Tap any verse number for what that verse means.
1Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.
2Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.
3For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same:
4For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.
5Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.
6For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.
7Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.
8Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
9For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
10Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
11And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
13Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Understand This
Romans 13, explained
What Romans 13 is saying
Paul addresses the believer's relationship to governing authorities, arguing that earthly government is instituted by God and functions as God's servant (diakonos) for maintaining order. He transitions to the primacy of love as the fulfillment of the law—all commandments are summed up in 'love your neighbor as yourself.' The chapter concludes with eschatological urgency: the night is far gone, the day is at hand, so believers should 'put on the Lord Jesus Christ' and make no provision for the flesh.
The background behind it
Paul writes during the relatively peaceful early years of Nero's reign (54–68 AD), when the principate still operated with general competence. The instruction to 'pay taxes' (13:7) may address specific tensions after Nero's controversial tax policies. Later Christian reflection on this passage—from medieval divine-right theory to Reformation resistance theory—demonstrates its enduring and contested political significance.
Themes running underneath
The relationship between 13:1–7 (submission to authorities) and 13:8–14 (love as fulfillment of law) is often overlooked: love contextualizes submission, and eschatological expectation relativizes all earthly allegiance. Paul's government theology is functional, not ontological—authorities serve God's purpose of restraining evil, and this role, not their inherent goodness, grounds Christian cooperation. 'Put on the Lord Jesus Christ' (endysasthe ton kyrion Iēsoun Christon) was the verse that triggered Augustine's conversion.
Why it still matters
The passage neither baptizes nor demonizes government but calls for engaged, discerning participation. The critical question is not whether to submit but what to do when governing authorities cease to function as God's servants for good—a question Paul's context did not yet force but later generations would face urgently.
Scripture text: King James Version — public domain.