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Romans

About this book
Chapter 15

1 But we who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not just please ourselves. 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up. 3 For even Christ did not please himself, but just as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” 4 For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures we may have hope.⁠ 5 Now may the God of endurance and comfort give you unity with one another in accordance with Christ Jesus, 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 7 Receive one another, then, just as Christ also received you, to God’s glory. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth to confirm the promises made to the fathers, 9 and thus the Gentiles glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Because of this I will confess you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises to your name.”⁠ 10 And again it says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.”⁠ 11 And again, “Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him.”⁠ 12 And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, and the one who rises to rule over the Gentiles, in him will the Gentiles hope.”⁠ 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in him, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 14 But I myself am fully convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another. 15 But I have written more boldly to you on some points so as to remind you, because of the grace given to me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. I serve the gospel of God like a priest, so that the Gentiles may become an acceptable offering, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 So I boast in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in order to bring about the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem even as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 20 And in this way I desire to preach where Christ has not been named, so as not to build on another person’s foundation, 21 but as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” 22 This is the reason I was often hindered from coming to you. 23 But now there is nothing more to keep me in these regions, and I have for many years desired to come to you 24 when I go to Spain. For I hope to visit you when I pass through and that you will help me on my journey there,⁠ after I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25 But now I go to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia are pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do this, and indeed they are indebted to the Jerusalem saints. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are obligated also to minister to them in material things.⁠ 28 Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them, I will set out for Spain by way of you,⁠ 29 and I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of Christ’s blessing. 30 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf. 31 Pray that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea and that my ministry in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. 33 Now may the God of peace be with all of you. Amen.

Texts in conversation

Compare Romans 15:24 and Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 5:6

New Testament · Early Christian

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Summary

In 1 Clement, the author says Paul reached the farthest limit of the West before he died, likely a reference to the journey to Spain that Paul plans in Romans, since Spain was thought of as the western end of the world.

Passages

Romans 15:24

New Testament
24 when I go to Spain. For I hope to visit you when I pass through and that you will help me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25 But now I go to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia are pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do this, and indeed they are indebted to the Jerusalem saints. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are obligated also to minister to them in material things. 28 Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them, I will set out for Spain by way of you,
55–58 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Romans

Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 5:6

Early Christian · First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians
2 Because of jealousy and envy, the greatest and most righteous pillars of the Church were persecuted and struggled even to death. 3 Let us keep before our eyes the good Apostles. 4 There was Peter, who, because of unjust jealousy, endured not just one but many hardships, and after bearing his testimony, he went to his appointed place of glory. 5 Because of jealousy and conflict, Paul showed by his example the reward of patient endurance. After being imprisoned seven times, driven into exile, stoned, and having preached in the East and the West, he won the noble renown that was the reward of his faith. 6 Having taught righteousness to the whole world and reached the farthest boundary of the West, he bore his testimony before rulers, and so he departed from this world and entered the holy place, having been found a remarkable example of patient endurance.
90–100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Clement of Rome, 1 Clement

References

“... While the phrase “the end of the earth” was often used in antiquity as a vague and general reference (see Aus 1979, 244–45; J.M. Scott 1994, 507–27 [passim]; Barrett 1994, 1:80; van Unnik 1973, 386–401), there is sufficient evidence to indicate that someone who, like Paul, was pointed westward would understand the term “the end of the earth” as a reference to Spain. The territory divided between Noah’s three sons, in Jubilees 8–9, stretches from Eden in the east (8:16) to Gadir (= Cadiz in Spain) in the west (9:26). Rehearsing the same material, Josephus describes Japheth’s territory as extending “in Europe as far as Gadeira” (A.J. 1.122; similarly, in B.J. 2.363, Gades is the westernmost limit of the Roman Empire). In a probable reference to Paul’s plans to visit Spain, Clement speaks of him as reaching “the limits of the west” (1 Clem. 5.7). ...”
Terence L. Donaldson, “The Field God Has Assigned: Geography and Mission in Paul,” in Religious Rivalries in the Early Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity, ed. Leif E. Vaage, Studies in Christianity and Judaism 18 (Waterloo: Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion, 2006), 131.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Romans 15:24 and Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 5:6

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