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Introduction to the Book of Romans
Introduction The book of Romans is one of the most profound books in existence. It is certainly one of the most valued parts of the Holy Scriptures. It has been appropriately termed the Cathedral of the Christian faith. Its profound theology and impressive style were reason enough for it to be assigned the first place among the Pauline epistles (Allen Ross, bible.org, p.1). It is commonly agreed that the Epistle to the Romans is one of the greatest Christian writings. Its power has been demonstrated again and again at critical points in the history of the Christian church. (Pillar Commentary, Leon Morris) Martin Luther is quoted as saying, “The Epistle is really the chief part of the New Testament, and is worth not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.” [Martin Luther, “Preface to the Epistle of the Romans” (1522), in Works of Martin Luther (1932), Vol.VI, p.447)] Authorship of Romans That Paul is the author of this letter is denied by almost no one. Even the ancient heretics admitted Romans was written by Paul. So do the modern (19th century and later) radical German critics, who deny many other facts in scripture (Bible Knowledge Commentary). The few who have objected have not been able to convince many that their arguments have weight. The style and contents are what we expect of Paul, and the tradition of the church has always accepted this letter as a genuine work of the great apostle (The Pillar Commentary by Leon Morris). The Place and Time of Romans Based on the material from Acts and the Corinthian epistles, the Book of Romans clearly indicates that it was written from Corinth on Paul’s third missionary journey. Paul had never visited Rome; but after fulfilling his mission of mercy to Jerusalem, he hoped to go to Rome en route to Spain (15:23‐25) (Allen Ross, bible.org, p. 2) Having completed his work in the eastern part of the Roman Empire, he hoped to travel to Rome and then on to Spain; but first he needed to go to Jerusalem to deliver the money he had collected for the church there (Rom. 15:19–32; see Acts 19:21). Paul commends Phoebe (Rom. 16:1–2), and she was likely the person who brought the letter to Rome. She resided in Cenchreae, which was near Corinth and was one of its port cities. Furthermore, Gaius was Paul’s host (16:23), and this is likely the same Gaius who lived in Corinth (1 Cor. 1:14). Finally, two fairly early manuscripts of Romans have subscriptions (brief notes that a copyist added to the end of a document) which say that the letter was written from Corinth. (ESV Study Bible).
Audience of Romans Paul simply addressed Romans “to all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints” (Rom. 1:7); he did not address it to “the church in Rome.” That a church did exist in Rome is obvious, because Paul sent greetings to the church that met in the home of Aquila and Priscilla (16:5). Probably several churches were in Rome; perhaps this multiplicity of churches is why Paul addressed the letter to “the saints” instead of to “the church.” (Bible Knowledge Commentary) Were these believers in Rome Jews or Gentiles in ethnic background? The answer is both. Aquila, for example, was a Jew (Acts 18:2), as were Andronicus, Junias, and Herodion, all three identified as Paul’s relatives (Rom. 16:7, 11). According to Josephus and others a large Jewish colony lived in Rome (cf. Acts 28:17‐28). But Rome was a Gentile city, the capital of a Gentile empire in which all Jews, believing and unbelieving, formed a small minority. In addition, though Paul never failed to witness and to minister to Jews, his calling from God was to be “the apostle to the Gentiles” (Rom. 11:13; cf. 15:16). So it is reasonable to conclude that his readers were mostly Gentile in background. (Bible Knowledge Commentary) We have no precise information about how and when and by whom the church was established in Rome. There is a tradition that Peter and Paul founded the church, but this epistle shows that the church was flourishing in Rome long before Paul visited that city. When he wrote this epistle he had never been to Rome (1:10‐13), and he makes it clear there was already a significant group of believers there (1:6, 7, 8; 15:14). There is then no reliable tradition about the founding of this church, and we are left to speculation. (The Pillar Commentary by Leon Morris). Key Themes of Romans (ESV Study Bible) Theme Supporting Passage(s)
1. All people are sinners, therefore all without exception, need to be saved from their sin. 2. The Mosaic law, though good and holy, cannot counteract the power of sin. 3. Through the righteousness of God, sin is judged and salvation is provided. 4. With the coming of Jesus Christ, the Former age of redemptive history has passed away and the new age of redemptive history has begun. 5. The atoning death of Jesus Christ is central to God’s plan of salvation. 6. Justification is by faith alone. 7. There is a certain hope of future glory
1:18‐3:20; 5:12‐19
2:12‐29; 3:9‐20; 5:20; 7:1‐25; 9:30‐10:8 3:21‐26; 5:12‐19; 6:1‐10; 7:1‐6; 8:1‐4
1:1‐7; 3:21‐26; 5:1‐8:39
3:21‐26; 4:23‐25; 5:6‐11, 15‐19; 6:1‐10; 7:4‐6; 8:1‐4 1:16‐4:25; 9:30‐10:21 5:1‐8:39
for those who are in Christ Jesus. 8. Those who have died with Christ and who enjoy the work of the Holy Spirit are enabled to live a new life. 9. God is sovereign in salvation; He works All things according to His plan 10. God fulfills His saving promises to both Jews and Gentiles 11. The grace of the gospel calls Christians to personal holiness, mutual service, good citizenship, and wholehearted neighbor‐love in Christ
2:25‐29; 6:1‐7:6; 8:1‐39
9:1‐11:36
1:18‐4:25; 9:1‐11:36; 15:8‐13
12:1‐13:14
Purpose of Romans In this epistle Paul develops his views about the relation of Jews and Christians within the history of the covenant. The epistle is therefore also important because of what it tells us about the situation of both Jews and Gentiles within the church. The basic issue can be sketched as follows. Jesus Christ had come as the Savior of humankind, but he had come in the first place to the Jews. His life, ministry and death all took place within an essentially Jewish context. The apostles and their earliest followers were also Jews who believed that in Christ the promises of the Old Testament had been fulfilled for the benefit of the covenant people. But Paul and the other apostles had been led to preach the gospel to Gentiles as well. These Gentiles did not become Jews and saw no need to submit to a legal and ceremonial system that the apostles themselves admitted had been made obsolete by the coming of Christ. How could such people be integrated into a close‐knit fellowship of believers, most of whom shared the same cultural assumptions of a Jewish minority living in a hostile pagan environment? Surely Gentiles could not go on living as they had done before if they claimed to worship the one true God. (Ancient Bible Commentary) From the Gentile side, however, the Jewish voices appeared to be arrogant and unreasonable. They were proud of their ancestry. Some claimed to be superior to the new converts, many of whom would have had little or no understanding of the gospel’s Old Testament background. How would Gentiles ever feel at home in the church if physical descent from Abraham was a significant advantage, regardless of the spiritual state of those who claimed it? Was it not more important to believe what Abraham believed than to claim physical descent from him? (Ancient Bible Commentary) This was the situation confronting the apostle Paul. He addressed it by saying that each side was partly right and partly wrong and by pointing out that there was a common basis that could unite both into a single church. The Jews were right to emphasize their ancestry and their traditions because these things pointed toward the coming of Christ. Correctly understood and applied, these traditions gave Jews a great advantage in living the Christian life. But Gentiles were also right to insist that claiming descent from Abraham meant nothing if those who did so did not also believe what Abraham believed and did not relate to God in the same way as he had done—by faith. (Ancient Bible Commentary)
