Commentary - Romans 3:1-8

Bird's-eye view

In this tightly argued section, the Apostle Paul anticipates and dismantles a series of objections that naturally arise from his prior argument. Having leveled the playing field in chapter 2 by demonstrating that both Jew and Gentile are sinners before God, he now has to address the logical question: "Then what was the point of being a Jew?" Paul's response is a masterclass in defending God's absolute righteousness and faithfulness in the face of human sin and unbelief. He affirms the great privilege of the Jews as custodians of God's Word, but shows that their failure does not in any way compromise God's character or His plan. He then confronts the twisted logic that would try to use God's sovereignty as an excuse for sin, exposing such thinking as a slanderous and damnable heresy. This passage serves as a crucial theological buttress, shoring up the doctrine of God's justice before Paul delivers the final, universal verdict of condemnation in the verses that follow.

The core of the argument is a resounding affirmation of God's character. No matter how faithless man is, God remains faithful. No matter how much of a liar man is, God remains true. God's justice is so foundational that it is the very basis for His judgment of the world. Any line of reasoning that calls God's justice into question, even under the guise of glorifying Him, is shown to be absurd and self-condemning. Paul is clearing the ground of all human excuses and objections, preparing the way for the majestic announcement of justification by faith alone.

Outline

Context In Romans

This passage directly follows Paul's systematic dismantling of Jewish presumption in Romans 2. There, he argued that possession of the Law and the sign of circumcision do not grant automatic favor with God. True circumcision is of the heart, and God will judge every man, Jew and Gentile alike, according to his deeds, showing no partiality. This radical leveling of all humanity before God's impartial judgment naturally provokes the question Paul raises in 3:1, "Then what advantage has the Jew?" It seems as though Paul has just erased any meaning from Israel's entire history as God's chosen people. So, before he can proceed to his grand conclusion that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23), he must first address these covenantal loose ends. He needs to show that God's plan through Israel was not a failure and that His own righteousness is unimpeachable, thereby setting the stage for the revelation of a righteousness from God that is apart from the Law.

Key Issues

Let God Be True

Paul, like a good lawyer, anticipates the objections from the other side. He has just finished his cross-examination of Jewish pride, and now he turns to the jury, as it were, to deal with the questions that are bubbling up in their minds. If the Jew is condemned right alongside the Gentile, then what was the point of it all? What about the promises? What about the covenant? Has God's plan failed? Paul's answer is a thunderous defense of the character of God. The problem is not with God's plan or His promises. The problem is with man. The foundation of all sound theology, and all sound living, is this simple, bedrock truth that Paul hammers home: God is true, God is faithful, God is righteous, full stop. Our thinking must always begin there. Any argument, no matter how clever, that ends with God in the wrong is a lie from the pit, and Paul treats it as such.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision?

Paul begins with the natural and pressing question that his argument in chapter 2 has created. If the playing field is truly level, and God judges impartially, then what was the point of the whole Old Testament economy? What good did it do to be a son of Abraham? What was the benefit of bearing the covenant sign of circumcision in your flesh? This is not a straw man argument; it is a serious theological question. If there is no advantage, then it would seem that God's dealings with Israel were arbitrary and meaningless.

2 Great in every respect. First of all, that they were entrusted with the oracles of God.

Paul's answer is immediate and emphatic. The advantage was immense. He says it was "great in every respect." He only begins his list here, saying "First of all," and then gets diverted by the objections (he picks the list back up in Romans 9:4-5). The chief advantage, the head of the list, was that Israel was made the custodian of the very words of God. The oracles of God refers to the entirety of the Old Testament Scriptures. Think of the privilege. While the rest of the world was stumbling around in the dark, guessing about God, worshiping idols of wood and stone, God spoke to this one nation. He gave them His law, His promises, His covenants. They were the library of divine revelation for the entire world. This was not a racial advantage that made them inherently better, but a custodial advantage that gave them an immense privilege and responsibility.

3 What then? If some did not believe, does their unbelief abolish the faithfulness of God?

Here comes the next logical question. Okay, they had the oracles, but the Old Testament itself testifies that they were, as a nation, frequently rebellious and unbelieving. So, what happens to God's promises when His people are faithless? Does their failure to keep their end of the bargain cause God's entire plan to fall apart? Does human unbelief have the power to cancel out divine faithfulness? Can our sin veto God's promises?

4 May it never be! Rather, let God be true and every man a liar, as it is written, “THAT YOU MAY BE JUSTIFIED IN YOUR WORDS, AND OVERCOME WHEN YOU ARE JUDGED.”

Paul's response is his signature expression of utter revulsion at a false idea: May it never be! In Greek, this is `mē genoito`, a phrase of the strongest possible denial. The thought is abhorrent. He then lays down a foundational principle for all reality: let God be true and every man a liar. This is a fixed axiom. If there is ever a contradiction between what God says and what man says or does, God is the one who is right. Our unbelief doesn't change God's reality; it only reveals our own falsehood. To back this up, he quotes Psalm 51:4, where David, in the midst of confessing his own heinous sin, affirms that his very sin provides the occasion for God to be proven righteous in His judgment. God's verdict against sin is always just. Even when God judges His own covenant people for their unbelief, He is vindicated. His words are shown to be true, and He wins the court case every single time.

5 But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is the God who inflicts wrath unrighteous? (I am speaking in human terms.)

Now Paul brings up the sinner's slick, twisted objection. This is the kind of argument you hear from a rebellious teenager. "If my sin actually ends up highlighting God's righteousness and faithfulness, making it shine all the brighter by contrast, then how can God punish me for it? Isn't He being unjust to inflict wrath on me for something that ultimately serves to display His glory?" Paul adds the parenthesis, "I am speaking in human terms," to show that he is articulating a carnal, man-centered argument, not his own view. This is the logic of the flesh trying to wriggle out of responsibility.

6 May it never be! For otherwise, how will God judge the world?

Again, May it never be! Paul rejects the thought with horror. Then he shows why it is so absurd. He refutes it with one devastating question. If God is unrighteous for punishing sin that He sovereignly uses for His own good purposes, then what possible basis does He have for judging anyone? All sin exists within God's sovereign decree. If this principle were true, God would have to abdicate His throne as Judge of all the earth. The entire moral structure of the universe would collapse. The fact that God will judge the world proves that such an objection is nonsense.

7 But if through my lie the truth of God abounded to His glory, why am I also still being judged as a sinner?

This is simply a restatement of the objection in verse 5, but now put in the first person. This makes it more personal and highlights the self-serving nature of the argument. The sinner sees himself as the central character. "Look, my lie, my falsehood, my sin, actually resulted in God's truthfulness being magnified. It brought Him glory! So why am I the bad guy here? Why am I being judged?" It is an attempt to claim credit for the good that God sovereignly brought out of one's evil.

8 And why not say (as we are slanderously reported and as some claim that we say), “Let us do evil that good may come”? Their condemnation is just.

Paul now pushes this twisted logic to its insane conclusion. If sinning for God's glory is a valid principle, then why not make it our life's mission? Why not say, "Let's all go on a sinning spree so that God's grace and glory can be magnified all the more?" Paul reveals that this was a real accusation being leveled against his gospel of grace. People were slandering him, twisting his message of salvation for sinners into a license for sin. Paul doesn't even dignify this charge with a lengthy refutation. He simply states the divine verdict on those who would promote such a view: Their condemnation is just. It is a damnable lie, and those who teach it are rightly under the judgment of God. The gospel of grace never, ever leads to a casual attitude toward sin. It leads to holiness.

Application

This passage is a potent antidote to several poisons that constantly threaten the health of the church. First, it reminds us of the staggering privilege of having the Bible. We have been entrusted with the oracles of God. We must not treat this lightly. We should be the most biblically literate people on the planet, treasuring the Word as the very speech of our faithful God.

Second, it grounds our faith not in our own performance, but in the unshakable faithfulness of God. When we see sin and failure in the church, even in our own lives, we must not despair as though God's plan has been derailed. Our faithlessness does not nullify His faithfulness. He will accomplish all His purposes. Our job is to cling to the one who is True, even when we are surrounded by lies.

Finally, this passage is a firewall against antinomianism, the deadly idea that God's grace makes our obedience optional. We must utterly reject the twisted logic that tries to use God's sovereignty or His grace as an excuse for sin. The argument "let us do evil that good may come" is not clever; it is a slander against the gospel, and its condemnation is just. The proof that we have truly understood God's grace is not that we feel free to sin, but that we are compelled by love and gratitude to fight against it with all our might, knowing that the righteous Judge of all the earth will always do what is right.