Romans / Question
This question belongs with Romans 3:23. Romans 3:21–26 marks a turning point: Paul says something has been disclosed “now” that does not depend on keeping the law, yet is still supported by Israel’s Scriptures. This “righteousness of God” is said to come through faith in Jesus and is offered without separating people into different groups. The answer should be drawn from that movement rather than from an isolated phrase.
Romans 3:21–26 marks a turning point: Paul says something has been disclosed “now” that does not depend on keeping the law, yet is still supported by Israel’s Scriptures. This “righteousness of God” is said to come through faith in Jesus and is offered without separating people into different groups. Earlier Paul has argued that both non-Jews and Jews are accountable before God and that the law, rather than fixing the problem, exposes it (the lead-in immediately before this section).
Paul’s “But now” (verse 21) signals a shift from the earlier problem: the law exposes human failure, but God has now made something known that does not depend on law-keeping. Yet Paul insists this new disclosure is not a break with Israel’s Scriptures; “the law and the prophets” point toward it (verse 21).
A careful answer keeps the immediate passage, the book's argument, and the whole-Bible storyline together, so the question is answered in context instead of as a detached idea.
Start with Romans 3:23, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
23for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;