Romans 2:6-11

God Will Be Impartial In Judgment (2:6-11).

As mentioned above this new section is in the form of a chiasmus. The chiasmus was found regularly in the works of Moses, and in other books of the Old Testament, forming an a b c c b a pattern or equivalent, with the repetition of a phrase sometimes coming in the second half (‘of the Jew first and also of the Greek' - ‘to the Jew first and also to the Greek'). The chiasmus here is as follows:

a ‘Who will render to every man according to his works' (Romans 2:6).

b ‘To those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honour and incorruption, eternal life' (Romans 2:7).

c ‘But to those who are factious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation (Romans 2:8).

c ‘Tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who works evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Greek' (Romans 2:9).

b ‘But glory and honour and peace to every man who works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek' (Romans 2:10).

a ‘For there is no respect of persons with God' (Romans 2:11).

Note that in ‘a' God renders to every man according to his works, and in the parallel He shows no respect of persons. In ‘b' and its parallel there is glory and honour for those who do good. In ‘c' there is wrath and indignation for the factious, and in the parallel there is tribulation and anguish for those who work evil. Note also that central to the chiasmus is Paul's thesis from Romans 1:18 to Romans 3:23, that all men obey unrighteousness and do evil and therefore come under judgment.