seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Romans 16:1 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon[a][b] of the church in Cenchreae. 2 I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.
3 Greet Priscilla[c] and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. 4 They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.
5 Greet also the church that meets at their house.
Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.
6 Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.
7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among[d] the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.
8 Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.
9 Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.
10 Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test.
Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.
11 Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.
Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.
12 Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.
Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.
13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.
14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.
15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people who are with them.
16 Greet one another with a holy kiss.
All the churches of Christ send greetings.
17 I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. 18 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. 19 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.
20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
21 Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.
22 I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.
Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. [24] [e]
25 Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 26 but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from[f] faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.
a. Romans 16:1 Or servant
b. Romans 16:1 The word deacon refers here to a Christian designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Phil. 1:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8,12.
c. Romans 16:3 Greek Prisca, a variant of Priscilla
d. Romans 16:7 Or are esteemed by
e. Romans 16:24 Some manuscripts include here May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen.
f. Romans 16:26 Or that is
Paul didn't write this part..... apparently Tertius did this one. I took the commentary from the easy English site.
Letters of introduction were common in Roman society. Paul introduces Phoebe to the Christians in Rome. Probably she was going to Rome on business for herself. It is very likely that she was delivering Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome. Cenchreae was the east port of Corinth. The Greek word for ‘servant’ is ‘diakonos’. This word may mean that Phoebe had official responsibility as a leader in the church. This woman had used her wealth to support the work of the Christian church. She also encouraged Paul. So Paul asked the Christians in Rome to give her a warm welcome. They should assist her in any way that she needed.
Junias is probably a female name, Junia. So Andronicus and Junia may have been a married couple. They were Christians before Paul, so they are probably before the time of Stephen. They were members of the first church in Jerusalem. They are ‘among the apostles’. So, like other people, they may have seen Christ when he came back to life (1 Corinthians 15:6).
‘Ampliatus’ was a common name for a slave. But there is a splendid grave in the Christian catacombs (ancient underground graves) in Rome. It has the name Ampliatus on it. So he was probably a Christian whom people thought well of in the church.
‘Urbanus’ means someone who belongs to the city. It was a common name for someone who lived in Rome.
Aristobulus was a grandson of Herod the Great. He lived privately in Rome and he was a friend of the Emperor Claudius. When Aristobulus died, his servants and slaves became the property of the Emperor. People would know them as the ‘household of Aristobulus’.
Herodion may have had some relationship with the Herod family. ‘Relative’ probably means a Jew, like Paul, rather than a relative by birth.
Narcissus was a secretary to the Emperor Claudius. Narcissus had made a large sum of money from people who wanted him to give their letters to the Emperor. When Nero became Emperor, Narcissus had to die. When he died, his slaves became Nero’s property. They would be called the ‘household of Narcissus’. So there were Christian slaves in the Emperor’s household (Philippians 4:22).
Tryphena and Tryphosa were sisters, and may have been born at the same time. Their names meant that they were attractive and delicate. But they worked hard for the Lord.
Persis may have come from Persia. She too worked hard for the Christian faith.
Rufus meant ‘red’, so he probably had red hair. Simon from Cyrene (in Africa) had to carry Jesus’ cross. He may have become a Christian because of this experience. His sons, Alexander and Rufus, seem to be well-known as Christians, because Mark mentions them by name (Mark 15:21). Simon from Cyrene may be the same as Simeon Niger (which means Simon who was black). Simeon Niger was an important Christian in the church at Antioch (Acts 13:1). And that was the same church where Paul first worked as a leader. So, it may have been in Antioch that the mother of Rufus acted like a mother to Paul.
A list of greetings like this is valuable. It shows how much Paul appreciated his friends. He encouraged them as he praised them. He mentions a variety of Christians. He mentions Jews and Gentiles. He mentions both women and men. And he mentions slaves in addition to some important people. This list shows clearly that there is ‘neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female’. All are united in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).
Paul wanted to warn the Christians in Rome about some particular dangers. In chapter 2, Paul has written about some proud teachers who were working in the churches. These men had already caused serious problems in some churches. They were trying to separate Jewish Christians from Gentile Christians. They said that they were teaching God’s law. But they were not sincere. They were using the Christian gospel as a means to make a profit (1 Timothy 6:5; Titus 1:11). And they were not really teaching the gospel. The gospel message is that people become righteous by faith in Christ. But these men said that people had to obey the law in order to become righteous.
Tertius is the only secretary of Paul whose name we know. He sends his own greetings here.
Ok.... so Paul is the one who dictated the book..... and people like Tertius wrote it down. Got it.So.... there were people back in the days of Paul who were running huge profitable churches and lining their pockets. I'm glad to know this isn't a 20th century thing..... but then again.... I am worried that the corruption in the church has been so alive for so long.
I have something on my mind this morning.... I must confess.... I'm happy that this is not a longer, more complicated chapter.
