Romans 2

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¹You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. ✦ ²And we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does such things. ✦ ³Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things? ✦ ⁴Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin? ✦ ⁵But because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. ✦ ⁶He will judge everyone according to what they have done. ✦ ⁷He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. ✦ ⁸But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness. ✦ ⁹There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on doing what is evil—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. ✦ ¹⁰But there will be glory and honor and peace from God for all who do good—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. ✦ ¹¹For God does not show favoritism. ✦ ¹²When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God’s written law. And the Jews, who do have God’s law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it. ✦ ¹³For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight. ✦ ¹⁴Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. ✦ ¹⁵They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. ✦ ¹⁶And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life. ✦ ¹⁷You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, and you boast about your special relationship with him. ✦ ¹⁸You know what he wants; you know what is right because you have been taught his law. ✦ ¹⁹You are convinced that you are a guide for the blind and a light for people who are lost in darkness. ✦ ²⁰You think you can instruct the ignorant and teach children the ways of God. For you are certain that God’s law gives you complete knowledge and truth. ✦ ²¹Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal? ✦ ²²You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? ✦ ²³You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonor God by breaking it. ✦ ²⁴No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.” ✦ ²⁵The Jewish ceremony of circumcision has value only if you obey God’s law. But if you don’t obey God’s law, you are no better off than an uncircumcised Gentile. ✦ ²⁶And if the Gentiles obey God’s law, won’t God declare them to be his own people? ✦ ²⁷In fact, uncircumcised Gentiles who keep God’s law will condemn you Jews who are circumcised and possess God’s law but don’t obey it. ✦ ²⁸For you are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the ceremony of circumcision. ✦ ²⁹No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people. ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Where this chapter connects

Rom 2 ·23 Rom 9 ·14 Rom 3 ·11 Rom 1 ·10 Eph 2 ·7 Luke 12 ·6 Gal 6 ·6 Rom 8 ·6

Christ at the center

Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.

How Romans 2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Resources, by level

Lay

★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical
Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)
★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.
VideoMike Winger — BibleThinkerMike Winger · Free · reformed
Free verse-by-verse studies through whole books plus careful apologetics — "learn to think biblically about everything." (Reformed-leaning, non-denominational.)

Pastoral

★ Start hereSermonMLJ Trust — Martyn Lloyd-Jones sermonsMartyn Lloyd-Jones · Free · reformed
1,600+ free sermons from "the Doctor," including landmark verse-by-verse series (Romans, John, Ephesians, Acts) — a gold standard of expository preaching.
SermonGrace to You — John MacArthurJohn MacArthur · Free · reformed
Decades of careful verse-by-verse expository sermons, especially through the New Testament. (MacArthur, d. 2025; archive remains free.)
SermonGospel in Life — Tim KellerTim Keller · Free · reformed
Tim Keller's gospel-centered preaching — sermons stream free (the complete downloadable archive is paid).
ArticleRecommended NT commentaries (9Marks / Schreiner)Thomas R. Schreiner · Free · reformed
A trusted pastor-oriented guide to the best commentary on each New Testament book.
SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.
VideoVerse By Verse Ministry InternationalVerse By Verse Ministry Int'l · Free · evangelical
In-depth, verse-by-verse expository teaching book-by-book — strong for working straight through a whole New Testament book.
VideoLook at the Book — John PiperJohn Piper · Free · reformed
Watch Piper trace the logic of a passage phrase by phrase on screen — a model of close reading.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — Romans videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on Romans 2YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — Romans 2David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on RomansMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — Romans 2Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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