“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭13‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Authorities spoken of here refer to those who keep and maintain order and justice in our society. 

For that, they’re a good thing. 

It’s the exceptions that deliver tyranny and oppressive systems of governance we should be on the lookout for. 

What then?

The Bible is clear that in such circumstances we must obey the higher laws and principles that define the difference. 

Government is established by God for the purpose of justice, order, and the common good. But Scripture also makes clear that this authority is not absolute. 

When rulers command what God forbids, forbid what God commands, or use their power to oppress, God’s people are called to obey the higher authority—His moral law. 

Examples run throughout the Bible: the apostles refusing to stop preaching (Acts 5:29), Daniel and his friends rejecting idolatry and unjust decrees (Daniel 3; 6), the Hebrew midwives saving infants in defiance of Pharaoh (Exodus 1:17), and prophetic warnings against unjust laws (Isaiah 10:1–2). 

These show that civil disobedience, when rooted in righteousness, is not rebellion—but faithfulness.

In short, Romans 13 teaches submission to rightful authority, not blind obedience to tyranny.