God's Everlasting Love
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Rom 8:38
For I am... In Rom. 8:38-39 Paul explains that, in view of his doctrines before stated, he is personally persuaded that nothing will be able to separate him from the love he has for God and Christ.
nor principalities, nor... Satanic powers of Eph. 2:2; 6:12. Principalities are fallen angels or demons. Powers: the plural form of this common word for “power” is used to refer to either miracles or to persons in positions of authority.
Paul then ended his discussion on believers’ safety in Jesus Christ and the certainty of their sanctification with a positive declaration — For I am convinced (perf. tense, “I stand convinced”; cf. Rom. 15:14) that nothing can separate believers from the love of God (God’s love for them, not their love for God; cf. Rom. 8:35). Paul’s list of 10 items begins with death, where the list of 7 items in Rom. 8:35 ended. These elements in God’s universe include the extremes of existence: (1) death and (2) life (in either death [2Cor. 5:8-9] or life, believers are in God’s presence); the extremes of created spiritual armies: (3) angels and (4) demons (angels would not and demons could not undo God’s relationship with His redeemed ones); the extremes in time: (5) the present and (6) the future (nothing known now, e.g., the hardships listed in Rom. 8:35, or in the unknown time to come); spiritual enemies: (7) powers (perhaps Satan and his demons; cf. Eph. 6:12; or possibly human governments); the extremes in space.
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