Romans 2:6-16:"God's Impartial Judgment"

[Crossposted to Street Prophets. The index for the series is here.]

I am using Carl Palmer's titles for these posts. The appropriate links are:

• Audio file
• Note sheet

The text is:

(NET) Romans 2:6 He¹⁴ will reward¹⁵ each one according to his works:¹⁶ 7 eternal life to those who by perseverance in good works seek glory and honor and immortality, 8 but¹⁷ wrath and anger to those who live in selfish ambition¹⁸ and do not obey the truth but follow¹⁹ unrighteousness. 9 There will be²⁰ affliction and distress on everyone²¹ who does evil, on the Jew first and also the Greek,²² 10 but²³ glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, for the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For there is no partiality with God. 12 For all who have sinned apart from the law²⁴ will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous before God, but those who do the law will be declared righteous.²⁵ 14 For whenever the Gentiles,²⁶ who do not have the law, do by nature²⁷ the things required by the law,²⁸ these who do not have the law are a law to themselves. 15 They²⁹ show that the work of the law is written³⁰ in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend³¹ them,³² 16 on the day when God will judge³³ the secrets of human hearts,³⁴ according to my gospel³⁵ through Christ Jesus.

Notes:

¹⁴ tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

¹⁵ tn Or “will render,” “will recompense.” In this context Paul is setting up a hypothetical situation, not stating that salvation is by works.

¹⁶ sn A quotation from Ps 62:12; Prov 24:12; a close approximation to Matt 16:27 [see below].

¹⁷ tn This contrast is clearer and stronger in Greek than can be easily expressed in English.
¹⁸ tn Grk “those who [are] from selfish ambition.”
¹⁹ tn Grk “are persuaded by, obey.”

²⁰ tn No verb is expressed in this verse, but the verb “to be” is implied by the Greek construction. Literally “suffering and distress on everyone…”

²¹ tn Grk “every soul of man.”
²² sn Paul uses the term Greek here and in v. 10 to refer to non-Jews, i.e., Gentiles.

²³ tn Grk “but even,” to emphasize the contrast. The second word has been omitted since it is somewhat redundant in English idiom.

²⁴ sn This is the first occurrence of law (nomos) in Romans. Exactly what Paul means by the term has been the subject of much scholarly debate. According to J. A. Fitzmyer (Romans [AB], 131–35; 305–6) there are at least four different senses: (1)figurative, as a “principle”; (2) generic, meaning “a law”; (3) as a reference to the OT or some part of the OT; and (4) as a reference to the Mosaic law. This last usage constitutes the majority of Paul’s references to “law” in Romans.

²⁵ tn The Greek sentence expresses this contrast more succinctly than is possible in English. Grk “For not the hearers of the law are righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be declared righteous.”

²⁶ sn Gentile is a NT term for a non-Jew.

²⁷ tn Some (e.g. C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:135–37) take the phrase φύσει(phusei, “by nature”) to go with the preceding “do not have the law,” thus: “the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature,” that is, by virtue of not being born Jewish.

²⁸ tn Grk “do by nature the things of the law.”

²⁹ tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

³⁰ tn Grk “show the work of the law [to be] written,” with the words in brackets implied by the Greek construction.

³¹ tn Or “excuse.”

³² tn Grk “their conscience bearing witness and between the thoughts accusing or also defending one another.”

³³ tn The form of the Greek word is either present or future, but it is best to translate in future because of the context of future judgment.

³⁴ tn Grk “of people.”
³⁵ sn On my gospel cf. Rom 16:25; 2 Tim 2:8.

Biblical Studies Press. (2006; 2006). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible. Biblical Studies Press.

Going Deeper into the Word [From the note sheet]:

1. To what extent do you think people who do not have the gospel or the Bible know God’s will?
2. How would you explain that someone can be saved only “by grace through faith”—yet will be judged “according to what he has done”? (Eph. 2:8; Rom. 2:6)
3. If “God will judge men’s secrets”—why do we focus on outward appearances and cover up the secrets of our past?
4. How should we live our lives—in the knowledge of coming judgment?

My Comments: One of those things Evangelical Christians are asked is why we go around pointing out sin - especially since the warnings in scripture against us being judgemental while pointing out unrighteousness are so fearful. Well, as Carl points out, there is something to fear in being silent:

Ezekial 33:7 “As for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you must warn them on my behalf. 8 When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you must certainly die,’ and you do not warn the wicked about his behavior, the wicked man will die for his iniquity, but I will hold you accountable for his death. 9 But if you warn the wicked man to change his behavior, and he refuses to change, he will die for his iniquity, but you have saved your own life.

As Carl continuously stresses, the first three chapters of Romans are a relentless warning about the dangers of unrighteousness and the judgement/wrath of God.

The wrath of God is the settled, consistant, pure, deeply felt, eternal, passionate opposition of a Holy God to anything that opposes His purpose.

Paul presents God's wrath as carried out in two ways:

1. Giving people “over to” the sin they choose.
2. The final “day of wrath” when God will judge the world and put an end to sin once and for all.

It is in these verses that Paul talks about that final "day of wrath"; and Carl divides the first 16 verses of chapter 2 into seven features of God's final judgement on that day:

1. God’s judgment is according to truth. (2:1‐2)
2. God’s judgment of the judgmental is certain. (2:3)
3. God’s judgment is delayed—for grace. (2:4)
4. God’s judgment is accumulating wrath. (2:5)
5. God's judgment is according to deeds, obedience, works, etc. (2:6-8)

Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.

Matthew 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. 43 I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?’ 45 Then he will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’ 46 And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, 24 if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith 25 save him? 26 2:15 If a brother or sister 27 is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, 2:16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, 28 what good is it? 2:17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” 29 Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by 30 my works. 2:19 You believe that God is one; well and good. 31 Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear.

6. God’s judgment is according to impartiality. (2:9‐15)
7. God’s judgment is according to the gospel. (2:16)

Carl hammers throughout the message on the necessity of our actions reflecting our faith; and our faith being meaningless if our actions do not follow it.

Paul also, again, points to the truth that folks who do not know Mosaic Law, God or Jesus do know right and wrong:

Romans 2:14 For whenever the Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature the things required by the law, these who do not have the law are a law to themselves. 15 They show that the work of the law is written in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend them, 16 on the day when God will judge the secrets of human hearts, according to my gospel through Christ Jesus.

While this affirms that the road to Heaven lies through Jesus Christ:

John 14:6 Jesus replied, 13 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. 14 No one comes to the Father except through me.

it also affirms the Catholic Church's teaching on alternate routes to Jesus other than direct belief in Christ. As C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity:

Is it not frightfully unfair that this new life should be confined to people who have heard of Christ and been able to believe in Him? But the truth is God has not told us what His arrangements about the other people are. We do know that no man can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know Him can be saved through Him.

It is also of note - as noted by Carl - that there are two ways Paul presents God's wrath being revealed: giving over and the final day of wrath. There is no idea that God will punish our unrighteousness in the present day by any punishment other than letting us wallow and suffer in the sin we have chosen for ourselves.

Next: 2:17-29 -- "True Covenant Membership"