Why does God have to speak before a person can believe?
Faith comes by hearing, so God must first speak or reveal His word before anyone can believe it. Abraham believed God only after God said something to him; his faith was a response to God's spoken promise. Belief rests on what God has said, and that spoken word is then counted as righteousness when believed.
Les explains that the order is crucial: God speaks first, then a person believes. Abraham is the example—he did not merely believe in God; he believed God, meaning he trusted what God had said. Paul appeals to Scripture itself, asking 'What saith the Scripture?' because what matters is what God says, not what Paul or any teacher says. Since faith comes by hearing, God must say something before mankind can believe it. Abraham's belief was then imputed to him as righteousness. Les then turns to James to address scoffers who claim the Bible contradicts itself.
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.