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Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles?[a] Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith. 10 But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!

11 Circumcision was a sign that Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous—even before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They are counted as righteous because of their faith. 12 And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.

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Footnotes

  1. 4:9 Greek is this blessing only for the circumcised, or is it also for the uncircumcised?

Is this blessedness[a] then for[b] the circumcision[c] or also for[d] the uncircumcision? For we say, “faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.”[e] 10 How then was it credited to him? Was he circumcised at the time, or not? No, he was not circumcised but uncircumcised! 11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised,[f] so that he would become[g] the father of all those who believe but have never been circumcised,[h] that they too could have righteousness credited to them. 12 And he is also the father of the circumcised,[i] who are not only circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham possessed when he was still uncircumcised.[j]

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Footnotes

  1. Romans 4:9 tn Or “happiness.”
  2. Romans 4:9 tn Grk “upon.”
  3. Romans 4:9 sn See the note on “circumcision” in 2:25.
  4. Romans 4:9 tn Grk “upon.”
  5. Romans 4:9 sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
  6. Romans 4:11 tn Grk “of the faith, the one [existing] in uncircumcision.”
  7. Romans 4:11 tn Grk “that he might be,” giving the purpose of v. 11a.
  8. Romans 4:11 tn Grk “through uncircumcision.”
  9. Romans 4:12 tn Grk “the father of circumcision.”
  10. Romans 4:12 tn Grk “the ‘in-uncircumcision faith’ of our father Abraham.”