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An excerpt from “Doers of the Law,” Part Two of a Deep Dive into Romans 2:1-16, from The Blessed Hope Podcast Season Five Series on the Book of Romans

Paul has stated in Romans 1:18–32 that Gentiles stand condemned because they know God through what has been made. But because of sin, they culpably exchange the truth of God for a lie—the source of all false religion. As a result, God gives them over to the consequences of their sin, depicted by Paul as a downward spiral into ever deeper depths of depravity. In Romans 2:1–16, Paul turns his focus to the Jews, who self-righteously judge the conduct of the Gentiles while doing the very same things they accuse the Gentiles of doing. This leads Paul to affirm one of the main principles of biblical theology—the “works principle.” God promises blessings to those who obey him, while he threatens curses upon those who disobey him. Since all have disobeyed, neither Jew nor Gentile can stand before God on judgment day and claim a righteous standing. They will not be justified. If God gives them what they deserve, they will perish.

Paul also speaks here of the fact that the law of God is written upon all human hearts—both Jew and Gentile. At Mount Sinai, those unwritten but universal commandments were written on two stone tablets and revealed to Israel, then codified and published in a distinctly covenantal context. This context demonstrates God’s will for his people through the Ten Commandments. These commandments are holy, righteous, and good (Romans 7:12). Those who keep these commandments (i.e., “doers”) will be justified. But the inability of the Jews to keep these commandments, along with the inability of the Gentiles to keep the unwritten version of the law inscribed upon their hearts, prepares the way for the coming of Israel’s Messiah—the incarnate Creator-Redeemer—who alone will keep God’s commands and then offer himself as a sacrifice for the sins of those who cannot.

To read the rest, follow the link below

Blessed Hope Podcast, Riddleblog PublicationKim RiddlebargerOctober 21, 2026Blessing - curse principle, Romans 2:1-16Comment

"Storing Up Wrath" A New Episode of the Blessed Hope Podcast! (Part One of a Deep Dive Into Romans 2:1-16)

Episode Synopsis:

The church in Rome was predominately Gentile–made up of recent converts from Greco-Roman paganism to Christianity. Such Gentiles knew little if anything about the Old Testament, nor its central figures, Abraham, Moses, and David. They knew that Jewish Christians cared about dietary restrictions, as well as circumcision–a surgical procedure which seemed bizarre to former Gentile pagans. They knew the Jews revered the law of Moses–which they claimed to be the very commandments from God. Gentiles ate things Jews did not. They touched things Jews regarded as unclean. As new Christians, Gentiles were learning about the evils of idolatry and the importance of rejecting the libertine sexual ethics and practices of Roman life in favor of a biblical sexuality. But they were also learning about Moses, Abraham, the law, and the covenants God made with Abraham and Moses.

Paul has been clear in the opening chapter of his letter to Rome. “You Gentiles may not have known who Moses was, nor why the commandments God gave to Israel through him at Mount Sinai were so important, but you do know what is right and what is wrong because God has made it plain to you through the created order, which, until coming to faith in Jesus, you tried to suppress in unrighteousness. You may claim ignorance, but you knew deep down inside that the things you were doing lead to death.“

But Paul is not finished. Even as he exposes Gentile godlessness and the futility of exchanging the truth of God for pagan nonsense, you can almost hear the Jewish Christians in Rome cheering Paul on. Eyewitnesses of bad Gentile behavior and victims of Gentile oppression, Jewish converts, of course, were thrilled to hear Paul “give it to them good.” “About time someone called out the Gentiles for their sinful and immoral practices.”

But as the second chapter of Romans unfolds, Paul shifts gears and raises the uncomfortable reality of Jewish hypocrisy. “Ok, you Jews who criticize the Gentiles, do you do the same things they do?” “How can you judge the Gentiles when you are no better.” The truth is, God is going to judge all people according to their works–Jew and Gentile. The blessing/curse principle will apply to all humanity. Those who do good will receive God’s blessing, while those who do not keep God’s commands will face him on the day of judgment. Yes, Paul has good news to proclaim, but there can be no good news until we realize that we are sinful, law-breakers, and deserving of God’s wrath whether we be Jew or Gentile.

To see the show notes and listen to the episode, follow the link below

Blessed Hope PodcastKim RiddlebargerAugust 31, 2026Romans 2:1-16, Paul's warning to JewsComment