But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The text highlights a chilling paradox: the very "goodness" and "patience" of God, meant to lead people to repentance, are instead being "treasured up" as a surplus of wrath by those with hard, unrepentant hearts. This means that the longer God patiently withholds judgment, the more the unforgiven person is actually accumulating a heavier penalty for themselves for that future day.
But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Paul is challenging the self-righteous who judge others while committing the same sins, especially those who boast about having God's law but don't follow it. He's arguing that God's kindness is meant to lead to repentance, not give people an excuse to continue in sin. This verse explains the severe consequence for those who ignore God's patient goodness and remain hard-hearted.
What does it mean to have a 'hard and impenitent heart'? It's more than just being stubborn; it's a dangerous state that seals your eternal destiny.
The verse contrasts a 'hard' heart with the idea of repentance. Think of 'hardness' like a stone that cannot be impressed.
The Hardened Heart
The Cost of Impenitence
This stubbornness isn't neutral; it actively builds something up: wrath. It's as if every act of defiance adds to a growing storehouse of divine judgment.
We usually 'treasure up' things we value for the future. But here, Paul speaks of 'treasuring up wrath.' What does this chilling image reveal about God's justice?
The phrase 'treasurest up wrath' is incredibly powerful. It paints a picture of someone actively, though perhaps unknowingly, accumulating divine judgment.
The Sin of Accumulation
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The verse points to a future 'day of wrath.' What will happen on this day, and why is God's judgment described as being 'revealed'?
This verse culminates in the description of a future, definitive event: the day when God's righteous judgment is fully known and executed.
The Day of Wrath
Understand the original words
sklēros · Greek Adjective
A state of moral stubbornness or resistance to God's truth, characterized by an unwillingness to change one's ways. It depicts a heart that is calloused and unresponsive to the conviction of the Spirit.
orgē · Greek Noun
The accumulation of future divine penalty due to sustained unrepentance. It represents the building up of consequences for sin that will be executed in full at the final judgment.
dikaiokrisia · Greek Noun
The final point of accountability when God will execute perfect justice and align all things with His moral order. It is the time when the hidden realities of men's hearts and actions are fully exposed.
This passage speaks of God storing up vengeance and retribution, mirroring the idea in Romans 2:5 of 'storing up wrath' through hardened hearts.
Proverbs 1:18This verse directly states that those who lie in wait for blood 'treasure up evil for themselves,' which is a strong parallel to the concept of accumulating wrath through sinful actions.
Matthew 6:19-20This passage contrasts 'treasuring up treasures on earth' with 'treasuring up treasures in heaven,' providing a significant backdrop for Paul's use of 'treasurest up wrath' as a negative accumulation.
James 5:3James speaks of gold and silver rusting and becoming a testimony against those who have stored up wealth 'in the last days,' echoing the theme of hoarding for a future judgment.
2 Peter 3:7This verse explicitly states that the present heavens and earth are 'stored up for fire' on the day of judgment, reinforcing the imagery of accumulated destruction awaiting a future revelation.
ellicottRomans 2:5: "But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;"
(5) The one condition upon which the goodness of God will come into operation, you directly contravene. Instead of being penitent, you are impenitent, and therefore the load of wrath which you have been accumulating against yourself remains unremoved. It is only waiting for the day of judgment to discharge itself upon you. Treasures…
barnesRomans 2:5: "But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;"
But after thy hardness - The word "after" here κατά kata means in respect to, or you act according to the direct tendency of a hard heart in treasuring up wrath. The word "hardness" is used to denote insensibility of mind. It properly means what is insensible to the touch, or on which no impression is made by contact, as a stone,…
The text highlights a chilling paradox: the very "goodness" and "patience" of God, meant to lead people to repentance, are instead being "treasured up" as a surplus of wrath by those with hard, unrepentant hearts. This means that the longer God patiently withholds judgment, the more the unforgiven person is actually accumulating a heavier penalty for themselves for that future day.
Paul is challenging the self-righteous who judge others while committing the same sins, especially those who boast about having God's law but don't follow it. He's arguing that God's kindness is meant to lead to repentance, not give people an excuse to continue in sin. This verse explains the severe consequence for those who ignore God's patient goodness and remain hard-hearted.
Paul is challenging the self-righteous who judge others while committing the same sins, especially those who boast about having God's law but don't follow it. He's arguing that God's kindness is meant to lead to repentance, not give people an excuse to continue in sin. This verse explains the severe consequence for those who ignore God's patient goodness and remain hard-hearted.
"But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed." — The text highlights a chilling paradox: the very "goodness" and "patience" of God, meant to lead people to repentance, are instead being "treasured up" as a surplus of wrath by those with hard, unrep…
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Last reviewed October 2026