Romans 2:17

The Condemnation of the Jew

2:17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law ¹  and boast of your relationship to God ² 

Romans 2:28-29

2:28 For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision something that is outward in the flesh, 2:29 but someone is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart ³  by the Spirit ⁴  and not by the written code. ⁵  This person’s ⁶  praise is not from people but from God.

[2:17]  ¹ sn The law refers to the Mosaic law, described mainly in the OT books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

[2:17]  ² tn Grk “boast in God.” This may be an allusion to Jer 9:24.

[2:29]  ³ sn On circumcision is of the heart see Lev 26:41; Deut 10:16; Jer 4:4; Ezek 44:9.

[2:29]  ⁴ tn Some have taken the phrase ἐν πνεύματι (en pneumati, “by/in [the] S/spirit”) not as a reference to the Holy Spirit, but referring to circumcision as “spiritual and not literal” (RSV).

[2:29]  ⁵ tn Grk “letter.”

[2:29]  ⁶ tn Grk “whose.” The relative pronoun has been replaced by the phrase “this person’s” and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started in the translation.