Romans 10:14

How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach?

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Paul addresses the Roman congregation mid-argument, chaining three rhetorical questions between the promise of v13 (call → salvation) and the commission of v15 (preach unless sent). The moment is a logical bridge: he is showing that the promise in v13 has a material precondition.

The words — ἐπικαλέσωνται (epikalēsousin), "they shall call on," is the LXX term for invoking God (Joel 2:32, quoted in v13); it is not casual speech but a liturgical act of appeal. Its repetition of πῶς ("how") three times in one breath forces the reader to see each link as a hard dependency, not a suggestion.

The thread — The "sent" element that v15 picks up is the same commission behind Mark 16:15 ("go… preach"), Acts 26:17 ("I am sending you"), and Titus 1:3 ("the proclamation entrusted to me"). The verse sits at the hinge between the universal promise and the particular mechanism of proclamation.

Why it lands — It strips away the assumption that faith is a private, self-generated event; belief is positioned as something received through a human channel. The reader is left with a concrete question: who is the "someone" in your chain, and are you willing to be one for another?

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

ΠῶςPōsHow οὖνounthen ἐπικαλέσωνταιepikalesōntaishall they call εἰςeison [Him]ὃνhonwhom οὐκouknot ἐπίστευσαν;episteusanthey believed?πῶςpōsHow δὲdenow πιστεύσωσινpisteusōsinshall they believe οὗhouof whom οὐκouknot ἤκουσαν;ēkousanthey have heard?πῶςpōsHow δὲdenow ἀκούσωσινakousōsinshall they hear χωρὶςchōrisapart from κηρύσσοντος;kērussontospreaching?

King James Version

How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Cross-references

Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
Acts 26:17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them
Titus 1:3 In His own time He has made His word evident in the proclamation entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior.
Acts 8:31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please God. For anyone who approaches Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.
Luke 24:46 And He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
Ephesians 4:21 Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him—in keeping with the truth that is in Jesus—
2 Timothy 4:17 But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message would be fully proclaimed, and all the Gentiles would hear it. So I was delivered from the mouth of the lion.
James 5:15 And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
Jonah 3:5 And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.