An Exposition of Romans 13:1-7

AN EXPOSITION OF ROMANS 13:1-7

THE CHRISTIAN AND CIVIL AUTHORITIES

INTRODUCTION

This exposition is designed first to set out the Apostle Paul's teaching on the relationship between Christians and civil authorities, and then to examine its contemporary application for Christians using the clearest New Testament text, Romans 13:1-7. This passage contains general commands for both Christians and non-Christians. Paul reasons that obedience is required as civil authorities have been ordained by God (13:1b-2) and because civil rulers are responsible to maintain civic order (13:3-4). Two motivations for obedience are the avoidance of wrath and the maintenance of a good conscience (13:5). Finally, the obligations of obedience are discussed (13:6-7). It is concluded that Romans 13:1-7 is just as applicable today as it was in Paul's time.

The Bible is a book whose purposes are to tell us who God is and what He is like, that we are sinners in need of forgiveness, and that Jesus Christ became a man and died for our sins so that we might be forgiven and have eternal life. It is not primarily a book about political and social theory. However, that does not mean that the Bible has nothing to say about political ethics. Quite to the contrary, the subject of civil government is discussed widely in both the Old and New Testaments. Government is a part of God's providence, a fact of biblical history, and an important factor in the outworking of biblical prophecy.

The clearest New Testament text on the relationship between the Christian and civil government is Romans 13:1-7. While it is not the only passage that discusses the issue, it is a coherent and carefully constructed argument on this topic. Paul reasons that God is firmly in control of human history, and that no one comes to a place of leadership without God's permission. Civil government is not a human invention, but of divine origin. Therefore, Christians are to submit to those in authority. Rulers then are established by God (v. 1) as His servants (v. 4). They have a special dignity, but are also in a position that puts them under God.

This understanding of the state has been widely criticized, and it has also been mistakenly used as justification for tyrants and the Christians' obligation to obey them. Some Germans used this text to support absolute obedience to the Third Reich in Germany. It was also used in the defense of apartheid in South Africa. These are just two of the most recent attempts to justify evil regimes through appeal to Paul and Romans.

Much of the literature on this text has to do with matters that are outside the scope of this paper. Some of these issues include whether this is genuinely Pauline or not, what is the origin of this teaching about the State, what historical situation in Rome was the occasion of this passage, whether there are parallels in Jewish, pagan, or Christian literature, as well as lexical studies of various words in the text. Each of these has its value, although one can often do little more than speculate about what the answer is. first let us set out Paul's teaching on civil authorities and then examine its contemporary application.

ROMANS 13:1-7 AND ITS CONTEXT

Romans 13:1-7 is a part of a group of exhortations which begins in chapter 12 and ends in chapter 15. There are those who think that it is an intrusion into the context. Some have even suggested that it was a later addition by someone other than Paul. These speculations are entirely unnecessary. It is true that these verses appear quite abruptly without any explicit syntactical connection to what precedes them and that 13:8-10 make good sense if they followed 12:9-21. However, it may be that Paul's teaching about the character of this world is just the reason that he includes 13:1-7. Because a new era is coming, some may be tempted to reject every societal institution including civil government.

Moreover, there may be an extreme attitude which rejects submission to civil authority as a part of the command not to be conformed to this age (12:2). Thus, there is the need to be reminded that the natural world in which we live out our human existence has not been entirely abandoned by God. Moo says, "As a manifestation of his common grace, God has established in this world certain institutions, such as marriage and government, which have a positive role to play even after the inauguration of the new age."

There are actually some indirect ties to the immediate context. In 12:18, Paul teaches that the Christian should live peaceably with all. Thus, he describes in 13:1-7 how to live peacefully with the state. Paul states in 12:19 that wrath and vengeance belong to the Lord, and then in 13:4-5 speaks about the wrath of God. The word "pay" is found in both 12:17 and 13:7, while 13:8 speaks of the "debt of love" and 13:7 commands the paying of our debt of taxes and tribute. At any rate, it must be admitted that the ties to the immediate context, are at best loose, making this most likely a self-contained passage.

A GENERAL COMMAND (13:1a)

Paul begins with a general command, "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities." While Romans is written to believers, this command is addressed more broadly. It is to "every soul." Paul uses "soul" in typical Old Testament and Jewish understanding of the whole person, not just the immaterial part. Submission to civil authority is especially a duty that Christians are to fulfill, but it is not limited to them alone. The duty has the most universal application.

It has been argued that the person exercising the authority is either a governmental official or a spiritual being. A few interpreters have argued that the one referred to here is, at least, partially a spiritual being. The main argument for this latter view is that elsewhere Paul uses the word "authorities" to describe angelic powers.

There are four reasons that require the rejection of the spiritual beings' view. First, when Paul uses this word to refer to spiritual beings, he always combines it with the word "powers." That is not the case here. Second, other terms in this text that are parallel with "authorities" are not capable of this double meaning. They are called rulers in v. 3 and servants to whom taxes and tribute are due in v. 4. Throughout this passage, Paul uses terms that are taken from Greco-Roman government and administration, and there is no reason to think otherwise here. Third, nowhere does Paul speak of the redemption and conversion of these authorities.