Augustine of Hippo — Commentary on Scripture

Romans 13:11

This relates to 2 Corinthians [6:2]: “Behold, now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation.” Paul means by this the time of the gospel and the opportunity to save all those who believe in God.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 76

Romans 13:12

Paul said this, yet look at how many years have passed since then! Yet what he said was not untrue. How much more probable it is that the coming of the Lord is near now, when there has been such an increase of time toward the end!

LETTER 77

Romans 13:14

Provision for the flesh is not to be condemned if it has to do with the needs of bodily health. But if it is a question of unnecessary delights or luxuries, a person who enjoys the delights of the flesh is rightly chastised. For in that case he makes provision for the desires of the flesh, and “he who sows in the flesh will reap corruption in the flesh.”

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 77

Romans 14:1

Paul says that we should receive the weak man in order that we might support his weakness by our strength. Neither should we criticize his opinions by daring to pass judgment on someone else’s heart, which we do not see.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 78

Romans 14:2

At that time many people who were strong in their faith and who knew the Lord’s teaching, that it is what comes out of the mouth which defiles a man, not what goes into it, were eating whatever they liked with a clear conscience. But some weaker ones abstained from meat and wine, so as to avoid unknowingly eating foods which had been sacrificed to idols. At that time the Gentiles sold all sacrificed meat in the butcher shops, poured out the first fruits of the wine as a libation to their idols and even made some offerings in the wine presses.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 78

Romans 14:3

Paul wanted to keep the balance, by which scandals are avoided, between those who fast on Saturday and those who do not, so that the one who eats would not despise the one who does not eat, and the one who fasts would not judge the one who eats.

LETTER 36

Romans 14:3

The apostle instructed those who ate such food with a clear conscience not to despise the weakness of those who abstained.… And he told the weak not to condemn as polluted those who consumed such meat and wine.… For the strong insisted on despising the weak, and the weak did not hesitate to condemn the strong.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 78

Romans 14:4

Paul says this so that, when something might be done with either good or bad motives, we should leave the judgment to God and not presume to judge the heart of someone else, which we do not see. But when it comes to things which obviously could not have been done with good and innocent intentions, it is not wrong if we pass judgment. So in the matter of food, where it is not known what the motive in eating it is, Paul does not want us to be judges, but God. But in the case of that abominable immorality where a man had taken his stepmother, Paul taught us to judge. For that man could not possibly claim that he committed such a gross act of indecency with good intentions. So we must pass judgment on things which are obviously wrong.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 79

Romans 14:4

These men were of a mind to pass judgment with regard to things which may indeed be done with a bad intention but which may also be done with an upright, simple and magnanimous motive. Although they were men, they wanted to judge the secrets of the heart—secrets of which God alone is the judge.

SERMON ON THE MOUNT 2.18.59

Romans 14:5

At the moment, and without any deeper consideration, it seems to me that this is said about God and man, not about two men. He who judges on alternate days is man, who can judge one way today and another way tomorrow.… But the One whose judgment is the same every day is the Lord.… But let everyone dare to judge only insofar as is granted to human intelligence or at least to his own.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 80

Romans 14:6

When someone observes the day well, he keeps the day for the Lord. To judge the day well means you are not to despair over the future correction of the person whose guilt might appear now to be clean.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS

Romans 14:17

By “the kingdom of God” Paul means the church, in which God reigns.

LETTER 36

Romans 14:22

This should be read in connection with [verse 16] above.… Let us make good use of what we have, lest we sin against our brothers by creating a stumbling block for the weaker ones. For when we offend the weak we condemn ourselves by the very good by which we approve ourselves when this faith pleases us.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 81

Romans 15:8

Paul said this so that the Gentiles would understand that the Lord Christ had been sent to the Jews and so they would not be proud. Since the Jews rejected what had been sent to them, it happened that the gospel was also preached to the Gentiles, as is most clearly written in the Acts of the apostles, when the apostles say to the Jews: “It was necessary that the Word of God should be spoken first to you. Since you … judge yourselves unworthy … behold, we turn to the Gentiles.”It also agrees with the Lord’s own testimony, when he said: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” and: “It is not right for the children’s bread to be thrown to the dogs.” If the Gentiles think carefully, they will realize by their own faith, by which they now believe that to the pure all things are pure, that they should not offend those Jewish converts who, perhaps from weakness, dare not touch certain kinds of meat, fearing that it has been in contact with idols.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 82

Romans 15:16

The Gentiles are offered to God as an acceptable sacrifice when they believe in Christ and are sanctified through the gospel.

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 83

Romans 16:17

Paul is here discussing the same people he wrote about to Timothy and to Titus. See also Philippians [3:19].

AUGUSTINE ON ROMANS 84