WHO IS A TRUE JEW?

Romans 2:17-29 / Keywords 2:29

No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.

 

The Jews and the Law

17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”[b]

25 Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26 So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27 The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the[c] written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

Footnotes

b. Romans 2:24 Isaiah 52:5 (see Septuagint); Ezek. 36:20,22

c. Romans 2:27 Or who, by means of a

1. Paul rebukes the Jews (and what we could call nominal Christians) here for their hypocrisy. They boast about their superiority over the Gentiles (those without God) by bragging about their knowledge of God’s word and their God-given mission of being Bible teachers for the world (a kingdom of priests and a holy nation). They had the embodiment of knowledge and truth at their fingertips in God’s word. But though they taught others, they failed to learn themselves. They would preach against robbery and adultery, but they themselves committed these same acts. Their hypocrisy blasphemed God’s name to the Gentiles.

2. Then Paul gets to the heart of the matter. What is a Jew? Is it anyone who can claim ancestry with Abraham? Is it anyone who reads the Bible and goes to church? Is it circumcision that makes a Jew? No! The true Jew is one whose inner heart is circumcised. It is the keeping the law’s requirements (through faith in Jesus) that makes a true Jew. “No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code” (29a).

Prayer Father, circumcise my heart, inwardly by the Spirit of God. Cleanse my heart through the blood of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. Make me a true Jew.

One Word Circumcise my heart!