Unlocking Romans

"If the God of Israel has acted to save his people through Christ, but Israel is not participating in that salvation, how then can this God be considered righteous? Unlocking Romans is directed in large extent toward answering this question in order to illuminate the righteousness of God as revealed in the book of Romans." "The answer here, J. R. Daniel Kirk claims, comes mainly in terms of resurrection. Even if only the most obvious references in Romans are considered - and Kirk certainly delves more deeply than that - the theme of resurrection appears not only in every section of the letter but also at climactic moments of Paul's argument. The network of connections among Jesus' resurrection, Israel's Scriptures, and redefining the people of God serves to affirm God's fidelity to Israel. This, in turn, demonstrates Paul's gospel message to be a witness to the revelation of the righteousness of God."--BOOK JACKET.

This book breaks a significant impasse in much Pauline interpretation, pushing beyond both " Lutheran" and "New" perspectives on Paul to a non-contractual , "apocalyptic" reading of many of the apostle's most famous, and most troublesome, texts. His strongly antithetical vision identifies "participation in Christ" as the sole core of Pauline theology and produces the most radical rereading of Romans 1-4 for more than a generation. Even those who disagree will be forced to clarify their views as never before.

“Above all, Romans is a letter about Spirit-enabled participation and transformation in Christ and his story, and thus in the mission of God in the world.” This commentary engages the letter to the Romans as Christian scripture and highlights the Pauline themes for which Michael Gorman is best known—participation and transformation, cruciformity and new life, peace and justice, community and mission. With extensive introductions both to the apostle Paul and to the letter itself, Gorman offers background information on Paul’s first-century context before proceeding into the rich theological landscape of the biblical text. In line with Paul’s focus on Christian living, Gorman interprets Romans at a consistently practical level, highlighting the letter’s significance for Christian theology, daily life, and pastoral ministry. Questions for reflection and sidebars on important concepts make this especially useful for those preparing to preach or teach from Romans—the “epistle of life,” as Gorman calls it, for its extraordinary promise that, through faith, we might walk in newness of life with Christ.

This readable commentary exposes theological meaning in Romans by tracing its use of rhetorical strategies from the ancient cultural and educational context.

Most of the Jesus-followers in Rome would have been familiar with socioeconomic hardship. Suffering was a daily reality either for themselves or for someone they knew. Many lived below or just above subsistence level. Some were slaves, homeless, or chronically sick. Followers of Christ might have experienced persecution because of their refusal to take part in the local religious festivals. Suffering is, of course, a significant theme in Romans 5:1-11 and 8:17, 18-39. Paul mentions various types of affliction many times in these texts. How might Paul's audience have understood them? In Suffering in Romans Siu Fung Wu argues that Paul speaks of the vocation of the Jesus-followers to participate in Christ's suffering, with the purpose that they may be glorified with him. Indeed, their identification with Christ's suffering is an integral part of God's project of transforming humanity and renewing creation. It is in their faithful suffering that Christ-followers participate in God's triumph over evil. This is counter-intuitive, because most people think that victory is won by power and strength. Yet the children of God partake in his cosmic victory by their suffering, aided by the Spirit and the hope of glory.

Building on his own translation from the Greek, Hultgren walks readers through Romans verse by verse, illuminating the text with helpful comments, probing into major puzzles, and highlighting the letter's most inspiring features. He also demonstrates the forward-looking, missional character of Paul's epistle -- written, as Hultgren suggests, to introduce Roman Christians to the major themes of Paul's theology and to inspire in them both confidence in the soundness of his teaching and support for his planned missionary efforts in Spain.

The Letter to the Romans explains the way Paul thought Jewish covenantal identity continued now that the messianic era had begun. More particularly, Paul addresses the relevance of Abraham for Jews and gentiles, the role of Torah, and the way it is contextualized in Christ. All too often, however, these topics are read in supersessionist ways. This book argues that such readings are unpersuasive. It offers instead a post-supersessionist perspective in which Jewish covenantal identity continues in Paul's gospel. Paul is no destroyer of worlds. The aim of this book is to offer a different view of the key interpretive points that lead to supersessionist understandings of Paul's most important letter. It draws on the findings of those aligned with the Paul within Judaism paradigm and accents those findings with a light touch from social identity theory. When combined, these resources help the reader to hear Romans afresh, in a way that allows both Jewish and non-Jewish existing identities continued relevance.

For more than twenty years Douglas Moo’s NICNT volume on Romans has been providing pastors, students, and scholars with profound insight into Paul’s most famous letter. In this thorough revision of his commentary, Moo deals with issues that have come into prominence since the first edition (1996), incorporating the latest research and rewriting the text throughout for better comprehension. Exegetically astute and theologically minded, Moo interacts critically with the new perspective on Paul, highlights the emphasis in Romans on “practical divinity,” and traces the theme of the gospel throughout the letter. His Letter to the Romans in this second edition will inform and enlighten a new generation of serious Bible readers.