of God through unbelief, but found strength in faith, giving glory to Him and satisfied that He was able also to perform the promise.

Only unbelief, and limiting God to what man can do, would have made Abraham hesitate. Instead, he "was strong in faith, giving glory to God." What blessed simplicity! What blessed reality! Yet it is the only proper attitude for any creature, let us note it well. To "give glory to God" is the very reason for our existence. If we do not practise "the obedience of faith," we are robbing God of His glory: we neither take our own proper place, nor give Him His.

God never calls it lowliness and meekness to doubt the truth of His word, or the effectiveness of Christ's work. On the contrary, He counts it pride and presumption... Abraham was commended, not because he questioned God's truth, but because he trusted it... And what was the effect? Did it puff him up? Just the opposite. Because he was "strong in faith" he gave "glory to God." The very fact that there was no power in himself only magnified God's grace.

From Genesis we know that he was also weak in faith and that he acted in unbelief. But this is graciously passed by. God, so to speak, had forgotten his unbelief and remembered it no more.

In Abraham's case he believed that God would raise up life out of death. We are not asked to believe that God will do it, but that He has done it, by raising up Jesus our Lord from the dead. How much simpler to believe that He has done it, when He has done it, than to believe that He will do it, when as yet He has not done it.

Scripture says of Abraham that he was "fully convinced that God was able to do what He had promised." And again: "Let each one be fully convinced in his own mind." The moment the soul has laid hold of Jesus it is set free from itself. It ought to be fully convinced that everything it needs is found in the object set before it — Jesus Himself.

Abraham was called to believe in the power of God that can raise the dead. The believer today is called to believe in the power of God that has raised the dead. God displayed that mighty power when He raised Jesus our Lord... Now we have the power of God that will bring those He has justified into the glorious inheritance.

"Abraham believed God." Here was divine faith. It was not a question of feeling. Indeed, if Abraham had been influenced by his feelings, he would have been a doubter instead of a believer. For what had he to build on in himself? "His own body now dead." A poor ground surely on which to build his faith in the promise of countless descendants. But we are told, "He considered not his own body now dead." What, then, did he consider? He considered the word of the living God, and on that he rested.

God never calls it humility or gentleness to doubt the truth of His word, or the effectiveness of Christ's work. On the contrary, He counts it pride and presumption... Abraham was commended, not because he questioned God's truth, but because he trusted it... And what was the effect? Did it puff him up? Just the opposite. Because he was "strong in faith" he gave "glory to God." The very fact that there was no power in himself only magnified God's grace.

Isaac was a son given to Abraham by God's promise in his old age. Could he ever have expected that God would one day call him to give that son back, by offering him up as a burnt offering?... As at Isaac's birth he was "fully convinced that God was able to do what He had promised," so now he could go forth, "accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead."

Abraham believed God's promise about his descendants — "So shall your offspring be." So he trusted God as the God who can give life to the dead. We are to believe God's testimony about the death and resurrection of His Son, having faith in Him as the One who raises the dead... God counted righteousness to Abraham. He counts righteousness to us on the same principle — the principle of faith.

Notice how God said, "I have made you the father of many nations," even before Abraham had a child at all. The thing is so sure with God that He, with whom future things are as though present, could speak of it as a fact. Abraham believed God "in hope." That is, the promise was still future. His eye was not on himself, or upon Sarah, but upon God. So we read that he believed, he did not consider, he did not waver, he was fully persuaded. The power of nature could not make the promise good. Still he believed God, and counted on God's own power to keep it.

Does it mean a set quantity of righteousness moved over into a man's account? Or does it mean holding a man to be righteous — reckoning or accounting him such? I say that in Scripture it always means the second... There is no question at all of a quantity of righteousness existing and then put to their account. The point is that righteousness itself is reckoned to them. This is clearer still, because all the apostle's reasoning rests on one sentence: "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness"... that is, God accounted him righteous because of his faith. This passage governs the rest — every other use of the phrase comes from it.

Faith counted as righteousness means one thing for Abraham, for David, and for us who believe today. It means that God accounts us as righteous before Him in view of our faith. We must not imagine that all the virtue resides in our faith. It does not. But faith establishes contact with the work of Christ, in which all the virtue does reside. In that sense faith justifies.

In this explanation it is something of our own — "our faith" — that God accepts. In the word it is not so. God has accepted Christ, and the work He has accomplished, and it is believing that... God raised Christ from the dead for our justification. That is a very different thing from accepting our faith.

What characterizes faith in Abraham, then, is his laying hold upon God as the One who gives life to the dead. Believing in Him as the God of resurrection, he believed He was able to perform what He promised. The character of God was the guarantee of His word.

God imputes righteousness to him. As Judge He declares that the man is not only no longer in his sins, but is in righteousness. He sets him before His face in righteousness. Because righteousness is imputed in this way, he is never to be charged with his sins. God never will charge them to him, nor will He listen to anyone who would presume to do it. Abraham is from now on before the face of God in unchangeable righteousness.

Abraham accepted that when he could do nothing God would do everything, and that is just what he proved. Notice, God is able. We are utterly unable — God is completely able. This is where faith rests. There is this difference between Abraham and ourselves — he believed what God would do; we believe what God has done, for "we believe in Him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification."