Romans 13:1

Let every soul be in subjection to the higher powers: for there is no power but of God; and the powers that be are ordained of God.

'Let every soul' -'The thirteenth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, according to J.W. Allen, contains what are perhaps the most important words ever written for the history of political thought.'

'The duty of submission to civil authorities is thus without exception, no matter how high or privileged one's social position may be, no matter what political theories one may hold, no matter what religious views one may profess.'

'Soul' -'person' (NASV)

'Subjection' -'Let every one obey' (TCNT), 'submit himself to' (Con). 5293. hupotasso hoop-ot-as'-so; from 5259 and 5021; to subordinate; reflexively, to obey: -be under obedience (obedient), put under, subdue unto, (be, make) subject (to, unto), be (put) in subjection (to, under), submit self unto.

'The Jews were especially averse to being subject to the Roman government, and Jews who became Christians would likely hold to their former prejudice against being subject to Rome. And converts from heathenism might feel that, having confessed Jesus Christ as their king, they were not subject to any other government.'

'Many of them (the Jews) held, on the ground of Deuteronomy 17:15. that to acknowledge. Gentile ruler was itself sinful; and the spirit which prompted the Pharisees to ask, Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar or not? (Mark 12:14) had no doubt its representatives in Rome also. Even Christians of Gentile origin may have been open to the impulses of this same spirit; and unbalanced minds, then as in all ages, might be disposed to find in the loyalty which was due to Christ alone, an emancipation from all subjection to inferior powers.'

Modern Applications:

1. New Christians can naively think that since their citizenship is now in heaven, all human laws (like speed limits, tax laws, etc..) are unimportant. The Bible doesn't support such. view, in fact, contradicts it here and in Matthew 22:21; 1 Peter 2:13; 1 Peter 4:15.

2. God even expects the wealthy to comply. Some try to excuse themselves by saying, 'this nation should be lucky to have such. productive citizen as myself,. employ people, pay. larger amount of taxes, the government should just look the other way when. break the law.'

3. And yet, the poor are not immune from the temptation to rebel either. 'I need to feed my family, or, the stores are exploiting me, so it's alright to steal, loot and riot to get what's rightfully mine.'

'higher powers' -'governing authorities' (NASV). Lit., authorities which have themselves over. (Vincent p. 163) 'The government that is over him' (Beck) (1 Peter 2:13. whether to. king as the one in authority. ')

Point to Note: The Jehovah Witnesses regard the governments of the world as Satan's organization. In fact some Christians hold the same view with regard to every government but their own, or even their own. They believe that the "higher powers" of this section are Jehovah and His Son Jesus. Yet this definition breaks down in the immediate context, not to mention various contradictions with other passages:

1. "For it is. minister of God" (Romans 13:4). Clearly the "higher powers" in this section are viewed as 'servants of God', and not God Himself.

2. Jesus taught that the people of God have. dual citizenship (Matthew 22:21), with responsibilities that go with both. If Caesar's kingdom and God's kingdom were naturally antagonistic one toward the other, no person could sustain. relationship to both as citizens. This would be like trying to serve two masters.

3. Paul taught that "our citizenship is in Heaven" (1 Peter 3:20), and yet often appealed to and used his Roman citizenship. (Acts 16:37; Acts 22:26; Acts 25:11) This demonstrates that the Christian can legitimately and consistently sustain. relationship to both the civil government he is under and the God he serves.

4. Being subject to human authorities and being subject to God, shouldn't shock us. Children are subject to their parents (Ephesians 6:1);. woman is subject to her husband (Romans 5:22); members are subject to the elders (Hebrews 13:17); and employees are subject to their bosses (Colossians 3:22).

'for there is no power but of God' -'For there is no authority except from God' (NASV). 'If it didn't suit God for that government to be there, it wouldn't be there.' (McGuiggan p. 380) 'In heaven or earth-no power at all' (Alford p. 954) (John 19:10; Daniel 4:17; Daniel 5:19).. for no authority can exist without the permission of God'. (Gspd)

'and the powers that be' -'the authorities that now exist' (Mon)

'are ordained of God' -'appointed by God' (Mon); 'established by God' (Gspd) 'Stand ordained by God' (Robertson p. 407) Perfect tense, have been ordained, and the ordinance remains in force. (Vincent p. 164)

All the governments of the world exist, because God allows them to. And while they exist, God expects those under them to be in subjection, except where subjection would place one in direct violation to the law of God. (Acts 5:29)