by Drew Filer

Previously, we looked at the difference between exegesis and eisegesis. We analysed the methods used under both mindsets and the consequences of misinterpreting Scripture. The severity of this topic cannot be overstated. The way we interpret Scripture generally affects our entire lives. In the movie "A Christmas Story", Ralphie's dad gets "a major award" in the mail. On the wooden crate that is delivered, in large bold print is the word "FRAGILE" (Must be Italian). Bible study could be seen the same way. Only instead of "fragile" I would label it "Handle With Care". It can be a very precarious business.

There is at least one verse that I feel shows this very plainly: Romans 10:9. This chapter has been victim to more misinterpretation than almost any other passage. Verse nine, in particular, has been taken out of context more than any other verse I've seen; even by many pastors whom I love and respect. The verse in question reads: "[B]ecause if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (ESV) Or in NKJV: "that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved". Pretty simple, right? Not necessarily. When this verse is taken by itself, it appears to be telling us that we need to both believe (have an inward understanding or acceptance) in Jesus and confess (make an outward expression of) that belief in order to receive eternal life. However, when we look deeper into the text, we see that there's more to this verse than originally meets the eye.

As with any other verse, we have to look at the context of verse nine in order to determine its intended meaning. In order to get this context, we need to look at the chapter containing this verse, the section of the epistle in which this chapter lies, and the book as a whole. This will give us the bigger picture being created throughout this letter to the church at Rome. As we look at the context of any book in the Bible, we should be asking ourselves a few questions. Who penned this book? To whom was it written? Why was it written? And finally, what are the central themes throughout the book and its sections?

We already know that the author is Paul. He establishes this in 1:1, "Paul, a servant of Christ..." Romans 1:7 shows us Paul's original audience. It reads: "To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints," (ESV, emphasis mine). Paul opens his letter by addressing his audience, the church in Rome. This letter is written to a body of believers, so we know that their eternal salvation is not in question.

The section of Romans in which we find chapter ten is focused on Israel. There are many more verses that show this than the passages listed here, but for the sake of space we'll only look at a few. Turning to chapter nine, we see the subject of this section of Paul's letter to the Roman church:

3For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh. 4They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. 5To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen. (ESV, emphasis mine)

Again, in chapter eleven, Paul writes:

1I ask, then, has God rejected his people [Israel]? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. 2God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew... (ESV, emphasis mine)

In this passage, Paul is talking about Israel. This is found in Chapter ten as well. Starting in verse five we read:

5For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. 6But the righteousness based on faith says "Do not say in your heart 'Who will ascend into heaven?' (that is, to bring Christ down) 7or 'Who will descend to the abyss?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8But what does it say? "The word is near you [Israel], in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith we proclaim)...(ESV)

15And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!" 16But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?"...(ESV)

19But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, "I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry." 20Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, "I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me." (ESV)

Each of these verses cites passages from the Old Testament, all of them talking about, or to Israel. With this being the case, how can verse nine suddenly change direction and make a reference to our eternal salvation as gentiles? It just doesn't make sense when taken with the rest of the book.

Paul does write about our eternal justification before the Lord in chapters one through five, but that discussion ends when Paul transitions from the topic of our eternal position before God to how we should live in light of that justification (in chapter five). Starting in 5:1 we read:

1Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

This transition shows plainly that Paul has finished his discussion of justification. After chapter five, the issue of justification is not addressed again, except to recall it as a basis for sanctification and glorification. The verses cited show that the subject of discussion in chapter ten is Israel. Romans 10:9 is not a salvation passage. If we are not careful, we put ourselves in a very dangerous position.

Now that we have proper context, we need to ask ourselves: If Paul isn't writing about eternal salvation in Romans 10:9, what is he talking about? Well, we've already established that he's talking about Israel, but what does Paul mean when he says "you will be saved"? To answer this question, we need to take a look at the original language of the passage: Koine Greek. The Greek word for "you will be saved" is sothese. It's a form of the word "I save", sozo. Sozo is used 108 times in the New Testament.¹ Of those 108 occurrences, only a handful actually have something to do with eternity (see John 3:17; Acts 11:14; 16:31; and Eph 2:8-9)

Aside from these few verses, when Scripture speaks of being "saved", it's often talking about God's temporal wrath (i.e. sickness, poverty, physical pain, and death). Take, for example, Hebrews 11:7: "By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith." (ESV, emphasis mine)

If, in this case the word "saved" referenced eternity, that would imply that Noah determined the eternal destiny of his family. By building the ark, Noah didn't give his family eternal life, and he certainly didn't condemn all the inhabitants of the earth to the lake of fire. Noah saved (sozo) his family from a premature physical death, thus condemning the rest of humanity to physically die. Noah didn't have the power or the authority to decide where anyone would spend eternity; that power belongs to God alone.

Another example is Jude 5: "Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe." (ESV, emphasis mine). The verse itself shows that this isn't eternal salvation: "... Jesus saved [sozo] a people out of the land of Egypt...", He saved them from slavery and persecution. He "destroyed" the Egyptians—killed them physically. These verses, and many more, show that when Paul says "you will be saved" in Romans 10:9, he means saved from God's temporal wrath.

The confession that Paul writes about in Rom 10:9 refers to the same repentance Peter preached in Acts 2:38. Israel as a nation needs to confess that they crucified the Messiah (see v 23). When they do, Jesus will come to their rescue according to Rom 11:11-32 and Rev 19:11-15. He will save (sozo) them from God's temporal wrath—in this case, destruction at the hands of the Antichrist's army -- at which point He will establish His Millennial Kingdom here on earth.

We need to be sure that we "...rightly [divide] the word of truth." (2 Tim. 2:15) Key verses such as Romans 10:9 especially, should be handled with care. If we misuse verses that are foundational to our Christian walk, or overemphasize verses that don't even apply to us, we risk misguiding not only ourselves, but those we influence. When studying Scripture, we should remember three ideas: take care, take your time, and don't make assumptions.