Romans 2:21 - Printer Friendly

ESV: you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal?

NIV: you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal?

NASB: you, therefore, who teach someone else, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one is not to steal, do you steal?

CSB: you then, who teach another, don't you teach yourself? You who preach, "You must not steal"--do you steal?

NLT: Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal?

KJV: Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?

NKJV: You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal?

Paul has set his Jewish readers up for a series of difficult questions. His larger purpose is to challenge those who assume that being Jewish means they do not have to worry about God judging them for their sinfulness. They believe the law of Moses stands between them and God. In a broader sense, this point is meant to apply to anyone who tries to rely on their own religiosity in order to be right with the Lord.

Paul has asked a series of leading "if" questions: If you are a devout Jew, if you rely on the law, if you boast in God, if you are sure you are a guide to the blind, if you're a teacher of the foolish and of children, if you truly have the law which you believe to be the embodiment of knowledge and truth…then why don't you follow it?

More specifically, Paul begins in this verse by asking why the teachers don't teach themselves. He then follows with three examples of not following the law. If they preach against stealing, do they steal? It's not clear what, if any, examples of theft Paul has in mind. What is clear is Paul's larger point: Having the law is not enough. You must also keep it. And, as he will explain later in this letter, nobody can perfectly keep it (Romans 3:10).

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.