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Romans 13 General Notes
Structure and formatting
In Judaism, there was a close and intended connection between the government and the religion of the people of Israel. Christianity does not usually have this same connection and makes no provision for it. Paul felt that it was important to instruct Christians how to live under an ungodly ruler. This is the focus of the first part of this chapter. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/ungodly)
Special concepts in this chapter
Ungodly rulers
Some of the concepts about ungodly rulers in this chapter may be difficult to understand, especially in cultures where the church is persecuted by the government. Christians must obey both God and their rulers. Some times rulers can be disobeyed but there are times when a believer must submit to these ruler and suffer at their hands. This is because the Christian understands that this world is temporary and they will ultimately spend eternity with God. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/eternity)
Other possible translation difficulties in this chapter
Flesh
This is a complex issue and it is possible that "flesh" is a metaphor for a person's sinful nature. It is not the physical part of man that is sinful and it appears Paul is teaching that while man remains alive ("in the flesh"), he will remain sinful regardless of his effort, but his new nature will be fighting against his old nature. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/flesh and rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/sin)