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us all up to one remedy and only one, namely Christ and His redemptive work for us.
This is going to be the argument of Gal. 3: 24:
"Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ that we might be
justified by faith."
The Apostle therefore proceeds in his argument:
"But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident for, the just
shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith, but the man that doeth them shall live in
them" (Gal. 3: 11, 12).
Here we come to a key-text which forms the Scriptural basis of Paul's gospel ministry,
"the just shall live by faith", quoted from Hab. 2: 4 and is also used in Rom. 1: 17 and
Heb. 10: 38. The Hebrew emunah translated `faith' in Habakkuk means steadfastness and
fidelity and is accompanied by the pronoun `his', whereas the Septuagint (the Greek
translation of the O.T.) supplies the pronoun "My" and reads "the righteous one will live
by My faithfulness". Paul omits the pronouns but there can be no doubt that, taking the
whole of this teaching on justification into account he means that the righteous one will
live (in future resurrection life) because of his faith in the Lord's faithfulness; quite apart
from any works of effort on this part.
Both Old and New Testaments regard righteousness in legal terms.
We quote
Charles H. Welch (Just and the Justifier, p.18) here:
1. God is looked upon as a Judge (Isa. 1: 7, 8; Rom. 8: 33).
2. The person to be justified is guilty. He is looked upon as exposed to the judgment of
God (Rom. 1: 32), and whose mouth is shut (Rom. 3: 19).
3. There are three accusers: (1:) The law (John 5: 45); (2:) Conscience (Rom. 2: 15);
(3:) Satan (Zech. 3: 2 and Rev. 12: 10).
4. The charge is drawn up in legal handwriting (Col. 2: 14).
5. The gospel provides the guilty person with a plea (Rom. 3: 23-25).
6. The Lord Himself is the Advocate (I John 2: 1, 2).
7. The sentence for believers is one of complete forgiveness, justification, acceptance,
and title to life and to inheritance (Rom. 8: 1, 33, 34; II Cor. 5: 21).
Thus it is that justification by faith in the teaching expounded by Paul and inspired by
the Spirit of God, means that righteousness or complete rightness which is reckoned by
God to the believer in Christ, in this way leaving him accepted and assured in Christ
forever.
It is important to realize that the three quotations of Hab. 2: 4 found in the N.T. stress
a different word each time. In Romans the emphasis is in the word `just' or `righteous',
the two English words referring to the one word used in the Greek (dikaios). In Galatians
`faith' is the important word as opposed to works and human merit; whereas in Hebrews
the stress is on the word `live' for here we have the personal response in spite of
discouragement and difficulty, and the need to "go on to maturity (perfection)".