Greek Form Guide

πίστεως (pisteos) in Romans 3:26: Noun Genitive Singular Feminine

πίστεως (pisteos) in Romans 3:26

Textual Witness

πίστεως pisteos Noun Genitive Singular Feminine

The witnessed form is πίστεως in Romans 3:26, with the phrase ἐκ πίστεως Ἰησοῦ following δικαιοῦντα.

How The Form Affects Interpretation

The form nudges interpretation toward a faith-related basis or identification in the clause, but the surrounding syntax and verse context carry the main meaning.

How To Communicate It

Explain the phrase as faith-linked description inside Paul's justification argument, while letting the paragraph carry the full theology of faith and righteousness.

What Not To Say

  • Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
  • Genitive case here indicates relation, not a stand-alone doctrine.
  • Feminine gender is grammatical classification, not a theological gender claim.
  • Do not use the grammar profile as a shortcut around the wording and logic of the verse.

What Does The Label Mean?

Part of Speech

Noun: the word names an idea or reality here, namely faith or trust, rather than an action word or modifier.

Case

Genitive: the form usually marks a relationship to another word, and here it signals a phrase linked to the one who is being justified.

Number

Singular: the form is grammatically singular in this occurrence, presenting faith as one shared referential idea in the clause.

Gender

Feminine: the noun belongs to the feminine grammatical class, which helps identify the form but does not by itself make a theological gender claim.

What The Form Does In This Verse

Attached To

ἐκ

Governed By

The preposition ἐκ governs the genitive and frames the phrase as source or basis language within the larger clause.

Role In The Phrase

It functions within the description of the one being justified, marking the person as belonging to the sphere of faith rather than to another basis.

What It Is Not Doing

It does not, by grammar alone, specify the full theology of faith, nor does it turn the noun into a different lemma or force a detailed doctrinal distinction.

How Much The Form Matters Here

Interpretive Weight

High: The genitive after ek participates in a central justification statement about the one justified by faith.

Syntax Profile

Genitive object of ek in a faith-linked phrase. marks faith as the defining relation or basis in the description of the one justified. Attached to the one described in relation to faith. Governed by the preposition ek in Romans 3:26. The phrase is theologically weighty, so the case form should be explained with Paul's sentence rather than as a standalone doctrine.

Reader Question

How is the justified person described in this phrase? The person is described in relation to faith, within Paul's statement about God justifying.

Translation Effect

Direct: The genitive governed by ek directly affects the wording of the faith-related phrase.

Where Caution Is Needed

The genitive with ek can be described with source, basis, or defining-relation language; the paragraph controls the final explanation. The grammar should support Paul's argument, not replace it with a case-label conclusion.

Fallacies To Avoid

Genitive alone settles justification doctrine: The genitive supports the faith phrase, while Romans 3 supplies the doctrine through the whole argument. feminine gender makes a theological claim: Feminine is the grammatical class of the noun for faith, not a theological gender claim.

How The Interpretation Is Derived

Textual Witness

The witnessed form is πίστεως in Romans 3:26, with the phrase ἐκ πίστεως Ἰησοῦ following δικαιοῦντα.

Lexical Identity

The lemma πίστις means faith, trust, or belief, so the form keeps that basic sense while placing it in a genitive relation.

Grammar In Context

In this clause the grammar most naturally supports a person described as one who is from faith, with ἐκ introducing the relationship and not the whole argument.

Passage Meaning

The verse presents God as righteous and as one who justifies the person identified by faith in the flow of the sentence.

Canonical Fit

This use fits the wider biblical pattern in which faith is the recognized response connected to receiving God's righteous action.

Communication Use

For teaching and translation, the form clarifies that the phrase is relational and dependent on the clause around it, not isolated as a slogan.

Do Not Derive

Do not derive a complete doctrinal system, a gender-based meaning, or a contrast between different kinds of faith from this case ending alone.