The first two verses of Romans 10 are linked to the last verses of Romans 9, and it is exactly this that makes the first two verses of Romans 10 so compelling. Paul has just said that the failure of the Jews to believe was due to the mistaken notion that they could earn their own salvation by good works. But instead of writing them off at this point, as we might have done, Paul immediately goes on to show that he is concerned about them and is continuing to pray for them (v. 1).

This is a very simple prayer, but like most Bible prayers it suggests a number of important truths. The first is that prayer is always worthwhile. The fact that God elects some to salvation and passes by others does not stop him from praying, and the fact that failure to believe is a human failure rather than a divine failure does not stop him from praying. Which means Paul was always accustomed to be praying for the salvation of other people. The second truth we can see in Paul’s prayer for his countrymen in Romans 10 is that the most important of all prayers are those for whom we are praying might “be saved.” We are to pray for all sorts of things, we are to pray for peace, national prosperity, and for wisdom and righteousness on the part of those who rule over us. But Jesus also said something we need to think about carefully. “What good will it be for a man is he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?” (Matt. 16:26a). This means that, however good it is to have peace and prosperity, these and countless other things count as next to nothing (or worse than nothing) if we acquire them and yet fail to receive God’s salvation.

The third truth in Paul’s prayer for his countrymen is found in verse two. It means that zeal is no substitute for conversion. Even the zealous must be saved. When Paul speaks of Jewish zeal in the matter of religion, he was speaking from experience and of something well known to everyone, which means that this statement was not flattery but an honest admission of a great Jewish strength. Paul acknowledged the zeal of his countrymen. Yet he still regarded them as lost, prayed for them fervently, and worked tirelessly for their salvation. The fourth and last truth expressed in Paul’s prayer for his countrymen is that the necessary first step to conversion, which all persons need, is knowledge. I say this because of the very last phrase of verse 2, which notes that the problem of the Jews was not their zeal itself. In itself zeal can be a very good thing. It was rather that “their zeal is not based on knowledge.” Verse 3 explains it. It was their ignorance of the righteousness of God. What they didn’t understand is that the righteousness God requires is divine righteousness. And since it is divine and not human, the only way it can be obtained is from God Himself as a free gift.

It is what Paul was writing about earlier in Romans, in the chapters in which he was explaining the gospel, which is why he was writing it. If the problem was the Jews’ lack of knowledge, the solution was to share or communicate that knowledge. To put it in other language, the task is to teach the Word of God. This means that Christianity is primarily a teaching religion. It is and always has been. In fact, this was the primary thrust of Jesus’ three year ministry, to teach the people the way to salvation, and to provide for it by Himself dying for the sin and then rising from the dead.

Romans 10:4 seems to be a very simple verse: “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” Yet this verse is difficult to interpret. Instead of looking at the difficulties of the possible meanings of “law” – law of Moses, a principle of conduct, the ceremonial law, or moral law – we will step back from the text itself and instead ask, “How does Jesus Christ fulfill the law?” He does it in a variety of ways. After we have explored those answers, we can then come back to the text, interpret it, and apply it practically.

The first way in which Jesus fulfilled the law, and thus became the end of the law, is that He kept it perfectly Himself. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matt. 5:17). In the story of Jesus’ baptism, Jesus responded to John the Baptist saying, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt 3:15). The most important word in this exchange is “all.” For by it Jesus was declaring His intention to fulfill all that God has required. He did this so well that His enemies were unable to accuse Him of any wrongdoing, as much as they would have liked to.

The second way Jesus became the end of the law is that He fulfilled the law on our behalf, so that now He is not only the source but is Himself the righteousness of all who are joined to Him by faith. This is what Paul says in 1 Cor. 1:30 and 2 Cor. 5:21: “Christ Jesus…had become for us wisdom from God – that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption,” and “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” This is what justification is about, and it is what Paul seems chiefly to be talking about in this section of Romans 9 and 10. This justification, by which we stand or fall in the sight of the holy God, involves two corresponding transactions. On the one hand, if we are believers, our sin has been transferred to Jesus Christ and was punished in Him when He died in our place on the cross. On the other hand, His righteousness was transferred to us, with the result that we are now counted as being righteous in Him. Both belong to justification, and both are true for anyone who has turned from sin and committed his or her life to Jesus Christ. It is what Paul has been writing about in much of the earlier portion of Romans and is reiterating in this passage.

Paul says that Jesus is the end of the law “so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” A righteousness for us is a righteousness imparted to us by God for Christ’s sake. Paul’s point here is that we are neither justified nor sanctified by the law. But those who are justified will also be progressively sanctified by the Spirit of Christ who lives within them, and this means that they will inevitably and increasingly live righteous lives. If they do not they are not Christians.

Here are three practical applications of our text: (1) Christ is everything. The law was the very essence of Jewish religion. Yet Paul, who was himself a Jew, is telling us that Christ is the culmination, fulfillment, and (in a sense) termination of the law. For Jesus “is the end of the law.” It is a way of saying that everything that matters in salvation and religion is in Him. (2) If I am in Christ, I will never be condemned for breaking the law or be rejected by God. How could I be, since Jesus has fulfilled the law on my behalf and has borne the punishment due to me for breaking it? He has become my righteousness. (3) To be “in Him” I must believe on Him. For the verse tells me, “Christ is the end of the law…for everyone who believes.” For everyone? Yes, but for everyone who believes. The promise is universal and specific.

Romans 10:1-4 Reflection Questions:

Why do you think Paul was so concerned about the Jews? What is God saying here?

In 10:4 Paul says the Messiah, Christ, “is the goal of the law.” Christ is the end, the final purpose of the law, where God’s purposes that began with Abraham were headed all along. The purpose of the law is not to accumulate a treasury of moral merit, but it is the assured status of belonging to God’s people. How does Christ accomplish the purpose of the law?

Why do people look for answers to life’s questions in so many places?

Even when the gospel is clearly presented, many reject its saving message. How can we encourage them to accept Christ?