Faith of Jesus

Perriman offers a careful assessment of the “faith of Jesus” question. He notes the differences between the verb pisteuo and the noun pistis , notes as well the differences between Habakkuk’s use of the word and the use of the verb in Genesis 15, and concludes: “The verb pisteuo is unambiguous: it denotes the act of believing or having faith in something or someone . . . . The noun, however, can mean i) ‘belief/faith in’ something or someone, or ii) ‘faithfulness,’ in the sense, for example, of Jesus’s obedience to the point of death . . . or of the saints’ steadfastness in the face of persecution.” The verbal sense aligns with Abraham; the second noun sense is the focus of Habakkuk 2:4. More specifically, the verb highlights belief in God’s promise to give a future to His people; the noun in its second sense highlights the believer’s radical trust in God in the face of catastrophic destruction.

Hence, “the pistis of the believer is both the ‘faithfulness’ of Habakkuk 2:4 and the ‘belief’ of Genesis 15:6.”