2 For if Abraham were made acceptable to God by his works, he has something to boast about; but not to God.
3 For what does the scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness."
God chose to make Abraham's account clean because Abraham believed God. This was done through Jesus' paying for Abraham's sin some 2000 years later.
4 Now to him who works is the reward not counted as grace, but as debt.
If you work to earn something, what you get is your wages, not a gift.
5 But to him that doesn't work, but believes on Him that cleanses the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.
That person who doesn't try to earn salvation through his own deeds, his "good life," his keeping of rules, but who chooses to believe God, is given the gift of a clean account by God. It's his faith that causes God to wipe out his sins.
6 Even as David also describes [in Psalms 32:1] the blessedness of the man, to whom God gives righteousness without works,
7 Saying, "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
8 "Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not count as a sinner."
9 Does this blessing come then on the circumcision [Jews] only, or on the uncircumcision [gentiles] also? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness.
10 When was it then counted? When he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Before he was circumcised!
11 And because of his faith, he was given circumcision as a sign of his righteousness before he was ever circumcised. This makes him the spiritual father of all who believe, even though they are not circumcised, that they might be considered righteous also:
12 And he is the spiritual father of those who are circumcised if they also walk in the steps of the same faith Abraham had before he was ever circumcised.
Abraham Receives the Promise
13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.14 For if they which keep the law are heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect:
If keeping the Law is what gives people the inheritance of the world, than faith and God's promises are irrelevant. They have nothing to do with our eternal reward. Heaven is nothing more than payment for a job done.
15 Because the law works wrath. For where no law is, there is no breaking the law.
If there is no law, you can't break it, now can you? But if you break the law you bring the anger of God on you. And no one can live without breaking at least one law at some time in their lives.
16 So salvation is of faith, that it might be by grace, so that the promise can be certain to all the seed of Abraham. Not just to those under the law, but to those also that are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all,
17 This is what it means when God said, "I have made thee a father of many nations," because he believed in the God who brings the dead back to life, and creates things with nothing but His words.
18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, "So shall thy seed be."
19 And being not weak in faith, he didn't think his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb.
20 He didn't fail to believe the promise of God, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God.
21 And being fully convinced that, what He had promised, He was able also to do.
22 And that's why it was counted to him as righteousness.
23 Now it was not written just for his sake that it was credited to him;
24 But for us also, to whom it shall be credited if we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Boss from the dead.
25 Who was delivered [to the Cross] for our sins, and was raised again for our purification.