Romans 10
Big idea: Having argued God's freedom, Paul turns and argues human responsibility, and does not attempt to reconcile the two. His verdict on his own people is generous and devastating at once — real zeal, aimed wrongly. Then the chain of questions everyone quotes about sending and preaching, which is built backwards from calling to being sent, and lands on a nation with its hands stretched out all day.
Chapter 10 ends with God's hands still stretched out. Chapter 11 asks whether that means he has finished with them.
10:1–13 — The word is near you
The verdict is unusually fair-minded: zeal is granted, and the fault is located in what it is aimed at. 'THEIR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS' is the phrase, and it is set against God's — the same word chapter 1 used for the letter's thesis.
1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God is for Israel, that they may be saved. 2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they didn’t subject themselves to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the fulfillment of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. 5 For Moses writes about the righteousness of the law, “The one who does them will live by them.” 6 But the righteousness which is of faith says this, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down); 7 or, ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead.)” 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart;” that is, the word of faith which we preach: 9 that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes resulting in righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in him will not be disappointed.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich to all who call on him. 13 For, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
10:14–21 — How will they hear without a preacher?
The chain runs backwards — calling needs believing, believing needs hearing, hearing needs a preacher, preaching needs a sending — and it is usually quoted as a missions text. In context it is doing something else: it is establishing that the conditions WERE met, so that the failure to believe cannot be blamed on not having been told.
14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? 15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Good News of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” 16 But they didn’t all listen to the glad news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” 17 So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 18 But I say, didn’t they hear? Yes, most certainly, “Their sound went out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” 19 But I ask, didn’t Israel know? First Moses says, “I will provoke you to jealousy with that which is no nation. I will make you angry with a nation void of understanding.” 20 Isaiah is very bold and says, “I was found by those who didn’t seek me. I was revealed to those who didn’t ask for me.” 21 But about Israel he says, “All day long I stretched out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”
Scripture text: World English Bible (public domain).