An outline of Romans take directly from Douglas Moo’s Commentary on Romans.*

THE LETTER OPENING (1:1–17)

PRESCRIPT (1:1–7)

THANKSGIVING AND OCCASION: PAUL AND THE ROMANS (1:8–15)

THE THEME OF THE LETTER (1:16–17)

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THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL: JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH (1:18–4:25)

THE UNIVERSAL REIGN OF SIN (1:18–3:20)

All Persons Are Accountable to God for Sin (1:18–32)

Jews Are Accountable to God for Sin (2:1–3:8)

The Jews and the Judgment of God (2:1–16)

Critique of Jewish Presumption (2:1–5)

The Impartiality of Judgment (2:6–11)

           iii.      Judgment and the Law (2:12–16)

The Limitations of the Covenant (2:17–29)

The Law (2:17–24)

Circumcision (2:25–29)

God’s Faithfulness and the Judgment of Jews (3:1–8)

The Guilt of All Humanity (3:9–20)

JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH (3:21–4:25)

Justification and the Righteousness of God (3:21–26)

“By Faith Alone” (3:27–4:25)

“By Faith Alone”: Initial Statement (3:27–31)

“By Faith Alone”: Elaboration with Respect to Abraham (4:1–25)

Faith and Works (4:1–8)

Faith and Circumcision (4:9–12)

Faith, Promise, and the Law (4:13–22)

The Faith of Abraham and the Faith of the Christian (4:23–25)

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THE ASSURANCE PROVIDED BY THE GOSPEL: THE HOPE OF SALVATION (5:1–8:39)

THE HOPE OF GLORY (5:1–21)

From Justification to Salvation (5:1–11)

The Reign of Grace and Life (5:12–21)

FREEDOM FROM BONDAGE TO SIN (6:1–23)

“Dead to Sin” through Union with Christ (6:1–14)

Freed from Sin’s Power to Serve Righteousness (6:15–23)

FREEDOM FROM BONDAGE TO THE LAW (7:1–25)

Released from the Law, Joined to Christ (7:1–6)

The History and Experience of Jews under the Law (7:7–25)

The Coming of the Law (7:7–12)

Life under the Law (7:13–25)

ASSURANCE OF ETERNAL LIFE IN THE SPIRIT (8:1–30)

The Spirit of Life (8:1–13)

The Spirit of Adoption (8:14–17)

The Spirit of Glory (8:18–30)

THE BELIEVER’S SECURITY CELEBRATED (8:31–39)

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THE DEFENSE OF THE GOSPEL: THE PROBLEM OF ISRAEL (9:1–11:36)

INTRODUCTION: THE TENSION BETWEEN GOD’S PROMISES AND ISRAEL’S PLIGHT (9:1–5)

DEFINING THE PROMISE (1): GOD’S SOVEREIGN ELECTION (9:6–29)

The Israel within Israel (9:6–13)

Objections Answered: The Freedom and Purpose of God (9:14–23)

God’s Calling of a New People: Israel and the Gentiles (9:24–29)

UNDERSTANDING ISRAEL’S PLIGHT: CHRIST AS THE CLIMAX OF SALVATION HISTORY (9:30–10:21)

Israel, the Gentiles, and the Righteousness of God (9:30–10:13)

The Righteousness of God and the “Law of Righteousness” (9:30–33)

The Righteousness of God and “Their Own Righteousness” (10:1–4)

Gospel and Law (10:5–13)

Israel’s Accountability (10:14–21)

SUMMARY: ISRAEL, THE “ELECT,” AND THE “HARDENED” (11:1–10)

DEFINING THE PROMISE (2): THE FUTURE OF ISRAEL (11:11–32)

God’s Purpose in Israel’s Rejection (11:11–15)

The Interrelationship of Jews and Gentiles: A Warning to Gentile Believers (11:16–24)

The Salvation of “All Israel” (11:25–32)

CONCLUSION: PRAISE TO GOD IN LIGHT OF HIS AWESOME PLAN (11:33–36)

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THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF THE GOSPEL: CHRISTIAN CONDUCT (12:1–15:13)

THE HEART OF THE MATTER: TOTAL TRANSFORMATION (12:1–2)

HUMILITY AND MUTUAL SERVICE (12:3–8)

LOVE AND ITS MANIFESTATIONS (12:9–21)

THE CHRISTIAN AND SECULAR RULERS (13:1–7)

LOVE AND THE LAW (13:8–10)

LIVING IN LIGHT OF THE DAY (13:11–14)

A PLEA FOR UNITY (14:1–15:13)

Do Not Condemn One Another! (14:1–12)

Do Not Cause Your Brother to Stumble! (14:13–23)

Put Other People First! (15:1–6)

Receive One Another! (15:7–13)

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THE LETTER CLOSING (15:14–16:27)

PAUL’S MINISTRY AND TRAVEL PLANS (15:14–33)

Looking Back: Paul’s Ministry in the East (15:14–21)

Looking Ahead: Jerusalem, Rome, and Spain (15:22–29)

A Request for Prayer (15:30–33)

GREETINGS (16:1–23)

Commendation of Phoebe (16:1–2)

Greetings to Roman Christians (16:3–16)

A Warning, a Promise, and a Prayer for Grace (16:17–20)

Greetings from Paul’s Companions (16:21–23)

CONCLUDING DOXOLOGY (16:25–27)

*Moo, Douglas J. The Epistle to the Romans. The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1996.