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The Audit of Romans 13:6…
Friends, we are opening the forensic audit engine once again, turning our sights on a single, short sentence from the book of Romans—a sentence that holds the architectural blueprint for institutional submission: “For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.” (Romans 13:6, NASB).
Our objective, as always, is to scan the text using the most precise tools available—the Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus for the Greek source, the Literal Interlinear for true meaning, and the BDAG lexicon for institutional gloss—to uncover any subtle shift in posture, agency, or relational logic that might qualify this verse as evidence of “Another Gospel.” The process demands a deep-dive, word-by-word examination, pulling back the veil on what the original covenantal voice truly mandated versus what has been domesticated for institutional control.
The phrase begins with dia (dee-ah, “through, on account of”), followed by touto (too-to, “this”), establishing a causal link back to the preceding instruction for submission. This reason, amplified by gar (gar, “for, indeed”), immediately introduces the matter of financial obligation. The next term, phorous (for-oos, “burdens, levied payments,” accusative plural masculine noun, from phoros), is rendered as “taxes” in the NASB. While taxation is the practical reality of this levied payment, the core forensic difference lies in the word’s literal meaning: a burden. The institutional translation of “taxes” is accurate to the modern function, yet it smooths over the covenantal nuance of a weight being carried, minimizing the tension inherent in the believer’s obligation.
The believer is commanded to discharge or complete (teleite, tel-eh-ee-teh, “you are completing/finishing,” present active indicative verb) this burden, fulfilling the necessary worldly requirement. The literal interlinear translation constructs this phrase powerfully: “For on account of this also burdens you are discharging.” This posture is one of necessary completion of an earthly obligation, not necessarily joyful participation in a divinely inspired revenue service.
The critical hinge of the verse is found in the next clause, which offers the explanation for discharging this burden: “for leitourgoi (li-toorg-oy’, ‘public workers, those performing a public service,’ nominative plural masculine noun, from leitourgos) of Theou (theh-oo’, ‘of God’) they are.” The institutional rendering of this as “rulers are servants of God” is where the subtle-to-noticeable posture shift occurs, a shift that lays the linguistic foundation for the kind of spiritual brainwashing into absolute submission is identified.
The term leitourgos (li-toorg-os’) is not a generalized “servant” in the spiritual or relational sense of a slave (doulos, doo-los) of God. It specifically refers to one who performs a public work (leitourgia), a function of the state like managing public utilities, performing military service, or, critically, collecting revenue. To transition this term to “servants of God” elevates the secular authority from a civic functionary—one who is merely carrying out a permitted task on earth—to a kind of spiritual minister or representative office.
This elevation blurs the lines between the realm of Kaisar (Ky-sar)—Caesar—and the realm of YHWH (Yahweh), the Father. Imagine the leitourgos (li-toorg-os’) as a contract sanitation worker assigned to manage the city’s waste. He is performing a necessary public function (leitourgia) that contributes to the order and health of the community. YHWH, the Father, permits this order on earth. The believer submits to this function by paying the phoros (for-os’, the burden) to support the service.
The covenantal voice states: these are simply public workers of God (leitourgoi Theou) in the sense that their job aligns with the broader, permitted order. The institutional gloss, however, translates this as: these men are spiritual ministers of God. It is the difference between saying a bridge toll collector is a “civic functionary permitted by the state” and declaring him a “personal representative ordained by the King of the Universe.”
The first mandates submission to the necessary function (pay the toll); the second demands submission to the person and office as a spiritual authority, twisting the relational logic of the Kingdom. This shift from permission/function to direct appointment/spiritual status compromises the believer’s covenantal agency by demanding an allegiance to the worldly system that should be reserved for the priesthood of the heavens.
The verse concludes by noting they are eis (ice, “into, for, unto”) auto (ow-to’, “itself, very”) touto (too-to, “this”) proskarterountes (pros-kar-ter-oon’-tes, “continually persisting, devotedly attending,” present active participle verb). They are continually persisting in this very task—the collection of the burden and the maintenance of civic order.
The NASB rendering, “devoting themselves to this very thing,” is institutionally accurate to the BDAG gloss but reinforces the initial spiritualization of the function. The literal interlinear, “into this very thing continually persisting,” maintains the neutral, enduring nature of the civic task, removing the element of spiritual devotion that is implied by the institutional translation.
The full literal rendering, “For on account of this also burdens you are discharging, for public workers of God they are, into this very thing continually persisting,” contrasts sharply with the compromised NASB: “For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.”
The resulting Posture Audit identifies a subtle-to-noticeable reversal: the shift from Civic Function to Sanctioned Spiritual Status. This flattening of leitourgos (li-toorg-os’) obscures the distinction between the temporary world order and the eternal Kingdom.
This Dimensional Consequence is severe: it subtly compromises the believer’s role as a citizen of the heavens whose primary service (leitourgia) is spiritual and unmediated. By granting the secular ruler the title of a “servant of God,” the institutional gloss provides the perfect theological tool for demanding unqualified, uncritical submission.
This compromises the covenantal restoration achieved by Yehoshua, the messiah, which was meant to restore the believer to direct access to YHWH, the Father, not to chain them to the spiritualized authority of a worldly government.
This linguistic maneuvering serves to legitimize an institutional submission, moving the audience away from the rugged, primary loyalty of the direct covenantal relationship and into the smoother, more compliant posture of a worldly religious system.
It enables the spiritual outsourcing of authority, providing a powerful lever for those who seek to use scripture to enforce absolute obedience to the taxing and ruling authorities, thereby meeting the criteria for evidence leading to an indictment of “another gospel” through a posture shift.
