<p>2:23&nbsp;<i>You who boast in the law</i>- Again, this is surely a reference by Paul to himself, who boasted of his Jewish roots and knowledge of the Law. The Jews boasted in God (2:17 s.w.) and in His law. Later in Romans Paul talks of how the Christian believer boasts in God on account of the Lord Jesus (Rom. 5:11 s.w.; AV &ldquo;joy in God&rdquo;). The Jewish boast in God was proven empty because of human sin and hypocrisy; whereas the Christian can boast in God because s/he is confident in His grace in Christ.</p><p><i>Actually dishonour God through your transgression of the law</i>- The same word has been used by Paul in Rom. 1:24 about homosexuals dishonouring their bodies. Relentlessly, Paul repeats his point- the apparently grosser sins such as homosexuality are just as bad and &lsquo;dishonouring&rsquo; as those who know the Law, even boasting of it, and yet condemn others for sins like homosexuality.</p><p>There's a definite link between shame and anger. Take a man whose mother yelled at him because as a toddler he ran out onto the balcony naked, and shamed him by her words. Years later on a hot Summer evening the man as an adult walks out on a balcony with just his underpants on. An old woman yells at him from the yard below that he should be ashamed of himself. And he's furiously angry with her- because of the shame given him by his mother in that incident 20 years ago. Shame and anger are clearly understood by God as being related, because His word several times connects them: &quot;A fool's&nbsp;<i>anger&nbsp;</i>is immediately known; but a prudent man covers his&nbsp;<i>shame</i>&quot; (Prov. 12:16); A king's&nbsp;<i>anger</i>&nbsp;is against a man who&nbsp;<i>shames</i>&nbsp;him (Prov. 14:35). Or consider 1 Sam. 20:34: &quot;So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce&nbsp;<i>anger</i>, and did eat no meat the second day of the month... because his father had done him&nbsp;<i>shame</i>&quot;. Job's<i>&nbsp;anger</i>&nbsp;was related to the fact that he felt that ten times the friends had&nbsp;<i>shamed</i>&nbsp;him in their speeches (Job 19:3). Frequently the rejected are threatened with both shame and anger / gnashing of teeth; shame and anger are going to be connected in that awful experience. They will &quot;curse in anger... and be ashamed&quot; (Ps. 109:28).</p><p>The final shame of the rejected is going to be so great that &quot;they shall be greatly ashamed... their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten&quot; (Jer. 20:11). Seeing they will be long dead and gone, it is us, the accepted, who by God's grace will recall the terrible shame of the rejected throughout our eternity. Their shame will be so terrible; and hence their anger will likewise be. Because Paul's preaching 'despised' the goddess Diana, her worshippers perceived that she and they were somehow thereby shamed; and so &quot;they were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians&quot; (Acts 19:27,28). It's perhaps possible to understand the wrath of God in this way, too. For His wrath is upon those who break His commands; and by breaking them we<i>&nbsp;shame</i>&nbsp;God (Rom. 2:23); we&nbsp;<i>despise</i>&nbsp;his desire for our repentance (Rom. 2:4).</p><p>The chapter has been arguing against judgmentalism and condemning of sinners. This is perhaps the rank breaking of the Law which Paul is talking about.<br /></p>