Chapter 16

Theophylact of Ohrid, Exposition of the Epistle of St Paul to the Romans — Chapter Sixteen

¹ Chapter Sixteen. I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, who is a deaconess of the Church which is at Cenchreae. Since she was the one conveying the Epistle, he commends her to them. And he dignifies her, both by mentioning her first, and by naming her sister (which is a great rank), and by showing her to be a deaconess.

² That you may receive her in the Lord worthily of the saints. That is, For the Lord’s sake honor her. For he who receives one for the Lord’s sake honors even the lowly greatly; and if she be also holy, much more. Wherefore he added, Worthily of the saints, that is, as one ought to receive the saints.

³ And that you assist her in whatsoever matter she may have need of you. That is, That you contribute the things from you, and stretch forth a hand. For he did not say, That you may be rid of her.

⁴ For she also has been a helper of many, and of myself. First he praised, then he set the exhortation in the middle; then again the encomia, on either side fastening tight the exhortation to honor her. For a helper, he says, she has been of many, and of myself—the herald of the whole world, who suffered so many things.

⁵ Salute Priscilla and Aquila my fellow-workers in Christ Jesus. They labored together with me, he says, in the word and the teaching, and became partakers of toils and dangers. But some understood these fellow-workers as being tentmakers also, even as he himself was.

⁶ Who for my life laid down their own neck. These were perfected martyrs; for indeed under Nero the dangers were past numbering.

⁷ Unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the Churches of the Gentiles. Here he hints at their hospitality. For lest he should seem to speak in flattery, he brings forward also many other witnesses.

⁸ And the Church that is in their house. So well-approved were these, that they made their whole household faithful; for these he named a Church; but also on account of their hospitality. For where there is much reverence and virtue, that house is a Church. Let those who are in marriage hear, that they are not thereby hindered toward virtue.

⁹ Salute Epaenetus my beloved, who is the firstfruits of Achaia unto Christ. A great thing it is to be Paul’s beloved—his who knew how to love with judgment, and not for favor. And he calls him firstfruits, either because he first believed, becoming a beginning and an entrance into the faith for the whole nation; or because he displayed greater reverence; wherefore he said, Who is the firstfruits unto Christ; that is, not in worldly affairs, but in the things according to Christ.

¹⁰ Salute Mary, who bestowed much labor on us. From the sweats on behalf of the truth he adorns the woman. For not only, he says, did she labor for herself, watching and lying upon the ground; but, what is greater, also for us, fulfilling the rank of the apostles. How then does he say, I suffer not a woman to teach? He forbids her not the word of teaching, but the presidency in the midst, and the throne upon the tribunal; for the teaching that is done privately he even greatly accepts. For thus also a woman teaches her own husband and her children, and Priscilla catechized Apollos. And he did not say, She taught much, but, She labored; that he might show that she ministered both through money, and through other ways.

¹¹ Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellow-prisoners; who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me. To be Paul’s kinsmen is not so great an encomium as to be fellow-prisoners. For indeed they suffered things harder than captives, being driven and harried. And to be apostles is a great thing; and this, Junia being a woman; but to be of note, much more. And they became of note from their works. And Paul is not ashamed to say, They believed in Christ before me, praising them, that they leaped forward and seized the good beforehand.

¹² Salute Amplias my beloved in the Lord. If to be loved by a king is a great thing, how much more to be loved by Paul, who loved on account of virtue and according to God?

¹³ And Urban our fellow-worker in Christ. This encomium is greater than that one; or rather, this is both the cause of that and comprehensive of it. For he who is a fellow-worker is also beloved.

¹⁴ And Stachys my beloved. Him too he crowns from the same things.

¹⁵ Salute Apelles the approved in Christ. That is, the irreproachable, the blameless in all things. But some say that this was spoken in contradistinction to a certain Apelles who was disapproved.

¹⁶ Salute them that are of the household of Aristobulus. Perhaps they were not as the first; wherefore he did not even mention them by name.

¹⁷ Salute Herodion my kinsman. Salute them that are of the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord. That is, faithful.

¹⁸ Salute Tryphena and Tryphosa, who labor in the Lord. Concerning Mary he said above, Who labored much; but concerning these, that they are at labor throughout, and laboring still.[1]

¹⁹ Salute the beloved Persis, who labored much in the Lord. This one is greater, both because she labored much, and because she is beloved. Thus he names each one according to desert, both making them more eager, and stirring up others to zeal.

²⁰ Salute Rufus the elect in the Lord, and his mother and mine. A double good, both that the son is irreproachable, and the mother. For he would not simply have said, His mother and mine, unless he bore much witness to the virtue of the woman.

²¹ Salute Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren that are with them. Look not at this, that he set these down without encomia, but at this, that, being inferior to all, yet he deemed them worthy of his greeting; or rather, to these too he attached an encomium, calling them brethren.

²² Salute Philologus, and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints that are with them. Great is the encomium for these also; for he called them saints.

²³ Salute one another with a holy kiss. Lest contentions arise, through some being greeted thus and others thus, and some with more encomia and others with fewer, he again blends them together with the holy kiss; that neither the great despise the lesser, nor the small envy the greater, the holy kiss soothing and equalizing all things.

²⁴ The Churches of Christ salute you. Not only did he himself unite them, but he also sends through to them the greeting from the Churches in a unifying manner. For in common, he says, he greets them all, not this one and that one. And he addressed so many in this Epistle, which he did not do in any other, because he had not yet seen the Romans. Since, then, many of his acquaintances had fled for refuge into this city, with reason, mentioning them by name, he commends them through his letter.

²⁵ Now I beseech you, brethren, to mark them that cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you have learned. Again he exhorts, and not as a counselor, but as a suppliant, and with much honor; for he calls them brethren. And showing the craftiness of those who do despite, he said, Mark, that is, scrutinize them with exactness. First the divisions, then the offenses. For as long as the body was united, the offenses have no entrance; and these are heresies. Contrary to the doctrine, he says, which you have learned. He did not say, Which we taught, but, Which you learned, forestalling them, and showing them already persuaded, and having accepted it, and therefore bound to abide in the things they already received. The divisions, then, and the offenses, that is, the heresies, are brought in by those who lay down doctrines contrary to the apostolic teaching.

²⁶ Turn away from them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly. Leap away, he says, from them. For if out of ignorance, or out of error, they did these things, one ought to set them right; but since they sin knowingly, flee. And he hints at those of the Jews, whom especially he said to slander as gluttons; for the whole race is of this kind. And all the heresies are from serving the passions and the belly. Art you not ashamed, then, making belly-slaves your teachers, you brother of Christ? And mark, that he who serves the belly serves not Christ.

²⁷ And by good words and fair speech they deceive the hearts of the simple. They plot, he says, through flattery; for this is good words and fair speech, when the words are of friendship, but the mind is full of guile. And he did not say, They deceive you, but, The hearts of the simple, that is, of the more guileless.

²⁸ For your obedience is come abroad unto all. I am glad therefore on your behalf. It is the more guileless, he says, whom they prey upon, and not you.[2]For your obedience, that is, the compliance, which comes of much meekness, is come abroad unto all. And not I alone bear witness to this, but also the whole world. I am glad therefore on your behalf, who were not deceived.

²⁹ I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple unto that which is evil. He hints that even of them there were certain being deceived. And directly he speaks the saying of the Lord: Be wise as the serpents, and innocent as the doves. For he wishes them to be wise, that is, prudent, unto that which is good, that is, unto their own salvation and profit; but simple unto that which is evil, that is, unto the not doing of evil to others. For the guileless harms no one.

³⁰ And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. Since there were divisions, he calls upon the giver of peace, that he may put an end to the offenses. And he saith not, Shall subject, but what was much greater, Shall bruise; and those not only the workers of the offense, but also the very leader of them. And this also comforts them. For he added, Shortly. And the word, Shall bruise, is both a prayer and a prophecy. For it inclines toward the time to come.

³¹ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. He reminded them also of the grace, that from the things they had already received, they might become more eager toward faith concerning the things to come also. For if he saved them while they were enemies, much more now will he bruise Satan. And see, that he sets down neither works without prayer, nor prayer without works. For after bearing witness to their obedience, then he prayed; showing that we, not only of old, but also now, even if we be approved, have need of the grace of God.

³² Timothy my fellow-worker salutes you. For he works together with him in the Gospel. And it is a great encomium to do the same things as Paul.

³³ And Lucius, and Jason, and Sosipater my kinsmen. This Jason is celebrated in the Acts, as having most bravely faced danger.

³⁴ I Tertius, who wrote the Epistle, salute you. A great thing, to have penned it. And he writes this, not that he might praise himself, but that he might be the more loved by them, as having ministered in the writing addressed to them.

³⁵ Gaius mine host, and of the whole Church, salutes you. That is, my host. And great is the praise, that he entertained the whole Church, and Paul himself; who would not have been entertained by him, had he not found him worthy.

³⁶ Erastus the chamberlain of the city salutes you, and Quartus a brother. That is, the treasurer of the city of Corinth; that you may know that neither wealth, nor rank hinders any one from coming to the upright way of life.

³⁷ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Both the foundation, that is, the beginning of the Epistle, he laid from hence, having said, Grace to you and peace; and the course now, that is, the end, he sets upon this same thing, praying that the grace of God may ever be present with them all. For this belongs to a teacher, to profit the disciples not only by word, but also by prayer.

³⁸ But let us give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. This also guards us, who hope not at all from works to find a place of salvation, but place all our hope upon the divine grace and upon the mercy; and through it may we become superior to the snares of Satan, they being bruised under our feet in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be the glory unto the ages. Amen.