THE LETTER OF SAINT PAUL TO THE ROMANS

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INTRODUCTION TO

Author and Date Ancient and modern commentators agree that the Apostle Paul wrote Romans. His name is attached to it (1:1), and its contents are consistent with our knowledge of Paul's mind and ministry from the Book of Acts and his other NT epistles. It is similarly agreed that Paul must have written the letter during the final months of his third missionary tour (Acts 18:23-21:16), probably during the winter of late A.D. 57 or early 58. This is based on information from Romans 15, where Paul mentions his fund-raising efforts in Macedonia and Achaia (modern Greece) for "the poor among the saints at Jerusalem" (15:26). According to Acts 20:1-3, Paul went through these regions just before setting out for Jerusalem with the relief offering in A.D. 58. The letter was probably dispatched from the Achaian city of Corinth or its nearby port of Cenchreae (Rom 16:1).

Destination In Paul's day, Rome was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire and the most populated metropolis of the Mediterranean world. Although predominantly pagan and notoriously corrupt, the city was also home to more than a dozen Jewish synagogues. The birth of Christianity in Rome is one of the unsolved puzzles of history. The good news may have first reached the city through Jewish pilgrims returning from Jerusalem (Acts 2:10). Tradition also remembers the Apostle Peter ministering in the capital during the 40s (See note on Acts 12:17). Whatever its first contact with the gospel, Rome had a glowing reputation for its faith by the time Paul wrote to the Christian community (Rom 1:8). Hints scattered throughout the letter suggest the Roman Church at this time was a mixed community of Jewish (2:17; 7:1) and Gentile believers (11:13; 15:15-16). The majority were probably Gentiles, since most of the individual names listed in chapter 16 are Greco-Roman and only a handful are distinctively Semitic. In any case, many scholars hold that the Roman Church was still closely associated with the synagogue communities of the city where it seems to have first taken root.

Purpose Three principal aims underlie the Letter to the Romans. (1) Paul wrote to introduce himself and his teaching to the Roman Christians in preparation for his planned visit (1:11-13). The Church in Rome was one of the few to which Paul wrote before making a personal visit. (2) Paul hoped to establish the Roman Church as his missionary base for a new phase of evangelization. Having completed his work in the eastern Mediterranean, Paul was now ready to turn his attention and energies toward Spain in the west (15:23-24). The letter is Paul's initial attempt to enlist the support of the Romans in carrying out these apostolic plans. (3) Paul also hoped to ease tensions that were straining the unity and fellowship of the Roman Church itself. Boasting, it seems, was a problem for Jews and Gentiles alike: the Jews took pride in the blessings and advantages of the Old Covenant not shared by the Gentiles (2:1-3:20); and the Gentiles claimed to have replaced Israel as the new and beloved people of God (11:13-32). For this reason, Paul argues at length for the unity and equality of all peoples in Jesus Christ (3:28-30) and challenges believers of every nationality to welcome one another as servants and worshipers of the same Lord (10:12; 15:7-12).

Themes and Characteristics Romans is a work of profound theological reflection. As such, it has probably influenced Christian thinking and history more than any other epistle of Paul. It is his longest letter and, in the eyes of many, his most mature. Indeed, Paul had been preaching and defending the gospel for two decades before he wrote Romans, leaving us a work that is stamped with the imprint of his wisdom, depth, and spiritual energy. Even more than his other writings, however, Romans is full of things that are "hard to understand" (2 Pet 3:16). His style is more formal than usual, and his thoughts weave back and forth through a maze of theological mysteries concerning sin, judgment, righteousness, justification, sanctification, salvation, suffering, law, grace, sonship, election, mercy, sacrifice, and the triune God. If any NT epistle can claim to resemble a theological treatise, it is Romans.

The body of Romans divides neatly into three major parts. (1) Salvation in Christ (1:16-8:39). The letter begins with a sweeping indictment of mankind, declaring the world guilty before God. Here Paul states that the cancer of human rebellion that spread rampantly among the pagans (1:18-32) has also infected Israel (2:1-3:20). As a result, all nations without distinction stand trapped in the same predicament: entangled in sin and in desperate need of salvation (3:23). God responds to this tragedy by sending forth his Son, Jesus Christ, whose dying and rising rescues the fallen family of Adam and restores them to a righteous standing with God (5:1-21). At several points throughout this section Paul reflects deeply on the mystery of sin (6:12-23; 7:7-25) and the salvation we experience in Christ through the Spirit (8:139). (2) Restoration of Israel (9:1-11:39). The central section of Romans examines the place of Israel in the new economy of grace. Though many in Israel have repudiated the gospel, Paul insists that God has not abandoned his covenant people but is planning to save "all Israel" in Christ (11:26-27). This, according to Paul, is consistent with the pattern of God's dealings with Israel in the Scriptures. These chapters also examine how the Gentiles are related to Israel as branches grafted onto the trunk of an olive tree (11:17-24). (3) Christian Living and Epilogue (12:1-16:23). The final chapters of Romans are a practical application of the theology expounded in earlier chapters. Here Paul considers the obligations of the believer in the Church and society. His catechesis follows the main contours of Jesus' teaching in the Gospels (12:9-21). In this section we find Paul's most explicit instructions on the Christian's relation to the State (13:1-7) and the need for believers to exercise Christian freedom with prudence, lest we cause others to fall (14:123).

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