Romans 13 Commentary
Please choose a passage:
Romans 13:1-2
As Christians, we should obey the laws of our earthly government. The existing authorities were put there by God. If we break the law, we are defying God, and we’re not exempt from punishment.
Romans 13:3-5
The government is meant to make laws that punish evil actions. If we want to feel safe in our country, we should obey the laws. The government’s job is to act on God’s behalf to enact justice. If we break the law, we rightly should feel worried.
Romans 13:6-7
Obeying the law means paying our taxes. We need to pay what we owe to those in charge of us, both money and respect.
Romans 13:8-10
Love fulfills the Law. If we love one another, we can live righteously and harmoniously with each other. Jesus said the same thing, that in loving God and one another we fulfill the Law.
Romans 13:11-14
We should live righteously, harmoniously together through faith because we will soon be with God. Paul has shown us how we should live and is now telling us to live this way because the day is approaching—the day of our glorification when we come to the presence of God.
Additional Resources
The Apostle Paul writes to the world-renowned believers in Rome, the center of the world at that time, in order to answer a slanderous charge made to them against Paul and his message. Paul’s detractors claim his emphasis on faith overturns the law. Paul says that ” just living by the law” does not achieve personal justice before God, while “just living by faith” does. Paul then demonstrates what a just life looks like: harmonious living with Jesus as the leader. Paul also makes clear the choice a believer has: to walk in faith and the power of the resurrection and experience resurrection life, or walk in sin and unnecessarily experience the negative consequences.
God instituted government, and appoints authorities to serve the purpose of promoting good and punishing evil. When evil is punished by government, that is the wrath of God being executed. As believers, we should look for opportunities to obey the laws of the land, and serve as good examples. To the extent we are or have influence on governmental authority, it is our job to advocate that the government actually do its job properly, to promote good and punish evil.
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