What does it mean that by the works of the law, no flesh shall be justified (Galatians 2:16)?

Galatians 2:16 states, “A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified” (Galatians 2:16, NKJV). Paul teaches that God justifies sinners through faith in Jesus Christ rather than through obedience to the law of Moses. When God justifies a sinner, He declares that person righteous in His sight. What, then, does Paul mean by “works of the law,” and how does this phrase help us understand the gospel?

“Works of the law” refers to a person’s efforts to obey the law to attain righteousness before God. The law commanded Israel to obey God’s moral requirements and gave regulations concerning sacrifices, food, ceremonial purity, and other aspects of Israel’s covenant life. Some Jews in Paul’s day insisted that people needed to obey the law for justification. Paul firmly rejects that idea. He declares that a sinner is “not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:16, NKJV).

The law cannot save anyone. Romans 3:20 states, “Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20, NKJV). God’s law reveals His righteous standard and exposes our failure to meet it. Like a mirror that shows us what is wrong but cannot correct the problem, the law exposes sin but cannot remove it. No fallen human being keeps God’s law perfectly. James writes, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10, NKJV).

Since sinners cannot keep the law perfectly, they cannot earn justification through obedience. God justifies sinners “by faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:16, NKJV). Saving faith includes believing the truth about Christ and personally trusting Him and His finished work on the cross. Jesus bore the penalty for sin, and God credits Christ’s righteousness to those who believe. Paul explains, “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NKJV).

The Old Testament also teaches justification by faith. God counted Abraham, the father of the Jewish people, righteous centuries before He gave Israel the law. Genesis records, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6, NKJV). Paul later points to Abraham as evidence that God justifies people through faith rather than works (Romans 4:1–5). From beginning to end, God saves sinners by His grace through faith.

Because God justifies sinners through faith alone, no one should rely on good works to earn salvation. Trying to justify ourselves misunderstands the nature of God’s grace. We cannot earn or deserve grace. Salvation is “the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9, NKJV). For that reason, no one can boast about earning salvation. Paul asks, “Where is boasting then? It is excluded” (Romans 3:27, NKJV). God receives all the glory because He provides the righteousness that sinners could never produce for themselves.

Legalism, the attempt to gain or maintain acceptance with God through rule-keeping, burdens people with a load they cannot carry. Jesus instead calls sinners to Himself: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28, NKJV). Those who trust in Christ can stop trying to earn a right standing before God. Christ accomplished what sinners could never accomplish through obedience to the law.

Freedom from the law as a means of justification does not give Christians permission to live in disobedience. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15, NKJV). Christians obey God not to earn justification but because God has already justified them through faith in Christ. The Holy Spirit gives believers a desire for holiness and empowers them to resist sin and live for God. As Paul writes, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1, NKJV). The works of the law cannot justify sinners. Christ alone saves, and He gives His righteousness and true freedom to all who trust in Him.