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Background and overview
In the New Testament canon of 27 books, 21 are called “letters,” and even the Revelation to John starts and ends in letter form. Of the 21, 13 belong to the Pauline corpus; the Letter to the Hebrews is included in the Pauline corpus in the East but not, however, in the West. Three letters of this corpus, the Pastoral Letters, are pseudonymous and thus are not considered here. Of the remaining 10, the Letters to the Colossians and Ephesians are from the hand of a later Pauline follower and II Thessalonians is spurious. How this Pauline corpus was collected and published remains obscure, but letters as part of Holy Scripture were an early established phenomenon of Christianity.
The church was poor and widespread, and, in the early stages, expected an imminent Parousia. More formal sacred writings were thus superseded in importance by letters (e.g., those of bishop Ignatius of Antioch) that answered practical questions of the early churches.
The letters of Paul, written only about 20–30 years after the crucifixion, were preserved, collected, and eventually “published.” In general, they answered questions of churches that he had founded. When all the Pauline Letters as a corpus were first known is difficult to determine. Because Pauline theology and some quotations and allusions were certainly known at the end of the 1st century, the Pauline Letters probably were collected and circulated for general church use by the end of the 1st century or soon thereafter. A disciple of Paul, possibly Onesimus, may have used Ephesians as a covering letter for the whole collection.
The letters Galatians and Romans both contain an extensive discussion about the Law (Torah) and justification (in language not found in the other letters) to solve the problem of the relation of Christianity to Judaism and of the relationship of Jewish Christians with Gentile Christians. Galatians is older and differs from Romans in that it deals with Judaizers—i.e., Gentile Christians who were infatuated with Jewish ways and championed Jewish ceremonial law for Gentile Christians. On the other hand, Romans speaks to the question of the Jews and the Christian faith and church in God’s plan of salvation.
In I and II Corinthians (which may include fragments of much Corinthian correspondence preserved in a somewhat haphazard order), there is no preoccupation with either Jews or Judaizing practices. They deal with a church of Gentile Christians and are therefore the best evidence of how Paul operated on Gentile territory.
The earliest book in the New Testament is I Thessalonians, which is concerned with the problem of eschatology. Though II Thessalonians is obvious in its imitation of the style of I Thessalonians, it reflects a later time, elaborates on I Thessalonians, and is thus not viewed as genuine.
Philippians may be a composite letter in which various themes of Pauline teaching are held together by a testament form. Thus, it is a compendium without too specific a focus on the Philippian situation. Philemon, although addressed to a house church, is uniquely concerned with the fate of a slave being returned to his master, with the hope that he will be forgiven and be sent back to help Paul in prison, an example of manumission in Paul’s name.
Ephesians appears to be dependent on Colossians, and both, although using the Pauline style, reflect a time and imagery sometimes different from and later than Paul’s genuine letters. Ephesians covers the content of Colossians in more compact form and may be a covering letter for the entire Pauline corpus by a disciple or other later Paulinist.
The style of Paul’s letters is an admixture of Greek and Jewish form, combining Paul’s personal concern with his official status as Apostle. After his own name, Paul names the addressees or congregation being addressed and adds “grace and peace.” This is often followed by thanksgivings and intercession that are significantly adapted to the content and purpose of the letter. Doctrinal material usually precedes advice or exhortation (parenesis), and the letters conclude with personal news or admonition and a blessing: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” Paul’s letters were probably dictated to an amanuensis (who might be named, for example, Sosthenes, I Cor. 1:2), and some greetings were written at the end of the letters in his own hand. They were obviously meant to be read aloud in the church, however, and thus their style is different from that of purely personal letters.
The Letter of Paul to the Romans
Romans differs from all the other Pauline letters in that it was written to a congregation over which Paul did not claim apostolic authority. He stressed that he was merely going to Rome in transit, because it was his principle not to evangelize where others had worked. Because his apostolic ministry appeared to be completed in Asia Minor and Greece, Paul planned to go to Spain via Rome, a city that he had never visited. Before going westward, however, he first had to go to Jerusalem to deliver to the church there a collection of money.
Because Paul was going to a church he had not founded, his writing to the Roman Christians offered him an opportunity to present his theological views in a systematic way, which he had not done in other letters. Paul reflected on how his special mission fitted into God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, of both Jews and Gentiles—a theme that reached its climax in chapters 9–11. Chapters 1–8 unfold with great specificity how the coming of Jesus the Messiah has made it possible for the Gentiles to become heirs to God’s promises. His argument is at first negative, stating that neither Gentile nor Jew could effect his own salvation. He then shows a new way in which eventually both can be delivered from the bondage of sin by being justified—i.e., made “right with God”—not through acceptance of the Law but by faith in the crucified Lord.
The theological section (chapters 1–11) is followed (as is often the case in Pauline letters) by ethical instructions. There is little doubt about the integrity of Romans 1–15; the letter was written from Corinth c. 56. Chapter 16, however, seems to be a later addition. It contains numerous salutations to individuals (which is unusual in that Paul had never been to Rome) and an antinomian (antilegalistic) tone that would be more appropriate to the situation in Asia Minor. The doxology (16:25–27) is rhetorical and its vocabulary is not in keeping with that of Paul’s usual thought. Because the doxology occurs in different manuscripts in varying positions in the course of textual transmission, it is probably secondary. Chapter 16 may thus preserve portions of a letter or letters from some other time or to some place other than Rome, possibly Ephesus.
In chapter 1, verses 1–17, there are greetings and thanksgivings leading to the main theme of the letter: the gospel is
the power of God for salvation to every one who has faith (i.e., that Jesus is the Messiah), to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Paul took this sentence from the Old Testament Book of Habakkuk, chapter 2, verse 4, not as a principle but as a prophecy now fulfilled. Thus, the translation should read “will live” rather than “shall live.” This does not refer to God’s faithfulness but rather to the believer’s trust. Justification by faith is not, however, the answer to the question of man, plagued by conscience, about his salvation nor is it deep theology. It is rather an argument totally grounded in the problem of the relationship of Jews and Gentiles—i.e., how it will be possible for the Gentiles to be fellow heirs with Jews and how both Jews and Gentiles can be members of the church. In chapters 2–3 both Gentiles and Jews are demonstrated to have fallen short of the glory of God and to be under condemnation. A turning point, however, is emphasized in chapter 3: “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from law….” Justification is a gift through Jesus Christ and his expiating death for the salvation and vindication of all who believe in him. Because all this is through Christ and not by works of the Law, salvation is equally available to the Gentiles as well as to the Jews. For both, the means is the same: faith in Jesus the Christ.
The central problem after chapter 8, which describes the glory of the new dispensation in Christ and the Spirit (presented in chapters 9–11), centers on the mystery revealed to Paul, namely, that the Gentiles should be incorporated and be fellow heirs with the Jews. This is what Paul yearned for with respect to his fellow Jews. What makes it equally possible for Jew or Gentile to come to Christ is justification by faith, with the Law viewed as obsolete because Christ is the end of the Law (chapter 10, verse 4). Thus, there are, in effect, no distinctions between Gentile and Jew. Paul viewed his ministry as having made possible the inclusion of the Gentiles; as an apostle to the Gentiles he never urged them to carry on a mission to the Jews. He envisaged the Jewish acceptance of Christ as a mystery beyond human planning and effort, a divine event that will be the climax of history.
The ethical section (12:1–15:13) has no special reference to a situation in Rome. A close analysis shows that Paul here repeats thoughts and admonitions that are more specific in other letters. A metaphor of the church as a body (12:5), for example, is stylized and compressed as compared with the fuller use of the same in I Corinthians, chapter 12, and the pattern of weakness and strength in matters of food is best understood in the light of the fuller exposition in I Corinthians, chapters 8 and 10.
