Romans 10:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

NIV: For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge.

NASB: For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.

CSB: I can testify about them that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

NLT: I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal.

KJV: For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.

NKJV: For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

In the previous verse, Paul revealed his desire and prayer that the Jewish people would be saved by coming to faith in Christ. He has expressed great compassion and sadness for them in this and the previous chapter.

Now Paul writes of his respect for their zeal or enthusiasm. They love God and seek to honor Him and obey Him. The Jewish people of Paul's day were especially passionate in their worship of God. Paul himself demonstrated that kind of fervor—in a tragic way—before his conversion to Christianity, as a persecutor of the church (Philippians 3:4–7).

Paul is saddened, though, that Israel's zeal is not driven by a true understanding of who God is or what He wants from them. Paul knows from experience the traditions the Jewish religious leaders have and their exhaustive knowledge of the Scriptures. To know all of that, however, and to not know Christ is to know far too little.

Romans 10:1–4 describes Paul's honest desire and prayer for the people of Israel to be saved through faith in Christ. He acknowledges their enthusiasm for God, but that cannot overcome their ignorance about how to reach God's righteousness. It is not through keeping the law; that's impossible. It is through Christ alone that anyone can receive the righteousness of God.

Paul's heart is broken for his people, Israel. He prays they will be saved through faith in Christ. Their enthusiasm for God is made useless by their attempt to be made righteous by their own law-keeping instead of by faith in Christ. What, then, is required to be saved? One must confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised Him from the dead. The same is true for both Jews and Gentiles. God waits patiently for Israel to turn and believe.

Romans 9 concluded with Paul's declaration that Israel has stumbled over the stumbling stone of Christ. Romans 10 describes Paul's heartfelt prayer that Israel would be saved, despite her commitment to saving herself through works. Why have the Israelites not confessed the Lordship of Jesus and believed in the resurrection? It's not for lack of hearing and understanding; they are disobeying the gospel. Paul will insist, though, in the following chapter, that God has not rejected Israel. He still holds out His hands to her, offering salvation through faith in Christ.

The book of Romans is the New Testament's longest, most structured, and most detailed description of Christian theology. Paul lays out the core of the gospel message: salvation by grace alone through faith alone. His intent is to explain the good news of Jesus Christ in accurate and clear terms. As part of this effort, Paul addresses the conflicts between law and grace, between Jews and Gentiles, and between sin and righteousness. As is common in his writing, Paul closes out his letter with a series of practical applications.

Accessed 12/21/2024 1:22:02 PM