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Time after Pentecost · Proper 18 · Year A

Romans 13:1-10

Governing Authorities and the Debt of Love

September 6, 2026

Saint Paul, Guercino
Saint Paul, Guercino, 17th centuryPrivate collection
Paul, in a red cloak, reads intently from an open book, the sword of his martyrdom held against his shoulder.Let every person be subject to the governing authorities … Pay to all what is due them … Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.GuercinoA Bolognese master of rich, soft colour.Private collectionPrivate collection.Private collection
LSB Three-Year Lectionary
GospelMatt. 18:1-20Mt 18:1-20
EpistleRom. 13:1-10Rom 13:1-10
Old TestamentEzek. 33:7-9Ez 33:7-9
PsalterPs. 32:1-7Ps 32:1-7

Overview & Insights

“Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” (Romans 13:10)

Paul teaches that believers should be subject to governing authorities, who are established by God, and should pay what they owe to everyone. He then declares that the one debt that remains is love, since love does no wrong to a neighbor and so fulfills the whole law.

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Commentary

Commentary on Romans 13:8-14Commentary on Rom 13:8-14 Working Preacher

The Lutheran home commentary on the debt-of-love verses that close this reading.

Romans 13:8-14 CommentaryRom 13:8-14 Commentary Center for Excellence in Preaching

A Reformed preaching commentary on love as the fulfilling of the law.

Romans 13 - Submission and LoveRom 13 - Submission and Love Enduring Word · David Guzik

A verse-by-verse evangelical study of submission to authority and the debt of love.

Romans 13:1 CommentariesRom 13:1 Commentaries BibleHub

Classic commentaries gathered verse by verse on the governing authorities.

Romans 13:1 Verse-by-Verse CommentaryRom 13:1 Verse-by-Verse Commentary StudyLight

A large library of expositors stacked verse by verse for a further voice on the passage.

Background & Word Study

Romans 13:1 InterlinearRom 13:1 Interlinear BibleHub

The Greek of the passage word by word with parsing and Strong's numbers, including authority and love.

Overview: Romans 5-16Overview: Rom 5-16 BibleProject

An animated overview of Romans that frames love as the sum of the law.

The Church Fathers

Romans 13 (Catena)Rom 13 (Catena) Catena

Patristic comments verse by verse on the authorities and love as the law's fulfillment.

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