In the opening sentence of Romans chapter one, the Apostle Paul defined his ministry and set the foundation for his authority: “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God…” (NIV). He then closed that portion of this epistle with a series of challenging observations.
He began by addressing those who do not wish to acknowledge God. That group might include those who explicitly reject the Biblical concept of a Creator or others who acknowledge the existence of a “god” in theory, but live as if god did not exist. According to Romans 1:18, these are the individuals who suppress the evidence for God’s existence in favor of various (and inferior) substitutes. As a result, God relinquished them to a corrupt mindset that led them to engage in things that should not be done. That led to an exhaustive list of destructive behaviors that often characterize the lives of those who choose that path.
Here in Romans chapter two, Paul will build on that foundation by turning his attention to those who claim various exemptions for themselves. He will do so by confronting three types of individuals:
- The hypocrite, or someone who fails to “practice what they preach.”
- The moralist, or someone who claims to possess superior moral authority.
- The legalist, or someone who feels as if he or she can find acceptance with God by adhering to a set of regulations.
To accomplish this, Paul will employ a literary device known as a diatribe. That approach involves structuring this portion of his letter as a dialog with an imaginary opponent. Paul undoubtedly honed this skill in live debate with those who came to hear him speak. Thus, it is easy to visualize this portion of Romans as a back-and-forth exchange with those who opposed his message.
One commentator prepares us for this transition into the second chapter of Romans…
“In Romans 1, Paul has shown that the human race has turned away from God in order to pursue its own way and that the horrible things we do and see about us are the result.
…No one wants to admit that, however. So, instead of acknowledging that what Paul said about the human race is true, most of us make excuses, arguing that although Paul’s description may be true of other people, particularly very debased individuals or the heathen, it is certainly not true of us. ‘We know better than that,’ we say. ‘And we act better, too.’ In the second chapter of Romans Paul is going to disabuse us of these erroneous ideas.” (1)
(1) Boice, J. M. (2005). Romans: Justification by Faith (Romans 1-4). Baker Books. [p.202]