Abstract

DE WIT DE KONING, Jacobus. The second and third use of the moral law? Romans 3:31 under scrutiny. STJ [online]. 2020, vol.6, n.2, pp.129-152. ISSN 2413-9467.  http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2020.v6n2.a6.

In this article, it is indicated that the Protestant teaching of the so-called second and third use of the moral law is not confirmed by Romans 3:31's statement: "Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law." After looking at developments concerning the study of the role of the Torah that indicated a descriptive view rather than a prescriptive view thereof in Israel's history, until a change to a more prescriptive view during the Persian period and thereafter, the relationship of faith and Torah in the Canonical Pentateuch came under scrutiny. Following this, new developments regarding Paul and the law were considered. Paul's statement in Romans 3:31 was then examined in the context of Romans 2-4. After establishing the fact that this verse cannot be used to confirm the ongoing relevance of the law for the New Testament Christian concerning the knowledge of sin and rule for Christian living, it was tested against Galatians 3:12, which seems to contradict the findings on Romans 3:31. It was concluded that Paul indeed indicates that the truth of justification through faith is confirmed by the Torah itself and therefore the so-called second and third use of the moral law cannot be confirmed by Romans 3:31. Some implications of this conclusion are finally highlighted.

Keywords : Romans 3:31; law; faith; law of works; law of faith; Pentateuch.

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