Romans 2:22
You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
Paul sharpens his accusation by linking "abhorring idols" to the opposite sin of "robbing temples." This isn't just about stealing from pagan shrines, but a deeper hypocrisy: claiming to be pure while still plundering what rightfully belongs to God, whether it's literal temple treasures or the devotion meant only for Him.
Paul is currently calling out the hypocrisy of those who judge others by God's law while not following it themselves. He's just highlighted how Jews, who boast in possessing the Law, often fail to live by it. Now, he confronts them directly with their own potential sins, asking if their outward rejection of things like adultery and idolatry is undermined by private actions like adultery and robbing sacred things.
You look good on paper, but what's really going on inside? Paul calls out those who have all the right external markers of faith but lack its true substance.
Paul throws down a challenge to those who pride themselves on following God's law, especially the Jews of his day. He points out the stark contrast between their public declarations of righteousness and their private actions.
The Unseen Sins
Paul isn't just listing sins; he's exposing a deeper problem: the hypocrisy of performing religious duties without a transformed heart. It's the performance of piety, not the practice of it.
Being part of God's chosen people or knowing religious rules doesn't automatically make you right with God. Paul warns against the dangerous pride that comes from religious advantages.
Paul highlights a critical danger for those who have received God's special revelations – like the Law given to Israel. Having the 'form of knowledge' and being able to teach others doesn't guarantee righteousness.
Privileges and Responsibilities
Understand the original words
moichaai · Greek Verb
Sexual relations between a married person and someone other than their spouse; it is a serious violation of the marriage covenant and God’s standard of holiness.
bdelussomenos · Greek Verb
To hate, detest, or regard with extreme repugnance. Theologically, it describes the necessary attitude toward that which God rejects, particularly false gods.
eidōla · Greek Noun
Images or physical objects worshipped as gods; idolatry is the fundamental sin of substituting the creature or created things for the Creator.
hierosyleis · Greek Verb
To take something by force or theft. Here, it refers to the sacrilegious act of plundering pagan shrines, implying an ironic contradiction for those who claim to despise idols.
The charge of sacrilege against Jews who abhorred idols likely pointed to specific practices, such as withholding tithes or misusing temple funds, rather than literal temple robbery. This critique aimed to expose the internal hypocrisy masked by outward religious observance.
c. 6th century BC
Babylonian Exile and Idolatry
Following the Babylonian Exile, the Jewish people developed a strong aversion to idolatry, a significant shift from their earlier history. This newfound resolve was deeply ingrained in their religious identity.
1st century AD
Temple Practices and Jewish Law
During the time of Jesus and the early church, the Jerusalem Temple was a central hub of religious life. Jewish law dictated specific offerings and adherence to sacred practices within its precincts.
c. AD 30-33
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
Jesus overturns the tables of money changers and merchants in the Temple courts, rebuking them for turning God's house into a 'den of robbers'. This event highlights existing concerns about the commercialization and potential misuse of sacred spaces.
c. AD 52
Paul's Ministry in Ephesus
In Ephesus, the silversmith Demetrius incites a riot against Paul, accusing him and his companions of not being 'robbers of temples.' This incident shows that accusations of sacrilege were circulating in the broader cultural context.
This passage directly confronts people who steal and murder, yet claim to worship God, echoing Paul's critique of the Jews who outwardly avoid idolatry but inwardly engage in sinful practices.
Malachi 3:8-9This text exposes the sin of withholding tithes and offerings, which is a form of 'sacrilege' or robbing God, mirroring the charge against Jews who might claim to abhor idols but still pilfered from sacred things or withheld what was due to God.
Matthew 23:27-28Jesus likens the Pharisees to 'whitewashed tombs' that look beautiful outside but are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness, a powerful parallel to the hypocrisy Paul addresses: outward religious observance masking inner sin.
Psalm 50:16-17This Psalm questions those who recite God's statutes and take His covenant on their lips, yet hate discipline and cast His words behind them, directly reflecting the core accusation in Romans 2:22 about professing one thing and doing another.
ellicottRomans 2:22: "Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?"
(22) Commit sacrilege. —Properly, rob temples—i.e. , idol temples, with a pointed antithesis to that abhorrence of idols on which the Jew prided himself. This is certainly the last offence of which we should have expected the Jews of this date to be guilty, knowing the scrupulousness with which they shunned all contact with idolatry. They may, howev…
barnesRomans 2:22: "Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?"
Dost thou commit adultery? - There is no doubt that this was a crime very common among the Jews; see the Matthew 12:39 note; John 8:1-11 notes. The Jewish Talmud accuses some of the most celebrated of their Rabbies, by name, of this vice. (Grotius.) Josephus also gives the same account of the nation. Thou that abhorrest idols - It was one of the doc…
Paul sharpens his accusation by linking "abhorring idols" to the opposite sin of "robbing temples." This isn't just about stealing from pagan shrines, but a deeper hypocrisy: claiming to be pure while still plundering what rightfully belongs to God, whether it's literal temple treasures or the devotion meant only for Him.
Paul is currently calling out the hypocrisy of those who judge others by God's law while not following it themselves. He's just highlighted how Jews, who boast in possessing the Law, often fail to live by it. Now, he confronts them directly with their own potential sins, asking if their outward rejection of things like adultery and idolatry is undermined by private actions like adultery and robbing sacred things.
Paul is currently calling out the hypocrisy of those who judge others by God's law while not following it themselves. He's just highlighted how Jews, who boast in possessing the Law, often fail to live by it. Now, he confronts them directly with their own potential sins, asking if their outward rejection of things like adultery and idolatry is undermined by private actions like adultery and robbing sacred things.
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Romans 2:22 is available in the Sola app.
This isn't an attack on the Law itself, but on the misuse of religious privilege, which breeds arrogance and a disconnect between knowledge and practice.
c. AD 62— this verse
Paul Writes Romans
From Corinth or possibly Ephesus, Paul writes his epistle to the Roman church. In it, he addresses the hypocrisy of those who outwardly adhere to Jewish law but inwardly commit sin.
"You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?" — Paul sharpens his accusation by linking "abhorring idols" to the opposite sin of "robbing temples." This isn't just about stealing from pagan shrines, but a deeper hypocrisy: claiming to be pure wh…
