Romans 2:20

a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of babies, having in the law the form of knowledge and of the truth.

World English Bible
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Other translations

WEBBE

a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of babies, having in the law the form of knowledge and of the truth.

BSB

an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth —

KJV

An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.

ASV

a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having in the law the form of knowledge and of the truth;

BBE

A teacher of the foolish, having in the law the form of knowledge and of what is true;

Original Greek

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The early church

"And art confident that thou thyself." Here again he does not say that thou art "a guide of the blind," but "thou art confident," so thou boastest, he says. So great was the unreasonableness of the Jews. Wherefore he also repeats nearly the very words, which they used in their boastings. See for instance what they say in the Gospels. "Thou wast altogether born in sin, and dost thou teach us?" (John ix. 34.) And all men they utterly looked down upon, to convince them of which, Paul keeps extolling them and lowering the others, that so he may get more hold on them, and make his accusation the weightier. Wherefore he goes on adding the like things, and making more of them by different ways of relating them. For "Thou art confident," he saith, "that thou thyself art a leader of the blind, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and truth, which is in the Law." Here again he says not, in the conscience and in actions and in well-doings, but "in the Law;" and after saying so, he does here also what he did with regard to the Gentiles. For as there he says, "for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself," so saith he here also.
John Chrysostom · d. 407Homilies on Romans

Commentary

Matthew Henry · Verses 17–24

The apostle directs his discourse to the Jews, and shows of what sins they were guilty, notwithstanding their profession and vain pretensions. A believing, humble, thankful glorying in God, is the root and sum of all religion. But proud, vain-glorious boasting in God, and in the outward profession of his name, is the root and sum of all hypocrisy. Spiritual pride is the most dangerous of all kinds of pride. A great evil of the sins professors is, the dishonour done to God and religion, by their not living according to their profession. Many despise their more ignorant neighbours who rest in a dead form of godliness; yet themselves trust in a form of knowledge, equally void of life and power, while some glory in the gospel, whose unholy lives dishonour God, and cause his name to be blasphemed.

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Cross-references

8

Topics

Cross-references: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Hebrew and Greek data from STEPBible.org (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0. Library: sources.