Romans 3:21 begins a section where Paul expounds, for the first time in Romans, on the revelation of the righteousness of God. One of the ways to characterize current debates about this passage, and about the righteousness of God and justification in general, is to ask whether this is about the righteousness that is given to those who believe as a matter of ordo salutis or whether it is about the righteousness of God Himself manifested in historia salutis . The beginning of 3:21 answers this question decisively: I agree with Cranfield that the NUN should be given its full temporal force; Paul is not saying “now, this follows logically from what I’ve presented,” but rather “all flesh stands condemned before God, but God has done something new now in Jesus so that those who believe will not be condemned.” It is clear that Paul does not regard “justification by faith” as something that is revealed “now”; chapter 4 demonstrates that Abraham and all Abraham’s children, whether Jew or Gentile, are reckoned righteous by faith. If in 3:21 Paul is talking about individual soteriology, there is no “but now” about it. Justification has always and ever been by faith. What is NEW, what is NOW, is that God has revealed His righteousness through the faithful work of Jesus. By punishing sin in the cross, and by justifying those who believe in Jesus, God has revealed His righteousness, His covenant faithfulness and His commitment to make the world right.
Surely this can be better expressed, but the “but now” makes it clear that 3:21-31 is historia salutis first of all, rather than ordo salutis (though I don’t think Paul would oppose these two at all).
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