Romans 1

Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the Good News of God,

which he promised before through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,

concerning his Son, who was born of the offspring of David according to the flesh,

who was declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

through whom we received grace and apostleship for obedience of faith among all the nations for his name’s sake;

among whom you are also called to belong to Jesus Christ;

to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, that your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world.

For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the Good News of his Son, how unceasingly I make mention of you always in my prayers,

requesting, if by any means now at last I may be prospered by the will of God to come to you.

For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, to the end that you may be established;

that is, that I with you may be encouraged in you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine.

Now I don’t desire to have you unaware, brothers, that I often planned to come to you (and was hindered so far), that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.

I am debtor both to Greeks and to foreigners, both to the wise and to the foolish.

So as much as is in me, I am eager to preach the Good News to you also who are in Rome.

For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, because it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first, and also for the Greek.

For in it is revealed God’s righteousness from faith to faith. As it is written, “But the righteous shall live by faith.”

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

because that which is known of God is revealed in them, for God revealed it to them.

For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity, that they may be without excuse.

Because knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, and didn’t give thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened.

Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

and traded the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, four-footed animals, and creeping things.

Therefore God also gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonored among themselves;

who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

For this reason, God gave them up to vile passions. For their women changed the natural function into that which is against nature.

Likewise also the men, leaving the natural function of the woman, burned in their lust toward one another, men doing what is inappropriate with men, and receiving in themselves the due penalty of their error.

Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, malice; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil habits, secret slanderers,

backbiters, hateful to God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, unforgiving, unmerciful;

who, knowing the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but also approve of those who practice them.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview. This chapter introduces Paul’s letter to the Romans, setting forth the gospel as the power of God for salvation, grounded in Scripture and centered on Jesus Christ. It moves from personal greeting and thanksgiving to a proclamation of the universal need for the gospel, affirming both the revelation of God in creation and the pervasive human sinfulness that renders all accountable. The chapter culminates in a sweeping indictment of Gentile ungodliness, showing how suppression of divine truth leads to moral corruption and divine judgment.

Flow.

Begins with Paul’s self-identification and the content of the gospel: God’s Son, Jesus Christ, declared Lord by resurrection (vv. 1–4).
Expresses Paul’s longing to visit Rome, his sense of obligation to preach, and his confidence in the gospel’s saving power (vv. 5–15).
Proclaims that God’s righteousness is revealed through faith, quoting (v. 17).
Unveils the wrath of God against all human unrighteousness, detailing how people reject the knowledge of God evident in creation, descend into idolatry, and suffer moral consequences under divine abandonment (vv. 18–32).

Connections. Following the opening greeting and affirmation of the gospel’s universality in chapter 1, Paul builds a foundation for the argument that both Jews and Gentiles are under sin, which chapter 2 takes up by turning to Jewish accountability. The trajectory from general revelation (1:18–20) to the collapse of moral life in the Gentile world (1:21–32) prepares the way for the inclusive diagnosis of chapter 3: “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (3:23), making the righteousness of God through faith in Christ the only hope.

What it teaches. The gospel fulfills God’s ancient promises and centers on Jesus, the Davidic Son declared to be the powerful Son of God by His resurrection (WCF 8.1; HC LD 16). This gospel is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, revealing His righteousness received by faith, as Scripture affirms (WCF 11.1; HC LD 7). Yet all humanity, beginning with the Gentiles, stands under divine wrath because the knowledge of God is plain through creation, and suppression of this truth—exchanging the Creator for images—results in idolatry, moral decay, and divine judgment (WCF 4.2, 19.1; BC Art. 14). Humanity is justly condemned not for ignorance, but for refusing to honor and thank the God who has made Himself known (Rom. 1:21; WCF 19.1; AC Art. 2).

Apply. The gospel meets the deepest need of every person—salvation from God’s wrath—by revealing a righteousness from God, given not through moral reform but through faith in Christ.

AI-generated. Not a substitute for Scripture, your pastor, or the confessions.