Romans 1:1-7

“Paul a servant of Jesus Christ, called an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

2        which He had promised before by His prophets in the Holy Scriptures,

3        concerning his Son, Who was made (the one becoming out) of the seed of David according to the flesh

4        and declared (the one being designated) the Son of God in power according to the spirit of holiness (holy togetherness), by the resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord,

5        through Whom we have received (obtained) grace and apostleship into obedience of faith among all the nations, for (the sake of) His name

6        among whom are you also called (adj., nom) of Jesus Christ;

7         to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called (adj; dative) saints (holy ones): Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and Lord Jesus Christ.”

Paul identifies himself, identifies his purpose, identifies his master, clearly identifies Jesus Christ specifically, affirms the authority of the gospel, affirms his authority in the gospel, confirms their invitation to the gospel, identifies his intended audience, and extends a blessing to the intended readers. In a few short lines, Paul succeeds at establishing both the humanity and the deity of Christ Himself, as well as the historical anticipation of His coming in fulfillment of God’s express promise, recorded throughout the Old Testament.

Paul’s greatest joy and sole desire for those whom he met was that they would come to know Christ, to trust in Him, and receive salvation through faith in His blood. Because his rejoicing to God for them is their faith, which was known throughout the ‘whole world’, Paul longed to visit the saints in Rome in order to bless them with some spiritual blessing so they could grow stronger in their faith in Christ. Not only did Paul love these brothers and sisters in the Lord, but he considered himself to owe all men the benefit of hearing the gospel of Christ, and being built up and more firmly established in their faith in Him.

V1  “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

Paul introduces himself as the author of the letter to the Romans, and identifies himself in reference to his ministry to them in Christ:

Paul identifies himself as the sender of intent of the letter. Notwithstanding any assistance in the graphing of the letter, Paul himself is the author of it and the man whose message is contained in its words. Starting in the beginning by making this statement, Paul eliminates any doubt regarding the authorship of the letter that may occur as a consequence of the fact that Tertius, who wrote the letter out on Paul’s behalf, also signed himself at the close.

Paul identifies himself as a servant of Jesus Christ; Christ is his Master, and the only one Whose orders Paul may follow. Everything in which Christ has made known to Paul His desires or instructions, Paul would fulfill in accordance to that revelation to him.

As a servant of Christ, Paul was an apostle, which means an ‘ambassador’ or a ‘delegate’ sent by a superior on the authority and mission of the superior. Paul was one sent out as an ambassador or personal representative of Jesus Christ, bearing Christ’s message on Christ’s authority to those to whom he was sent.

The verb ‘called’ is from the Greek kletos, which can mean ‘invited’ or ‘appointed’. He describes himself as being ‘set apart for’ the gospel – the good message or good news – of God. Paul’s particular responsibility to Christ was the proclamation of the Gospel. Paul was set apart for this particular service, and to this purpose alone were all his efforts and activities performed.

2    which He had promised before by His prophets in the Holy Scriptures,

God had promised through His prophets throughout history the ‘good news’ which Paul was set apart to proclaim. Those prophets faithfully recorded God’s explicit and direct revelation to them that He would perform a wonderful work in the world for anyone who would hear. All Jews would recognize the Holy Scriptures (writings) as their Tanakh – Books of Moses, Psalms & Proverbs, the ‘writings’, and the prophets. Gentiles would understand the same reference coming from Paul, a Jew.

God promised through His prophets, and Jesus told the Jews that “I send you prophets …” (Mat 23:34) The offspring (son) of God is also He who sent the prophets.

The Messiah and His salvation did not come without warning; it wasn’t a recent invention, or add-on to God’s plan[1], nor a man-made proposition. It was not a ‘possibility’ but a promise from the Sovereign LORD. A promise from God is a guarantee.

Moreover, it was not a secret. Although the Jews failed to understand much of what God had told them through His revelations, He had told them, and the message was open and available to anyone willing to hear it.

God’s good message concerned His Son Jesus Christ: Ps 2; Pr 30:4; cf Dan 3:25

The prophecies concerned Jesus Christ as God’s son: Is 9 & 7 à the name of the child to be born. “Emmanuel” => God with us. “Wonderful counsellor” “The mighty God” “The everlasting Father”

All names point to the Messiah being God. Many prophecies stating openly that YHWH is the only saviour, redeemer, Lord, King.

Jesus => Greek for Y’shuah => Yah is saviour, or Yah saves.

Jesus Christ fulfilled the promise of God given by His prophets.

 3    concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, Who was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

Verse 3 & 4 literally read: “… concerning His Son, the one becoming (or ‘brought into being’) out of seed of David according to flesh, the one being designated Son of God in power according to the spirit of holy-togetherness from (through, by) the resurrection of the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.”

The prophesied ‘good news’ pertained to God’s Son, Jesus Christ, who is the Lord of every true apostle, and every saint. Christ was made to be the offspring of David by His fleshly birth, which was in accordance with God’s promise given to the prophets that David would not lack a man to sit on the throne throughout the ages, and the promise that God would raise up a deliverer for the nation of Israel from the line of David, who would also bring redemption to the Gentiles.

             Jesus was human ‘according to the flesh’.                      (1 John 4:2-3)

             Jesus was – is – divine according to spirit. (multiple references to Christ’s deity)

             Jesus died in the flesh, not in the spirit. God did not die. God is spirit, not flesh; spirit does not die.  (Eph 2;15, Col 1:22; Heb 10:10)

             Jesus was made or caused to become flesh. In His eternal nature, he was not flesh.   (Phil 2:7-8; Heb 2:17; 10:5)

             Jesus was descended from David according to flesh.

YHWH God foretold through the prophets beginning with Nathan, that God would place an eternal king on the throne of David, Who would reign forever over all the world. Paul affirms that Jesus Christ was ‘the one’ to come from David, the promised “Messiah” who would save Israel and bring salvation to the Gentiles. Remember that Israel has gone many hundreds of years without an earthly king. If God’s promise depended upon an earthly king, it is a false promise for there has been no son of David on that throne for centuries. Only because Israel’s King is Christ is God’s promise true.

2 Sam 7:12-16    And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 13  He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 14  I will be his father, and he shall be my son.

1 Sam 23:3-4       The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. 4  And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain. 5  Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow.

Isaiah 9:7        For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 11:1     And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots, 2  And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; 3  And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: 4  But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. 5  And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. 6  The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. 7  And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8  And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. 9  They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. 10 And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.

Is. 16:1-5         Send ye the lamb to the ruler of the land from Sela to the wilderness, unto the mount of the daughter of Zion. {Sela: or, Petra: Heb. A rock} 2  For it shall be, that, as a wandering bird cast out of the nest, so the daughters of Moab shall be at the fords of Arnon. 3  Take counsel, execute judgment; make thy shadow as the night in the midst of the noonday; hide the outcasts; bewray not him that wandereth.

                   4    Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab; be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler: for the extortioner is at an end, the spoiler ceaseth, the oppressors are consumed out of the land. 5  And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.

Is. 55:1-3         Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

                   2    Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

                   3    Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. 4  Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

Jeremiah 23:5-8 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6  In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

                   7    Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 8  But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.

Jer. 30(8-9)    For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: 9  But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.

Jer. 33:20-23 Thus saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; 21  Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers. 22  As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.

                   23  Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, 24  Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.

                   25 Thus saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; 26  Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.

Ezekiel 34:11 – 23        For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. 12  As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. 13  And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country.

                   14  I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. 15  I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. 16  I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.

                   17  And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats. {cattle: Heb. small cattle of lambs and kids} {he goats: Heb. great he goats} 18  Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? 19  And as for my flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet.

                   20  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. 21  Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; 22  Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.

                   23  And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 24  And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it.     25  And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. 26  And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.

                   27  And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. 28  And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.

Ez 37:21-28   And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: 22  And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all,  23  Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.  24  And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. 25  And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.

                   26  Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.

                   27  My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 28  And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

Hosea 3:4-5   For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: {image: Heb. a standing, or, statue, or, pillar} 5  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

Zechariah 12:9 –     And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

                   11  In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. 12  And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; 13  The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; 14  All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.

                   1  In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. 2  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

4    the One being designated the Son of God in power, according to the spirit of holiness (holy togetherness) by the resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord,

Jesus was/is the Son of God according to the spirit. His unity with God is the consequence of His emanation from God. (Jn 8:42; 13:3; 16:27; 17:8)

The passage shows a contrast of fathers: one is fleshly, temporal; One is Spirit, holy, eternal: Seed of David according to the flesh; Son of God according to the spirit of holiness.

Jesus Christ was not only born of the human lineage of King David as promised through the prophets, but by His resurrection from the dead, He proclaimed Himself to be the Son of God with power – power over life and death, which necessarily meant He was equal with God, for only God has power over life and death. While He was caused to be the offspring of David by a human body born of a descendant of David, His essential nature was and always is very God Himself, in full power and holy authority over all creation, including life and death.

The Greek word translated as ‘declared’ in many versions including the KJV is horesthentos which translates as: designated; specified (in the sense of having been the particular party intended for the position, being made known abroad.)

Jesus’ resurrection was that unique confirming event that exposed beyond debate His role as the Son of God. Perhaps the necessary  of this conclusion is the motivating factor for so many attacks on the factuality of the resurrection; if it didn’t happen, there is less support for His identity. In fact, if He had remained dead:

1)      Prophecies remain unfulfilled

2)      He himself would be yet another dead prophet / teacher

3)      There would be no good news.

4)      If Jesus only died, and did not rise, we will die and never rise. Our hope is limited to this earthly life only, and we are more pitiable than all men. (1 Cor 15)

Because Jesus DID rise from the dead:

1)    God truly must exist and must be as He is revealed in the Scriptures, for only that true, sovereign, Creator could have the power to restore life.

2)    We have the confirmation of prophecy, therefore the total assurance of the complete promise because if God said it, and He is Who He is revealed to be, it must be true and He has the power to make it happen. (cf 2 Pet 1:19)

3)    This life and this world are neither total nor ultimate reality

4)    There is life after death

5)    Our saviour is alive – to act and do, therefore to save

6)    We can also be raised from the dead

7)    We are not alone

8)    We are not isolated from God’s knowledge or awareness; we are not invisible to God; God is not inaccessible to us

Consequently, if it were possible for the devil or rebellious men to ‘prove’ that the resurrection did not happen, it would also be possible to argue convincingly against His deity, and against His role as the Son of God.

It is important to remember that Jesus repeatedly told His disciples that He would rise again. John 10:17-18 records Jesus as declaring that it was Himself who both laid His life down and who took it back up again.

5    Through (di) Whom we have received grace, and apostleship to obedience of faith among all the nations, for (the sake of) His name:

If Paul meant “by whom” – may refer back to “the Son of God”, “Jesus Christ our Lord”, or to “God” in v. 1, because grace is given to us “by” God – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

If he meant “through Whom”, it refers to Jesus, because we receive God’s grace through Jesus Christ.

          “grace” – God’s dispensation of benefit and privilege that was not deserved or earned by its recipients.

“… and apostleship into obedience of faith…” they received the ‘standing apart’ – or their commissioning – from the world into obedience of faith. Christ is their commissioner, and they are His delegates. Their being set apart as well as their assignment are from God through Christ.

They were assigned ambassadorship to all nations. Their assignment was not exclusive to the Jews as God’s “chosen people”, or to Gentiles as being apart from God’s chosen people, but to all peoples. (ethnesen).

For / over (huper) His name. They are to carry His name, and the good news concerning Him, to all peoples. They are sent on behalf of Him. They don’t go for their own authority or benefit, or on behalf of ‘the church’ – they were not sent to proclaim the church, nor to bring men to themselves, but to preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified. (2 Cor 4:5; 1 Cor 1:12-23; 2:2; 3:5-6)

God declared that His name would be honoured throughout the earth. (Is 45:23)

Paul’s message – indeed the message of the church herself – is the glory and honour of the name of the Living God. The most holy and righteous Lord YHWH, compelled to judge men’s wrongs, is the same God Who for love was compelled to offer redemption to guilty criminals through the atoning sacrifice of Him Who had done no wrong. It has never been known among men that a sovereign against whom a grievous offense has been committed would come down from his throne to take upon himself the penalty of the wrongs committed against him in order to restore the guilty one to himself. But this is exactly what the God of the universe has done for mankind. We have committed grievous offense against God, and are under condemnation. But God, knowing our hopeless state, took upon Himself the form of human flesh to suffer our penalty for offenses against Himself, so that His payment could be applied to our guilt, and we could be released. And we receive it exclusively on the basis of our faith in Him and His covering of our sin. If sin is the ultimate expression of faithlessness, as demonstrated by the choices made by Adam and Eve in the garden, salvation is the reward of faith-ful-ness, the remediation by the offended of the outcome of the offense, based on the correction of the condition that caused the offense from the beginning. The tremendous love and kindness expressed through that act, the exceptional wisdom and justice demonstrated by it, leave all honest men stricken with awe and gratitude for the undeserved benefit poured upon the guilty by the almighty God Who saves us from ourselves in such a manner. The only possible response to such unselfish grace is adoration and praise to the Name of that great and wonderful God. It is this message and this outcome for which Paul was sent – set apart from the normal ebb and flow of daily life, and set apart to the proclamation of the love and grace of God toward men in all nations, and by so doing, he would glorify the name of the Lord God. (Ez 36; Mt 12:21)

6   Among whom are you also called (adj; nom) of Jesus Christ:

among whom = among ‘all nations’ or “all peoples” – you Romans (as a people) are also called of Jesus Christ. Romans as a people group or national quantity are kletoi to Christ as are “all nations” referenced in the previous clause. kletoi may be ‘invited’ or ‘appointed’. All are invited. All who receive Christ are appointed to salvation.

7   To all those (the ones) being in Rome beloved of God, called saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and Lord Jesus Christ.

…to all the ones [who] are in Rome, beloved of God, called saints – the address and blessing are directed specifically to those in Rome who are saved. It is addressed to all in Rome who are saved, not some sub-set of those who have been saved, and not to those who are not saved. Among the Romans are both Jews and gentiles, which is necessary to keep in mind while reading Paul’s letter, in order to avoid misunderstanding the content or significance of what he says throughout a letter in which he changes his reference between Jew, Gentile, and all people generally.

“Beloved” – the saints are precious to the heart of God. God’s love and affection toward us are the source of His grace and peace upon us. How can anyone doubt the love of One Who would sacrifice first of all His separation from what is wicked to be present among what is wilfully wicked, and then Who would endure the ignominy and pain of a criminal’s execution at the hands of a perverse government in order to liberate people who wilfully opposed Him, causing not only their own consequences, but the negative influence of all other men, and corrupting influence of the entire rest of creation. Justice is entirely righteous without mercy, and justice without love would be without mercy. However, love tempered justice by choosing and performing a sacrificial act that would enable mercy to be extended so that men could be redeemed. Such love that would bear the shame owned by others, many of whom would scorn till their last breath Him Who so loved. If God loves even those who scorn Him such that He would send His only-begotten Son to bring everlasting life to those who would have faith in Him, how much must He love those who see ourselves for what we are and humble ourselves before His kindness?

Grace & peace are from God and Christ. We can express a blessing, but we cannot confer it, because the grace of forgiveness and eternal life are not ours to give, nor is that eternal peace ‘that passes all understanding”. True peace must depend upon and issue from beyond this world; otherwise our peace would be tied to circumstances, and Paul tells us elsewhere that he has learned to be content regardless of his circumstances (Phil 4:11-12); his peace doesn’t depend on what goes on around him, but from the knowledge that he has received forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ, Whose sacrifice for Paul’s sins was entirely sufficient, and fully completed. Paul does not have to fear what happens to his flesh in relationship to what will happen to his spirit, or to the reality of his experience of eternity. This is the peace he wants them to know, which they can only know through God in Christ.

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