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Romans: Outline of Contents

I. Introduction (1:1–17)

A. Salutation (1:1–7)

B. Thanksgiving (1:8–15)

C. Summary of Paul’s gospel (1:16–17)

II. Wrath now revealed on all (1:18–3:20)

A. Gentiles under the power of sin (1:18–32)

B. Jews under the power of sin (2:1–29)

C. Objection (3:1–8)

D. Judgment on both Jews and Greeks (3:9–20)

III. Righteousness now revealed to all (3:21–4:25)

A. Righteousness by faith to all, Jews and gentiles (3:21–31)

B. Scripture proof: Abraham made righteous by faith (4:1–25)

IV. The life of righteousness by faith (5:1–8:39)

A. God’s righteousness through Jesus Christ (5:1–11)

B. The way Jesus mediates God’s righteousness (5:12–21)

1. Sin and death through first Adam (5:12–14)

2. Acquittal, life, and grace through Christ (5:15–21)

C. Replies to objections that grace fosters immorality (6:1–8:39)

1. If grace overcomes sin, why not sin more to receive more grace? (6:1–7:6)

a. Response: Can the baptized behave in the ways of the old life? (6:1–14)

b. Response: Can a freed slave still serve an old master? (6:15–23)

c. Response: Can a widow who remarries return to her deceased husband? (7:1–6)

2. Objection: If a believer is liberated from the law, is the law therefore sinful (7:7)? Response: a heart corrupted by sin, not the law, is sinful (7:7–25)

3. The believer is not lawless but walks by the Spirit in love (8:1–39)

V. Objection: Why be a Jew? and Paul’s answer (9:1–11:36)

A. To Israel belong special privileges (9:1–5)

B. Israel’s rejection, even if final, is not a failure on God’s part (9:6–13)

C. God’s selection of gentiles, even if arbitrary, is not unjust (9:14–29)

D. God’s selection is not arbitrary: everyone, Jew or gentile, who turns to God will be saved (9:30–10:21)

E. The Jewish rejection is not final (11:1–32)

1. A remnant has accepted the gospel (11:1–6)

2. God uses the rejection of Jews (11:7–24)

3. All Israel will be saved (11:25–32)

F. Doxology of praise to God (11:33–36)

VI. God’s righteousness in the daily life of the believer (12:1–15:13)

A. Introduction (12:1–2)

B. Response to insiders (12:3–13)

C. Response to outsiders (12:14–13:7)

1. Persecutors (12:14–21)

2. Governing authorities and state (13:1–7)

D. Response to all: love (13:8–10)

E. Urgency imposed by the approaching end (13:11–14)

F. Weak and strong in Rome (14:1–15:13)

VII. Paul’s travel plans (15:14–29)

VIII. Conclusion (15:30–33)

IX. Appendix: recommendation, greetings, warning against false teachers (16:1–23)

X. Letter closing (16:25–27)

Courtesy of HarperCollins Bible Dictionary, ed. Mark Allan Powell (New York: HarperCollins, 2011), 889.