“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them .”
My Notes
What Does Romans 16:17 Mean?
Romans 16:17 is Paul's final warning in a letter otherwise filled with warmth and personal greetings. "I beseech you, brethren" — parakalō, I urge you — carries the weight of a pastoral appeal, not a casual suggestion. "Mark them" — skopein, to watch closely, to keep your eye on. It's the language of surveillance. Paul wants them paying attention.
The targets are specific: "them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned." Dichostasias (divisions) means standing apart, creating factions. Skandala (offences) means stumbling blocks — things that trip people up and pull them off course. And both are measured against a standard: the teaching the Romans have already received. The problem isn't disagreement in general. It's teaching that contradicts the apostolic doctrine they were grounded in.
The instruction is equally clear: "avoid them" — ekklinete, turn away from, bend your path to go around. Not engage them in debate. Not try to win them over. Not give them a platform so both sides can be heard. Avoid them. Paul's pastoral counsel for dealing with divisive people who contradict sound doctrine is surprisingly blunt: don't interact with them. This isn't about silencing honest questions. It's about protecting a community from people whose agenda is fracture, not truth.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How do you distinguish between someone genuinely wrestling with faith and someone causing divisions?
- 2.Have you ever been in a community damaged by a divisive person? What did you learn from that experience?
- 3.Does Paul's instruction to 'avoid them' feel wise or harsh to you? Why?
- 4.Is there a relationship or influence in your life right now that's creating fracture rather than growth?
Devotional
Paul spends sixteen chapters building the most careful, nuanced theological argument in history — and then in his closing lines, he says: watch out for people who tear apart what I just built.
The instruction is uncomfortably direct. Mark them — keep your eyes open, know who's causing the division. And avoid them — not debate them, not give them equal time, not assume good faith until they've proven otherwise. Avoid. Turn away. Bend your path.
That feels harsh in a culture that values dialogue, openness, and hearing every perspective. But Paul isn't talking about people who have honest questions or different preferences. He's talking about people who cause divisions and create stumbling blocks that contradict the doctrine the church was built on. There's a difference between a person who's wrestling with truth and a person who's weaponizing controversy.
You probably know the difference intuitively. The person who asks hard questions because they genuinely want to understand versus the person who asks hard questions because they want to destabilize. The one who disagrees respectfully versus the one who creates factions. Paul says: learn to spot the difference. And when you see someone whose pattern is division — whose presence consistently produces fracture rather than growth — the loving thing for the community isn't engagement. It's distance.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
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The apostle having endeavoured by his endearing salutations to unite them together, it was not improper to subjoin a…
Special warning against certain teachers of error
17. Now I beseech you, &c. From this ver. to Rom 16:20, inclusive, we…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture