Romans 15:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints.

NIV: Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there.

NASB: but now, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints.

CSB: Right now I am traveling to Jerusalem to serve the saints,

NLT: But before I come, I must go to Jerusalem to take a gift to the believers there.

KJV: But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saints.

NKJV: But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints.

Paul has written that at long last it may be possible for him to travel to Rome to spend time with the Christians there. This is something he has longed to do for many years (Romans 15:23). Now he says he must first go to Jerusalem to bring aid to the believers there.

As the following verses show, the aid Paul mentions is money for poor Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. The need there was great. Paul had taken it on himself to raise money from the Gentile Christians to meet the needs of these struggling believers. Now, having that money in hand, Paul was headed to Jerusalem to deliver it. Paul will continue by giving more details on this contribution, as well as asking his readers to pray for his safe and successful delivery of it.

Romans 15:22–33 describes Paul's plan to visit the Christians in Rome on his way to preaching the gospel in Spain. He has longed to see them for years. Before he comes, he must deliver a gift of financial aid from Gentile Christians to the poor Jewish believers in Jerusalem. He asks his readers to wrestle with him in prayer about this trip. Paul especially hopes to be delivered from the unbelieving Jewish religious leaders who want to kill him, and that the Christian Jews will receive the gift he is bringing.

Romans 15 begins with Paul's encouragement to those strong in faith: to please other Christians before themselves so the church can be unified. Christ came to fulfill God's promises to Israel and about the Gentiles. Paul is satisfied with the faith and practice of the Roman Christians. His work of taking the gospel to unreached regions of Gentiles in his part of the world is completed, and he longs to come see them. First, he must deliver financial aid to Jerusalem, a trip about which he asks them to pray along with him.

Romans 15 concludes Paul's teaching that those strong in faith ought to sacrifice their own desires to live in harmony with other believers. Paul shows that God always planned to welcome the Gentile nations, and his mission is to introduce Gentiles to the message of salvation by faith in Christ. He longs to visit the Christians in Rome and plans to do so as soon as he delivers financial aid to poor Christian Jews in Jerusalem. He begins Romans 16 by greeting many friends and acquaintances in Rome by name, as part of a drawn-out ending to this letter.

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 11/23/2024 7:11:43 PM