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Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary

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ROMANS, Letter to the

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• Author

• Date, Origin, and Destination

• Background

• Audience

• Purpose and Theological Teaching

• Content

Author

Written in the first person (Rom 1:5, 10 OET ROM 1:5 · OET ROM 1:10, etc.), this epistle was authored by the apostle Paul. (The first words of the first verse are “Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called an apostle.”) The actual transcription of the letter, however, was done by Tertius (16:22), who acted as Paul’s amanuensis (secretary). The letter’s authenticity has never been disputed by reputable scholarship, liberal or conservative, and Romans stands at the head of virtually every ancient list or collection of Pauline letters.

Date, Origin, and Destination

The destination of the letter is stated to be Rome (1:7). That Paul was in Corinth at the time of the writing seems clear from his reference to Erastus in 16:23 as the treasurer of the city. An inscription in the stone pavement beside the large theater in Corinth states that it was laid by Erastus, the city treasurer, in appreciation for his election. This could hardly be coincidental. Erastus evidently remained in Corinth, because it is mentioned as his home (2 Tm 4:20). Furthermore, Paul refers to Gaius as his host at the time he wrote Romans (Rom 16:23), probably the same Gaius who lived in Corinth (1 Cor 1:14). Finally, Phoebe, likely the carrier of this epistle, was a deaconess of the church at Cenchrea, the eastern port of Corinth (Rom 16:1).

From the epistle itself we can determine when Paul wrote it. Romans 15:23-28 indicates that Paul was just about ready to make his visit to Jerusalem with a contribution for its Christian poor from the churches of Macedonia and Achaia, after which his purpose was to visit Rome on his way to Spain (15:23-28). He carried this contribution with him from Corinth, at the close of his third visit to that city, which lasted three months (Acts 20:2, 23 OET ACT 20:2 · OET ACT 20:23; 24:17). On this occasion certain persons accompanied him from Corinth, whose names are given by the historian of Acts (20:4), and four of these are expressly mentioned in this epistle as being with the apostle when he wrote it—Timothy, Sosipater, Gaius, and Erastus (Rom 16:21, 23 OET ROM 16:21 · OET ROM 16:23). Paul’s visit to Jerusalem is usually dated around AD 57–58. As such, the Epistle to the Romans was written around the same time.

Background

In a previous visit to Corinth, during his second missionary journey, Paul established the church there and remained in the city for 18 months (Acts 18:1, 11 OET ACT 18:1 · OET ACT 18:11). His arrival coincided with the arrival of Priscilla and Aquila, who had recently come from Rome. At the end of his 18-month stay, Paul was brought before the newly appointed proconsul, Gallio (Acts 18:12), whose arrival can be dated from the Gallio inscription found at Delphi to the spring of AD 51. Thus, Paul arrived in Corinth in the winter of AD 49.

Leaving the city, he returned to Antioch, gave a report on his work, and set out on his last journey to collect the contribution for Jerusalem from the Gentile churches (Rom 15:25-29), for which he had previously prepared (1 Cor 16:1; 2 Cor 9:5). Continued problems in Corinth (1 Cor 1:11; 7:1) necessitated his return to the city (Acts 20:3), at which time he wrote Romans. It is clear from the last two chapters of the letter that he planned to take the contribution to Jerusalem almost immediately and from there go on to Rome (Rom 15:23-24). The occasion for the letter, therefore, is to alert the Romans to his coming so that they can assist him in his journey to Spain (15:24, 28 OET ROM 15:24 · OET ROM 15:28). Rome was the only church, other than Colosse, which Paul did not establish. His letter, consequently, does not reflect awareness of specific problems in the membership there.

Audience

The Roman church at this time was composed of both Jewish and Gentile believers. The church was probably started by Jewish believers who were at Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:10) and were among the 3,000 converts. Evidently, some of these took the gospel back with them to Rome. Probably some of the believers addressed in the salutations of the epistle were Christians already of long standing, if not among the earliest converts to the Christian faith. Thus, it is not improbable that up to the time of the apostle’s arrival, the Christian community at Rome had been dependent upon its own members for the increase of its numbers, aided perhaps by occasional visits from preachers.

Evidently, the gospel had gone out to Gentiles, because there were Gentiles in the church, as is evidenced by Paul’s remarks throughout the letter. In fact, it is clear that the apostle wrote to them expressly as to a Gentile church (Rom 1:13, 15 OET ROM 1:13 · OET ROM 1:15; 15:15-16). Perhaps the major constituency of the Gentiles were “God-fearers” (see Acts 10:2).

Purpose and Theological Teaching

Of all the epistles of Paul, this is the most elaborate and, at the same time, the most glowing. It has just as much in common with a theological treatise as with a personal, heartfelt epistle. The major theme running throughout the book is that both Jew and Gentile have fallen short of God’s glory and stand in need of salvation (Rom 3:21-31). God’s righteousness has not been revealed only to the Jew—because God is not God only to the Jews but to the Gentiles as well, since there is only one God (3:29). He will justify the Jews on the basis of the saving work of Christ at Calvary, and the Gentiles on the basis of that same act of faithfulness to Abraham’s promise (v 30). Their common faith gives them access to this grace (5:2). The gospel is thus to the Jew first and also to the Greek (1:16).

Once a person believes, that person is justified before God (chs 1–3 OET ROM 1:1–32 · OET ROM 2:1–29 · OET ROM 3:1–31). This new relationship with God provides the believer with a new life in Christ and makes him or her a part of God’s people (chs 4–8 OET ROM 4:1–25 · OET ROM 5:1–21 · OET ROM 6:1–23 · OET ROM 7:1–25 · OET ROM 8:1–39). This is the deepest and most difficult part of the whole epistle; it carries us directly to the eternal springs of grace, sovereign love, and the inscrutable purposes of God. After this, we are told about the calling of the Gentiles, the preservation of a faithful Jewish remnant amidst the general unbelief and the fall of the nation, and the ultimate recovery of all Israel to constitute, with the Gentiles in the latter day, one universal church of God upon earth (chs 9–11 OET ROM 9:1–33 · OET ROM 10:1–21 · OET ROM 11:1–36). The remainder of the epistle is devoted to the practical application (in church life) of the truths previously revealed (chs 12–15 OET ROM 12:1–21 · OET ROM 13:1–14 · OET ROM 14:1–23 · OET ROM 15:1–33). And then the epistle concludes with Paul’s heartfelt salutations to several different believers in Rome (ch 16).

Content

Overview

The thematic statement of the first eight chapters of the letter is set forth in 1:17: “It is through faith that a righteous person has life” (NLT). This quotation from Habakkuk 2:4 sets Paul’s teaching on faith over against that of the OT on works. Thus, he affirms the fact that his teaching on faith is not new but is squarely rooted in the OT prophets. What was new was that the Gentiles would be fellow citizens with the Jews on the basis of faith in Christ (Eph 3:5-6). They would not have to become proselytes to Judaism in order to be acceptable to God, as some Jewish Christians demanded (Acts 15:1). This was the mystery of which Paul spoke in Ephesians (Eph 3:6).

The first part of the epistle dwells on the theme that righteousness is attained by faith. The first three chapters demonstrate that Jew and Gentile are under sin and that the redemption of Christ is applicable to both (Rom 3:21-22). The fourth chapter demonstrates that Abraham is the father of Gentiles as well as Jews, because he is the spiritual father of believing Israel just as he is of believing Gentiles. Then, in chapters 5–8 OET ROM 5:1–21 · OET ROM 6:1–23 · OET ROM 7:1–25 · OET ROM 8:1–39, Paul deals with the latter part of the theme of how a justifed person lives by faith. Whether Jew or Gentile, the person who accepts the righteous acts of God on Calvary through Christ will live free from the wrath of God (ch 5), the power of sin (ch 6), the enslaving power of the law (ch 7), and the power of death (ch 8).

In chapters 9–11 OET ROM 9:1–33 · OET ROM 10:1–21 · OET ROM 11:1–36, Paul discusses the nation of Israel “according to the flesh” (physical Jews) in relation to the future purpose of God, concluding that God has not cast off his people who were Israelites descended from Abraham (11:1-2). He can regraft them back into the tree from which they have been cut off, if they will accept Jesus as their Messiah (v 23).

Then in his closing section, he discusses the implications of the first 11 chapters for everyday Christian living (chs 12–16 OET ROM 12:1–21 · OET ROM 13:1–14 · OET ROM 14:1–23 · OET ROM 15:1–33 · OET ROM 16:1–27), closing the book with a reminder of the importance of the “offering of the Gentiles” through his own ministry (ch 15).

In Detail

In the first chapter Paul argues that the pagan Gentile world was in a state of rebellion against God, and the wrath of God had been revealed against their ungodliness (1:18). Even though God had given sufficient revelation of his existence to them in the world of nature, they had nevertheless become polytheistic and idolatrous, with all the accompanying moral degradations (vv 20-23). Thus, three times Paul emphasizes that God gave them up to their lusts (v 24), to dishonorable passions (v 26), and to a base mind and improper conduct (v 28). The meaning is that he passed over their sins (3:25), overlooked their spiritual ignorance of his true existence (Acts 17:30), and did not put a stop to such idolatry (7:42).

The Jews fared little better because, even though they had received the law of Moses containing a revelation of the will of God for their nation, they had not kept the law (2:17-29). Even the Gentiles had those among them who did by nature the things contained in the law and were acceptable because their consciences were pure (vv 14-15). For a Jew, keeping the law was insufficient unless he did so as a spiritual conviction, not as a mere legal requirement (v 29). God-fearing Gentiles who kept the essence of the law were a model for condemning the Jews who did not (vv 14, 27 OET ROM 2:14 · OET ROM 2:27). However, the faithlessness of the chosen nation did not nullify the faithfulness of God to the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham (3:3). Although the Jew had every advantage over the Gentile, he was no better off because both had given themselves over to the power of sin (vv 1, 9 OET ROM 3:1 · OET ROM 3:9). The situation now was that “all have sinned [both Jew and Gentile] and fall short of the glory of God” (v 23, rsv).

God had therefore made Christ the Redeemer for the sins of the world (3:21-31). The righteousness of God had been manifested apart from the law, through the “faith of Christ” (v 22; i.e., the faithfulness of Christ to the promise) and was available to the Gentile as well as Jew on the basis of personal faith. If this righteousness were available only through keeping the commandments of the law, as good and holy as it was (7:12), then God was a God of Jews only and not of Gentiles, because the law was given to the Jews (3:29). But God is also the God of the Gentiles and justifies the Jew on the basis of Christ’s faithfulness, and the Gentile on the basis of that same faithful act. Christ died for all who believe in him (v 22). Thus God’s righteousness was manifested through Christ’s faithfulness (vv 3, 22 OET ROM 3:3 · OET ROM 3:22) and provides the basis of salvation for everyone who believes (5:9).

Several times in the fourth chapter Paul insists that Abraham was the father of the Jews and of the Gentiles (vv 11-12, 16-18). Christ’s faithfulness to the promise to Abraham that all nations (Gentiles) would be blessed through his seed (the descendants of Isaac) enabled Abraham to become the father of all nations, that is, of all who believe (v 11).

Having laid this broad theological base, Paul then argues that the impact of this justification or righteousness is that all believers experience salvation from the wrath of God and thereby experience peace (5:1, 9 OET ROM 5:1 · OET ROM 5:9). Sin entered the world through the first transgression and passed to all people (v 12). Justification, however, was brought by the second Adam, Christ, who gives salvation to those who believe and receive the abundance of his grace (vv 16-18).

The function of the law was not to save the Jew. It was added because of transgressions (Gal 3:19); it served to intensify the awareness of sin, present in all people, to the point of transgression of the law (Rom 5:20). Sin used the law to deceive and destroy those who tried to keep it (7:11). Paul had known what it was to covet before he knew the law, but when he became subject to the dictates and penalties of the law at age 12 or 13, the commandment against covetousness became even more demanding and destroyed him (7:11). After the law was known, the penalty for its disobedience was fully applicable. Sin had been intensified because it became a transgression of the law. This very fact caused the need for greater grace, because where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more (5:20). But it would be a gross perversion of what it means to live free from wrath, law, sin, and death to argue that one should therefore continue in sin that grace may abound (6:1). Paul argues that those who have been justified and saved by Christ have died to the power of sin, which no longer has enslaving power (vv 2, 6 OET ROM 6:2 · OET ROM 6:6). The key thought here is that sin (i.e., Satan—sin personified) cannot exercise dominion over the believer (vv 9, 14 OET ROM 6:9 · OET ROM 6:14); it cannot reign over him (v 12) and make him its slave (vv 17, 20 OET ROM 6:17 · OET ROM 6:20).