he himself has done, but on the strength of his faith in Christ, _i.e._
his devoted personal adhesion to Christ (iii. 21-26). St. Paul tells
the Romans that this justifying faith excludes glorying, can be
realized by Gentile as well as Jew; that by it we establish the Law
(iii. 27-31), as the Jewish dispensation, rightly understood, testifies
to its necessity. In fact, Abraham himself was justified by faith
(iv.) Then St. Paul sets forth in glowing and stately words what are
the consequences for us which follow from being so justified. We are
at peace with God, and share in His love, and this is the secure ground
of Christian hope for life and after death (v. 1-11). The effects of
Christ's death are computed by an _argumentum a fortiori_ from the
results of Adam's fall (v. 12-21).

The apostle now carefully refutes the notion that the doctrine of
justification by faith encourages Antinomianism. Liberty does not mean
licence. St. Paul was quite alive to the fact that skilful opponents
and brainless admirers would misrepresent his doctrine, which was also
Christ's. He therefore takes great pains to show that the connection
between the righteousness of Christ and the righteousness of a
Christian is not arbitrary or fictitious. His argument throughout
implies that man actually receives "the righteousness of God," that is,
the righteousness which is inherent in God, and is bestowed by God upon
man when he unites himself with Christ (vi.-viii.).

Shall I go on sinning that God's mercy may be all the greater in
forgiving me? God forbid: for when I went down into the waters of
baptism, I shared in the death of Christ; and when I rose from them, I
rose as a sharer in His risen life. Because I am united thus to the
life of Christ, sin is foreign to my nature (vi. 1-14). I am no longer
under law, but under grace: but {165} to be the slave of sin and be
occupied with uncleanness, and to gain the wages of death, is
inconsistent with being the slave of righteousness, occupied in a
course of purification and rewarded with the gift of life (vi. 15-23).

Next, St. Paul asks why it is that we are no longer under the Law?
Because we have no connection with that state of sin to which the Law
was applicable. Our soul is like a wife whose lawful husband is dead.
Or, to put the truth into another form, our old state was killed by our
identification with Christ crucified, and we are espoused to Christ
risen (vii. 1-6). What, t