The Meaning of Romans 15:21 Explained

Romans 15:21

KJV: But as it is written, To whom he was not spoken of, they shall see: and they that have not heard shall understand.

YLT: but according as it hath been written, 'To whom it was not told concerning him, they shall see; and they who have not heard, shall understand.'

Darby: but according as it is written, To whom there was nothing told concerning him, they shall see; and they that have not heard shall understand.

ASV: but, as it is written, They shall see, to whom no tidings of him came, And they who have not heard shall understand.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

But  as  it is written,  To whom  he  was  not  spoken  of,  they shall see:  and  they  that have  not  heard  shall understand. 

What does Romans 15:21 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Paul seems to have found encouragement to pursue this goal in this prophecy from Isaiah , which describes the mission of the Servant of the Lord ( Isaiah 52:15).

Context Summary

Romans 15:14-21 - A Preacher Who Found His Own Field
A superficial judge of the Apostle's life at the time to which he refers might have supposed him to be a mere Jewish traveler, hurrying to and fro, under circumstances of extreme poverty and with no special results. But, in fact he was laying the foundations of the Christian commonwealth. His one ambition was to present the Gentiles as a whole burnt-offering to God; see Romans 15:16. The phrase there is suggestive of the supreme sacrifice which was nobly realized in the strength of purpose that led those churches, shortly afterward, to yield holocausts of martyrs under Nero's persecutions.
All this was due to Christ working through the Apostle. Anything that was not wrought through the power of the indwelling Christ was not worth recounting. The work which really told was not what Paul did for Christ, but what Christ did through Paul. It is noticeable how careful Paul was to break up new ground. This is especially characteristic of all the best and highest forms of work. It is a poor and mean church which recruits itself from the labors of others, but has no power to secure converts from the world! [source]

Chapter Summary: Romans 15

1  The strong must bear with the weak
2  We must not please ourselves;
3  for Christ did not so;
7  but receive one another, as Christ did us all;
8  both Jews and Gentiles;
15  Paul excuses his writing;
28  and promises to see them;
30  and requests their prayers

Greek Commentary for Romans 15:21

As it is written [κατως γεγραπται]
From Isaiah 52:15. Paul finds an illustration of his word about his own ambition in the words of Isaiah. Fritzsche actually argues that Paul understood Isaiah to be predicting his (Paul‘s) ministry! Some scholars have argued against the genuineness of Romans 15:9-21 on wholly subjective and insufficient grounds.sa120 [source]

What do the individual words in Romans 15:21 mean?

Rather as it has been written They will see to whom not it was proclaimed concerning Him and those that have heard will understand
ἀλλὰ καθὼς γέγραπται Ὄψονται οἷς οὐκ ἀνηγγέλη περὶ αὐτοῦ» καὶ οἳ ἀκηκόασιν συνήσουσιν

ἀλλὰ  Rather 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ἀλλά  
Sense: but.
γέγραπται  it  has  been  written 
Parse: Verb, Perfect Indicative Middle or Passive, 3rd Person Singular
Root: γράφω 
Sense: to write, with reference to the form of the letters.
Ὄψονται  They  will  see 
Parse: Verb, Future Indicative Middle, 3rd Person Plural
Root: εἶδον 
Sense: to see with the eyes.
οἷς  to  whom 
Parse: Personal / Relative Pronoun, Dative Masculine Plural
Root: ὅς 
Sense: who, which, what, that.
ἀνηγγέλη  it  was  proclaimed 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Passive, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ἀναγγέλλω  
Sense: to announce, make known.
περὶ  concerning 
Parse: Preposition
Root: περί 
Sense: about, concerning, on account of, because of, around, near.
οἳ  those  that 
Parse: Personal / Relative Pronoun, Nominative Masculine Plural
Root: ὅς 
Sense: who, which, what, that.
ἀκηκόασιν  have  heard 
Parse: Verb, Perfect Indicative Active, 3rd Person Plural
Root: ἀκουστός 
Sense: to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, not deaf.
συνήσουσιν  will  understand 
Parse: Verb, Future Indicative Active, 3rd Person Plural
Root: συνίημι 
Sense: to set or bring together.

What are the major concepts related to Romans 15:21?

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