^24 (A)“Son of man, the inhabitants of these ^(B)waste places in the land of Israel keep saying, ^(C)‘Abraham was only one man, yet he got possession of the land; but ^(D)we are many; the land is surely given us to possess.’

⁹ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

The Righteous Shall Live by Faith

¹⁰ For all who rely on works of the law are ^(A)under a curse; for it is written, ^(B)“Cursed be everyone who does not ^(C)abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” ¹¹ Now it is evident that ^(D)no one is justified before God by the law, for ^(E)“The righteous shall live by faith.”^{[a] 12} But the law is not of faith, rather ^(F)“The one who does them shall live by them.” ¹³ Christ ^(G)redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ^(H)“Cursed is everyone who is hanged ^(I)on a tree”— ¹⁴ so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might ^(J)come to the Gentiles, so that ^(K)we might receive ^(L)the promised Spirit^[b] through faith.

Abraham Justified by Faith

4 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, ^(A)our forefather according to the flesh? ² For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but ^(B)not before God. ³ For what does the Scripture say? ^(C)“Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” ⁴ Now ^(D)to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. ⁵ And to the one who does not work but ^(E)believes in^[a] him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,

⁸ By faith ^(A)Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place ^(B)that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. ⁹ By faith he went to live in ^(C)the land of promise, as in a foreign land, ^(D)living in tents ^(E)with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. ¹⁰ For he was looking forward to ^(F)the city that has ^(G)foundations, ^(H)whose designer and builder is God. ¹¹ By faith ^(I)Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered ^(J)him faithful who had promised. ¹² Therefore from one man, and ^(K)him as good as dead, were born descendants ^(L)as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

¹¹ Now ^(A)Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. ^12 (B)So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, ^(C)“After I am worn out, and ^(D)my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” ¹³ The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’

¹⁶ That is why it depends on faith, ^(A)in order that the promise may rest on grace and ^(B)be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, ^(C)who is the father of us all, ¹⁷ as it is written, ^(D)“I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, ^(E)who gives life to the dead and calls into existence ^(F)the things that do not exist. ¹⁸ In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, ^(G)“So shall your offspring be.” ¹⁹ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was ^(H)as good as dead (^(I)since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered ^(J)the barrenness^[a] of Sarah's womb. ²⁰ No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, ²¹ fully convinced that ^(K)God was able to do what he had promised. ²² That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” ²³ But ^(L)the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, ²⁴ but for ours also. It will be counted to us ^(M)who believe in ^(N)him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord,

²² Therefore thus says the Lord, ^(A)who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:

³⁵ The Lord ^(A)has greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys.