A Study by Scott Sperling   Romans 1:8-17 -  Paul’s Introductory Remarks   8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.  9  God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you  10  in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. 11  I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—  12  that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.  13  I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles. 14  I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.  15  That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome. 16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.  17   For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”   Having finished his expansive greeting to the Romans, Paul now gives some introductory remarks: “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world” (vs. 8).  Paul begins with thanks.  “It is good to begin everything with blessing God, to make that the alpha and omega of every song, in everything to give thanks” [Henry, 215].  True to Paul’s writing style, he is ever and always packing depth into even the simplest of statements.  For instance, here in his expression of thanks, Paul refers to the intimacy he has with the Creator (by saying “my God”).  He says “my God”, as if to say, “the God to whom I belong, whom I serve, and who stands to me in the relation of God, as father, friend, and source of all good” [Hodge, 24].  “The Apostle calls God ‘my God’ on account of God’s individualizing love towards each reconciled soul. Each such soul feels God to be his, as if He belonged to no other” [Liddon, 8].  “In all our thanksgiving, it is good for us to eye God as our God; that makes every mercy sweet, when we can say of God, He is mine in covenant” [Henry, 215].  “Paul calls God his God, indicating a lively and ardent feeling of love to Him, of confidence in Him, and of liberty of access, which includes a persuasion that his thanksgivings will be agreeable to God… It is, besides, an intimation of his own character, as walking in communion with God… Such language is the privilege of every believer to use, and he will do so in proportion as the love of God is shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost, which is given unto him” [Haldane, 36].  “Religion, for Paul, was an intensely personal relationship. God is not a ruling deity far removed from his people. The true believer views God as a close companion” [Mounce, 44]. In his brief expression of thanks, Paul also relays the importance of Jesus as a Mediator (by saying “through  Jesus Christ”).  “It is only through the mediating agency of Jesus Christ that thanksgiving or prayer can reach the Father” [Liddon, 8]. “It is through Christ, that grace to render thanks is given, and that the blessing has been bestowed for which we give thanks. Paul thanks God as conscious of Christ’s presence and mediation” [Robinson, 43].  “All our duties and performances are pleasing to God, only through Jesus Christ; praises as well as prayers” [Henry, 215]. Paul thanks God, “because your faith is being reported all over the world.”  Rome was the primary city of the western world, and the center of power and commerce.  Naturally, Paul would thank God that the Christian faith was gaining a foothold in such an important city.  Paul expresses the importance of the existence of a church in Rome, by speaking of how news of the church’s existence is being transmitted by Christians in their travels (the faith of the Romans “is being reported all over the world”).  “Thus the faith of the believers whom God had assembled at Rome was held up as an example; and the Apostle here declares, not only for their encouragement, but also to excite them more and more to the performance of their duty, that the eyes of all the servants of God throughout the world were upon them” [Haldane, 39]. Beyond the “thanks” given here for their faith, the Roman church was a frequent topic in Paul’s prayers: “God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you    in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you” (vss. 9-10).  Paul was clearly a man of prayer, praying not only for those near-and-dear to him, but also for those he had never met, such as the Romans.  For Paul, prayer was not an empty exercise, but a direct appeal to God who, as the Master of the Universe, is willing and able to respond to his prayers.  As James tells us: “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).  “Believing prayer the best way to remember those we love” [Robinson, 47].  “One of the greatest kindnesses we can do our friends, and sometimes the only kindness that is in the power of our hands, is by prayer to recommend them to the loving-kindness of God” [Henry, 215].  Through prayer, Paul demonstrated his true concern and interest in the success of the Roman church.  “The apostle knows that there is no more genuine proof of sincere affection than intercession; hence he puts his prayer for them first” [Godet, 141].  “We thus learn the duty of Christians to pray for one another, and that those who believe the Gospel are as much bound to pray for its success, and the prosperity of the churches, as to labour in the work. Both prayer and labour ought to go together” [Haldane, 40]. A common subject of his prayers, with regard to the Romans, was that “the way may be opened for me to come to you.”  Paul expands on that: “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—   that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.    I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles” (vss. 11-13). As the self- proclaimed apostle to the Gentiles, it is not surprising that Paul desired to visit the church in the primary city of the Gentiles of that time.  “Rome, the capital of such a mighty empire; Rome, to which all roads led, would naturally be a magnet for Paul. In his strategy for the universal outreach of the gospel, he must often have considered the importance of a strong Christian grouping there and the desirability of his linking up personally with it” [Dunn, 86].  “Feeling himself to be peculiarly the apostle to the Gentile world, and having already been the first agent in carrying the gospel into Europe (see Acts 16:9-10), and having established it there in important centers of population, he ever kept in view an eventual visit to the imperial city itself, in the hope of its thence permeating the whole western world” [Pulpit, 7]. Despite his personal desire to visit Rome, Paul feels himself to have been “prevented” from going there (see vs. 13), up to that point.  In fact, he “planned many times” to go there, but as of yet, the way was not “opened” for him to go there.  There are times when we have a plan and desire to do some specific work for God, and yet, the way is not “opened” for us to complete it.  We can get frustrated by this, but we must realize that God is in control, especially in matters related to serving Him.  Though we may be the master of our purposes, we are not the master of our circumstances [Stifler].  God is ultimately in charge of what we do, and where we go, and when we go, especially for His purposes. “God often in mercy frustrates the wicked counsels of malicious men. But not only so; he sometimes hinders his servants from carrying out designs good in their motives. It happened now and again to Paul that, wishing to visit some country or city on an errand of mercy his way was in that particular direction hedged up, and his steps were turned elsewhere… We are taught that all our plans, even those of special evangelistic services, should be formed with submission to the wisdom and the will of God.” [Pulpit, 19]. Paul states one of the reasons he desires to visit the church in Rome: “I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith” (vs. 11).  Paul uses a somewhat vague term here; he wants to impart “some spiritual gift.”  The reason for Paul’s vagueness may be that, having not visited them, he did not know exactly how best to minister to them.  “What gift Paul may want to share with the Romans cannot be specified until he sees what their needs may be. Whatever it is, its purpose will be to ‘strengthen’ their faith” [Moo, 60].  “Paul’s desire to preach Christ and benefit souls was a ruling passion” [Robinson, 49].  “Paul knew that there was in him by the grace of God, peculiar apostolic power, by both his presence and the ministry of the Word, to ‘impart a gift’ or spiritual blessing” [Newell, 9].  He says later: “I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ” (Rom. 15:29).  “Enriched with the gifts of God as he was, could the apostle help feeling the need of imparting some of them to a church so important as that of Rome?” [Godet, 144]. Paul then adds, “…that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith” (vs. 11).  Paul, as great as an Apostle though he was, knew that he himself benefited spiritually from others, even as he himself ministered to them.  He benefited from their prayers, from their edifying statements, from their kind hospitality, and even just from seeing their positive response to his own message. There is a natural quid pro quo that results from ministering to others, and imparting to them spiritual truths.  Such work cannot help but be rewarded, by way of the imparter also receiving spiritual encouragement in seeing the effects of his work. Thus, Paul and the Romans would be “mutually encouraged.”  Seeing positive results from one’s evangelism and Godly works is an encouragement to one’s faith, and an impetus for future evangelistic works. Paul further states that he wants to visit the Romans “in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles” (vs. 13).  “By harvest we must understand a spiritual result of apostolical toil; the Apostle thinks of himself as a husbandman (see I Cor. 3:7), who sows the seed of the Faith in the soil of human hearts, or in the great field of Heathendom. Individual souls reconciled to God in Christ are the Apostle’s harvest,—a harvest gathered in for Christ, yet also for himself, since he has no other object than Christ’s glory” [Liddon, 12].  “‘Harvest’ refers to the product of his apostolic labors (cf. Phil. 1:22), including here probably both an increase in the number of Christians through evangelization among the Romans and a strengthening of the faith of the Roman Christians themselves” [Moo, 61].  Paul hoped that the “harvest” would be “just as I have had among the other Gentiles.”  “He had travelled through a great part of Syria, of Asia, and of Greece, and everywhere he had either been the means of converting sinners or edifying believers. This was a source of much joy to him; but after so many labors, he did not wish for repose. He desired to go to Rome to obtain fruit there also” [Haldane, 42]. Paul viewed his labor for Christ as a debt, or an obligation: “I am obligated both to Greeks and non- Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.   That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome” (vs. 14-15).  The phrase “I am obligated”  is literally I am a debtor, in the original Greek [UBS].  This is an appropriate way to look at service to God.  We naturally look at service to God as some sort of favor that we are doing for God (as if He needs us).  In truth, we who are saved by the grace of God, and the sacrifice of Christ, are greatly in God’s debt to carry out the work of God, which He has prepared for us to do (see Eph. 2:10).  “Paul was their debtor, not by any right that either Greeks or [non-Greeks] had acquired over him, but by the destination which God had given to his ministry towards them…  All this is similar to what every Christian owes in the service of God, as far as his abilities, of whatever kind they are, and his opportunities, extend” [Haldane, 43]. “The obligation thus felt and owned by the Apostle, rested on three grounds:—on the great fundamental law of Christian benevolence and justice—‘whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them’ (Matt. 7:12). On the claim possessed by his God and Saviour on his personal gratitude, by which he was so imperatively bound to seek the advancement of His glory;—and on the official responsibility of special commission, according to which ‘woe was unto him if he preached not the gospel’ (I Cor. 9:16)” [Wardlaw, 89].  “So was Paul bound by the love Christ had showed him, by the commission he held, by the revelations he had received and by the law of love to perishing men to do all he could for all classes of men, however esteemed or denominated” [Plumer, 49].  And how does Paul discharge this debt?  “By carrying to them that gospel which he had received. That gospel, or the gift which that gospel reveals, has enriched himself infinitely.  He takes these riches to others; and so he endeavours to pay his debt to God by enriching the world” [Bonar, 187]. Paul enumerates those to whom he is a debtor:  “…both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome” (vs. 14).  I disagree with this translation.  It is a bit clumsy, and also a bit misleading.  Its clumsiness comes from the wording, which in English (to me, that is), sounds like Paul is calling the Romans foolish:  “…both to the wise and the foolish. That is why…”  In verse 15, Paul is referring to all four categories (“Greeks/non-Greeks; wise/unwise”) as applying to those in Rome.  The translation is misleading in the use of the word “foolish”.  I think this word would have been better translated “uneducated”, or “unwise”, or even “ignorant.”  Paul uses the term “wise” to refer to those who were educated in Greek philosophy and culture.  Thus, the antithesis of “wise” for Paul, is uneducated, or ignorant.  “The two terms [translated “wise” and “foolish”], do not refer to innate intellectual capacities, but rather to degrees of learning” [UBS].  Paul, in using the four terms—“Greeks”, “non- Greeks” (literally “barbarians”), “wise”, and unwise—is describing all inhabitants of Rome in a way that the Romans themselves classified people.  “Before the Apostle’s day, Greek culture had become prevalent at Rome; and the Romans associated themselves with the Hellenes, in opposition to the barbarians” [Liddon, 12].  “To the Jew the whole world was divided into Jews and Greeks, religious prerogative being taken as the line of demarcation. To the Greek and the Roman, the world was similarly divided into Greeks and Barbarians, civilization and culture being now the criterion of distinction” [Lightfoot in Newell, 11].  “Greeks were those that spoke the Greek language and had the Greek culture, which had covered Alexander’s world-wide empire; and in which culture the Romans themselves gloried. ‘Barbarians’ were those not knowing Greek, and thus ‘uncultured’” [Newell, 11].  And so, by saying “Greeks”/ “non-Greeks” / “wise” / unwise, Paul is not speaking of nationality (by saying “Greek”), but rather of degree of culture and sophistication.  He is, in effect, making these classifications of people:  cultured / uncultured / educated / uneducated.  All this is to say that Paul felt himself driven and obligated to preach the gospel to everyone, no matter what their level of education or sophistication may be.  He would not be intimidated by the erudite nor intellectual.  The gospel can stand its ground against anybody.  So too now, we should not be intimidated by any level of education, sophistication or intellectualism, as we preach the gospel, or speak God’s truths. “The gospel has a claim upon the ignorant and poor because of its simplicity and its comforts. But it has just as strong a claim upon men of giant intellect and vigorous understanding, [because of everyone’s need for salvation]… Paul knew no difference of nation or of language, of creed or class, so far as the need of the gospel and the power of it were concerned. His message was that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and he knew that he would find sinners everywhere” [Pulpit, 26].  “Ministers and Christians are bound to do good to all classes of men. They have no right to except any. Differences in nation, in origin, in politics, in social ideas, can never release us from the obligation to convey to men a knowledge of God's greatest blessing to man—a pure gospel…  All men need the gospel. It suits the wants of all. We are commanded to preach it to every creature. Some slight the poor. Some avoid the rich. Some neglect the ignorant. Some are afraid of the learned. Some are offended with splendor. Some are driven away by squalid wretchedness. But in all these cases we err” [Plumer, 59].  “Yes, a Christian is debtor to the world, not to his family only, or his nation, but to the whole world. Let this thought dwell in us, and work in us; expanding and enlarging us; elevating our vision; throwing back our horizon, delivering us from all narrowheartedness on the one hand, and all false liberality on the other” [Bonar, 186].  “It is to Greek and Jew, wise and unwise; men of all nations; the whole fallen world, that he feels himself a debtor. He seems to stand on some high eminence, and looking round on all kingdoms, and nations, and tongues, with all their uncounted millions, he says, ‘To all these I am debtor, and I must pay the debt’” [Bonar, 185]. And the city of Rome had plenty of all of these categories of peoples, and thus, Paul looked at Rome as a fertile land, ready to be harvested to the glory of God:  “That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome” (vs. 15).  “Talk of your brave men, your great men, O world! Where in all history can you find one like Paul. Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon, marched with the protection of their armies to enforce their will upon men. Paul was eager to march with Christ alone to the center of this world’s greatness entrenched under Satan, with ‘the Word of the cross’” [Newell, 12]. In preaching the gospel, Paul is not intimidated by anybody, especially not the wise of the world, the intellectuals and the cultured: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes:  first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (vs. 16).  This statement, that Paul is not “ashamed of the gospel”, of course, greatly convicts us, who are so slow to speak of the magnificent gift of the sacrifice of Christ and the salvation that it brings. “It is incontestable proof of the deep depravity of man that he should be ashamed of the most glorious things—the gospel and the Saviour” [Plumer, 59].  “Paul is not afraid of the threats of the world; he does not avoid the offence of the Jews; nor is he ashamed in view of the contempt of the Greeks and of the wise men. And this is not only expressive of his real joy in general, but of his Christian enthusiasm, by which he could glory in the cross of Christ (see Rom. 5:2; Gal. 6:14)” [Lange’s, 73].  “There is many a man who would march up to the cannon’s mouth for the honour of his country—yet would not face the laugh of his companions for the honour of his Saviour” [Chalmers, 22]. “There were some places in which the apostle might have been specially tempted to be ashamed of the gospel, or afraid of preaching it. At Jerusalem, for there the whole strength of Jewish ritualism rose against it; at Athens, for there it was confronted by the power of Grecian wisdom; at Ephesus, for there the dazzling subtleties of heathen magic rose against it; at Corinth, for there the torrent of human lust and pleasure rushed against it; at Rome, for there was the concentrated energy of earthly idolatry. Yet none of these things moved him. He was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, though all that was intellectual, and eloquent, and sensual, and refined, and powerful in humanity protested against it, or mocked it as folly… But why was the apostle not ashamed of it? Had it been the feeble, childish thing which men said it was, he would have been ashamed of it. But it was not so. It was mighty; mightier than philosophy, or argument, or eloquence. It was power” [Bonar, 190-191]. “How sad the contrast between the false shame of Christians and the boldness and shamelessness of the world” [Lange’s, 78].  “Who would be ashamed of medicine when he is sick? Or of light when he is blind, and would like to see? Woe to those who are ashamed of the words and office of Christ!” [Hedinger, in Lange’s, 77]. The word used here—“ashamed”—is the same that Jesus used:  “Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels” (Luke 9:26-27).  So we see here, the danger in being “ashamed of the gospel.”  It is a sin worth pleading forgiveness for.  As for Paul, he gives the reason that he is not ashamed of the gospel:  “…because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes…” (vs. 16).  The “gospel” is the revelation of God through Christ, the good news of our redemption through faith in the finished work of the sacrifice of Christ for our sin, and the good news of our future glory through Christ.  As such, the gospel is “power”—more than that—it is the “power of God.”  We think of God’s power in connection with His work of Creation, and with His work of sustaining the Creation.  The gospel is, every bit as that, a display of God’s power.  Through the gospel, the dark forces of sin, which are at work in the world, are nullified.  Through the gospel, billions of sinners, who have ruined their lives through sin, and cast themselves onto the path of destruction, are lifted up, redeemed, and elevated “from sin to righteousness, from death to life, from hell to heaven, from the kingdom of the devil to the kingdom of God,” and given eternal salvation [Martin Luther, cited in Lange’s, 77].   “This Gospel is not only powerful, but all  powerful. There is no man, however degraded, guilty, depraved, and miserable, that it cannot save” [Brown, 7].   “It is the highest manifestation of the power of God—the highest manifestation of the compassionate love and grace of God” [Lange’s, 73].  Given the magnificence of this power of God, it is no wonder that Paul was ready and willing to confront the so-called power of Rome. The gospel, in its power, “brings salvation” (vs. 16).  This salvation comes from faith that Jesus died for our sins, and in doing so, paid the price of our sins so that we may clothed with Him on the day of judgment, and enter into the glories of heaven.  This is the “salvation”  that the gospel brings.  “The object of the Gospel is salvation—the salvation of men; their deliverance from the state of degradation, danger, and misery, into which sin has brought them; their deliverance from guilt or condemnation, from ignorance and error, from depravity and suffering in all their forms—complete everlasting deliverance from all these” [Brown, 7].  “The salvation here meant is not social or political, but that eternal salvation which was always associated with the promise of a Messiah… Thus salvation includes the whole of Christ’s redemptive work in the soul of man, which begins in justification and sanctification here, and is completed in endless happiness hereafter” [Liddon, 14].  “When man is truly delivered, he is always delivered from the depths of hell, and raised to the heights of heaven; because he is saved from the condemnation of his conscience, and from the judgment of wrath, and is made a participant of salvation through the righteousness of faith which leads to righteousness of life.” [Lange’s, 73].  This salvation is for “everyone who believes” (vs. 16).  “The excellence of the true doctrine of faith is its simplicity and equal adaptation to all nations and classes of men” [Plumer, 60].  This salvation is for everyone “without any distinction of age, sex, or condition—of birth or of country,—without excepting anyone, provided he be a believer in Christ” [Haldane, 47].  “This gospel is wide as the world. It embraces all kindreds, and nations, and tongues. It goes first to the Jew; it begins at Jerusalem; but it does not end there. It goes round the earth; it takes in all men, the Greek as well as the Jew, barbarian, Scythian, bond and free. To every man this mighty gospel comes and says, ‘Believe and be saved’” [Bonar, 192]. This salvation is for everyone who “believes.”  It comes through faith that Jesus, through His sacrifice, paid for our sins.  Through this faith, and only through this faith, we stand before God clothed in the righteousness of Christ.  “This power of God unto salvation is applied through faith, without which God will neither justify nor save any man, because it is the appointed means of His people’s union with Jesus Christ” [Haldane, 47]. Paul mentions that this salvation was offered “first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”  One of the themes of Paul’s Epistle to the Romans is that, even before Christ’s sacrifice, righteousness was available “by faith”, anticipating Christ’s sacrifice.  In chapter 4 of Romans, Paul speaks in detail about how Abraham’s “righteousness” came by faith, citing the book of Genesis:  “Abraham believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:6).  The righteousness in the Old Testament that came “by faith”, was faith that God would provide a way of righteousness for those who believe.  So, the Old Testament faith anticipates Christ’s sacrifice.  The righteousness that came by faith to Old Testament believers, came through belief that forgiveness could be attained through the Temple worship and sacrifices.  As we learn in the Book of Hebrews, these sacrifices were shadows that prefigured Jesus’ sacrifice; they were an imperfect means of salvation that pointed ahead to the perfect means of salvation that comes through Jesus’ sacrifice.  In this way, the “salvation”  for everyone who “believes” was available “first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”  “From the days of Abraham, their great progenitor, the Jews had been highly distinguished from all the rest of the world by their many and great privileges. It was their high distinction that of them Christ came, ‘who is over all, God blessed forever.’… While, therefore, the evangelical covenant, and consequently justification and salvation, equally regarded all believers, the Jews held the first rank, as the ancient people of God, while the other nations were strangers from the covenants of promise. The preaching of the Gospel was to be addressed to them first, and, at the beginning, to them alone (see Matt. 10:6); for, during the abode of Jesus Christ upon earth, He was the minister only of the circumcision (Rom. 15:8).  ‘I am not sent,’ He says, ‘but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel’ (Matt. 15:24)” [Haldane, 48].  “Salvation, as our Saviour said to the woman of Samaria, is of the Jews. Of them the Messiah came, to them the gospel was first preached, and by them preached to the Gentiles” [Hodge, 30].  “This does not mean that every Jew must be evangelized before the gospel can be presented to Gentiles. But it does mean that God, after having dealt in a special way with the Jew in Old Testament days and having followed this by sending his Son to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, could not pass by this people. To them was given the first opportunity to receive the Lord Jesus, both during his ministry (see John 1:11) and in the Christian era (see Acts 1:8; 3:26). Paul himself followed this pattern (see Acts 13:45-46; 28:25-28)” [Harrison].  “It would be false to say that salvation is intended for the Jews in preference to the Greeks. Paul has in view the right of priority in time  which belonged to Israel as the result of its whole history…  This right of priority rested on the destination of Israel to become itself the apostle of the Gentiles in the midst of whom they lived. It was for Jewish believers to convert the world” [Godet, 153].  And indeed, historically we see the Christian church built up “first to the Jew, then to the Gentile”:  the apostles were all Jewish men, and they brought the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul next expands on the concept of “salvation” of “everyone who believes” by making clear that “righteousness” in God’s eyes comes through “faith”:  “For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” (vs. 17).  Righteousness, simply stated, is the character attribute required by men to be acceptable to God.  Through the “gospel”—the good news that Jesus died for our sins—a means to “righteousness” is “revealed”.  This “righteousness” is available to everyone who believes that Christ died for our sins.  As Paul says, this is “the righteousness of God”—it is the one and only means provided to sinful man to become “righteous” before God, and to enter into His salvation. Because God Himself is perfectly righteous, He could “have come forth in righteousness and smitten with doom the whole Adamic race” [Newell, 17].  But in His love, He chose to provide a means where sinful man could meet His standard of “righteousness” through “faith” in Christ.  This is the “power” of the Gospel:  It overcomes God’s wrath.  There are “two ways of becoming righteous before God: — 1. Our own perfect obedience; 2. Faith, which receives the obedience of another. The first gives a legal, the second an evangelical righteousness. The first is now found nowhere among men; the second is found only in Christ.” [Robinson, 72]. “The grand object of the Apostle is to show that man, having lost his own righteousness, and thereby fallen under condemnation, God has provided for him a righteousness—the complete fulfilment of the law in all its threatenings and all its precepts—by which, being placed to his account through faith, he is acquitted from guilt, freed from condemnation, and entitled to the reward of eternal life” [Haldane, 49].  “This implies a righteousness impartable as well as imputable, or sanctifying as well as justifying—a righteousness inherent in God, and manifested in Christ, which, by a living union with Christ, is to become the personal property and higher nature of the believer, so that, at the final judgment, no trace of unrighteousness will remain” [Schaff, in Lange’s, 75]. The “righteousness” we receive comes through forgiveness of sins, just as Jesus said on the cross:  “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).  “What this means is that when a man makes a great change such as that which the first Christians made when they embraced Christianity, he is allowed to start on his career with a clean record; his sin-stained past is not reckoned against him. The change is the great thing; it is that at which God looks. As with the Prodigal Son in the parable the breakdown of his pride and rebellion in the one cry, ‘Father, I have sinned’ is enough. The father does not wait to be gracious. He does not put him upon a long term of probation, but reinstates him at once in the full privilege of sonship…  When the process of Justification is thus reduced to its simplest elements we see that there is after all nothing so very strange about it. It is simply Forgiveness, Free Forgiveness. The Parable of the Prodigal Son is a picture of it which is complete on two of its sides, as an expression of the attitude of mind required in the sinner, and of the reception accorded to him by God” [Sanday-Headlam, 36].  As we see from the parable of the Prodigal Son, this view of complete, unmerited forgiveness was taught by Jesus, the general statement of which is found in John 3:16:  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).  So, Paul is spelling out in doctrinal form what Jesus taught by way of discourses and parables. Paul states that, in the gospel, the righteousness of God is “revealed”.  The prophet Isaiah prophesied this revelation of God’s righteousness:  “Maintain justice and do what is right,  for my salvation is close at hand and my righteousness will soon be revealed” (Isa. 56:1).  Though it was prophesied in the Old Testament, the “righteousness of God” which is available to us is “revealed” in the gospel, as we come to understand the work of Christ. The NIV translation states that the righteousness “is by faith from first to last”.  I dislike this translation, because it adds an interpretation of the simpler statement that Paul writes and, in doing so (in my opinion), unnecessarily limits what Paul is saying.  A more accurate translation is found in nearly every other major version of the Bible. Paul simply states that the righteousness of God is “from faith to faith” (KJV, NKJV, NASB, NET Bible, ESV).  This is a literal translation of what Paul wrote.  The NIV limits the interpretation of this passage to mean “faith from first to last”, but there is in no way consensus among scholars that that is what Paul is saying.  In fact, in most commentaries on this Epistle, there are many words written about what exactly “from faith to faith” means.  The phrase, “from faith to faith,” “has been the subject of endless discussion. Many of the Fathers explained the double reference as meaning that God’s righteousness was ‘from the faith in the law to the faith in the gospel.’ Augustine gave several explanations, among them that Paul wished to include both the faith of the preacher and the faith of the hearer. Calvin and others see a reference to the growth of faith in the individual, enabling the Christian to appreciate and enjoy more and more the righteousness of God. Barth argues that the first ‘faith’ refers to God’s faithfulness, and the second the faith of the individual person. Some commentators compare Rom. 3:22, concluding that Paul wants to stress both that righteousness is received by faith and is for all who believe, or (on another reading of Rom. 3:22) that Paul attributes our righteousness both to Christ’s faithfulness (‘on the basis of faith’) and to our own believing. Others find a thrust against Judaism: righteousness is both received by faith and has faith, not works, as its goal. Probably, however, in light of the only clear NT parallel to the construction, the combination is rhetorical and is intended to emphasize that faith and ‘nothing but faith’ can put us into right relationship with God.” [Moo, 76].  “The idea of faith appears here in accordance with the comprehensive idea of righteousness, and therefore as a hearty, trustful self- surrender (to rest and lean upon), which includes both knowledge and belief, assent and surrender, appropriation and application” [Lange’s, 76].  “The phrase, from faith to faith, expresses pure faith… Faith, says Paul, continues to be faith; faith is all in all” [Bengal, 16].  The phrase “from faith to faith”  “indicates—1. The exclusiveness of faith as the means of obtaining it. Faith all in all in a believer’s justification. Works not in the account. Not from faith to works, but from faith to faith (see Rom. 3:22,28). The doctrine of justification by faith is thus emphatically noted. 2. The growth of faith. From one degree of faith to another. Advance made in the clearness, simplicity, and strength of faith. 3. The many-sidedness of faith. From one kind of faith to another. From faith which saves, to faith for still further blessings. From faith which justifies, to faith which sanctifies. From a faith of the intellect, to a faith of the heart” [Robinson, 71].  “From the faith of dependence upon God, and dealing with him immediately, as Adam before the fall, to the faith of dependence upon a Mediator, and so dealing with God; so others. From the first faith, by which we are put into a justified state, to after faith, by which we live, and are continued in that state… There is faith justifying us; life by faith; there is faith maintaining us; and so there is a righteousness from faith to faith: Faith is all in all, both in the beginning and progress of a Christian life. It is not from faith to works, as if faith put us into a justified status, and then works preserved and maintained us in it: but it is all along from faith to faith. As II Cor. 3:18 said ‘from glory to glory’: It is increasing, continuing, persevering faith; faith pressing forward, and getting ground of unbelief” [Henry, 216]. I believe that Paul, at times, is purposely vague.  His vagueness in this case encourages us to meditate on the vast, multifarious, multi-dimensional connection between “faith” and righteousness.  Any or all of the interpretations of this phrase mentioned above could be valid, and by being forced to ponder this phrase, we are better for it, and we have a deeper understanding of “faith’s” connection to “righteousness” through the gospel. Paul ends his thought here by citing an Old Testament verse:  “…just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith’” (vs. 17).  It is a major theme in the Epistle to the Romans that the connection between “faith” and “righteousness” is an Old Testament concept, whose exact meaning is made clear through the gospel.  So Paul here is introducing that theme by citing Habakkuk 2:4.  “The Old Testament is the Word of God, and is the foundation of the New” [Robinson, 71].  The actual full passage in the book of Habakkuk, from verses 2 through 20, has the Lord Himself speaking most immediately about the deliverance (i.e., salvation) of the Israelites from the Babylonian captivity, but the passage itself hints that there is a deeper meaning which will be revealed later. The Lord says in verses 2 and 3:  “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.  For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false” (Hab. 2:2-3).  The Lord goes on:  “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith” (Hab. 2:4, ESV).  “The passage itself is quoted from the prophecies of Habakkuk, and is generally supposed to relate, in its primary sense, to the deliverance from the Babylonish captivity, which was a type of the deliverance obtained by the Gospel. Through faith in the Divine promises the first was obtained, and the second in like manner is obtained through faith. But in whatever sense the Prophet used these words, the Apostle, speaking by the same Spirit, assigns to them their just and legitimate extension. They are true in respect to an earthly and temporal deliverance, and are equally true in respect to a spiritual deliverance… The great temptation [in interpreting this passage] is the fact that such prophecies generally, as they lie in the Old Testament, are obviously applied to temporal events, whereas, in the New, they are applied to the affairs of Christ and His kingdom. But this is a difficulty to none who understand the nature of the Old Testament dispensation… Not only the ceremonies, but the personages, facts, and whole history of the Jewish people, have a letter and a spirit, without the knowledge of which they cannot be understood either in their true sense, or in a sense at all worthy of God. That the Old Testament predictions, then, should primarily refer to temporal events in the Jewish history, and in a secondary but more important view, to the Messiah and the Gospel, is quite in accordance with what is taught us everywhere by the New Testament.  Instead of creating a difficulty, this peculiarity is entirely consistent with the prominent features of Christianity, and calls for fresh admiration of the Divine wisdom. It is one of those characteristics which prove the Bible to be God's own book” [Haldane, 50-51]. This simple citation—“The righteous will live by faith”—can be seen as a summary of the whole gospel message.  Throughout history, this simple statement has been remarkably influential.  Both Augustine and Martin Luther changed their whole philosophies and outlooks on life because of this verse.  As such, this single verse was a catalyst that brought about the Protestant Reformation, and changed the course of both religious and secular world history.  The historian Merle d’Aubigne wrote of the effect that these words had on Martin Luther:  “It was especially in meditating upon [the Epistle to the Romans] that the light of truth entered [Martin Luther’s] heart. In the retirement of his tranquil cell, he devoted whole hours to the study of the divine word, with St. Paul's Epistle open before him. One day having proceeded as far as the 17th verse of the first chapter, he there read this passage of the prophet Habakkuk: ‘The just shall live by faith.’  The precept strikes him. There is then for the just another life than that possessed by the rest of men; and this life is the fruit of faith. This word, which he receives into his heart as if God himself had planted it there, discloses to him the mystery of the Christian life, and increases that life in his soul. In the midst of his struggles in after life, the words often recurred to him, ‘The just shall live by faith.’” [Merle d’Aubigne, History of the Great Reformation, vol. I, pg. 160].  True to the typical depth of Paul’s writings, there is a bit of an ambiguity in the use of the word “live” in the statement, “The righteous will live by faith”.  “Live” can refer to eternal life of salvation, or “live” can refer to existence in everyday life.  I think this is a purposeful ambiguity, and that both senses are true:  1. The righteous will gain eternal life “by faith”; 2. The righteous will carry out their day-to-day lives continually walking “by faith.”  “The salvation Paul spoke of is more than forgiveness of sin. It includes the full scope of deliverance from the results of Adam’s sin. It involves justification (being set right with God), sanctification (growth in holiness), and glorification (the ultimate transformation into the likeness of Christ; cf. 1 John 3:2)” [Mounce, 49].  As mentioned above, in the parable of the Prodigal Son, and in the teaching of John 3:16, we learn of the initial stage of the Christian faith, the entrance to the life of righteousness lived by faith.  Paul in this great Epistle to the Romans, continues on from there, and describes the life of faith in day-to-day living, including our mystical union with the risen Christ in our spirit, while all the while we continue to battle with the desires of the flesh (see ch. 6), with all its struggles and pitfalls (see ch. 7), until the life of faith ends in final glory (see ch. 8) [from Sanday-Headlam, 37]. We have mentioned that “faith” entails believing that Jesus Christ, through His sacrifice, paid the price for our sins.  Through “faith” in this gift of “righteousness” from God, we shall “live”, in the first sense mentioned above, that is, have eternal life.  But for Paul, this same “faith” has manifestations in the second meaning of “live” mentioned above, that is, our day-to-day existence.  How so?  “Here let it be noted that such faith is not, in Paul’s mind, a bare holding of either the Atoning Work of Christ or any other truths of revelation for true: it is a loving and soul-constraining self-surrender to them, so that they are grasped by the moral no less than by the intellectual  man… With Paul, justifying faith is always practically  inseparable from hope and love…  It may be parted from them in our ideas; but it is bound up with them in the living fact… Paul says that if he had all faith so that he could remove mountains, and had not charity, he is nothing.” [Liddon, 20].  One could go on, and on, dissecting and studying these two verses, vss. 16-17.  The Epistle to the Romans, in the next dozen or so chapters, can be seen as Paul expanding on what he has said in these two verses.  In effect, in these two brief verses, Paul has basically jam-packed the whole of the Christian religion.  They contain the basic theme of the entire Bible, and even life itself. 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