Romans 1:1-7

Greeting [All ancient letters began with a greeting, usually X to Y. Here it is Paul to all those in Rome with much expansion in between. The most likely dating of this letter is AD 57 +/- several months when Paul was in Corinth before his trip to Jerusalem (Acts 24:17).]

¹ Paul, a servant [or slave, which in Greek is “doulos”] of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle [an official messenger of the gospel; see Galatians 1:1], set apart for the gospel of God [the joyful proclamation of the death and resurrection of Jesus and the consequent amnesty men and women enjoy in him through faith], ² which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures [God did this in order that men would realize God was dealing with them in accordance with his predetermined counsel of salvation], ³ concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh [natural descent, the incarnation, but here referring to his earthly ministry] ⁴ and was declared to be the Son of God in power [lowly and humble in life; now powerful in exaltation, reigning from heaven] according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, ⁵ through whom we have received grace and apostleship [the phrase could be translated “divine apostleship”] to bring about the obedience of faith [belief] for the sake of his name among all the nations [the Gentiles to whom Paul is a special apostle], ⁶ including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

⁷ To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints [those who are called to be holy and set apart for God]:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. [Grace is God’s free and unmerited love and favor to men and women; peace is the wellbeing they enjoy through grace. The long opening address is ended!]