Romans 1:30 Commentary and Bible Study

‘Backbiters’, paired with ‘whisperers’ in the previous verse, means open slanderers. The word is literally evil-speakers. Whisperers operate out of sight of most people, whereas ‘backbiters’ in the original refers to people who publicly speak evil of others. They seek to destroy the reputation through lies. They cause others to have to suffer being in everybody's bad books because of what's been said about them. Some people do it secretly: they don't want consequences. Some people do it openly: they tell as many people as possible, publish as many as they can. It is done to inflict hurt; that's the only reason for it. There is that difference between the two.Haters of God.’ That is the militant atheist, but in some measure it is everybody who is unconverted. Any atheistic argument years ago used to be put very politely. Now it is naked hatred: haters of God, and bitter against him. In describing his pre-conversion view of Romans 1:17 Martin Luther admits that he hated the righteousness of God at that time. He says, ‘I hated that word, “righteousness of God,” which, according to the use and custom of all the teachers, I had been taught to understand philosophically as referring to formal or active righteousness, as they call it, with which God is righteous and punishes the unrighteous.’ It is only an understanding of the grace of God in Christ Jesus, given us by the Spirit, that can take away this hatred. Otherwise we resent his strictness, and his opposition to our sins. By grace we become lovers of God, lovers of worship, people who appreciate him. ‘Despiteful’, which means contemptuous people, insolent people: contemptuous of standards, insolent towards those who have reasonable or rightful authority over us. You really cannot be contemptuous as a Christian, because you always think to yourself, ‘That was me, that person I am tempted to hold in contempt. That was me, and still is me to a degree, and it is only by the mercy of God that I have been delivered from that.’‘Proud’ – superior, and unwilling to see themselves as they truly are. People who talk about themselves a great deal, and must put themselves across. This is at the bottom of so much that is wrong with us. In the church of Christ, we have been changed by Christ into humble people, not show-offs, not boasters, not braggers. ‘Boasters’ – braggers. People who must be putting themselves across. There is so much boasting. If you took boasting off the television, you would lose half the programs. You would lose all the chat shows, all the bragging shows, all that kind of thing. And people like it; it is to the public taste.‘Inventors of evil things.’ This is a strange category. It is as though Paul’s list can never end. The human heart is especially fertile in the invention of evil. Of course Satan is suggesting things to us. This is people - and it is all of us at times in our lives – who actually innovate in evil. They rejoice to think it out and to do it. The obvious example is those who found their own religion, or they found their own school of thought. They are so proud and so special and so wise in their own eyes, they can create a whole school of thought.‘Disobedient to parents’, which goes wider than parents. It means disobedient to all authority strictly. Parent is in the original, but that is what the Scripture means. People who are so big headed, and confident, and wilful that they do not want to pay any respect to any authority. And that is everyone at some time. Parents don't have absolute authority over us when we're grown up. When you marry, it's another household. Parents don't dictate everything, but all parents should be listened to, and not only biological parents, but all forms of parent. Seniors, supervisors, managers, elderly people, people who manage and govern, are all to be respected. One of the terrible things today, which will ultimately, if it goes on, destroy democracy, is the contempt in which we hold rulers of all parties. The press now sees fit to go to such extremes, and on the internet the insults are hurled. Who would be a ruler? Who would attempt to be an MP or a legislator? As a society we are so utterly disrespectful. We don't have to be craven. We can weigh their views, but we respect. It's really another form of pride.