Lessons #65 and 66
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ HCSB = Holman Christian Standard Bible +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Law and conscience affect God’s judgment (Rom 2:14-16)
14 (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, 15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.) 16 This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
Let me refresh your mind regarding what we said in the introduction of this epistle to the Romans. We indicated that the first thing Apostle Paul discoursed after introducing the theme of “God’s righteousness revealed through the gospel” is God’s response to unrighteousness that he discoursed in Romans 1:18-3:20. Consequently, we asserted that there are four major issues the apostle developed under God’s response to unrighteousness. We have considered the first major issue, which is, God’s wrath and punishment against idolatry in Romans 1:18-32. The second major issue the apostle communicated to his readers is that God’s judgment is independent of the Law in Romans 2:1-16. So far, we have considered the introductory remarks the apostle gave in verses 1 and 2, the discourse on judgment for hypocrisy, stubbornness, and lack of repentance in verses 3 to 6, and the discourse on God’s reward based on a person’s work not mere possession of the Law in verse 7 to 13. The apostle ended the second major issue with the discourse that indicates the law and conscience affect God’s judgment in verses 14 to 16. It is this that is our concern in the passage before us.
The three verses that we are about to consider are filled with several problems that affect their interpretation, as will become evident later in our exposition of these verses. To give you an idea of the problems of this section, those who have the NIV or the NCV will note that verses 14 and 15 are enclosed in a parenthesis, the KJV actually included verse 13 in the parenthesis. The implication of the approach in the NIV or the NCV is that verse 16 continues the thought given in verse 13 so that verse 16 would then be indicating the time when God will declare righteous those who obey the law. While this is possible but there is nothing in the Greek text that suggests this interpretation; besides, as we expound verses 14 and 15, it will become clearer that verse 16 is better interpreted as being related to verses 14 and 15. Anyhow, the point is that these three verses are riddled with interpretation difficulties that we will identify at the appropriate time in our exposition of these verses.
The problems of these three verses notwithstanding, the passage before us, as we have already implied, is concerned with two subjects. The first is the law as it related to Gentiles. The apostle was concerned with the implications of Gentiles who do not have the law doing what is right by the law. So, he indicated that such action by Gentiles, for the most part, prove that the law of God is written within them as he discoursed in verses 14-15a. The second subject is conscience. Thus, in verses 15b to 16, the apostle discoursed the function of the conscience and the confirmation of the function of the conscience on the judgment day of God. Based on this summary of the passage before us we derive a message that you should be aware. This message is that God’s judgment of unbelievers is just because they are capable of demonstrating the existence of His law within them and because of their possession of conscience.
The apostle linked the passage we are studying with the preceding section specifically with verse 13 in that he further illustrates or explains the reason he asserted that possession of the law in and of itself does not mean that God would declare a person righteous as obeying it. We make this point because the word indeed that begins verse 14 is translated from a Greek conjunction (gar) that has several usages. For example, it can be used as a marker of inference with the meaning “so, then” or it can be used as a marker of explanation with the meaning “for, you see.” It may mean “yes, indeed” especially in replies to confirm what has been asked about. In our verse, it is used as a marker of the reason that is also an explanation that possession of the law does not equate to God’s approval of a person as actual doing what the law requires.
The reason the apostle provided that justifies and explains his assertion that only those who obey the law are declared righteous by God is the implications of Gentiles doing what is in the law. The apostle conveyed the point that Gentiles are capable of doing things that are required by the law as in the clause of Romans 2:14 when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law. This clause contains two of the many problems associated with our passage of study but before we get to these, we should note that the apostle does not mean to convey that Gentiles always function according to what is in the law but that they occasionally would or even repeatedly do so. This point is implied with the word when in the clause we are considering. The word “when” is translated from a Greek word (hotan) that may mean “because” in assigning a reason or cause for something. The word may be used of customary or even repeated actions and so may mean “whenever, as often as.” Although the meaning “when” is correct in our verse but it may even be better to use the word “whenever” to convey that the action stipulated does occur repeatedly or occasionally. Hence, the apostle implies that Gentiles would repeatedly do certain things that are contained in the law. With this observation, we proceed to consider the two problems of the clause we are considering.
The first problem of the clause of Romans 2:14 when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law is one of translation that affects its interpretation. The problem is with the phrase by nature. So, the question is to determine what the phrase modifies in the Greek sentence. There are two possibilities. The first is that the phrase by nature modifies the word Gentiles so we have the phrase “Gentiles by nature” that is to be understood to mean “by virtue of not being born Jewish.” This view means that the phrase is used adjectivally. This interpretation leads to the translation “Gentiles, who by nature do not have the law, do the things required by the law.” The second possibility is to take the phrase by nature as modifying the word “do” leading to the translation we have in majority of our English versions as typified in the NIV, so we have the reading Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law. This second view means that the phrase by nature is used adverbially. Those who hold to the first view support their position by the stating that in the nine other places where the Greek noun (physis) that means “nature” is used by Apostle Paul, the word is used predominantly in “an adjectival rather than an adverbial sense.” For example, such use is intended in describing those under God’s wrath in Ephesians 2:3:
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
Another support for this first view is that the apostle nowhere else suggests that Gentiles spontaneously observe even some aspects of the law. This, of course, is not a strong argument since using such a criterion would imply that if anything is taught only one place in Scripture, that would mean that it may not be true. Those who take the second view as what the apostle intended support such position by asserting that if using the word as an adjective is what the apostle meant, he could better have the Greek word translated “by nature” within the participial phrase in the Greek that translates in our verse as who do not have the law. Furthermore, it is argued that to take the phrase “by nature” as an adjective here makes for a rather odd sentence, since to add that it was “by birth” that Gentiles do not have the law sets up another redundancy in a verse that is already encumbered by the redundant use of the Greek phrase that translates as “the ones not having the law” and the phrase that translates as “those not having the law.” All in all, the second view makes better sense, and it is the one reflected in our major English versions that did not paraphrase the Geek clause. Thus, we accept the translation given in the NIV as what Apostle Paul had in mind, and so we proceed with the next problem related to this first clause of Romans 2:14.
The second problem of the clause of Romans 2:14 when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law is how to understand what the apostle meant by the word Gentiles. Various interpretations have been offered by scholars. Some say the “Gentiles” here are unbelieving Gentiles who, though they may do some parts of the law, are not saved. Another interpretation is the Gentiles here are Gentile Christians whose works of obedience, though imperfect and not deserving of God’s favor, are still the expression of their faith. Nonetheless, it is our interpretation that when the apostle used the word “Gentiles” he meant Gentiles as a class of people that are normally characterized by not having the Mosaic law as we will demonstrate.
The word “Gentile” the apostle used is translated from a different Greek word than the Greek word he had previously used, translated “Gentiles” either in verse 9 or 10 of this second chapter of Romans. Previously, the apostle used the Greek word (Hellēn) that may refer to persons who are ethnically Greeks and those who are not but have been influenced by Greek education or culture so in a sense it could refer to those who are civilized or educated in some measure. However, in verse 14 the word “Gentiles” is translated from a Greek word (ethnos) that refers to a group of persons united by kinship, culture, and common traditions and so means “nation, people.” It is in the sense of “nation” that the word is used in the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
When the Greek word is used in the plural with the definite article, it refers to people groups foreign to a specific people group. Thus, the word was used in Greek for foreigners. However, in the NT it is used in two ways. It is used for those who do not belong to groups professing faith in the God of Israel so means “Gentiles, pagans.” It is in this sense that the word is used by Apostle Paul when he chastised the Corinthians for the sinful conduct of one of their members as stated in 1 Corinthians 5:1:
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife.
The word is also used to describe non-Israelite Christian, as in Romans 16:4:
They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.
In our context, the word is used to describe Gentiles as a group that generally do not believe in the God of Israel. That our interpretation is correct is supported by what the apostle wrote that we will get to next.
We have noted that the Greek word translated “Gentiles” in Romans 2:14 may also be used to refer to Christians that are not Jewish. The Gentiles, who are Christians, have available the Torah so to indicate that the apostle did not include them in the word “Gentiles” he used, he had to qualify what he meant by Gentiles in a general sense as those as a class do not possess the Torah. It is for this reason he wrote in Romans 2:14 Gentiles, who do not have the law.
The word “have” is translated from a Greek word (echō) that may mean “to possess” as it is used to describe having knowledge in 1 Corinthians 8:1:
Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
The word may mean “to hold” as it is used to describe what should be true of a person appointed a deacon of a local church as it relates to the Christian beliefs as we read in 1 Timothy 3:9:
They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience.
In our passage of Romans 2:14, the word means “to have” or “to possess.”
The thing the apostle says Gentiles do not possess or have, is the law. The word “law” is translated from a Greek word (nomos) that we considered previously as being used in three ways in the Greek NT. It is used for a procedure or practice that has taken hold and so means “a custom, rule, principle, norm.” Another usage of the Greek word translated “law” is for describing the first five books of Moses (i.e., Genesis to Deuteronomy) often known as the Torah. Still another usage of the Greek word translated “law” is as a reference to the entire OT Scriptures. It is the second meaning that refers to Torah and so refers to Jewish law as contained in the first five books of the OT given by Moses that the word “law” is used. The point is that the apostle wants us to be clear that he did not include Gentiles who are believers in the Lord Jesus in his use of the word “Gentiles” in the clause of Romans 2:14 Gentiles, who do not have the law since he meant that Gentiles as a class are those who do not have God’s law or Torah.
Be that as it may, the apostle indicates that Gentiles as a class may act in a way that would justify his point that only those who do what the law requires are declared righteous by God, in support of his point that possession of the law does not mean a person pleases God. The action the apostle ascribed to Gentiles that may occur repeatedly is given in the verbal phrase of Romans 2:14 do by nature things required by the law.
What does the apostle mean in the verbal phrase of Romans 2:14 do by nature things required by the law? We should note that this verbal phrase presents the third problem of the passage we are considering which is; what does the apostle mean in the verbal phrase things required by the law or literally the things of the law? Before we get to the answer that will enable us to interpret what the apostle meant in the verbal phrase do by nature things required by the law, let us consider the word “nature.”
The word “nature” is translated from a Greek word (physis) that is predominantly used in the Greek NT by Apostle Paul in that, of the thirteen occurrences of the Greek word, he used it eleven times. The word may mean condition or circumstance as determined by birth hence may mean “birth” as Apostle Paul used the word to distinguish Jews from Gentiles in Galatians 2:15:
“We who are Jews by birth and not ‘Gentile sinners’
The phrase by birth is literally by nature. The word has the sense of “characteristic” when Apostle Paul used it to describe pagan gods in Galatians 4:8:
Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods.
The word “nature” here refers to one’s essential character or characteristic so that our Greek word has the sense of “characteristic” or “disposition.” The word may mean “specie” or “kind” of animals as it is used in James to describe the taming of various kinds or species of animals in James 3:7:
All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man,
In our passage of Romans 2:14, the word means “natural characteristic/disposition,” so that the apostle is concerned with being guided by natural sense of what is right and proper. This brings to consider what the apostle meant in the verbal phrase things required by the law or literally the things of the law.
To answer the question of what the apostle means by the verbal phrase things required by the law or literally the things of the law, we should remember that Mosaic Law consists of moral, ceremonial, and civil codes. Apostle Paul could not have meant the ceremonial elements of the Mosaic law that are prescribed by God for Israel’s worship of Him. This leaves us to understand that the verbal phrase things required by the law or literally the things of the law refers to some of the moral and civil elements of Mosaic law although there are those who take the phrase to mean all demands of the Mosaic law. The later interpretation is too general since that will then include all civil and ceremonial elements of the Mosaic Law. Hence, it is better to understand that the apostle had in mind some moral and civil elements of Mosaic law.
The understanding that the Greek word translated “nature” in Romans 2:14 means Apostle Paul is concerned with being guided by natural sense of what is right and proper enables us to answer the question: What does the apostle mean in the verbal phrase of Romans 2:14 do by nature things required by the law? He meant that humans know instinctively some things that are wrong or right, so they avoid them. In doing so, they meet the requirements of the law. For example, humans generally know that it is wrong to take the life of another. This instinctive awareness of the wrongness of taking another person’s life was evident in Cain after he killed his brother Abel. It was because he knew it was wrong that he interacted with God the way he did that implied he denied knowing the whereabouts of Abel as we read in Genesis 4:9:
Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
People know instinctively that it is wrong to commit adultery and so for the most part every ancient society frowned on such an act. People know instinctively that it is wrong to steal. Thus, Laban charged Jacob of stealing his household gods as stated in Genesis 31:30:
Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father’s house. But why did you steal my gods?”
It is because humans instinctively know that it is wrong to take another person’s property without the person’s permission that a child would lie about eating candies that the child was not authorized to eat. The point is that humans instinctively know what is right and wrong. So, the apostle meant that people instinctively know what is right or wrong and so would sometimes do what is right when he stated in the verbal phrase of Romans 2:14 do by nature things required by the law.
Be that as it may, the apostle states two implications of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right. The first implication is stated in the sentence of Romans 2:14 they are a law for themselves. This sentence gives the fourth problem of the passage we are studying. Without a doubt, it is difficult to interpret. This may be noted from the fact that many commentators glossed over it. Some of those who did not gloss over it say that it means that Pagans are themselves a way of knowing some of the things prescribed or proscribed by Mosaic law. Others say it means that those in question have demonstrated that they know what should or should not be done. This later interpretation, in my judgment, comes closest to interpreting what the sentence means as that comes closer to what we believe to be the interpretation of the sentence.
We begin our interpretation of the sentence by noting the literal Greek that reads these are law to themselves. The first thing we contend with is to understand the referent in the word these in the literal translation or they in the NIV. The literal word “these” is translated from a Greek demonstrative pronoun (houtos) that may mean “this, this one” as a reference to a person or a thing that has immediately preceded, that is, that has just been mentioned. As a subject, it may be used for third person pronoun so may mean in the singular “he, she, it’ or in the plural “they.” It is in the plural sense that it is used in our passage so has the meaning “they” but understood to refer to some persons previously mentioned. Therefore, the pronoun “they” refers to “Gentiles” despite what may be considered a grammatical difficulty in that the Greek form used for “they” did not match exactly the form used for the word “Gentiles.”
We are certain that the pronoun “they” refers to “Gentiles” mentioned at the beginning of Romans 2:14 because of the clause even though they do not have the law that is literally from the Greek not having (the) law. The Greek indicates that the verbal phrase describes the pronoun “they” or literally “these.” However, the translators of the NIV translated the Greek the way they did to show something surprising that is said about those in view in the sentence we are considering, that is, they are a law for themselves. This aside, the fact remains that because of the Greek phrase translated even though they do not have the law in the NIV or literally, not having (the) law, we know that the pronoun “they” or “these” refers to Gentiles. For, after all, essentially the same Greek verbal phrase rendered who do not have the law used to describe the Gentiles in the first part of verse 14 is one that is translated even though they do not have the law. Hence, we are certain that the pronoun “they” in the sentence they are a law for themselves refers to Gentiles. This brings us to the more difficult part of the sentence which is to understand what the apostle means in the sentence they are a law for themselves. Our approach is to begin with what I consider the least problem and progress to the more difficult problem.
The first problem with interpreting the sentence they are a law for themselves we are considering is the word “law” because of the phrase a law of the NIV. The word “law” is translated from the same Greek word (nomos) that we considered previously as a reference to Torah and so refers to Jewish law as contained in the first five books of the OT given by Moses. However, its use in the sentence we are considering is not a reference to any law in a general sense, but it refers to what God requires whether written down in Scripture or in the conscience of an individual.
The second problem with interpreting the sentence they are a law for themselves is how to interpret the phrase for themselves of Romans 2:14. The Greek form of the word “themselves” used may be literally translated to themselves. There are two possible ways of unpacking this phrase. It could be unpacked to read “with respect to them” or “as far as they are concerned.” The two interpretations are related but it seems that the second interpretation may be intended since that indicates it is the viewpoint associated with those in question is intended in what the apostle wrote in the sentence they are a law for themselves.
The third problem with interpreting the sentence they are a law for themselves is how to interpret the word are in the sentence we are considering. It seems to me that its meaning is necessary in interpreting what the apostle meant in the sentence we are considering. The word “are” is translated from a Greek word (eimi) that may mean “is” as it is used in the Lord Jesus’ declaration about loving anyone more than Him as that which disqualifies a person as a devoted follower of Him or His disciple as we read in Matthew 10:37:
“Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;
The word may mean “to sum up” or “to fulfill” as it is used in the law of doing to others what one would want done to self in Matthew 7:12:
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
The clause for this sums up the Law and the Prophets is literally For this is the law and the prophets so that our Greek word is translated “is.” However, the context suggests that instead of the meaning “is” that the word “fulfill” is appropriate as reflected in the NET that translates the same Greek clause as for this fulfills the law and the prophets. Our Greek word may mean “to represent” as Apostle Paul used it to interpret what Sarah and Hagar represent as it pertains to God’s covenants as we read in Galatians 4:24:
These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar.
The word may mean “to belong” as Apostle Paul used it to describe believers as those who do not belong to the realm of spiritual darkness as we may gather from 1 Thessalonians 5:5:
You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.
Because the context of Romans 2:14 is concerned with doing what the law requires, it is mostly likely that the apostle meant for us to understand the Greek word translated “are” in the sense of “to fulfill.” This interpretation means that when the apostle wrote in Romans 2:14 they are a law for themselves he meant that when the Gentiles that do not have the Torah do what is in keeping with Torah or God’s word, they have fulfilled the law although they did not have the law in a written form. Because the Greek words we considered and our interpretation, the sentence they are a law for themselves may be translated as far as they are concerned, they have fulfilled the law. Our interpretation means that the first implication of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right is that they fulfill the law although they do not have God’s righteous requirements in written form. The apostle was not concerned with one time act on the part of those who do not have the written law but do what is right but that such an action is one that occurs regularly. This we assert because the apostle used a present tense for the Greek word translated “are” in the NIV that we interpreted to mean “to fulfill.” So, we have considered the first implication of those who do not have the written righteous requirements of God when they do what is right.
The second implication of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right is that they provide practical proof of the existence of the law within their hearts. This implication is derived from the first clause of Romans 2:15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts.
The word “since” in the NIV84 does not appear in the Greek and consequently, the NIV2011 does not have the word. Literally, the Greek reads such who show the work of the law written in their hearts. The pronoun “they” in the clause of Romans 2:15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts is translated from a Greek word (hostis) that may refer to “any person” in a generalizing sense hence means “whoever.” It may also refer to “undetermined person belonging to a class or having a status” and so means “who, one who.” The word may serve to give a reason for something so it may mean “since, because” as, for example, in Apostle Paul’s instruction to Titus to silence false teachers in Crete because of the spiritual damage they were doing to believers as recorded in Titus 1:11:
They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain.
The clause because they are ruining whole households is more literally whoever are ruining whole families. In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word is used both to emphasize the characteristic quality that confirms the first implication that those who do not have the law but do what is right indeed fulfill the law and the reason they could do such a thing so that the Greek word may in our verse mean “seeing that they,” or “inasmuch as they” where the pronoun “they” would then refer to those Gentiles that do what is right in spite of not having the law.
The quality that confirms and provides the reason those Gentiles who do what is right, despite not having the law, is what they demonstrate as stated in the Romans 2:15 they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts. The phrase the requirements of the law is literally the work of the law. This is because the word “requirements” is translated from a Greek word (ergon) that may mean “work” in the sense of that which one does as regular activity as Apostle Paul used it to describe the activity of Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:30:
because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.
The word may mean “deed” as that which displays itself in activity of any kind as Apostle Paul used it to describe sinful activities that believers should reject in Ephesians 5:11:
Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word means “manifestation or practical proof.” The manifestation is that of the law as in the phrase the requirements of the law of the NIV. Again, “law” here refers to what God requires whether written down in Scripture or in the conscience of an individual. Thus, the apostle did not mean the Law or Torah as he meant whatever meets God’s righteous demands even if it is not written in the Law. We contend that the apostle was not concerned specifically with the Mosaic Law in the phrase of Romans 2:15 the requirements of the law that literally reads the work of the law. It is interesting that the apostle used the singular word “work” in the phrase the work of the law in contrast to his other usages of the Greek phrase in his epistles. The apostle used together the Greek words translated “work” and “law” in the Greek in a form that requires using the word “of” to relate “work” and “law” eight times in his epistles, four times each, in his epistle to the Romans and to the Galatians, and in all but the verse we are considering that involves singular and positive usage, the Greek word translated “work” appears in the plural with negative connotation. For example, speaking of justification by faith, the apostle used the literal phrase the works of the law in Romans 3:28:
For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.
The phrase observing the law of the NIV84 is literally the works of the law as reflected also in the NIV2011. When the apostle reminded the Galatians who were wavering about justification, he reminded them that justification is by faith and not by works of the law in Galatians 2:16:
know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
In rebuking the Galatians for seeking to be justified by the law, the apostle questioned them regarding the basis of their receiving of the Holy Spirit if it had to do with the works of the law as we read in Galatians 3:2:
I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard?
The phrase observing the law of the NIV84 is literally the works of the law as reflected also in the NIV2011. In the seven usages where the plural is used, the context indicates that the apostle had in mind the Mosaic law, as it is also clear from those he said were under curse as recorded in Galatians 3:10
All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”
Of course, as we have stated severally, the phrase observing the law is more literally the works of the law. Thus, his use of the singular in the literal phrase the work of the law suggests that the apostle was not thinking specifically of Mosaic Law but the righteous demand of God whether written down in Scripture or in the conscience of an individual. Anyway, the phrase of Romans 2:15 the requirements of the law or literally the work of the law refers to the manifestation of what God requires whether written in Scripture or in the conscience of an individual.
The law in view in the phrase of Romans 2:15 the requirements of the law or literally the work of the law is described in the phrase written on their hearts. What does the apostle mean in this phrase? To begin with, the word “written” is not a verb, but it is translated from a Greek adjective (graptos) that pertains to being set down in writing. The word is related to a Greek verb (graphō) that means “to write” or “to express a thought in writing.” However, in our phrase written on their hearts the writing is not on paper but on the hearts of people as in the phrase on their hearts.
The word “heart” is translated from a Greek word (kardia) that may refer to “the center and source of physical life” as what Apostle Paul indicated to the audience in Lystra he preached to, that God satisfied them with food and filled them with joy as recorded in Acts 14:17:
Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”
The word may refer to heart “as center and source of the whole inner life, with its thinking, feeling, and volition.” Thus, in some contexts, the word means “mind” as it is used to describe where doubts originate or exist in a person when Jesus Christ assured His disciples that His resurrection was for real as narrated in Luke 24:38:
He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
The word may even mean “thoughts” as Apostle Paul used it to assure the Thessalonians that although they were separated by space they were in his thoughts and that of those in his team as we read in 1 Thessalonians 2:17:
But, brothers, when we were torn away from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you.
In our passage of Romans 2:15, the word is used in the sense of “the seat of a person’s thoughts (mind), volition, emotions, and knowledge of right from wrong (conscience).”
The meaning of the Greek word translated heart enables us to understand what the apostle meant in the phrase of Romans 2:15 written on their hearts. He meant that God’s righteous demand is made a part of thinking of those who do not have the law in written form but do those things that are part of God’s law or word. The thing the apostle wrote is similar to God’s promise to Israel regarding the new covenant through Prophet Jeremiah as stated in Jeremiah 31:33:
“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
The promise concerned the new covenant was quoted by the human author of Hebrews quoted in Hebrews 10:16:
“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”
Some commentators use the passage in Jeremiah to support their interpretation that the Gentiles in Romans 2:14-15 are Gentile Christians. However, we have already indicated that the word “Gentiles” is used as a reference to the class of people who are not Jews without distinction. Anyway, the point is that those who do what is in accordance with God’s law without it in a written form demonstrate that God’s law is part of their thoughts. Hence, the second implication of people instinctively knowing and doing what is right is that they provide practical proof of the existence of the law within their hearts, that is, that the law of God is part of their thoughts. There is more but we are out of time so we will continue with the section we are studying in our next study but let me end by reminding you of the message of the section we are expounding, which is that God’s judgment of unbelievers is just because they are capable of demonstrating the existence of His law within them and because of the possession of conscience.
11/15/24