Romans 10:3
For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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It’s easy to read this verse and think Paul is just saying people are stubborn. But notice the word for "establish"—it implies they were building something! They weren't just passively holding onto their own merit; they were actively constructing a system of righteousness to "set up," as if erecting a monument to their own efforts, which directly opposed God's offered righteousness.
Paul is explaining why many Israelites, despite having the Law and prophets pointing to Christ, rejected him. He laments that his own people, driven by a zealous but misguided desire to be right with God, failed to recognize God's plan of salvation. Instead of submitting to God's way of making people righteous through faith in Jesus, they tried to build their own standing before God based on their own efforts and adherence to the Law.
Why did the Jews miss God's plan for salvation? It wasn't a lack of effort, but a fundamental misunderstanding.
Paul highlights a critical ignorance among many in Israel: they didn't understand what 'God's righteousness' truly meant.
A Divine Standard, Not Our Own
This 'righteousness of God' isn't about our personal efforts to be good. It refers to God's own perfect standard and His provision for us to meet it—through faith in Jesus Christ. It's about Him declaring us righteous, not us earning it.
Voluntary Blindness
This ignorance wasn't accidental. It was a chosen blindness, a consequence of clinging to their own ideas rather than seeking God's revealed truth. They could have known but chose not to deeply investigate God's Word.
We all try to be 'good' enough. But what happens when our 'good' doesn't measure up to God's standard?
The verse contrasts God's righteousness with the Jews' attempt to 'establish their own.' This self-made righteousness is a massive obstacle to truly receiving God's gift.
Building on Sand
Trying to establish our own righteousness is like building a house on sand. No matter how hard we try, or how sincerely we believe we're doing enough, it can never stand up to the scrutiny of a perfectly just God.
Pride and Opposition
This pursuit often stems from pride—a desire to 'set up' our own merit for our own glory, not God's. It leads to a refusal to 'submit' to God's way because it requires admitting our inadequacy and accepting His grace as a free gift, not something earned.
Understand the original words
dikaiosynē · Greek Noun
Refers to the state of being morally right, justified, and in a right standing before God; it is a gift imputed by God through faith, rather than a quality earned by human behavior.
hypotassō · Greek Verb
To place oneself under the authority or government of another; in a theological context, it is the act of yielding one's self-sufficiency to the sovereign grace and standard of God.
This verse speaks directly to a core tension within first-century Judaism. Many Jews, steeped in a tradition of meticulous legal observance, sought to earn God's approval through their own efforts. Paul argues that this 'own righteousness' blinds them to God's righteousness, which is freely given through faith in Christ and His atoning work.
c. 200 BC - AD 100
Development of Rabbinic Judaism
During this period, Jewish religious leaders formalized interpretations of the Law. Many emphasized meticulous observance of detailed commandments as the path to righteousness and divine favor.
c. AD 30-33
Jesus' Ministry and Crucifixion
Jesus taught a message of righteousness found in God's grace and faith, often challenging the self-righteousness of the religious establishment. His death and resurrection offered a new way of righteousness.
c. AD 40s - 60s
Paul's Missionary Journeys and Epistles
Paul preached the Gospel of God's righteousness through faith in Christ across the Roman Empire, encountering both acceptance and fierce opposition, especially from those adhering to their own righteousness.
c. AD 62— this verse
Writing of the Epistle to the Romans
This passage directly contrasts having one's own righteousness, which is from the law, with the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ, mirroring the core tension in Romans 10:3.
Matthew 23:28Jesus' denunciation of the scribes and Pharisees for being outwardly righteous but inwardly full of hypocrisy highlights the 'self-righteousness' that Paul addresses, showing how appearance can mask a lack of true submission to God's standard.
Galatians 5:4This verse declares that those who seek to be justified by the law have become estranged from Christ and have fallen away from grace, directly echoing the consequence of seeking one's own righteousness instead of God's.
Luke 18:9-14The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector powerfully illustrates the contrast between self-righteousness (the Pharisee) and humble submission to God's righteousness (the tax collector), showing who is justified before God.
barnesRomans 10:3: "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."
For they being ignorant - The ignorance of the Jews was voluntarily, and therefore criminal. The apostle does not affirm that they could not have known what the plan of God was; for he says Romans 10:18-21 that they had full opportunity of knowing. An attentive study of their own Scriptures would have led them to the tr…
bengelRomans 10:3: "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."
Romans 10:3 . Ζητοῦντες , seeking ) by all means.— οὐχʼ ὑπετάγησαν , have not been subject ) and have not obeyed ,” ( ὑπήκουσαν ) Romans 10:16 . Ὑποταγὴ , submits itself to the Divine will, τῷ θέλειν , the will of GOD.
It’s easy to read this verse and think Paul is just saying people are stubborn. But notice the word for "establish"—it implies they were building something! They weren't just passively holding onto their own merit; they were actively constructing a system of righteousness to "set up," as if erecting a monument to their own efforts, which directly opposed God's offered righteousness.
Paul is explaining why many Israelites, despite having the Law and prophets pointing to Christ, rejected him. He laments that his own people, driven by a zealous but misguided desire to be right with God, failed to recognize God's plan of salvation. Instead of submitting to God's way of making people righteous through faith in Jesus, they tried to build their own standing before God based on their own efforts and adherence to the Law.
Paul is explaining why many Israelites, despite having the Law and prophets pointing to Christ, rejected him. He laments that his own people, driven by a zealous but misguided desire to be right with God, failed to recognize God's plan of salvation. Instead of submitting to God's way of making people righteous through faith in Jesus, they tried to build their own standing before God based on their own efforts and adherence to the Law.
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True salvation isn't about reaching a standard; it's about surrendering to the One who already met it for us.
The crux of the matter is found in the phrase 'they did not submit to God's righteousness.' This isn't just intellectual agreement; it's a profound act of yielding.
The Act of Surrender
Submission here means to willingly come under, to obey, and to yield to God's authority and His plan. It's acknowledging that His way of making us righteous—through Christ's sacrifice—is the only way that works.
A Contrast in Actions
Their 'seeking to establish their own' was an active resistance. The divine alternative is a passive reception, a humble submission that trusts God completely. It requires letting go of our pride and our efforts, and embracing the righteousness that Christ achieved for us.
Paul writes to the church in Rome, addressing deep theological issues, including the relationship between Jewish law, Gentile believers, and the true righteousness offered by God through faith in Jesus Christ.
"For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness." — It’s easy to read this verse and think Paul is just saying people are stubborn. But notice the word for "establish"—it implies they were building something! They weren't just passively holding onto…
