What does Romans 4:23 mean?
Paul has just quoted Genesis 15:6 once more. After describing Abraham's amazing faith in God in spite of the overwhelming unlikeliness of the promise being kept in human terms, Paul declared that this was why his faith was "counted to him" as righteousness. Now Paul writes that this benefit was not just for Abraham alone. He is not the only one in human history who can become righteous in God's eyes by faith. The path is available to everyone who will believe in what God has done for us through Jesus.This is central to Paul's main contention in this passage: that salvation is offered only to those who truly believe (John 3:16–18), and only on the basis of that belief. Good deeds cannot and will not grant us salvation.
Romans 4:13–25 continues to focus on the faith of Abraham. God made promises to Abraham and his descendants, promises which Abraham believed. Those promises can't be received by keeping the law, but only by faith. God promised Abraham a son with Sarah, and Abraham continued to believe that promise would be kept even as it became less and less likely in human terms. We, too, can be counted as righteous by faith in Jesus' death for our sins and God's resurrection of Him for our justification.
Romans 4 is all about the faith of Abraham. God declared Abraham righteous because of his faith, not because of his works. A declaration of righteousness was God's gift, not a payment. This righteousness is available to everyone, circumcised or not. God declared Abraham righteous many years before he was circumcised, making him the spiritual father of all who believe, whether circumcised or not, whether Jew or Gentile. God's promises to Abraham and his offspring can't be received by keeping the law, only by faith. Abraham's faith in God's promise of a son with Sarah did not waver even as he grew older. God will declare us righteous, as well, if by faith we believe in the God who delivered Jesus to die for our sins and raised Him back to life for our justification.
