Wright’s primary concern with justification is that it reflects what he believes second temple Judaism believed, which he sees in continuity with the Old Testament. Therefore, Write interprets justification in terms of God’s covenant faithfulness to Abraham and Abraham’s righteousness coming from his membership in the covenant. Justification then becomes another way of defining covenant membership which emphasizes ecclesiology over soteriology.
Wright’s reading of Paul then becomes focused on defining the covenant, membership within it and righteousness established by that membership. Justification is not the focus of salvation however, especially since Wright sees this as being only one way to talk about salvation and not THE way. The basis for his exegesis is found in the way he defines righteousness and covenant in terms he believes to be synchronistic with Paul, the Old Testament and second temple Judaism. Unfortunately, what he ends up with is a works based righteousness, even stating that final judgment is according to our works.
Galatians 5 gives us another picture though of Paul that Wright does not seem to share. Here Paul talks about the freedom Christians have from the law, and especially circumcision as defining salvation or justification as the gospel of Jesus Christ plus works. Paul says however that it is only in Jesus Christ that we have any hope and that the works of the law do not count for anything when we are in Christ. Ultimately, our hope, our justification is found in “faith expressing itself through love” or the love of Jesus Christ making us righteous through his Spirit that gives us faith. In faith, we eagerly wait for the completed work of our salvation in Christ alone.
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