Romans 2:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God

NIV: Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God;

NASB: But if you call yourself a Jew and rely upon the Law and boast in God,

CSB: Now if you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the law, and boast in God,

NLT: You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, and you boast about your special relationship with him.

KJV: Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God,

NKJV: Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God,

Paul has just finished talking about God's judgment for Gentiles: people not under the requirements of the law of Moses. Now he turns the case he is making to the Jewish people who do live under the law.

This verse begins an if-then statement that will be concluded as this passage continues. Paul describes three specific good things that come with being Jewish. First, one who understands himself to be a Jew is a member of the nation of Israel, God's chosen people (Deuteronomy 7:6). It is a high honor.

Second, such a person may "rely on the law." Though the law of Moses was a weighty thing for Israel, it was also a gift, the revelation of God's standards for how to live on earth. The law was given to Israel and no other nation.

Third, this person, a Jew who relies on the law, can also "boast in God." Paul is not describing selfish bragging. The Jewish people could rightly boast that the one true God was their God and they were His people. Their glory as a people was found in belonging to the glorious God.

The following verses will continue the "if" part of Paul's if-then statement.

Romans 2:12–29 describes two groups of people, with an emphasis on how their sin relates to their knowledge of God's written Law for the nation of Israel. Here, ''Gentiles'' are those who sin apart from the law, while ''Jews'' are those who sin under the law. Paul shows how, in both cases, God will judge people based on whether they kept the law and were circumcised in their hearts. Even Gentiles who follow the law out of sincerity would be regarded by God as truly Jewish. Meanwhile, God will discount the Jewishness and circumcision of someone under the law who breaks the law and does not have a sincere heart. Paul will show in the following chapter that, in truth, no one can keep the law.

Romans 2 springs a trap on any religious person who read Paul's lists of sins at the end of Romans 1 and thought it wasn't about them. Paul calls them out for making themselves judges when they are also guilty. He shows that God will judge everyone, including those under the law, based on their works. This prefaces this letter's theme of salvation by grace, through faith, rather than by works. Many benefits come with having the law, but only if those under the law keep it. Jewishness—circumcision—must be an inner state, not just an outer one. Paul will show in the following chapter that none of us really meets those conditions.

Having just concluded a list of terrible sins humanity indulges in as a result of rejecting God, Paul turns to religious people and says, ''This applies to you, too.'' Nobody can judge arrogantly, because we are all guilty. Even God's people the Jews will stand before Him in judgment based on their works. Having the law only matters if someone can keep the law. Paul asks his Jewish readers why they don't and shows that they must be Jewish and circumcised in their hearts for it to matter. In the following chapter, he will show that nobody can keep the law.

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.