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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Romans 4 NLT</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/romans/4.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="../topmenuchap/romans/4-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NLT</a> > Romans 4</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../romans/3.htm" title="Romans 3">◄</a> Romans 4 <a href="../romans/5.htm" title="Romans 5">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New Living Translation</td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/p/nlt/esv/romans/4.shtml" style="color:#001320" title="Parallel Chapters"> Par ▾ </a></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><p class="hdg">The Faith of Abraham</p><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">a</span></a></p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it:</p><p class="b"/><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>“Oh, what joy for those</p><p class="line2">whose disobedience is forgiven,</p><p class="line2">whose sins are put out of sight.</p><p class="line1"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>Yes, what joy for those</p><p class="line2">whose record the LORD has cleared of sin.”<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">b</span></a></p><p class="b"/><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles?<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">c</span></a> Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>Circumcision was a sign that Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous—even before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They are counted as righteous because of their faith. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>If God’s promise is only for those who obey the law, then faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>For the law always brings punishment on those who try to obey it. (The only way to avoid breaking the law is to have no law to break!)</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, “I have made you the father of many nations.”<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">d</span></a> This happened because Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!”<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">e</span></a> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-23.htm"><b>23</b></a></span>And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-24.htm"><b>24</b></a></span>for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/4-25.htm"><b>25</b></a></span>He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.</p><A name="footnotes"></a><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"><span class="mainfootnotes"><span class="mainfootnoteshdg">Footnotes:</span><br><span class="fn">a</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">4:3 </span><span class="ft">Gen 15:6.</span><br><span class="fn">b</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">4:7-8 </span><span class="ft">Ps 32:1-2 (Greek version).</span><br><span class="fn">c</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">4:9 </span><span class="ft">Greek </span><span class="it">is this blessing only for the circumcised, or is it also for the uncircumcised?</span><br><span class="fn">d</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">4:17 </span><span class="ft">Gen 17:5.</span><br><span class="fn">e</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">4:18 </span><span class="ft">Gen 15:5.</span><br></span></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center"><em>Holy Bible</em>, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of <a href="http://www.tyndale.com">Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.</a>, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. 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