Romans 2:22: You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?
Many of the Jewish teachers and leaders were guilty of these offenses—and it was common knowledge. Everyone knew of cases where the most orthodox had left loopholes in their business dealings for a little “refined stealing.” The Talmud itself charged three of its most illustrious rabbis with adultery. And while they abhorred idolatry and the dishonor of God, they had robbed God’s Temple by profaning sacred things, committing, as Cranfield says, “subtle forms of sacrilege.” Even if they had not done these things overtly, spiritually they were guilty! 1
On this view Paul is not referring to a literal robbing of temples, but to the withholding of what is due to God (cf. Mal. 3:8), what Hodge calls “profanation, the irreverent disregard of God and holy things.” To rob God of his due is to act sacrilegiously. When we take seriously what God demands of us, we see that we are sinners all. Paul is saying, then, that the Jews were in their own way sacrilegious. 2
Application
- Do you seek to find pleasure and gratification to satisfy your own ungodly desires?
- 97% of Christians give less than 10% of their income. Give from gratitude, not guilt.
Prayer
Lord, purify my heart and my motives. I want to honor You with my eyes and my income.
1. Hughes, R. K. (1991). Romans: righteousness from heaven. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
2. Morris, L. (1988). The Epistle to the Romans. Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press.