Paul answers his question from verse nine by pointing out the basic timeline of Abraham's life from Genesis: Abraham's righteousness came from his belief in God, which all came before God established His covenant with Abraham. In other words, righteousness came from faith, and not from works, in Abraham's life.

Paul asks in verse 9 whether this blessing--the blessing David wrote about in Psalm 32 of righteousness and the ability to have our sins "covered"--is available to everyone. The answer comes in verse 10, but today we talk about what it means to be blessed and to bless.

Paul quotes a second verse from Psalm 32 in support of his argument that David's life proves that we are made right through faith, rather than works. We talk about the greatness of David's faith.

Paul quotes David from Psalm 32 in today's verse. We talk about what it means to be forgiven, and how Jesus rose from the dead and overcame death as a gift of forgiveness for you.

Paul invokes a second example of his statement that we are justified by faith: David. We talk about who David was--the good and the bad.

Paul gives the counter to verse 4's explanation of wages, writing that the faith of the one who does not work but just believes is counted or credited as righteousness.

Paul follows up the brilliant use of Genesis 15:6 in verse three with a great analogy in verse four: that if works earned salvation, then God's provision of righteousness is no longer a gift, but just transferring something earned or owed.

Paul cites a key verse from Genesis that had long been misinterpreted by Jewish leaders. We unpack the major implication: that Abraham's belief was counted to him as righteousness.

Paul answers his question from verse 1, saying that if Abraham could been justified by his works, then he would have boasted about it, right? As the church in Rome knew, Abraham certain did not boast in his works, and so it fits Paul's point. We talk about how our "works" impact our lives today too.

Paul begins chapter four with a question that shows he's going to consider Abraham as a test case, or as proof of his point that we are saved by faith instead of works. We talk about Abraham's background.