Category: <span>Romans</span>

Paul spent the bulk of his third missionary journey in Ephesus. There he announced that after delivering the contribution for the saints in Jerusalem, “I must see Rome as well!” (Acts 19:21). After leaving Ephesus, Paul spent three months in the area around Corinth and composed the Epistle to the Romans (Acts 20:1-3). Paul’s thesis that both Jews and Gentiles should humbly receive the righteousness of God by faith in Christ alone surfaces in the final two chapters of the letter. What Paul hoped his letter would do for the church in Rome, he planned to do personally for the church in Jerusalem by taking a financial gift from Gentile churches in the Mediterranean world to the Jewish believers in Jerusalem. Paul intended their gifts to win the acceptance of the Jewish Christians and build a bridge across ethnic barriers for the gospel.

In Paul’s mind, even this had theological underpinnings. In Rom 15:27, he noted that the Gentiles were spiritually indebted to the Jews so sharing financial blessings with their Jewish brothers in Jerusalem was the right course of action. Paul portrayed his third missionary journey and the collection as the conduit for spiritual harmony in the Jerusalem church. From the Romans, Paul needed not money but prayer that he would be rescued from any opposition in Jerusalem (Rom 15:30-32). Paul’s generous, unifying ministry was not well received by non-Christian Jews that formed the majority populace in the temple when Paul arrived there (Acts 21:15-36), setting in motion a series of events that would lead him to visit Rome as a prisoner (Acts 28:11-31). The storyline of Scripture compelled Paul to unify Jews and Gentiles in Christ.

(1) In Rom 15:3, Paul quoted Ps 69:9 to illustrate Jesus’ endurance for the church and to call his audience to follow Jesus’ example. In Psalm 69, David cried for the Lord to deliver him from his enemies. Paul cited Ps 69:22-23 in Rom 11:9-10 to describe the hardened state of Israel. Paul returned to Psalm 69 in Rom 15:3. The psalmist proclaimed that he was suffering because of devotion to God, even acting as a substitute for God by taking upon himself the insults that the unfaithful hurled toward the Lord (Ps 69:9). Paul’s point with Ps 69:9 was that Jesus did not please Himself. Since Christ demonstrated such unselfishness, those who follow Him should do the same. This was the thrust of Paul’s prayer in Rom 15:5-7, which says, “Now may the God of endurance and encouragement grant you agreement with one another, according to Christ Jesus, so that you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ with a united mind and voice. Therefore accept one another, just as the Messiah also accepted you, to the glory of God.”

(2) In Rom 15:9-12, Paul quoted from the various genres of the Old Testament to establish that God intended Gentiles to praise Him along with Jews in Christ. Paul wished for the Jews in his hearing to take up the theme of David’s psalm of praise in 2 Sam 22:50. Near the end of David’s life, the king looked back at God’s faithfulness and said, “I will praise You, LORD, among the nations; I will sing about Your name.” In Rom 15:8-9, Paul used David’s phrase to exhort the Jews in his audience to recognize their fulfillment in Christ and testify of God’s greatness with their Gentile brothers. In Rom 15:10, Paul cited Deut 32:43, which says, “Rejoice, you Gentiles, with His people!” Moses indicted Israel’s rebellion and prophesied of a day when God would save them from their enemies. Moses proclaimed that the nations who respected Israel would likewise rejoice in God’s salvation. Paul employed Moses’ words to call the Gentiles to rejoice in God with their Jewish brothers. In Rom 15:11, Paul cited Ps 117:1, writing, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles; all the peoples should praise Him!” The second, and final, verse of the Psalm, “For great is His faithful love to us,” functions as an explanatory clause for the command in the first line of Ps 117:1. Paul employed Psalm 117 to urge the Gentiles to rejoice in God because of His faithfulness to Israel. Paul wished for the Gentiles in Rome to humble themselves before their Jewish brothers, recognizing that their place in Christ was due to God’s faithfulness in fulfilling His promise to send the Messiah to Israel. In Rom 15:12, Paul called his readers to consider Isa 11:10, writing, “The root of Jesse will appear, the One who rises to rule the Gentiles; in Him the Gentiles will hope.” In Isa 11:1-10, the prophet argued that despite the current rise of Assyria, the Lord would one day send His people a leader who would resemble David and rule in justice. Because of God’s faithfulness to His promises to Israel, the Gentiles could find hope in God.

(3) In Rom 15:21, Paul quoted Isa 52:15 to express his motivation to take the gospel to peoples who had never heard it. In Isa 52:13-15, Isaiah prophesied that when the Lord’s wise and exalted servant appeared, kings and nations would understand with certainty that he was from the Lord. Isaiah’s language accentuated the degree to which those who received the Lord’s servant would recognize him as one sent from God—even if they had no prior knowledge of his coming. So, when Paul presented the state of his current ministry and plans to take the gospel where Christ had not been named (Rom 15:14-33), Isa 52:15 illustrated his missions strategy.

Romans 12 begins a new section of the epistle. Paul began his letter by setting out his apostolic call, personal affections, and desire to preach the gospel in Rome (Rom 1:1-17). After indicting both Jews and Gentiles for their sin (Rom 1:18-3.20), Paul argued that through faith in Christ any sinner can receive right standing before God (Rom 3:21-26). As a result, no Jew or Gentile could boast over his neighbor (Rom 3:27-31). To establish the validity of this proposition, Paul called his readers to consider both Abraham and David—justified by faith and not works of the Mosaic law (Rom 4:1-25). Having set forth and illustrated his proposition, Paul went on to establish two further points. First, Paul encouraged his audience that despite their sinful past and present sufferings, they were secure in Christ by the Holy Spirit (Rom 5:1-8.39). Second, Paul maintained that God is sovereign over Jews and Gentiles coming to believe in Christ (Rom 9:1-11:36).

In Romans 12-14, Paul set out the implications of God’s fairness toward Jews and Gentiles, citing Old Testament passages to illustrate his argument.

(1) In Rom 12:19, Paul combined phrases from Deuteronomy and Proverbs to urge his audience that they should act mercifully toward their enemies. In Deuteronomy 32, Moses indicted Israel for their waywardness. Vengeance belonged to God, Moses said, and He would repay the wrongdoing of His people (Deut 32:35). Since God was faithful to repay Israel by sending them into exile, Paul assured his audience that they could trust God to take care of those who might oppose them. Paul urged the Romans, in accord with Prov 25:21-22, to join with God as He exhibited His wrath against their foes. As the Roman Christians blessed their enemies—giving them food when they were hungry, a drink when they were thirsty—the church would heap burning coals upon the heads of those who opposed Christ and His church (Rom 12:20-21).

(2) In Rom 13:8-9, Paul said that the command for Israel to love their neighbors as themselves summed up all other commandments. In Leviticus 19, Moses set forth various laws for how Israel was to live distinctly as God’s people in Canaan. Israel’s activities and manner of life were to reflect God. Moses said in Lev 19:18, “Do not take revenge or bear a grudge against members of your community but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” Following Jesus’ teaching in Matt 19:19, Paul saw Moses’ statement as an umbrella for the Ten Commandments (Exod 20:1-17; Deut 5:6-21). Because love does no wrong to a neighbor, Paul argued, love fulfills the law (Rom 12:10; Matt 5:17-20; John 13:34-35). Paul directed his readers to love one another by putting on the armor of light, avoiding carousing, drunkenness, sexual immorality, promiscuity, quarreling, and jealousy (Rom 13:13). Casting off their old habits, Paul urged the Romans to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no plans to satisfy the fleshly desires” (Rom 13:14).

(3) In Rom 14:11, Paul cited Isaiah’s prophecy concerning God’s holiness and power to save. In Isaiah 45:14-25, the prophet warned Israel not to trust in the surrounding nations but to know the Lord God alone as their savior. So powerful is God to save, that Isaiah invited the nations to come, bow down, and find refuge in Israel’s God (Isa 45:23). Paul employed Isaiah’s prophecy to accentuate that God is the Judge and Savior of both Jews and Gentiles. According to Paul, Jews who esteemed food laws were weak in faith. Paul was concerned that the Jews’ weakness might incite the Gentiles to look down on their Jewish brothers, causing division in the congregation. Paul thus urged both Jews and Gentiles to avoid arguing about debatable issues like Jewish food laws and holy days (Rom 14:1-6). Since God alone is the Judge of all humanity, concerning these nonessential issues Paul said, “Whoever eats, eats to the Lord, since he gives thanks to God; and whoever does not eat, it is to the Lord that he does not eat, yet he thanks God. For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord” (Rom 14:6-8). In accord with Isaiah’s presentation of God as Judge, the Jewish and Gentile Christians in Rome were to refrain from judging one another’s cultural preferences (Rom 14:11). “Each of us will give an account of himself to God,” Paul wrote (Rom 14:12).

Paul sought to show how the gospel message of justification by faith in Christ should humble the contrary Jewish and Gentile Christians of his day. Humbled, both groups were obligated to recognize God’s grace and be united as a single sacrifice unto the Lord (Rom 12:1-2) singing with one voice of praise to God (Rom 15:1-7). Romans 9-11 plays a significant role in the development of Paul’s argument. Paul expounded specific points in Scripture’s storyline to help his audience understand God’s fairness as a judge, and grace toward all in Christ.

(1) In Rom 9:1-18, Paul recalled God’s sovereignty over the lives of Jacob, Esau, and Pharaoh to argue that God was sovereign over the hardening of the Jews in his day. Paul called his audience to consider that the present situation of the early church was in accord with the sovereignty of God—displayed in the miraculous birth of Isaac and the casting out of Ishmael (Rom 9:6-9; Gen 21:12; 18:10, 14), and the announcement that Esau, the older son of Isaac and Rebekah, would serve the younger (Rom 9:10-13; Gen 25:23; Mal 1:2-3). Further, if during the exodus God displayed His sovereignty over Moses and Pharaoh, what human could question God for allowing things to turn out such that the Gentiles were now also revealed to be objects of God’s mercy (Rom 9:19-24; Exod 33:19; 9:16)?

(2) In Rom 9:23-33, Paul fused phrases from Hosea and Isaiah to argue that only by faith could Jews or Gentiles enjoy God’s righteousness. Hosea described God’s redeeming love for Israel. In Rom 9:25-26, Paul took up the prophet’s words in Hos 2:23 and 1:10, placing Gentiles as the referent of the Lord’s mercy. Paul then employed Isa 10:22-23; 28:22; and 1:9 in Rom 9:27-29 as a historical precedent that God would save only a remnant of the descendants of Jacob. Jews stumbled by rejecting Jesus and pursuing righteousness through works of the law. Paul portrayed Jesus as a rock of salvation for all who believed upon Him for righteousness but a stumbling block for those of Israel clinging to the law for righteousness. The Lord told Isaiah to fear Him even though Israel would stumble over their God (Isa 8:14) and trust death rather than the Lord (Isa 28:16). In Rom 9:33, Paul used Isa 8:14 and 28:16 to portray Jesus as the stone God had established as the Savior of His people.

(3) In Rom 10:1-10, Paul combined phrases from Leviticus and Deuteronomy to contrast righteousness that comes through the law and righteousness attained by faith. In Leviticus 18, Moses warned Israel that when they entered the land, they were to avoid both the practices they had witnessed in Egypt and the idolatry of the nations in Canaan. “Keep these statutes and ordinances,” Moses said, “A person will live if he does them” (Lev 18:5). Paul proposed in Rom 7:10 that though Jews thought the law would bring life, it brought death. For those who believe, Paul countered, Christ is the end of the law for righteousness (Rom 10:4). Righteousness by faith does not require someone to rise to heaven (Deut 9:4; 30:12) or go to the depths of the earth (Deut 30:13), Paul wrote in Rom 10:6-7. They only needed to believe in their heart the message of Christ as Lord and confess that message with their mouth (Rom 10:8-10).

(4) In Rom 10:11-21, Paul wove together verses from the prophets to portray both God’s faithfulness toward those who believe and Israel’s hardness in rejecting righteousness by faith. Paul noted in Rom 10:11-16 that though Isaiah and Joel announced the Lord’s faithfulness to His word of deliverance (Isa 28:16; Joel 2:32)—and sent messengers to Israel (Isa 52:7)—Israel failed to believe (Isa 53:1). So pervasive were the prophets’ messages to Israel that Paul likened them to the way that the heavens declare the glory of God (Ps 19:4). Moses predicted that the Lord would use pagan nations to discipline His people for their idolatry (Deut 32:21) and Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would be found by people who were not looking for Him (Isa 65:1). Paul wrote that the Lord had given understanding to the Gentiles, provoking Israel to jealousy as they rejected God’s offer of righteousness by faith (Rom 10:19-20).

(5) In Rom 11:1-10, Paul cited statements from Moses and David to supplement Elijah’s observation that the Lord is able to preserve a remnant in Israel though the nation remains hardened. After Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel, he became afraid and ran from King Ahab and Jezebel (1 Kgs 19:1-3). Elijah thought he was all alone but the Lord informed Elijah that He had preserved a remnant of 7,000 who had not worshipped Baal (1 Kgs 19:10, 14, 18). Paul wrote that the Lord had preserved a remnant chosen by grace to believe upon Christ for righteousness (Rom 11:3-6) though the nation wandered in darkness just as Moses (Deut 29:4) and David (Ps 69:22-23) had said (Rom 11:8-10).

(6) In Rom 11:26-27, Paul wrote that the new covenant promises would be realized in the chosen remnant of Israel. Paul warned the Gentiles not to boast over their Jewish neighbors because the Lord had hardened Israel for a time. Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would send a deliverer to turn away godlessness from Israel (Isa 59:20-21), and Isaiah’s prophecy assured Paul that the Lord would one day awaken Israel to forgiveness of sin in Christ—just as Jeremiah prophesied (Jer 31:31-34).

(7) In Rom 11:34-35, Paul joined phrases from Isaiah, Job, and Jeremiah to present God’s wisdom in judgement of Jews and Gentiles. Paul’s frame of mind at the end of Romans 11 shared points of contact with Isaiah in Isa 40:13. The prophet announced that the days of Israel’s punishment were over; God was going to redeem Israel and shepherd His people. In order to underscore the Lord’s ability to redeem Israel, Isaiah described God’s supremacy over creation. Likewise, the Lord showed Job His wisdom by presenting Job with vignettes of how He ruled creation (Job 41:11). Though fools prophesied to Jeremiah and Judah that the Lord would not display His wrath against their sin, Jeremiah understood that the counsel of the Lord would prevail (Jer 23:18). Paul brought the voices of the prophets and Job together to depict God’s wisdom in salvation history. From God, through God, and to God were all things necessary for sinful Jews and Gentiles to receive God’s righteousness.

Romans 8 concluded Paul’s flow of thought beginning in Romans 5. The repeated terminology Paul employed in Romans 5-8 (“glory” in 5:2 and 8:18, 21, and 30; “peace” in 5:1 and 8:6; “hope” in 5:2, 4, 5 and 8:20, 24, 25; “affliction” in 5:3 and 8:35; “save” in 5:9, 10 and 8:24; and “endurance/patience” in 5:3, 4 and 8:25) frames these chapters as a literary unit. In Romans 5-8, Paul argued that death reigns over those in Adam, but eternal life over those in Christ (Rom 5:12-21); sin rules over everyone in Adam, but righteousness over all who have been united with Christ (Rom 6:1-23); law dominates all in Adam, but grace reigns over those who belong to the Messiah (Rom 7:1-25). Paul’s argument concerning the supremacy of justification by faith would not be complete without Romans 8. The apostle of the Spirit had more to say. To further solidify the believer’s security in Christ, Paul instructed them of the work of the Holy Spirit in the justified status. Paul’s ultimate concern was that Jews and Gentiles, equally secure in Christ, should come together as a living sacrifice to sing God’s praise (Rom 12:1-2; 15:1-9).

In Romans 8, Paul reiterated themes from the Prophets and Psalms to portray the believer’s security in Christ and the Spirit within the narrative of Scripture.

(1) In Rom 8:5-7, Paul wrote that the Spirit controls the mindset of believers, reflecting Jeremiah’s promise of the new covenant. Jeremiah prophesied that God would establish a new covenant with His people and write His law on their hearts (Jer 31:31-34). Paul portrayed the Spirit as God’s means of instructing believers, controlling their mindset. Because the Spirit lives in believers, the Spirit instructs them concerning God’s law. As a result of the Spirit’s presence and instruction, believers enjoy a mindset of life and peace while those outside of Christ rebel against God and exhibit hostility toward Him.

(2) In Rom 8:10-11, Paul described the Spirit’s life-giving ministry in terms Ezekiel used to portray the Spirit giving new life to Israel. Paul wrote in Rom 5:5 that God’s Spirit lives inside of the believer, giving hope in God’s love even during times of persecution. Throughout Romans 8, Paul returned to the ministry of the Spirit. Just as the Spirit gave life to Jesus’ crucified body (Rom 1:4), the Spirit will give life to all who believe in Jesus. The Spirit’s ability to raise the dead reiterates Ezekiel’s prophecy in Ezek 36:22-37:14. Ezekiel announced that God would send His Spirit upon His people, changing their hearts and awakening them from spiritual death. Paul wrote that the Spirit not only awakens believers from a dead spiritual state (Rom 2:28), but also gives believers new physical bodies after death. He said, “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through His Spirit who lives in you” (Rom 8:11).

(3) In Rom 8:36, Paul quoted Ps 44:22 to affirm that persecution, despite all of its disastrous consequences, cannot separate believers from God’s love in Christ. In Psalm 44, the psalmist contrasted God’s glorious deliverances for Israel in previous generations with the present disgrace he and his contemporaries had to endure. And the psalmist blamed God. He claimed that God had cast off His people even though they had not done anything to deserve such treatment. “Because of You we are being put to death all day long; we are counted as sheep to be slaughtered” (Ps 44:22). Israel suffered because God sent ungodly nations against His people to discipline them for their unfaithfulness to the covenant. Since Israel persisted in unfaithfulness, the covenant was broken, and Israel suffered the consequences of their sin. In Rom 8:18-30, Paul wrote that the presence of the Holy Spirit assures the believer that they will receive eternal glory—despite the afflictions they suffer for Christ. Paul wrote in Rom 5:5 that the presence of the Holy Spirit provides the believer with hope despite the fact that believers suffer for Christ. Paul returned to this theme in Rom 8:18 saying, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.” Even the inanimate creation, Paul argued, was marred in the fall of Adam and now longs for the final redemption of God’s children so that it too can cease from suffering (Rom 8:21-25). Paul contended that in Christian sufferings, those who have received the righteousness of God are more than victorious through God’s love for them (Rom 8:37). Only Christ—not the Mosaic law, the land of Canaan, circumcision, Sabbath-observance, or food laws—provided security over death, angels and rulers, things present, things to come, powers, height, depth, or any other created thing.

In Romans 5-6, Paul wrote that justification provides believers with righteousness, life, and grace, triumphing over sin and death. But what about the Mosaic law, which Paul referred to in Rom 5:12-14? In the midst of the unit of Romans 5-8, Romans 7 provides a historical perspective on the relationship between God’s good law and the sinfulness of human flesh. Paul wrote that Israel’s failure was not because God’s law was deficient to instruct God’s people. Rather, the law aroused Israel’s sinfulness and rendered them incapable of meeting God’s standard. Paul’s analysis of the relationship between human sinfulness and God’s holy law in Romans 7 contributes to Paul’s argument throughout Romans. Paul wrote Romans 7 to halt any who would embrace the law for righteousness, and not Christ. Paul thus hoped to dissuade the Jews in his audience from relying on the law. He hoped that, along with Gentiles, the Jews would receive God’s righteousness in Christ so that together Jews and Gentiles in Rome would “glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ with a united mind and voice” (Rom 15:6).

In Romans 7, Paul argued that the law of Moses had to be understood within the narrative of the Old Testament and the ministry of Jesus.

(1) In Rom 7:1-6, Paul employed the metaphor of marriage to portray believers as belonging to Christ the way that Israel belonged to God. Repeatedly, the prophets used marriage as a figure to describe the Lord’s relationship with Israel. When the Lord brought His people out of Egypt, He acted as a husband toward His people (Jer 31:32; Hos 2:15). But Israel committed spiritual adultery against the Lord (e.g., Isa 50:1; Jer 2:32; 3:6-10, 20; Ezek 16:32-34; Hos 1:2; 2:2). Though the Lord divorced Israel because of her idolatry, He promised to act as a redeeming husband (Isa 54:5-8; 62:4-5; Hos 3:1-3). In Rom 7:1-3, Paul noted that death cancels marital obligations. Paul wrote that through union with Christ in His death and resurrection, believers have died to the law so that they would belong to Christ. As Christ’s bride, believers have been liberated from the law so that they might bear fruit in the new way of service that has been established in the coming of the Spirit (Rom 7:5-6; 8:12-16; Gal 5:15-26).

(2) In Rom 7:7, Paul wrote that the commandment against covetousness exemplifies how the law incites sin in all who attempt to obey it. According to Paul, the tenth commandment, “You shall not covet” (Exod 20:17; Deut 5:21), produced every manner of coveting (Rom 7:8; Gal 3:19-26). To be human is to covet, Paul proposed, and thus the law condemns Jews and Gentiles alike. In Rom 5:12-14, Paul wrote that sin was in the world before the law and that sin produced death. The law showed why sin produced death: because humans are sinful from the inside out.

(3) In Rom 7:10, Paul wrote that the law was intended to give life, echoing Moses’ statement in Lev 18:5. In Leviticus 18, Moses wrote that when Israel entered the land, they were to live distinctly unto the Lord. They were to leave behind the habits they observed in Egypt and were to avoid the lifestyles of the Canaanites inhabiting the land they would possess. Moses promised that Israel would live in the land if they obeyed (Lev 18:5). In accord with Moses, Paul esteemed God’s instruction to give life but both Moses and Paul knew of the sinfulness of humanity. Paul’s mindset in Romans 7 reflected the prophecy Moses uttered in Deut 30:1-10. There Moses predicted that Israel would fail to obey the law and be sent into exile. Not until the day when the Lord circumcised the hearts of His people, Moses said, would Israel fulfill God’s requirements (Deut 30:6). The law was given to expose sin and provide a register of why God was righteous to condemn humans to death. The law, Paul concluded in Rom 7:12, was not the problem.

(4) In Rom 7:13-25, Paul’s description of the wretchedness of those sold under sin’s power reflected the psalmists’ and prophets’ portrayal of those under God’s wrath. Paul used the first-person personal pronoun, “I,” to describe one who seems so different than what he previously described in Romans 5-6. Paul’s autobiographical language in Rom 7:13-25 reflected the prophets’ use of the first-person singular to designate a corporate body with whom they felt the highest kindred spirit. The prophet Micah employed this literary technique when describing Israel’s future vindication (Mic 7:8-10). Corporate solidarity played no small part in the life of national Israel, as Paul expressed in Rom 9:1-5. Israel time and again confessed that they wanted to do the good of the law but failed to overcome their idolatrous ways. Paul said that before his conversion he was “a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an arrogant man” (1 Tim 1:13). Israel, and Paul looking back at life before his conversion, could confess, “What a wretched man I am!” (Rom 7:24). They wished to serve the law of God with their mind, but their rebellious behavior revealed that they in fact lived in slavery to sin. In Romans 5-6, Paul repeatedly noted that believers enjoy a state of grace and righteousness. Their state could not differ more from the state of those trying to be right with God through the works of the law, those in Paul’s view in Rom 7:13-25. When Paul described the sinful state of humanity in Rom 3:16, he cited Isa 59:7, “Ruin and wretchedness are in their paths.” Isaiah noted that Israel’s behavior had separated them from God, their lifestyle gave no evidence of His redeeming love or the power of His word. In Isa 47:11, the prophet declared that disaster would come upon Babylon, placing them in a state of destruction that they would not be able to avert. The psalmist likewise portrayed Babylon in a state beyond hope, destined for destruction (Ps 137:8). Jeremiah announced the destruction and ruin of Jerusalem, placing the city in a state of hopelessness (Jer 4:13, 20).

In Romans 5, Paul proposed that all of humanity is either represented by Adam or Christ. Those in the former lived under the reign of sin, death, and the law of Moses, those in the latter under the reign of righteousness, life, and grace. Paul went on in Romans 6 to set forth the implications of union with Christ. The apostle argued that if one is united with Christ, they have been freed from the forces that rule those in Adam. Thus, as those free from sin’s ruling power, the justified should practice ethical righteousness.

Paul anticipated that some in the Roman congregation might respond with sarcasm when considering his thesis that the profound gift of righteousness is offered freely to sinners simply by faith in Christ. Paul thought some might consider the wonder of God’s grace in Christ only to retort, “Should we continue in sin that grace may multiply?” (Rom 6:1); or with the mocking question, “Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace?” (Rom 6:15). To both of these, Paul replied in the strongest of terms, “Absolutely not!” (Rom 6:2a, 15b).

(1) In Rom 6:3-6, Paul described the believer’s union with Christ in language more intimate than Israel’s close association with God. When the Lord instituted the covenant of circumcision for Abraham and his descendants in Gen 17:7, the Lord promised to be the God of Abraham’s family and that they would be His people. When the Lord called Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt, He said, “I will take you as My people, and I will be your God” (Exod 6:7a). Jeremiah exhorted the people of Judah to obey God so that He would be their God and they would be His people (Jer 7:23). Jeremiah also promised that when the Lord restored Israel, they would be known as God’s people and the Lord would be known as their God (Jer 30:22; 31:33). Ezekiel announced to the exiles that God would gather and lead His people again. Yet again, the Lord promised, “I, the LORD, will be their God” (Ezek 34:24a). Israel’s close, covenantal association with the Lord surfaces throughout the Old Testament. However, Paul’s portrayal of the believer’s union with Christ in Christ’s death and resurrection suggests that believers enjoy a deeper personal relationship with God. Paul wrote that the believer’s death-and-life union with Jesus is portrayed in Christian baptism. The believer’s immersion corresponds with Jesus’ death, and exit from the waters with His resurrection. According to Paul, Christian baptism not only signifies the believer’s union with Christ but also the new way of life they are to pursue because of their relationship with Christ. Since sin’s dominion over the body is abolished through the believer’s union with Christ, those united with Christ are no longer enslaved to sin’s ruling powers (Rom 6:6).

(2) In Rom 6:17, Paul described the Roman believers’ obedience in language anticipated by the promise of the new covenant in Jer 31:33. Jeremiah announced the new covenant saying that in the day when the Lord would restore His people, He would place His law on their minds and write it on their hearts. In Rom 5:12-14, Paul introduced sin as a reigning power—holding sway over all in Adam. In Rom 6:16, Paul probed the implications of sin’s rule, asking, “Do you not know that if you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of that one you obey—either of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness?” Every person is in Adam or in Christ, enslaved either to sin or to obedience. Paul encouraged the Romans, saying, “Thanks be to God that, although you used to be slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were entrusted to, and having been liberated from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness” (Rom 6:17-18).

In Romans 1-4, Paul argued that Jews and Gentiles—all of humanity—have sinned against God. Since God judges impartially, all are guilty before Him. Only by faith in Christ’s death and resurrection can anyone be made right before God. And since neither Jew nor Gentile has a claim on God, no nation can boast over another. In Romans 5, Paul personified biblical concepts, contrasting righteousness, life, and grace with sin, death, and the law. These themes surface again in Romans 8, suggesting that Romans 5-8 should be read as a unit.

Throughout Romans 1-4, Paul emphasized the severe consequences that sin had brought to humanity. Nonetheless, as Paul looked back and compared the actions of Adam and Christ, Paul declared that the degree of consequence of Jesus was greater than that of Adam. Thus, after generations of trespass, Christ’s one sacrifice was sufficient to cover the sin of all who humbly trust in Him—with the result that they might “reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:17). Thus, the solution to the historical problem of sin arrived in the gift of Christ—and resulted in the reign of righteousness, life, and grace for all who believe apart from works of the law (Rom 5:18-21). Christ’s death and resurrection for sinners provides “life-giving justification for everyone” (Rom 5:18)—both Jews and Gentiles. Paul’s reflection on Adam, Moses, and Jesus in Romans 5 gave his audience a survey of the Old Testament from a Christian point of view.

(1) In Rom 5:5, Paul described the pouring out of God’s love by the Holy Spirit in language Ezekiel used to prophesy of the day of restoration when the Lord would cleanse His people and put His Spirit within them. Ezekiel prophesied to Israel in the time of the Babylonian exile. The prophet proclaimed both judgement and restoration. Ezekiel proclaimed that the Lord would restore His people by cleansing them with clean water and pouring out His Spirit upon them (Ezek 36:24-27). In Ezek 37:14, the prophet recorded the declaration of the Lord concerning the future of His people, saying, “I will put My Spirit in you, and you will live and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I am the LORD. I have spoken, and I will do it.” In Rom 5:5, Paul echoed Ezekiel’s language to describe the experience of those who receive the righteousness of God by faith in Christ’s death and resurrection. For Paul, the hope that Ezekiel prophesied had been realized by sinful Jews and Gentiles through their belief in Jesus.

(2) In Rom 5:12-21, Paul referenced Adam’s sin to explain the origin of sin and its sway over all peoples. Paul argued that all human sin finds its roots in the sin of Adam recorded in Gen 3:6. Adam’s sin resulted in death (Gen 2:17; 3:3, 17-19) and a death sentence for all of humanity (1 Cor 15:22). Paul proposed that the mortality of all people from the time of Adam to the time of Moses was evidence that sin dominated humanity even before the law was given at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-20). Through Adam’s sin, all people were condemned. Historically speaking, all that Paul wrote about human sin in Romans 1-3 was the result of Adam’s transgression in Eden.

(3) In Rom 5:12-21, Paul noted that the Mosaic law was not able to curb sin but only multiplied it. Through Moses, God issued the law to Israel. Near the end of his life, in Deut 30:1-2 Moses recognized Israel’s ability to keep the law and even predicted the exile. “The law came along to multiply the trespass,” Paul wrote in Rom 5:20. Paul had only to look at Deuteronomy, Moses’ final instructions on the Plains of Moab, as evidence that Israel had failed to keep God’s commands from the earliest period of the nation’s history. Paul’s frame of mind in Rom 5:12-20 anticipates Rom 7:1-12 where he wrote that the law was not to blame for Israel’s covenant failure. Sin so corrupted humanity that the law was of no use for righteousness. In Gal 3:19-26, Paul noted that the law was intended to curb sin until the coming of Christ but in each instance of Israel’s failure, the law multiplied Israel’s sinfulness.

In the first three chapters of Romans, Paul set forth a framework for understanding the righteousness of God as a judge. God’s impartiality toward Jews and Gentiles placed both groups in need of an alien righteousness before God’s judgement bench. Paul warned the Jews that reliance on the law would profit them nothing—since they did not practice it (Rom 2:1-10; 17-29). Gentiles likewise needed God’s grace in Christ because they were incapable of consistently maintaining even their own standards—let alone God’s (Rom 2:12-16). Paul’s presentation of the righteousness of God in Romans 1-3 laid the foundation for his purpose in the letter. Paul argued that since only faith in Christ—and not works of the Mosaic law—provided one with the righteousness of God, Jews and Gentiles in Rome should set their spiritual pride aside, receive one another in love, and speak with one voice the praises of God (Rom 12:1-2; 15:1-7). To where could Paul turn to find illustrations of faith as the means by which sinners can be made right before an impartial God? Paul turned to Scripture’s storyline. He cited Abraham—the father of the Jewish people—as an example of one who was made right with God by faith even before the law was given. And Paul saw in David’s words in Ps 32:1-2 a text that supported his proposition that God grants His righteousness to sinners by faith and apart from works of the law.

(1) In Rom 4:1-12 Paul cited Gen 15:6 and Ps 32:1-2 to explain how God credits righteousness to sinners apart from any Old Testament law. In Gen 14:1-16, Abraham rescued his nephew Lot from the kings that raided Sodom. Abraham risked his life for a family member but still had not received God’s blessing of a son. When would God’s promise come about? In Gen 15:1-4 the Lord spoke to Abraham and reassured the patriarch that He would protect him and provide him an heir. The Lord told Abraham to look at the night sky and promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars Abraham saw shining in the black of night. In response, “Abraham believed the LORD, and He credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen 15:6). In Rom 4:3, Paul cited Gen 15:6 as scriptural proof that God grants righteousness to those who believe His word. Performing the works of the Mosaic law, even circumcision, Paul argued, was not the means of being made right before God. In Rom 4:7-8, Paul cited David’s words in Ps 32:1-2 to establish that God grants righteousness to sinners. Paul identified in Ps 32:1-2 a reference to the kind of people whom God forgives and to whom God grants His righteousness: sinners. Psalm 32 is attributed to David and in Rom 3:4, Paul cited another psalm of David, Psalm 51. Psalm 51 is David’s confession of sin following his immorality with Bathsheba. Paul’s use of Ps 51:4 in Rom 3:4 anticipates his citation of Ps 32:1-2 in Rom 4:7-8. Paul cited David’s life as an illustration of gospel forgiveness apart from the legal requirements of the Mosaic law. Works of the Mosaic law (circumcision, Sabbath-keeping, food laws, etc.), Paul argued, could not merit righteousness for someone who was by nature and practice a sinner. Paul then turned again to Gen 15:6 to identify the period in Abraham’s life when God made Abraham the promise and the patriarch believed unto righteousness. Abraham’s faith commitment was expressed before the Lord instituted the sign of circumcision in Gen 17:9-14. Paul wrote that Abraham received circumcision as a sign of the righteousness that he enjoyed by faith alone before the sign of circumcision was established in Israel. In this way, Abraham was the father of faith for both Jews and Gentiles (Rom 4:12).

(2) In Rom 4:17-18, Paul quoted Gen 17:5 and Gen 15:5 to reinforce his position that faith is the means by which God grants righteousness to sinners of all nations. Paul noted that when the Lord established the covenant of circumcision for Abraham’s physical descendants, the Lord changed the patriarch’s name from Abram to Abraham (Gen 17:5). “For I will make you the father of many nations,” the Lord said (Gen 17:5). Paul saw in Gen 17:5 an opportunity to recall for his audience in Romans that the Lord had first made this promise to Abraham in Gen 15:5—before the covenant of circumcision was established. Paul argued that faith and not circumcision (often thought to represent the Mosaic law part-for-whole) is the key characteristic of Abraham’s true descendants (Gen 15:5).

(3) In Rom 4:22-23, Paul quoted Gen 15:6 to underscore God’s faithfulness in granting righteousness to sinners who believe in the same manner that Abraham believed. Throughout Romans 4, Paul argued that faith is the means by with God grants righteousness to sinners. And Paul saw in Abraham’s faith an exemplary manner for trusting God. God called Abraham to believe that even though he and Sarah were far beyond the years of natural conception, God would yet provide them a biological heir. Abraham was fully convinced that what God had promised, God would bring to fulfillment (Rom 4:21). Against all observable circumstances, Abraham believed. And because Abraham believed in that manner, it was credited to the patriarch for righteousness. Paul concluded Romans 4 by stating that God grants righteousness to all sinners who believe that God will grant them righteousness by their faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection (Rom 4:23-25).

In Romans, Paul described the righteousness of God reaching out to sinners of every ethnicity. Paul hoped that as the divergent Jew/Gentile population of the early church understood God’s indiscriminate kindness in Christ, they would humble themselves and present a united witness to the world. Despite the fact that the prophets warned Israel time-and-again against their haughty attitude as God’s chosen people, they continued to display an arrogant disposition toward God and the Gentiles. At the end of Romans 3, Paul set out his justification for writing so much about the sin of Jews and Gentiles: both groups needed to humble themselves under the righteousness of God—and cease from their boastful ways. He says, “Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By one of works? No, on the contrary, by a law of faith…Or is God for Jews only? Is He not also for Gentiles? Yes, for Gentiles too, since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith” (Rom 3:27, 29-30). Paul used the Old Testament in Romans 1-3 to help his readers understand God’s righteousness and human sinfulness.

(1) In Rom 1:17, Paul quoted Hab 2:4 to establish a scriptural precedent for faith as the means of righteousness before God. Habakkuk prophesied during a time of crisis in Israel. The Lord had raised up the wicked Chaldeans to come against His elect—and the Lord’s work made no sense to Habakkuk. The Lord told Habakkuk that the righteous one would live by faith in what God was doing to discipline His people despite the appearance of injustice on God’s part (Hab 2:3-4). Paul employed Hab 2:4 to help unify his Jew/Gentile audience in Rome. If all nationalities related to God by the same means, faith in Christ, then no nation could claim superiority before God. Jews could thus no longer boast in their historical privileges of election and possession of the law. Paul wrote, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith’” (Rom 1:16-17, citing Hab 2:4).

(2) In Rom 2:6, Paul quoted Ps 62:12 to establish God’s fairness as a judge. In Psalm 62, the psalmist chided those who lied about him and hypocritically blessed him with their mouth while cursing in their heart (Ps 62:3-4). The psalmist concluded his poem trusting in God to repay each person according to their works (Ps 62:12). Following Paul’s indictment of Gentiles for their sin in Rom 1:18-32, he turned to confront the Jews in Romans 2. Paul chastised the Jews for their hypocrisy: they condemned the Gentiles for their sins but then walked in the same patterns of life as the Gentiles. If Jews thought they were saved because of lineage to Abraham or possession of the law, Paul stated otherwise. Citing Ps 62:12, Paul said that God “will repay each one according to his works” (Rom 2:6). God shows no favoritism, Paul said in Rom 2:11. The Jews’ boasting of possession of the law was actually grounds for their condemnation—since they failed to practice the law.

(3) In Rom 2:24, Paul quoted Isa 52:5 to condemn Jews for not accurately representing God before the Gentiles. In Isaiah 52, the prophet proclaimed that God would restore His people to Jerusalem. Historically speaking, Isaiah said that when Israel was in Egypt or in exile, God’s name was blasphemed. The Egyptians and Assyrians were the agents who blasphemed God by taking God’s people captive (Isa 52:1-6). Paul employed Isa 52:5 to confront the Jews because on account of their hypocrisy, God’s name had been blasphemed among the Gentiles (Rom 2:23-24). Paul thus turned Isaiah’s prophecy—originally pejorative against the Egyptians and Assyrians for their continual oppression of Israel—against the Jews, saying, “You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?” (Rom 2:23). Even circumcision—the identity marker of Israelite descent—was of no benefit if one did not observe the law (Rom 2:25). Paul’s point was that Jews were just as culpable as Gentiles—and likewise needed salvation.

(4) In Rom 3:4, Paul quoted Ps 51:4 to confirm God’s righteousness in condemning Jews because of their sin. In Psalm 51, David lamented his sin with Bathsheba. The author of 2 Samuel described David’s greed when the king looked at Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife, took her, slept with her, had Uriah killed, and took Bathsheba to be his wife (2 Samuel 11). When Nathan confronted David in 2 Samuel 12, the Lord convicted the king of his sin and Psalm 51 provides a window into David’s repentant heart. David confessed that He had, ultimately, sinned against God alone and that God was right to condemn him for his evil acts recorded in 2 Samuel 11. In Romans 2, Paul argued that the Jews of his day exhibited hypocrisy when they condemned the Gentiles but practiced the same sins as the Gentiles. Though the Jews enjoyed historical privilege as God’s chosen people who had been entrusted with His word, God was faithful in condemning them because of their sin. In his use of Ps 51:4 (“that You may be justified in Your words and triumph when You judge”) in Rom 3:4, Paul portrayed God’s condemnation of Jewish sinners as a demonstration of His righteousness. In Romans 1-3, Paul established God as the righteous judge who evaluated every human based upon their works. Since Israel failed to be faithful with what God entrusted to them, God’s faithfulness would be demonstrated in condemning them.

(5) In Rom 3:10-18, Paul wove together passages from Psalms and Isaiah to portray the complete sinfulness of humanity. In what may have been especially difficult for Jewish ears, Paul backed his proposition of human depravity with a string of quotations from the Psalms and Isaiah. Paul assembled the Jewish Scriptures to testify that both Gentiles and Jews were guilty before God and in need of salvation in Christ. The descendants of Abraham could expect no favors from God. Paul proposed that the Jews’ total inability to keep the law would render them helpless before God on judgment day, and their mouths would thus be silenced before Him. Paul argued that far from being the means of justification, the law of Moses would be the grounds of condemnation for any who attempted to live by it, saying, “No flesh will be justified in His sight by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin” (Rom 3:20). Since there was no distinction in the way that sin had marred the spiritual condition of both Jews and Gentiles, Paul urged his audience that they could only be justified by trusting in Jesus Christ (Rom 3:22).