Paul’s Use of Gen. 15:6

One of the oddities of Paul’s use of Genesis 15:6 is that this passage is clearly NOT about Abraham’s conversion. Abraham has already set up altars on at least two occasions (12:7-8), and he is calling on the name of the Lord (13:3-4). Even if that is unconvincing, Hebrews 11 makes it clear that Abraham responded in faith to the Lord’s call, recorded originally in Genesis 12 (Heb 11:8). Despite this, many Protestant commentators interpret Romans 4 as a discussion of Abraham’s conversion. But either Paul is contradicting Genesis and Hebrews (which may involve contradicting himself, depending on the authorship question), OR Paul is not asserting that Genesis 15 is Abraham’s conversion when he speaks of Abraham’s justification by faith in Romans 4. I opt for the latter, but this leaves the very odd situation of an Abraham who believes, obeys, and worships Yahweh, yet is NOT YET JUSTIFIED. What are we to make of that?

First, it should be noted that this is not only true of Abraham, but of Jesus. Jesus was certainly beloved and accepted before God from the moment of His existence. The Father certainly considered Him to be righteous. But Paul says that Jesus was “vindicated in the Spirit” (1 Tim 3:16), a reference, as Richard Gaffin has argued, to the resurrection (cf. also ROm 4:25). So, Jesus was an obedient and faithful servant BEFORE He was publicly declared righteous by His resurrection.

Second, this means that Paul is NOT using Abraham only as a model of conversion and justification. He does indeed do that, in Romans 4:1-8. The fact that Abraham was reckoned righteous because of his faith means that everyone who is a child of Abraham is reckoned righteous because of his faith, and not because of works. Abraham had nothing to boast in, and neither does any believer, Jew or Greek. But that is not the only reason Paul brings Abraham up in Romans 4, and I daresay it’s not the main reason. The other (or main) reason Abraham is brought up is because Abraham combines in his own person, in his own life-history, Jew and Gentile. Abraham is both believing Gentile God-fearer and believing circumcised Jew, and that means that the promise comes equally to any Jew and Gentile who follows in the steps of Abraham by trusting in God’s power to raise the dead.

Third, do these considerations confirm NT Wright’s view that justification is not entry language, but a declaration about what is in fact the case? Yes, in the case of Abraham, because Abraham’s justification does not occur at the outset of his life of faith. There is a VERY attenuated ordo salutis here: Abraham is called and believes, and then some decades later is justified. But I don’t think that Paul means that Abraham’s ordo salutis is the same as ours in every respect. It is certainly the same as ours in the fact that justification is by faith; but it is not the same as ours in the temporal gap between faith and justification. That is implicit in Paul’s statement about circumcision in Romans 4:11. Abraham did not receive the “seal of righteousness” until he was 99 years old, but of course Isaac received the “seal of righteousness” a week after his birth, and so did all other Jewish boys. “Righteousness” in this context (ie, Gen 15 and Rom 4) has to do with being qualified to receive the promised inheritance, the world (Rom 4:13). Abraham was reckoned as a covenant friend and partner by his faith well into his life; Isaac became a recipient of promise simply by being born into the family of faithful Abraham. Issac was considered “righteous,” a son of the covenant and heir of the promise, by entering into the faith of Abraham.

A similar pattern holds in the NC: The public declaration of Jesus’ righteousness occurs at his resurrection, and our vindication/justification will also be pronounced at our resurrection. But when we enter into the faith of Jesus by faith, when we believe and trust the God who raised Jesus from the dead, we already enter into that verdict. When we receive the NT “seal of righteousness,” we are being designated as heirs, members of the community of the righteous, who will inherit the earth. For those who are born outside the covenant people, they enter into the righteous standing of the Risen Christ when they trust in Jesus, and this is sealed to them by baptism. In the NT as in the OT, the ordo salutis of the covenant head is not the same as the ordo salutis of the covenant body.