Romans 1:31 (LSB)

Passage

without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful;

Nearby Context

Romans 1:29 having been filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips,

Romans 1:30 slanderers, haters of God, violent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,

Romans 1:31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful;

Romans 1:32 and although they know the righteous requirement of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "without", "understanding", "untrustworthy", "unloving", and "unmerciful". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "without" and "understanding", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 30's "slanderers haters of God violent arrogant boastful..." into verse 32's "and although they know the righteous requirement...", so "without" and "understanding" 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 "without" and "understanding" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.