This chapter is one of the most misunderstood chapters in the Bible due to the subject matter it deals with: judging. People living in sin and iniquity often use verse one to justify their behaviors and to condemn Christians from judging them because of their sins.
Verse 1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.
The Greek word translated as “inexcusable” is “anapologetos” and it means without defense or excuse, that whcih cannot be defended, and inexcusable. The Greek word translated as “judgest” is “krino” and it means to separate, to pick out, select, choose, to be of opinion, to determine, resolve, decree, to judge, to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong, and to pronounce judgment. The Greek word translated as “condemnest” is “katakrino” and it means to give judgment against, to judge worthy of punishment, to condemn, or by one’s good example to render another’s wickedness the more evident and censurable.” The Apostle Paul is not telling the Roman Christians that they cannot judge, but he is saying that anyone who is engaging in some type of sin and then passes judgement on another because they are sinning has no excuse or defense of their own sin, and by judging others who are sinning they are condemning themselves. For example, judging a man or woman who is committing adultery as a sinner condemned to Hell and then going out and also committing adultery is simply causing condemnation for the one doing the judging. The old saying about the pot calling the kettle black is the situation here. Christians engaged in sin cannot judge others who are also engaged in the same sin.
Application: If a Christian sees another doing something nasty and sinful and confronts the sinning individual, the sinner will often claim that the Christian has not right to judge. Churches also teach that Christians cannot judge others. But the only people who have the right to judge another’s behavior or sin is a Christian who judges righteously. The Christian cannot judge another because of personal opinions. The Christian can only judge others by using God’s standard as revealed in the pages of Scripture. God says not to lie, so anyone lying is sinning and the Christian can tell the liar that they are sinning and working their way into Hell because it is God’s standard or law that is being broken. The punishment for breaking God’s law is death. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
Verse 2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
Only the judgment of God is truly without bias and according to truth. It is for God to judge and punish those who are sinning and who continue to sin.
Application: Again, Christians can judge the sins of others if they judge righteously. However, Christians do not punish sinners or condemn sinners to Hell. That is the job of the Creator who has every right to punish and/or destroy those He has created if they continue to rebel against Him and reject His offer of salvation.
Verse 3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?
The Apostle Paul is asking the Roman Gentile Christians if any of them think that they can judge others who are sinning, then commit the same sins, and escape judgement from God. Of course, the answer is “no”, they cannot.
Verse 4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?
He continues to ask questions. Are any of the Roman Christians continuing to sin because they have not yet experienced God’s judgement and therefore think that they can get away with their sins and remain carnal Christians and still remain in God’s good grace and mercy? Do they not realize that it is because of God’s goodness that He is giving them time to repent and cease from sinning?
Application: God is a judge, and His judgements are just and true and final. He will withhold judgement and give people the time and space to repent and get into a right relationship with Him, but if people merely take advantage of His love and mercy and the time He is giving them to change and fail to repent and then live righteously, He will eventually pass judgement and punish those who continue to engage in sin.
Verses 5-6 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:
The Greek word translated as “hardness” is “sklerotes” and it means hardness, obstinacy, and stubborness. The Greek word translated as “impenitent” is “ametanoetos” and it means admitting no change of mind, unrepented. The Greek word translated as “treasurest” is “thesaurizo” and it means to gather and lay up, to heap up, to store up, and metaphorically to live from day to day as to increase either the bitterness or the happiness of one’s consequent lot. If the Roman Christians are so stubborn that they refuse to repent of their sins against God, then they are storing up all on their own with no one to blame the coming wrath or anger of God that will be revealed on judgement day. On that day, God will righteously judge every man, woman, and child who has chosen to transgress His Law and their punishment will be according to that which they have done.
Application: Notice that the judgment of God will be revealed or manifested. No one will mistake His judgement when His wrath is poured out upon a sinful world and upon the sinful people in it. All will know Him by His judgment on that day of wrath. Most people today see frightful and alarming events occurring daily and attribute them to coincidences or to causes promoted by the propaganda being presented by those in power. They cannot see that the LORD God Almighty is bringing judgement to bear on the unrighteous people and institutions in this world and that He is also using people who are serving Satan to accomplish His judgement and to bring forth Bible prophecy. All these events and judgements are leading up to the final day of wrath when worldwide calamity and destruction will be brought about by God and time will end, ushering in eternity. “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” 2 Peter 3:7, 10
Verse 7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
Those people God judges who have followed after Him, obeyed the Gospel by a. repenting of their sins, b. being baptized in Jesus’ name, and c. being filled with His Spirit, who have been patient and continued in the Faith with good works accompanying, and who have given God the glory and honor He deserves, and who have looked for a future life after death with Him will be given eternal life.
Verses 8-9 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
The Greek word translated as “anguish” is “stenochora” and it means dire calamity or extreme affliction. Those people God judges who have rejected Him and the free gift of salvation from sin, death, and Hell, and who have chosen to be the servants of unrighteousness rather than the servants of truth will be given the full force of God’s wrath which will result in tribulation and extreme affliction. Notice that this tribulation and anguish will be given first to the Jews who do evil and then to the Gentiles who do evil. Why the Jews first? Because they were given the Gospel first and they, for the most part, rejected and continue to reject Jesus Christ their Messiah and the Gospel message. Therefore they will be judged and punished first.
Verses 10-11 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: 11 For there is no respect of persons with God.
But to those who follow Jesus Christ and do works of righteousness will be given glory (splendor, brightness, and the glorious condition of blessedness into which is appointed and promised that true Christians shall enter after their Saviour’s return from heaven), honour (high respect or great esteem), and peace (tranquillity, harmony, security, safety, and contentment). These will be given to the Jews who are converted to Christianity first and then to the Gentiles.
Application: Again, the Jews are first because they had the advantage of receiving the Gospel first, not because they are a special race of people. There are no special races of people, only people who love and follow Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul states it clearly in verse eleven above. “FOR THERE IS NO RESPECT OF PERSONS WITH GOD.” The Greek word translated as “respect of persons” is “prosopolepsia” and it means partiality. All people are equal before God and will stand or fall based on their acceptance or rejection of Jesus Christ and the Gospel message.
Verse 12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
Unrepentant sinners will perish regardless of whether they have the Law of God or not, because sin destroys. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 The difference is not in the perishing, but is in how they will be judged by the LORD Jesus Christ on judgement day. Those who have had God’s Law will be judged by that Law and those who did not have the Law will be judged by their sins. So all sinners will be judged and punished according to the will of Jesus Christ. He is Judge and He is the highest court in this world.
Verse 13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
The Greek word translated as “just” is “dikaios” and it means righteous, observing divine law, virtuous, and keeping the commands of God. The Greek word translated as “justified” is “dikaioo” and it means to render righteous, or to declare or pronounce one to be just, righteous, or such as he ought to be. The Apostle Paul is teaching that it is not enough to just know the Law of God, but one must do the Law in order to be just or righteous. This does not mean doing the religious rituals and observing the feast days required under the Old Covenant. True Christians are under the Law of Grace and under the New Covenant where Jesus Christ Himself condensed all the Law and the Prophets into two commandments. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40
Verses 14-15 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: 15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
The Gentiles were not given the Law. yet their conscience and their common sense can tell them that some sins are to be avoided. For example, it doesn’t take a written law to tell someone that a life of taking drugs is going to be destructive, expensive and lead to death. So non-Jews can choose to avoid such sin. The same goes for smoking, consuming alcohol, eating fast foods, having sex outside of marriage, stealing from people, and so forth. Most non-Jews who never had any of the Laws and statutes and ordinances written by the Prophet Moses do the right things naturally and so the Apostle Paul says they are a law unto themselves.
Application: God has given mankind His Law in their hearts from birth until physical death. Therefore people “do by nature the things contained in the law”. When people harden their hearts and ignore His Law they sin.
Verses 16-20 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. 17 Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, 18 And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; 19 And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, 20 An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.
The Apostle Paul is saying in these verses that the Jews who rely on and believe that they are special and are God’s chosen will not escape judgement. As stated above, they will be judged first and punished first before the Gentiles for their transgressions against God. Because they have the Law they think that the rest of the Gentile world is inferior to them. They believe they are righteous because of the Law that was given to them and fail to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their attitude and belief of superiority makes them think they are the source of all wisdom and knowledge regarding the nature and will of God. Therefore they believe they have the right to rule over others inferior to them.
Application: The people calling themselves Jews believe their knowledge and superiority allows them to run the world, and so they seek to bring in a one world system in which they, the illuminated ones, are in control and the Gentiles are only there to serve them as masters. In order to accomplish their goals they have taken control of the money systems in the world, most governments, the news and most printing houses, the educational systems, the religious systems, the medical establishment and enough corporations so that they can exert their power, influence and money for control. Jesus warned in the book of Revelation about the synagogue of Satan. And, yes, Satan is behind this plan for world domination, but the LORD has the final say and will intercede on behalf of His people, the Church.
Verses 21-24 Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? 22 Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege? 23 Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God? 24 For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.
So the old saying, “Do as I tell you and not as I do,” is basically what the Apostle Paul is saying that the Jews have done, and in so doing have blasphemed the name of God among the Gentiles. They use the Law to convict Gentiles of wrong doing but they do not obey the Law themselves and commit the very sins they are accusing other non-Jews of committing. Furthermore, some Jews taught that in breaking the Law, God would be more forgiving.
Application: Some denominations and religious institutions today teach that it is acceptable to sin a little as God would then have more forgiveness and grace towards the sinner. The institution of Catholicism teaches this very doctrine today. When a parishioner enters the confession booth the first thing that is uttered from his/her mouths is, “Bless me Father for I have sinned.” Think about what is being said here. How can a righteous God bless people because they are sinning? He will bless those who cease from sinning. Jesus never told the people He ministered to to keep sinning. He told the woman taken in the sin of adultery to, “go and sin no more.” John 8:11
Verses 25-27 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. 26 Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? 27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law?
Physical circumcision was ordered by the LORD in the days of the patriarch Abraham for the purpose of marking a people and separating them out from the rest of the pagan nations. It was a shedding of blood and pointed to the coming if Jesus Christ who shed His blood for the remission of sins. Circumcision was also God’s way of keeping the Hebrew people sexually clean. If a Hebrew raped a woman, it was not difficult to know who committed the crime. But like everything else that mankind pollutes and distorts, over time the Hebrews wore this disfigurement as a badge of superiority rather than an everyday reminder of their God and His righteousness. So the ritual of circumcision was part of the Old Testament law. But it did not make the Hebrew men righteous and they could not fall back on it and claim that they were superior to the Gentiles. The Apostle Paul is teaching here that Gentiles who are not physically circumcised but who by nature obey the Law are seen by God as circumcised. Therefore, circumcision or uncircumcision doesn’t matter. Keeping the Law of God is what matters.
Verses 28-29 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. (Romans 2)
The Apostle Paul sums this chapter up in these verses which most mainstream organized evangelical establishment churches fail to grasp. A Jew is not one who outwardly practices the Mosaic law and religious rituals or who is physically circumcised or who lives in the present day Illuminati created nation of Israel. A Jew is one who is a descendant of Abraham, the Syrian, because of having faith in the LORD like Abraham had. A Jew is one who has a heart for and towards Jesus Christ and who is walking in His Spirit and not looking to receive praises from people but to receive praises from God whom he/she serves with a whole heart and mind. THE ISRAEL OF GOD TODAY IS THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.