TEXT.

29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

31 Without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

32 Who knowing the judgment of God (that they which commit such things are worthy of death) not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

PARAPHRASE.

29 Being filled with all manner of iniquity, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, malice, full of envy, contention, deceit, 30 malignity, even to murder, Backbiters, haters of God, insulters

of men, proud, boasters, inventors of new arts of debauchery, 31 disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful : 32 Who, though they acknowledge the rule of right" prescribed them by God, and discovered by the light of nature, did not yet understand that those, who did such things, were worthy of death, do not only do them themselves, but live well to

NOTES.

32 u To Sixαíwμa тou ou, "the judgment of God;" might it not be translated the rectitude of God, i. e. that rule of rectitude which God had given to mankind, in giving them reason? as that righteousness, which God requires for salvation in the Gospel, is called "the righteousness of God," ver. 17. Rectitude, in the translation, being used in this appropriated sense, as dixalupa is in the original. Vid. note, chap. ii. 26.

w Oùx ivónσav ör, did not understand that they who commit, &c. This reading is justified by the Clermont, and another ancient мs. as well as by that which the old Latin version followed, as well as Clement, Isidore, and Ecumenius : and will, probably, be thought the more genuine by those, who can hardly suppose that St. Paul should affirm, that the Gentile world did know, that he, who offended against any of the directions of this natural rule of rectitude, taught, or discoverable by the light of reason, was worthy of death; especially if we remember what he says, chap. v. 13, "That sin is not imputed when there is no positive law," and chap. vii. 9, "I was alive without the law, once:" both which places signifying, that men did not know death to be the wages of sin, in general, but by the declaration of a positive law.

* Σuveudoxoũσs Tois wpáσσovci, “have pleasure in those that do them.” He that considers, that the design of the apostle here, manifest in the immediately following words, is to combat the animosity of the Jews against the Gentiles; and that there could not be a more effectual way to shame them into a more modest and mild temper, than by showing them that the Gentiles, in all the darkness that blinded them, and the extravagancies they ran into, were never guilty of such an absurdity as this, to censure and separate from others, and show an implacable aversion to them, for what they themselves were equally guilty of:

TEXT

II. 1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest dost the same thing.

PARAPHRASE.

gether, without any mark of disesteem, or censure, with them II. I that do them. Therefore, thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art, that judgest or censurest another; for

NOTES.

a

he, I say, that considers this, will be easily persuaded to understand ouvrudaxcüsi here as I do, for a complacency, that avoided censuring, or breaking with them, who were in the same state and course of life with themselves, that did nothing amiss, but what they themselves were equally guilty of. There can be nothing clearer than that σuvudoxo, have pleasure, in this verse, is opposed to xpíveis, judgest, in the next verse, without which I do not see how it is possible to make out the inference which the apostle draws here.

1 y “Therefore." This is a term of illation, and shows the consequence here, drawn from the foregoing words. Therefore the Jew is inexcusable in judging, because the Gentiles, with all the darkness that was on their minds, were never guilty of such a folly as to judge those who were no more faulty than themselves. For the better understanding of this place, it may not, perhaps, be amiss to set the whole argumentation of the apostle here in its due light: it stands thus: "the Gentiles acknowledged the rectitude of the law of nature, but knew not that those, who break any of its rules, incurred death by their transgression; but, as much in the dark as they were, they are not guilty of any such absurdity, as to condemn others, or refuse communication with them, as unworthy of their society, who are no worse than themselves, nor do any thing but what they themselves do equally with them, but live in complacency, on fair terms with them, without censure or separation, thinking as well of their condition as of their own; therefore, if the blinded heathen do so, thou, O Jew, art inexcusable, who having the light of the revealed law of God, and knowing by it, that the breaches of the law merit death, dost judge others to perdition, and shut them out from salvation, for that, which thou thyself art equally guilty of, viz. disobedience to the law. Thou, a poor, ignorant, conceited, fallible man, sittest in judgment upon others, and committest the same things thou condemnest them for but this thou mayest be sure, that the judgment and condemnation of God is right and firm, and will certainly be executed upon those who do such things. For thou, who adjudgest the heathen to condemnation for the same things which thou dost thyself, canst thou imagine that thou thyself shalt escape the same judgment of God? God, whatever thou mayest think, is no respecter of persons: both Jews as well as Gentiles, that are perversely contentious against others, and do not themselves obey the Gospel, shall meet with wrath and indignation from God; and Gentiles, as well as Jews, whom the goodness and forbearance of God bringeth to repentance, and an humble, submissive acceptance of the Gospel, shall find acceptance with God, and eternal life, in the kingdom of the Messias; from which, if thou art contentious to shut out the Gentiles, thou manifestly shuttest out thyself."

z "O man, whosoever thou art." It is plain from ver. 17 and 27, and the whole tenour of this chapter, that St. Paul, by these words, means the Jews; but there are two visible reasons, why he speaks in these terms: 1st, he makes his conclusion general, as having the more force, but less offence, than if he had

TEXT.

2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth, against them which commit such things.

3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and dost the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness, and forbearance, and long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

PARAPHRASE.

wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself: for thou, that judgest, art alike guilty, in doing the same things. 2 But this we are sure of, that the judgment that God passes upon any offenders is according to truth, right and just. 3 Canst thou, who dost those things which thou condemnest in another, think that. thou shalt escape the condemning sentence 4 of God? Or slightest thou the riches of his goodness, forbearance, and long-suffering, not knowing, nor considering, that the goodness of God ought to lead thee to repentance?

NOTES.

bluntly named the Jews, whom he is very careful, in all this epistle, to treat in the softest manner imaginable. 2dly, He uses the term, man, emphatically, in opposition to God, in the next verse.

"Judgest." There will need nothing to be said to those who read this epistle with the least attention, to prove, that the judging, which St. Paul here speaks of, was, that aversion, which the Jews generally had to the Gentiles; so that the unconverted Jews could not bear with the thoughts of a Messias, that admitted the heathen, equally with them, into his kingdom; nor could the converted Jews be brought to admit them into their communion, as the people of God, now equally with themselves: so that they generally, both one and the other, judged them unworthy the favour of God, and out of a capacity to become his people any other way but by circumcision and an observance of the ritual parts of the law, the inexcusableness and absurdity whereof St. Paul shows in this chapter.

2" According to truth," doth, I suppose, signify not barely a true judgment, which will stand in opposition to an erroneous, and that will not take effect, but something more, i. e. according to the truth of his predictions and threats. As if he had said, "But if God in judgment cast off the Jews from being any longer his people, we know this to be according to his truth, who hath forewarned them of it. Ye Jews judge the Gentiles not to be received into the people of God, and refuse them admittance into the kingdom of the Messias, though you break the law, as well as they; you judge as prejudiced, passionate men. But the judgment of God against you will stand firm." The reason why he does it so covertly, may be that which I have before mentioned, his great care not to shock the Jews, especially here in the beginning, till he had got fast hold upon them. And hence possibly it is, that he calls obeying the Gospel obeying the truth, ver. 8, and uses other the like soft expressions in this chapter.

TEXT.

5 But, after thy hardness and impenitent heart, treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;

6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

7 To them who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile:

PARAPHRASE.

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5 But layest up to thyself wrath and punishment, which thou wilt meet with, at the day of judgment, and that just retribution, which shall be awarded thee by God, in proportion to thy 6 impenitency, and the hardness of thy heart; Who will retri7 bute to every one according to his works, viz. Eternal life to all those who by patience and gentleness in well-doing seek 8 glory and honour, and a state of immortality: But to them who are contentious and forward, and will not obey the truth, but subject themselves to unrighteousness; indignation 9 and wrath; Tribulation and anguish shall be poured out upon every soul of man that worketh evil, of the Jew first, and also 10 of the Gentile. But glory, honour, and peace, shall be bestowed on every man, that worketh good, on the Jew first,

C

NOTES.

7 Patience, in this verse, is opposed to contentious* in the next, and seems principally to regard the Jews, who had no patience for any consideration of the Gentiles, but, with a strange peevishness and contention, opposed the freedom of the Gospel, in admitting the believing Gentiles to the franchises of the kingdom of the Messias, upon equal terms with themselves.

8 Though by "truth," the Gospel be here meant, yet I doubt not but St. Paul, used the term, truth, with an eye to the Jews, who though some few of them received the Gospel, yet even a great part of those few joined with the rest of their nation in opposing this great truth of the Gospel, that, under the Messias, the Gentiles, who believed, were the people of God as well as the Jews, and as such were to be received by them.

e

9, 10 * “ The Jew first, and also the Gentile." We see, by these two verses, and chap. i. 16, that St. Paul carefully lays it down, that there was now, under the Gospel, no other national distinction between the Jews and the Gentiles, but only a priority in the offer of the Gospel, and in the design of rewards and punishments, according as the Jews obeyed, or not. Which may farther satisfy us, that the distinction, which St. Paul insists on so much here, and all through the first part of this epistle, is national; the comparison being between the Jews, as nationally the people of God; and the Gentiles, as not the people of

TEXT.

11 For there is no respect of persons with God.

12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law; and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the

law;

13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.

14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:

PARAPHRASE.

11 and also on the Gentile. For with God there is no respect of 12 persons. For all that have sinned without having the positive law of God, which was given the Israelites, shall perish f without the law; and all who have sinned, being under the 13 law, shall be judged by the law, (For the bare hearers of the law are not thereby just or righteous in the sight of God, but the doers of the law; they who exactly perform all that is 14 commanded in it shall be justified. For when the Gentiles, who have no positive law given them by God, do, by the direction of the light of nature, observe or keep to the moral

NOTES.

God, before the Messias: and that, under the Messias, the professors of Christianity, consisting most of converted Gentiles, were the people of God, owned and acknowledged as such by him, the unbelieving Jews being rejected, and the unbelieving Gentiles never received; but that yet personally both Jews and Gentiles, every single person, shall be punished for his own particular sin, as appears by the two next verses.

12 'Amoλouvas, “shall perish;" xçıvтα, "shall be judged." Those under the law, St. Paul says, "shall be judged by the law;" and this is easy to conceive, because they were under a positive law, wherein life and death were annexed, as the reward and punishment of obedience and disobedience; but of the Gentiles, who were not under that positive law, he says barely, that "they shall perish." St. Paul does not use these so eminently differing expressions for nothing; they will, I think, give some light to chap. v. 13, and my interpretation of it, if they lead us no farther.

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14 5 Mỳ vómov Exoyles, ❝ having not the law," or not having a law. The apostle by the word law, generally, in this epistle, signifying a positive law, given by God, and promulgated by a revelation from heaven, with the sauction of declared rewards and punishments annexed to it, it is not improbable, that in this verse, (where, by the Greek particle, he so plainly points out the law of Moses) by 6μog, without the article, may intend law in general, in his sense of a law, and so this verse may be translated thus: " for when the Gentiles, who have not a law, do by nature the things contained in the law; these, not having a law, are a law to themselves." And so ver. 12, "As many as have sinned, being under a law, shall be judged by a law." For though, from Adam to Christ, there was no revealed, positive law, but that given to the Israelites; yet it is certain that, by Jesus Christ, a positive law from heaven is given to all mankind, and that those to whom this has been promulgated, by the preaching of the Gospel, are all under it, and shall be judged by it.