What does Romans chapter 16 mean? (2024)

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What is the main message of Romans 16? ›

Romans 16 is the final passage in Paul's long letter to the Christians in Rome. It contains four sections: his greetings to specific people in Rome, a quick and urgent warning about the danger of false teachers, greetings from those who are with him in Corinth, and a final hymn of praise to God called a doxology.

God's people are to be on the look out for such persons that destabilise the faith of God's people . He is pleading with them to keep a look out for such individuals who seeks to cause division and seek to teach a different doctrine than the “faith which was once delivered unto the saints”. He tells them to avoid them.

In Romans 16:1, Paul identifies Phoebe not only as “our sister,” indicating that she is part of the broader Christian community, but also as a deacon. Today some churches ordain deacons while others commission them to serve in specific ways such as worship, pastoral care, and...

Romans 16:7 is the only place in the New Testament where Junia is named, although some have also identified her with a woman from the Gospels named Joanna, the wife of Chuza, who appears in Luke 8:1–3 and the narrative where the women visit the tomb of Jesus towards the end of the Gospels.

Paul too recognized the vital importance of those who worked behind the scenes. Much of Romans 16 is dedicated to honoring some of his fellow workers in the faith—people such as Phoebe, Andronicus, and Urbanus—whom we would otherwise never know about.

Before closing the letter, Paul urgently warns his readers to be on the watch for false teachers; to avoid them. These people do not serve Christ and will deceive the naive with their distorted version of Christian truth, thus dividing the church.

The division began long before the onset of the war in 1861. It had many causes, but there were two main issues that split the nation: first was the issue of slavery, and second was the balance of power in the federal government. The South was primarily an agrarian society.

When we dug further into the causes of divisive behaviors, the following traits emerged: Posturing and political maneuvering (e.g. gossip, back-channel conversations, and backstabbing). This specific behavior is often the culprit behind low morale, trust, and feelings of high anxiety.

The word division means two visions. In the Christian life, there is a battle going on for two competing visions. One is God's Kingdom, a Kingdom of Light, and the other is Satan's Kingdom, a Kingdom of Darkness. Whatever God creates, Satan counterfeits.

Paul greets 28 people in the Roman church in chapter 16, and also introduces to them Phoebe, who carried his letter. We will count Phoebe here, because she is part of what we can uncover about the role of women in the church of her day.

What does Romans 16 3 mean? ›

He instructs his readers to greet these people on his behalf and, likely, so that each of them can represent him to the larger church in Rome. He begins with a married couple called Prisca—or Priscilla—and Aquila, referring to them as his fellow workers in Christ.

Romans 16:17-18 commands each individual Christian to take a clear stance of watchfulness. One commentator described this as the "mental process of paying attention in order to be prepared." The people Paul warns them about seek to create division and cause believers to fight each other.

Chapter 16 contains Paul's personal recommendation, personal greetings, final admonition, grace, greetings from companions, identification of writer/amanuensis and blessing. The chapter is divided into 27 verses. Epistle to the Romans 16:1,4–7, 11–12 in Papyrus 118 (verso side), written in the 3rd century.

Though we don't know for sure, most scholars think it likely Junia is a woman's name, making this the second married couple included in Paul's list of greetings. Andronicus and Junia are described as Paul's "kinsmen," likely meaning that they were Jewish.

Mary of Rome was a 1st century Christian woman mentioned in Paul the Apostle's Epistle to the Romans (16:6). She is said to have treated Paul with special kindness, and to have "laboured much among" the early Christian community.

Romans is about the good news—the gospel. The word gospel is prominent at the beginning and end of the letter, and it's foremost in the letter's thesis statement in Romans 1:16–17: “I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Paul reveals that Phoebe has been a "patron." This is from the Greek word prostatis, a feminine noun specifically meaning a woman in some supervisory or guardian's role, or one who aids through providing resources. It's possible that Phoebe helped support Paul's work financially or in other ways.

A notable woman in the church of Cenchreae, she was trusted by Paul to deliver his letter to the Romans. Paul refers to her both as a "servant" or "deacon" (Greek diakonos) and as a helper or patron of many (Greek prostatis).