ROMANS 16 COMMENTARY

I. CONCLUDING GREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS (1-24)

A. He commends Phoebe unto them. (1,2)

1. A servant of the church at Cenchrea, the eastern seaport of Corinth. Was she an "official deaconess?" To be selected for a specific work does not necessarily make a person an officer of the church.

2. That they might receive her in a worthy manner, for she has helped many, including Paul. She was on her way to Rome on some business and she was to be treated as a worthy Christian should be treated.

B. Greetings to Prisca and Aquila and the church in their house. (3-5a)

1. Fellow-workers with Paul in the Lord (Acts 18:1-3; 18:24-26).

2. They had risked their lives for Paul's sake - how, we do not know. It could have happened during the uproar in Ephesus (Acts 19:33-41). They, along with many others mentioned here by Paul had been personally known by Paul in other places.

3. The church was meeting in their house. This house-church was common during the first century.

C. Miscellaneous greetings - Paul takes time in these salutations to point out outstanding traits of some individuals. (5b-16)

1. Epaenetus - first Asian convert.

2. Mary - a hard worker.

3. Paul's own relatives, Andronicus and Junias, were converted before Paul and were well known to the Apostles.

4. Ampliatus - a beloved brother

5. Urbanus and Stachys

6. Apelles - an approved servant of Christ

7. The household of Aristobulus

8. Herodian - Paul's relative

9. The Christian members of the household of Narcissus

10. Tryphaena and Tryphosa, Persis - laborers in the Lord.

11. Rufus and his mother, who had been as a mother to Paul.

12. Four additional brethren by name and their companions in the Lord.

13. Another band of saints. It is probable that these last two groups are house-churches.

14. The common method of salutation was a kiss. Paul demanded that this kiss be holy, not sensual. From this list we see many faithful in Rome were already known to Paul.

D. Caution against those who cause division. (17-20)

1. Keep your eye on them and turn away from them. Evidently, from the previous chapters, these troublemakers were Judaizing teachers. Paul indicates that these are not to be fellowshipped. "Contrary to the doctrine," did and does cover a wide field of error that many would try to bring into the church.

2. The sinner is the one who introduces these things, not the ones who combats them. Works such as these are of man and are in the interests of man, not God. By appearing to show interest in the people and by use of beguiling speech, the trusting and unsuspecting can be easily deceived (2 Cor. 11:14,15; Col. 2:4; 2 Pet. 2:3).

3. Be wise in what is good and God will crush Satan under his feet. The reputation of the church at Rome was good and widely circulated. Any bad influence or scandals they allowed to break out in their midst would have adverse effects throughout the world. It was important then for them to be able to distinguish between good and evil. If you are wise unto that which is good, you'll know evil without being a participant (He. 5:14; Is. 5:20,21). By turning away from evil, they could triumph over it. These things could be accomplished during their lifetime.

E. Companions of Paul greet the church at Rome. (21-24)
Timothy was with Paul at Corinth when this letter was written. Lucius, Jason, and Sopater may be those mentioned in Acts 13:1; 17:7-9; 20:4. These are referred to as Paul's relatives. Paul generally dictated his letters to a secretary. Tertius, the secretary, joins in the greeting. The Gaius mentioned here is probably the one of 1 Cor. 1:14 not Acts 20:4 or 19:29. It is possible that this Erastus is the one mentioned in Acts 19:22 and 2 Tim. 4:20. Some commentators opt for at least two men named Erastus. Quartus is named only here. Verse 24 is omitted from many ancient manuscripts.


II. FINAL PRAISE GIVEN TO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST (25-27)

It was Paul's custom to conclude his letters in his own handwriting (Col. 4:18; 2 Thes. 3:17). "My gospel" as opposed to the Judaized version. His gospel included the preaching commanded of him by Jesus Christ. Prophecy had revealed that the Jew and Gentile were to share in God's blessing, but it took the gospel to reveal how this would be accomplished (Eph. 3:1-8). Paul is the one responsible for making manifest the truth concerning how the kingdom of the Messiah was to be shared among all men. Paul's mission confirms Jesus' commands of Mt. 28:18; Mk. 16:15,16; Lu. 24:46,47. The "obedience of faith" is obedience to the gospel. Now let's read 25(a) and 27 as one sentence. This confirms our selection of Rom. 1:16,17 as the key passage of the entire letter.