All will be rewarded or punished 1 WHEREFORE you are inexcusable, O man, whosoever you are that judge. For wherein you judge another, you condemn yourself. For you do the same things which you judge. 2 For we know that the judgment of God is, according to truth, against them that do such things. 3 And do you think this, O man, that judge them who do such things, and do the same, that you shall escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you despise the riches of his goodness, and patience, and longsuffering? Do you know not, that the benignity of God leads you to penance? 5 But according to your hardness and impenitent heart, you treasure up to yourself wrath, against the day of wrath, and revelation of the just judgment of God. 6 Who will render to every man according to his works. 7 To them indeed, who according to patience in good work, seek glory and honour and incorruption, eternal life: 8 But to them that are contentious, and who obey not the truth, but give credit to iniquity, wrath and indignation. 9 Tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that works evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Greek. 10 But glory, and honour, and peace to every one that works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no respect of persons with God. 12 For whosoever have sinned without the law, shall perish without the law; and whosoever 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, who have not the law, do by nature those things that are of the law; these having not the law are a law to themselves: 15 Who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness to them, and their thoughts between themselves accusing, or also defending one another, 16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.
The Jews transgress the Law 17 But if you are called a Jew and rest in the law, and make your boast of God, 18 And know his will, and approve the more profitable things, being instructed by the law, 19 Are confident that you yourself are a guide of the blind, a light of them that are in darkness, 20 An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, having the form of knowledge and of truth in the law. 21 You therefore that teach another, teach not yourself: you that preach that men should not steal, but you steal: 22 You that say, men should not commit adultery, commit adultery: you that abhor idols, commit sacrilege: 23 You that make your boast of the law, by transgression of the law dishonour God. 24 (For the name of God through you is blasphemed among the Gentiles, as it is written.) (Is 52:5)
True circumcision 25 Circumcision profits indeed, if you keep the law; but if you be a transgressor of the law, your circumcision is made uncircumcision. 26 If, then, the uncircumcised keep the justices of the law, shall not this uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? 27 And shall not that which by nature is uncircumcision, if it fulfil the law, will you judge who by the letter and circumcision are a transgressor of the law? 28 For it is not he is a Jew, who is so outwardly; nor is that circumcision which is outwardly in the flesh: 29 But he is a Jew, that is one inwardly; and the circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Commentary on Romans 2
2:1-3 Isidore says (De Summo Bono 3.32): "He that is subject to vice should not correct the vices of others." to correct a wrongdoer belongs to a man, in so far as his reason is gifted with right judgment. Now sin does not destroy the good of nature so as to deprive the sinner's reason of all right judgment, and in this respect he may be competent to find fault with others for committing sin. Nevertheless a previous sin proves somewhat of a hindrance to this correction, for three reasons. First because this previous sin renders a man unworthy to rebuke another; and especially is he unworthy to correct another for a lesser sin, if he himself has committed a greater. Hence Jerome says on the words, "Why do you see the mote?" etc. (Mat. 7:3): "He is speaking of those who, while they are themselves guilty of mortal sin, have no patience with the lesser sins of their brethren." Secondly, such like correction becomes unseemly, on account of the scandal which ensues therefrom, if the corrector's sin be well known, because it would seem that he corrects, not out of charity, but more for the sake of boastfulness. Hence the words of Mat. 7:4, "How do you say to your brother?" etc. are expounded by the author of the Opus Imperfectum thus: "That is---'With what object?' Out of charity, do you think, that you may save your neighbor?" No, "because you would look after your own salvation first. What you want is, not to save others, but to hide your evil deeds with good teaching, and to seek to be praised by men for your knowledge." Thirdly, on account of the rebuker's pride; when, for instance, a man thinks lightly of his own sins, and, in his own heart, sets himself above his neighbor, judging the latter's sins with harsh severity, as though he himself were just man. Hence Augustine says (De Serm. Dom. in Monte 2.19): "To reprove the faults of others is the duty of good and kindly men: when a wicked man rebukes anyone, his rebuke is the latter's acquittal." And so, as Augustine says: "When we have to find fault with anyone, we should think whether we were never guilty of his sin; and then we must remember that we are men, and might have been guilty of it; or that we once had it on our conscience, but have it no longer: and then we should bethink ourselves that we are all weak, in order that our reproof may be the outcome, not of hatred, but of pity. But if we find that we are guilty of the same sin, we must not rebuke him, but groan with him, and invite him to repent with us." It follows from this that, if a sinner reprove a wrongdoer with humility, he does not sin, nor does he bring a further condemnation on himself, although thereby he proves himself deserving of condemnation, either in his brother's or in his own conscience, on account of his previous sin. (St. Thomas Aquinas Sum Theo 2.33.5)
2:4 For God shows His goodness that you may get free from your sins, not that you may add to them. If then you do not make use of it, the judgment will be more fearful. Wherefore it is a chief ground for abstaining from sin, that God is long-suffering, and not for making the benefit a plea for obstinacy. For if He be long-suffering, He most certainly punishes. (St. John Chrysostom)
2:5 The gloss [Glossa Ordinaria] says that by hardness and impenitent heart is meant a sin against the Holy Spirit, which is unforgivable. (St. Thomas Aquinas) you treasure up to yourself wrath: Paul says this, so making it plain what is certainly laid up, and showing that it is not He that judges, but he that is condemned, who is the author of this. For he says, you store up for yourself, not God for you. For He did all, whatsoever things were fitting, and created you with a power to discern between good and what was not so, and showed long-suffering over you, and called you to repentance, and threatened a fearful day, so by every means drawing you to repentance. (St. John Chrysostom)
2:6 For in the age to come a man can give nothing in exchange for his soul. Here one can give tears, sighs, and alms, but there, nothing. For it is a Judge who takes no bribes that will receive us, and He judges each one according to his deeds. (Theophylact Com Mt 16:27) This He said to call to their minds not only the punishment of sinners, but the prizes and crowns of the righteous. (St. John Chrysostom Hom Mt 16:27)
2:7 incorruption: Paul added incorruption, so that people would realize that the glory and honor which they will obtain will be of a different order altogether, when it is accompanied by immortality. In this life honor and glory are frequently lost, for the one who gives them, the things he gives and the one who receives them are all mortal, but on the day of God’s judgment, all those things will be given to the immortal and will be eternal. (Ambrosiaster)
2:9 of the Jew first: A greater punishment was due the Jews as knowing God’s will through the Law: "That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make ready or act according to his will shall receive a severe beating" Lk 12:47. Similarly, Christians are punished more severely than unbelievers for the same sin, such as, adultery or theft: "How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by the man who has spurned the son of God and profaned the blood of the covenant in which he was sanctified?" Heb 10:29. But as to total punishment, that of unbelievers is more severe on account of the sin of unbelief, which is the gravest. (St. Thomas Aquinas) |
2:11 God considers Jew and Gentile the same in regard to punishment and glory, because God does not judge according to persons, but according to merits, and he condemns both according to manner of sin. (Glossa Ordinaria)
2:12 who have sinned without the law: without the written law of Moses, the Gentiles. shall perish without the law: will be condemned, but not for transgression of the written law. whoever have sinned under the law: the Jews, who have the written law. judged by the law: for transgression of the law, which makes their sins worse. (Interlinear Gloss)
2:13 doers of the law shall be justified: But this point seems to conflict with his own statement below Rom 3:20 that "no human being will be justified in his sight by the works of the law." Consequently, no one is justified precisely for doing the works of the Law. The answer is that justification can be taken in three ways: in one way, in regard to reputation; then one is said to be justified, when he is regarded as just: "You have made your sisters appear justified," that is, by reputation Ez 16:51. In this sense, the doers of the law are justified, that is, are considered just before God and men. Secondly, by doing what is just: "This man went down to his home justified" Lk 18:14, because the publican performed a work of justice by confessing his sin. In this way is verified the statement that the doers of the law will be justified, that is, by performing the justices of the Law. In a third way justification can be considered in regard to the cause of justice, so that a person is said to be justified, when he newly receives justice, as in Rom 5:1: "Since we are justified by faith, we are at peace with God." It must not be supposed, however, that the doers of the Law are justified as though acquiring justice through the works of the Law. This cannot be accomplished either by the ceremonial works, which confer no justifying grace, or by the moral works, from which the habit of justice is not acquired; rather, we do such works in virtue of an infused habit of justice. (St. Thomas Aquinas)
2:14 do by nature: Illuminated by natural reason, they distinguish between what should be done and what should be avoided, which the law also did. (Origen)
2:15-16 He asserts that there is a mental debate when we decide by lengthy deliberation what we ought to do and what we ought not to do, and that we should be judged according to this on the day of the Lord, because it proves that we were not ignorant of good or evil. Or: On the day of judgement our conscience and our thoughts shall lie before our eyes like lessons of history to be learnt; they will either accuse us or in fact excuse us. (Pelagius)
2:17-24 Here he addresses the Jews, accusing them of graver sin because they had more divine assistance. guide of the blind: Here he calls the Gentiles blind... although they know something, they are in darkness. (Glossa Ordinaria) sacrilege: Sacrilege is something that is committed strictly against God, as a violation of the sacred. (Pelagius) And by abusing the things of divine worship. (St. Thomas Aquinas) And this was done by denying Christ, by giving the worship of God to idols, which the Jews often did. (Interlinear Gloss)
2:24 Some refer this this to Ez 35:20, others to Is 52:5. Most likely, it is a mere allusion to these passages and other similar ones of Holy Scripture, in which God complains of the dishonor reflected on Him among the Gentiles from the sins of the Jews. The words of this verse are taken literally from Is 52 according to the Greek Septuagint version. (Bishop John McEvilly) The Jews blasphemed the name of God among the Gentiles when they tried to persuade believers that Christ should not be called God. Or this happened at the time of the prophet, when the Gentiles were unaware that the Jews had been handed over to them on account of the Jews’ own offenses, and the Gentiles were giving glory to their own idols for the victory as if they had defeated the God of the Jews with the Jews. (Glossa Ordinaria)
2:26 The visible needs the invisible, but the invisible does not need the visible, because the visible is an image of the invisible, and the invisible is the reality of the visible. The circumcision of the flesh, therefore, needs the circumcision of the heart, but the circumcision of the heart does not need the circumcision of the flesh, because the reality does not need the image, but the image needs the reality. (Pelagius)
2:28-29 By saying this he sets aside all things bodily. For the circumcision is outwardly, and the sabbaths and the sacrifices and purifications: all of which he hints in a single word, when he says, For he is not a Jew which is one outwardly. But since much was made of the circumcision, inasmuch as even the sabbath gave way to it John 7:22, he has good reason for aiming more especially against it. But when he has said in the spirit he thereafter paves the way for the conversation of the Church, and introduces the faith. For it too is in the heart and spirit and has its praise of God... For when the Greek is saved without these, but the Jew with these is yet punished, Judaism stands by doing nothing. And by Greek he again means not the idolatrous Greek, but the religious and virtuous, and free from all legal observances. (St. John Chrysostom) |
Catechism Cross-reference
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