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Old Testament Testimony to Righteousness Apart From Law

The New Testament declares that "the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets" [1]. This statement from Romans 3:21 indicates that the concept of righteousness apart from the Law, though fully revealed in the Gospel, was not entirely new but had roots in the Old Testament [6, 9].

Righteousness, in a general sense, is understood as obedience to God's law [2]. However, the New Testament emphasizes a "righteousness of God" that is "without the law" [3, 11]. This refers to God's method of saving sinners through His mercy in Christ Jesus, independent of human obedience to the law [9]. John Calvin, in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, argues that if righteousness came by the law, then Christ would have died in vain, implying that what the Law would confer on one who fulfilled it must now be sought from Christ [10]. This righteousness is described as "the righteousness of faith" and "the righteousness of God by faith in Christ" [3].

The Old Testament, though prior in time, acts as a "herald" to the New Testament, containing prophecies and foreshadowings of this righteousness [7, 6]. Augustine, in Anti-Pelagian, explains that while the Old Covenant was given by Moses and the New to Abraham, the terms "old" and "new" refer to their revelation rather than their institution [5]. The grace of the New Testament was hidden within the Old [8].

The "witness" of the Law and the Prophets to this righteousness can be understood in several ways. The Law, with its rites and ceremonies, pointed to God's ultimate design for salvation and the necessity of Christ's sacrifice [9]. For instance, the concept of justification, a forensic term meaning God's judicial act of pardoning sins and accounting believers as righteous, is not a relaxation of the law but a declaration that its claims are fulfilled in Christ [4]. Charles Hodge, in his Systematic Theology, explains that "the righteousness of God" is the righteousness of Christ, provided and accepted by God, contrasting it with human righteousness which is deemed valueless [13].

The prophets also bore witness to this future revelation. Daniel 9:24, for example, speaks of bringing in "everlasting righteousness" [3]. Jeremiah 23:6 refers to Christ as "THE LORD OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS" [3]. These prophetic statements indicate a divine provision for righteousness that transcends human ability to perfectly keep the Law.

Even righteous individuals who lived under the Law were not truly "under the law" in the sense of earning their salvation through perfect obedience, but were under grace [8]. Adam Clarke, in his commentary on Romans, notes that Abraham was justified by faith before the Law was given, and his faith, along with that of his descendants, was directed towards the spiritual object revealed in the ordinances of the Law and now fully in the Gospel [14]. John Chrysostom, in his Homilies on Galatians–Colossians–Thessalonians, argues that if salvation were dependent on the Law, separating from it would mean separating from righteousness. However, faith sets things right, and the Law's purpose was to expose sin, not to exclude from the promises [12].

Therefore, the Old Testament, through its legal system and prophetic declarations, laid the groundwork and provided testimony for the righteousness that would be fully revealed in Christ, a righteousness granted by God apart from human works of the Law [1, 6, 11].

Sources

  1. Romans “Romans 3:21 (NASB) — But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,”
  2. Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Righteousness — Is obedience to God's law -- De 6:25; Ro 10:5; Lu 1:6; Ps 1:2. God loves -- Ps 11:7. God looks for -- Isa 5:7. Christ Is the Son of. -- Mal 4:2. Loves. -- Ps 45:7; Heb 1:9. Was girt with. -- Isa 11:5. Put on, as breast-plate. -- Isa 59:17. Was sustained by. -- Isa 59:16. Preached. -- Ps 40:9. Fulfilled all. -- Mt 3:15. Is made to his people. -- 1Co 1:30. Is the end of the law for. -- Ro 10:4. Has brought in everlasting. -- Da 9:24. Shall judge with. -- Ps 72:2; Isa 11:4; Ac 17:31; Re 19:11. Shall reign in. -- Ps 45:6; Isa 32:1; Heb 1:8. Shall execute.”
  3. Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Righteousness Imputed — Predicted -- Isa 56:1; Eze 16:14. Revealed in the gospel -- Ro 1:17. Is of the Lord -- Isa 54:17. Described as The righteousness of faith. -- Ro 4:13; 9:30; 10:6. The righteousness of God, without the law. -- Ro 3:21. The righteousness of God by faith in Christ. -- Ro 3:22. Christ being made righteousness to us. -- 1Co 1:30. Our being made the righteousness of God, in Christ. -- 2Co 5:21. Christ is the end of the law for -- Ro 10:4. Christ called THE LORD OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS -- Jer 23:6. Christ brings in an everlasting righteousness -- Da 9:2”
  4. Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Justification — A forensic term, opposed to condemnation. As regards its nature, it is the judicial act of God, by which he pardons all the sins of those who believe in Christ, and accounts, accepts, and treats them as righteous in the eye of the law, i.e., as conformed to all its demands. In addition to the pardon (q.v.) of sin, justification declares that all the claims of the law are satisfied in respect of the justified. It is the act of a judge and not of a sovereign. The law is not relaxed or set aside, but is declared to be fulfilled in the strictest sense; an”
  5. Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 5: Augustine — Anti-Pelagian — CHAP. 13.--WHY ONE OF THE COVENANTS IS CALLED OLD, THE OTHER NEW. (part 1): But some one will say, "In what way is that called the old which was given by Moses four hundred and thirty years after; and that called the new which was given so many years before to Abraham?" Let him who on this subject is disturbed, not litigiously but earnestly, first understand that when from its earlier time one is called "old," and from its posterior time the other "new," it is the revelation of them that is considered in their names, not their institution. Because the o”
  6. Romans (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Romans 3:21: GOD'S JUSTIFYING RIGHTEOUSNESS THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST, ALIKE ADAPTED TO OUR NECESSITIES AND WORTHY OF HIMSELF. (Rom 3:21-26) But now the righteousness of God--(See on Rom 1:17). without the law--that is, a righteousness to which our obedience to the law contributes nothing whatever (Rom 3:28; Gal 2:16). is manifested, being witnessed--attested. by the law and the prophets--the Old Testament Scriptures. Thus this justifying righteousness, though new, as only now fully disclosed, is an old righteousness, predicted and foreshadowed in the Ol”
  7. Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 4.--THAT PROOFS OF THE LAST JUDGMENT WILL BE ADDUCED, FIRST FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT, AND THEN FROM THE OLD.: The proofs, then, of this last judgment of God which I propose to adduce shall be drawn first from the New Testament, and then from the Old. For although the Old Testament is prior in point of time the New has the precedence in intrinsic value; for the Old acts the part of herald to the New. We shall therefore first cite passages from the New Testament, and confirm them by quotations from the Old Testament. The Old contains”
  8. Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 5: Augustine — Anti-Pelagian — CHAP. 29.--THE RIGHTEOUS MEN WHO LIVED IN THE TIME OF THE LAW WERE FOR ALL THAT NOT UNDER THE LAW, BUT UNDER GRACE. THE GRACE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT HIDDEN UNDER THE OLD. (part 2): extremity of heaven, and His circuit runs to the other end of heaven; and no one is hidden from His heat."[20] Out of very faith, again, was it said to Him: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever; a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness abov”
  9. Romans (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Romans 3:21: But now the righteousness of God - God's method of saving sinners is now shown, by the Gospel, to be through his own mere mercy, by Christ Jesus; without the law - without any right or claim which might result from obedience to the law; and is evidently that which was intended by God from the beginning; for it is witnessed by the law and the prophets - the rites and ceremonies of the one, and the preachings and predictions of the others, all bearing testimony to the great design of God, and to the absolute necessity there was for the sacrifice and salvation which Go”
  10. CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 53: in these words of Paul: “If righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain,” ( Gal. 2:21 ). For we hence infer, that it is from Christ we must seek what the Law would confer on any one who fulfilled it; or, which is the same thing, that by the grace of Christ we obtain what God promised in the Law to our works: “If a man do, he shall live in them,” ( Lev. 18:5 ). This is no less clearly taught in the discourse at Antioch, when Paul declares, “That through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; and by him”
  11. CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 66: he not plainly enough attribute everything to faith alone when he disconnects it with works? What I would ask, is meant by the expressions, “The righteousness of God without the law is manifested;” “Being justified freely by his grace;” “Justified by faith without the deeds of the law?” ( Rom. 3:21 , 24 , 28 ). Here they have an ingenious subterfuge, one which, though not of their own devising but taken from Origin and some ancient writers, is most childish. They pretend that the works excluded are ceremonial, not moral works. Such”
  12. CCEL/NPNF (Eastern Orthodox) “John Chrysostom, Homilies on Galatians–Colossians–Thessalonians: our hope of life in the Law, and our salvation depended on it, the objection might be valid. But if it save you, by means of Faith, though it brings you under the curse, you suffer nothing from it, gain no harm, in that Faith comes and sets all right. Had the promise been by the Law, you had reasonably feared lest, separating from the Law, you should separate from righteousness, but if it was given in order to shut up all, that is, to convince all and expose their individual sins, far from excluding you from the promises, it now ”
  13. CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 23: man’s “own righteousness” is that which would render him righteous, then “the righteousness of God,” in this connection, must be a justifying righteousness. It is called the righteousness of God, because, as said before, He is its author. It is the righteousness of Christ. It is provided, offered, and accepted of God. Here then are two righteousnesses; the one human, the other divine; the one valueless, the other infinitely meritorious. The folly of the Jews, and of thousands since their day, consists in refusing the latter and trusting t”
  14. Romans (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Romans 1:17: For therein - In the Gospel of Christ. Is the righteousness of God - God's method of saving sinners. Revealed from faith to faith - Shown to be by faith, and not by the works of any law; for Abraham, the father and founder of the Jewish people, was justified by faith, before even the law was given; and by believing, in reference to the spiritual object held forth in the various ordinances of the law, and now revealed under the Gospel, he and all his believing descendants have been justified. And thus the faith of the old covenant led on to the faith of the new coven”
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