First and arguably foremost, the righteousness of God takes center stage in Paul’s letter to Rome. There is, of course, considerable debate about the meaning of the terminology Paul uses, including the phrase “righteousness of God” (see “The Righteousness of God” and “Key Word Study: Dikaiosynē, ‘Righteousness’ ”). The exact phrase “righteousness of God” occurs only eight times in Romans (see Rom 1:17; 3:5, 21, 22; 10:3 [2x]), but it plays a pivotal role in Paul’s articulation of the gospel in the