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Bible chapter guide
Romans 16
Paul commends Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, and sends greetings to many by name: Prisca and Aquila who risked their necks for him, Andronicus and Junia, and a household church after another. Tertius, who wrote the letter, adds his greeting.
Summary written for the Labs; read the chapter itself for the full text.
See it in the Labs
- Paul's RoadsGreece: three months at Corinth (3rd journey) · Paul's RoadsOpen
- Paul's RoadsRomans · Paul's RoadsOpen
- Paul's RoadsGaius · Paul's RoadsOpen
- Paul's RoadsErastus · Paul's RoadsOpen
- Paul's RoadsPhoebe · Paul's RoadsOpen
- Paul's RoadsPriscilla · Paul's RoadsOpen
The letter: who wrote it, where and when
These questions are debated; the views are shown side by side with how sure each is, as in Paul's Roads.
- Strongly supported
Romans written from Corinth
Written during the three months in Greece (Acts 20:2–3), before taking the collection to Jerusalem (Romans 15:25–26): Phoebe of nearby Cenchreae carries it and Gaius, Paul's host, and Erastus the city treasurer send greetings (16:1, 23).
- Plausible
Romans 16, with its many greetings, belongs to the letter to Rome.
Some have thought chapter 16 was sent to Ephesus, since Paul greets so many people in a city he had not visited, including Priscilla and Aquila, last seen in Ephesus. Most now read it as part of Romans: travellers moved between Rome and the East, and Claudius…
How sure can we be?
- Textually stated
Priscilla is usually named before her husband.
Four of the six mentions put Priscilla (Prisca) first (Acts 18:18, 26; Romans 16:3; 2 Timothy 4:19), which was unusual and suggests her standing in the church.
- Strongly supported
At least two, perhaps three, different men named Gaius worked with Paul.
Acts 19:29 names a Macedonian Gaius seized at Ephesus; Acts 20:4 a Gaius of Derbe; Romans 16:23 and 1 Corinthians 1:14 a Gaius of Corinth whom Paul baptized. Gaius was one of the commonest Roman names. The lab keeps them on one card and says which is which.
- Plausible
The Erastus of Acts, Romans and 2 Timothy may be one man.
Romans 16:23 names Erastus the treasurer of the city (Corinth); 2 Timothy 4:20 says Erastus stayed at Corinth; Acts 19:22 has an Erastus sent to Macedonia. A first-century paving inscription at Corinth names an Erastus who served as aedile, which some link to…
- Plausible
Phoebe carried the letter to the Romans.
Romans 16:1–2 commends her to the church in Rome and asks them to help her in whatever she needs. Letters of commendation usually travelled with the person named, so she was most likely the bearer, but the letter does not say so.