Promise Through Faith and Resurrection-Centered Trust
God’s promise is received by faith in his power to bring life from death, a faith fulfilled in trust in the risen Christ.
Romans 4:13-25 (BSB)
13 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world was not given through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
14 For if those who live by the law are heirs, faith is useless and the promise is worthless,
15 because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law, there is no transgression.
16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may rest on grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the presence of God, in whom he believed, the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being what does not yet exist.
18 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
19 Without weakening in his faith, he acknowledged the decrepitness of his body (since he was about a hundred years old) and the lifelessness of Sarah’s womb.
20 Yet he did not waver through disbelief in the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,
21 being fully persuaded that God was able to do what He had promised.
22 This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”
23 Now the words “it was credited to him” were written not only for Abraham,
24 but also for us, to whom righteousness will be credited—for us who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
25 He was delivered over to death for our trespasses and was raised to life for our justification.
What is the big idea of Romans 4:13-25?
God’s promise is received by faith in his power to bring life from death, a faith fulfilled in trust in the risen Christ.
How does Romans 4:13-25 point to Christ?
The promise of righteousness and inheritance is secured by grace and received through faith. True faith trusts in the God who raises the dead, fulfilled supremely in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through his death and resurrection, believers are justified and counted righteous before God.
How does Romans 4:13-25 relate to the life and ministry of Jesus?
Romans 4:25 explicitly connects Abraham’s faith to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus was delivered over to death for our sins and raised to life for our justification. The passage presents the cross and resurrection as the ground of the believer’s righteous standing before God. Abraham trusted God’s power to bring life from deadness; Christians trust the God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
Authorial Intent
To show that the promise to Abraham comes through faith rather than law, and that saving faith trusts in the God who gives life to the dead.
Literary Context
Romans 4:13-25 concludes Romans 4’s demonstration that justification by faith establishes the law and fulfills Scripture’s witness. Romans 4:1-8 showed that Abraham was counted righteous by faith apart from works and that David described blessedness apart from works. Romans 4:9-12 showed that Abraham was counted righteous before circumcision, making him father of circumcised and uncircumcised believers. Romans 4:13-25 now shows that Abraham received the promise not through law but through faith, so that the promise would rest on grace and extend to all who share Abraham’s faith. The passage ends by connecting Abraham’s credited righteousness to Christian faith in God who raised Jesus.
Historical Context
Paul writes to a mixed Roman church where questions of Jewish privilege, law, circumcision, Gentile inclusion, and Abrahamic inheritance were deeply significant. Paul uses Abraham to show that the gospel does not cancel Scripture but fulfills the promise through faith and grace. Believers in Rome, including Jewish and Gentile Christians who needed to understand Abraham, promise, law, faith, grace, and justification in relation to Christ Romans 4:13-25 places the Abrahamic promise within the larger story that culminates in Christ’s death and resurrection. Abraham trusted God’s life-giving power in relation to promised offspring. Believers now trust God’s life-giving power revealed in raising Jesus from the dead.
Chapter: Romans 4
Abraham Justified by Faith and the Promise Secured by Grace
Abraham was justified by faith before circumcision and apart from the law, proving that God’s promise is secured by grace and fulfilled for all who believe in the crucified and risen Christ.