“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;”
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness. God's wrath (orgē) is not capricious anger but the righteous judgment of a holy God against sin and rebellion. It is being revealed (apokalyptō)—the same word used for the revelation of righteousness—indicating that God's justice operates contemporaneously with his mercy. Suppress the truth (katechō tēn alētheian) suggests an active, willful restraint or hindrance of what humans already know of God's reality.
Church Fathers on Romans 1:18
Observe the discretion of Paul, how after encouraging by the gentler things, he turns his discourse to the more fearful. For after saying that the Gospel is the cause of salvation and of life, that it is the power of God, that it genders salvation and righteousness, he mentions what might well make them fear that were heedless of it. For since in general most men are not drawn so much by the promise of what is good as by the fear of what is painful, he draws them on both…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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