Righteousness was set in stone before Jesus came. It pointed to Jesus but Jesus made a huge change to the relevance of Law because He gave a greater sacrifice and shed His own holy blood. The Law was righteousness set in stone but could not make an adherent righteous the way Jesus's blood could. So it all changed and a new sacrifice took first place. The commands needed reissuing now there was a new covenant. But true that faith was always a way of righteousness - even before the Law. Noah, Enoch, Abraham, Sarah - all lived righteously by a faith that had nothing set in stone. Jesus did not replace this - He completed it in a way these righteous treasures longed for. He introduced a new birth to make a child of Satan into a child of God. Even people of faith like John the Baptist needed this. Apostle Paul started as Saul of Tarsus a leading light of Law but not a true light until the risen Jesus cut him to the heart.
