Romans 1:8-17

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)

Romans 1:1–7 forms the first half of Paul’s introduction to Romans (1:8–15 is the second half). The introduction, or prescript, to ancient letters consisted of three parts: identification of the author, identification of the recipients, and a salutation or greeting to the recipients. Thus, these are the three parts for Romans 1:1–7: 1. Sender: Paul (1:1–6) 2. Recipient: To those in Rome (1:7a) 3. Greeting: Grace and peace (1:7b) The sender/author component in 1:1–6 is probably so extensive because Paul is introducing himself to the Christians at Rome for the first time. There is an inclusio—an opening idea of a text that is stated, developed, and then returned to at the conclusion—for the whole book of Romans centering on the “gospel” (compare 1:1, 2, 9, 15 with 15:16, 19; 16:25–27). Indeed, “gospel” receives pride of place, occurring in the letter’s thematic statement in 1:16–17.

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