Romans 3.16-The Twelfth Charge in a Thirteen Count Indictment Against Mankind
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday October 28, 2007
Romans: Romans 3:16-The Twelfth Charge in a Thirteen Count Indictment Against Mankind
Lesson # 88
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 3:10.
This morning we will continue with our study of the second major section in the book of Romans that is contained in Romans 1:18-3:20, which deals with the universal need of the righteousness of God.
This section is divided into three parts: (1) The unrighteousness of the Gentiles (1:18-32). (2) The unrighteousness of the Jews (2:1-3:8). (3) The universal unrighteousness of men (3:9-20).
We are currently engaged in a study of Romans 3:9-20, which can be treated like a court room trial and is divided into four parts: (1) The Arraignment: The entire human race is brought before the Supreme Court of Heaven to answer to the divine indictment (Romans 3:9). (2) The Indictment: The entire human race faces the charges of crimes against a holy God (Romans 3:10-17). (3) Motive: The motive for man’s crimes against God (Romans 3:18). (4) The Verdict: The entire human race stands condemned before a holy God (Romans 3:19-20).
Thus far, we have noted the arraignment of the entire human race in the court of heaven in Romans 3:9 and eleven of the charges in the thirteen count indictment brought against the human race by God in Romans 3:10-15.
The first six charges that appear in Romans 3:10-12 emphasize the depraved character of the accused (the entire human race) whereas the seventh, eighth and ninth charges that appear in Romans 3:13-14 emphasize the depraved character of the accused from the standpoint of their conversation with each other.
Thursday evening we studied Romans 3:15 in which Paul presents the eleventh charge that emphasizes the conduct of unregenerate man.
This morning we will study Romans 3:16 in which Paul presents the twelfth charge that also emphasizes the conduct of unregenerate man.
Romans 3:10-16, “As it is written, ‘THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE. THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD. ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE. THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING, THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS. THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD. DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN. DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS.’”
Romans 3:15-17 is an abridgment of Isaiah 59:7-8a, which describes the sins of the citizens of the nation of Israel.
Isaiah 59:7-8, “Their feet run to evil, and they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, devastation and destruction are in their highways. They do not know the way of peace, and there is no justice in their tracks; They have made their paths crooked, whoever treads on them does not know peace.”
Romans 3:16, “DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS.”
“DESTRUCTION” is the noun suntrimma (suvntrimma) (sun-trim-ah), which is a compound word composed of the preposition sun, “together” and the noun trimma, “that which is crushed,” thus the word literally means, “crushed together.”
The word literally describes that which is broken into pieces and shattered, resulting in total devastation or destruction.
The word appears only once in the Greek New Testament where it is used figuratively in Romans 3:16 for “destruction, decimation, calamity, ruin” or “that which is laid waste.”
The word paints a picture of what fallen humanity does to all it touches.
This term paints a picture of human brutality and violence, which is manifested in our modern society in the twenty first century in murder, robberies, abused children and abused wives and unjustified conflicts or wars.
“MISERY” is the noun talaiporia (talaipwriva) (tal-i-po-ree-ah), which means, “distress, misery, trouble, wretchedness” and is a general term that denotes the harm that is the result of man’s acts of violence against his fellow man.
Man’s destructiveness inevitably leaves a trail of pain and despair as evidenced by the wars that have taken place throughout human history.
There is a cause and effect that is being described by Paul with the use of these two nouns suntrimma, “destruction” and talaiporia, “misery” in that misery always follows or is the result of destruction in the form of violence.
“DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS” means that destruction and misery characterize the ways of unregenerate man.
Edward Gibbon (1737-1794), “History…is indeed little more than the register of the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind.”
The reason why the history of unregenerate humanity is one of destruction leading to misery is that they have turned aside from the way of righteousness, which Paul notes in Romans 3:12.
Romans 3:12, “Each and every one has deviated from the way (of righteousness). Together, they have become useless. There is, as an eternal spiritual truth, absolutely none, who at any time performs an act of kindness. There is, as an eternal spiritual truth, absolutely none, so much as one.”
As we noted in Romans 3:12, “the way of the Lord” refers to the way or manner in which the Lord does things, which is based upon His character and nature and is expressed by His acts of righteousness and justice towards both men and angels.
“The way of the Lord” is righteousness, which is revealed in His commands and prohibitions and that can be summarized as loving God with one’s entire being and one’s neighbor as oneself, or treating others as you would have them treat you.
The believer lives in the way of the Lord or in the manner in which He prescribes by obeying the Word of God and in particular obeying the commands to love God with one’s entire being and one’s neighbor as oneself, which summarizes the Scriptures.
Matthew 7:12, “In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”
If people obeyed the Lord’s teaching in Matthew 7:12, there would be no murder, rape, adultery, spousal abuse, child abuse, stealing, wars, pain and heartbreak and misery in the world.
Matthew 22:35-40, “One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, ‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?’ And He said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Romans 13:8-10, “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. For this, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,’ and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”
The Lord Jesus Christ called Himself “the Way” and Christianity in its infancy was called “the Way.”
John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Our Lord’s enemies acknowledged that He taught the way of God by means of truth.
Mark 12:13-14, “Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement. They came and said to Him, ‘Teacher, we know that You are truthful and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?’
Acts 9:1-2, “Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.”
2 Peter 2:1-2, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned.”
Abraham was chosen by the Lord to keep His way.
Genesis 18:17-19, “The LORD said, ‘Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.”
The fact that the entire human race has rejected God’s way of righteousness is spoken of throughout the Scriptures.
Isaiah 53:6, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
Isaiah 59:8, “The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks in them will know peace.”
Israel was commanded to keep the way of righteousness and warned what would happen to them if they forsook it (Deuteronomy 6).
Deuteronomy 8:6, “Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him.”
Israel rejected the way of the Lord through their practice of unrighteousness.
Isaiah 65:2, “I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts.”
Satan is the author of destruction and misery since he lives independently of God (Isaiah 14:12-14).
Satan’s way is disobedience to God, which is a manifestation of an independent attitude toward God.
The way of righteous and the way of the wicked are spoken of throughout the Old Testament.
Proverbs 14:2, “He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD, but he who is devious in his ways despises Him.”
Psalm 1:6, “For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”
Proverbs 8:20, “I walk in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of justice.”
Proverbs 4:19, “The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know over what they stumble.”
Proverbs 6:23. “For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life.”
Proverbs 4:11, “I have directed you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in upright paths.”
Proverbs 15:9, “The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but He loves one who pursues righteousness.”
Proverbs 12:28, “In the way of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death.”
Proverbs 10:29, “The way of the LORD is a stronghold to the upright, but ruin to the workers of iniquity.”
Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”
Proverbs 8:13, “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverted mouth, I hate.”
The Psalmist speaks of learning and observing the ways of God.
Psalm 143:8, “Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning; For I trust in You; Teach me the way in which I should walk; For to You I lift up my soul.”
Psalm 119:33, “Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes, and I shall observe it to the end.”
Psalm 119:32, “I shall run the way of Your commandments, for You will enlarge my heart.”
Psalm 119:27, “Make me understand the way of Your precepts, so I will meditate on Your wonders.”
Psalm 32:8, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.”
Psalm 25:12, “Who is the man who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.”
Psalm 25:8, “Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.”