Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness
Paul often refers to the Old Testament in his letters, and he uses a key verse from Genesis at key points in his argument in both Romans and Galatians. It is Genesis 15:6. Let’s have a look at this verse in its original context:
After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”
2 But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.”
4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
(Genesis 15:1-6 ESV)
Abraham had left his homeland because God called him to. He had been to Egypt, had his problems with his nephew Lot, and even had to fight in a battle. Yet after all of this, there was no sign of his promised child. His wife Sarah was old, far past childbearing years, and Abraham himself was old and starting to think about who to leave his possessions to. God had made a promise but had not yet delivered on it.
And this promise of a child was completely out of Abraham’s control. There is nothing he could do differently to make it happen. If it happened, it would be completely and utterly God’s work and only God’s work.
When he expressed his thinking to God, God reaffirmed his promise not only of a child but many future descendants. Abraham had good reason to doubt it based on his circumstances and how long it had already taken. Yet he believed in this impossible promise. And God counted it to him as righteousness.
Paul uses this verse in Galatians 3:6 to support his case that we are only saved by faith and not what we do. Abraham trusted in God’s promises, and that was enough. God didn’t make Abraham prove his faith and fulfil tasks, but immediately counted Abraham’s faith as righteousness. Abraham was God’s person, right with God, and only by faith not what he did.
We must be careful not to read Genesis 15:6 incorrectly. The point of this verse is not that Abraham was such a good person with such strong faith that God rewarded him with a child. No, that’s completely wrong. Abraham was not an especially good person. You can see that if you read Genesis more widely. The emphasis should be on God’s kindness to Abraham, not Abraham’s deserving.
The key is the word translated as “counted” in the ESV, which other translations more correctly translate as “credited”. Think of it like a bank account. If something is put into your bank account, it is credited to your account. If it is taken out of your account, it is debited from your account. God credited Abraham’s account when he had faith, not when he earnt it or deserved it in any way. It was a gift, a promise, something done for him, not something he earnt.
Likewise, Christians are people who trust in Jesus. When we come to trust in Jesus as our Saviour and Lord, God credits our account with righteousness immediately. That means we are saved as of that moment; we are right with God when we believe. The thief on the cross was promised Paradise without having the opportunity to be baptised or live a life serving Jesus well. He was saved by faith, not works.
If we understand this, it is so freeing! It means we understand the Christian life as joy, as being marked as saved and God’s people already. We don’t need to be driven to deserve God’s love; we can be sure we are loved already. God has credited the account of all who believe with Jesus’ righteousness. That’s a great gift we could never deserve.