Romans 3:17

Rom 3:17. Οὐκ ἔγνωσαν, they have not known) they neither know, nor wish to know.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

An innocent and peaceable life.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 17. And the way of peace have they not known] They neither have peace in themselves, nor do they suffer others to live in quiet: they are brooders and fomenters of discord.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

17. It follows, The way of peace they have not known: they are so habituated to plunders, acts of violence and wrong, to savageness and cruelty, that they know not how to act kindly and courteously.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

But now the righteousness of God,.... The apostle having proved that all men are unrighteous, and that no man can be justified in the sight of God by his obedience, either to the law of nature or of Moses, proceeds to give an account of that righteousness, which does justify before God; and so returns to his former subject, Rom 1:17, concerning "the righteousness of God", the revelation of which he makes to be peculiar to the Gospel, as he does here; since he says, that it

without the law is manifested: meaning, either that this righteousness is without the law, and the deeds of it, as performed by sinful men; or that the manifestation of it is without the law, either of nature or of Moses; for the law discovers sin, but not a righteousness which justifies from sin; it shows what righteousness is, but does not direct the sinner where there is one to be had, that will make him righteous in the sight of God: this is made known without the law, and only in the Gospel:

being witnessed by the law and the prophets; a testimony is borne to the justifying righteousness of Christ both "by the law", particularly in the five books of Moses; which testify of Christ, of his obedience, sufferings, and death, by which he brought in life and righteousness; see Gen 3:15, compared with Dan 9:24; and Gen 15:6 with Rom 4:9; and Gen 22:18 with Gal 3:8; and Deu 30:11 with Rom 10:5. And the prophets; Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, and others; see Isa 42:21.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

17 And the way of peace have they not known:

Ver. 17. They are restless and troublesome.]

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the way of peace ... - What tends to promote their own happiness, or that of others, they do not regard. Intent on their plans of evil, they do not know or regard what is suited to promote the welfare of themselves or others. This is the case with all who are selfish, and who seek to gain their own purposes of crime and ambition.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

St. Augustine says, that by the law of actions, is understood, that which teaches us what we have to do: by the law of faith, is meant faith itself, which obtains for us grace of performing what the law requires. The law of action, then, is the old law, which contains the precept; the law of faith is the new law, which gives assistance to fulfil the law. (De Spir. & Lit. chap. iv.)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

17. Way of peace—Either with God or man.

Not known—So completely are their minds occupied with wickedness that righteousness is a thing unthought, unrealized, unknown. This, alas! is often the condition of depraved men. These dark strokes do not indeed describe what all unregenerate persons visibly and practically are. They only declare the depravability, the range of capacity for actual wickedness which the natural man possesses, and the actual wickedness at which multitudes do, and all can, arrive without grace or moral culture.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Of peace - Which can only spring from righteousness.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

17. “The way of peace they have not known.” This statement relieves this entire catalogue of the foolish interpretation which unsaved preachers frequently put on it, identifying it with Christianity, but which is true, under their bogus type, you see not really true, as these people “have not known the way of peace.” Hence they have never been Christians.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the way of peace have they not known [ Isa_59:7-8 ]:

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Rom_3:15-17

These verses adduce the sins of violence common among men, in proof of the general depravity of the race. Their feet are swift to shed blood. That is, on the slightest provocation they commit murder. The life of their fellow-men is as nothing in their estimation, in comparison with the gratification of their pride or malice. The words are quoted from Isa_59:7 : Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood. Here the Septuagint agrees with the Hebrew, and Paul again condenses the sense. Destruction and misery are in their ways. Their path through life is marked not only with blood, but with the ruin and desolation which they spread around them. In Isaiah the passage runs, Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they have not known. The way of peace is the way that leads to peace, or pacific ways. They have not known, means they have not approved or frequented. The idea is to be taken in its most comprehensive form, as the apostle designs to prove, not from any specific form of violence, but from the general prevalence of sins of violence among men, that human nature is depraved. The tree which produces such fruit so abundantly must be evil.

Charles Hodge — Commentary on Romans (1835), First Corinthians (1857), and Ephesians (1856) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.