A. OVERVIEW
"All translation is a falsification," said New Testament scholar N.T.Wright, and the reason is because you can never pick up all the overtones and nuances in any language. If, for example, you translate from German to English or vice versa, there would be things you couldn't accurately relay.
The same problem exists when translating from Greek to English when it comes to words like 'righteousness' and 'justification'. There is so much there that resonates with the Greek-speaking culture, that it is important to return to that original first century AD world to get a proper understanding of its meaning and usage at that time, because as every linguist will tell you, the meaning of words can change over time. In the space of one generation, English words like 'gay' have completely changed their meaning and words like 'cool' and 'far out' have acquired both a literal and colloquial meaning.
This is especially true when it comes to the Pauline use of the word dikoiosyné which we translate as 'righteousness'. Dikoiosyné, in Greek, is like a large, ocean-going ship into which you can put all sorts of meanings. There is the meaning of dikoiosyné as used by Plato, the meaning as used by Aristotle and later Greek philosophers (like 'justice', etc.). But, most critically, the word dikoiosyné is used by the Greek translators of the Tanakh (Old Testament), which became the Septuagint (LXX), to convey what the Hebrew word tsedaqa means. Tsedaqa is more of a relational word, and describes the relationship between Yahweh and His people Israel, and now between Yah'shua (Jesus) and the Messianic Community of the Saved ('Church').
By the time the Greek word dikoiosyné appears in Paul's vocabulary, this large 'ship', as it were, has been packed with all these layers of meaning which Paul can draw on in a way that we cannot do in the English language. The word 'righteousness' in 21st century English, itself the product of a long evolution of multiple, compacted meanings, is very much an ecclesiastical or theological word and not one to be found in common conversation.
And so, in order to be true to the 1st century sense of dikoiosyné, we are obliged to unpack a whole bundle of meanings like 'justice' (or 'right-ruling'), 'covenant-faithfulness' (including 'commandment-keeping' and obedience, 'Torah-faithfulness' and faithfulness in covenant relationships like marriage), 'piety' (or 'holiness'), etc..
The problem is that in English we do not have a comparible word to dikoiosyné that contains this special bundle of meanings. No English word can carry all that 'luggage' and accordingly it becomes essential for the translator to bring out the main meaning by means of paraphrase and commentary.
For this reason we highly recommend a careful study of N.T.Wright's modern but very masterful and theologically accurate translation, The Kingdom New Testament (see Bible Versions), when it comes to the Pauline usages of key theological words like 'righteousness' and 'justification' which lie at the centre of many Reformed traditions. In the introductory article that follows we shall attempt to accurately unpack this cluster of meanings.
B. UNDERSTANDING BIBLICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS
Yahweh's Demand on Humans
Righteousness is a characteristic demand of the Tanakh (Old Testament). Right action and fair dealing between man and man was insisted upon by the nevi'im (prophets):
"Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream" (Amos 5:24, NRSV).
The ground for this insistence is that Elohim (God) requires righteousness in men (Mic.6:8; Ps.15:2). Those who judge as elohim (human judges in Israel) are particularly required to exercise their office righteously (Lev.19:15).
Righteousness is Relational and Covenantal
The concept of 'righteousness' in the Tanakh (Old Testament) emphasises the relational aspect of Yahweh and humanity in the context of a b'rit or covenant. The Hebrew meaning of justice means far more than the classical Greek idea of giving everyone their due, a defect of Greek translations of the Scriptures. Usually the word suggests Yahweh's saving acts as evidence of Elohim's (God's) faithfulness to the covenant. For this meaning of 'righteousness of God', the Greek dikoiosyné, which which is used extensively in the Messianic Scriptures (New Testament) by Paul, is not as flexible as the Hebrew word from which it is typically translated, tsedaqa.
An essential component of Israel's religious experience was that Yahweh was not only the Sovereign of the Torah (Law) but also the One who was faithful to it. Yahweh-Elohim was faithful to the B'rit (Covenant). Yahweh's righteousness was shown by saving actions in accordance with this covenant relationship. What this means is that righteousness is not primarily an ethical quality but rather it characterises the character or action of Elohim (God) who deals rightly within a covenant relationship. Thus the covenant faithfulness of Elohim (God) - the righteousness of Elohim (God) - is shown by Yahweh's saving acts.
All biblical prayer invokes the Covenant Elohim (God) which is equivalent to the Righteous Elohim (God), as in this one by Daniel:
"Ah, Yahweh, great and awesome Elohim, keeping covenant and steadfast love with those who love you and keep your mitzvot (commandments), we have sinned and done wrong, acted wickedly and rebelled...Righteousness (tsedaqa) is on your side, O Yahweh (Heb. leka YHWH ha'tsedaqa, LXX Gk. soi, kyrie hé dikaiosyné), but open shame, as at this day, falls on us...All Israel has transgressed your Torah (Law) and turned aside, refusing to obey Your voice. So the curse and the oath written in the Torah (Law) of Moses, the servant of Elohim (God), have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against You...Indeed, Yahweh our Elohim (God) is right (tsaddiq/dikaios) in all that He has done; for we have disobeyed His voice" (Dan.9:4-5,11,14, NRSV).
The same basic point is made in 4 Maccabees 4:21 - the Syrian persecution is to be understood as Yahweh's 'righteous' chastising of His faithless people.
So with that made clear, Daniel then turns to invoke the combination of the divine mercy and 'righteousness' as the reason why, despite it all, He must now rescue His people from exile:
"And now, O Yahweh our Elohim, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and made Your Name (Yahweh) renowned even to this day - we have sinned, we have done wickedy, O Yahweh, in view of all your righteous acts (Heb. cecol tsidqotheka, Gk. LXX. kata tén dikaiosynén sou), let Your anger and wrath, we pray, turn away from Your city Jerusalem...We do not present our supplication before You on the ground of your righteousness, but on the ground of Your great mercies" (Dan.9:15-16,18, NRSV).
When Righteousness is Not Salvation
This sense of Yahweh's dikaiosyné (covenant righteousness) comes to dominate in those passages of Psalms and Isaiah where the context of Paul's thought in this area is to be located. This must always be remembered in reading Paul. Modern English translations, seeing the connection between 'Elohim's/God's righteousness' as an attribute of His character (specifically now His faithfulness to His covenant with Israel) and as something which is revealed in particular actions (in Daniel 9, as often, His rescue of His people from Israel), frequently (and wrongly) translate tsedaqa/dikaiosyné as 'salvation' or something closely related to it. But this fails to bring out the point to which Isaiah regularly appeals, which is that these are acts done because of Yahweh's prior commitment to Israel.
All Scripture, including the Messianic Scriptures (New Testament), must always be seen within the context of Yahweh's covenant relationship with Israel - Israel in the Old Covenant, and Messianic Israel in the New Covenant. This applies as much to native Israelites and Judahites as to Gentiles being grafted into the nation and the New Covenant (Rom.11).
English treatments often mistakenly separate the Hebrew tsedaqa and the Greek dikoiosyné into 'justification' and 'righteousness', reflecting historical differences over whether the sense was to 'declare [a person] righteous' (as in a law court), or actually 'make righteous' (implying moral transformation). In a basic sense, the terms imply 'relation to a norm', 'covenant', 'power' or 'order'.
Legal/Forensic and Ethical Righteousness Differentiated
There is a certain general parallelism of development between tsedaqa and dikoiosyné. Legal uses develop for both (Ps.9:4; Is.5:7), a sense of 'proper order, proper comportment) (tsedek-tsedeqa and mishpat, 'righteousness and justice'; doing the 'right thing') and hence an ethical sense (Ps.15). The Messianic Scriptures (New Testament) inherit the forensic, law-court aspects and the moral connotations (cp. the plural tsedaqa for the "triumphs of Yahweh", e.g. Judg.5:11; cp. also 1 Sam.12:7; Mic.6:5, "saving acts"; Ps.103:6, "vindication"). Paul emphasises such saving righteousness/justification in Romans 3:21-26.
But whose righteousness is involved, Yahweh's or Israel's, and how do they actually relate? As already seen, Tsedaqa is:
- 1. An activity of Elohim (God); and
- 2. Human activity or behaviour.
Corporate and Individual Righteousness
A 'two-way relationship' between Elohim (God) and Israel as a corporate entity (as in the covenant) is the starting point, pre-exilic in terms of national righteousness:
"And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says Yahweh" (Jer.31:28, NRSV)
Compared with:
"But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of everyone who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge" (Jer.31:30, NRSV).
"Thus says Yahweh: Act with justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor anyone who has been robbed" (Jer.22:3, NRSV).
Righteousness and Devotion
But after the Exile there is greater concern with righteousness of the devout individual before Yahweh:
"What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, 'The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge'?...If a man is righteous and does what is lawful (Torah-compliant) and right - if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbour's wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period (niddah), does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry, and covers the naked with a garment, does not take advantage of accrued interest, withholds his hand from iniquity, executes true justice between contending parties, follows my chukkim (statutes), and is careful to observe My ordinances, actaing faithfully - such a one is righteous; he shall surely live, says Yahweh-Elohim...Yet you say, 'The derech (way) of Yahweh is unfair.' Hear now, O house of Israel: Is My derech (way) unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair? When the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity, they shall die for it; for the iniquity they have committed they shall die. Again, when the wicked turn away from the wickedness they have committed and do what is lawful and right, they shall save their life. Because they considered and turned away from all the transgressions that they had committed, they shall surely live; they shall not die. Yet the house of Israel says, ' The derech (way) of Yahweh is unfair.' O house of Israel, are My ways unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair?" (Ezek.18:2,5-9,25-29, NRSV).
Headship Righteousness and Its Corporate Maintenance
The covenant relationship especially assumed the king was responsible for maintaining righteousness in Israel (Ps.72:1-7) just as the husband and father assumes responsibility for maintaining righteousness in the marriage and family as Messiah does for the Messianic Community (Church) (Eph.5:22-33). Thus Elohim's (God's) tsedaqa as saving action is projected into the future:
"For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her vindication shines out like the dawn, and her salvation like a burning torch" (Is.62:1, NRSV).
"'Who is this that comes from Edom, from Bozrah in garments stained crimson? Who is this so splendily robed, marching in his great might?' 'It is I, announcing vindication, mighty to save'" (Is.63:1, NRSV).
Righteousness as Traits of Pious Behaviour
While there is considerable emphasis on righteousness as involving certain traits of pious behaviour, the forensic and salvific aspects is what Elohim (God) does or will continue to do, especially in the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS).
Though doubless aware of this rich background in the Hebrew Scriptures, Yah'shua (Jesus) did not often use righteousness/justification terminology. Indeed He seems to have viewed His mission as directed only to "sinners", not the pious or "righteous" in terms of His day:
"Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners" (Mk.2:17, NRSV).
A self-righteous man does not realise his need for salvation, but an admitted sinner does. Thus Yah'shua (Jesus) came only for those willing to admit they were sinners, like Zaccheus, who walked in the footsteps of Abraham's emunah (faith) (Rom.4:12):
"For the Son of Man came to seek out and save the lost" (Lk.19:10, NRSV).
Paul echoed his Master:
"The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Messiah Yah'shua (Christ Jesus) came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the foremost" (1 Tim.1:15, NRSV).
Justifiers of Yahweh's Wisdom
Both Yah'shua (Jesus) and John the Baptist saw themselves as messengers who "justified" Elohim's (God's) wisdom (Lk.7:35; Mt.11:19). In the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, it is the latter who goes home vindicated or accounted righteous (Lk.18:14) and we discover a Yah'shua (Jesus) who is hard on those seeking self-justification (Lk.10:29; 16:15).
A particular interest in righteousness is displayed by Yah'shua (Jesus) in the Matthean account (which is known to have been written in Hebrew especially for the Judahites):
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled" (Mt.5:6, NRSV).
"But strive ('seek' - HRV, ESV, RSV, etc., 'set your heart on' - JBP) first for the Kingdom [of Elohim (God)] and His (the Father's) (or 'its' - the Kingdom's) righteousness, and all these things (food, drink, clothes) will be given to you as well" (Mt.6:33, NRSV).
A Gift and a Calling
Here Elohim's (God's) righteousness is depicted as a gift eschatologically, like the Kingdom, but there is also a call for righteous living:
"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for they will be called the children of Elohim (God)" (Mt.5:10, NRSV).
"For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Torah-teachers (Scribes) and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (and if it doesn't, you won't)" (Mt.5:20, NRSV).
"Beware of practicing your righteousness ('piety' - NRSV) before other people in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father in heaven" (Mt.6:10, ESV).
Taken together as a whole, we see in Matthew particularly a presentation of salvation history that incorporates both:
- 1. A divine gift (by impartation though emunah/faith); and
- 2. A human response (a calling leading to works).
This is what constitutes active rather than passive faith.
Two Forms of Righteousness
Thus there are two forms of 'righteousness', the first indicating the source (Elohim/God) and the second human works-based evidence that the transaction has indeed taken place in the believer receiving it with resultant rewards in both life and the afterlife (glories):
"But Yah'shua (Jesus) answered him, 'Let it be so now (that you, John the Baptist, baptise Me and not the other way round); for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.' Then he (John) consented" (Mt.3:15, NRSV).
"For John came to you in the derech (way, path) of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax-collectors and prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him" (Mt.21:32, NRSV).
Righteousness as a Status in Messiah
Among the considerable uses of terms from dikaioún in Acts, the most significant is Paul's sermon (Ac.13:39) about "everyone who believes" being "set free" from all those sins "from which you could not be freed by the Torah (Law) of Moses" (NRSV). Paul himself did not speak of being justified 'from sins' but liberated from sin, "...that you, having been set free from sin, have becomes slaves of righteousness" (Rom.6:18, NRSV), for that is the condition and status of one who is, and remains, in Messiah.
The Righteousness of Elohim
It is in Paul that righteousness/justification comes into greatest prominence in the Messianic Scriptures (New Testament). Several factors in the pre-Pauline period help explain the prominence of this Tanakh (Old Testament) theme in Paul's mature thought and that of other early Christian writers, including the use of the Tanakh (Old Testament) phrase, "the righteous one" (cp. Is.53; Wis.2:12-20) to describe Yah'shua (Jesus) (e.g. Mt.27:19; Lk.23:47; Ac.3:14; 7:52; 22:14; 1 Pet.3:18; 1 Jn.2:1). The phrase, "the righteousness of Elohim (God)" has been claimed as a technical term, possibly going back to Deuteronomy 33:21 and developing in apocalyptic literature, including Qumran (cp. 2 Cor.5:21; cp. Rom.1:17; 3:21-22,25-26; 10:3; Phil.3:9; Mt.6:33; Jas.1:20; 2 Pet.1:1).
The Pauline Understanding
Paul's great theological contribution was to bring together his entire gospel message under 'righteousness/justification' to a degree accomplished with no other metaphor of salvation. His call and conversion are often given a key place, but coming to distinguish fully "righteousness from the Torah (Law)" and "righteousness through emunah (faith) in Messiah" (Phil.3:9; Rom.9:30-31; 10:5-11) represents a longer process of reflection using the language and terminology of first century Judaism.
The justice (dikaiosýné) of Elohim (God) which can reveal wrath (Rom.3:5; 1:18ff.) and the salvific righteousness of Elohim (God) both come into play, the latter through the death of Messiah and His being raised by Yahweh the Father. To be united with this Messiah hearing and believing this message (Rom.10:10-17) and by conversion leading to baptism (Rom.6:4-7) carried with it the imperative to present the whole self henceforth as "weapons" in the war against sin and unrighteousness (Rom.6:13-14). Paul developed righteousness/justification out of the apocalyptical and missionary situation, especially so as to include Gentiles by emunah (faith) along with the Judeans by emunah (faith) as the heart of his overall vision of Elohim's (God's) plan (Rom.3:28-30; 4:11-12,23-24; 10:5-13). Paul's understanding of Yahweh's kind of righteousness now available in Messiah removes all boasting and illusions of self-achievement, for it rests upon Elohim (God) (1 Cor.1:29-31) and justifies Elohim (God) in calling the Gentiles (Rom.9:23-26; 15:8a,9-12) and for the hopes Paul has for his Israelite countrymen (Rom.11:11-12,25-32; 15:8).
Paul's experience and presentation of righteousness/justification, as participation in Messiah's righteousness and the benefits of justification (Rom.5:1-5; 8:3-4,10-11; 12:3-8) in the overlap of the old and new ages, inevitably changed as time went on without the end coming, as the Messianic Community grew more Greco-Roman and Tanakh (Old Testament) roots were obscured through cultural attrition. In Ephesians 2:4-10 Paul's emphasis on grace (undeserved loving-kindness) and emunah (active faith, trusting), but the verb is not 'be justified' but 'be saved'; the forensic, judgment note is muted, and the absence of future eschatology opens the way to new ethical applications:
"It will be reckoned to us who believe in Him (Yahweh) who raised Yah'shua (Jesus) our Master from the dead..." (Rom.4:24, NRSV).
"Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by His blood, we will be saved through Him from the wrath [of Elohim (God)]" (Rom.5:9, NRSV).
"For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, despicable, hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of Elohim (God) our Deliverer (Saviour) appeared, He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy, through the water (washing) of rebirth and renewal by the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit). This Ruach (Spirit) He poured out on us rightly through Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) our Deliverer (Saviour), so that having been justified by His grace (undeserved loving-kindness, unmerited favour), we might become heirs according to the tiqveh (hope) of æonian chayim (age-long/'eternal' life)" (Tit.3:3-7, NRSV).
The Synthesis of James
James not only uses the phrase "righteousness of Elohim (God)" (Jas.1:20) but he stresses justification, not involving an impotent, merely intellectual 'faith' but emunah (faith) and one's life and deeds (Jas.2:14-26), showing the synthesis between imputed righteousness (for salvation) and acquired righteousness through piety (for eternal rewards).
The Johannine Vision
In the Johannine literature the Gospel of John speaks of righteousness in connection with Yah'shua's (Jesus') vindication, in a forensic setting (Jn.16:8,10; cp. 5:30; 7:24). 1 John 2:1 presents Yah'shua (Jesus) as the Righteous One, a sacrifice for sins. From the chayim (life) arising out of this follows the ethical admonition to "do righteousness" (1 Jn.2:29; 3:7,10), again showing the components of righteousness - imputed (for salvation/deliverance from sin, guilt, hell, and death) and acquired through works (for various resurrection glories and other rewards).
The Righteous Judge
Pre-eminently Elohim (God) is the righteous Judge. That Elohim (God) will judge with the strictest justice every man according to his works, in relationship to the Shavu'ot Covenant of Torah, is a sentiment found throughout the whole Bible. In the Tanakh (Old Testament) this was often a source of comfort to the afflicted believer. But there is also in the Tanakh (Old Testament) the recognition that our righteousness is insufficent for Elohim's (God's) standard.
The Righteousness of Yahweh and the Obedient Believer
This last sentiment is central to Paul's concept of righteousness. He distinguishes between the righteousness of moral effort, which he calls "a righteousness of my own that comes from the Torah (Law)" (Phil.3:9, NRSV) or "a righteousness under the Torah (Law)" (v.6), and the righteousness of Elohim (God):
"Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to Elohim (God) from them (Israelites) is that they may be saved ('have chayim/life' - AENT). I can testify that they have a zeal of Elohim (God), but it is not enlightened. For being ignorant of the righteousness of Elohim that comes from (God), and seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted to Elohim's (God's) righteousness. For Messiah is the end ('goal' - JNT, KNT, AENT, etc.) of the Torah so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Moses writes concerning the righteousness that comes from the Torah (Law) that 'the person who does these things will live by them'. But the righteousness that comes through emunah (faith) says, 'Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?' (that is, to bring Messiah down) or 'Why will descend into the abyss' (that is, to bring Messiah up from the dead). But what does it say? 'The davar (word) is near you, on your lips and in your heart' (that is, the Davar Emunah/Word of Faith that we proclaim)." (Rom:10:1-8, NRSV).
The Source of All Righteousness
The latter righteousness has Elohim (God) as its source (Phil.3:9), and is received as a gift, "the free gift of righteousness" (Rom.5:17, NRSV), both in the forensic sense as well as in receiving the disposition to be righteous, to which we are given the agency to respond to, or not.
This gift from Elohim (God) is based on the work of Messiah (Rom.5:17), enabling us to legally approach the Most High with the Righteousness of Messiah. More particularly, it is based on the propitiation of Messiah's death (Rom.3:19-26). It consists of the righteousness which Messiah Himself achieved in His perfect obedience to His Father's will in life and death, in which He bore the curse of separation from Elohim (God), which our breaches of Yahweh's Torah (Law) entail. Salvation is achieved by judicial exchange between the sinner and the Deliverer (Saviour), the sinner receiving Messiah's righteousness in the forensic sense, the latter being made sin (2 Cor.5:21; cp. 1 Cor.1:30; 2 Pet.1:1, where it is said that we share in the righteousness of Yah'shua the Messiah/Jesus Christ).
The Source of Forensic Justification
The gift of Messiah's righteousness is made by Elohim (God) to all who believe (Rom.3:22), and it is the basis of Elohim's (God's) verdict of justification (Rom.5:18). Those clothed in this righteousness are justly acquitted and accepted as righteous at Yahweh's judgment bar (Rom.3:26).
The fact that Elohim (God) has provided this righteousness for sinners is the central fact of the Besorah (Gospel, Good News) (Rom.1:17). It is a righteousness which is independent, to a degree, to which we are able to conform to the Torah haElohim (the Law of God) (Rom.3:21), because it is based on Messiah's perfect conformity to the Torah (Law) and will of Elohim (God).
Though the gift of righteousness in Messiah to all who believe is the theme of the Besorah (Gospel), it was not a novel doctrine, but was testified to by the Tanakh (Old Testament) (Rom.3:21). Paul quotes Habakkuk (Rom.1:17) and speaks at length of Abraham, whose emunah (faith) Yahweh took account of (Rom.4:3; cp. 4:6).
Righteousness as Conformity to Law
Righteousness is conformity to law, especially to the law, mind and will of Elohim (God), which is the norm of righteousness. Messiah fulfilled this righteousness, both by conformity to the piqqudim (precepts) of Elohim (God) in life, and by conformity to the righteous judgment of Elohim (God) on sin in His death. His resurrection and exaltation is the vindication and reward of His righteousness (Heb.2:9; cp. Rom.2:7).
The word 'righteousness' may be applied to well-doing of a less complete sort (e.g. Lk.1:6), and in the 1st century Judahite vocabulary of the day it was applied, in the case of one example, to the particular act of well-doing in the giving of alms (Mt.6:1-2), but has Torah-wide application in the whole moral sense.
Conclusion
Messiah conformed to the Torah (Law), without a single transgression, in order to provide the free gift of salvation from sin, and the judgment that falls upon sinners, to those who will trust Him. Believers are empowered by Him to live the Torah, albeit imperfectly, and will be rewarded accordingly for their good deeds.
(9 October 2018)
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