Romans 15:33

‘Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.'

He comes to the end of the main part of the letter with a prayer that ‘the God of peace' will be with them. We can almost see him relaxing into this idea having asked them to pray for his deliverance from the antagonism of the Jews, and for the acceptability to the Jewish church of the gift from mainly Gentile churches. Foreseeing a tough period ahead he hopes eventually to find rest among the Christians in Rome, in the presence of the God of peace. Compare how ‘the God of hope' in Romans 15:13 refers back to the hope of the Gentiles in Romans 15:12, although also transcending it.

The same title for God (‘the God of peace') is used in Romans 16:20. There it indicates what will result when God has bruised Satan under their feet shortly. Here then it has a similar meaning as his hope is that God will do the same in Jerusalem. But as with ‘the God of hope', the title transcends the individual situation. Thus here it may well primarily indicate that God is the One Who has given them peace with Himself through their being accounted righteous by faith (Romans 5:1). By being accounted as righteous by faith they will have peace with the God of peace.