We invite you into a close reading of Paul’s question in Romans 2. What does it mean when an uncircumcised person’s conduct is regarded as circumcision?
Bible scholar Mark D. Nanos argues that Paul can value a non-Jew’s faithfulness without changing that person’s Jewish identity. That is his argued reading, not a settled consensus. Josephus’s story of King Izates helps Nanos illustrate a distinction between following Jewish ways and becoming a Jew; it does not prove that Paul’s audience lived the same story.
Some readings turn Romans 2 into a claim that non-Jews replace Jews. Nanos challenges that conclusion. The very next chapter, Romans 3:1–2, still speaks of the value of being a Jew. We encourage you to read the whole movement of the passage before deciding what Paul means.
Read for yourself: Romans 2:25–3:2. Then read Nanos’s 2014 essay, “Paul’s Non-Jews Do Not Become ‘Jews,’ But Do They Become ‘Jewish’?”, for his argument in full.
Watch our short introduction. This is MMAB’s independent introduction to Nanos’s work; he has not reviewed or endorsed it.
Scripture quoted in the video: Berean Standard Bible (BSB).
