Paul wrote that people were “without excuse”(ἀναπολόγητος/g0379). That is, they could not argue that they did not sin or they knew enough to worship God (see: Romans 1:20).
In verse 1 and 3, Paul wrote about people who disagreed with the gospel he taught. He wanted people to know that they were Christians, but they were not Jews.
God delayed punishment. That is, people would not be immediately punished for their sins. Instead, God will judge them on judgment day. Instead of immediately punishing people, God gave people time to repent.
Paul wrote that people stored up wrath. That is, the more people sinned, the more they caused God to be angry. God became more angry the more people sinned.
Paul spoke about “incorruptibility”(ἀφθαρσία/g0861). Some scholars think Paul was writing about not sinning (see: Epheshians 6:24). More scholars think Paul was speaking about someone’s body after they are resurrected (see: 1 Corinthians 15:42, 50, 52-54). God would raise his people in bodies that would not decay or die.
Someone who was “self-seeking”(ἐριθεία/g2052) did things they wanted to do, but did not help other people (see: 2 Corinthians 12:20; Galatians 5:20; Philippians 1:17; 2:3).
How was salvation “to the Jew first, and also to the Greek”?
There is no partiality with God. That is God treats all people fairly. He does not favor one person more than another. In ancient Israel, people did not think the Gentiles could be at peace with God. They did not think God would favor them. Paul taught that this was not true.
When Paul wrote about sin without the Law, he was speaking about the Gentiles, who did not try to obey the Law of Moses. God judged the Jews according to if they obey the Law of Moses. However, God judged the Gentiles in a different way.
Certain Gentiles do things of the law by nature. They obeyed the things taught in the Law of Moses even though they did not know the Law of Moses. Scholars think Paul spoke about different things.
1. Some scholars think Paul was speaking about something happening that could not happen. This is because no one could completely obey the Law of Moses.
1. Some scholars think Paul was speaking about living in the right way as much as they could by obeying their conscience.
1. Some scholars think Paul was speaking about Gentile Christians who lived in the right way because they believed in Jesus and God changed them. He made them want to live in a way that honors God.
See: [Gentile](../articles/gentile.md); [Law of Moses](../articles/lawofmoses.md); [Conscience](../articles/conscience.md); [Born Again (New Life, Regeneration)](../articles/bornagain.md)
Paul wrote about someone who named himself a Jew. This was a person who said they were a Jew. Paul was writing as if he was arguing with a Jewish person who thought they were at peace with God because they did good things or because they were a good person.
Paul wrote about someone resting upon the Law. Paul was writing about someone who depended on the obeying the Law of Moses so they could be at peace with God.
In the Bible, blindness and darkness were metaphors for people who did not know God. Paul wrote about people who thought they could help other people know about God and be at peace with God. They could not do this because they did not know God.
See: Matthew 15:14; John 9:39-41; Revelation 3:17-18
Paul wrote about a teacher of little children. This was a metaphor. Little children were children who were very young (see: Matthew 21:16; Ephesians 4:14).Paul was speaking about people who did not understand the things about God or how to live in a way that honors God. The Roman Christians thought they could teach these people. However, they could not teach these people unless they came to believe in Jesus first.
Paul wrote to Jews who thought they were better than the Gentiles. Because of this, they thought they should teach the Gentiles. However, these Jews needed to be taught the right things about God.
Paul wrote about someone robbing temples. Some scholars think Paul was speaking about Jews who did not pay the money they owed to the temple in Jerusalem (see: Malachi 3:8). Other scholars think they stole money from temples to false god. still others believe that it meant taking gold and silver derived from idol worship into their homes (see: Deuteronomy 7:25-26).
Paul said that the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles. He wanted people to know that the things the Jews did harmed the Gentiles. They caused the Gentiles to think the wrong things and say the wrong things about God. The Jews caused the Gentiles to sin.
The “circumcision” were Jews and the “uncircumcision” were Gentiles (see: Ephesians 2:11). Paul wanted the Jews to know that they were not better than the Gentiles because they did not obey God. The Jews thought the Gentiles did not obey God.
Paul wrote about a circumcision that was merely outward. He wanted people to know that if someone cut off the end of their penis but did not obey God, then they were not circumcised to obey God. They only cut off the end of their penis.
Paul wrote about a person who was at peace with God. Some scholars think Paul wanted people to know that anyone who was at peace with God was a Jew in some way. Gentiles could be Jews in some way. Other scholars think the Gentiles could not be Jews, even if they obeyed God.
Paul wrote about a circumcision of the heart. He was writing about God changing a person after they believe in Jesus. They want to live in a way that honors God. This is what God wanted. He did not want people to follow the Law of Moses unless they were doing it to honor God.
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