RomarbrevetKapitel 1

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Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God—

the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,

concerning his Son, who was born of David's line according to the flesh

and was declared Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

Through him we received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the nations for the sake of his name,

and you also are among them, called to belong to Jesus Christ.

To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people: grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

First of all, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world.

For God is my witness — the God I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son — how constantly I remember you

in all my prayers, always asking that somehow, by God's will, the way may at last be opened for me to come to you.

For I long to see you, so that I may share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—

or rather, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, yours and mine.

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I have often planned to come to you, but until now I have been prevented, so that I might have a harvest among you as I have had among the other nations.

I am under obligation both to Greeks and to non-Greeks, both to the wise and to the foolish.

That is why I am eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes—first for the Jew, then for the Greek.

For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed, from faith to faith, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

For the wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and wickedness of people who suppress the truth by their wickedness,

since what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.

For since the creation of the world his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, understood from what he has made. So they are without excuse.

For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or give him thanks, but their thinking became futile and their senseless hearts were darkened.

Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and four-footed animals and reptiles.

Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, so that they degraded their bodies with one another.

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is blessed forever. Amen.

For this reason God gave them over to shameful passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones,

and in the same way the men abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.

They are filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; they are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and spite. They are gossips,

slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;

they are senseless, faithless, heartless, and merciless.

Although they know God's righteous decree, that those who do such things deserve death, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.

Uppslag

Sammanfattning3

Kapitel 1

Main Theme: Paul presents the gospel as God’s power for salvation and shows how God’s wrath is revealed against human ungodliness.

Content: Paul greets the church in Rome and expresses his desire to visit them. He declares that the gospel is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes—to the Jew first, and also to the Greek—and that God’s righteousness is revealed in it from faith to faith. At the same time, God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and injustice of people who suppress the truth, for God has made himself known through creation. People who rejected God were given over to their own desires and a depraved mind, resulting in widespread sin and moral decay.

Key Words/Images:

Gospel (εὐαγγέλιον): The good news about Jesus Christ, which is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes.
God’s righteousness (δικαιοσύνη θεοῦ): Revealed in the gospel "from faith to faith"—the foundation of salvation.
God’s wrath (ὀργὴ θεοῦ): Revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and injustice among people who suppress the truth.
Natural revelation: God’s invisible nature, eternal power, and divine character are clearly seen through creation, so that people are without excuse.
Given over (παρέδωκεν): God gave those who rejected him over to their own desires, shameful passions, and a depraved mind.

Om Romarbrevet

Romans

About the book: The letter to the Romans is Paul’s most comprehensive and systematic presentation of the Christian gospel, written to the church in Rome which he had not founded himself. The letter was likely written from Corinth around 57 AD, and Paul expresses his desire to visit them on his way to Spain.

Main theme: Justification by faith alone – the gospel is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, both Jews and Gentiles.

Content overview:

Introduction and Paul’s longing to visit Rome (1:1–17)
The sin and guilt of all humanity before God (1:18–3:20)
Justification by faith in Christ (3:21–4:25)
The fruits of salvation: peace, hope, and reconciliation (5:1–21)
Freedom from the power of sin through union with Christ (6:1–23)
The struggle with the law and the flesh (7:1–25)
Life in the Spirit and eternal security in Christ (8:1–39)
God’s sovereign plan for Israel and the Gentiles (9:1–11:36)
Exhortation to holy living and service in the church (12:1–21)
Relationship with authorities and love as the fulfillment of the law (13:1–14)
The strong and the weak – Christian freedom and consideration (14:1–15:13)
Paul’s ministry, travel plans, and greetings (15:14–16:27)

Key themes:

Justification by faith: People are declared righteous before God through faith in Jesus Christ, not by works of the law (3:21–28).
All have sinned: Both Jews and Gentiles stand guilty before God and need salvation (3:23).
Life in the Spirit: Believers are freed from the law of sin and death and now live by the power of the Holy Spirit (8:1–17).
God’s sovereignty and Israel’s future: God has not rejected Israel, and all Israel will ultimately be saved (11:26).
Practical Christian living: Faith is demonstrated in a transformed life marked by love for God and others (12:1–2).

Historisk kontext

Historical and Cultural Context for Romans 1

People

Paul (Παῦλος, v. 1) introduces himself with three titles: "a slave of Christ Jesus" (δοῦλος), "called to be an apostle" (κλητὸς ἀπόστολος), and "set apart for the gospel of God" (ἀφωρισμένος εἰς εὐαγγέλιον θεοῦ). This triple introduction establishes both his humility and his authority.

David (Δαυίδ, v. 3) is mentioned as Jesus' ancestor "according to the flesh" (κατὰ σάρκα). Davidic lineage was essential for Jewish messianic expectation, based on God's promise to David of an eternal throne (2 Sam 7:12–16).

Places

Rome (Ῥώμη, v. 7, 15) is named as the home city of the recipients. Paul greets "all God's beloved in Rome" (v. 7) and expresses his desire to preach the gospel "also to you who are in Rome" (v. 15). This establishes the letter's addressees and Paul's yet-unfulfilled wish to visit them.

Events and Customs

Paul's description of idolatry (v. 23) specifically mentions images of "mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles" (ὁμοιώματι εἰκόνος φθαρτοῦ ἀνθρώπου καὶ πετεινῶν καὶ τετραπόδων καὶ ἑρπετῶν). This reflects both Greco-Roman temple worship with divine statues and may also allude to Egyptian animal worship, which was well known throughout the Roman Empire.

Paul's criticism of homosexual acts (vv. 26–27) must be understood against the background that such relationships, especially between men, were socially accepted in parts of the Greco-Roman upper class. Jewish writers like Philo of Alexandria sharply criticized this and viewed it as a mark of pagan immorality. Paul stands here within a Jewish tradition that interpreted such behavior as a result of idolatry.

Key Terms

Doulos (δοῦλος, v. 1) – "slave" or "servant" – was a powerful self-designation. The phrase "servant of the Lord" was an honorific title for leaders like Moses and David in the Old Testament, and Paul's use of the term combines humility with authority.

Apostolos (ἀπόστολος, v. 1) means "messenger" or "sent one," and in Greek legal usage carried the meaning of an authorized representative acting with the full authority of the sender. Paul uses this title to establish his legitimacy before a church he did not found.

Euangelion (εὐαγγέλιον, vv. 1, 9, 15, 16) – "gospel" or "good news/glad tidings" – was not merely a religious term. In the Roman world, the word was used for imperial proclamations, such as the announcement of a new emperor's accession to the throne or military victories. By applying this word to the message about Jesus, Paul placed it in direct contrast to the propaganda of the imperial cult.

Hellēn (Ἕλλην, vv. 14, 16) and barbaros (βάρβαρος, v. 14) represented the fundamental cultural division in antiquity. "Hellenes" were not only ethnic Greeks but all who participated in Greek culture and language. "Barbarians" were everyone else – the word imitates the sound of unintelligible speech. Paul declares himself a debtor to both groups, which was radically inclusive.

Dikaiosynē theou (δικαιοσύνη θεοῦ, v. 17) – "the righteousness of God" – is a key term that can mean both God's own righteous character and the righteousness God gives to people. The expression has roots in the Hebrew tsedaqah, which in the Old Testament often denotes God's saving intervention, not merely a legal standard.

Personer3

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