Commentary - Romans 10:5-17

Bird's-eye view

In this dense and glorious section of Romans, the Apostle Paul places two kinds of righteousness side by side in stark contrast. The first is the righteousness that comes from the law, a righteousness of human striving, which demands a perfect performance that no fallen man can render. The second is the righteousness that comes from faith, a righteousness that is a sheer gift, received by believing God's promise in Christ. Paul masterfully employs the Old Testament itself, particularly Deuteronomy, to show that the gospel of faith is not a New Testament novelty but has been God's plan all along. This righteousness is not distant or unattainable; it is as near as our own mouths and hearts. It is a simple, profound reality: confess Jesus as Lord, believe God raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved.

From this foundational reality of personal salvation, Paul then unfolds the divinely ordained logic of how this salvation spreads. Salvation comes through calling on the Lord, which requires faith. Faith requires hearing the message. Hearing requires a preacher. And a preacher cannot go unless he is sent. This chain of causation establishes the absolute necessity of the preached Word. It is God's designated means for bringing His elect to faith. Paul concludes by noting that despite the clarity of the message, not all of Israel heeded it, just as Isaiah prophesied. The climax is one of the most essential verses in Scripture on the subject: "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." The entire engine of salvation, from God's eternal decree to a sinner's heartfelt cry, runs on the track of the proclaimed gospel.

Outline

Context In Romans

This passage is the heart of Paul's argument in Romans 9-11, where he is wrestling with the profound theological problem of Israel's widespread rejection of their Messiah, Jesus. In chapter 9, he established God's sovereign right to choose whom He will, showing that not all physical descendants of Abraham are the children of the promise. Now, in chapter 10, he shifts from divine sovereignty to human responsibility. He begins the chapter by expressing his deep sorrow and desire for Israel's salvation, and he diagnoses their problem: they have a zeal for God, but it is not according to knowledge (10:2). They are trying to establish their own righteousness instead of submitting to God's righteousness. Our text, beginning in verse 5, explains the fundamental difference between these two approaches. This section, therefore, provides the theological foundation for understanding why Israel stumbled and how both Jews and Gentiles are now saved on exactly the same basis: faith in the proclaimed Word about Christ.

Key Issues

The Nearness of the Word

One of the central themes Paul develops here is the sheer accessibility of the gospel. The righteousness of the law is a ladder-climbing affair. It demands that you ascend to heaven or descend into the abyss on the strength of your own performance. It is always out of reach, a cosmic striving. But the righteousness of faith is radically different. Paul, quoting Deuteronomy 30, says that the word is not "out there" somewhere, but is right here, "near you." It is in your mouth and in your heart.

This is a profound spiritual truth. The gospel is not a complex philosophical system you must master. It is not a series of arduous mystical steps you must take. It is a proclamation to be heard, a truth to be believed in the heart, and a Lord to be confessed with the mouth. The great error of all man-made religion is to make salvation difficult, to place it at the top of a mountain that we must climb. The glory of the gospel is that God, in Christ, climbed the mountain for us. He came down from heaven in the incarnation and came up from the abyss in the resurrection. All the heavy lifting has been done. Our part is not to do, but to receive. The Word is near.

Verse by Verse Commentary

5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of law: “THE MAN WHO DOES THESE THINGS SHALL LIVE BY THEM.”

Paul begins by defining the righteousness of law, and he goes straight to the source, Moses himself, quoting Leviticus 18:5. This is the principle of works. It is a straightforward, conditional arrangement: if you want to obtain life through the law, you must perform its commands. Not some of them. Not most of them. All of them, perfectly, from the heart, all the time. The standard is absolute obedience. Paul is not saying the law is bad; he is saying the standard is impossibly high for fallen sinners. It offers life, but on a condition that none of us can meet. It is a righteousness of doing.

6-7 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way: “DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, ‘WHO WILL GO UP INTO HEAVEN?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), or ‘WHO WILL GO DOWN INTO THE ABYSS?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”

Now he contrasts this with the righteousness of faith. And in a stroke of inspired genius, he quotes Deuteronomy 30, a passage originally about the accessibility of God's law to Israel, and applies it christologically. The righteousness of faith tells us to stop striving. Don't say, "I must ascend to Heaven," because that is to deny the incarnation. Christ has already come down. Don't say, "I must descend to the deep," because that is to deny the resurrection. Christ has already been brought up from the dead. The two great, impossible works necessary for our salvation have been accomplished by Christ. The way to God is not a heroic quest we undertake; it is a finished work we receive.

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 are preaching,

If salvation is not a distant achievement, where is it? Paul continues quoting Deuteronomy: it is near. It is as close as your own mouth and your own heart. This is the essence of the gospel's accessibility. Paul then defines this "word" from Deuteronomy. He says it is "the word of faith which we are preaching." The objective truth of God's law, which Moses spoke of, finds its ultimate fulfillment and delivery system in the proclamation of the gospel. The message of salvation is not a secret whispered in a corner; it is a public announcement.

9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

Here is the content of that word of faith, distilled to its glorious core. Salvation hinges on two things, which are two sides of the same coin. First, an outward confession: "Jesus as Lord." To say "Jesus is Lord" (Kurios Iesous) in the first-century Roman world was a direct political and religious challenge to the claim "Caesar is Lord." It is a declaration of ultimate allegiance. Jesus is the sovereign ruler of all things. Second, an inward belief: "that God raised Him from the dead." The resurrection is the non-negotiable center of the Christian faith. It is the Father's public vindication of the Son's work on the cross. It is the proof that death has been defeated and our sins have been paid for. If you have this outward allegiance and this inward conviction, the promise is absolute: "you will be saved."

10 for with the heart a person believes, leading to righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, leading to salvation.

Paul now explains the dynamic between the heart and the mouth. They are not two separate steps, but an integrated whole. True faith is never a purely internal, private affair. The belief that takes root in the heart inevitably springs forth in public confession. Belief in the heart is the root, which leads to the imputation of God's righteousness to us. Confession with the mouth is the fruit, which is the outward evidence and culmination of that saving faith, leading to the final state of salvation. A silent faith is a non-existent faith. If Christ is truly Lord of your heart, He will be Lord of your lips.

11 For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES UPON HIM WILL NOT BE PUT TO SHAME.”

To bolster his point, Paul quotes Isaiah 28:16. The word "whoever" is crucial. This promise is not limited to a particular ethnicity or social class. Anyone who places their trust in Christ, the cornerstone, will be vindicated. To "not be put to shame" means that on the final day of judgment, your faith will be shown to have been rightly placed. God will not disappoint those who trust in His Son. It is a promise of ultimate security and honor.

12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him,

Paul now makes the universal scope of the gospel explicit. The ground is level at the foot of the cross. In the old covenant, there was a great distinction between Jew and Gentile. But in the new covenant, that wall of hostility has been torn down. Why? Because there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, and He is Lord over everyone. And this Lord is not stingy. He is "abounding in riches", the riches of grace, mercy, and forgiveness, for every single person who calls on Him, regardless of their background.

13 for “WHOEVER CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”

This is the capstone of his argument on the accessibility and universality of salvation. He quotes Joel 2:32, one of the great promises of the Old Testament. To "call on the name of the Lord" is not simply to say His name. It is an act of dependent trust, a cry for rescue, an invocation of His authority and power. It is the natural expression of the faith in the heart and the confession on the lips. And again, the promise is for "whoever." This is the glorious, wide-open invitation of the gospel.

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? And how will they hear without a preacher?

Having established that salvation comes by calling on the Lord, Paul now works backwards in a series of logical, rhetorical questions to show how this calling comes about. The logic is inescapable. You cannot call on someone you don't trust. You cannot trust someone you have never heard of. And you cannot hear of someone if no one tells you about them. This establishes the absolute, central necessity of the preached word. God has ordained that the message of salvation be carried by human messengers.

15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO PROCLAIM GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!”

He adds the final link to the chain. A preacher cannot just decide to go on his own authority. He must be "sent." This points to the divine commission behind all true gospel ministry. Preaching is not a human initiative; it is a divine errand. To illustrate the glory of this task, Paul quotes Isaiah 52:7. In the ancient world, the feet of a messenger running to bring news of victory were a welcome sight. How much more beautiful are the feet of those who carry the ultimate good news, the news of Christ's victory over sin and death? Their work is a lovely and glorious thing.

16 However, they did not all heed the good news, for Isaiah says, “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?”

Paul anticipates an objection. If the message is so glorious and the means are so clear, why did so many in Israel reject it? He answers by showing that this too was prophesied. He quotes Isaiah 53:1, the beginning of the great chapter on the suffering servant. The prophet himself lamented the lack of belief in his message. Israel's failure to heed the gospel was not a failure of God's plan, but a fulfillment of it. The message went out, but not all received it in faith.

17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

This verse is the grand conclusion of the entire line of reasoning. Paul summarizes the whole process. If you want to know the origin of saving faith, here it is. It comes "from hearing." Faith is not generated from within ourselves. It is not the result of deep introspection or mystical experience. It is the result of an external message being brought to us. And what is the content of that message? It is "the word of Christ." This can mean the word about Christ (the gospel message) or the word that comes from Christ (the authoritative, commissioned word). The two are inseparable. The power is in the message itself, because it is Christ's word about Himself. This is why preaching is not just important; it is indispensable.

Application

This passage dismantles every form of religious pride and self-righteousness. If you are tempted to think that your salvation is based on your performance, your heritage, or your spiritual exertions, Romans 10 sets you straight. The righteousness of law says "do." The righteousness of faith says "done." Christ has done it all. Our task is not to climb, but to confess; not to achieve, but to believe. This is a profound relief. We can stop trying to earn God's favor and simply rest in the finished work of His Son.

Secondly, this passage elevates the public proclamation of the Word to its proper place. In an age of shallow entertainment and privatized spirituality, we must recover the conviction that God works through preaching. Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ. This means we must be a people who are submitted to the preached Word. We must sit under it, listen to it, and receive it. And it means we must be a people who are committed to sending it out. The chain of logic in verses 14 and 15 is a missionary mandate. If people are to be saved, they must hear. If they are to hear, preachers must be sent. The beautiful feet of the messengers must go to our neighbors, to our cities, and to the ends of the earth, carrying the only message that can bring dead hearts to life.