And this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
All Commentaries on Romans 13:11 Go To Romans 13
John Chrysostom
AD 407
The time is short…. The day of resurrection and of the terrible judgment is fast approaching…. If you have done everything that was asked of you and are prepared for it, then you have nothing to fear, but if you have not, then look out! Paul is not trying to frighten his hearers but to encourage them, so as to detach them from their love of the things of this world. It was not unlikely that at the beginning of their endeavors they would be more dedicated and slacken off as time went on. But Paul wants them to do the opposite—not to slacken as time goes on but to become even more dedicated. For the nearer the King is, the more they ought to be ready to receive him.
