Where in Heb. 11 does it even mention Abraham’s justification?
Although my previous posts, as well as those made by others, should have been sufficient to establish the connection, I will make a final effort to explain to you how it is that Hebrews 11 speaks of Abraham’s justification.
Please note that I am going to show you a number of things that bring the evidence into focus. Please read over all of our previous posts on the three instances referring to Abraham being justified. These are enough evidence but what I will present even more here. Together they make a very persuasive case.
All of this will take some time so please be patient and read this all very carefully.
Let’s start with Genesis where Abraham’s faith is reckoned to him as righteousness. This faith pertains to the promise of off spring. At that point in time Abraham was still called Abram and his wife was still called Sarai. God then makes his covenant with Abraham.
In Gen 17:4-8 it says:
“Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the father
of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and
I will make nations of you, and** kings shall come forth from you**. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. And I will give to you, and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
In Gen 17:15-16 it says this:
"And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her; I will bless her, and she shall be
a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
Scripture always speaks through the idea of fatherhood and Abraham is no exception. Even though Sarah is not mentioned as having her faith reckoned as righteousness we can easily see that this is the case. She receives the same blessings and a name change just as Abraham did. This demonstrates God’s favor and approval along with the covenant relationship established with Sarah in the same fashion as it is established with Abraham. Sarah, like Abraham believed God and believed his
promise concerning offspring.
Hebrews 11:11 specifically mentions this about Sarah by stating:
“By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had
promised.”
This is exactly the same thing that Abraham did and the connection is unmistakeable when Paul says in Romans 4:3-13 that:
“For what does the scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.’ … We say that faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness…How then was it reckoned to him?..The
promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.”
Clearly, both Abraham and Sarah were justified by faith and their belief that God would keep his promises concerning them parenting many off spring and many nations, and that kings would come from them.
Hebrews 11:1-2 says:
“NOW FAITH is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old received divine approval.”
Henry’s Concise Commentary, a non-Catholic source, says this about Hebrews chapter 11.
“Text: - Ver. 1-3 Faith always has been the mark of God’s servants, from the beginning of the world. Where the principle is planted by the regenerating Spirit of God, it will cause the truth to be received, concerning justification by the sufferings and merits of Christ. And the same things that are the object of our hope, are the object of our faith. It is a firm persuasion and expectation, that God will perform all he has promised to us in Christ.”
Further proof that Hebrews chapter 11 refers to justification comes from cross referencing the comments in verse 33 about Rahab’s faith in helping the Jewish spies with the comments about Rahab in James 2:25. Both passages speak of the same instance in Rahab’s life and James 2:25 says:
“…was not also Rahab the harlot
justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?”
In all of this we have shown that:
Sarah was justified in Genesis along with Abraham.
Rahab was justified per James chapter 2.
Henry’s Concise Commentary recognizes that Hebrews Chapter 11 is talking about the justifying faith of the patriarchs, prophets, and martyrs of the Old Testament.
It is now quite clear that Hebrews 11 is talking about faith and justification.
Hebrews 11:8-10 says this about Abraham:
“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place which he was to receive as an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was to go. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”
This is a reference to Abraham being justified. This reference pertains to events in Genesis 12 and shows that Abraham was justified on more than one occassion.
