The Study of Romans 1-2:20

By Jean Smith

In Chapter 3:18 St. Paul tells us still responding to objections raised by an imaginary Jewish questioner. What makes it difficult to follow is the fact that the reply to each question gives rise to the next objection. Read 1-4. Here the questioner asks, if Jews as well as the Gentiles are going to be rewarded or punished according to their deeds, then in what way is the Jew better off? The Apostle replies that the Jewish people if they were alone were given revelation by God for them to pass it on to other nations. God gave the mission to the entire Jewish nation not just a few. Paul answers in verse 2 that there are great benefits to being a Jew. "Great in every respect." Then he begins a list of advantages (verse 2b), but he only mentions one thing: "First of all that they were entrusted with the oracles of God." Paul stops here because he intends to finish this list later (in 9:4-5). In fact, this whole problem of whether God is being faithful to his covenant with Israel in the work of Christ is taken up in Romans 9-11, so that Romans 3:1-8 is just a brief detour to deflect the criticism until he gets to Romans 9.

In verses 5-8 the imaginary questioner now goes on to raise a new objection, but he is merely over simplifying and is narrow-minded. He argues that if human wickedness does God no harm, but actually highlights his justice, then God is unjust VV5 &7) St. Paul counters with another question that he uses to show that his opponent has no case, if it were unjust for God to punish men’s sins, how could he be the judge

of the entire human race? This argument carries a lot of weight with a Jew for according to the Old Testament, God will in fact judge all men. Finally St. Paul replies that if his questioner’s false reasoning is pushed to its logical conclusion one would need to do evil to achieve good. Anyone who says that is wrong. Certainly the arguer doesn’t understand.

3-8

St Paul’s adversaries accuse him of having spoken that evil has to be committed for good, taught is God’s taught and justice to be made manifest. This is a misrepresentation, which the Apostles vehemently reject. I figures out that they were marching to a completely different beat than the disciples. St. Paul was not saying that following evil ways makes way for a good end: that would make a huge blur on the difference between good and evil, and to argue that the end justifies the means. I feel that this is just even if oneself or other as how the evil one would trick, deceive and lie to gain our souls.

According to St. Augustine in Contra mendacium) it is stated that as Christians our moral teaching requires that one do right even if it means that oneself or others are hurt by action. The end does not justify the means and an action can only be fully good when all its elements are good. Therefore, no morally bad action may be done for any reason, even for an apparently good reason, or even with a supposedly good intention. If we act based on bad standards, it would mean undermining the laws

In today’s society many people have a tendency to justify their actions by appealing to circumstances, however as Catholics, The Magisterium of the Church has reminded us of our basic principles governing moral

behavior.” Pius XII in his Address stating that “God desires us always s to have above all, an upright intention, but that is not good enough. He also wants us to that the action be good as it is not permissible to do evil in order to achieve a good end” Site Example

Read Verse 9-18 these verses seem to be clear but a few points are obscure. St. Paul provides many quotes from Holy Scripture which: proves that the Jews are certainly blameworthy, even saying that they no longer have the grounds for personal congratulations, even though they still enjoy special privileges that God endowed upon their nation.

So Paul's answer so far is: Yes, Jews have advantages, like having the very Word of God entrusted to them. But if they are unbelieving they will be judged. This does not call into question God's faithfulness or truth or righteousness. Rather, the sin of those God judges (like David's sin) vindicates God in his judgment. The sin of Israel is the very thing that magnifies God's righteousness in judgment.

After a short intro in V 9 Paul goes on to describe the universal apostasy which the Psalmist already spoke about in V10 -12. He then list the sings against which the prophets spoke of. IS 5:8-25, Isa 59: 2-8 Jer 8:8, the sins of the word and of deeds. Finally he spells out the punishment that one who sins will face.

Read V 10-12 this shows us the sorry state of affairs resulting from original sin and from personal sin. In many different places in the OT we find examples of bitter complaint, man’s evil ways that have spread throughout the world. His every thought is evil (Gen: 5-7) What is most depressing is the Jewish people who abandon the true God and become idolaters. This doesn’t happen just once in the OT but from the

time of Noah-the only just man in a wicked world-up to the present day.

At the same time there have been true and faithful servants. So then what is to be made of Paul’s assentation that “none is righteous, not one?” These words do not apply to everyone. We do know that, in addition to the human nature of Jesus, the Blessed Virgin was exempted from the stain of sin, even venial sin. And before Christ there were just and devout men of God such as Noah, Abraham, Moses that received divine grace and were enabled to do good works by virtue of the future merits of Christ.

Read V12-18 God send his prophets to make the Israelites see that they have sinned and need to repents. St. Paul is doing the same thing here by using passages from the OT to stir the conscientious of his fellow Jews and to those who read this letter.

A person’s holiness and goodness does not lie in knowing about evil or adopting an attitude of optimism, forgetting that sin is the only really harmful thing to man and which needs to be countered in every step of the way. So when your heart becomes hardened and you make a pact with sin, all that one can do is act the way Christ did” sometimes in his preaching all seems very sad, because he is hurt by the evil men do. St Faustina wrote in her diary that he weeps when we do not call upon him for his divine mercy. Thus his anger comes from love.

V3:13 “Their throat is an open grace speaks to the fact that people speaks words which bring death and is a reflection of the filth and

corruption they carry within, for they ‘are like white-washed tombs, which outwardly seem to be beautiful, but within are full of dead man’s bones and all uncleanness. Mt 23:27-

V19-20 these verse act as a kind of summary about what has been said about the position of the Jew and Gentiles vis a vis the righteous of God.

Read 3:21-22 the doctrinal richness of theses 2 verses is a part of doctrinal richness evident in St. Paul’s style. He explains how justification works: God the Father, the source of all good, by his redemptive decree is the “efficient cause” of our salvation. Jesus Christ by shedding his blood on the cross, merits this salvation for us, faith is the instrument by which the redemption becomes effective in the individual person. The righteousness of God is the action by which God makes people righteous or just. (St. Augustine, De spiritu et littera. This righteous was originally proclaimed in the OT-the Law and the Prophets but now has made itself manifest in Christ and in the Gospels.

Salvation does not depend on fulfillment of the Mosaic Law, for the law is not sufficient to justify anyone; on faith in Christ can work salvation. If anyone says that, without divine grace thru J.C. man can be justified before God by his own works, whether they were done by are natural powers or the light of teaching of the law, let him be condemned Council of Trent De ustificatione)

It is not the law that saves but the faith in Jesus Christ. This expression should be interpreted in line with the unanimous and constant teaching of the Church, which is that faith is the beginning of human salvation”

In v23-26 St. Paul describes the elements that go to make up the mystery of Faith as stated in V23-25. All you need to be free from sin. God the Father has a special plan of redemption for us, which is carried out by the atoning and bloody sacrifice of Christ’s death; faith is a needed condition for sharing in the Redemption wroghty by Christ. The sacrifice of the crosss Is part and parcel of history of salvation; before the incarnation of the word, god patiently put up with men’s sins; in the fullness of time through Christ’s sacrifice to require full satisfaction for t