1 How then can we assert,
“that Abraham our father
obtained this from circumcision?”
2 for if Abraham
was justified by works, he
had matter of pretension,
whereas he had no such claim
from God.
3 for what saith the
scripture? “Abraham believed
God, and it was
counted to him for righteousness.”
4 the reward is
not counted as a favour to him
-- --
that has done good actions,
but as a debt:
5 whereas he
that trusts in God to be made
righteous, tho' he has not
done such actions, shall find
his faith accounted as righteousness.
6 even as David also
speaks of the happiness of the
man whom God accounted
righteous independently of his
works,
7 “ note happy are they
whose iniquities are forgiven,
and whose sins are
covered.
8 happy is the man
to whom the Lord will not
account sin.”
9 Is this happiness then for
the circumcised only, or for
the uncircumcised also? for
we say that faith was accounted
to Abraham for righteousness.
10 how was it then
accounted? whilst he was circumcised,
or uncircumcised?
he was not then circumcised,
but uncircumcised:
11 and he received
the sign of circumcision,
as a seal of the justification by
that faith, which the uncircumcised
have: that he might
be the father of all those who
believe, tho' they are uncircumcised,
that it might be accounted
to them also for righteousness:
12 and the father of
the circumcised, that is of those
who are not barely circumcised,
but who imitate that faith
-- --
which our father Abraham
had, being yet uncircumcised.
13 Besides, the promise that he
should possess the world, was
not made to Abraham, or to
his posterity in consideration of
the law, but with regard to
the righteousness by faith.
14 for
if they only who are of the
law have right of possession,
faith is made useless, and the
promise becomes of no effect.
15 because the effect of the law
is punishment: for if there
had been no law, there could
have been no transgression.
16 therefore the inheritance is of
faith, that it might be meerly
of favour, to the end the promise
might be assured to all his
posterity, not to that part only
who have the law, but to that
also who have the faith of Abraham,
the father of us all,
as it is written,
17 “ note I have
made thee a father of many
nations,” then existing in
the sight of God, whom he believed,
who gives life to the
dead, and calls forth things
that are not, as if they were:
18 he it was who against hope
believed in hope, that he should
become the father of many nations,
according to what was
told him, “so shall thy posterity
be:”
19 far from being
weak in faith, unconcern'd at
his own bodily decay, being then
-- --
about an hundred years old,
and at Sarah's incapacity of
child-bearing,
20 he was not incredulously
diffident of the divine
promise; but was strong
in faith, and did honour to
God,
21 by the full persuasion he
had, that what he had promised,
he was able also to perform.
22 and therefore it was accounted
to him for righteousness.
23 now this saying, “that it was
accounted to him,” was not
written for his sake alone,
24 but
for us also, to whom it shall be
accounted, if we believe on
him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead,
25 who
was delivered for our offences,
and was raised again for our
justification.
Mace [1729], THE NEW TESTAMENT IN Greek and English. Containing the ORIGINAL TEXT Corrected from the Authority of the most Authentic Manuscripts: AND A NEW VERSION Form'd agreeably to the Illustrations of the most Learned Commentators and Critics: WITH NOTES and VARIOUS READINGS, AND A Copious Alphabetical Index (Printed for J. ROBERTS [etc.], LONDON) [word count] [B11200].
