32 and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
and, although they relative pronoun referring to all those described in the previous vss
know Aorist Active Participle: epiginwskw epi-ginosko to know fully; complete; full Knowledge; to understand something completely
The action of Aorist Participle precedes the action of the main verb; the main verb is in the last phrase but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
They know what God says about these things, & yet they encourage the doing of them.
Make no doubt that the Supreme Court Judges & lower court judges, and pastors know what God says about these things…like homosexuality & lesbianism, yet they pass laws to encourage this conduct – along with all these!
First they know the difference between right and wrong, then they encourage others to do wrong!
Question: How do they know these things?
This is what is called: natural revelation “disclosure of God in nature, in providential history, and in the moral law within the heart, whereby all persons at all times and places gain a rudimentary understanding of the Creator and his moral demands”
The point is this: God created mankind with the innate knowledge of His existence & of moral conduct, creating mankind as moral creatures with innate rudimentary sense of right and wrong!
Able to understand God
Able to understand right and wrong!
Rudimentary understanding of God & moral decisions & able to understand right and wrong.
So what happens?
What happens with this God instilled knowledge of His existence & moral right & wrong?
Immediately our flesh nature goes to work to reinterpret all this innate God given information, about God & moral right & wrong.
Then the world offers alternative interpretation of both /existence of God & of moral decisions.
Then the devil has all his forces to counter all /innate knowledge God has instilled in all of us.
And then when you add the continual flow of false teachers in churches and denominations and religious false teaching about God and the gospel, it is no surprise that man quickly turns from these truths inside of him, to lies and cheap substitutes, starting with lies about God and about the gospel to lies about self.
Now what is it exactly that they know very well?
and although they know
the ordinance of God,
Dikaiwma dikaioma from the root: Just, Righteous
KJ knowing the judgment of God,
NIV know God's righteous decree
The ordinance the judgment the Righteous decree
This one word is used just 10 x in NT
just in NASV it is translated in 5 different ways:
Luke 1:6 requirements of the Lord
Rom. 1:32 ordinance of God
2:26 requirements of the Law
5:16 justification
5:18 act of righteousness
8:4 requirement of the Law
Heb. 9:1 regulations of Divine worship
9:10 regulations for the body
Rev. 15:4 & 19:8 righteous acts
Requirements, ordinance, justification, righteous acts, regulations
So what is it that they know?
And although they know the ordinance of God
Simplify: they know what God desires & does not desire
They know requirements of God;
They know the difference between right & wrong
An ordinance lays out what is required;
justification basis upon which God judges as to what is Righteous or not
righteous acts Acts that are befitting to what is right before God.
Regulations what God requires
This takes us back to 10 questions of Job.
This is takes us to the flow of the whole Bible.
The Greek word was used to refer to a legal document, corresponding to an ordinance, or requirement, & therefore used to determine whether one is just or not.
Judicially-“legal requirement of the Justice of God”
Of God God is the source of this known ordinance;
When God created mankind, & blows the breath of life into the fetus at birth, there are several things He places naturally in our conscience – ordinance of right and wrong is one of them, His being is another!
So what is known by all?
We have seen that the being of God is known by all as told in creation: vss 19-20
So what is known here?
What Paul is speaking of is embedded in the human conscience!
As man rejects the being of God, or that God is in control, he will fight against the ordinance of God. But fight it as he will, it will remain in their souls, not just as idle knowledge but as epignosis making human beings moral creatures!
Therefore accountable for what they know in their souls!
Man’s natural sense of right & wrong, natural sense of justice is a result of knowing of the existence of God & the ordinance of God
By naming this ordinance as Gods—Paul once again goes back to the source of all things…God
And although they know the ordinance of God embedded in their soul
That the use of this Gk. conjunction intro. more than just a knowledge of the ordinance of God but of judicial decisions that follow it.
For example: they know the only way to God is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ & if one believes in Christ…that one will be saved
Here they know fundamentally right & wrong & they know that God makes righteous judgments
That those who practice such things are worthy of death,
They know right acts & they know judicial decisions
That those refer. to the heathens described in 29-31
Who practice Pres. Act. Ptc prassw prasso distinguished from other verbs of doing…like poieo Our word means not only to do once in a while but to practice these things maybe not all of them, but even one…makes you worthy of death. & before Self-Righteous Christians get to carried away remember gossip & slander are in this list and multitude of Christians make this their religious duty…to gossip and slander.
That those who practice such things are worthy of death,
Note carefully the adjective such things
this list is not complete, just in case Paul missed all acts by man: non-Christian degenerate or believers who sin…their sins are included!
That those who practice such things
Are worthy Pres. Act. Indic. eimi eimi status quo are worthy axios axios this word does refer to being worthy—comes from root to weigh, to make an estimate or value indicating inherent value as contrasted with tiimios worthy from attributed value
So here, those who practice such things are worthy or deserving or either good or bad, here death!
Are worthy of death physical death
And although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death
So they know the ordinance of God, they know the judicial decisions by God that go along with His ordinance.
& even though they know the ordinance & judgments
They not only do the same as if this is not bad enough
Pres .Act. Indic. poiew poieo to do…denoting continual action
It is used rather than repeating that they practice these things to emphasize the fact that they themselves actually do these things themselves and they do them continually
They not only continually do these things,
but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
The strong neg. ouk ouk is used to denote a strong contrast to what they ought to be doing, to what they are doing…they should be denouncing these things
but give hearty approval to those who practice them
KJ have pleasure in NIV also approve
Pres. Act. Indic. suneudokew suneudokeo compound: sun-together with + eudokeo to think well, to take pleasure
Here, the emphasis is more set on approval which implies pleasure in; someone may take pleasure in something but not approve of it; but these continually do these things and take pleasure & give approval to all who practice them
But give hearty approval
This is the main verb–they give hearty approval & what was the circumstance before they gave hearty approval? They know the ordinance of God & penalty of death---yet, they give hearty approval
to those who practice them
Repeat of verb prasso to habitually do, practice
These are without excuse…they know, yet they both do these things & encourage others to do them…without excuse
32 and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
Why is this so important? Is it important to us?
Oh, this is so important – to you, today!
This is what is happening in political America & Spiritual America
Our leaders are systematically destroying our living under the ordinance of God
Our political leaders, current President, judges, lawyers who know the ordinances of God, are encouraging the mal-practice of all the content of the ordinance of God. They are doing this slowly yet systematically…
Dismantling our freedoms, our Constitution
North America Union – to correspond to EU
Mexico, USA & Canada -- & by time Americans hear about it, our leaders will signed into Law our membership…this is main reason our President & leaders are opposed to any type of wall along the Mexican border! All the evil that has happened in Europe with the E.Union is now designed for here:
North America Union, or and when Bush signed some regulatory documents…it is for our Security & Prosperity
But vs 32 is not just happening politically, it is also happening in Spiritual America, where false teachers in denominations & independent churches
False teachers…who have distorted the gospel and the moral structure of our society by not only approving perversion but practice it themselves…