For Christ is the fulfillment of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
Parallel Translations
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For Christ is the fulfillment of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
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For Christ is the ende of the lawe to iustifie all that beleve.
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For Christ is the end of the Law for righteousnes vnto euery one that beleeueth.
Cross-references (16)
Passages linked to Romans 10:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Galatians 3:24 So that the law has become our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
- Romans 8:3-4 For what the law couldn’t do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God did, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh; that the ordinance of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
- Matthew 5:17-18 “Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfill. For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished.
- Acts 13:38-39 Be it known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man is proclaimed to you remission of sins, and by him everyone who believes is justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
- John 1:17 For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
- Isaiah 53:11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light and be satisfied. My righteous servant will justify many by the knowledge of himself; and he will bear their iniquities.
- Hebrews 10:14 For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.
- Romans 7:1-4 Or don’t you know, brothers (for I speak to men who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man for as long as he lives? For the woman that has a husband is bound by law to the husband while he lives, but if the husband dies, she is discharged from the law of the husband. So then if, while the husband lives, she is joined to another man, she would be called an adulteress. But if the husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is no adulteress, though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brothers, you also were made dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you would be joined to another, to him who was raised from the dead, that we might produce fruit to God.
- Romans 3:25-31 whom God sent to be an atoning sacrifice, through faith in his blood, for a demonstration of his righteousness through the passing over of prior sins, in God’s forbearance; to demonstrate his righteousness at this present time; that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him who has faith in Jesus. Where then is the boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. We maintain therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Isn’t he the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith, and the uncircumcised through faith. Do we then nullify the law through faith? May it never be! No, we establish the law.
- 1 Corinthians 1:30 Because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who was made to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption:
- Colossians 2:10 and in him you are made full, who is the head of all principality and power.
- Colossians 2:17 which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ’s.
- Romans 3:22 even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all those who believe. For there is no distinction,
- Hebrews 10:8-12 Previously saying, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you didn’t desire, neither had pleasure in them” (those which are offered according to the law), then he has said, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He takes away the first, that he may establish the second, by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Every priest indeed stands day by day serving and often offering the same sacrifices which can never take away sins, but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God,
- Matthew 3:15 But Jesus, answering, said to him, “Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him.
- Hebrews 9:7-14 but into the second the high priest alone, once in the year, not without blood, which he offers for himself, and for the errors of the people. The Holy Spirit is indicating this, that the way into the Holy Place wasn’t yet revealed while the first tabernacle was still standing. This is a symbol of the present age, where gifts and sacrifices are offered that are incapable, concerning the conscience, of making the worshiper perfect, being only (with meats and drinks and various washings) fleshly ordinances, imposed until a time of reformation. But Christ having come as a high priest of the coming good things, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify to the cleanness of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without defect to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 4. For the end of the law is Christ,…
4. For the end of the law is Christ, etc. The word completion, seems not to me unsuitable in this place; and Erasmus has rendered it perfection: but as the other reading is almost universally approved, and is not inappropriate, readers, for my part, may retain it.
The Apostle obviates here an objection which might have been made against him; for the Jews might have appeared to have kept the right way by depending on the righteousness of the law. It was necessary for him to disprove this false opinion; and this is what he does here. He shows that he is a false interpreter of the law, who seeks to be justified by his own works; because the law had been given for this end, — to lead us as by the hand to another righteousness: nay, whatever the law teaches, whatever it commands, whatever it promises, has always a reference to Christ as its main object; and hence all its parts ought to be applied to him. But this cannot be done, except we, being stripped of all righteousness, and confounded with the knowledge of our sin, seek gratuitous righteousness from him alone.
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It hence follows, that the wicked abuse of the law was justly reprehended in the Jews, who absurdly made an obstacle of that which was to be their help: nay, it appears that they had shamefully mutilated the law of God; for they rejected its soul, and seized on the dead body of the letter. For though the law promises reward to those who observe its righteousness, it yet substitutes, after having proved all guilty, another righteousness in Christ, which is not attained by works, but is received by faith as a free gift. Thus the righteousness of faith, (as we have seen in the first chapter,) receives a testimony from the law. We have then here a remarkable passage, which proves that the law in all its parts had a reference to Christ; and hence no one can rightly understand it, who does not continually level at this mark.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Not only to the Jews, but also to the…
Not only to the Jews, but also to the Gentiles.
The proof: The Law itself hath respect unto Christ, that such as believe in him should be saved. Therefore the calling to salvation by the works of the law is vain and foolish, but Christ is offered for salvation to every believer.
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The end of the Law is to justify them that keep the Law: but seeing we do not observe the Law through the fault of our flesh, we attain not unto this end: but Christ salveth this disease, for he fulfilled the Law for us.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 4 For Christ is the end of the law…
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
Ver. 4. For Christ is the end, &c.] q.d. Ay, and for Christ’s sake, is the righteousness of God. But the Jews submit not to Christ, therefore not to the righteousness of God. Christ, saith Austin, is Legis finis interficiens, et perficiens. The ceremonial law he hath slain and taken out of the way: the moral law he hath fulfilled for us, and we by him, so by faith in his name, which maketh his obedience to become ours.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain He proves that the Jews were ignorant of the…
He proves that the Jews were ignorant of the righteousness of God, because they were ignorant of Christ, the true
end of the law. Christ is the end of the law: q. d. The law was given for this end, that sinners being thereby brought to the knowledge of their sins, and their lost and damned estate, by reason thereof, should fly to Christ and his righteousness for refuge; see Gal 3:19, 24. Or else: Christ is the end of the law; i.e. the perfection and consummation thereof. The word is taken in this sense, 1Ti 1:5. He perfected the ceremonial law, as being the substance whereof all the ceremonies of the law were shadows; they all referred to him as their scope and end. He perfected also the moral law, partly by his active obedience, fulfilling all the righteousness thereof, partly by his passive obedience, bearing the curse and punishment of the law, which was due to us. Whatever the law required that we should do or suffer, he hath perfected it on our behalf: see Rom 8:4.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain There was a threefold law of God, which Christ…
There was a threefold law of God, which Christ may be said to be the end of; namely, judicial, ceremonial, and moral.
1. The judicial law was that which God by Moses delivered to the Jews, containing directions for administration of their civil government. Now Christ was the end of the law, as he has abolished it: for the Jewish polity was to continue till the coming of the Messiah, and no longer, Gen 49:10; Dan 9:25.
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2. The ceremonial law was that which did prescribe certain sacred rites and ceremonies to be observed in the external worship of God by the people of Israel. The former law had relation to them as a nation, this as they were a church. Now Christ is the end of this law, as he has abrogated it. All the ceremonies of that law were shadows and types of Christ; now the shadows were to cease, when once the substance was come.
3. The moral law is that holy and eternal rule of righteousness given by God to men, for the right ordering of their thoughts, words, and actions, towards God, their neighbour, and themselves. This law is summarily comprehended in the ten commandments, and is called the law of righteousness and the royal law, Rom 9:31; Jas 2:1.
1. Now Christ may be said to be the end of this law,
1. As he is the scope of it.
2. As he is the accomplishment of it. The precepts of the law point at Christ, as he by whom they are accomplished; the promises of the law point at him as he by whom they are ratified; and the threatenings of the law may be said to point at him, as he by whom they are escaped. Christ was the sum of the law, as well as the substance of the gospel.
In a word, 3. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, to be imputed to every one that believeth in him, the law being our school-master to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith, Gal 3:25
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For Christ is the end of the law,.... The…
For Christ is the end of the law,.... The apostle here observes that to them which had they known, would have regulated their zeal, removed their ignorance and set them right, in that which they stumbled at, and fell. By the "law" here, is not meant the ceremonial law, of which, indeed, they were all very zealous, and of which Christ also was the end in many respects; he was the final cause of it, or that for the sake of which it was; it had not been given had it not been for him; all its institutions, ordinances, and sacrifices, were on his account: they were all shadows of him, and he the body and substance of them; he was the end or mark and scope at which they all aimed; every type looked to him, and every offering directed the worshipper to him; he was the terminus of it, to whom it was to reach, and beyond whom it was not to go; it was a schoolmaster for instruction and direction until Christ came, and no longer. He was the fulfilling end of it, every thing in it had its accomplishment in him; and then lastly, he put an end to it, he disannulled it because of its after weakness and unprofitableness; he blotted out this hand writing of ordinances, and entirely abolished this law of commandments; but then Christ was not the end of this law for righteousness; Christ's obedience to it is no part of justifying righteousness, especially not to everyone that believes, not to the Gentiles who never were under any obligation to observe it: the moral law is here designed, and when Christ is said to be the end of it, the meaning is not that he was the end of its being given; for that was to be a rule of righteousness and life to men, and a ministration of death in case of disobedience: or that he was the scope of this law, though the Syriac version renders it "the scope" of the law is the Messiah, the mark at which it aimed, or which it directs persons to; for the law does not direct to Christ at all, in any way; it requires and insists upon a perfect righteousness, but gives not the least hint of the righteousness of Christ, nor does it in any form direct unto it; by it is the knowledge of sin, but no knowledge of a Saviour from sin; not the law, but the Gospel directs and encourages sensible sinners to believe in Christ and be saved; on the contrary, the law is a killing letter, and the ministration of condemnation and death; but Christ is either the consuming or consummating, the destroying or fulfilling end of the law. He is the destroying end of the law, not as to the nature, being, matter and substance of it, which is invariable and eternal, and is not, and cannot be made void by the doctrine of faith; nor as to the true use of it; but as a covenant of works, as to the ministry of it by Moses, and as to its curse and condemnation. Though I rather think the latter is here meant, namely, that Christ is the fulfilling end of the law, since it is added,
for righteousness: for the bringing in an everlasting righteousness; a righteousness justifying in the sight of God; a righteousness sinners wanted, and could not obtain of themselves, and could never be obtained but by a perfect fulfilling of the law: this Christ has done partly by the conformity of his nature, being exactly like that, and what it requires holy, just, and good; and partly by perfect obedience of his life to all its precepts; and also by suffering the penalty of it, death, in the room and stead of all his people; and so the whole righteousness of the law is fulfilled by him, and he becomes the end of it, for a justifying righteousness before God,
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to everyone that believes: not to him that works for life, and in order to obtain a righteousness of his own; nor to the Jew only, but also to the Gentile, even to everyone, be who he will, that has faith in Christ; not that faith is either the matter, cause, or condition of righteousness, but this righteousness is only revealed unto, and received by the believer, and can only be pleaded by him, as his justifying righteousness. Moreover, this phrase is descriptive of the persons to whom Christ is the end of the law for righteousness, and suggests that for whomsoever he has fulfilled the law, in order to bring in for them a justifying righteousness, faith in consequence is given to them, to receive and embrace it, and enjoy all the comfort and privileges of it.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain For Christ is the end of the law -…
For Christ is the end of the law - The scope and aim of it. It is the very design of the law, to bring men to believe in Christ for justification and salvation. And he alone gives that pardon and life which the law shows the want of, but cannot give. To every one - Whether Jew or gentile, treated of, ver. 11, &c. That believeth - Treated of, ver. 5.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 4. For Christ is the end of the…
Verse 4. For Christ is the end of the law] Where the law ends, Christ begins. The law ends with representative sacrifices; Christ begins with the real offering. The law is our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ; it cannot save, but it leaves us at his door, where alone salvation is to be found. Christ as an atoning sacrifice for sin, was the grand object of the whole sacrificial code of Moses; his passion and death were the fulfilment of its great object and design. Separate this sacrificial death of Christ from the law, and the law has no meaning, for it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins: wherefore the Messiah is represented as saying, Sacrifice and observing thou didst not desire; burnt-offering and sin-offering thou hast not required; then said I, Lo, I come to do thy will; a body hast thou prepared me, Ps 40:6, Ps 40:7; He 10:4-10; which proves that God never designed that the sacrifices of the law should be considered the atonement for sin, but a type or representative of that atonement; and that THE atonement was the sacrifice offered by Christ. Thus he was the END of the law, in respect to its sacrifices. And, as sacrifices were offered merely to procure pardon of sin, righteousness, or justification, Christ is the end of the law for this justification to every one that believeth on him, as dying for their offences, and rising again for their justification, having made peace through the blood of his cross. Therefore every Jew who rejected Christ rejected salvation, and that very salvation which the law witnessed and required, and which could not be had but through Christ alone.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Rom 10:4. For — That they have not submitted…
Rom 10:4. For — That they have not submitted themselves to God’s way of becoming righteous is evident in this, that they reject Christ, by whom alone righteousness can be obtained; Christ is the end of the law — The scope and aim of it; for righteousness — Observe, 1st, The righteousness here spoken of is evidently that which is necessary in order to eternal life, and leads to it, (see Rom 5:21,) termed the righteousness of God by faith, Php 3:9; implying not only justification, Rom 3:24, Tit 3:7, without which we, guilty, condemned sinners, can have no title to eternal life, it being the only means of cancelling our guilt, and freeing us from condemnation; but also sanctification, spoken of Eph 4:17-24, Tit 2:5-6, without which we are not in Christ, 2Co 5:17, and have no fitness for heaven; and practical obedience consequent thereon, Eph 2:10, the grand evidence that we are righteous, Luk 1:6, 1Jn 3:7. 2d, This righteousness, in these three branches of it, is not attainable by the law, moral or ceremonial; not by the former, because it finds us guilty of violating its spiritual and holy precepts, and has no pardon to give us; it finds us depraved, weak, and helpless, and has neither a new nature nor supernatural aid to impart. But may we not have the help we want from the ceremonial law? Cannot the sacrifices of it remove our guilt? No. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats, &c., to take away sin, Heb 10:4, &c. Cannot the various washings or purifications of it renew and cleanse our souls? No: they can only remove the filth of the flesh, Heb 9:13; 1Pe 3:21. Cannot the various institutions respecting meats and drinks, and the observance of days, &c., assist us to attain practical righteousness or obedience? No: as they do not make the tree good, of course the fruit cannot be good; as they do not purify the fountain, the streams issuing thence cannot be pure, Mat 7:16-19. But, 3d. This righteousness may be found by us in Christ; the end, or the final cause, for which the law was instituted; the moral law being chiefly intended to convince men of sin, namely, of their guilt, depravity, and weakness, and thus to be a school- master to bring them to Christ; Gal 3:19-24; and the ceremonial, to shadow forth and exhibit his sacrifice and grace. Accordingly the law points to Christ, and directs the sinner to have recourse to him for all the different branches of righteousness above mentioned, which cannot be obtained by it, but may be had in and by Christ; namely, justification, through his obedience unto death, whereby he hath removed the curse of the moral law, being made a curse for us; and regeneration, or a new creation, with the practical righteousness proceeding therefrom, through his grace and Spirit; the information and direction, in the way of duty, afforded by his doctrine and example, and the motives to obedience furnished by his precepts, promises, and threatenings, co-operating as means to produce the same blessed effects. But, 4th, To whom is Christ thus the end of the law for righteousness? To every one — Whether Jew or Gentile; (see Rom 10:11-15;) that believeth — Namely, with the faith described Rom 10:5, &c. So that the very end and design of the law was to bring men to believe in Christ, whom it exhibited and pointed out, for justification, renovation, and universal holiness.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain For Christ - This expression implies faith in Christ.…
For Christ - This expression implies faith in Christ. This is the design of the discussion, to show that justification cannot be obtained by our own righteousness, but by faith in Christ. As no direct benefit results to people from Christ unless they believe on him, faith in him is implied where the word occurs in this connection.
Is the end of the law - The word translated “end” means what completes a thing, or renders it perfect; also the boundary, issue, or termination of anything, as the end of life, the result of a prophecy, etc.; Joh 13:1; Luk 22:37. It also means the design or object which is had in view; the principal purpose for which it was undertaken; 1Ti 1:5,” The end of the commandment is charity;” the main design or purpose of the command is to produce love; 1Pe 1:9, “The end of your faith, the salvation of your souls;” the main design or purpose of faith is to secure salvation; Rom 14:9, “To this end Christ both died,” etc. For this design or purpose. This is doubtless its meaning here. “The main design or object which the perfect obedience of the Law would accomplish, is accomplished by faith in Christ.” That is, perfect obedience to the Law would accomplish justification before God, secure his favor and eternal life. The same end is now accomplished by faith in Christ. The great design of both is the same; and the same great end is finally gained. This was the subject of discussion between the apostle and the Jews; and this is all that is necessary to understand in the case. Some have supposed that the word “end” refers to the ceremonial law; that Christ fulfilled it, and brought it to an end. Others, that he perfectly fulfilled the moral law. And others, that the Law in the end leads us to Christ, or that its design is to point us to him. All this is true, but not the truth taught in this passage. That is simple and plain, that by faith in Christ the same end is accomplished in regard to our justification, that would be by perfect obedience to the moral law.
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For righteousness - Unto justification with God.
To every ... - See the note at Rom 1:17.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain For Christ is the end--the object or aim.
For Christ is the end--the object or aim.
of the law for--justifying
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righteousness to every one that believeth--that is, contains within Himself all that the law demands for the justification of such as embrace Him, whether Jew or Gentile (Gal 3:24).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. End… righteousness—The end of the law is that…
4. End… righteousness—The end of the law is that full and final result which the fulfilled law would accomplish in the perfectly fulfilling man; namely, perfect justification founded on his perfect righteousness. But let man commit the slightest transgression and, alas! he is done for. Law can never justify him, but must eternally condemn. But, says the apostle, Christ now can step in and accomplish the law’s perfect end.
Believeth—Same as the submitted of Rom_10:3. Man must in faith submit himself to Christ in order to the end. And this the Jew ignored, and fell.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. For Christ, &c.] The connexion is that the…
4. For Christ, &c.] The connexion is that the conduct of the Jews was a total mistake of their own Revelation; for He whom they rejected was no accidental or alien intruder, but “the End of the Law.”—The ver. may be closely, and better, rendered; For the end of the Law is—Christ, unto righteousness, to everyone that believeth; the whole idea conveyed by the words from “Christ” to “believeth” being the “end of the Law.”
the end of the law] Cp. for the phrase 1Pe_1:9, “the end of your faith;” i.e. what your faith leads up to. So here Christ our Justification was what the Law (the preceptive Revelation by Moses) led up to, both prophetically by its types and predictions, and preparatively by its sin-discovering and inexorable demands. (See for the latter respect, ch. 7.) The words are capable of the sense “the close of the Law,” i.e. “He who brings it to an end.” But this is not the aspect of the matter in this context, nor in the Epistle as a whole.
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for righteousness] unto righteousness; in order to be “The Lord our righteousness” (Jer_23:6). See on Rom_1:17; &c.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) The end of the law.—“End,” in the proper…
(4) The end of the law.—“End,” in the proper sense of termination or conclusion. Christ is that which brings the functions of the Law to an end by superseding it. “The Law pursues a man until he takes refuge in Christ; then it says, Thou hast found thine asylum; I shall trouble thee no more, now thou art wise; now thou art safe.” (Bengel.)
For righteousness to every one that believeth.—So that every one who believes may obtain righteousness.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain For Christ is the end of Law unto righteousness…
For Christ is the end of Law unto righteousness to every one that believeth. The word "end" (telov) might in itself mean
(1) termination,
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(2) fulfilment,
(3) aim or purpose,
which is the evident meaning of the word in 1Ti_1:5 and 1Pe_1:9. This last seems best to suit the line of thought in this place. The Jews evinced ignorance, i.e. of the real meaning and purpose of Law, in resting on it for justification. This is St. Paul"s constant position in speaking of the office of Law that it could not and was never meant to justify, but rather to convince of sin; to establish the need of, and excite a craving for, redemption; and so prepare men to appreciate and accept the righteousness of God in Christ which was its telov . (see especially Ro 7; and cf. Gal_3:24, Wste o nomov paidagwgogonen eiv Cristostwv dikaiwywmen) Nomov being here anarthrous, we translate it according to the rule observed in this Commentary. The apostle has, indeed, in view the Mosaic Law; but it is the principle of law, as such, that he is speaking of. He next proceeds, as elsewhere throughout the Epistle, to quote from the Old Testament in illustration of the contrast between the two principles of justification, and this with the intention of showing that even in the Pentateuch that of justification by faith was intimated, and thus that it was all along the real telov of the Law. "Nam si prophetas suae sententiae testes citasset, haerebat tamen hic scrupulus, cum Lex aliam justitiae formam praescriberet. Hunc ergo optime discutit, quum ex ipsa Legis doctrina stabitit fidei justitiam" (Calvin).
The end of the Law.
The desire for righteousness has embodied itself in diverse and some of them grotesque forms. Gather together the Pharisee with his phylacteries and ablutions; the Chinaman burning his bits of paper for ancestral worship; the Hindoo bathing in the sacred river, or prostrating himself under the idol-car; the Roman Catholic telling his beads and performing his penance; and the moral youth, who never omits his daily portion of Scripture, or his morning and evening prayers, and would scorn to tell an untruth; and one would scarce imagine that the same motive actuates all these. Yet they all bear witness to man"s anxiety to be righteous in the sight of the Supreme Being, and those are abnormally Constituted who are never conscious of this yearning. It was not this strong desire for righteousness which the apostle tried to alter in the Jews, but the antiquated imperfect method to which they still clung after the one sure way of justification through faith in Christ had been proclaimed.
I CHRIST THE TERMINATION OF THE LEGAL ECONOMY. The rending of the veil at the Crucifixion indicated the passing away of the old dispensation, with all its gorgeous rites and external splendour. There arose another order of priesthood, from which the exclusiveness of the former caste was absent. Jesus the High Priest came not of the tribe of Levi. It is no longer necessary to become a Jew in order to reap the privileges of access to God. Christ has released men from the yoke of the Law, with its fasts and feasts, its observance of days and seasons. He has changed our state from pupilage to manhood; from slavery to a "reasonable service." Wherever a Christian is found, there is a spiritual priest and a living temple; wherever Christians meet, there is a holy convocation. The tabernacle disappeared when the temple was erected, and the earthly temple is no longer needed when the glorious building rises, reared without hands. The Jews who would not receive this teaching had to be convinced, by the capture of Jerusalem and the burning of their "beautiful house," that "the old order changed, giving place to new." The forerunner of Christ was the last of the Old Testament prophets.
II CHRIST THE DESIGN AND SCOPE OF THE LEVITICAL DISPENSATION. We cannot understand the Law unless we regard it as pointing unmistakably to the coming Messiah, preparing his way; a preliminary education of mankind and of one nation in particular; like a stock on which a new rose is to be grafted. The sacrifices, the moral and ceremonial precepts, were predictive, were prophecy acted in symbol and type. The chrysalis displays tokens of the winged perfect insect. "The Law hath been our tutor to bring us unto Christ." So that when men inquire, "To what purpose was all this cost of legislation and ritual?" the reply is that it paved the way for something better; it was the "shadow of good things to come.
III CHRIST THE REALIZATION OF THE MOSAIC IDEAL. The holiness which the Law ever kept in view, endeavouring to raise men to its standard of righteousness, has been exemplified in Jesus Christ. Wherein the Law was weak, Christ was strong. His condemnation of sin was thorough and effective, and the perfection of his sacrifice renders any subsequent atonement needless. To enter into the spirit of his offering is to "purge the conscience from dead works" and to give rest and peace to the troubled the region in which the Law was inoperative. The message of Divine love sounding from the cross has a constraining influence over the affections and life of the Christian, which the Law aimed at and failed to achieve. New Testament saints have frequently attained to an enlightenment of mind and conformity to the Divine will which was sighed after in vain by patriarch, psalmist, and prophet. Christ bring his followers into communion with God, and by faith in him are they sanctified. Love is proved a stronger principle than terror, knowledge than ignorance, example than precept. In abrogating, Christ fulfils the Law.
CONCLUSION. See, then, what faith does. It looks at Christ instead of a Law of ordinances. It is no longer tied by enactments and fearful of noncompliance, for it beholds the face of Jesus, "the Lamb as it had been slain." We may trust Christ as our Redeemer and Guide, without understanding or acknowledging all these points of superiority over the former covenant; as a woman knows she will be benefited by a certain medicine, though she could not name its ingredients, nor state the method of its working; or as a man may journey on the railway who comprehends little of the application of steam to locomotives, etc. And faith is content to submit to God"s righteousness, instead of seeking to establish its own. It relies not upon personal desert, but upon the provisions of mercy furnished in Christ. It is humble, and tries not to patch together a human garment to hide deformities and deficiencies. Accepting the gracious offer of God, faith discovers new elements of strength and joy in the very position assumed. S.R.A.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain For Christ is the end of the law for…
Rom_10:4
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
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Christ the end of the law
I. In what sense?
1. As its great antitype.
2. Its only sacrifice.
3. The source of its moral power.
II. For what end? To secure--
1. Pardon of sin.
2. Holiness of life.
III. Unto whom?
1. Every one.
2. That believeth. (J. Lyth, D.D.)
Christ the end of the law for righteousness
I. The end of all law is righteousness--the production of the most perfect results.
1. In the natural world the use of the law is to perpetuate results essential to its well-being, e.g., the circulation of the atmosphere, ebb and flow of tide, alteration of seasons, motions and influence of planets, etc.
2. The great aim of law in the moral world is to regulate conduct so as to produce a righteous character. The aim of the law of Moses was to lead to a higher life (Rom_7:10).
(1) The ethical element in the Mosaic law discovered to man the havoc made by sin (Rom_7:7; Rom_7:11; Rom_7:13).
(2) The ceremonial element shadowed forth the remedy. The sacrifices and festivals were intended to show the necessity for the expiation of sin, by the atonement of Christ.
II. In Christ we have the grand end of both the ethical and ceremonial law--righteousness and holiness. Law depends for its authority upon the personal character of the lawgiver. The character of Christ was like His law--holy, just, and good.
1. From Christ proceeds the moral law by which sin is discovered to us. His character is a constant reproof to us. His words bring home the consciousness of violated law.
2. In Christ is the only remedy for sin. The arrangements of the ceremonial law terminated in Him--the shadow retired when the substance appeared. In His life and death He fulfilled the duties and endured the penalties of the law, thus vindicating the righteousness of God and providing a complete righteousness for sinful man.
III. Faith in Christ is accepted as a perfect obedience to the law. Law is powerless punitively when the end for which it exists is attained. We disarm the law by obeying it. All our unaided efforts to obey law--while in a state of lawless unnature--are futile. It is like running alongside a parallel pathway into which we are vainly trying to turn ourselves. Faith, and faith only, is the means of junction. This puts us into the position in which law would place us. The end of all law being the production of the most perfect results, this very end is answered when we believe in Jesus. For Christ, and all He has, becomes our own. He is made unto us, of God, wisdom and righteousness, and sanctification and redemption. The law and the gospel are evidenced in mans moral nature. The law the ideal of its life, the gospel the life of its ideal. Lessons:
1. It is hopeless to attempt to attain righteousness by law, because of our moral inability to obey all its requirements.
2. Faith in Christ is the only and universal way of obedience. (J. S. Exell, M.A.)
Christ the end of the law for righteousness
I. What is implied in these words.
1. That the law of God has been universally broken (Rom_3:10-12).
2. That, therefore, every man is under the curse of that law (Gal_3:13; Rom_2:8-11).
3. That, in order to be saved, this curse must be removed and sins remitted.
4. That no man of himself can remove this curse or obtain this remission of his sins.
5. That notwithstanding God cannot recede from His claims, nor abate one jot or tittle of what His holy law demands, either in penalty or precept.
6. That every person who would obtain salvation must look out for such a righteousness as shall be answerable to all the claims of the law, be perfectly satisfactory to God, and therefore available for his justification and peace.
II. In what way is Christ the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth? Consider--
1. The general purport of Christs coming (Psa_40:6-10; Heb_10:1-14; Isa_42:6-7; Isa_42:21; Dan_9:24; Jer_23:5-6; Jer_33:15-16; Isa_53:6, cf. 1Pe_2:24; 2Co_5:21).
2. The special character of His mediation. We must consider it as substitutional. We must behold Him rendering unto God, for those whom He represented, a perfect obedience to the law which they have broken, and suffering to its full and utmost extent the curse which they have incurred. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness--not by abrogating its authority, or lowering its requisitions, to meet the exigencies of our lapsed condition--but rather by asserting its full obligation and satisfying all its equitable claims. This is the great glory of the gospel--that God can be just--in exacting every claim of the law and in punishing every sin of those whom He saves to its full desert--and yet the justifier of them that believe in Jesus.
III. To whom is this provision available, or who are benefited thereby. Every one that believeth, and no more. But we must ascertain--
1. The testimony given in Scripture to this truth. We are again and again told that faith alone is the means appointed by God for granting the efficacy of this provision to the souls of men.
2. Why we can be benefited in this way of faith, and in no other? It is enough to say that God hath declared it. But we need not let the subject rest here. Man is utterly lost, helpless, and undone. Nothing that we can do can avail for our salvation. Our help and hope are based upon One, who only is mighty to save. It is therefore evident that the only way in which we can be benefited by what another has done for our salvation, must be by believing in Him for the execution of such an interposition, and for the advantage of the blessing procured thereby.
3. What is the nature of that faith by which we become interested in this righteousness. It is the act of a soul made willing in the day of Gods power, under a clear discovery of its lost condition, and a clear perception of the mediation of Jesus, by which it is brought to rely on that mediation, and to plead that righteousness with God for its pardon and peace (chap. 10:10; Heb_11:1).
4. To what extent is this truth to be carried in the justification of the sinner before God? To the full extent for which it is designed for that purpose. It takes in the sinners whole case--sins, guilt, condemnation, and deserved wrath. It brings him a full and complete deliverance and justification from all. Nay, more, it invests him with the perfect righteousness of Christ, as a perfect fulfilment of the law by which he stands accepted with God.
IV. What are the importance and advantages arising therefrom. Hereby--
1. The law is established in all its authority, obligations, and claims.
2. God is honoured and exalted in the possession and exercise of all His perfections.
3. A sure and certain way of life and salvation, of pardon and peace, is opened for guilty men.
4. A sure provision is made for a loving, devoted, and delightful obedience to the will of God.
5. There is afforded to the soul a sure rock for its present safety and a firm foundation for its future security, even for ever.
6. The Church of God is provided with an unerring test by which to try every doctrine proposed for her acceptance, and an indomitable weapon by which to conquer every antichristian foe. (R. Shittler.)
Christ the end of the law for righteousness
I. The proposition. Christ is the end of the law. The end of a thing is either mathematical or moral. The mathematical end is the utmost part of a thing, in which the length or continuance is determined; as a point is the end of a line, death the end of life, the day of judgment the end of this world. The moral end of a thing is the scope and perfection of it. Now Christ is the end of the law both ways.
1. The mathematical end of the ceremonial and moral. Of the ceremonial by a direct signification, of the moral by an accidental direction. The ceremonies signified Christ and ended at Him. Properly, the moral law leads sinners to the curse, but by account to Christ, as the disease leads to the medicine or physician.
2. He is also the moral end of both. For He is the body of those ceremonies and shadows, and He perfectly fulfilled the Decalogue for us, and that three ways.
(1) In His pure conception.
(2) In His godly life.
(3) In His holy and obedient sufferings, and all for us.
For whatsoever the law required that we should be, do, or suffer, He hath performed in our behalf. Therefore one wittily saith that Christ is Telos, the end, or tribute, and we, by His payment, Ateleis, tribute-free, we are discharged by Him before God. Christ is both these ends, but principally the last is here understood.
II. The amplification for righteousness. When thou art come to Christ thou must not cast away the law, but use it still to make thee more to cling unto Christ and as a rule of righteous living. Christ is the end of the law, not the killing, but fulfilling end; not to end, but to urge thy obedience. When the merchant is come aboard his ship by boat, he drowns not his boat, but hoists it up into his ship; he may have use of it another time. Or as a nobleman neglects not his schoolmaster when he is come to his lands, but prefers him. So certainly, if the law (though sharp) hath brought thee to Christ, thou canst not but love it for this office; if thou doest not, thou hast not Christ. Yea, it will be the delight of a man to be then doing, when Christ is with him, as Peter then willingly and with success cast out his net. Without Christ the law is an uncomfortable study; but with Him, nothing more delightful. (Elnathan Parr, B.D.)
Christ the end of the law
Consider--
I. Christ in connection with the law. The law is that which we have cause to dread; for the sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them. Yet, like the fascination which attracts the gnat to the candle, men by nature fly to the law for salvation. Now, what has our Lord to do with the law?
1. He is its purpose and object. The law is our schoolmaster, or rather our attendant to conduct us to the school of Jesus; the great net in which the fish are enclosed that they may be drawn out of the element of sin; the stormy wind which drives souls into the harbour of refuge; the sheriffs officer to shut men up in prison for their sin, concluding them all under condemnation in order that they may look to the free grace of God alone for deliverance. It empties that grace may fill, wounds that mercy may heal. Had man never fallen, the law would have been most helpful to show him the way in which he should walk: and by keeping it he would have lived (Rom_10:5). But since man has fallen, a way of salvation by works has become impossible. The law is meant to lead the sinner to faith in Christ, by showing the impossibility of any other way. It is the dog to fetch the sheep to the shepherd, the burning heat which drives the traveller to the shadow of the great rock in a weary land. The law is adapted to this; for--
(1) It shows man his sin. Who can lay his own character side by side with it without seeing how far he has fallen short of the standard? When the law comes home to the soul it is like light in a dark room revealing the dust and the dirt which else had been unperceived. It is the test which detects the presence of the poison of sin in the soul. A true balance discovers short weight, and such is the first effect of the law upon the conscience of man.
(2) It shows the result and mischief of sin. The types were intended to lead men to Christ by making them see their unclean condition and their need of such cleansing as only He can give. Men put apart because of disease or uncleanness were made to see how sin separated them from God; and when they were brought back and purified with mystic rites, they were made to see how they can only be restored by Christ, the great High Priest. Without shedding of blood is no remission.
(3) It teaches men their utter helplessness. Such holiness as the law demands no man can reach of himself. Thy commandment is exceeding broad. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one. How can he be clean that is born of a woman? In grace there is hope, but as a matter of debt there is none, for we do not merit anything but wrath. The law tells us this, and the sooner we know it to be so the better, for the sooner we shall fly to Christ.
(4) It shows us our great need. The law is the surgeons knife which cuts out the proud flesh that the wound may heal. The law by itself only sweeps and raises the dust, but the gospel sprinkles clean water upon the dust. The law kills, the gospel makes alive; the law strips, and then Jesus Christ robes the soul in beauty.
2. Christ is the laws fulfilment.
(1) God by immutable necessity demands righteousness of His creatures, and the law is not compelled to lower its terms, as though it had originally asked too much; but Christ gives the law all it requires. The law claims complete obedience, and Christ has brought in such a righteousness as that, and gives it to His people. Only as righteous ones can we be saved, but Christ makes us righteous, and therefore we are saved.
(2) Jesus has thus fulfilled the original demands of the law, but since we have broken it there are other demands. God will by no means clear the guilty, but every transgression shall have its just punishment. Here, then, Christ is the end of the law as to penalty. The claims of the law both as broken and unbroken Christ has met: both the positive and the penal demands are satisfied in Him.
(3) Not only has the penalty been paid, but Christ has put great honour upon the law in so doing. If the whole race had kept the law it would not stand in so splendid a position as it does now that the Son of God has paid obeisance to it. Who shall say a word against the law to which the Lawgiver Himself submits?
(4) The laws stability also has been secured by Christ. That alone can remain which is proved to be just, and Jesus has proved the law to be so, magnifying it and making it honourable. He says, I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. As to the settlement of the eternal principles of right and wrong, Christs life and death have achieved this for ever. We establish the law, we do not make void the law through faith.
3. Christ is the end of the law in that He is the termination of it in two senses.
(1) His people are not under it as a covenant of life. We are not under the law, but under grace.
(2) We are no longer under its curse. Jesus has given us all the righteousness it demands, and the law is bound to bless. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
II. Ourselves in connection with Christ--for to every one that believeth. To believe is not merely to accept a set of doctrines but to trust, to confide, to rest in. Dost thou believe that Christ stood in the sinners stead and suffered the just for the unjust, and that He is able to save to the uttermost? And dost thou therefore lay the whole weight of thy souls salvation upon Him alone? Then Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to thee, and thou art righteous. It is of no use to bring forward anything else if you are not believing, for nothing will avail--sacraments, prayers, etc. Observe--
1. There is no question raised about the previous character, for it is written, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. But, Lord, this man before he believed was a persecutor and injurious. Yes, and that is the very man who wrote these words. So if I address one who is defiled with every sin, yet I say if thou believest thine iniquities are blotted out, for the blood of Christ cleanseth us from all sin.
2. There is nothing said by way of qualification as to the strength of the faith. He is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth, whether he is Little Faith or Greatheart. The link may be very like a film, a spiders line of trembling faith, but, if it runs all the way from the heart to Christ, Divine grace can and will flow along the most slender thread. It is marvellous how fine the wire may be that will carry the electric flash. If thy faith be of the mustard-seed kind, if it be only such as tremblingly touches the garments hem, if it be but the faith of sinking Peter, or weeping Mary, yet Christ will be the end of the law for righteousness to thee as well as to the chief of the apostles.
3. If this be so then all of us who believe are righteous. We are not completely sanctified, but still, in the sight of God, we are righteous, and being justified by faith we have peace with Him.
4. The connection of our text assures us that being righteous we are saved (Rom_10:9).
Conclusion:
1. If any one thinks he can save himself, and that his own righteousness will suffice before God, I would ask, if your righteousness sufficeth, why did Christ come here to work one out?
2. For any to reject the righteousness of Christ must be to perish everlastingly, because it cannot be that God will accept you or your pretended righteousness when you have refused the real and Divine righteousness which He sets before you in His Son. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Christ the end of the law for righteousness
I. What that righteousness is, spoken of in the text. Evidently that which is necessary in order to eternal life, and which infallibly leads to it (Rom_5:17; Rom_5:21). It is termed The righteousness of God (Rom_10:3; chap. 1:17), and said to be by faith (Rom_3:21-22; Php_3:9). It implies--
1. Justification (Rom_3:24; Tit_3:7); without which, as guilty condemned sinners, we can have no title to eternal life.
2. Regeneration or sanctification (see Php_3:9); spoken of Eph_4:17-24; Tit_3:5-6; Joh_3:5-6; without which we are not in Christ (2Co_5:17; Gal_6:15), and have no fitness for heaven.
3. Practical obedience (Eph_2:10); the grand evidence that we are righteous (Luk_1:6; 1Jn_3:7). As to the necessity of this, see Rom_2:6-7; Rev_22:14; and especially Mat_7:20-21.
II. Where and how this righteousness is to be found.
1. Not in, or by, the law.
(1) The moral law (Rom_8:3) which requires perfect obedience. This we have not paid, do not, and cannot in future, pay. Hence it finds us guilty, and has no pardon to give us; it finds us depraved, and has no new nature for us; it finds us helpless, and has no supernatural aid to impart.
(2) The ceremonial law. Its sacrifices could not remove sin (Heb_9:23; Heb_10:4). Its purifications could only impart a ceremonial cleanness, or remove the filth of the flesh (Heb_9:13; 1Pe_3:21). Its institutions respecting meats, days, etc. As they did not make the tree good, of course the fruit could not be good (Mat_12:16-19).
2. But wherefore, then, serveth the law? In Christ was the end for which the law was instituted; the moral law being chiefly to convince men of sin (Rom_3:19-20; Rom_7:7-8), and thus to be a schoolmaster to bring them to Christ (Gal_3:19-24), and the ceremonial law to shadow forth His sacrifice and grace. The end may mean--
(1) The scope; the law continually points to Christ; the moral law directs the sinner to Him who fulfilled and removed the curse of it, for that justification which itself cannot give; and the ceremonial law directs him to look from its sacrifices and purifications to the atonement and Spirit of Christ.
(2) The perfection, or completion (1Ti_1:5). Christ fulfilled the moral law in fully explaining its meaning, and freeing it from the glosses of the Scribes; in obeying it, in suffering its penalty, and in providing that it may be written in our hearts; He also answered in His person all the types and shadows of the ceremonial law.
(3) The period or termination (Rom_6:21). Thus the whole Mosaic dispensation gives way to the gospel (2Co_3:11), and its ceremonies are taken out of the way by Christ (Col_2:14).
3. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness.
(1) For justification, or righteousness imputed, is only to be found in His obedience unto death (Rom_3:24; 1Co_1:30; 2Co_5:21).
(2) Regeneration, a new creation, and entire sanctification are only to be found in Christ, by His Spirit and grace, who is made of God to us sanctification (Joh_1:14; Joh_1:16; 2Co_5:17; 1Co_1:30).
(3) Practical righteousness is likewise to be had in Him, His laws direct us how to walk; His promises and threatenings enforce His laws; His example allures us; and His grace enables us to walk in His ways (2Co_12:9; Heb_4:14-16).
III. By whom this righteousness is to be found. By every one that believeth (verses 5-10).
1. Its object is that God hath raised Christ from the dead. This--
(1) Demonstrated Him to be the Son of God (Rom_1:3-4), and, therefore, the only Saviour able and willing to save to the uttermost. Of this faith is persuaded, and, therefore, trusts in Him for salvation.
(2) Was the broad seal of heaven set to His doctrine, of which faith is so thoroughly persuaded as to lay it to heart and walk according to it.
(3) Was to show that His atonement was sufficient and accepted; of this faith is also persuaded and, therefore, relies solely on the propitiation in His blood for justification (Rom_3:23, etc.; Gal_2:16-20).
(4) Was that He might ascend, and intercede, and receive for us the promise of the Father, for which faith thirsts and comes to Him (Joh_7:37-38).
(5) He rose and ascended as our Forerunner. This faith believes, and, consequently, anticipates immortality and glory. He rose to give evidence that He will judge all mankind (Act_17:31). Faith is persuaded of this, and prepares to meet Him.
2. Our faith, in these respects, must be such as will enable us to make confession with our mouth, therefore it must be with the heart man believeth unto righteousness (verse 10). As to the faith that does not part with sin, and give up everything that stands in competition with Christ, it is dead (Jam_2:20-26).
3. As to the origin of this faith (see verses11-17). It arises from the Word and Spirit of God (Act_16:14; Eph_2:8-9; Col_2:12). Therefore, hearing, reading, and prayer, are the important means. And in the exercise of that measure of faith we have received, however small, it will be increased. (Joseph Benson.)
Christ the end of the law for righteousness
I. The immutability of the law is a fundamental truth. This rests on its nature and the immutability of God. The evidence is found in nature and conscience.
1. This the Jews believed, and it lay at the foundation of their error, which was twofold.
(1) That the law was to be fulfilled by their own righteousness.
(2) That the form in which the law was immutable was Mosaism.
2. This error led--
(1) To the effort to establish their own righteousness.
(2) To their making righteousness consist in ceremonial obedience.
3. Paul taught--
(1) That the law is immutable.
(2) That it cannot be satisfied by our righteousness, but only by the righteousness of God.
(3) That Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
(4) Consequently the immutability of the law is consistent with its abrogation, because its abrogation is effected by its fulfilment.
The law is immutable so far as it demands righteousness as an indispensable condition of justification. But it is abrogated so far as it says, Do this and live, i.e., so far as it requires our own righteousness.
II. In what sense is Christ the end of the law.
1. Not in the sense of its completion. Telos never occurs in the sense of pleroma.
2. But in the sense of having made an end of it, abolished it. This He has done--
(1) In so satisfying its demands that it ceases to require our own personal righteousness as a condition of justification.
(2) In putting an end to the Mosaic institutions, so that obedience to that law is no longer necessary to salvation.
3. In the sense of being its aim or object. This means either--
(1) That the end of the law is righteousness. Christ is the end of the law because He is our righteousness; its design is secured in Him. So that it is by faith, not works, that the end of the law is to be attained.
(2) Or, Christ is the object aimed at in the law. It was designed to bring us to Christ.
III. Consequences.
1. Out of Christ we are exposed--
(1) To the inexorable demands of the law.
(2) To its awful curse.
(3) To its slavish spirit.
2. In Him we are righteous.
(1) We meet all the demands of the law by pleading what He has done.
(2) We are free from its curse as He was made a curse for us.
(3) We are delivered from the spirit of bondage again to fear and are filled with the Spirit of adoption.
Conclusion: As a result of faith in Christ our righteousness we have--
1. Peace with God, and peace of conscience.
2. Assurance of eternal life, as no one can condemn those whom God justifies.
3. A principle of obedience, for until we are reconciled there can be no holiness.
4. All the benefits of Christs triumph. Having obeyed and suffered for us as our representative, we share in all the blessings promised as His reward. (C. Hodge, D.D.)
Christ the end of the law
Christ was revealed to abrogate, to annihilate, utterly to abolish sin. Now, we all know what it is to have a thing abrogated. Certain laws have held good up to the first of January of this year with regard to the hiring of public carriages, but now are under a new law. Suppose a driver complies with the new law, gets his license, puts up his flag, gives the passenger his card of prices, and afterwards the passenger summons him before the magistrate for asking a fare not authorised by the old law; the magistrate would say, You are out of court, there is no such law. You cannot bring the man here, he has not broken the old law, for he is not under it. He has complied with the requisition of the new law, by which he declares himself no longer under the old rules, and I have no power over him. So he that believeth in Christ Jesus may be summoned by conscience when misinformed before the bar of God, but the answer of peace to his conscience is, Ye are not under the law, but under grace. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The relation of the law to the gospel
(text and 1Ti_1:5):--The law of God may be viewed in a twofold aspect, to distinguish between which is to prove a safeguard against both the errors of legality and the errors of antinomianism. We must regard the law--
I. In relation to the righteousness which constitutes the title to its rewards.
1. When we strive to make this out by our own obedience, the aim is to possess ourselves of a legal right to heaven. We proceed on the imagination of a contract between God and man--whereof the counterpart terms are a fulfilment of the laws requisitions upon the one side, and a bestowment of the laws rewards upon the other. The one is the purchase-money--the other is the payment. They stand related to each other, as work does to wages. Now this spirit of legality, as it is called, is nearly the universal spirit of humanity. They are not the Israelites only who go about to establish a righteousness of their own. There is, in fact, a legal disposition in the heart, and, long after the utter shortness of human virtue has been demonstrated, yet will man, as if by the bias of a constitutional necessity, recur to the old legal imagination, of this virtue being a thing of desert, and of heaven being the reward which is due to it.
2. Now, for man to establish a right by his righteousness, is in the face of all jurisprudence. Both the law and the gospel alike disown mans legal right to the rewards of eternity; and if he be too proud to disown it himself, he remains both a victim of condemnation by the one, and a helpless, hopeless outcast from the mercy of the other. If man will persist in seeking to make out a title-deed to heaven by his own obedience, then that obedience must be perfect. Even if he have but committed one sin--there is the barrier of a moral necessity in his way, which it is impossible to force. The God who cannot lie, cannot recall His curse upon every one who continueth not in all the words of the book of His law to do them. And one of two things must happen. Either, with a just conception of the standard of the law, he will sink into despair; or, with a low conception of that standard, he, though but grovelling among the mere decencies of civil life or the barren formalities of religious service, will aspire no farther and yet count himself safe.
3. Now herein lies the grand peculiarity of the gospel. It pronounces on the utter insignificance of all that man can do for the establishment of his right to the kingdom of heaven; and yet, he must be somehow or other provided with such a right, ere that he can find admittance there. It is not by an act of mercy alone that the gate of heaven is opened to the sinner. He must be furnished with a plea which he can state at the bar of justice--not the plea of his own deservings, which the gospel holds no terms with; and therefore with a plea founded exclusively on the deservings of another. Now what we reckon to be the very essence of the gospel is the report which it brings to a sinful world of a solid and satisfying plea; and that every sinner is welcome to the use of it. In defect of his own righteousness, which he is required to disown, he is told of an everlasting righteousness which another has brought in; and which he is invited, nay commanded, to make mention of. It is thus that Christ becomes the end of the law for righteousness.
II. As holding out a method by which we might acquire a rightness of character in the cultivation and the exercise of its bidden virtues. The legal right which obedience confers is one thing. The personal rightness which obedience confers is another. Obedience for a legal right is everywhere denounced in the New Testament, but obedience for a personal rightness is everywhere urged. For the one end, the law has altogether lost its efficacy; and we, in our own utter inability to substantiate its claims, must seek to be justified only by the righteousness of Christ. For the other end, the law retains its office as a perfect guide and exemplar of all virtue; and; we, empowered by strength from on high to follow its dictates, must seek to be sanctified by the transference of its bidden uprightness upon our own characters. It is no longer the purchase-money by which to buy your right of entry to the marriage supper of the Lamb; but it is the wedding garment, without which you will never be seated among the beatitudes of that festival. To be meet in law, and without violence done to the jurisprudence of heaven, we must be invested by faith with the righteousness of Christ. To be meet in character, and without offence or violence to the spirit or the taste of heavens society, we must be invested with the graces of our own personal righteousness. (T. Chalmers, D.D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 4. For Christ is the end of the law…
4. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. The meaning is that the whole law pointed to Christ, and his righteousness. They were its object. Yet the Jews clung to the law, and refused to believe upon Christ, in whom the law met its fulfillment. To every one that believeth. As long as the Jews remained in unbelief, they were cut off from Christ. He who believes submits to God's plan of righteousness.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain 4. “For Christ is the end of the law…
4. “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” Righteousness arising from legal obedience is nothing but our own counterfeit self-righteousness, which is “filthy rags” in the sight of God. The only hope of humanity is the righteousness of God in Christ, imputed unto the broken-hearted through faith alone, and wrought in the heart by the Holy Ghost in regeneration. We have a most wonderful Savior, very God and perfect man. In His divine capacity He has a righteousness peculiar to His divinity, which He will never impart, but retain forever. In His human capacity He has a righteousness peculiar to His perfect humanity, which He will never impart, but eternally retain. Meanwhile He has a third righteousness arising from His perfect obedience to the divine law, actively in life keeping it and passively in death verifying it. This third righteousness, which is neither essential to His Godhead, nor His manhood, nor His perfect Mediatorial character, lie procured for all His guilty, ruined brethren to relieve them of condemnation and establish them irreproachable before the divine law for time and eternity. Since Christ Himself is the only human being who ever did or ever can keep the law, having become our Substitute in death and our exemplar in life, since faith in its very nature is the only appropriating grace, we must all receive this righteousness by faith alone. Here Paul condemns the Jews for “going about” to establish their own righteousness instead of receiving the righteousness of God in Christ by simple faith. The world is still full of people “going about” to establish their own righteousness. I was on that line nineteen years, intervening between my conversion and sanctification. Perfectly honest and sincere, kneeling before God, I made my consecration to the best of my knowledge and ability. Meanwhile a voice said to me, “Now, if you want to be holy and all right with God, you go ahead and perform every duty just right, and you will find your heart clean and your life cloudless sunshine.” I thought it was the voice of God, but it was that of the enemy, decoying me away lest I might by simple faith receive the Omnipotent Sanctifier, who was at that time standing right by me, and ready in a moment to give me the boon for which I went sighing and crying nineteen years. Thus making my consecration, instead of receiving sanctification by faith in the present tense, I renewed my covenant and resolved to do much better than ever before. So, leaving the Sanctifier standing by, I again and again proceeded with this “going about” to establish my own righteousness, instead of submitting to the righteousness of God through Christ by faith, every time only to be mortified by finding that I had grieved the Spirit by offering Him another pile of filthy rags, all this time postponing the blessing which Omnipotent Grace waited to bestow in a moment. The churches are this day filled with this fatal “going about,” running themselves down, working up their human institutions to glorify God with the little filthy lucre which He does not need, instead of magnifying Him with the glory of holiness, which is alone acceptable in His sight.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain For [With this word the apostle gives further evidence…
For [With this word the apostle gives further evidence of the ignorance of the Jews. He has shown that they did not know that they could not merit eternal life by good works; he now proceeds to show that they did not know that the law itself, which was the sole basis on which they rested their hopes of justification by the merit of works, was now a nonentity, a thing of the past; having been fulfilled, abolished and brought to an absolute and unqualified end by Christ. The Jews, therefore, are proven ignorant, for] Christ is the end of the law unto righteousness to every one that believeth . [The apostle places the enlightenment of believers in contrast with the lack of knowledge of the Jews. All believers understand (not only that Christ is the end or aim or purpose for which the law was given, and that he also ended or fulfilled it, but) that Christ, by providing the gospel, put an end to the law--killed it. The apostle does not mean that the law only dies to a man when he believes in Christ, else it would still live, as to unbelieving Jews: "to every one that believeth," therefore, expresses a contrast in enlightenment, and not in state or condition. The new covenant or testament, which is the gospel, made the first testament old ( Heb_8:13 ). That is to say, the new or last will revokes and makes null and void all former wills, and no one can make good his claim to an inheritance by pleading ignorance of the New Will, for the Old Will is abrogated whether he chooses to know it or not. As the word "end" has many meanings, such as aim, object, purpose, fulfillment, etc., expositors construe Paul's words many ways, but the literal meaning, an end--i. e., a termination--best suits the context. "Of two contrary things," says Godet, "when one appears, the other must take and end." "Christ is the end of the law, as 'death,' saith Demosthenes, 'is the end of life'" (Gifford). The Lord does not operate two antagonistic dispensations and covenants at one time. To make evident the fact that the gospel terminates the law, the apostle now shows the inherent antagonism between the two; one of them promising life to those obedient to law, the other promising salvation to the one being obedient to or openly confessing his faith. And so there is an antagonism between the gospel and the law.]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 For Christ is the fulfillment of the law
For Christ is the fulfillment of the law
"For Christ completely fulfilled the law"
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for righteousness for everyone who believes
Here "believes" means "trusts." AT: "in order that he may make everyone who trusts in him right before God" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
the righteousness that comes from the law
Paul speaks of "righteousness" as if it were alive and able to move. AT: "how the law makes a person right before God" (See: Personification)
The man who does the righteousness of the law will live by this righteousness
In order to be made right with God through the law, a person would have to keep the law perfectly, which is not possible. AT: "The person who perfectly obeys the law will live because the law will make him right before God" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
will live
The words "will live" can refer to 1) eternal life or 2) mortal life in fellowship with God.
translationWords
Christ
fulfill
law
righteous
believe
Moses
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 10:4 The function of the law was to point…
10:4 The function of the law was to point forward and prepare the way for the Messiah; Jesus’ coming does not destroy the law but fulfills all of its requirements, so that the primary requirement for God’s people is to believe in him (see 3:31; Matt 5:17-18).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.