Harmony: A Survey of Romans 15:1-13

The central theme of Romans reappears in Romans 15 as Paul calls for Jews and gentiles to live in unity. He has already shown that they believe the same truth (chapters 1-11) and worship in the same way (chapters 12-15). The practical implication of this is that Christians are able to live together peaceably, and Paul began unpacking this idea in chapter 14. Chapter 15 describes more implications, and summarizes what has gone before.

The Obligation to Accommodate Weak Believers (15:1-6)

Paul has already described the church as consisting of two groups, the strong and the weak. The strong are those who are unbothered by weak consciences that keep them from abstaining from certain foods or maintaining distinctions of certain days, while the weak maintain these distinctions. As Paul showed in chapter 14, neither group should judge the other’s standards. The strong should only make sure that they are not harming their weak brothers by their actions.

Now the apostle points out that strong believers have an ‘obligation’ to bear with the failings of the weak. In this context, ‘bearing’ with the weak does not simply mean helping them to endure their trials and troubles. It means accepting and receiving them into Christian fellowship despite their oddities and irritating qualities.

The strong could easily please themselves, enjoying their Christian freedom and untroubled by weak consciences. They could do this in such a way that they ignore or run over their weaker brethren, but this will never do in the Christian church. As The Message paraphrase says, “strength is for service, not status.” Strong believers should use their strength in such a way that they build up their weaker neighbors.

This is in line with the example of Christ, as Paul quotes from Psalm 69:9. In this quotation, we see that the Davidic king is someone who endures the reproach (rebuke or disapproval) of God’s enemies. The takeaway is that when Christ was on earth, he did not live for his own pleasure of enjoyment, but endured all the hardships that come from being associated with and living for God. In this way, he is an example for the strong—and all of us—not to live for ourselves but in a way that is in line with our Christian profession.

Verse four functions as a parenthetic aside by the apostle, explaining why he goes into the Old Testament to make his case. It is important because it gives us an understanding of how the early church used the Hebrew Bible, and how we should use it in our daily lives. Paul says that everything written “in former days” was written “for our instruction.” In other words, there is something to be learned by everything in the Old Testament. It is not simply a record of facts, but a textbook of the Christian faith.

Further, the purpose of this instruction is that it would breed “endurance” and “encouragement.” The relationship of these words to “Scriptures” is not clear, but NIV contains a nice gloss that probably captures the correct meaning: “So that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”

In other words, if Christians are reading the Old Testament correctly, they will develop endurance – an ability to persevere through hardship – and will be encouraged. Ultimately, these traits will give them hope, an all-important quality which will keep them pressing toward heaven.

Of course, such endurance and encouragement are not something that we can attain on our own. Paul acknowledges them as coming from “the God of endurance and encouragement,” and he prays for the unity of the church in the example of Christ. This unity, as well, is not something which we can attain simply through hard work. Like everything good, it is something which must be divinely granted.

The ultimate purpose of this unity is not unity for its own sake. It is unity so that the church can “with one voice glorify…God.” Christians are constantly in danger of having many voices – voices calling for moral reform, voices shouting against heresy, voices of political commentary, voices of obscure theological debate – but ultimately, the church should be characterized by a single voice: the clarion call of God’s glory in the world. And the path to this single voice is unity in the truth.

The Example to Accept All Believers (15:7-13)

With the ‘therefore’ in verse 7, these verses function as a conclusion to the discussion that began in chapter 14. In a sense, they also summarizes everything in the book, for Paul’s insistence on truth is ultimately to unite all people together for the glory of God.

The importance of welcoming other Christians who are unlike us takes on a special urgency when we understand the reason for Christ’s advent. He “became a servant to the circumcised,” meaning that he came to minister to the chosen nation of Israel. This unique ministry had a twofold purpose — first, “in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs.” In other words, Christ’s coming was necessary in order to fulfill God’s promises in the Old Testament of a Messiah. The second purpose of his coming was “in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.” The non-Jewish world was always intended to be partakers in God’s mercy, and Christ’s coming is what was necessary to bring them in.

Such a strong statement by the apostle might raise eyebrows among the Jews, who always thought of themselves as God’s chosen people. Wasn’t the inclusion of the gentiles just a ‘plan B’ at best? Isn’t there inclusion just a temporary response of God to Jewish rejection of the Messiah? On the contrary, the apostle takes pains to argue that they were always a part of God’s plan. The Roman church must grasp this if they will accept each other, and if they are ever going to be passionate about Paul’s mission work!

There are four scripture quotations that Paul gives to make this argument. In verse 9 he quotes from Psalm 18:49. In this context, the Davidic king is worshipping God because he has triumphed over nations and peoples, conquering them and bringing them under his dominion. But this isn’t a bad thing – this means that these nations now get to experience the blessing of being ruled by God’s anointed king. It’s a fitting description of how Jesus brings the gentiles into his kingdom.

In verse 10 he quotes from Deuteronomy 32:43. Here, Moses tells the future of the Jewish people. He predicts that they will turn away from God, but in the end they will be restored to God. And then, in this verse, he gives a subtle hint that this restoration will not involve only the Israelites. It will also include others, the gentiles – and that is being fulfilled in our own day.

Verse 11 quotes from Psalm 117:1. This comes from the shortest of all Psalms, and it is a concise song of praise to God, for his covenant. What is amazing is that the covenant, which the Jewish people thought of as consisting of the Jews only, is here a reason for the gentiles to also praise God!

Finally, verse 12 quotes from Isaiah 11:10. This quotation differs the most from the Hebrew text, but Paul quotes from the Greek translation. Despite translation differences, the central idea of the text remains the same: that the gentiles will be drawn to the coming son of David.

Through these Scriptural citations, Paul proves that Christ intends to unite all people through himself. The section concludes with another prayer: that as the believers live out their worship of God, they would ultimately be a hopeful people. The concept of hope harks back to 14:17, but Paul specifically seems to draw in from his final quotation, in verse 12. May we all be united in that hope which the Gentiles will see in the ‘root of Jesse’!

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