Does Paul really discuss two different
kinds or species of righteousness, or does he discuss only the two different origins of righteousness? The latter
seems most likely since δικαιοσυνη has the same sense throughout Philippians. Even in 3:9, the difference
is only one of origin, whether εκ νομου or εκ θεου. Nothing suggests that these
prepositional phrases should indicate two different definitions for the same
word in the same sentence. If Paul really wanted to indicate two different
properties or qualities, he would have used two different words. At any rate,
Paul wants what Noah, Daniel, Baruch and Enoch have:
Noah was found (ευρεθη) perfect, righteous (δικαιος); at the time of wrath he was taken in exchange . . . (Sir 44:17)
And God saved me from the lions because righteousness was found in me
before him. (καθότι δικαιοσύνη ἐν ἐμοὶ εὑρέθη ἐναντίον αὐτου Daniel 6:23)
For you [i.e., Baruch] have been found righteous before God (Δικαιος γαρ ευρεθης εναντιον του θεου), and he
did not let you come here, so that you would not see the ill-treatment by the
Babylonians that has come upon the people. (4
Bar. or Paraleipomena Jeremiou 7:25)
Let us consider Enoch, who, when he was found righteous in obedience (εν
υπακοη δικαιος ευρεθεις), was changed, and his death was not
discovered. (1 Clem. 9:3)
The δικαιοσυνη “found” in the prophet Daniel is the same
kind of δικαιοσυνη Paul hopes is found (ευρεθω) in himself, even if they come from different sources. Just as δικαιοσυνη and δικαιος, moreover, do not carry the notion of
acquittal in Sirach, Daniel, Paraleipomena
Jeremiou (4 Baruch), or 1 Clement, neither does δικαιοσυνη in Philippians. In Sirach, Daniel, the Paralelipomena Jeremiou, and 1 Clement, the noun and the adjective refer
to a state of being or a quality that Noah, Daniel, Baurch, and Enoch possess.
In all five texts, clearly God will make a determination, as is evident by ευρισκω, not the δικαι- terms. God’s determination must accord
to the truth: if Noah, Daniel Baurch, Enoch, or Paul is righteous, then that
righteousness will be what God finds. (Chris VanLandingham, Judgment and Justification in Early Judaism
and the Apostle Paul [Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 2006],
314-15)
