Notes of the study of Romans 1

1. The Study of Romans 1-2:20
By Jean Smith
In Chapter 3:18 St. Paul tells us still responding to objections raised by
an imaginary Jewish questioner. What makes it difficult to follow is the
fact that the reply to each question gives rise to the next objection.
Read 1-4. Here the questioner asks, if Jews as well as the Gentiles are
going to be rewarded or punished according to their deeds, then in
what way is the Jew better off? The Apostle replies that the Jewish
people if they were alone were given revelation by God for them to
pass it on to other nations. God gave the mission to the entire Jewish
nation not just a few. Paul answers in verse 2 that there are great
benefits to being a Jew. "Great in every respect." Then he begins a list
of advantages (verse 2b), but he only mentions one thing: "First of all
that they were entrusted with the oracles of God." Paul stops here
because he intends to finish this list later (in 9:4-5). In fact, this whole
problem of whether God is being faithful to his covenant with Israel in
the work of Christ is taken up in Romans 9-11, so that Romans 3:1-8 is
just a brief detour to deflect the criticism until he gets to Romans 9.
In verses 5-8 the imaginary questioner now goes on to raise a new
objection, but he is merely over simplifying and is narrow-minded. He
argues that if human wickedness does God no harm, but actually
highlights his justice, then God is unjust VV5&7) St. Paul counters with
another question that he uses to show that his opponent has no case, if
it were unjust for God to punish men’s sins, how could he be the judge

2. of the entire human race? This argument carries a lot of weight with a
Jew for according to the Old Testament, God will in fact judge all men.
Finally St. Paul replies that if his questioner’s false reasoning is pushed
to its logical conclusion one would need to do evil to achieve good.
Anyone who says that is wrong. Certainly the arguer doesn’t
understand.
3-8
St Paul’s adversaries accuse him of having spoken that evil has to be
committed for good, taught is God’s taught and justice to be made
manifest. This is a misrepresentation, which the Apostles vehemently
reject. I figures out that they were marching to a completely different
beat than the disciples. St. Paul was not saying that following evil ways
makes way for a good end: that would make a huge blur on the
difference between good and evil, and to argue that the end justifies
the means. I feel that this is just even if oneself or other as how the
evil one would trick, deceive and lie to gain our souls.
According to St. Augustine in Contra mendacium) it is stated that as
Christians our moral teaching requires that one do right even if it
means that oneself or others are hurt by action. The end does not
justify the means and an action can only be fully good when all its
elements are good. Therefore, no morally bad action may be done for
any reason, even for an apparently good reason, or even with a
supposedly good intention. If we act based on bad standards, it would
mean undermining the laws
In today’s society many people have a tendency to justify their actions
by appealing to circumstances, however as Catholics, The Magisterium
of the Church has reminded us of our basic principles governing moral

3. behavior.” Pius XII in his Address stating that “God desires us always s
to have above all, an upright intention, but that is not good enough. He
also wants us to that the action be good as it is not permissible to do
evil in order to achieve a good end” Site Example
Read Verse 9-18 these verses seem to be clear but a few points are
obscure. St. Paul provides many quotes from Holy Scripture
which:proves that the Jews are certainly blameworthy, even saying that
they no longer have the grounds for personal congratulations, even
though they still enjoy special privileges that God endowed upon their
nation.So Paul's answer so far is: Yes, Jews have advantages, like having
the very Word of God entrusted to them. But if they are unbelieving
they will be judged. This does not call into question God's faithfulness
or truth or righteousness. Rather, the sin of those God judges (like
David's sin) vindicates God in his judgment. The sin of Israel is the very
thing that magnifies God's righteousness in judgment.
After a short intro in V 9 Paul goes on to describe the universal apostasy
which the Psalmist already spoke about in V10 -12. He then list the
sings against which the prophets spoke of. IS 5:8-25, Isa 59: 2-8 Jer 8:8,
the sins of the word and of deeds. Finally he spells out the punishment
that one who sins will face.
Read V 10-12 this shows us the sorry state of affairs resulting from
original sin and from personal sin. In many different places in the OT
we find examples of bitter complaint, man’s evil ways that have spread
throughout the world. His every thought is evil (Gen: 5-7) What is most
depressing is the Jewish people who abandon the true God and become

4. idolaters. This doesn’t happen just once in the OT but from the time of
Noah-the only just man in a wicked world-up to the present day.
At the same time there have been true and faithful servants. So then
what is to be made of Paul’s assentation that “none is righteous, not
one?” These words do not apply to everyone. We do know that, in
addition to the human nature of Jesus, the Blessed Virgin was
exempted from the stain of sin, even venial sin. And before Christ
there were just and devout men of God such as Noah, Abraham, Moses
that received divine grace and were enabled to do good works by virtue
of the future merits of Christ.
Read V12-18 God send his prophets to make the Israelites see that
they have sinned and need to repents. St. Paul is doing the same thing
here by using passages from the OT to stir the conscientious of his
fellow Jews and to those who read this letter.
A person’s holiness and goodness does not lie in knowing about evil or
adopting an attitude of optimism, forgetting that sin is the only really
harmful thing to man and which needs to be countered in every step of
the way. So when your heart becomes hardened and you make a pact
with sin, all that one can do is act the way Christ did” sometimes in his
preaching all seems very sad, because he is hurt by the evil men do. St
Faustina wrote in her diary that he weeps when we do not call upon
him for his divine mercy. Thus his anger comes from love.
V3:13 “Their throat is an open grace speaks to the fact that people
speaks words which bring death and is a reflection of the filth and

5. corruption they carry within, for they ‘are like white-washed tombs,
which outwardly seem to be beautiful, but within are full of dead man’s
bones and all uncleanness. Mt 23:27V19-20 these verse act as a kind of summary about what has been said
about the position of the Jew and Gentiles vis a vis the righteous of
God.
Read 3:21-22 the doctrinal richness of theses 2 verses is a part of
doctrinal richness evident in St. Paul’s style. He explains how
justification works: God the Father, the source of all good, by his
redemptive decree is the “efficient cause” of our salvation. Jesus Christ
by shedding his blood on the cross, merits this salvation for us, faith is
the instrument by which the redemption becomes effective in the
individual person. The righteousness of God is the action by which God
makes people righteous or just. (St. Augustine, De spiritu et littera. This
righteous was originally proclaimed in the OT-the Law and the Prophets
but now has made itself manifest in Christ and in the Gospels.
Salvation does not depend on fulfillment of the Mosaic Law, for the law
is not sufficient to justify anyone; on faith in Christ can work salvation.
If anyone says that, without divine grace thru J.C. man can be justified
before God by his own works, whether they were done by are natural
powers or the light of teaching of the law, let him be condemned
Council of Trent De ustificatione)

6. It is not the law that saves but the faith in Jesus Christ. This expression
should be interpreted in line with the unanimous and constant teaching
of the Church, which is that faith is the beginning of human salvation”
In v23-26 St. Paul describes theelements that go to make up the
mystery of Faith as stated in V23-25. All you need to be free from sin.
God the Father has a special plan of redemption for us, which is carried
out by the atoning and bloody sacrifice of Christ’s death; faith is a
needed condition for sharing in the Redemption wroghty by Christ. The
sacrifice of the crosss Is part and parcel of history of salvation; before
the incarnation of the word, god patiently put up with men’s sins; in the
fullness of time through Christ’s sacrifice to require full satisfaction for t