Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Romans 2:6
Who will render to every man according to his deeds:
6. who will render to every man, &c.] According to the promise, Mat 16:27; Rev 22:12. (Note that the very phrase used here of the Father, is used there of Himself by the Son).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Who will render – That is, who will make retribution as a righteous Judge; or who will give to every man as he deserves.
To every man – To each one. This is a general principle, and it is clear that in this respect God would deal with the Jew as he does with the Gentile. This general principle the apostle is establishing, that he may bring it to bear on the Jew, and to show that he cannot escape simply because he is a Jew.
According to his deeds – That is, as he deserves; or God will be just, and will treat every man as he ought to be treated, or according to his character. The word deeds ( erga)is sometimes applied to the external conduct. But it is plain that this is not its meaning here. It denotes everything connected with conduct, including the acts of the mind, the motives, the principles, as well as the mere external act. Our word character more aptly expresses it than any single word. It is not true that God will treat people according to their external conduct: but the whole language of the Bible implies that he will judge people according to the whole of their conduct, including their thoughts, and principles, and motives; that is, as they deserve. The doctrine of this place is abundantly taught elsewhere in the Bible, Pro 24:12; Mat 16:27; Rev 20:12; Jer 32:19. It is to be observed here that the apostle does not say that people will be rewarded for their deeds, (compare Luk 17:10,) but according to kata their deeds. Christians will be saved on account of the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ, Tit 3:5, but still the rewards of heaven will be according to their works; that is, they who have labored most, and been most faithful, shall receive the highest reward, or their fidelity in their Masters service shall be the measure or rule according to which the rewards of heaven shall be distributed, Mat. 25:14-29. Thus, the ground or reason why they are saved shall be the merits of the Lord Jesus. The measure of their happiness shall be according to their character and deeds. On what principle God will distribute his rewards the apostle proceeds immediately to state.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Rom 2:6
Who will render to every man according to his deeds.
Well-doing rewarded
In some parts of the Bible the inheritance of the saints is set forth as the recompense of good works, while there are others in which it is represented as the free gift of grace, a thing that faith alone can receive. Without faith no one can hope to see heaven; neither can anyone see it without good works, or, which is the same thing, without that newness of heart in which they take their rise. They are not related to heaven, however, in the same manner.
I. Eternal life cannot, in any strict sense, be said to be the reward of any well-doing or merit of our own. For who is there that can look for anything at the hands of God, or even hope to stand in peace before Him, on the simple ground of his own character? Even the best parts of the very holiest of lives in this world cannot bear His rule of retribution. It is only of infinite grace that anyone, even when he has done his utmost, can enter into the joy of the Lord. Eternal life is not wages, it is the gift of God through Jesus Christ.
II. While the work of our Saviour accounts for the gift of eternal life as enjoyed in common by all the saints, it leaves unexplained those diversities by which their life in heaven is characterised. The ground on which the gift of life is given, is the meritorious work done by Christ in our behalf–a righteousness that is made ours by faith, and that comes up to all that the holy law of God can require of us. This righteousness is not only perfect in its nature, but also infinite in measure; so rich in merit that it can extend to any number of souls, and secure for us any degree, however high, in the joys of heaven. Its virtue is no wise dependent on the strength of the faith by which we embrace it, but is entirely inherent in itself, as the work of One in whom the Divine and the human are alike combined in all their fulness. Hence, if there is no other consideration to come into view, the honours and the enjoyments of heaven must be the same to all; there can be no degrees of blessedness; one saint cannot have a higher place in glory than another. But does this agree with what we are taught concerning the heavenly world? We read of diversities of gifts in the early Church, all proceeding from the same Spirit–some more, and some less honourable–some more, and some less profitable: diversities of somewhat the same kind prevail at this day. May we not expect that these distinctions in the Church on earth will give rise to corresponding distinctions in the Church in heaven, and that the various degrees of blessedness among the saints in light will have their root in those varieties of character and services by which Christians are distinguished in the present world?
1. As the believer is accepted in Christ, so all that is good in him, whether in heart or life, is accepted also, and not only accepted but rewarded. An illustration may be used, in the light of which eternal life as a free gift may be seen to be in perfect harmony with the idea of recompense. Take the case of some institution in this world, the inmates of which are received into it not on the ground of anything meritorious in themselves, but simply by virtue of the free gift of some generous benefactor who procures the right of admission for them. Side by side with this, may there not be room in the internal arrangements of such an institution for various measures of benefit and various degrees of enjoyment, arising from diversities of character among those who have found a home in it?
2. Another reason why heaven will be richer in blessing to some than to others is, that many of the works in which they engage on earth are of such a kind that their results will meet them there, and thus prove a source of joy to them. The landscape glowing on the canvas is an object of pleasant interest to everyone, but to none so much as to the artist whose taste, and skill, and patient labour have produced it. When a tract of waste and barren land has been reclaimed and brought under cultivation–when golden harvests and pleasant homes are seen to spread over a whole district where but lately there was nothing to meet the eye but crags and marshes–the contemplation of a scene like this will be a source of peculiar pleasure to the man to whose enterprise the change is due. One who spends his time and his means in civilising some rude and degraded tribe, secures for himself a pleasure of a higher kind. But of a still higher and more lasting nature must the pleasure be that is enjoyed by the man who is instrumental, under God, in reclaiming lost souls, and to whom it is given to behold peace and holiness where there was nothing but disorder and sin. For what is the utmost that a mere earthly civilisation can do for mankind, in comparison with those blessings to which they may be raised through the gospel–blessings imperishable as the soul and lasting as eternity?
3. A further reason why some will stand higher than others in the joy of heaven, is to be found in the larger capacity for spiritual enjoyment to which they have attained in their course on earth. The new man of the heart is capable of increase in knowledge, and power, and love, and holiness, and consequently in the capacity for happiness. This increase depends partly on the use we make of the means of grace, but also on the faithfulness with which we employ the powers we already have, both natural and spiritual, in doing the work that God has given us to do. Exercise is one of the indispensable conditions of the souls growth: there must be a patient continuance in well-doing. And the more we abound in those things by which man is blessed and God glorified, the more do we grow in sympathy with the Divine character, the purer is the joy we are capable of receiving, and the more meet do we become for the employments and the pleasures of a higher world; so that on this principle well-doing has a part in working out its own recompense. (G. Hutchison, D. D.)
Divine justice
is–
I. Essential–proved a priori by–
1. Revelation.
2. Reason.
3. Example.
II. Retributive.
1. To the good, glory, etc. (verse 7).
2. To the wicked, wrath (verse 8).
III. Impartial. To the Jews, etc., for there is no respect of persons with God (verses 9-12). (J. Lyth, D. D.)
The final judgment
I. Its certainty, will render.
II. Its universality, to every man.
III. Its equity, according to their deeds. (J. Lyth, D. D.)
Justification by faith and works
It has been asked how this maxim can be reconciled With the doctrine of justification by faith. There is only one answer to this question, viz., that justification by faith alone applies to the time of entrance into salvation through the free pardon of sin, but not to the time of judgment. When God of free grace receives the sinner at the time of his conversion, He asks nothing of him except faith; but from that moment the believer enters on a wholly new responsibility; God demands from him, as the recipient of grace, the fruits of grace. This is obvious from the parable of the talents. The Lord commits His gifts to His servants freely; but from the moment when that extraordinary grace has been shown, He expects something from their labour. Compare also the parable of the wicked debtor, where the pardoned sinner who refuses to forgive his brother is replaced under the rule of justice, and consequently under the burden of debt. The reason is that faith is not the dismal prerogative of being able to sin with impunity; it is, on the contrary, the means of overcoming sin and acting holily, and if this life fruit is not produced it is dead, and will be declared vain (Mat 3:10; 1Co 6:9-10; Gal 6:7). (Prof. Godet.)
Deeds recompensed
according to–
I. Their quality.
II. Their frequency.
III. Their degree.
IV. Their circumstances.
V. Their effects. (T. Robinson, D. D.)
Deeds are seeds
The crop may extend through many generations. The consequences of our deeds may end only with the world. Mens example, instructions, institutions, written works. Believers good deeds receive a righteous reward of grace (Mat 25:34-35; Heb 6:10); their evil ones though pardoned in Christ are visited with chastisements here. (T. Robinson, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 6. Who will render] Who, in the day of judgment, will reward and punish every man according as his life and conversation have been.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
This proves what he had said, that the judgment of God, in that day, will be according to righteousness, or most righteous judgment. Parallel places you will find, Psa 62:12; Mat 16:27; 2Co 5:10; Rev 22:12. The papists from hence infer the merit of works; but the reward to the godly is a reward of grace, and not of debt. The word imports not only a just retribution, but a free gift, as in Mat 20:8, and elsewhere. Good works are the rule of his proceeding, not the cause of his retribution: see Luk 17:10.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Who will render to every man according to his deeds. God will be the Judge, who is righteous, holy, just, and true; every man in particular will be judged; as the judgment will be general to all, it will be special to everyone, and will proceed according to their works; for God will render to wicked men according to the demerit of their sins, the just recompense of reward, eternal damnation; and to good men eternal life, not according to the merit of their good works, which have none in them, but according to the nature of them; such who believe in Christ, and perform good works from a principle of grace, shall receive the reward of the inheritance, which is a reward of grace, and not of debt. In other words, God will render to evil men according to the true desert of their evil deeds; and of his own free grace will render to good men, whom he has made so by his grace, what is suitable and agreeable to those good works, which, by the assistance of his grace, they have been enabled to perform.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Who will render ( ). Paul quotes Pr 24:12 as in 2Ti 4:14. See also Matt 16:27; Rev 22:12. The rendering will be in accord with the facts.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) Who will render to every man, (hos apodosei hekasto) Who will requite (give back) or pay dues to each person, to dole out to each person what is judicially and equitably due him, to every man, without exception or partiality, Rom 14:11-12; Pro 24:12; Psa 62:12; Jer 17:10.
2) According to his deeds, (kata ta erga autou) According to or based on his works, deeds in the flesh, based on ones chosen course of conduct and action in life, 1Co 3:8. Rewards and retributions for saints and sinners shall be according to deeds done in the body; 1Co 3:13-15; Rev 20:12-13.
The believer shall be saved eternally, and rewarded in judgment, according to his deeds, in the light of obedience to truth.
The impenitent, the unbeliever, shall be judged in hell for his unbelief, and the degree of his punishment shall be based on the deeds of his life, done in the body, as those deeds were related to morality and truth. This is a, maxim of moral and ethical truth presented alike in the Old and New Testaments.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
6. Who will render to every one, etc. As he had to do with blind saintlings, who thought that the wickedness of their hearts was well covered, provided it was spread over with some disguises, I know not what, of empty works, he pointed out the true character of the righteousness of works, even that which is of account before God; and he did this, lest they should feel confident that it was enough to pacify him, if they brought words and trifles, or leaves only. But there is not so much difficulty in this verse, as it is commonly thought. For the Lord, by visiting the wickedness of the reprobate with just vengeance, will recompense them with what they have deserved: and as he sanctifies those whom he has previously resolved to glorify, he will also crown their good works, but not on account of any merit: nor can this be proved from this verse; for though it declares what reward good works are to have, it does yet by no means show what they are worth, or what price is due to them. And it is an absurd inference, to deduce merit from reward.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(6) According to his deeds.The Apostle here lays down with unmistakable definiteness and precision the doctrine that works, what a man has done, the moral tenor of his life, will be the standard by which he will be judged at the last day. There can be no question that this is the consistent doctrine of Scripture. (Comp. Mat. 16:27; Mat. 25:31 et seq.; 2Co. 5:10; Gal. 6:7 et seq.; Eph. 6:8; Col. 3:24; Rev. 2:23; Rev. 20:12; Rev. 22:12.) How is this to be reconciled with the main theme of the Epistle, the doctrine of justification by faith?
We may observe (1) that the theology of St. Paul has two main sides or elements: (a) that which is common to all the Jewish schools, developed in direct line from the teaching of the Old Testament, and (b) that which is peculiar to himself, or developed from minute and scattered germs in the Old Testament or from the teaching of our Lord. The doctrine of justification by faith belongs to the latter category; that of final recompense in accordance with moral action belongs to the former. Hence we are prepared to find a difference of terminology without any necessary divergence of idea. (2) If we accordingly separate the two doctrines, and look at each in the connection to which it properly belongs, we shall see that they correspond to a difference in the point of view, (a) The two great classes into which mankind will be divided at the judgment will be determined by works, by the tangible outcome of their lives. No opposition is thought of here between the inward and the outward. Of course such an opposition is possible, but it is not present to the mind of the writer. The rule followed is simply that laid down in Mat. 7:16, By their fruits ye shall know them. The nature of his actions, as the expression of his character, will decide whether a man is to be classed among the good or among the wicked. But (b) if we isolate the individual, and consider him no longer in relation to other men and to the great classification of mankind, but in his own intimate relations to the Judge and to the judgment, a totally different train of thought is suggested. If the conduct of the believer is to be regarded merely in the light of obedience to law (in other words, as a question of works), then he can neither claim nor expect any reward at all. He has broken more commandments than he has kept, and to break the Law, though only on a single point, is to lay himself open to its penalties. In any case, the extent of the reward promised to him far exceeds in proportion the extent of his obedience. It cannot therefore be by works, but must be due to a divine act, and that act is conditioned by faith. In consideration, not of any fulfilment of the Law, but that the main tenor and direction of a mans life has been right as proved by his faith in Christ, the grace of God is extended towards him, and makes up that in which he is behind. Though not deserving, in a strict sense, the bliss of the Messianic kingdom, the believer is, nevertheless, admitted to it on account of his faith in the great Head of that kingdom, and his participation through that faith in the Christian scheme. That scheme has been wrought out objectively, i.e., independently of him, but he by a subjective act, in other words, by faith, appropriates it to himself. (3) Bearing in mind this difference in the sequence of the thought, the apparent contradiction between the two doctrines is resolved. In the doctrine of final retribution there is no opposition between faith and works, in the doctrine of justification there is no opposition between works and faith. In the former, works may be regarded as the evidence of faith; in the latter, they may be regarded as its natural and necessary outcome. They may, it is true, be set in opposition, as we shall find them later on by St. Paul himself, but that is by a special abstraction of the mind. Works are there regarded as disconnected from faith, though in the nature of things they are rather associated with it. Works may be sincere or they may be hypocritical. They may have an inward foundation in the heart, or they may not. And the Apostle looks at them in both lights, according as the course of his argument requires it. That there is no radical opposition is clearly seen if we refer to the description of the last judgment in the Synoptic Gospels. There can be no question that in those Gospels the doctrine prominently put forward is that of retribution according to works, and yet it is most distinctly laid down that the works so insisted upon are not merely the outward tangible act apart from the inward disposition; on the contrary, when such works are pleaded they are expressly disowned (Mat. 7:23-24; comp. Mat. 25:44); and. on the other hand, we are left to infer that the righteous will have little ostensibly to allege in their own favour (Mat. 25:36-39). We are thus led up by easy stages to the Pauline doctrine of justification by faith, even out of the midst of that doctrine of retribution which forms the subject of the section on which we are now commenting.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
6. Every man Of the human race at the one day of judgment.
According to his deeds Rightly considered all true faith is a graciously acceptable work, and all true works are acceptable acts of faith. Works not of faith are dead works and sin, and no works truly at all. In form faith and works are permanently distinct; in essence they are one. Hence the two doctrines that salvation is of faith alone, and yet that we are rewarded according to our works, are not two doctrines only but also one. Those works by which man can never be justified are faithless doings and no true works at all.
But how can faith be attributed to the heathen included by Paul in the present passage? We reply that no one can understand Paul’s idea of faith who has not well studied the eleventh chapter of his Epistle to the Hebrews. Of the illustrious ancient heroes of the faith there commemorated, perhaps not one fully understood Christ as the atoning object of saving faith. Yet they had a true faith in that of which Christ is the reality and impersonation. Faith, in its essential temper, is that elevation of soul by which it aspires to the good, the true, and the divine; and the soul who possesses it tends upward to glory, honour, and immortality, while the soul that possesses it not tends downwardly to animalism, scepticism, and eternal death. To that aspiring faith God is a sought necessity, and Christ, when rightly presented is the one supremely lovely; so lovely, indeed, that even when the aspiring but dimly seeing soul catches but a glimpse of Him it feels a divine attraction. (See our work on “The Will,” pp. 349-351.) And so at the present time of scepticism and rebuke, Christ, even to the sceptical, is a strangely fascinating problem, which they cannot banish from their thoughts. (See note Rom 4:24.)
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Who will render to every man according to his works.’
In this verse the thought from Rom 2:5 continues. At the day of wrath and of the righteous judgment of God all will receive according to what they have done, whether good or bad (2Co 5:10), ‘because God will render to every man according to his works’. This latter phrase comes directly from the Scriptures, so Paul is saying, ‘let the Jew recognise from his own Scriptures what the principle of judgment will be’ (see Psa 62:12; Pro 24:12; Job 34:11; Jer 17:10; Jer 32:19), a position confirmed by Jesus Christ Himself (Mat 16:27). Then it will not be his relationship with Abraham which will matter. What will matter according to his own Scriptures is what he has done and how he has behaved. All will be treated on the same basis.
That this principle refers to good works as well as bad works comes out in what follows. But this does not conflict with the idea that righteousness is by faith, for the whole point of God coming to men with His righteousness is that they, having received His righteousness, will begin to be righteous. The point is that no man can be clothed in God’s righteousness without it deeply affecting him. In the end what we become is thus proof of what we really believe.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
God Will Be Impartial In Judgment (2:6-11).
As mentioned above this new section is in the form of a chiasmus. The chiasmus was found regularly in the works of Moses, and in other books of the Old Testament, forming an a b c c b a pattern or equivalent, with the repetition of a phrase sometimes coming in the second half (‘of the Jew first and also of the Greek’ – ‘to the Jew first and also to the Greek’). The chiasmus here is as follows:
a ‘Who will render to every man according to his works’ (Rom 2:6).
b ‘To those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honour and incorruption, eternal life’ (Rom 2:7).
c ‘But to those who are factious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation (Rom 2:8).
c ‘Tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who works evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Greek’ (Rom 2:9).
b ‘But glory and honour and peace to every man who works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek’ (Rom 2:10).
a ‘For there is no respect of persons with God’ (Rom 2:11).
Note that in ‘a’ God renders to every man according to his works, and in the parallel He shows no respect of persons. In ‘b’ and its parallel there is glory and honour for those who do good. In ‘c’ there is wrath and indignation for the factious, and in the parallel there is tribulation and anguish for those who work evil. Note also that central to the chiasmus is Paul’s thesis from Rom 1:18 to Rom 3:23, that all men obey unrighteousness and do evil and therefore come under judgment.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Rom 2:6. Deeds u917?, works; as it is rendered in other places.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Rom 2:6 . Compare Psa 62:12 ; Pro 24:12 ; analogies from Greek writers in Spiess, Logos spermat . p. 214.
] i.e. according as shall be commensurate with the moral quality of his actions. On this, and on the following amplification down to Rom 2:16 , it is to be observed: (1) Paul is undoubtedly speaking of the judgment of the world , which God will cause to be held by Christ, Rom 2:16 ; (2) The subjects who are judged are Jews and Gentiles , Rom 2:9 ff., consequently all men , Rom 2:16 . The distinction, as to whether they are Christians or not, is left out of view in this exposition, as the latter is partly intended to introduce the reader to a knowledge of the necessity of justification by faith (down to Rom 3:20 ); and it is consequently also left out of view that judgment according to works cannot result in bliss for the unbelievers, because there is wanting to them the very thing whose vital action produces the works in accordance with which the Judge awards bliss, namely, faith and the accompanying regeneration. (3) The standard of the decision is moral action and its opposite, Rom 2:6-10 ; and this standard is really and in fact the only one, to which at the last judgment all, even the Christians themselves, shall be subjected, and by which their fate for eternity shall be determined, Mat 16:27 ; Mat 25:31 ff.; 2Co 5:10 ; Gal 6:7 ff.; Eph 6:8 ; Col 3:24 ; Rev 2:23 ; Rev 20:12 ; Rev 22:12 . But (4) the relation of moral action in the case of the Christian to the fides salvifica , as the necessary effect and fruit of which that action must be demanded at the judgment, cannot, for the reason given above under (2), be here introduced into the discussion. (5) On the contrary, the law only (in the case of the Jews the Mosaic, in the case of the Gentiles the natural), must be presented as the medium of the decision, Rom 2:12 ff.; a view which has likewise its full truth (compare what was remarked under (3) above), since the Christian also, because he is to be judged according to his action , must be judged according to law (compare the doctrine of the tertius legis usus ), and indeed according to the introduced by Christ, Mat 5:17 . Comp Mat 25:31 ff.; Mat 13:8-10 , although he becomes partaker of salvation, not through the merit of works (a point the further development of which formed no part of the Apostle’s general discussion here), but through faith, of which the works are the practical evidence and measure . [610] Accordingly the “phrasis legis” (Melancthon) is indeed to be recognised in our passage, but it is to be apprehended in its full truth, which does not stamp as a mere theoretic abstraction (Baur) the contrast, deeply enough experienced by Paul himself, between the righteousness of works and righteousness of faith. It is neither to be looked upon as needing the corrective of the Christian plan of salvation; nor as an inconsistency (Fritzsche); nor yet in such a light, that the doctrine of justification involves a partial abrogation of the moral order of the world (Reiche), which is, on the contrary, confirmed and established by it, Rom 3:31 . But our passage yields nothing in favour of the possibility, which God may grant to unbelievers, of turning to Christ after death (Tholuck), or of becoming partakers of the salvation in Christ in virtue of an exercise of divine power (Th. Schott): and the representation employed for that purpose, that the life of faith is the product of a previous life-tendency, and that the perfect themselves in faith (Luthardt, Tholuck), is erroneous, because incompatible with the N. T. conception of regeneration as a new creation, as a putting off of the old man, as a having died and risen again, as a being begotten of God through the Spirit, etc. etc. The new life (Rom 6:4 ) is the direct opposite of the old (Rom 6:19 ff.). The possibility referred to is to be judged of in connection with the descensus Christi ad inferos , but is irrelevant here.
[610] It is rightly observed by Calovius: “ secundum opera, i.e. secundum testimonium operum,” is something different from “ propter opera, i.e. propter meritum operum.” Comp. Apol. Conf. A , art. 3, and Beza in loc.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 1825
THE RULE OF GODS FUTURE JUDGMENT
Rom 2:6-11. Who will render to every man according to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; but glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: for there is no respect of persons with God.
IN reading the apostolic writings we should attend, not only to the doctrines that are inculcated, but to the manner in which they are inculcated; for writing, as the Apostles did, entirely under the influence of love, they have given us many valuable lessons, which escape the notice of the superficial observer, but amply repay the search of those who investigate them with deeper attention, and desire to imbibe their spirit. It is of no small importance to learn how to combat prejudice with success. This is rarely done by an open and direct attack: it is far better to attempt it by a more circuitous mode, namely, by establishing such truths as shall serve to give juster views to the mind. In this way the fabric of error, which would have withstood any rude assault, is undermined, and falls, ere the person who defended it is aware of any opposition. The Jews were strongly possessed with the notion, that no Jew could perish, except through apostasy or idolatry; and that no Gentile could be saved, but by subjecting himself to the institutions and observances of the Mosaic ritual. To counteract this error, the Apostle shews, that the Jews, no less than the Gentiles, stood in need of a Saviour, and must embrace the Gospel in order to their final salvation. But to this conclusion he comes by gradual, and almost imperceptible, advances; shewing, that God, as a righteous Judge, will deal with all according to their works, without shewing partiality to any on account of their external privileges, or leaving any to suffer on account of their external disadvantages, but awarding equally to all such a sentence as their respective characters shall require. This is a truth so obvious and incontrovertible, that they could not but acquiesce in it; and, by a due consideration of it, they would be prepared to embrace all that the Apostle was about to advance on the subject which he was especially commissioned to proclaim, the admission of all, both Jews and Gentiles, on an equal footing, into the Church of Christ.
But, in stating the rule which God would observe in the future judgment, the Apostle designed further to convey the most important information to the whole world: for, as all must one day stand at the judgment-seat of Christ, it is of infinite importance for all to know on what grounds their eternal state will be determined.
To leave no doubt on this subject, he fully states,
I.
The character and end of the godly
Mark,
1.
Their character
[The godly man is known by the object he pursues. Nothing less than glory, and honour, and immortality will satisfy him: not the glory and honour which pertain to this life; not the immortality which consists in posthumous fame: those he leaves for others: his ambition soars to higher things; the things worthy of an immortal soul; even to the everlasting possession of all the glory and felicity of heaven. This is the prize which he sees held out to him in the Scriptures: and for the attainment of it he strains every nerve. He well knows how richly it will recompense all his labours and toils; and every thing in comparison of it is regarded by him as the small dust upon the balance.
He is further known by the means he uses to attain it: he seeks it by a patient continuance in well-doing. Whatever he believes to be the will of God, he does. Has God commanded him to humble himself as a sinner, and to flee to Christ as to the refuge that is set before him? he does it; he does it heartily; he does it humbly; he does it continually. Has God further ordered him no longer to live unto himself, but unto Him that died for him and rose again? he endeavours to consecrate all his faculties and all his powers to the service of his adorable Redeemer. He is not satisfied with doing such good works as the men of this world are wont to perform; his efforts extend to all the most difficult and self-denying duties, as well those which are loaded with opprobrium, as those which elevate us in the good opinion of mankind And this he does with a patient continuance, prosecuting, like the sun in the firmament, his destined course, and causing all who behold his light, to glorify God in his behalf. There are times indeed when the difficulties and discouragements which he meets with oppress his mind: his hands sometimes hang down, and his feeble knees seem as if they would no longer sustain the weight they have to bear. But he looks up to God for help: he obtains fresh supplies of grace and strength from above; and, with vigour renewed like the eagles, he resumes his course, determined never to stop, till he has obtained the prize.
In accomplishing the work assigned him, he finds also opposition from without. Much as the ungodly world profess to honour good works, they do not like such works as Christ performed, or such as all his faithful followers perform: they do all they can to obstruct the Christians path; and if he will proceed in it, they will revile and persecute him, even as they did the Lord of Glory himself. But he endures hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ, and counts not his life dear to him, if only he may be enabled to finish his course with joy, and to complete the work which God has given him to do.]
2.
Their end
[God never suffers his faithful servants to be disappointed of their hope. Do they seek eternal life as their one object? eternal life shall be theirs: the glory and honour which they sought shall be awarded to them, and shall be enjoyed by them in a degree, of which, whilst here, they had no conception. Peace also, even a perfect freedom from all those conflicts which so often troubled them in this world, will be theirs in full and everlasting possession. Whilst they were here, their peace passed all understanding, and kept their hearts and minds as in a citadel, out of the reach of all their enemies: but in the future world, their reconciliation with God will be so perfect, and their rest in God so complete, that their peace will flow down like a river, with ever-increasing amplitude and abundance to all eternity.]
In perfect contrast with the foregoing are,
II.
The character and end of the ungodly
Their character is the very reverse of that before considered
[It might be thought that an obedience to the Gospel was not intended to be included in the well-doing of the godly: but here the want of it is particularly marked as a leading feature of the ungodly. In fact, the souls of men can only be purified by obeying the truth through the Spirit [Note: 1Pe 1:22.]; and all who are born again of the Spirit, that is, all the children of God, are so purified. But the ungodly are averse to the truth; they are contentious, and will not obey it: and this arises, not from any want of evidence in the truth itself, but from the predominance of some unrighteous principle, towards which they feel a decided preference, and to which they yield a willing subjection. Some, through the pride of their hearts, reject the principles of the Gospel: whilst others, through the love of this present evil world, or through the prevalence of unmortified lusts, refuse submission to its precepts: the principles are top humiliating; the precepts too difficult and self-denying. It is not necessary that a person, in order to be numbered with the ungodly, should commit such crimes as are reprobated by the world around him: he may be blameless as to his external conduct in the sight of men, and yet be very ungodly in the sight of God: his aversion to the truth as it is in Jesus constitutes him a most flagrant sinner before God, and subjects him to Gods heaviest displeasure [Note: 2Th 1:8 and 1Pe 4:17.].]
Their end will be more awful than either language can express, or heart conceive
[They dream of being in the favour of God: but they are objects of his indignation and wrath. They persuade themselves that they shall be happy in the eternal world: but tribulation and anguish will be their certain and unalterable portion [Note: Compare Psa 78:49. with Psa 11:6.]. O! who can conceive what it is to be cast into a lake of fire and brimstone, and to dwell with everlasting burnings? Alas! what weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth will there be in those regions to which the ungodly will be for ever consigned! Yes: to every soul that doeth evil, shall this sentence be awarded. No respect will be shewn to persons on account of their name, or profession, or rank, or distinctions of any kind. The Jew will have a priority to the Gentiles, both in respect of happiness and misery; of happiness, inasmuch as his peculiar privileges afford him greater advantages for the attainment of holiness; though the Gentile shall not be overlooked on account of his want of those advantages. In like manner the Jew will have a fearful precedence also in respect to punishment, on account of the advantages he has abused: but the Gentiles will according to their measure be punished also, if they have not walked agreeably to the light which they have enjoyed [Note: Luk 12:47-48.]. The possession of privileges will prove a blessing, or a curse, according to the use that has been made of them; but the want of privileges shall neither excuse deliberate wickedness, on the one hand, nor prevent the acceptance of willing, though imperfect, services, on the other hand. If God, on the one hand, will take vengeange on them that know him not, he has, on the other hand, declared, that in every nation, he that feareth God, and worketh righteousness, shall be accepted of him.]
From this subject then we may learn,
1.
What the Gospel is
[Many imagine that such declarations as those in our text together legal. But the apostle Paul, who surely understood the Gospel, considered these declarations as an essential part of it: and it is worthy of notice, that, in the very epistle where he has most strongly advanced the doctrines of predestination and election, he has brought forward these truths, which are so often set in opposition to them. But the Gospel is not such a partial system as is generally imagined: it neither consists exclusively in those doctrines which are commonly spoken of under the term Calvinism, nor in those which are supposed to have an Arminian aspect. The Gospel exhibits the Deity to us under different views; first, as a merciful Father, who offers salvation to us through the blood and righteousness of his only-begotten Son; next, as an almighty Sovereign, who dispenses his blessings according to his own will and pleasure; and lastly, as a righteous Judge, who will proceed with perfect equity in assigning to every man his proper portion of happiness or misery, according to what he has done in the body, whether it be good or evil. Under all these characters God must be viewed: if any one be excluded, his Gospel is mutilated, and his glory obscured. Let us then be equally ready to view him under any of these characters. Let us look to him for a full salvation through the death of his Son: if made partakers of that salvation, let us give all the glory to his free grace, and his electing love: and then let us walk before him in a conscientious performance of every duty, under a firm expectation, that our final sentence shall be according to the dictates of perfect equity. This is to be in the spirit of the Gospel; and if any restrict it to more partial views, they only betray their ignorance or pride, and will find themselves awfully mistaken in the last day.]
2.
How to estimate our own character
[The persons who have such an exclusive fondness of the deeper doctrines of predestination and election, are ready to pour contempt on evidences, as though an inquiry into the evidences of our conversion were mere legality. A favourite notion with them is, that faith is the only evidence of faith. But this is a grievous error. That faith does carry its own evidence along with it, just as love, or any other grace does, we readily allow. A person who relies simply and entirely on God, has a consciousness that he does so, and may, if this consciousness be confirmed by other evidence, be assured that his faith is genuine. But men may have a full persuasion in their own minds that they are right, and yet may be under a fatal delusion. This was the case with Paul, whilst he persecuted the Church of Christ: he verily thought that he ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus. The Scriptures furnish us with unnumbered marks whereby to judge of our state. The Epistles of St. John are full of them [Note: See 1Jn 3:10; 1Jn 3:14; 1Jn 3:19-21; 1Jn 3:24.]; and our blessed Lord cautions us strongly against that presumptuous confidence that would exclude an appeal to them [Note: Mat 7:21-23.]: he bids us judge of ourselves by the fruits that we produce [Note: Mat 7:16-20.]; and assures us, that in this way only can we guard against final disappointment and everlasting ruin [Note: Mat 7:24-27.]. To all then would we say, examine whether you are proceeding in a patient continuance in well-doing: for the Judge himself will assuredly at the last day institute a strict inquiry into your works, and determine your state according to them [Note: Mat 25:31-46.]: and whatever you have sown, that, and that only, shall you reap to all eternity [Note: Gal 6:7-8.].]
3.
How to secure the prize that is set before you
[Not only is this plainly told us in our text; but St. Paul elsewhere says expressly, Be not weary in well-doing; for in due season ye shall reap, if ye faint not [Note: Gal 6:9.]. St. John also inculcates the same salutary lesson, as our Lord also does in the parable of the Sower [Note: Luk 8:15. Bring forth fruit with patience.], both, in effect, saying, look to yourselves, that ye lose not those things which ye have wrought, but that ye receive a full reward [Note: 2 John, ver. 8.]. That we must live altogether by faith in the Son of God, is certain; for it is from his fulness alone that we can receive any spiritual blessing: but still we must exert ourselves as much, as if salvation were the fruit and recompence of our own efforts alone. This matter is put in a just light by St. Paul, when he says, Let us cast away every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith [Note: Heb 12:1-2.]. In humble dependence on him to assist our efforts, and in an entire reliance on his meritorious sacrifice as the only ground of our acceptance, we must press forward in our heavenly course: then may we with confidence expect a recompence of reward, not indeed for any merit in our services, but in exact proportion to them. The men of this world may seek for glory and honour, and be disappointed: but no disappointment shall occur to us: The wicked worketh a deceitful work; but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward [Note: Pro 11:18.].]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:
Ver. 6. Who shall render ] The Papists hence infer merit of works. But it is well observed that the Church in the Canticles is nowhere described by the beauty of her hands, or fingers. Christ concealeth the mention of her hands, that is, of her works (Cotton on Canticles): 1. Because he had rather his Church should abound in good works in silence than boast of them (especially when they are wanting), as Rome doth. 2. Because it is he above that worketh all our works for us, Isa 26:12 ; Hos 14:4 ; Joh 15:5 . Certum est nos facere quod facimus; sed ille facit, ut faciamus. (Augustine.) We do what we do; but it is he that causeth us so to do. See Trapp on “ Mat 16:27 “
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
6, 7. ] This retribution must be carefully kept in its place in the argument. The Apostle is here speaking generally , of the general system of God in governing the world, the judging according to each man’s works punishing the evil, and rewarding the righteous. No question at present arises, how this righteousness in God’s sight is to be obtained but the truth is only stated broadly at present, to be further specified by and by, when it is clearly shewn that by no flesh can be justified before God. The neglect to observe this has occasioned two mistakes: (1) an idea that by this passage it is proved that not faith only, but works also in some measure, justify before God (so Toletus in Pool’s Syn.), and (2) an idea (Tholuck 1st edn. and Kllner) that by here is meant faith in Christ. However true it be, so much is certainly not meant here, but merely the fact, that every where, and in all, God punishes evil, and rewards good .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Rom 2:6 . The law enunciated in the Psalm, that God will render to every one according to his works, is valid within the sphere of redemption as well as independent of it. Paul the Christian recognises its validity as unreservedly as Saul the Pharisee would have done. The application of it may lead to very different results in the two cases, but the universal moral conscience, be it in bondage to evil, or emancipated by Christ, accepts it without demur. Paul had no feeling that it contradicted his doctrine of justification by faith, and therefore we are safe to assert that it did not contradict it. It seems a mistake to argue with Weiss that Paul is here speaking of the Urnorm of the Divine righteousness, i.e. , of the way in which the destiny of men would be determined if there were no Gospel . The Gospel does not mean that God denies Himself; He acts in it according to His eternal nature; and though Paul is speaking to men as under the law, the truth which he is insisting upon is one which is equally true whether men are under the law or under grace. It is not a little piece of the leaven of a Jewish or Pharisaic conception of God, not yet purged out, that is found here; but an eternal law of God’s relation to man.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
render = recompense, as in Rom 12:17.
every man = each one. The two following verses: giving details, form the Figure of speech Merismos. App-6.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
6, 7.] This retribution must be carefully kept in its place in the argument. The Apostle is here speaking generally, of the general system of God in governing the world,-the judging according to each mans works-punishing the evil, and rewarding the righteous. No question at present arises, how this righteousness in Gods sight is to be obtained-but the truth is only stated broadly at present, to be further specified by and by, when it is clearly shewn that by no flesh can be justified before God. The neglect to observe this has occasioned two mistakes: (1) an idea that by this passage it is proved that not faith only, but works also in some measure, justify before God (so Toletus in Pools Syn.), and (2) an idea (Tholuck 1st edn. and Kllner) that by here is meant faith in Christ. However true it be, so much is certainly not meant here, but merely the fact, that every where, and in all, God punishes evil, and rewards good.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Rom 2:6. ). So the LXX. expressly in Pro 24:12, and Ps. 62:13, . This saying, and especially that below, Rom 2:11, is often quoted.-, will render) not only will give, but will repay. [See that you make this the rule of your plans.-V. g.]-, according to) Paul describes those, who shall obtain either life or death, generally, and according to the condition [or else in a way suited to the apprehension] of those, with whom he is concerned in this place, cutting them off still from all special ground of obtaining or losing salvation. Therefore, this passage is of no advantage to the argument for the merit of good works.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Rom 2:6
Rom 2:6
who will render to every man according to his works:-God will render to every man, whether Jew or Gentile, according to the works he did while in the body. He will execute judgment with an impartial hand. [This strips from the Jew all hope of partiality. In the great day of final accounts God will not know him as a Jew. His descent from Abraham will not be known, neither will his circumcision. He will only be a human being, and as such will stand before God. Thus will the Jew stand on a level with all other men.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Rom 14:22, Job 34:11, Psa 62:12, Pro 24:2, Isa 3:10, Isa 3:11, Jer 17:10, Jer 32:19, Eze 18:30, Mat 16:27, Mat 25:34-46, 1Co 3:8, 1Co 4:5, 2Co 5:10, Gal 6:7, Gal 6:8, Rev 2:23, Rev 20:12, Rev 22:12
Reciprocal: Exo 23:7 – for I will not Jdg 13:1 – did 1Ki 8:32 – condemning Psa 9:8 – General Psa 28:4 – the work Psa 96:10 – judge Psa 98:9 – with righteousness Pro 24:12 – and shall Pro 26:10 – both Isa 59:18 – According Eze 18:20 – righteousness Eze 18:22 – in his Eze 18:25 – my Eze 24:14 – according to thy ways Eze 36:19 – according to their way Hos 12:2 – according to his doings Nah 1:2 – reserveth Mal 3:18 – discern Mat 6:18 – shall Mat 7:24 – whosoever Mat 20:8 – when Joh 5:29 – done good Rom 4:15 – Because Gal 6:5 – General Eph 6:8 – whatsoever Col 3:24 – ye shall Heb 3:8 – Harden 1Jo 3:7 – he that
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2:6
Rom 2:6. According to his deeds does not teach “degrees of reward or punishment,” but only whether they are good or evil. (See 2Co 5:10.)
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Rom 2:6. Who will render, etc. This is the universal principle of Gods judgment, and it is set forth in detail in Rom 2:7-10, which form a parallelism. In fact, Rom 2:6; Rom 2:11 are parallel; Rom 2:7-10 being an amplification of the contrast implied in both of these verses.
Works. This is the word so frequently used by Paul in this Epistle and in Galatians. Unfortunately the E. V. sometimes (as here) translates it deeds. Some difficulty has been raised as to the agreement of this principle with the doctrine of justification by faith, to which such emphasis is afterwards given. But (1) the Apostle is expounding the law, or the revelation of wrath (chap. Rom 1:18), not the Gospel. (2) Good works are the fruit and evidence of faith. The wicked will be punished on account of their works, and according to their works; the righteous will be rewarded, not on account of, but according to their works. Good works are to them the evidence of their belonging to that class to whom, for Christs sake, eternal life is graciously awarded; and they are in some sense, and to some extent, the measure of that reward (Hodge). The fact that the Apostle, in this connection, speaks of the judgment as according to my gospel, through Jesus Christ shows that he was not aware of any inconsistency between the two principles.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
The apostle in the foregoing verse had given a description of the general day of judgment, which he called, A revelation of the righteous judgment of God. Here he acquaints us with the impartiality and uprightness of God in the distribution of rewards and punishments in that day, according to the merits and deserts of men: Who will render to every one according to his deeds; that is, according to the kind and quality, and according to the measures and degrees of every man’s works.
Where note, He doth not say, God will render to every man a reward for his works, but according to his works? Works are regula retributionis, non causa meredis: “Our works are the rule of God’s proceedings, but not the cause of his rewards.” Having thus described the impartiality of the Judge, he next declares the universality of the persons that shall then be judged; namely, the righteous and the wicked: which shall both have their distinct rewards assigned them, according to the quality of their works.
Observe, 1. The righteous persons described, and their reward declared; they are described by their well-doing, by their continuance in well-doing, by their patient continuance in well-doing; they are not weary in well-doing, they can undergo sufferings for the sake of well-doing, and they can patiently wait for the reward of well-doing till hereafter whilst others snatch at their reward here: Yet in the meantime they are seeking after, and securing of this their reward: They seek for glory, honour, and immortality; that is, they seek for a portion of glory and immortality in the world to come; they leave the world to the men of the world, and whilst they are scrambling for earth, they are making sure of heaven.
Next, Their persons being described, their reward is declared, eternal life; an eternity of glory and happiness in a future state, shall certainly be the reward of well-doers, and of patient continuers in well-doing.
Observe, 2. The wicked are here characterized, and their reward assigned: They are contentious, and obey not the truth, but obey unrighteousness; that is, they contend with God, and resist the light of his revealed truth; they refuse the offers of his grace, and kick against his word, disobeying offers of his grace, and kick against his word, disobeying the gospel of truth, but obeying unrighteousness. God will pour forth upon such, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish.
Lord, who knoweth the power of thine anger, or who can bear the weight of thy wrath! It broke the back of angels, how shall sinners stand under it? It is styled fire in scripture, it is a consuming fire, and an unquenchable fire: It preys upon the sinner, but never devours him: It is unquenchable by anything but the blood of Christ. A mysterious fire, whose strange property is always to torment, but never to kill; or always to kill, but never to consume.
Observe, 3. With what equity, as well as impartiality, this distribution of God’s indignation and wrath will be made: Upon every soul that doeth evil; but upon the Jew first, and then of the Gentile. The Jew first, that is principally and especially; because the light and mercy which the Jews abused and sinned against, was far greater than that bestowed upon the Gentiles.
Learn hence, That the light under which men sin, puts extraordinary aggravations upon their sins, answerable whereunto will be the degrees of their punishment. The Gentiles will be condemned for disobeying the light of nature, the law of God written on their hearts; but much greater wrath is reserved for the Jews, unto whom were committed the oracles of God: But the greatest of all is reserved for Christians, who obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ; these shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to admired in all them that believe, 2Th 1:9-10.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Vv. 6. Who will render to every one according to his deeds.
No account will be taken of any external circumstance, but solely of the aim which has governed the man’s moral action. It has been asked how this maxim can be reconciled with the doctrine of justification by faith. Fritzsche finds in them two different theories presenting an insoluble contradiction. Others think that in the judgment the moral imperfections of believers will be covered by their faith; which would convert faith into a means of sinning with impunity. What a just judgment that would be! Melanchthon, Tholuck, and others hold that this standard is purely hypothetical; it would be the standard which God would have applied if redemption had not intervened. But the future, will render, is not a conditional (would render). Besides, judgment according to the deeds done, is attested by many other passages, both from Paul (Rom 14:12; 2Co 5:10; Gal 6:6), from Jesus Himself (Joh 5:28-29; Mat 12:36-37, etc.), and from other writings of the New Testament (Rev 20:13). Ritschl thinks that throughout this passage it is a Pharisee whom Paul introduces as speaking, and who starts from a narrow idea of divine justicethe idea, viz., of retributive justice. But what trace is there in the text of such an accommodation on the apostle’s part to a standpoint foreign to his own? The logical tissue of the piece, and its relation to what precedes and follows, present no breach of continuity. There is only one answer to the question raised, unless we admit a flagrant contradiction in the apostle’s teaching: that justification by faith alone applies to the time of entrance into salvation through the free pardon of sin, but not to the time of judgment. When God of free grace receives the sinner at the time of his conversion, He asks nothing of him except faith; but from that moment the believer enters on a wholly new responsibility; God demands from him, as the recipient of grace, the fruits of grace. This is obvious from the parable of the talents. The Lord commits His gifts to His servants freely; but from the moment when that extraordinary grace has been shown, He expects something from their labor. Comp. also the parable of the wicked debtor, where the pardoned sinner who refuses to pardon his brother is himself replaced under the rule of justice, and consequently under the burden of his debt. The reason is that faith is not the dismal prerogative of being able to sin with impunity; it is, on the contrary, the means of overcoming sin and acting holily; and if this life-fruit is not produced, it is dead, and will be declared vain. Every barren tree will be hewn down and cast into the fire (Mat 3:10). Comp. the terrible warnings, 1Co 6:9-10, Gal 6:7, which are addressed to believers.
The two following verses develop the idea of the verb , will render.
Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)
who will render to every man according to his works [The apostle here touches upon a second error which is still common among men. It is, as Cook says, that “vague and undefined hope of impunity which they do not acknowledge even to themselves.” God’s present economy, which sends rain upon the just and the unjust, and which postpones the day of punishment to allow opportunity for repentance, leads untold numbers to the false conclusion that God is slack as to his judgment, and that he will ever be so. They mistake for indifference or weakness that longsuffering grace of his which exercises patience, hoping that he may thereby lead men to repentance (2Pe 3:9). Those who, by hardness of heart, steel themselves against repentance, thereby accumulate punishments which will be inflicted upon them in the day when God reveals that righteous judgment which has been so long withheld or suspended, for God is righteous, and he will render to every man in that day according to his works, after the following described manner]:
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
Verse 6
According to his deeds; and not according to the rites and ceremonies which he may have observed or neglected. The intention of this and of the Romans 2:6-16 was to show the Jew, what is still more pointedly expressed in the Romans 2:17-29 of the chapter, that his condition in the sight of God, and his hopes of final salvation, would depend upon his personal character, and not upon any outward relations which he might sustain to the Mosaic system.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
2:6 {3} Who will render to every man according to his deeds:
(3) The foundation of the former disputation, that both the Jews and Gentiles together have need of righteousness.