Lessons #71 and 72
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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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The True Jew keeps the Law (Rom 2:17-24)
17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
In our introduction of this passage, we indicated that it is the first of the apostle’s discourse of the major theme of his explanation of a true Jew that he discoursed from Romans 2:17 to 3:4. Our passage of study, Romans 2:17-24, as we stated previously, is concerned with expected actions of a true Jew. The apostle states the bases of claiming to be a Jew in verses 17-20. This is followed by questions in verses 21-23 that imply that unless one carries out the requirements of the law, then a person’s claim of being a Jew becomes false. Finally, the apostle ends our section with the consequence of failure to live as a Jew in verse 24. Based on this summary of the passage, we stated that the message Apostle Paul wanted members of the church of Christ in Rome who claim to be of Jewish descent should hear is: A true Jew knows the Law, communicates its contents to Gentiles, while obeying its requirements since failure to do so would lead Gentiles to blaspheme the name of God of Israel. This message, we stated, is applicable to us so that we recast it as: If you claim to be an authenticate Christian, you should know the word of God, convey its applicable aspects to unbelievers, and obey the word since failure to do so would cause unbelievers to blaspheme the name of Jesus Christ. Recall that our use of the phrase “its applicable aspects to unbelievers” in stating the message to believers is to recognize that not everything in the Scripture can be communicated to unbelievers. The primary content of the Scripture that should be communicated to unbelievers is the gospel message although some moral requirements of the Scripture may be communicated to them but with the understanding that they are not usually equipped to live as the believer filled of the Spirit and even if they complied, that would not lead to their salvation.
We began to consider the bases of some Jews claiming to be true Jews. The first activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is reliance in their possession of the law as in the sentence of Romans 2:17 you rely on the law. The second activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is their boast about God in the sense of having knowledge of Him or having relationship with Him as stated in the verbal phrase of Romans 2:17 and brag about your relationship to God. Literally, the Greek reads and boast in God. The third activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is their claim of knowing God’s will or what is in the Torah as stated in Romans 2:18 you know his will. So, we proceed to the fourth.
The fourth activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is their approval or discernment of things in the law as right and superior to any source of knowledge about God. It is this activity that is given in the last clause of Romans 2:18 and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law.
The word “approve” is translated from a Greek word (dokimazō) that may mean to make a critical examination of something to determine its genuineness and so means “to put to the test, examine.” It is in the sense of “to examine oneself” that the word is used in the challenge of Apostle Paul to the Corinthians to check if they are living as Christians should in 2 Corinthians 13:5:
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?
The word may mean to draw a conclusion about the worth of something or someone on the basis of testing, where the focus is on the result of a procedure or examination, hence means “to prove, to approve.” It is in the sense of “to approve, accept as proved” that Apostle Paul used the word to describe a believer he was sending to the Corinthians that he considered to have been proven although he did not say how in 2 Corinthians 8:22:
In addition, we are sending with them our brother who has often proved to us in many ways that he is zealous, and now even more so because of his great confidence in you.
It is in the sense of “prove by testing” that the word is used in 1 Peter 1:7:
These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
In our passage of Romans 2:18, the word is used in sense of “to approve,” that is, “to judge to be right or commendable.”
The thing that is approved or judged to be right or commendable is given in the expression of Romans 2:18 what is superior or literally from the Greek the (things) being valuable. This is because we have a Greek participle that serves as an adjective that is translated from a Greek verb (diapherō) that may mean “to differ, be different” as Apostle Paul used it to indicate that an heir that is a minor is no different from a slave in his analogy that enabled him to declare that believers are heirs of God in Galatians 4:1:
What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate.
The word may mean “to be worth more than” or “to be superior” as the word is used in the teaching of Jesus Christ to believers not to worry about their livelihood since they are worth more than birds that God takes care of, as stated in Matthew 6:26:
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
The two possible meanings of the Greek word that we considered raises the question of how we are to understand the literal Greek phrase of Romans 2:18 that reads the (things) being valuable. Based on the two possible meanings of the Greek word we considered; the Greek literal phrase may be read as either “the things that differ” or “things that excel.” Since the context is concerned with a feeling of superiority on the part of a Jew, it is the second interpretation, that is, “things that excel” that the apostle probably had in mind, implying that the Greek word we considered in Romans 2:18 has the meaning of “to be superior” in one’s advantage over others. This meaning is also applicable in the other epistle of Apostle Paul where the Greek phrase in our passage appears but in the context of the gospel instead of the law in Philippians 1:10:
so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ,
Although what is considered superior is not spelled out in Romans 2:18 or what is compared to, but the context indicates that the contents of the law are what are superior that a Jew would approve or judge to be best among all that is good. Because the object of comparison is not given, the apostle when he wrote the sentence of Romans 2:18 and approve of what is superior meant that the one who claims to be a Jew discerns or judges the contents of the law as right and superior to any source of knowledge about God.
What will cause a Jew to judge right the things in the law that are essential in fulfilling it or what makes the contents of the law excellent? It is because of the knowledge a Jew has received from the law. It is this reason that is given in the clause of Romans 2:18 because you are instructed by the law. The word “because” does not directly appear in the Greek text but it is a way of interpreting a Greek participle used in the verse.
Literally, the Greek reads being taught from the law. This is because the word “instructed” of the NIV is translated from a participle of a Greek verb (katēcheō) that may mean “to inform, report,” that is, “to share a communication that one receives, report, inform” as it is used to incorrectly pass information to the Jews regarding Apostle Paul’s ministry among the Gentiles in Acts 21:21:
They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs.
The word may mean “to teach, instruct” as it is used by Apostle Paul to describe his preferred activity when a local church meets instead of speaking in tongues as stated in 1 Corinthians 14:19:
But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.
It is in the sense of “to teach orally” that the word is used in our passage of Romans 2:18.
Apostle Paul used a participle of the Greek word that we indicated means “to teach orally.” A participle in the Greek is subject to several interpretations in relation to the main action of the sentence in view. In our verse, the Greek participle is subject to at least two possible interpretations. The apostle could mean that the Jew judges right the things in the law that are essential in fulfilling it or what makes the contents of the law excellent at the time such a person receives oral instruction about the law or that such a person approves the law to be superior because of the instruction the person receives from the law. Both interpretations make sense and may well be the case, but the apostle probably wanted to emphasize the reason a Jew would approve or judge the law superior to any source of knowledge about God. The apostle used a present tense in the Greek that here is to be understood that the apostle states what is universally true of any Jew who judges or approves the law as superior source of knowledge of God. It is because such an individual has received instruction from the law.
Anyway, the reason a Jew judges or approves the law as superior is that such a person receives instruction from the law although the NIV used the phrase of Romans 2:18 by the law. This phrase as translated in the NIV implies that the law is doing the oral teaching that is mentioned in the verse we are studying. However, it is better to recognize that the apostle meant that the source of oral teaching or instruction in view in our passage is the law. This is because the word “by” of the NIV is translated from a Greek preposition (ek) that certainly may mean “by” as the effective cause of something as Apostle Paul used it to convey to the Corinthians that they were not harmed by him and his team but were benefited by his epistle to them as stated in 2 Corinthians 7:9:
yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us.
As we have indicated, to use the meaning “by” in Romans 2:18 may imply that the law is the effective cause of the oral teaching. This could not be what the apostle meant. Instead, the apostle would have used the Greek preposition with the meaning “from” to indicate that the law is the source of the oral teaching a Jew receives. This truth is supported by the fact that our Greek preposition is used to describe the acknowledgment of the Jews of receiving their knowledge about Christ from the law as stated in John 12:34:
The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”
The point we are concerned about is that the phrase in the NIV of Romans 2:18 by the law is better translated from the law to avoid any misunderstanding of what the apostle intended to convey.
The rendering of the phrase of Romans 2:18 by the law as from the law implies that the clause because you are instructed by the law we are considering in Romans 2:18 should read because you are instructed from the law. The problem is that the text does not say who does the instructing of the Jew or Jews. However, the context of the Scripture enables us to assert that the person that taught or teaches a Jew from the law is a priest. This is because God assigned the responsibility of teaching the law to the priests as we may gather from Leviticus 10:10–11:
10 You must distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, 11 and you must teach the Israelites all the decrees the LORD has given them through Moses.”
This responsibility of teaching the law by the priests may also be deduced from the threatened judgment that God would bring on Israel as stated in Ezekiel 7:26:
Calamity upon calamity will come, and rumor upon rumor. They will try to get a vision from the prophet; the teaching of the law by the priest will be lost, as will the counsel of the elders.
Thus, it is through the priests that a Jew would receive the oral instruction from the law that enables the individual to possess the knowledge necessary to judge or prove the law superior to any other source of knowledge of God. Of course, Israel had been informed that the law they received from their God is superior to anything that any other nation could have possessed as stated in Deuteronomy 4:8:
And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?
The clause of Romans 2:18 because you are instructed by the law should cause us to recognize that the only way we can attain the state in which we are able to correctly assert the truthfulness of the Christian faith and its superiority over all other faiths that people claim, is to be taught the word of God by those who are competent to do so because they have the spiritual gift of teaching and devote their time to the study of the word of God. It is not enough to have the gift of teaching or to be trained in a seminary, the teacher of God’s word must devote his time to study the word if he is going to accurately communicate with conviction the truth claims of the Christian faith for after all that is what Ezra the priest was known to have done as we may gather from the record of Ezra 7:10:
For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.
The point is that the only source of true knowledge of God and His will that will make the believer informed about God and make believers wise is the Scripture. The psalmist declared this truth in Psalm 119:130:
The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
Apostle Paul conveyed the same truth in what he wrote to Timothy regarding the value of the Scripture in 2 Timothy 3:15–17:
15 and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Again, the fourth activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is their approval or discernment of things in the law as right and superior to any source of knowledge about God or their discernment of what really matters in fulfilling the law. It is this activity that is given in the last clause of Romans 2:18 and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law. In keeping with the message of the section we are considering; we should note that giving approval to the teaching of the Christian faith or recognizing the superiority of the truth of Christian faith does not necessarily mean that a person is a genuine Christian. You may not be hostile to the Christian faith, or you may even speak well of it but unless you have evidence in your life to prove that you are authentic Christian you cannot claim to be an authentic Christian.
The fifth activity that is the basis for some Jews claiming to be true Jews is their conviction of the function or role they carry out, especially towards the Gentiles. The conviction such individuals have is introduced in the conditional clause of the NIV in Romans 2:19 if you are convinced. As we have stated previously, the word “if” in the NIV is interpretative since strictly speaking there is no Greek word that means “if” in the verse that literally the Greek reads and being convinced.
The word “and” used in the literal translation is translated from a Greek particle (te) that may mean “and” although some consider it as a particle that denotes closer affinity clauses or sentences than the more commonly used Greek particle (kai) that means “and.” It is used as “marker of close relationship between sequential states or events” hence may mean “and likewise, and so” as that is the sense of the particle when it is used to describe the observation of the Jewish authorities regarding the courage of two apostles of Jesus Christ as stated in Acts 4:13:
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
The last “and” in this verse is translated from the Greek particle we are considering and so may even mean “and so.” It is in sense of “and likewise” that the particle is used in Romans 2:19 to indicate that what follows is still part of the reason a Jew claims to be an authentic Jew. The implication of this interpretation is that instead of the clause in the NIV of verse 19 if you are convinced the Greek may be translated and likewise being convinced.
The word “convinced” is translated from a Greek word (peithō) that may mean to be won over as a result of persuasion. Thus, the word may mean “to persuade” as Apostle Paul used it to persuade people regarding the fear of the Lord as we have stated in 2 Corinthians 5:11:
Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience.
The word may mean “to be confident” as that which Apostle Paul had in the Lord’s ability to complete what He had begun as stated in Philippians 1:6:
being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
The word may mean “to be convinced” as Apostle Paul used it to describe his confidence in the Lord’s ability to protect him and keep him ready for His second coming as stated 2 Timothy 1:12:
That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.
In our passage of Romans 2:19, the word means “to be convinced,” that is, “to be persuaded or to be sure of the truthfulness of something.” The apostle used a perfect tense in the Greek implying that he was concerned with the present state of the claim of the person or persons addressed.
The one that claims to be a true Jew does so on conviction of something the individual does or the function the individual carries out. There are four mentioned functions those who claim to be true Jews carry out. The first function those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that of being guides to the blind. It is this function that is given in the clause of Romans 2:19 that you are a guide for the blind.
The word “guide” is translated from a Greek word (hodēgos) that may mean “guide” in the sense of “one who leads the way in reaching a desired destination” as it is used to describe Judas Iscariot who led the Jewish officials to where Jesus was staying so they could arrest Him as narrated in Acts 1:16:
and said, “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus—
The word may mean “guide” in the sense of “one who assists another in following a path” as the word is used literally to describe the disastrous consequence of a blind person guiding another in Matthew 15:14:
Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
In our passage of Romans 2:19, it means “guide,” that is, “someone who shows the way by leading or advising.” The apostle did not elaborate on how this guide or advising takes place, probably by pointing out what should be done to keep a pagan from being involved in idolatry.
The individual that is the recipient of the action of the one that claims to be a true Jew, based on this function of guiding, is described in the phrase of Romans 2:19 for the blind. The word “blind” is translated from a Greek word (typhlos) that literally means “blind” in the sense of being unable to see. Figuratively, the word pertains to being unable to understand and so means “incapable of comprehension, blind.” Figuratively, blindness is used in several ways. It can be used to describe a corrupt judge who takes a bribe to pervert justice as stated in Deuteronomy 16:19:
Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.
The word “blind” is used figuratively to describe those involved in idolatry as described by Prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 44:9–10:
9All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. 10Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing?
Those who reject truth can be described as blind as the description applies to Israel’s leaders according to Isaiah 56:10:
Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep.
It is not only Israel’s leaders that were described as blind so also those they led as we may gather from Isaiah 42:18–19:
18“Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! 19Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to me, blind like the servant of the LORD?
Figurative blindness implies spiritual blindness as that is the way the word is used to describe the believer that lacks spiritual virtues as stated in 2 Peter 1:9:
But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
In our passage of Romans 2:19, the word “blind” is used figuratively to describe those who do not adhere to the way of life prescribed in the Mosaic law and so the apostle probably meant the Gentiles as the blind as those that the one that claims to be a true Jew claims to guide. In any event, the first function those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that of being guides to the blind, that is, those who do not adhere to the way of life prescribed in Mosaic Law.
The second function those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that they are bearers of God’s truth to unbelieving Gentiles who are without God’s truth. It is this function that is stated in the clause of Romans 2:19 a light for those who are in the dark. What is it that a Jew claims in this clause? To answer this requires consideration of two key words the apostle used.
The first key word the apostle used is “light” translated from a Greek word (phōs) that means “light” in contrast to “darkness” but that could not be the intended meaning here. So, we need to explore the figurative or symbolic use of light to help our understanding of what Apostle Paul had in mind in the use of the word “light” in the clause a light for those who are in the dark. Light is used as a symbol of good fortune or happiness or relief in Job 30:26:
Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness.
In this passage, light is equated to “good” while darkness is equated to “evil.” In this context, evil that is symbolized with darkness is misfortune or misery so that when Job said in the first line that he hoped for good instead he got evil, he meant that he expected good fortune or happiness but got misery or unhappiness. It is this concept that is repeated in the second clause of the sentence; thus, light is used for good fortune or happiness. Job is different from most people who expect happiness through several forms of entertainments but suffer misery because they reject God and His word.
Light is used to symbolize life or good health in Psalm 13:3:
Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;
Because bright eyes were considered the sign of good health, giving of light to the eyes means restoring one’s life in the sense of strength, health, and vigor. The sense of light symbolizing life is also reflected in Psalm 49:19:
he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light [of life].
Light is used figuratively or symbolically for God’s word as the psalmist used it in Psalm 119:105:
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
Another use of light in symbolic manner is related to understanding or mental excellence. So, light is equated to understanding in Psalm 119:130:
The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
Light is linked with mental excellence in Daniel 5:11:
There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. In the time of your father he was found to have insight and intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods. King Nebuchadnezzar your father — your father the king, I say — appointed him chief of the magicians, enchanters, astrologers and diviners.
The translators of the NIV used the word “insight” for the literal word “light” since the phrase insight and intelligence and wisdom is more literally light and understanding and wisdom.
Still another use of light in symbolic for salvation as that is how Peter used it to describe believers as the recipients of God’s salvation in 1 Peter 2:9:
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Thus, believers, because of their salvation are God’s witnesses so that to be light is equivalent to being a witness for truth or for Christ as implied in the assertion of Jesus Christ regarding His disciples and consequently all believers in Matthew 5:14:
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
Here the Greek word (phōs) translated “light” is used in sense of “light bearer.” So, when our Lord says that believers are the light for the world, He meant that believers serve as His witnesses to the world and the guide for the world. To be a guide to the world is primarily to be a teacher, but from the standpoint of example since it should be difficult to separate what believers are on the inside and what they demonstrate on the outside. In addition to being the witness and the guide for the world, being the light of the world means being completely set apart and unique. It seemed that Apostle Paul used our Greek word that means “light” to convey that the one that claims to be true Jew is a bearer of light in the sense of one that witness to the truth.
The second key word in the clause of Romans 2:19 a light for those who are in the dark is the word “dark” that is translated from a Greek word (skotos) that literally means “darkness” in the sense of absence of light. The apostle could not have used the word in the literal sense in our clause and so we need to focus on the figurative or symbolic use of the word “darkness.” Darkness may symbolize difficulty or trouble in life that brings misery as Job used it to describe part of his trials or suffering in the passage I cited previously, that is, Job 30:26:
Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness.
Darkness can symbolize death and the grave as the psalmist implied in Psalm 88:10–12:
10Do you show your wonders to the dead? Do those who are dead rise up and praise you? Selah
11Is your love declared in the grave, your faithfulness in Destruction? 12Are your wonders known in the place of darkness, or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?
Figuratively, the word may refer to “evil world” as a realm of sin and evil or to sin itself as that is what is meant by darkness in John 3:19:
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.
Darkness, figuratively, refers to sin as that is the sense of the Greek word (skotos) translated “darkness” in Romans 2:19 is used in Romans 13:12:
The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
The phrase the deeds of darkness may be understood as “sinful deeds” that are done at nighttime or out of the view of people. Darkness is used figuratively for ignorance as indicated by psalmist in Psalm 82:5:
“They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
Darkness here can refer either to a state of ignorance or it can refer to unrighteousness, corruption, or evil. Of course, Apostle Paul conceives of unbelievers under the control of Satan as being in darkness, that is, of being ignorant of God’s truth as implied in 1 Thessalonians 5:4:
But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.
The day will come as a surprise to those in ignorance of truth, that is, those in darkness so that darkness is a metaphor for ignorance of truth which characterizes unbelievers. It is not difficult to understand that the apostle views unbelievers as those in a state of darkness for that was what he learned from his commission by the Lord Jesus Christ to preach the gospel, especially, to the Gentiles, as we read in Acts 26:18:
to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
Anyway, Apostle Paul used the word “darkness” in our passage of study Romans 2:19 figuratively in the sense of “ignorance” of God’s truth and so to be in a state of lacking truth of God’s word as evident in the immorality of those involved. Thus, the apostle used the word to describe unbelievers, especially unbelieving Gentiles considering that in the context of this passage the apostle addressed Jews.
We have considered the two key words the apostle used in Romans 2:19 a light for those who are in the dark and so we are in a position to interpret what the apostle meant in the clause. He meant that there are those who claim to be true Jews because they serve as witness of God’s truth to Gentile unbelievers who are ignorant of God’s word, especially as given in the Torah. Such a claim may be due to a Jew applying the function of the Messiah to self that is stated in Isaiah 49:6:
he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
In any event, the second function of those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that they are bearers of God’s truth to unbelieving Gentiles who are without God’s truth.
The third function of those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that they are instructors of the foolish as stated in the phrase of Romans 2:20 an instructor of the foolish. The word “instructor” is translated from a Greek word (paideutēs) that appears only twice in the Greek NT. In its other occurrence, the word has the sense of “a punisher” or “discipliner” as it is used in the proper function of fathers that involves the discipline of their children as it is compared to the discipline of God on His children as stated in Hebrews 12:9:
Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!
In our passage of Romans 2:20, the word is used in the sense of “instructor, teacher” with emphasis on correcting activity. Hence, those who claim to be true Jews see one of their functions as teacher of the foolish.
The word “foolish” in the phrase of Romans 2:20 an instructor of the foolish is translated from a Greek adjective (aphrōn) that pertains to lack of good judgment or not employing one’s understanding, particularly in practical matters and so means “foolish, senseless, unwise.” In the NIV, the word is sometimes translated “fool”, as in Luke 12:20:
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
The phrase you fool is more literally foolish one. The context of this passage enables us to understand that fools or those who are foolish are individuals that do not include God in their plans, as we can derive from the next verse, that is, Luke 12: 21:
“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
The meaning “foolish” is used to indicate lack of understanding. It is in this sense that the word is used in our Lord’s address to the Pharisees who were concerned with things outside than on the inside as narrated in Luke 11:40:
You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?
Apostle Paul also used it to describe those who reject the notion of bodily resurrection in that they fail to apply knowledge of agricultural process with respect to planting of seeds to the concept of resurrection as in the declaration he made in 1 Corinthians 15:36:
How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
Of course, the apostle used the Greek adjective to describe himself although the translators of the NIV used the word “fool” in 2 Corinthians 11:16:
I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting.
The Greek adjective in some context is used to refer to those who oppose God and so are enemies of what is right. It is in this sense that the word is used in 1 Peter 2:15:
For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.
The phrase foolish men in 1 Peter 2:15 refers to the pagans mentioned in verse 12 of 1 Peter 2 that accuse believers of doing wrong because they are doing what the word of God demands of them. Of course, it is not only in the NT that our Greek adjective is used to describe those who oppose God or are rebellious towards Him. Our Greek adjective is used in Septuagint to describe those who rebel against God or those who deny His existence. It is in the sense of those who rebel against God that the word is used in the Septuagint of Jeremiah 4:22:
“My people are fools; they do not know me. They are senseless children; they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil; they know not how to do good.”
The sentence people are fools is more literally my people are foolish. Likewise, phrase senseless children may be translated foolish children. In our passage of Romans 2:20, the word is used in the sense of “ignorant, uninstructed”, especially, with respect to the truth of true religion. The apostle used it to describe Gentiles as those who need to be instructed regarding God’s word. Anyhow, the apostle did not specify how the foolish, that is, the ignorant and uninstructed are instructed by those who claim to be true Jews. That aside, the third function of those who claim to be true Jews because of what role they play is that they are instructors of the foolish, that is, those who are ignorant of the truth of the true religion as stated in the phrase of Romans 2:20 an instructor of the foolish. There is one more function to consider but we are out of time, so we do that in our next study but let me refresh your mind on the message of this section which is: If you claim to be an authenticate Christian, you should know the word of God, convey its applicable aspects to unbelievers, and obey the word since failure to do so would cause unbelievers to blaspheme the name of Jesus Christ.
12/06/24