Have you ever read a Bible verse and wondered what it was talking about? I was feeling that way this week when I read Romans 1:16–17. Sometimes the things that confuse us are not such a big deal because we get the big picture. However, if I understand Romans right, these two verses are the thesis statement of the book, so they make a big difference with regard to our interpretation of the whole book.
One of the things I’ve learned is that words and sentences need their context to make sense, so I made a quick diagram of the passage to see the flow of thought. I colored a couple words to show that several of the concepts are being repeated in the passage: faith/believe, righteousness/righteous, and the good news are each repeated.
The way these words and phrases are repeated limit the ways we can interpret them in this context and make it easier to pin them down. The phrase that is really tricky is ἐκ πίστεως εἰς πίστιν (out of faith, into faith). However, the fact that the first part (ἐκ πίστεως) is used below to mean “by faith,” this seems to make a good case for that meaning above as well. What about the second part (εἰς πίστιν)? We’re helped by the fact that this word can mean both “faith” and “faithfulness.” Furthermore, the idea of “living” is found in the passage from Habakkuk that Paul quotes, leading me to think that Paul means “faithfulness” in the second part. If I’m right, then Paul is saying that we receive a righteousness from God by faith in the gospel, and this right standing is the basis upon which we are able to then go out and live faithfully for God. This interpretation is confirmed by the fact this matches what we find in the book of Romans itself, especially in chapters 5–8.
I’ll leave you with my own paraphrase of the passage:
Why am I so eager to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome? (v. 15)
It’s because I’m not embarrassed by the good news about Jesus Christ; after all, it is God’s saving power brought to bear and made effective in the lives of those who believe – first and foremost for those who are Jews, but also for those who are Greeks (v. 16).
And here’s how it works: in this message, a righteousness that comes from God has been made available, a righteousness that comes by faith and leads to faithfulness, just like it says in the OT: “But the righteous will live by faith” (v. 17)
Earthen Vessel 