Knowable Word

Helping ordinary people learn to study the Bible

Copyright © 2012–2025 DiscipleMakers, except guest articles (copyright author). Used by permission.

You are here: Home / Archives for Romans

Context Matters: Romans 8

By

Romans 8 is one of the most beloved chapters of the New Testament, with many staggering promises and assurances for the people of God. But could it be that some of them tend to take on meanings Paul didn’t intend, when we cite them out of context?

Joshua Greever tackles 3 such verses from the chapter, employing the context of Paul’s argument to explain some familiar verses and phrases:

  • What does it mean to be “led by the Spirit” in Rom 8:14?
  • What is the “good” that “all things work together for” in Rom 8:28?
  • In what way are those loved by God “more than conquerors” (Rom 8:37), and in what way can no-one be “against us” (Rom 8:31)?

Greever’s work on these texts is worth considering and modeling how to answer such interpretive questions from a close examination of the train of thought.

Check it out!

Love as One United Body in Christ

By

Chichi Onyekanne (2019), public domain

When I think of Bible chapters with long lists of commands, Romans 12 is one of the first that comes to mind. Once Paul gets to verse 9, it’s one imperative after another in a relentless stream that lasts until the end of the chapter.

As students of the Bible, we must not despair or turn away from understanding and applying passages like these. In a previous post, I suggested that we must connect lists of commands to the main point of the passage. I gave one example from 1 Peter 4, and in this post I’ll provide another test case in Romans 12:9–21.

The Context of the Book of Romans

The first eleven chapters of Romans make up Paul’s longest and most robust explanation of the doctrine of justification by faith. This is the glorious gospel which has captured Paul’s heart.

These chapters represent some of Paul’s most debated and contested writings, but Paul does not see them as dry and academic. He ends this first, lengthy portion of his letter to the Romans with a doxology.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
  “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
  or who has been his counselor?”
  “Or who has given a gift to him
  that he might be repaid?”
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:33–36)

Chapters 12–16 of Romans is Paul’s application of these doctrines to a specific church at a specific time. This is a pattern we observe in many of Paul’s letters, where the first portion is theological truths and the second portion is his effort to help people live out these truths.

Locating the Main Point

Scholars seem unsure about whether Romans 12:1–2 is a summary/introduction to chapter 12 or to the rest of the letter (chapters 12–16). In either case, these verses are critical for understanding the main point of Romans 12:1–21, which I believe is the larger context for Romans 12:9–21.

As always, the structure of a passage is key to finding the main point. While Romans 12:3–8 is a classic passage on spiritual gifts, reading it in context helps us determine Paul’s larger goal. The explicit teaching on spiritual gifts is found in Romans 12:6–8; this flows out of Paul’s instruction that the Christians in Rome should not think of themselves too highly because they are “one body in Christ, and individually members one of another” (Romans 12:5).

Notice that there is no transition between topics as Paul moves from verse 8 to verse 9. The easiest explanation is that the use of spiritual gifts was the first topic covered in the teaching about unity in Christ, and Romans 12:9–13 gives us the second topic. We can sum up this second topic using a command from verse 10: “Love one another with brotherly affection.”

Finally, Romans 12:14–21 is not a disconnected screed against revenge. This paragraph is still about the love that a united body should be demonstrating. “Live in harmony with one another” (Romans 12:16) is a better summary of this final paragraph.

I take the main point of Romans 12:3–21, therefore, to be something like this: Love each other as a united body in Christ.

Commands Help Us Apply the Main Point

The commands in Romans 12:9–21 pile up quickly. I count 13 commands in first five verses (Romans 12:9–13) and 17 commands in the final eight verses (Romans 12:14–21). We will be buried by these commands if we don’t read and apply them in light of the main point.

However, the connection between this list of commands and the main point of the passage also works in the other direction. These commands help us to understand and apply the main point of the passage!

Let’s take one sentence as an example: “Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9). We shouldn’t meditate on that command in a vacuum but in light of the main point. This means that I must not only abhor evil in the abstract, but I must abhor any evil that affects the body of Christ (including the evil within me). I need to love my brothers and sisters enough to help them abhor the evil that might poison our unity and to hold fast to what is good for our body instead.

In the other direction, hating what is evil and holding fast to what is good are part of the way we understand exercising love as a united body.

Conclusion

We’re never meant to apply Biblical commands extracted from their context. (This is true even for the Ten Commandments!) This makes it all the more important to fight for the main point of a passage as we work to be faithful hearers and doers of God’s word.

Hop Aboard the Train of Thought

By

When I write an article, I want to make a point. To make that point stick, I follow a series of steps. First, I try to capture your attention with the first sentence or two. Second, I introduce my thesis early. Third, I explain the thesis and apply it. Finally, I land the article with a strong sense of arrival (or liftoff, if I want to inspire you with a certain Bible study practice). Along the way, I pepper my writing with salty metaphors, everyday illustrations—like the time I explained how Bible study was like teeball—and clear conclusions. Therefore, I have something to say, and I want to set you up to hear it.

Nonfiction works this way: An author has something to say, but that author must bring the readers along for the ride. From the beginning of the work to the end, a journey of discovery unfolds. We call this journey the author’s train of thought.

The Bible works similarly, and our Bible study hits pay dirt when we hop aboard the author’s train of thought.

Why it Matters

Leon Rice-Whetton (2009), Creative Commons

Leon Rice-Whetton (2009), Creative Commons

The author’s train of thought outlines his main ideas. And his main ideas are, well, his main ideas. If you’d like to grow at fighting for the main point and reading passages in context, you’ll want to grow your ability to follow a train of thought. The tracks have been laid. Will you walk along them?

Example #1: Romans 4

Look at how Paul’s argument unfolds, and hop aboard for the ride:

  • Rom 4:1: What did Abraham gain in this matter [How did he get the righteousness of God (Rom 3:21)?]?
  • Rom 4:2-8: He didn’t get it by works.
  • Rom 4:9-12: He didn’t get it through circumcision.
  • Rom 4:13-15: He didn’t get it by law.
  • Rom 4:16-17: Therefore, he got it by faith!
  • Rom 4:18-22: Abraham’s faith = despite outward circumstances, being fully convinced God is able to do what he promises.
  • Rom 4:23-25: Our faith works the same way (believing God’s promise despite our circumstances) and achieves the same result (the righteousness of God).

What’s at stake for Paul in this chapter? How Jews can be made right with God. How it’s always been this way for them. How it’s no different now for non-Jews.

Looking at the immediate context, we see that Paul addresses key questions asked by the Jewish members of his Roman audience.

  • What about good works? (Rom 3:27-28)
  • What about circumcision? (Rom 3:29-30)
  • What about the law? (Rom 3:31)

And for Jew and Gentile alike, God’s righteousness remains available—not through good deeds, religious rituals, or law-keeping, but by believing him who raised Jesus from the dead (Rom 4:24).

Example #2: Hebrews 1-5

Hebrews hits us between the eyes with its train of thought. I can think of no other book that announces each point this clearly before explaining it. The announcements come as transitions from one major section to the next.

  1. Big idea: God has spoken by his Son who sat down (Heb 1:1-4).
  2. First point: Jesus became “as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs” (Heb 1:4).
    • Jesus’ more excellent name (Heb 1:5-14)
    • Jesus’ superiority to angels (Heb 2:5-18)
  3. Second point: Jesus had to “become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God” (Heb 2:17-18).
    • Jesus the faithful high priest (Heb 3:1-4:14).
    • Jesus the merciful high priest (Heb 4:15-5:10).

The rest of the book continues in the same way, announcing the points before explaining them. The author scatters sections of application between major points. The main idea comes alive with each point: Jesus accomplished the work of salvation God sent for him to do. Therefore, he is “more” and “better” than the things God used to communicate salvation in the Old Testament. Hop aboard the train of thought when you study Hebrews, and you’ll find buckets of gold at the end of each rainbow.

Example #3: Job 4-5

It works for poetry as well. Look at the first speech given by one of Job’s friends, and track the thinking stanza by stanza.

  1. Can I remind you of where your confidence should be (Job 4:1-6)?
  2. You are guilty (Job 4:7-11).
  3. You are mortal (Job 4:12-21).
  4. You’re a fool (Job 5:1-7).
  5. Seek your confidence not in yourself, but in God (Job 5:8-16).
  6. Accept the Almighty’s discipline (Job 5:17-27).

Think about how Eliphaz moves from one thought to the next, and we can discover his underlying point: “Hardship is always a sign of God’s corrective discipline; therefore, Job, you’re despising God’s redemptive work in your life.” Of course, the larger context of Job makes it clear that Eliphaz is wrong (Job 42:7-8). But that doesn’t stop Paul from turning Eliphaz upside down to see if he can shake some treasure out of his pockets (1 Cor 3:18-19).

Conclusion

Of course, some passages won’t have much train of thought (think Proverbs 10-29). And narratives look a little different. But don’t miss this train, or your Bible study might not get where you’d like it to go.

Why We Apply the Bible

By

Answering this question—why should we apply the Bible?—is almost like explaining why lovers should kiss or why children should open birthday presents. Good things delight the soul, and true delight can’t be captured in a numbered list. There’s something magical and beautiful here, and I wish I could simply say, “It’s more fun than a prepaid Amazon shopping spree,” and be done with it.

But this important question warrants at least a few concrete answers. Too much rides on it.

1. Apply the Bible because you know God.

Your allegiance to the lover of your soul prevents you from continuing in old habits, values, or patterns of thinking. “Now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more” (Gal 4:9)?

2. Apply the Bible because God knows you.

He knew you before you ever knew him, and he vowed to make you more like Jesus. “Those whom [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom 8:29).

3. Apply the Bible because you are free from sin.

Jesus Solana (2012), Creative Commons

Jesus Solana (2012), Creative Commons

You’re not stuck in the old way of doing things. You don’t have to keep hurting yourself and the people you love. You’re free to do what God wants you to do, which is always the best thing you could do. “But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness” (Rom 6:17-18).

4. Apply the Bible because you are a Christian.

A static life is inconsistent with true faith. According to 1 John, you’ll know you have eternal life by three pieces of evidence: confessing Christ, loving others, and keeping God’s commandments. These pieces of evidence don’t mandate sinlessness—John expects us to repent often and be forgiven (1 John 1:8-2:2)—but they mean that our lives should change over time to reflect what God wants for us.

“By this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says ‘I know him’ but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” (1 John 2:3-6)

Many people know these four truths, but still struggle to apply the Bible to their lives. For those who simply don’t know how, there’s a way to get started. For those who can’t find the motivation, something more is needed.

I saw that “something” illustrated a few years ago when I attended a marriage conference taught by Paul Tripp, author of What Did You Expect? Tripp spoke the word of God powerfully, and he paved the road of application with dozens of vivid personal stories. Few stories made him look good; most were about his epic failures as a husband. During a break, I overheard an attendee ask Tripp how he could be so frank and vulnerable in public, and his answer captured the essence of good Bible application: “Jesus died for me, so I have nothing left to prove.” Here was a man living and leading others as though he really believed Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Here’s the magic. Here’s the beauty. God offers you your freedom. He knows you better than you know yourself, and he’ll make you more useful than you dreamed possible. He wants what’s best for you, and he makes his best available to you. You have nothing left to prove, so you’re free to admit you were wrong and try something else.

Jesus often answered a question with a question, and I want to be like him, so ask me why you should apply the Bible, and I’ll ask you why on earth you would want to stay the same.

Question: What motivates you to apply the Bible to your life?

_______________________

Disclosure: The link above is an affiliate link, so if you click it and buy stuff from Amazon, you’ll support the site at no extra cost to yourself.

3 Implications of the Fact that Bible Application is for Everybody

By

In the “longer ending” of Mark’s gospel, Jesus says, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15). Though some dispute the authenticity of Mark’s longer ending, I’m not aware of anyone disputing this fundamental instruction for the Christian Church (Matt 28:18-20, Col 1:23, Rev 14:6).

From this command, we can deduce that the Bible (which preserves and explains the gospel) has relevance to all people in all the world. That, in turn, means that anybody, anywhere, at any time in history can apply the Bible.

Perhaps that fact seems obvious. But what are some of its implications?

flowers and fruits on a table
Photo by Jill Wellington on Pexels.com

1. The same application will land differently in different cultures

Jesus warns that “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). Practical applications of this warning are generally not terribly controversial in western dignity cultures, but they are far more difficult and excruciating for those in eastern honor cultures.

By contrast, Jesus said that “everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery” (Matt 5:32). Eastern honor cultures may tend to follow this command more closely, while those in western dignity cultures sometimes tend to focus more on the exceptions than the rule itself.

2. Different people may legitimately adopt opposite applications

Jesus told one person that following him meant leaving his family behind (Luke 9:59-60). He told another person that following him meant returning to his family (Mark 5:19-20).

He told one guy to sell everything and give it to the poor (Mark 10:21-22). He told others to make different use of their money (Luke 16:9).

The point is that many applications that fit your situation will not fit other people’s situations. The same principle (e.g. investing in eternity) may take different expression for different people. Let each be fully convinced in their own mind (Rom 14:5).

3. Particular applications may mature along with the person

A child-like faith is to be commended (Mark 10:15). A childish approach to human relationship is not (1 Cor 13:11, 16:13).

For one person, simply saying “hello” to a stranger might be an act of selfless obedience to Christ. But as that person matures, that “hello” ought to grow into more mature expressions of evangelism and love for neighbor.

Bible application is for everybody. What other implications of that fact can you think of?

Why Memorize a Whole Book

By

Beth Myers memorized the entire book of Romans and lived to tell us about it. She found the following benefits of such lengthy memorization:

  • Discovery of passages hidden in plain sight
  • Understanding of the Scripture
  • Weapon against anxiety
  • Love of Scripture
  • Duty becomes delight
  • Renewal of the mind
  • Keen sense of the love of Christ for me
  • A soaring of my spirit

Perhaps this is worth trying for yourself. Let Myers encourage you to consider it. Check it out!

Let’s Not Employ the Gospel as Justification to Keep Sinning

By

In Romans 6:1, the apostle Paul asks a crucial question to clarify a potential misapplication of his gospel: “Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?” In other words, does the grace of God give believers permission to continue in their sin without ever having to change?

By no means!

Photo by Ray Harrington on Unsplash

An Old Problem

Misconstruing God’s grace in this way was not unique to Paul’s mission or Paul’s gospel. This problem is not a strictly Pauline one. Consider Jeremiah’s fiery words in the Jerusalem temple of his day, shortly before its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar:

Thus says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel: …Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes?

Jeremiah 7:3-11

The people of Israel committed all kinds of sin against their God, yet they trusted in God’s grace to get them through. They believed God’s grace was big enough to prevent them from having to actually change their behavior.

So the Lord goes on to tell them to look at the ruins of their previous sanctuary in Shiloh (from before the Philistines conquered them centuries earlier). This temple would end up the same way.

Today’s Gospel

Of course, we must be careful to preach Christ and him crucified whenever we lead Bible studies and teach the Scriptures. The good news about the Christ is the center of all of God’s revelation.

But we have misunderstood that message if we make it sound in any way as though people won’t have to change. As though coming just as they are means always remaining just as they are. As though repentance (change) were not the indispensable companion to belief (Mark 1:15).

I’ve found we must use caution with such phrases as “struggling with sin.” If by that phrase you mean that it is hard to put sin to death—but you are making progress in that direction—then well and good. Keep on keeping on!

But if by that phrase you really mean, “I’m sad about it, but I’m just going to have to live with it for the rest of my life,” then please reconsider what the whole point of the “struggle” ought to be (Col 3:5, Titus 2:11-14).

The Potter’s Right Over the Clay

By

Earlier this week, I completed my 2022 Bible readthrough, which was nothing short of a delightful romp through the Scriptures. I always appreciate seeing what new connections the Lord may bring to my attention as I read rapidly.

And one thing that especially struck me this year was the potter metaphor used of the Lord throughout the prophets. This may have been on my mind because my church small group recently studied Romans 9 and discussed the potter metaphor in Rom 9:20-21. I had not fully considered before how Paul draws this imagery from the Old Testament.

Image by marcelkessler from Pixabay

When Paul says “Will what is molded say to its molder, ‘Why have you made me like this?'” (Rom 9:20), he appears to be drawing directly on Isaiah 29:16: “You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, ‘He did not make me’; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, ‘He has no understanding’?” The context of Isaiah 29 is that of God’s people drawing near to him in their rituals while their hearts remain far from him, attempting to hide from their maker their dark deeds. Paul uses it to support his larger point that not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel. Just because God made some people ethnically Jewish, but still exerts his wrath on their unbelief, does not make him unjust.

The connection I found even more interesting is that with Jeremiah 18:1-12, which I will quote in full:

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.

Then the word of the LORD came to me: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the LORD, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds.’

“But they say, ‘That is in vain! We will follow our own plans, and will every one act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’

Jeremiah 18:1-12, ESV

Jeremiah uses the authority-of-the-potter-over-the-clay metaphor to explain that God himself may change course and treat his people differently than he had predicted if they either repent from, or turn toward, evil. This point is especially striking in the background of Romans 9, where, even after calling unbelieving Israelites “not my people” and “vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,” Paul goes on to express his heart’s desire and his prayer to God that they might still be saved (Rom 10:1). In other words, though the Lord has promised to uproot Israel and remove its branch from his tree (Rom 11:11-24), as soon as they repent and set their hope in Jesus the Messiah, he stands more than ready to smush their clay and begin again with them as a clean and holy vessel.

So I’m glad that Romans was on my brain when my rapid reading took me through the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah. With such broad Bible reading, such connections and allusions are more likely to stand out and stick.

For those of you willing to try such rapid reading for yourself, don’t forget we’ve currently got a reading challenge underway with a pretty terrific grand prize.

10 Truths About the Holy Spirit from Romans 8

By

Mateus Campos Felipe (2019), public domain

Romans 8 is a favorite chapter of the Bible among Christians, and for good reason. It is encouraging, memorable, and oh-so-quotable.

But because it is so beloved, it is easy to lose the main ideas of the chapter among the glorious promises. To be specific, what would you say Romans 8 is all about?

The Frequency of the Spirit

When we start to observe the text of Romans 8, one phrase jumps out. The Holy Spirit is all over this chapter!

A quick count reveals that the word “spirit” appears 22 times in Romans 8. This is the most that word appears in any chapter of the English Bible! (I made these counts and comparisons using the ESV.) This was unexpected for me, because I don’t often see people reach for this chapter to teach about the Holy Spirit.

Is the Holy Spirit the main subject of Romans 8? In his post on Romans 8:28, Peter provided an outline of much of this chapter, so I won’t repeat it here. Even if the Spirit is not at the center of this chapter, he is indispensable to its main ideas.

What Can We Learn About the Spirit?

I thought it might be instructive to exercise our observation and interpretation muscles in a brief look at Romans 8. While focusing mostly on the occurrences of the word “Spirit” in this chapter, I’ll list some truths that are relatively straightforward from the text.

  1. The Spirit is the “Spirit of life.” In contrast to the “law of sin and death,” which condemns, the Spirit’s law sets us “free in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:2).
  2. The Spirit is opposed to “the flesh.” Christians walk according to the Spirit, not the flesh. They live according to the Spirit and set their minds on the things of the Spirit instead of living according to or setting their minds on the things of the flesh. The flesh brings death, but the Spirit brings “life and peace” (Rom 8:4–6).
  3. Those with the Spirit belong to God. Those with the Spirit are “in the Spirit.” Without the Spirit of Christ you do not belong to God. Having the “Spirit of Christ” and having Christ in you appear to be the same thing (Rom 8:9–10).
  4. Those with the Spirit will rise from the dead. If you have the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, that same Spirit will give you the same result (Rom 8:11).
  5. We need the Spirit to “put to death the deeds of the body.” The parallel structure of Romans 8:13 also implies that putting deeds to death by the Spirit is what it means to live according to the Spirit.
  6. All who are led by God’s Spirit are God’s children (Rom 8:14). Part of what it means to have God’s Spirit (Rom 8:9) is to be led by God’s Spirit.
  7. The Spirit we have received is the “Spirit of adoption.” This Spirit is contrasted with a spirit of slavery which leads to fear; the Spirit of adoption produces affectionate cries (“Abba!”) to our Father (Rom 8:15).
  8. The Spirit testifies that we are God’s children. The Spirit “bears witness” along with our spirits that we are children of God. And as children, we are “heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ” (Rom 8:16–17).
  9. We have the first fruits of the Spirit. Having the Spirit in this way causes us to groan inwardly along with the creation, as we await our adoption as children of God (Rom 8:23).
  10. The Spirit intercedes for us. In our weakness, we don’t know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit helps us, praying with groans that are too deep for words. Because the Father knows the mind of the Spirit, he receives what is in our hearts (Rom 8:26–27).

Observation Leading to Understanding

Observation is necessary but not sufficient for understanding the Bible. It is a means, not an end. Observing the Bible is like gathering sticks for a fire: Without the wood, there’s nothing to burn; but the sticks themselves produce neither heat nor light.

But these observations and interpretations about the Holy Spirit help us toward the main point of Romans 8. We see how the Spirit marks and indwells God’s people, identifying them as his beloved children. This relationship with God produces suffering with our fellow heir (Jesus), but glory with him as well.

What Does “All Israel Will Be Saved” Mean?

By

In Romans 11:26, Paul makes a statement that has baffled interpreters for generations: “And in this way all Israel will be saved.” New Testament professor Jared Compton has attempted to explain the key phrase, “all Israel will be saved,” in this brief piece.

Compton approaches the topic through a series of four interpretive questions:

  1. What does he mean by “saved”?
  2. What does he mean by “Israel”?
  3. What does he mean by “all”?
  4. What does he mean by “will be”?

To be frank, I would probably disagree with Compton’s answers to a few of these questions. But I’m eager to link to his article anyway because he models some excellent Bible study skills in the process of seeking to answer his (insightful) questions. He engages with the text. He observes carefully. He reckons with the context of Paul’s argument in the chapter and this section of Romans.

Even if I might disagree with a few of the answers, based on further observation and investigation of the same text, I have much trust that Compton would be a fellow with whom one could have a productive debate on such things. One who isn’t committed to a particular theology despite the text, but one who may arrive at a set of theological conclusions precisely because of the text. I am happy to send you his way to consider his careful handling of this challenging topic.

Check it out!