Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

What About Abraham?

4 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according-to^[a] the flesh, has found? ² For if Abraham was declared-righteous by works, he has a boast— but not before God.

His Righteousness Came By Faith

³ For what does the Scripture say?— “And Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness” [Gen 15:6]. ⁴ Now to the one working, the wages are not credited to him based-on grace, but based on debt. ⁵ But to the one not working but putting-faith upon the One declaring the ungodly righteous— his faith is credited for righteousness. ⁶ Just as David also says [in Ps 32:1-2] as to the blessedness of the person to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: ⁷ “Blessed are the ones whose lawless-deeds were forgiven and whose sins were covered. ⁸ Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count”.

This Occurred Prior To Circumcision

⁹ So is this blessedness upon the circumcised, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say “Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness”. ¹⁰ How then was it credited— to one being in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision! ¹¹ And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of ^[b] faith while in uncircumcision, so that he might be^[c] the father of all the ones believing through uncircumcision— so that righteousness might be credited also to them— ¹² and the father of the circumcised to the ones not of circumcision only, but indeed the ones walking-in-line in the footsteps of the faith of our father Abraham while he was in uncircumcision.