While we must avoid extracting verses from Paul’s epistles as if they were theological fortune cookies, an analysis of his systematic reasoning without reference to Covenant-literary structure is still prone to missing much of the meaning, beauty and wit.
The Apostle is notorious for his long sentences, but it seems that when they are understood as strands of “literary DNA” his logic is made plain. The veiled allusions he makes to the Old Testament and the ministry of Christ do not obscure his plain meanings at all, but anchor them in the unfathomable depths of the mind of God. Most pleasing is the fact that some of the most neglected, obscure and embarrassing members of the canon were in the room all the time, breathing down the necks of timid Bible scholars who hide themselves among the trees of Paul’s epistles as if they provided a safe space for respectable academics. The Bible Matrix renders them naked and ashamed.
TRANSCENDENCE
TRANSCENDENCE
Paul, (Initiation)
Paul, (Initiation)
HIERARCHY
a servant of Christ Jesus, (Delegation)
a servant of Christ Jesus, (Delegation)
ETHICS: PRIESTHOOD
called to be an apostle, (Presentation)
called to be an apostle, (Presentation)
ETHICS: KINGDOM
set apart for the gospel of God, (Purification)
set apart for the gospel of God, (Purification)
ETHICS: PROPHECY
which he promised beforehand (Transformation)
which he promised beforehand (Transformation)
OATH/SANCTIONS
through his prophets (Vindication)
through his prophets (Vindication)
SUCCESSION
in the holy Scriptures, (Representation)
in the holy Scriptures, (Representation)
- In the first stanza, Paul introduces himself and his mission, but he employs the process of the ascension (whole burnt) offering to imply that his “kingly” authority depends on his willingness to be a “priestly” living sacrifice. Paul is a true Jew.
HIERARCHY
TRANSCENDENCE
concerning his Son, (Creation)
concerning his Son, (Creation)
HIERARCHY
having come from the seed of David (circumcision) (Division)
having come from the seed of David (circumcision) (Division)
ETHICS
according to the flesh, (Ascension)
according to the flesh, (Ascension)
having been declared (Testing)
the Son of God in power (Maturity)
OATH/SANCTIONS
according to the Spirit of holiness (baptism) (Conquest)
according to the Spirit of holiness (baptism) (Conquest)
SUCCESSION
by resurrection from the dead, (Glorification)
by resurrection from the dead, (Glorification)
- Paul now describes Jesus as not only the rightful king of Israel but also the heir to the world. The themes of Hierarchy include the Temple Veil (or Jesus’s flesh), the cutting of the sacrifice, and also the voluntary humility that precedes exaltation by God.
- Notice the contrast between Jesus’ earthly father at Division and His vindication by the heavenly Father at Conquest. This son of Man (Adam: earth) was the first true Son of God (heaven). This contrast between cultivation (childhood: listening/external law) and representation (adulthood: speaking/internal law) is the difference between the Abrahamic and New Covenant signs.
ETHICS: PRIESTHOOD
Jesus Christ our Lord, (Ark of the Testimony)
through whom we have received (Veil)
grace and apostleship (Bronze Altar & Golden Table)
unto the obedience of faith (Lampstand)
among all the nations, (Incense Altar)
for the sake of his name (Laver and Mediators)
among whom are also you called of Jesus Christ, (Shekinah)
- The “Levitical” stanza works step-by-step through the Tabernacle, implying that these Gentiles – those included in this new “Melchizedekian” priesthood of all nations – were now the holy microcosmos by which God would restore all things through the preaching of the Gospel to every creature. His mention of their inclusion in the final line of stanza also echoes the festal pattern: they were the fulfillment of the Feast of Booths.
- The contrast between cultivation (circumcision of flesh) and representation (circumcision of heart) is apparent once again in the placement of grace and apostleship as fulfillments of the Bronze Altar and the Golden Table.
ETHICS: KINGDOM
To all those in Rome (Call)
beloved of God (Confession)
and called saints: (Praise)
Grace to you (Word)
and peace (Offering)
from God our Father (Communion)
and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Commission)
- The “Kingdom” stanza seems to highlight the “worship” thread of the Bible Matrix. Paul addresses the saints at this “word” stanza of the cycle, and he also mentions the city in which they dwell, tying together the themes of Pentecost and the cosmopolitan (bridal) nature of the kingdom of peace. In Christ, any city is a potential Zion (Jeremiah 29:7). At the center of the cycle, this also corresponds to the Peace Offering.
- The phrase “beloved of God” might be linked to the mention of David – whose name means “beloved” – in stanza 2. In Christ, by His Spirit, we are all Davids, over whom the Father testifies that we are sons in whom He is pleased (Matthew 3:17; 17:5; Ephesians 1:6).
ETHICS: PROPHECY
TRANSENDENCE
First indeed, (Sabbath)
First indeed, (Sabbath)
HIERARCHY
I thank my God (Passover)
I thank my God (Passover)
ETHICS
through Jesus Christ (Firstfruits)
through Jesus Christ (Firstfruits)
for all of you, (Pentecost)
because your faith (Trumpets)
OATH/SANCTIONS
is proclaimed (Atonement)
is proclaimed (Atonement)
SUCCESSION
in all the world. (Booths)
in all the world. (Booths)
- The theme at stanza 5 is united legal testimony, and apparently Paul has structured it as the fulfillment of Israel’s annual festal pattern. Wittingly or unwittingly, the stanza is also a microcosm not only of Paul’s personal journey and ministry, but also of first century history.
OATH/SANCTIONS
TRANSCENDENCE
My witness indeed is God, (Creation)
My witness indeed is God, (Creation)
HIERARCHY
whom I serve in my spirit, (Division)
whom I serve in my spirit, (Division)
ETHICS
in the gospel of his Son, (Ascension)
in the gospel of his Son, (Ascension)
that without ceasing I mention you (Testing)
always in my prayers, (Maturity)
OATH/SANCTIONS
asking that at last I may succeed (Conquest)
asking that at last I may succeed (Conquest)
SUCCESSION
by the will of God to come to you. (Glorification)
by the will of God to come to you. (Glorification)
- The word “succeed” means literally “have a prosperous journey.” The stanza is the Covenantal “there-and-back-again” as represented in the journey of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement. In literary terms, Paul is both Joshua and the High Priest, mediating on behalf of a new Israel. He approaches the throne of grace in the tent of meeting and returns to the people whom he wishes to gather under his wings to impart a blessing upon them.
SUCCESSION
I long indeed to see you, (Initiation)
that I may impart (Delegation)
some spiritual gift to you (Presentation)
to strengthen you — that is, (Purification)
to be encouraged together among you (Transformation)
by each other’s faith, (Vindication)
both yours and mine. (Representation)
- The final stanza seems to mirror (chiastically) the theme of the first, only now it is the Roman Christians who are the “offering” by means of Paul’s spiritual gift. “Strength” refers to the various “mighty men” of Scripture.
- The Glorification here is the fire of the Spirit, a Shekinah which dissolves all bonds and boundaries. Like Daniel’s friends, true saints walk among the coals of fire, but this is so that they might have fiery tongues with which to put their own city “under the ban” of the Gospel.
- As a Jew, Paul’s union with these Gentiles fulfilled the centuries-long mission of Israel, as pictured in Booths, the final feast of the year, also known as Ingathering.
If you are new to this method of interpretation, please visit the Welcome page for some help to get you up to speed.
