Romans 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
Rom 10:1
Ἀδελφοί, ἡ μὲν εὐδοκία τῆς ἐμῆς καρδίας καὶ ἡ δέησις πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν εἰς σωτηρίαν.
Brothers, the pleasure of my heart and my prayer to God on behalf of them to salvation.
Paraphrase: Brothers, please don’t misunderstand me here. Just because I have been saying that God makes His promises to those whom He has chosen and not to a certain ethnic people, does not mean I have no concern for the salvation of my people. Indeed, nothing makes me happier than when I see one of my own countrymen turn from Moses to Christ. Every day, I pray earnestly that God would call them out of their darkness and bring them into the light. (John 1:5)
Comments:
I took the article on δέησις to be a possessive pronoun; see principle 18.
Rom 10:2
μαρτυρῶ γὰρ αὐτοῖς ὅτι ζῆλον θεοῦ ἔχουσιν· ἀλλ’ οὐ κατ’ ἐπίγνωσιν,
For I testify to them that a zeal of God they have but not according to knowledge.
Paraphrase: My people are certainly a very religious people, no question about that; but if there is one thing I could get them to understand, it is this. It’s one thing, to be religious and quite another to be exercised with the true religion. It’s not mere religious zeal that pleases God. Remember that our Lord taught us that God is a Spirit, and those who worship Him must do so in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
Comments:
Rom 10:3
ἀγνοοῦντες γὰρ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιοσύνην, καὶ τὴν ἰδίαν ζητοῦντες στῆσαι, τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ τοῦ θεοῦ οὐχ ὑπετάγησαν·
For not knowing the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted to the righteousness of God.
Paraphrase: Here’s the problem with my countrymen. They are working hard to build a righteousness for themselves from their own righteous living. They practice a very close and precise observance of all God’s laws and expect that this will meet with God’s approval. They hope to earn God’s favor; and because of their efforts, to be admitted into His kingdom. All the while, God is holding out to them (Romans 10:21) a righteousness that is absolutely perfect and without the slightest flaw. In fact, this righteousness which God offers them is the only righteousness that He will accept, but my people simply can’t see the gift which God has for them. My heart is broken (Romans 9:2-3) to see their blindness. (2 Corinthians 3:14)
Comments:
Rom 10:4
τέλος γὰρ νόμου Χριστὸς εἰς δικαιοσύνην παντὶ τῷ πιστεύοντι.
For the end of the law, Christ for righteousness to all who are believing.
Paraphrase: My prayer is that my people will reach the end of their own law-keeping; and when they look up exhausted and weary with their own efforts, they will see Christ standing before them with His holy hands stretched out to them. In those hands, is a righteousness perfect in every respect; there’s not the slightest flaw in it. It’s like a perfect, flawless robe (Revelation 7:13-14) which they can put on simply by putting their full trust and confidence in Jesus. Truth be told, this righteousness is perfect because it is the righteousness of the second Adam, Himself. (Romans 5:19) Now, this is the righteousness which God will accept. He will surely pronounce all who have it, Not Guilty!
Comments:
See Liddon on “end” or τέλος; also Schriener. Scholars used to regard an articular νομος as referring specifically to the Mosaic law and if anarthrous, a reference to law in general; see Headlam. This is no longer the case; see p75.
Rom 10:5
Μωϋσῆς γὰρ γράφει ὅτι τὴν δικαιοσύνην τὴν ἐκ τοῦ νόμου ὁ ποιήσας ἄνθρωπος ζήσεται ἐν αὐτῇ.
For Moses writes that righteousness, i.e. that righteousness which is of the law, the man who is doing it, he will live by it.
Paraphrase: My people are still living under the covenant of works which requires perfect and perpetual obedience to all of God’s commands. If they do this, they will live forever in God’s presence and favor. Moses himself wrote about this covenant when he said that the man who kept God’s statutes and ordinances would live under God’s favor and acceptance. (Leviticus 18:5)
Comments:
Chalmers argues that “law” here does not merely refer to the ceremonial law.
Wardlaw, based on Galatians 3:18 and Romans 4:13-14, rejects any idea that the obedience Moses required in Leviticus 18:5 was simply to retain their hold on the land, not to obtain eternal life. “The Gospel [or what I am calling “the covenant of grace”] is intended for those who have already disobeyed the Law [or who have voided the covenant of works].”
Rom 10:6
ἡ δὲ ἐκ πίστεως δικαιοσύνη οὕτως λέγει· Μὴ εἴπῃς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου· Τίς ἀναβήσεται εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν; τοῦτ’ ἔστιν Χριστὸν καταγαγεῖν·
But the by faith righteousness in this manner speaks: “Do not say in your heart, whoever will ascend into heaven? This is to bring Christ down.
Paraphrase: Now, what Moses taught us is certainly true, but we have learned by sad experience that this way of obtaining God’s favor is no longer available to us. Our sin has voided this covenant, and we have nothing left but to expect God’s fiery judgment. (Hebrews 10:26-31) In fact, this was one of the reasons God gave the law to Israel; i.e. to show them the impossibility of obtaining life by a covenant of works. (Galatians 3:19) These, however, are not the terms of God’s covenant of grace. Again, I can appeal to Moses. What he says about the law, applies even more to God’s new covenant of grace which He makes with his people. (Deuteronomy 30:11-14) This new covenant teaches us that we do not need to work our way into God’s favor by climbing up into heaven by a perfect performance of all the exhausting rituals and ceremonies of the Mosaic law; all of which may seem like wonderful things to us but can never give us victory over sin. (Colossians 2:23) Besides, if we were able to keep the terms of the covenant of works, then what need was there for Jesus to leave heaven and to tabernacle among us? (John 1:14) We have no need for a Savior if our righteous living can bring us into God’s favor.
Comments:
Tholuck:
What Paul means to say then is: When, now-a-days, a sinner attains to the knowledge of himself, and sighs for enlightenment and justification, he requires not to look far and wide around him for help. If even Moses has commended the revelation of God’s law, because it brings the way of salvation so near to man, the Christian has still more occasion to congratulate himself on the same account; All that he wants is faith, and for its attainment, he does not require to have even once seen Christ. He needs not more than simply “to believe with the heart, and to confess with the mouth. source
Rom 10:7
ἤ· Τίς καταβήσεται εἰς τὴν ἄβυσσον; τοῦτ’ ἔστιν Χριστὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναγαγεῖν.
or who will descend into the abyss? This is to raise Christ from the dead.
Paraphrase: Nor do we obtain righteousness by digging down into the depths of the earth as if we were seeking to find some hidden treasure. No, this kind of effort is not what God’s grace covenant requires of us. If such effort were required and possible, then again we ask for what purpose did Jesus die for our sin and rise again for our justification? (Romans 4:25)
Comments:
Rom 10:8
ἀλλὰ τί λέγει; Ἐγγύς σου τὸ ῥῆμά ἐστιν, ἐν τῷ στόματί σου καὶ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου, τοῦτ’ ἔστιν τὸ ῥῆμα τῆς πίστεως ὃ κηρύσσομεν.
but what does it say? Near you is the word, in your mouth and in your heart; this is the word of faith which we preach.
Paraphrase: So what are the terms of the covenant of grace? What is the good news which God has called us to preach and you to believe? Well again, to use the same words as Moses, the requirement is easy (Matthew 11:30) and not difficult. In fact, it’s just a prayer in your mouth and a trusting in your heart.
Comments:
τὸ ῥῆμα τῆς πίστεως = objective genitive
Rom 10:9
ὅτι ἐὰν ὁμολογήσῃς ἐν τῷ στόματί σου κύριον Ἰησοῦν, καὶ πιστεύσῃς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου ὅτι ὁ θεὸς αὐτὸν ἤγειρεν ἐκ νεκρῶν, σωθήσῃ·
that when you might confess with your mouth Lord Jesus and you might believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Paraphrase: Let me clear; when any person confesses with their mouth that Jesus is Lord and this confession is a sincere confession flowing from their belief that God raised Jesus from the dead as proof of His divine person and mission, such a person will surely be received into God’s kingdom with great joy and gladness.
Comments:
Here “being saved” σωθήσῃ is the equivalent of “live” in v5.
“Jesus” is the object of the verb “confess”; Lord is an object complement. See p108 for a detailed discussion.
Rom 10:10
καρδίᾳ γὰρ πιστεύεται εἰς δικαιοσύνην, στόματι δὲ ὁμολογεῖται εἰς σωτηρίαν·
Rom 10:11
λέγει γὰρ ἡ γραφή· Πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων ἐπ’ αὐτῷ οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται.
Rom 10:12
οὐ γάρ ἐστιν διαστολὴ Ἰουδαίου τε καὶ Ἕλληνος, ὁ γὰρ αὐτὸς κύριος πάντων, πλουτῶν εἰς πάντας τοὺς ἐπικαλουμένους αὐτόν·
Rom 10:13
Πᾶς γὰρ ὃς ἂν ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου σωθήσεται.
Rom 10:14
Πῶς οὖν ἐπικαλέσωνται εἰς ὃν οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν; πῶς δὲ πιστεύσωσιν οὗ οὐκ ἤκουσαν; πῶς δὲ ἀκούσωσιν χωρὶς κηρύσσοντος;
Rom 10:15
πῶς δὲ κηρύξωσιν ἐὰν μὴ ἀποσταλῶσιν; καθὼς γέγραπται· Ὡς ὡραῖοι οἱ πόδες τῶν εὐαγγελιζομένων τὰ ἀγαθά.
Rom 10:16
ἀλλ’ οὐ πάντες ὑπήκουσαν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ· Ἠσαΐας γὰρ λέγει· Κύριε, τίς ἐπίστευσεν τῇ ἀκοῇ ἡμῶν;
Rom 10:17
ἄρα ἡ πίστις ἐξ ἀκοῆς, ἡ δὲ ἀκοὴ διὰ ῥήματος Χριστοῦ.
Rom 10:18
Ἀλλὰ λέγω, μὴ οὐκ ἤκουσαν; μενοῦνγε· Εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος αὐτῶν, καὶ εἰς τὰ πέρατα τῆς οἰκουμένης τὰ ῥήματα αὐτῶν.
Rom 10:19
ἀλλὰ λέγω, μὴ Ἰσραὴλ οὐκ ἔγνω; πρῶτος Μωϋσῆς λέγει· Ἐγὼ παραζηλώσω ὑμᾶς ἐπ’ οὐκ ἔθνει, ἐπ’ ἔθνει ἀσυνέτῳ παροργιῶ ὑμᾶς.
Rom 10:20
Ἠσαΐας δὲ ἀποτολμᾷ καὶ λέγει· Εὑρέθην ἐν τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ζητοῦσιν, ἐμφανὴς ἐγενόμην τοῖς ἐμὲ μὴ ἐπερωτῶσιν.
Rom 10:21
πρὸς δὲ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ λέγει· Ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν ἐξεπέτασα τὰς χεῖράς μου πρὸς λαὸν ἀπειθοῦντα καὶ ἀντιλέγοντα.