Barton's Bible Study Notes

The following outlines are not intended to be a commentary as much as they are a guide to understanding the general flow of thought in this fundamental epistle of Paul. And yet, they very obviously comment on the text’s intended meaning. Any outline of the book of Romans, apart from that which might someday be offered by the Apostle Paul himself or by the Spirit of God who led Paul in the writing of this part of God’s Word, is by nature both subjective and artificial. Outlines are subjective because they depend upon an individual’s perception of what he feels the main ideas to be. They are artificial in that they try to fit the material of the text into a framework of these ideas.

Some Scriptures are challenging to outline. Most of the epistles fall into this category simply because the writer himself often had little or no outline in mind when he penned the letter. While he probably had an idea of the things he wanted to say, the issues and topics that needed to be covered, in all likelihood, he did not sit down ahead of time and outline what he was going to write. If you try to outline a personal letter written to you by someone, it will become evident that topics are discussed as they come to mind and often with little logical order.

Other Scriptures are somewhat more manageable because the writer did have a plan to follow, at least mentally. Such is the case with the book of Romans. While it is a personal letter, it was written to introduce the Apostle Paul and his gospel to those in Rome, a place he had never visited in his Christian ministry. It is to be expected then that Paul would carefully and logically present the message he proclaimed. And such he does.

In addition, there is another characteristic of the epistle to the Romans, which significantly aids one in outlining the book. Paul used a very common teaching technique of that day and culture. He asked and answered questions. As noted by many students, he used a form of the old Greek-Roman technique of diatribe, where he anticipates and states an objection, then responds to it. One has only to casually study how Paul used questions to realize how important they are in understanding the flow of thought in this treatise about our faith. Briefly stated, Paul asked a question, usually anticipating a question or objection that a listener or reader might ask. Then he very briefly answered the question, followed by a discussion of that question and answer.

All too often, outlines and discussions of Romans have been based upon one’s theology ather than on the text itself. This is not to say the theology is wrong in many cases. Often the theology is accurate. The problem is that Paul did not follow our theology texts when writing this epistle. In our thinking today, the logical progression in our redemption is sin, salvation, and then sanctification. Therefore this is how many see the development of Romans. They fit the text into this framework. And to be honest, those ideas are there. However, they are not the framework upon which this letter is built.

If one follows the ideas suggested by his questions and answers, It can be seen that Paul is following a different progression of thought. There were issues in his day that are not nearly as important to us today. It is these issues he develops rather than following our theological progressions.

All outlines are artificial, as has been stated, even this one, for it attempts to fit the text into a framework as perceived by this writer. The writer did try as much as possible to derive the outline from the text itself and hopes he succeeded in doing this. These outlines are neither inspired nor exhaustive. It is freely admitted that much work and study remains to be done. Hopefully, these outlines will aid the student in understanding the Book of Romans in some small way and become a jumping-off point for further study. There are other outlines, and any serious student of the Word of God should also consider them.

An overall outline of the book of Romans is given first, followed by individual outlines of various sections. Note that the outlines are of a mixed sort. The overall outline contains both sentences and phrases. The section outlines are mostly made up of phrases. The overall outline contains the scripture references, while the sectional outlines contain the scripture text itself. There are also two appendices that deal with two important translational issues.

All too often, outlines and discussions of Romans have been based upon one’s theology rather than on the text itself. This is not to say the theology is wrong in many cases. Often the theology is accurate. The problem is that Paul did not follow our theology texts when writing this epistle. In our thinking today, the logical progression in our redemption is sin, salvation, and then sanctification. Therefore this is how many see the development of Romans. They fit the text into this framework. And to be honest, those ideas are there. However, they are not the framework upon which this letter is built.