But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. It was the expectation of the pious Jew that at the end of the age there would be a judgment day. Then God would justify the righteous and condemn the wicked. Justification was what would take place for the people of God on the day of judgment. The passages cited above show that in a certain sense Paul and Jesus shared that expectation.
Justification is eschatological.
It is the verdict of acquittal and approval which is rendered on the day of judgment. Before we look further into the Pauline meaning of justification, let us consider what the Bible teaches us about the judgment. The Bible teaches that there will be a final judgment of all according to works. Many of the parables of Jesus tell us this in the plainest possible way. Paul, the apostle of justification by faith, says more about a final judgment according to works than does any other apostle.