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Letter to the Romans
c. AD 57· Book of the Bible· Books & writings
Historical recordConfirmed by archaeology, outside sources or contemporary records.
Paul's longest letter, written about AD 57 to Rome's Christians, sets out his fullest case for salvation by grace through faith.
See it on the Bible & Christianity map →What it is
Writing from Corinth before taking a collection of money to Jerusalem, Paul introduces himself to a church he has never visited and hopes to use as a base for Spain (15:24). He argues that Jews and Gentiles alike have sinned and are made right with God through faith (chapters 1–8), wrestles with Israel's place (9–11), then turns to practical ethics, commends Phoebe, a deacon (16:1), and greets more than two dozen people by name.
Why it matters
It has changed history repeatedly: Augustine's conversion in 386 came reading Romans 13; Luther's study of Romans 1:17 shaped his Reformation teaching; Wesley felt his heart 'strangely warmed' hearing Luther's preface to Romans in 1738.
Sources and history
Nobody seriously disputes Paul wrote it. Its details, the collection, Phoebe of nearby Cenchreae, Erastus the city treasurer, fit Corinth in the 50s; a Corinth inscription names an Erastus, possibly the same man.
Questions and debates
Whether chapter 16 belonged to the original letter is debated, and the 'New Perspective on Paul' asks whether Romans targets earning salvation or the barrier between Jews and Gentiles.
Connections (5)
▸Letter to the Romans holds up the faith of Abraham, father of many nationsHistorical record
The connection
In Romans 4 Paul argues that Abraham was counted righteous for trusting God (Genesis 15:6) before he was circumcised. So Abraham is 'the father of all who believe', Gentiles included, not only of those who keep the Law. Faith, not ancestry or ritual, makes someone his heir.
When and where
Romans 4, written from Corinth about AD 57; Paul had made the same argument a few years earlier in Galatians 3.
Historical evidence
Explicit in the text: Paul quotes Genesis 15:6, 'Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness', and Genesis 17:5.
Questions and debates
James 2:21–24 cites Abraham for a different emphasis, faith shown by works. Whether James is answering Paul himself, or misreadings of him, is debated.
▸Letters of Paul (epistles) include Letter to the RomansHistorical record
The connection
Romans stands first among Paul's 13 letters because it is the longest, about 7,100 Greek words. Unlike most of them, it goes to a church he did not found, so it sets out his message systematically rather than fixing local problems.
When and where
Written from Corinth about AD 57 and carried to Rome, probably by Phoebe, a deacon of the nearby port of Cenchreae (Romans 16:1–2).
Historical evidence
Its authorship is universally accepted; style and themes match Galatians and Corinthians. Romans 16:22 even names the scribe, Tertius, who wrote it down.
Questions and debates
Some early manuscripts end at chapter 14 or 15, or put the closing blessing elsewhere, suggesting the letter circulated in more than one form.
▸Letter to the Romans explains Grace: salvation as God's free giftMostly agreed by scholars
The connection
Romans gives grace its fullest treatment: all have sinned and are 'justified by his grace as a gift' (3:24); 'where sin increased, grace abounded all the more' (5:20); 'the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life' (6:23). Paul then answers the objection that grace encourages sin.
When and where
Romans 3–6 and 11, written about AD 57; read by Augustine in 386 and lectured on by Luther in 1515–16, with history-changing results.
How do we know?
Explicit in the text: the Greek word charis, 'grace' or 'gift', appears about 24 times in Romans, more than in any other New Testament book.
Questions and debates
Whether Romans mainly answers 'how is a person saved?' (Luther) or 'how can Jews and Gentiles be one people?' (the New Perspective) is a live debate.
▸Letter to the Romans transformed the thinking of Martin LutherHistorical record
The connection
Luther lectured on Romans at Wittenberg in 1515–1516. Romans 1:17, 'the righteous shall live by faith', became his breakthrough: God's righteousness is a gift, not a demand. He later wrote that he felt he had 'entered paradise itself through open gates'. Romans became the backbone of his theology.
When and where
Wittenberg, lectures of 1515–1516; Luther described the breakthrough in his 1545 preface to his collected Latin works.
Historical evidence
His Romans lecture notes survive, and his 1522 preface calls Romans 'the chief part of the New Testament'.
Questions and debates
The date of the breakthrough, 1513 to 1519, is debated because Luther described it nearly 30 years later. Some scholars say his reading reflects his own anxieties more than Paul's.
▸Letter to the Romans prompted the conversion of Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God)Historical record
The connection
In a garden in Milan in 386, torn about his life, Augustine heard a child's voice chanting 'Take up and read.' He opened Paul's letters at random to Romans 13:13–14: 'not in revelling and drunkenness... but put on the Lord Jesus Christ.' He says his doubt vanished. Romans later shaped his teaching on grace and sin.
When and where
Milan, late summer 386, with his friend Alypius; Ambrose baptized him at Easter 387.
Historical evidence
Augustine's own account in Confessions, Book 8 (written c. 397–400), more than a decade after the event.
Questions and debates
How literally to read this carefully crafted scene is debated; his writings from 386–387 present his conversion as more gradual and philosophical.