Romans, Chapter 1
Commentary
1:1-Paul begins immediately to subvert individual notions of rank and honor, which would cause the Christians in wealthy, cosmopolitan Rome view themselves as superior to the barbarians of Spain, by labeling himself, a man of considerable fame and influence in the ancient church (2 Peter 3:15) as a "dulos," a slave of Jesus the Christ (Christ means Messiah).
1.2-That Jesus was foreshadowed by the Old Testament, especially the prophets, has been a constant commitment of the church since the very beginning. Paul uses this common connection to the church at Rome to establish his own credentials as an orthodox theologian.
1.3-The church at Rome was almost certainly an uneasy mix of Jewish believers and Gentile converts. Here Paul affirms Jesus' important Jewish identity and authority, rooted in Old Testament prophecies to King David, while also reiterating the article of faith that was the most difficult for Jewish believers to accept-That Jesus was not just God's chosen Messiah, but actually God's Son.
1.4- Jesus' claim to the titles of Messiah and Lord is affirmed by God himself through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. The lordship of Jesus is emphasized to encourage the Romans to listen to and obey Jesus will, which might include helping Paul with his missionary work. The close proximity of the Spirit, the Son, and the Father (1.7) shows how early Christians valued both the unity and distinctness in the persons of God, although Paul does not use an explicitly Trinitarian formula.
1.5-6-Paul here explicitly names the mission to unbelieving Gentiles as a duty of the believers, and reminds them that they belong to Jesus Christ as well, a kind way of implying that they, like Paul, are also servants or slaves of Jesus, without being so forceful as to use a demeaning title with the Roman church, with whom Paul is not yet acquainted.
1.7-The word "saints" (Greek: Hagioi, cf. the Haggia Sophia, or 'holy wisdom' in Turkey) used in the New Testament means simply "holy ones," believers in Christ, living or dead. It did not take on the connotation of an especially holy Christian until much later in the Church's history. Here Paul softens a bit, and enumerates not the lordship and ownership of God over the believers, but God's love for them, and the promise of grace and peace through God and Jesus Christ.
1.8-Paul tells the believes how he had heard of their congregation, even though he has never visited. John Calvin notes "he intimates that they, being honored with the public approbation of the churches, could not reject an Apostle of the Lord, without disappointing the good opinion of them entertained by all..."
1.9-Paul here explicitly enumerates his role as a messenger of the Gospel, preparing the Romans both to hear the gospel themselves, and to aid Paul in the work of the Gospel, which is missions. Paul has spoken before about "praying without ceasing," (1 Thessalonians 5:17), here he tells the Roman church that he has prayed for them continually, a valuable gift for, as James says, "the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." (James 5:16)
1.10-Here, Paul comes to the point: His hope is to eventually meet the Roman church face to face, despite the difficulty and thereby secure their support for his work.
1.11-12-Again, Paul hopes to share his spiritual gifts with the church, his preaching and teaching and theology, and in return, to receive a gift to help the unbelievers in Spain. The Greek word for spiritual gift, "Charismata" (cf. Charismatic, Charisma) is related to the Greek word for grace, and is one of the most theologically loaded terms in the New Testament. These gifts are in the power of the believers to give, only because God has been gracious to them, first.
1.13-Here, Paul's object is in full view. While this may sound like excuse-making, remember what struggles Paul faced in his missionary journeys:
1st Corinthians 11.23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.
1.14-15-Although Paul is bold to ask for help, he also makes no secret of the way in which he is indebted to the churches who support his missionary efforts, and humbly calls himself a "debtor," using the same Greek word that Jesus uses metaphorically to describe sinners in the Lord's Prayer.
1.16-Here is, surely, one of the greatest and most quotable verses in the entire New Testament. Here, Paul may be alluding to the words of Jesus himself, who says "If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels" (Mark 8:38). In Paul's letters, the interplay between boldness and shame is important. Believers must be bold in their faith, and not shrink back from proclaiming the gospel. This gospel is the power of salvation for everyone who has faith. This is very important because the early church debated the issue of whether or not uncircumcised gentiles could be Christians fiercely (Galatians 2:11), with some early Christians, including Peter, temporally swayed into believing that one must be or become a Jew before becoming a Christian. This verse is also the thesis of the Epistle to the Romans, and he will spend the next 16 chapters expounding and defending it.
1.17-Here Paul says explicitly that it is by faith (not works, including circumcision, dietary laws, etc., or by pride of lineage or social status) that believers are saved. This is not just a cornerstone of Christianity, but of Presbyterian belief specifically, as Calvin writes "we cannot obtain salvation otherwise than from this gospel, since nowhere else does God reveal to us his righteousness, which alone delivers us from perdition.
1.18-32 Overview
In order to get the Roman church to work in harmony with one another, and to prevent them both from looking down on the barbarians of Spain as unworthy of the Gospel, Paul takes an unusual approach-He enumerates a list of sins, which the hearers would, at first, immediately associate almost exclusively with the barbarians. It is only at the start of the second chapter that Paul's true purpose becomes known.
1.18-20-One of Paul's central ideas is that God's nature is, at least in part, discernible to any rational person who examines creation. Thus, all ungodliness is not just a deviation from the truth, but a departure from self-evident reality. The wrath of God is a terrifying prospect, with which the Jewish Christians, with their greater knowledge of the Old Testament, would have been especially familiar. The notion of accusation and "excuse" is another theme of the book that will come around again (2.15).
1.21-23-Here Paul says that the departure from worshiping God and bowing down to idols was a deliberate choice, but also a product of "futile" thinking and "senseless" hearts. Idolitry in the literal sense is a clear mark of barbarians. The Roman Christians will now be expecting the following list of vices to specifically target the group of people of whom they already have a low opinion. This is a constant threat in modern churches as well-people are always eager for a good censure of other people's sins.
1.24-25-In the Roman world, almost all "deviant" sexual behaviors were thought to be the product of an "excess of passion," over and above what is normal, in sort of the same way that gluttony is an excess of passion for food. The phrase "gave them up" or "handed them over" or "gave them over" is a translation of the Greek word paradidiomi (par-ah-did-oh-me), which means to give over control of someone or something. It is one of the most important words in the Bible; the Gospel of Mark portrays Jesus' ministry as a constant battle between God and demons to see who humans will be "handed over" to. In the end, when Christ is taken prisoner, he is "handed over" to be crucified, and in being handed over to death, humanity is handed over to God.
1.26-27- In wanting to rile up his audience, Paul targets the two behaviors most likely to shock and appall the Roman church, idolatry, especially in the form of worshiping animal forms, something good Romans rarely did, and homosexual sex acts, which were extremely forbidden and often seen as a mark of the depths of Gentile depravity by the Jews. This section should not be understood as Paul saying that these sins are the foremost offenses against God. Rather, they are the foremost offenses against God in the minds of the Roman Church, that is, the worst sins against God which had the added feature of rarely or never being committed by members of the church in Rome, which always enhances a group's fervor in decrying a bad behavior.
1.28-Those who do not acknowledge God are given up (paradidomi) to the desires of their hearts, which are "only evil all the time" (Genesis 6:5) , and they descend rapidly into the worst kinds of evil.
1.29-31-This is a collection of transgressions that is often referred to by biblical scholars as a "vice list," a somewhat stock form that many Pharisees (like Paul) and Rabbis kept handy to teach people what not to do. Jesus makes recourse to a more mild version of this same behavior when he tells the Rich Young Man how to have eternal life in Mark 10/Luke 18/Matthew 19.
1.32-By the end of this shocking list, which the Roman church believes enumerates the offenses of the Barbarians, the jury has heard quite enough. Not only are these people unworthy of help, they are unworthy to live (or so they think!) Although the ancient church never executed people for unrepentant sin (or even physically punished them, preferring instead to excommunicate them from the physical gathering of believers), this reference to the civil law of the ancient Kingdom of Israel would be well understood. Paul also alludes to the punishment for all sin--the death which eventually befalls all men and women, one way or another (Genesis 2:17).
Next: Romans, Chapter 2
Previous: Introduction to Romans
Back to the Centennial Scripture Challenge
1:1-Paul begins immediately to subvert individual notions of rank and honor, which would cause the Christians in wealthy, cosmopolitan Rome view themselves as superior to the barbarians of Spain, by labeling himself, a man of considerable fame and influence in the ancient church (2 Peter 3:15) as a "dulos," a slave of Jesus the Christ (Christ means Messiah).
1.2-That Jesus was foreshadowed by the Old Testament, especially the prophets, has been a constant commitment of the church since the very beginning. Paul uses this common connection to the church at Rome to establish his own credentials as an orthodox theologian.
1.3-The church at Rome was almost certainly an uneasy mix of Jewish believers and Gentile converts. Here Paul affirms Jesus' important Jewish identity and authority, rooted in Old Testament prophecies to King David, while also reiterating the article of faith that was the most difficult for Jewish believers to accept-That Jesus was not just God's chosen Messiah, but actually God's Son.
1.4- Jesus' claim to the titles of Messiah and Lord is affirmed by God himself through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. The lordship of Jesus is emphasized to encourage the Romans to listen to and obey Jesus will, which might include helping Paul with his missionary work. The close proximity of the Spirit, the Son, and the Father (1.7) shows how early Christians valued both the unity and distinctness in the persons of God, although Paul does not use an explicitly Trinitarian formula.
1.5-6-Paul here explicitly names the mission to unbelieving Gentiles as a duty of the believers, and reminds them that they belong to Jesus Christ as well, a kind way of implying that they, like Paul, are also servants or slaves of Jesus, without being so forceful as to use a demeaning title with the Roman church, with whom Paul is not yet acquainted.
1.7-The word "saints" (Greek: Hagioi, cf. the Haggia Sophia, or 'holy wisdom' in Turkey) used in the New Testament means simply "holy ones," believers in Christ, living or dead. It did not take on the connotation of an especially holy Christian until much later in the Church's history. Here Paul softens a bit, and enumerates not the lordship and ownership of God over the believers, but God's love for them, and the promise of grace and peace through God and Jesus Christ.
1.8-Paul tells the believes how he had heard of their congregation, even though he has never visited. John Calvin notes "he intimates that they, being honored with the public approbation of the churches, could not reject an Apostle of the Lord, without disappointing the good opinion of them entertained by all..."
1.9-Paul here explicitly enumerates his role as a messenger of the Gospel, preparing the Romans both to hear the gospel themselves, and to aid Paul in the work of the Gospel, which is missions. Paul has spoken before about "praying without ceasing," (1 Thessalonians 5:17), here he tells the Roman church that he has prayed for them continually, a valuable gift for, as James says, "the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." (James 5:16)
1.10-Here, Paul comes to the point: His hope is to eventually meet the Roman church face to face, despite the difficulty and thereby secure their support for his work.
1.11-12-Again, Paul hopes to share his spiritual gifts with the church, his preaching and teaching and theology, and in return, to receive a gift to help the unbelievers in Spain. The Greek word for spiritual gift, "Charismata" (cf. Charismatic, Charisma) is related to the Greek word for grace, and is one of the most theologically loaded terms in the New Testament. These gifts are in the power of the believers to give, only because God has been gracious to them, first.
1.13-Here, Paul's object is in full view. While this may sound like excuse-making, remember what struggles Paul faced in his missionary journeys:
1st Corinthians 11.23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.
1.14-15-Although Paul is bold to ask for help, he also makes no secret of the way in which he is indebted to the churches who support his missionary efforts, and humbly calls himself a "debtor," using the same Greek word that Jesus uses metaphorically to describe sinners in the Lord's Prayer.
1.16-Here is, surely, one of the greatest and most quotable verses in the entire New Testament. Here, Paul may be alluding to the words of Jesus himself, who says "If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels" (Mark 8:38). In Paul's letters, the interplay between boldness and shame is important. Believers must be bold in their faith, and not shrink back from proclaiming the gospel. This gospel is the power of salvation for everyone who has faith. This is very important because the early church debated the issue of whether or not uncircumcised gentiles could be Christians fiercely (Galatians 2:11), with some early Christians, including Peter, temporally swayed into believing that one must be or become a Jew before becoming a Christian. This verse is also the thesis of the Epistle to the Romans, and he will spend the next 16 chapters expounding and defending it.
1.17-Here Paul says explicitly that it is by faith (not works, including circumcision, dietary laws, etc., or by pride of lineage or social status) that believers are saved. This is not just a cornerstone of Christianity, but of Presbyterian belief specifically, as Calvin writes "we cannot obtain salvation otherwise than from this gospel, since nowhere else does God reveal to us his righteousness, which alone delivers us from perdition.
1.18-32 Overview
In order to get the Roman church to work in harmony with one another, and to prevent them both from looking down on the barbarians of Spain as unworthy of the Gospel, Paul takes an unusual approach-He enumerates a list of sins, which the hearers would, at first, immediately associate almost exclusively with the barbarians. It is only at the start of the second chapter that Paul's true purpose becomes known.
1.18-20-One of Paul's central ideas is that God's nature is, at least in part, discernible to any rational person who examines creation. Thus, all ungodliness is not just a deviation from the truth, but a departure from self-evident reality. The wrath of God is a terrifying prospect, with which the Jewish Christians, with their greater knowledge of the Old Testament, would have been especially familiar. The notion of accusation and "excuse" is another theme of the book that will come around again (2.15).
1.21-23-Here Paul says that the departure from worshiping God and bowing down to idols was a deliberate choice, but also a product of "futile" thinking and "senseless" hearts. Idolitry in the literal sense is a clear mark of barbarians. The Roman Christians will now be expecting the following list of vices to specifically target the group of people of whom they already have a low opinion. This is a constant threat in modern churches as well-people are always eager for a good censure of other people's sins.
1.24-25-In the Roman world, almost all "deviant" sexual behaviors were thought to be the product of an "excess of passion," over and above what is normal, in sort of the same way that gluttony is an excess of passion for food. The phrase "gave them up" or "handed them over" or "gave them over" is a translation of the Greek word paradidiomi (par-ah-did-oh-me), which means to give over control of someone or something. It is one of the most important words in the Bible; the Gospel of Mark portrays Jesus' ministry as a constant battle between God and demons to see who humans will be "handed over" to. In the end, when Christ is taken prisoner, he is "handed over" to be crucified, and in being handed over to death, humanity is handed over to God.
1.26-27- In wanting to rile up his audience, Paul targets the two behaviors most likely to shock and appall the Roman church, idolatry, especially in the form of worshiping animal forms, something good Romans rarely did, and homosexual sex acts, which were extremely forbidden and often seen as a mark of the depths of Gentile depravity by the Jews. This section should not be understood as Paul saying that these sins are the foremost offenses against God. Rather, they are the foremost offenses against God in the minds of the Roman Church, that is, the worst sins against God which had the added feature of rarely or never being committed by members of the church in Rome, which always enhances a group's fervor in decrying a bad behavior.
1.28-Those who do not acknowledge God are given up (paradidomi) to the desires of their hearts, which are "only evil all the time" (Genesis 6:5) , and they descend rapidly into the worst kinds of evil.
1.29-31-This is a collection of transgressions that is often referred to by biblical scholars as a "vice list," a somewhat stock form that many Pharisees (like Paul) and Rabbis kept handy to teach people what not to do. Jesus makes recourse to a more mild version of this same behavior when he tells the Rich Young Man how to have eternal life in Mark 10/Luke 18/Matthew 19.
1.32-By the end of this shocking list, which the Roman church believes enumerates the offenses of the Barbarians, the jury has heard quite enough. Not only are these people unworthy of help, they are unworthy to live (or so they think!) Although the ancient church never executed people for unrepentant sin (or even physically punished them, preferring instead to excommunicate them from the physical gathering of believers), this reference to the civil law of the ancient Kingdom of Israel would be well understood. Paul also alludes to the punishment for all sin--the death which eventually befalls all men and women, one way or another (Genesis 2:17).
Next: Romans, Chapter 2
Previous: Introduction to Romans
Back to the Centennial Scripture Challenge