Romans 1:2 (DBY)

Passage

(which he had before promised by his prophets in holy writings,)

Nearby Context

Romans 1:1 Paul, bondman of Jesus Christ, [a] called apostle, separated to God's glad tidings,

Romans 1:2 (which he had before promised by his prophets in holy writings,)

Romans 1:3 concerning his Son (come of David's seed according to flesh,

Romans 1:4 marked out Son of God in power, according to [the] Spirit of holiness, by resurrection of [the] dead) Jesus Christ our Lord;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "before", "promised", "prophets", "holy", and "writings". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "before" and "promised", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "Paul bondman of Jesus Christ a called..." into verse 3's "concerning his Son come of David's seed...", so "before" and "promised" belong inside that flow. In Romans context, the local focus is righteousness by faith, union with Christ, life in the Spirit, and God's covenant faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "before" and "promised" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.