1
1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set
apart for the gospel of God 2 which he promised beforehand through his
prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was born of
the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of
God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection
from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we have received
grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of
his name among all the nations, 6 among whom you also are called to
belong to Jesus Christ;
7 To all in Rome who are beloved of God, called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ.
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you,
because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9 For God is my
witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that
without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, 10 asking that
somehow by God's will I may now at last find the way to come to you. 11
For I long to see you, so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to
strengthen youó12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by
each other's faith. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I
often planned to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so
until now) in order that I might have some harvest among you, just as I
have had among the other Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to
Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish: 15 so I am
eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel: for it is the power of God
for the salvation of everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the
Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to
faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress
the truth, 19 for what may be known about God is plain to them, because
God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world his
invisible nature, even his eternal power and deity, has been clearly seen,
being understood by the things that have been made. So they are without
excuse; 21 for although they knew God they did not honor him as God or
give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their
foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools,
23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made like
mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to
impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25
because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshipped and
served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Even their
women exchanged natural relations for unnatural. 27 And the men
likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with
passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and
receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error. 28 And
since they did not see fit to retain the knowledge of God, God gave them
over to a base mind, to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled
with all manner of wickedness, evil, covetousness, depravity. Full of envy,
murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of
God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's
righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not
only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who
practice them.
2
1 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are who
judge another; for in whatever point you pass judgment on him you
condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.
2 We know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those
who do such things. 3 Do you think, O man, that when you judge those
who do such things and yet do the same yourself, you will escape the
judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume upon the riches of his kindness
and forbearance and patience? Do you not know that God's kindness is
meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But by your hardness and your
impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath
when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. 6 For he "will render to
each one according to his works": 7 to those who by patience in doing
good seek for glory, honor, and immortality, he will give eternal life; 8
but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey
wickedness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and
distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the
Greek, 10 but glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good, the
Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality. 12 All who
have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who
have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not the
hearers of the law who are righteous in the sight of God, but the doers of
the law who will be justified. 14 When Gentiles, who have not the law, do
by nature things required by the law, they are a law to themselves, even
though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the requirements of
the law are written on their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness,
and their thoughts accusing or else excusing them 16 on that day when,
according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men by Christ
Jesus.
17 But if you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the law and boast
of your relation to God 18 and know his will and approve of what is
excellent, because you are instructed in the law, 19 and if you are sure
that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20
an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, having in the law the
embodiment of knowledge and truthó21 you, then, who teach others, do
you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22
You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery?
You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law,
do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 For, as it is written, "The
name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you." 25
Circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law; but if you break the
law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. 26 So, if a man who
is uncircumcised keeps the requirements of the law, will not his
uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? 27 The one who is not
circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even
though you have the written code and circumcision, are a breaker of the
law. 28 For he is not a real Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true
circumcision something outward and in the flesh. 29 He is a Jew who is
one inwardly; and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit,
and not by the written code. His praise is not from men but from God.
3
1 Then what advantage has the Jew, or what is the value of
circumcision? 2 Much in every way! To begin with, they are entrusted
with the oracles of God. 3 What if some did not have faith? Will their
faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? 4 Certainly not! Let God be
true, though every man a liar. As it is written:
"That you may be justified in your words
and prevail when you are judged."
5 But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God,
what shall we say? That God is unjust to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a
human way.) 6 Certainly not! For then how could God judge the world? 7
But if through my falsehood God's truthfulness abounds to his glory, why
am I still being condemned as a sinner? 8 Why not say ñ as we are being
slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we sayó"Let us
do evil that good may come"? Their condemnation is just.
9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? Certainly not; for we
have already charged that all men, both Jews and Greeks, are under the
power of sin. 10 As it is written:
"There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 there is no one who understands,
no one who seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside, together they have become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one."
13 "Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to practice deceit."
"The poison of asps is under their lips."
14 "Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness."
15 "Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 in their ways are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they do not know."
18 "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those
who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped and the whole
world may be held accountable to God. 20 Therefore no flesh will be
justified in his sight by works of the law, for through the law comes
knowledge of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God has been revealed apart
from law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, 22 the
righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. For
there is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that
is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as an atoning sacrifice by
his blood, to be received through faith. This was to demonstrate his
righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over sins
committed beforehand; 26 and it was to demonstrate his righteousness at
the present time, that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has
faith in Jesus.
27 Where then is our boasting? It is excluded. On what law? On
the law of works? No, but on the law of faith. 28 For we hold that a man
is justified by faith apart from works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of
Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30
since there is one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the
uncircumcised through their faith. 31 Do we then nullify the law by this
faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
4
1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according
to the flesh, has found? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has
something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the
scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as
righteousness." 4 Now to him who works, his wages are not reckoned as a
gift but as his due. 5 And to one who does not work but trusts him who
justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness. 6 So also
David describes the blessedness of the man to whom God reckons
righteousness apart from works:
7 "Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord
will not reckon his sin."
9 Is this blessedness only upon the circumcised, or also upon the
uncircumcised? For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham as
righteousness. 10 How then was it reckoned to him? Was it after he had
been circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before he was
circumcised. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the
righteousness which he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised, that
he might be the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised,
in order that righteousness might be reckoned to them. 12 And he is also
the father of the circumcised who are not only circumcised but who also
walk in the footsteps of the faith which our father Abraham had before he
was circumcised.
13 The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that he would
be heir of the world, was not through the law but through the
righteousness of faith. 14 For if those who are of the law are to be the
heirs, faith has no value and the promise is void, 15 because the law
brings wrath, for where there is no law there is no transgression. 16
Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may
be guaranteed to all his descendantsónot only to those who are of the
law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, for he is the father
of us all 17 (as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations")
in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the
dead and calls things that do not exist as though they did. 18 In hope, he
believed against hope, so that he became the father of many nations; as he
had been told, "So shall your descendants be." 19 And he did not weaken
in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead
since he was about a hundred years old, or when he considered the
barrenness of Sarah's womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God
through unbelief, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,
21 being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
22 That is why it was "reckoned to him as righteousness." 23 But the
words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, 24
but for us also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised
from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered to death for our sins
and was raised for our justification.
5
1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have
obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice
in our hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we rejoice in our
sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance; 4 and
perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not
disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the
Holy Spirit who has been given to us. 6 When we were still weak, at the
right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Why, one will hardly die for a
righteous manóthough perhaps for a good man one will dare even to die.
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still
sinners Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified
by his blood, much more shall we be saved through him from the wrath of
God. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God
through the death of his Son, much more, having been reconciled, shall
we be saved by his life. 11 Not only so, but we also rejoice in God
through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received our
reconciliation.
12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and
death through sin, so death spread to all men, because all men sinned. (13
For sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted
when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to
Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of
Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. 15 But the free gift is
not like the trespass. For if by the one man's trespass many died, much
more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus
Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the free gift is not like the effect of
that one man's sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought
condemnation, but the gift following many trespasses brings justification.
17 For if, by the one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man,
much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift
of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.) 18 So
then, as one man's trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one man's
act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For just
as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners,
so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made
righteous. 20 Law came in, that the trespass might increase. But where sin
increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in
death, grace also might reign through righteousness to eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord.
6
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace
may abound? 2 Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live any longer
in it? 3 Or do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ
Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him
through baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the
dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly
also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old
self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away
with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. 7 For he who has died has
been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we
shall also live with him. 9 For we know that Christ, being raised from the
dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 The
death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to
God. 11 So you also, consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in
Christ Jesus.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you
obey its passions. 13 Do not yield your members to sin as instruments of
wickedness, but yield yourselves to God as men who have been brought
from death to life, and your members to God as instruments of
righteousness. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, since you are
not under law but under grace.
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but
under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that if you yield
yourselves to any one to obey as slaves, you are slaves of the one whom
you obey, whether of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which
leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once
slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of
teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from
sin, you have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human
terms, because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you once yielded
your members to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now
yield your members to righteousness for holiness. 20 When you were
slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But then what
return did you get from the things of which you are now ashamed? The
end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from
sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is holiness and its
end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God
is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
7
1 Do you not know, brethrenófor I am speaking to those who
know the lawóthat the law has authority over a man only as long as he
lives? 2 For a married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as
he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of her
husband. 3 So then, she will be called an adulteress if she lives with
another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is
free from that law, and though she marries another man, she is not an
adulteress. 4 Likewise, my brethren, you have died to the law through the
body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised
from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit to God. 5 While we were
living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work
in our members to bear fruit for death. 6 But now, by dying to what once
held us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new
way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed,
I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would
not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, "You
shall not covet." 8 But sin, finding opportunity by the commandment,
produced in me all kinds of covetous desire. For apart from the law sin
lies dead. 9 I was once alive apart from the law, but when the
commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10 The very
commandment which was to bring life I found to be death to me. 11 For
sin, finding opportunity in the commandment, deceived me, and by it
killed me. 12 So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just
and good.
13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? Certainly
not! But it was sin, working death in me through what is good, in order
that sin might be recognized as sin, so that through the commandment sin
might become sinful beyond measure. 14 We know that the law is
spiritual; but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 I do not understand what I
do. For I do not do what I want to do, but I do what I hate. 16 Now if I do
what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 So then, it is no
longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that
nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will to do what
is good, but I cannot do it. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do; but
the evil I do not want to do is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not
want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 21
So I find it to be a law that when I want to do good, evil is present with
me. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in
my members another law, at war against the law of my mind and making
me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members. 24 Wretched
man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks
be to Godóthrough Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I of myself serve the
law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
8
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in
Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me
free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in
that it was weakened through the flesh, God did by sending his own Son
in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin: he condemned sin in the flesh,
4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in
us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of
the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the
things of the Spirit. 6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the
mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh
is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so; 8 and
those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But you are not in the
flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. And
if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ he does not belong to him. 10
But if Christ is in you, although your body is dead because of sin, your
spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised
Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead
will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit who dwells in
you.
12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtorsónot to the flesh, to live
according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will
die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will
live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For
you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received
the Spirit of sonship by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father." 16 The Spirit
himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and
if children, then heirsóheirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if
indeed we suffer with him, in order that we may also be glorified with
him.
18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not
worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed in us. 19 For the
creation waits with eager expectation for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will, but by
the will of him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself
will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty
of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been
groaning in birth pangs together until now. 23 And not only the creation,
but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as
we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24
For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is not hope. For
who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see,
we wait for it with patience.
26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not
know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for
us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches the
hearts of men knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit
intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know
that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who are
called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also
predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the
firstborn among many brethren. 30 And those whom he predestined, he
also called; those whom he called, he also justified; and those whom he
justified, he also glorified.
31 What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be
against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us
all, how will he not also give us all things with him? 33 Who shall bring
any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he who
condemns? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the
dead, who is at the right hand of God, who is also interceding for us. 35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or
distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36
As it is written:
"For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who
loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor
principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor
height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate
us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
9
1 I am speaking the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my
conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow
and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were
accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen
according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the
adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and
the promises. 5 Of them are the patriarchs, and from them, according to
the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, forever blessed. Amen.
6 But it is not as though the word of God had failed. For not all
who are descended from Israel are Israel, 7 nor are they all children of
Abraham because they are his descendants; but, "Through Isaac shall your
descendants be named." 8 In other words, it is not the children of the
flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are
reckoned as descendants. 9 For this is what the promise said: "About this
time I will return and Sarah shall have a son." 10 And not only so, but
also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our father Isaac,
11 though the twins were not yet born and had done nothing either good
or bad, in order that God's purpose of election might stand, not because of
works but because of his call, 12 she was told, "The older will serve the
younger." 13 As it is written,
"Jacob I loved,
but Esau I hated."
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice with God?
Certainly not! 15 For he says to Moses,
"I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion
on whom I have compassion."
16 So it depends not upon man's will or exertion, but upon God's mercy.
17 For the scripture says to Pharaoh, "I have raised you up for this very
purpose, that I may show my power in you, and that my name may be
proclaimed in all the earth." 18 Therefore he has mercy on whom he wills,
and he hardens the heart of whom he wills.
19 You will say to me then, "Why does he still find fault? For
who can resist his will?" 20 But who are you, O man, to answer back to
God? Will what is formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made
me like this?" 21 Does not the potter have right over the clay, to make out
of the same lump one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? 22 What
if God, choosing to show his wrath and to make his power known,
endured with much patience the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,
23 in order to make known the riches of his glory for the vessels of mercy,
which he has prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom he has
called, not from the Jews only, but also from the Gentiles? 25 As indeed
he says in Hosea:
"I will call them who were not my people 'my people,'
and her who was not beloved I will call 'my beloved.'"
26 "And it will happen that in the very place
where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,'
they will be called 'sons of the living God.'"
27 And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the
sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved. 28
For the Lord will carry out his sentence on the earth with speed and
finality." 29 And as Isaiah said:
"Unless the Lord of hosts had left us children,
we would have become like Sodom,
and we would have been made like Gomorrah."
30 What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue
righteousness have attained it, that is, righteousness through faith; 31 but
Israel, who pursued the law of righteousness, has not attained that law. 32
Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were by works.
They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, 33 as it is written:
"Behold, I lay in Zion a stone that will make men stumble,
and a rock that will make them fall;
and he who believes in him will not be put to shame."
10
1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that
they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for
God, but it is not according to knowledge. 3 For, being ignorant of the
righteousness that comes from God, and seeking to establish their own,
they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 For Christ is the end of the
law, that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law,
"The man who does those things shall live by them." 6 But the
righteousness based on faith says, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will
ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 or "Who will
descend into the abyss?" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But
what does it say?
"The word is near you,
in your mouth and in your heart"
(that is, the word of faith which we preach); 9 because, if you confess
with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God
raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For man believes with his
heart and so is justified, and he confesses with his mouth and so is saved.
11 The scripture says, "No one who believes in him will be put to shame."
12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is
Lord of all and bestows his riches on all who call upon him. 13 For,
"everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
14 How then can they call on him in whom they have not
believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard?
And how can they hear without a preacher? 15 And how can they preach
unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those
who preach good news!" 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For
Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our message?" 17 So faith comes
from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. 18 But I ask, have they
not heard? Indeed they have; for
"Their voice has gone out to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world."
19 Again I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,
"I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation;
by a foolish nation I will make you angry."
20 But Isaiah is very bold and says,
"I was found by those who did not seek me;
I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me."
21 But of Israel he says, "All day long I have held out my hands to a
disobedient and contrary people."
11
1 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? Certainly not! I
myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of
Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you
not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God
against Israel?ó 3 "Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down
your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life." 4 But what is
God's reply to him? "I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who
have not bowed the knee to Baal." 5 So too at the present time there is a
remnant, chosen by grace. 6 And if it is by grace, then it is no longer on
the basis of works; otherwise, grace would no longer be grace. 7 What
then? Israel did not obtain what it sought. The elect obtained it, but the
rest were hardened, 8 as it is written:
"God gave them a spirit of stupor,
eyes that they should not see
and ears that they should not hear,
down to this very day."
9 And David says:
"Let their table become a snare and a trap,
a stumbling block and a retribution for them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see,
and bend their backs forever."
11 So I ask, have they stumbled so as to fall? Certainly not! But
through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make Israel
jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their
failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness
mean!
13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an
apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in the hope that I may
somehow arouse to jealousy the kinsmen of my flesh and save some of
them. 15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will
their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 If the dough offered as
firstfruits is holy, then the whole lump is holy; and if the root is holy, so
are the branches.
17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild
olive shoot, were grafted in among the rest to share the root of the olive
tree, 18 do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember that
you do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say
then, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." 20 That is
true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast
only by faith. So do not be proud, but stand in awe. 21 For if God did not
spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. 22 Therefore
consider the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who
fell, but kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness;
otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not persist
in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24
For if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and were
grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more
will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree!
25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so
that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part
until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will
be saved, as it is written:
"The Deliverer will come from Zion,
he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
27 and this will be my covenant with them
when I take away their sins."
28 As regards the gospel they are enemies of God, for your sake; but as
regards election they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29 For
the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. 30 Just as you were once
disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their
disobedience, 31 so they have now been disobedient in order that by the
mercy shown to you they also may receive mercy. 32 For God has bound
all men over to disobedience, that he may have mercy upon all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches and of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding
out!
34 "For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?"
35 "Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?"
36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be
glory forever. Amen.
12
1 I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to
present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world but
be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is
the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I say to every one among you not
to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with
sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has
assigned him. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and all the
members do not have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one
body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts
that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy,
in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, let us use it in our serving; he who
teaches, in his teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives,
with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who does acts of mercy,
with cheerfulness.
9 Let love be genuine. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; outdo one another in
showing honor. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serving
the Lord. 12 Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be faithful in
prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality. 14
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with
those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with
one another. Do not be proud, but associate with the lowly. Do not be
conceited. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but have regard for what is noble
in the sight of all. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live
peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but leave it to
the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," says
the Lord. 20 No, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give
him drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head." 21
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
13
1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For
there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist have
been instituted by God. 2 Therefore he who resists the authority resists
what God has appointed, and those who resist will bring judgment on
themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do
you want to have no fear of him who is in authority? Then do what is
good, and you will have praise from him. 4 For he is God's servant to you
for good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword
in vain; he is God's servant, an avenger to execute wrath on the
wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be subject, not only because of wrath
but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For the same reason you also pay
taxes, for the authorities are God's ministers, attending to this very thing.
7 Pay all of them their dues: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to
whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom
honor is due.
8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who
loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, "You shall
not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal,"
"You shall not covet," and any other commandment there may be, are
summed up in this sentence, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of
the law.
11 And do this, knowing the hour, that now it is full time for
you to wake from sleep. For now our salvation is nearer than when we
first believed. 12 The night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast
off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk
properly, as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in lewdness
and lust, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
14
1 As for the man who is weak in faith, accept him, but not for
disputes over opinions. 2 One believes he may eat anything, but the man
whose faith is weak eats only vegetables. 3 Let not him who eats despise
him who does not, and let not him who does not eat pass judgment on
him who eats; for God has accepted him. 4 Who are you to judge the
servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will be
made to stand, for the Master is able to make him stand. 5 One man
esteems one day as better than another; another man esteems every day
alike. Let each one be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who
observes the day, observes it to the Lord. He who eats, eats to the Lord,
for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and
gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us
dies to himself. 8 If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to
the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9
For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of
the dead and of the living. 10 Why do you judge your brother? Or you,
why do you despise your brother? For we shall all stand before the
judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written:
"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God."
12 So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another anymore,
but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in our
brother's way. 14 I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing
is unclean in itself; but if anyone regards something as unclean, then for
him it is unclean. 15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat,
you are no longer walking in love. Do not by your eating destroy the one
for whom Christ died. 16 So do not let your good be spoken of as evil. 17
For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and
peace and joy in the Holy Spirit; 18 he who serves Christ in this way is
acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 Let us therefore pursue what
makes for peace and for mutual edification. 20 Do not, for the sake of
food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong
for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is
right not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that makes your brother
stumble. 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God.
Happy is he who does not condemn himself for what he approves. 23 But
he who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not act from
faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.
15
1 We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak,
and not to please ourselves. 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his
good, to build him up. 3 For even Christ did not please himself; but, as it
is written, "The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me." 4
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction,
that through perseverance and the encouragement of the scriptures we
might have hope. 5 May the God of patience and encouragement grant
you to live in harmony with one another, according to Christ Jesus, 6 that
you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
7 Therefore, welcome one another, just as Christ also welcomed
you, to the glory of God. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant
of the circumcised to show God's truth, to confirm the promises made to
the patriarchs, 9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his
mercy. As it is written:
"Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,
and sing to your name";
10 and again it says:
"Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people!"
11 and again,
"Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles,
and praise him, all you peoples";
12 And again, Isaiah says:
"There shall be a root of Jesse;
and he who shall rise to rule over the Gentiles,
in him the Gentiles shall hope."
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so
that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
14 I myself am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you
yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to
instruct one another. 15 But I have written very boldly to you on some
points, so as to remind you again, because of the grace that was given me
from God, 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the
priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles
might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 Therefore I have
reason to glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18 For I will not
venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished
through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deedó19 by
the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit, so that from
Jerusalem and as far round as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of
Christ. 20 And so I have made it my ambition to preach the gospel, not
where Christ has already been named, lest I build on another man's
foundation, 21 but as it is written:
"They shall see who have not been told of him,
and those who have not heard shall understand."
22 This is the reason why I have often been hindered from
coming to you. 23 But now, since I no longer have any place for work in
these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you, 24 I
plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through,
and to be helped by you on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your
company for a while. 25 Now, however, I am going to Jerusalem with aid
for the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a
contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 They were
pleased to do it, and indeed they are in debt to them. For if the Gentiles
have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of
service to them in material blessings. 28 When therefore I have completed
this, and have delivered to them this fruit, I shall go on by way of you to
Spain. 29 And I know that when I come to you, I shall come in the
fullness of the blessing of Christ.
30 Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by
the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for
me, 31 that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my
service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God's
will I may come to you with joy, and together with you be refreshed. 33
The God of peace be with you all. Amen.
16
1 I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the
church in Cenchrea, 2 that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner
worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she has need from you, for
she has been a helper of many and of myself also.
3 Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus,
4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I but also all the
churches of the Gentiles give thanks; 5 greet also the church that meets in
their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert of
Asia for Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. 7 Greet
Andronicus and Junias, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners; they are
men of note among the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. 8
Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow
worker in Christ, and Stachys my beloved. 10 Greet Apelles, who is
approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of
Aristobulus. 11 Greet Herodion, my kinsman. Greet those in the
household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. 12 Greet Tryphena and
Tryphosa, those workers in the Lord. Greet the beloved Persis, who has
worked hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his
mother and mine. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas,
Hermes, and the brethren who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus and
Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with
them. 16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ
greet you.
17 I urge you, brethren, to take note of those who cause
divisions and difficulties, contrary to the doctrine which you have
learned; avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ,
but their own appetites, and by smooth and flattering words they deceive
the hearts of the simple. 19 For your obedience has become known to all,
so I am full of joy over you; but I want you to be wise about what is good,
and innocent about what is evil. 20 And the God of peace will soon crush
Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
21 Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you, as do Lucius, and
Jason, and Sosipater, my kinsmen. 22 I, Tertius, who wrote this letter,
greet you in the Lord. 23 Gaius, who is my host and the host of the whole
church, greets you. Erastus, the treasurer of the city, greets you, and
Quartus, our brother.
25 Now to him who is able to establish you according to my
gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of
the mystery which was kept secret for long ages 26 but is now revealed
and made known to all nations through the prophetic writings, according
to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of
faithó27 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ!
Amen.