diff --git a/activerecord/lib/active_record/relation/predicate_builder.rb b/activerecord/lib/active_record/relation/predicate_builder.rb
index d853fd63d1..5cea2328e8 100644
--- a/activerecord/lib/active_record/relation/predicate_builder.rb
+++ b/activerecord/lib/active_record/relation/predicate_builder.rb
@@ -20,9 +20,7 @@ module ActiveRecord
             table = Arel::Table.new(table_name, :engine => @engine)
           end
 
-          unless attribute = table[column]
-            raise StatementInvalid, "No attribute named `#{column}` exists for table `#{table.name}`"
-          end
+          attribute = table[column] || Arel::Attribute.new(table, column)
 
           case value
           when Array, ActiveRecord::Associations::AssociationCollection, ActiveRecord::Relation