1•1Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ, called [to be] an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God •2which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures—•3[the gospel] concerning his Son, who was born of the offspring of David according to the flesh •4[and] declared [to be] the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by [his] resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. •5Through him we have received grace and apostleship to [bring about] the obedience of faith among all the nations on behalf of his name. •6Among them ^†you also are the called of Jesus Christ.

•7To all who are God's beloved in Rome, called [to be] saints:

Grace to ^†you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

•8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for ^†you all, because ^†your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. •9For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of ^†you always in my prayers, •10imploring whether somehow now at last I shall succeed by the will of God in coming to ^†you. •11For I long to see ^†you, so that I may impart to ^†you some spiritual gift in order for ^†you to be strengthened; •12rather, that is, that I may be encouraged together with ^†you through one another's faith, both ^†yours and mine. •13And I do not wish for^{1 †}you to be ignorant, brothers, [of the fact] that I have often purposed to come to ^†you (but up to the present have been prevented), so that I may have some fruit among ^†you just as [I] also [have] among the rest of the Gentiles. •14I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the senseless. •15Thus I am eager to proclaim the gospel to ^†you also who are in Rome.

•16For I am not ashamed of the gospel:² for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. •17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; just as it is written, "The one who is righteous by³ faith shall live."⁴

Romans 1

•18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all irreverence and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. •19For what can be known about God is apparent to them, because God has made [it] apparent to them. •20For from the creation of the world his invisible attributes, [that is], both his everlasting power and divinity, have been clearly seen, being understood by the things that have been clearly made. [This is] so that they may be without excuse; •21because although they knew God they did not glorify [him] as God or give thanks [to him], but they became vain in their reasonings and their uncomprehending heart was darkened. •22Claiming to be wise, they became foolish, •23and exchanged the glory of the imperishable God for the likeness of an image of perishable man and birds and four-footed animals and reptiles.

•24Therefore God gave them up in the desires of their hearts to uncleanness, for the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves. •25They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

•26For this [reason] God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For even their females exchanged the natural relations for that which is against nature, •27and likewise the males also abandoned the natural relations with the female and burned in their lust for one another, males committing indecent acts with males and receiving in themselves the compensation for their error which was necessary in return.

•28And just as they did not see fit to hold God in [their] knowledge, God gave them up to an unfit mind, to do things that are not proper. •29They have been filled with all kinds of unrighteousness, wickedness,⁵ greed, malice. Full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness, [they are] gossips, •30criticizers, detesters of God, insolent, proud, arrogant, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, •31uncomprehending, agreement-breakers, without family affection,⁶ unmerciful. •32Although they know the righteous requirement of God that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do them but approve those who practice [them].

Romans 2

2•1Therefore you are without excuse, O man, whoever you are that judges; for in that which you judge another you condemn yourself, for you who are judging practice the very same things. •2Now¹ we know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. •3But are you counting on this—O man who judges those who practice such things and [yet] do them [yourself]—that you will escape the judgment of God? •4Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not know that God's kindness is trying to lead you to repentance? •5But because of your hardness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and the revelation of God's righteous judgment. •6He will repay each one according to his works: •7to those who by endurance in doing good seek for glory and honor and imperishability, [he will give] eternal life; •8but to those who [act] out of selfish ambition and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, [he will show] wrath and anger. •9[There will be] tribulation and distress on every human soul who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek, •10but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. •11For there is no partiality with God.

•12For as many as have sinned without [the] law will also perish without [the] law, and as many as have sinned [while] within [the realm of the] law will be judged through [the] law. •13For [it is] not the hearers of a law [who are] righteous before God, but the doers of [that] law [who] will be declared righteous. •14For whenever Gentiles who do not have [the] law do by nature the things [required] by the law, these who do not have [the] law are a law to themselves. •15They show [that] the work [required] by the law [is] written in their hearts, while their conscience testifies in support of [them] and [their] thoughts [in dialogue] with one another accuse or even defend [them] •16in the day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men through Jesus Christ.

•17But² if you wear the name Jew and rely on [the] law and boast in God •18and know [his] will and approve what is excellent, since you are instructed out of the law, •19and if you are confident that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, •20an educator of the senseless, a

Romans 2

teacher of infants, having in the law the form of knowledge and truth—•21you then who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one should not steal, do you steal? •22You who say that one should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you plunder temples? •23You who boast in [the] law, do you dishonor God through [your] transgression of the law? •24For "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of ^†you,"³ just as it is written.

•25For circumcision indeed is profitable if you are practicing [the] law; but if you are a transgressor of [the] law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. •26Therefore, if one who is uncircumcised is observing the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be reckoned as circumcision? •27And [so] the one who is by nature uncircumcised but who fulfills the law will judge you who, [although provided] with the letter [of the law] and circumcision, are a transgressor of [the] law. •28For he is not a [real] Jew who is one outwardly, nor [is true] circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. •29But he [is] a Jew who is one inwardly, and [real] circumcision [is] of the heart—in the spirit [and] not [to] the letter. His praise [is] not from men but from God.

3•1Then what advantage [does] the Jew [have]? Or what profit [is there] in circumcision? •2Much in every way. For indeed, first of all, that [the Jews] were entrusted with the oracles of God. •3What, then, if some were unfaithful? Their unfaithfulness will not nullify the faithfulness of God, [will it]? •4Definitely not! But let God keep being true though every man [be found] a liar, just as it is written,

Chapter 2: ³Is. 52:5

Chapter 3: ¹Ps. 51:4 ²Other ancient manuscripts read For

Romans 3

•9What then? Are we [Jews] any better off?³ Not at all; for we have already charged that all [men], both Jews and Greeks, are under [the power of] sin, •10just as it is written:

•19Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are within [the realm of] the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become accountable to God. •20Because by works of law shall no one of flesh be declared righteous in his sight, since through law [comes] knowledge of sin.

•21But now the righteousness of God has been made apparent apart from law, although it is testified to by the law and the prophets, •22that is, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all¹⁰ those who believe. For there is no distinction; •23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, •24and they are declared righteous by his grace as a gift, through the redemption

Romans 3

which is in Christ Jesus. •25God put him forward [as] a propitiation¹¹ by means of his blood, [to be received] through faith. [This was] in order to show his righteousness, because in God's forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; •26[it was] for showing at the present time his righteousness, in order for him to be righteous and the One who declares the [person] who has faith in Jesus righteous.

•27Then where [does that leave our] boasting? It is excluded. Through what kind of law? One of works? No, but through a law of faith. •28For¹² we reckon that a man is declared righteous by faith apart from works of law. •29Or [is God] the God of Jews only? [Is he] not [the God] of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, •30since God [is] one. He will declare the circumcised righteous by [their] faith and the uncircumcised through [their] faith. •31Do we then do away with [the] law through faith? Definitely not! Rather, we establish the law.

4•1What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?¹ •2For if Abraham was declared righteous by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. •3For what does the scripture say? "Now Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness."² •4Now to the one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a favor, but as a debt. •5But to the one who does not work but believes on the One who declares the irreverent righteous, his faith is reckoned as righteousness. •6[This is] just as also David speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:

•9[Is] this blessedness then [pronounced only] on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness. •10How then was it

Romans 4

reckoned [to him]? Was it after he had been circumcised,⁴ or while he was [still] uncircumcised?⁵ [It was] not after he had been circumcised,⁴ but while he was [still] uncircumcised.⁵ •11And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness which [he had] by faith while he was [still] uncircumcised. [This was] so that he might be the father of all the uncircumcised who believe so that righteousness might be reckoned to them also, •12and the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but also stay in line [following] the footsteps of the faith which our father Abraham [had] while he was [still] uncircumcised.

•13For the promise that he would be heir to the world [did] not [come] to Abraham or to his offspring through [the] law but through the righteousness of faith. •14For if [it is] those [who live] by [the] law [who are to be] heirs, faith has been made empty and the promise has been nullified. •15For the law produces wrath, but where there is no law, neither [is there] transgression.

•16For this [reason it is] by faith, so that [it might] be in accordance with grace, in order for the promise to be guaranteed to all [his] offspring—not only to those [who live] by the law but also to those [who live] by the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, •17just as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations."⁶ [He is our father]⁷ in the sight of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. •18In hope he believed against hope, in order that he might become the father of many nations, in accordance with what had been said, "Like this shall your offspring be."⁸ •19And although he did not weaken in faith, he considered⁹ his [own] body, which was already¹⁰ as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and [also] the deadness of Sarah's womb. •20But he did not doubt through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but he grew strong in [his] faith as he gave glory to God,

Romans 4

•21also fully convinced that what [God] has promised, he is also able to do. •22That is why also [his faith] "was reckoned to him as righteousness."² •23But [the words], "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, •24but for ours also. It is going to be reckoned to us who believe on the One who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, •25who was delivered [to death] for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

5•1Therefore, since we are declared righteous by faith, we¹ have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. •2Through him we also have obtained access by faith² to this grace in which we stand, and we³ boast in [our] hope of [sharing] the glory of God. •3And not only [so], but we³ also boast in [our] tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces endurance, •4and endurance [produces] an approved character, and an approved character [produces] hope, •5and hope does not disappoint [us], because God's love has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.

•6For still while we were yet [helplessly] weak, at the [right] time Christ died for the irreverent. •7Why, one will hardly die for a righteous [man]—though perhaps for a good [man] someone may even dare to die. •8But God demonstrates his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. •9Therefore, since we are now declared righteous by means of his blood, much more shall we be saved through him from the wrath [of God]. •10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, since we are reconciled, shall we be saved by means of his life. •11And not only [so], but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received [our] reconciliation.

•12Therefore just as sin entered into the world through one man and death through sin, even so death spread to all men because all [men] sinned—•13for before [the] law [was given] sin was in the world, but sin is not charged to one's account when there is no law. •14Yet death reigned from Adam

Romans 5

to Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of Adam's transgression, who is a type of the One who was future.

•15But the free gift [is] not also like the trespass. For if by one [man's] trespass many died, much more have the grace of God and the gift in the grace of the one man Jesus Christ abounded for the many. •16And the gift [is] not like [the effect that comes] through one man having sinned. For the judgment [arising] from one [trespass led] to condemnation, but the free gift [arising] from many trespasses [leads] to justification. •17For if by one [man's] trespass death reigned through [that] one [man], much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift⁴ of righteousness reign in life through the one [man] Jesus Christ. •18So then, as through one trespass [judgment led] to condemnation for all men, so also through one act of righteousness [the free gift leads] to justification [that brings] life for all men.⁵ •19For just as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one [man's] obedience the many will be made righteous. •20Now law slipped in, to increase the trespass; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, •21so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

6•1What shall we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may increase? •2Definitely not! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? •3Or are ^†you ignorant that as many of us as were baptized¹ into Christ Jesus were baptized¹ into his death? •4Therefore we were buried with him through baptism² into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so also we might walk in newness of life. •5For if we have been united with [him] in the likeness of his death, we shall certainly also be [united with him in the likeness] of [his] resurrection, •6knowing this, that our old man was crucified with [him] so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we might no longer keep serving sin. •7For the one who has died has been freed from sin. •8But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him, •9knowing that since Christ has been raised from the dead he never dies again; death no longer

Romans 6

lords it over him. •10For [the death] which he died he died to sin, once for all, but [the life] which he lives he lives to God. •11So ^†you also must keep considering ^†yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.³

•12Therefore sin must not keep reigning in ^†your mortal body for ^†you to be obeying⁴ its desires. •13And do not keep presenting ^†your members to sin [as] instruments of unrighteousness, but present ^†yourselves to God as those who have come to life from the dead, and ^†your members to God [as] instruments of righteousness. •14For sin will not lord it over ^†you, for ^†you are not under law but under grace.

•15What then? May we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Definitely not! •16Do ^†you not know that to whom ^†you present ^†yourselves [as] slaves for obedience, ^†you are slaves of [that one] whom ^†you obey, either of sin, [which leads] to death, or of obedience, [which leads] to righteousness? •17But thanks [be] to God, that although ^†you were slaves of sin, ^†you became obedient from the heart to the pattern of teaching to which ^†you were delivered, •18and having been set free from sin, ^†you became enslaved to righteousness. •19I am speaking in human terms, because of the weakness of ^†your flesh. For just as ^†you [once] presented ^†your members enslaved to uncleanness and lawlessness for lawlessness, so now present ^†your members enslaved to righteousness for sanctification. •20For when ^†you were slaves of sin, ^†you were free [in regard] to righteousness. •21Therefore what fruit were ^†you then having from the things of which ^†you are now ashamed? For the end of those things [is] death. •22But now that ^†you have been set free from sin and have been enslaved to God, ^†your fruit that ^†you have [is] for sanctification and [its] end [is] eternal life. •23For the wages of sin [is] death, but the free gift of God [is] eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

7•1Or are ^†you ignorant, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know [the] law—that the law lords it over a man [only] for so long a time as he lives? •2For a married woman has been bound by law to [her] husband while he is living; but if [her] husband should die, she has been discharged from the law regarding the husband. •3So then, if while [her] husband is living she becomes [married] to another man, she will be called an adulteress. But if her husband should die she is free from [that] law, so that she is not an adulteress if she becomes [married] to another man.

Romans 7

•4So, my brothers, ^†you also were put to death [in regard] to the law through the body of Christ, in order that ^†you might become [married] to another, to the One who has been raised from the dead so that we may bear fruit for God. •5For when we were in the flesh, [our] sinful passions that were [aroused] through the law were working in our members in order to bear fruit for death. •6But now we are discharged from the law, having died to that in which we were being held, so that we might be serving in the newness of the Spirit and not [in] the oldness of the letter [of the law].

•7What shall we say then? [That] the law [is] sin? Definitely not! But I [would] not have come to know sin if [it had] not [been] for [the] law. For I [would] not have known covetousness if the law had not said, "You shall not covet."¹ •8But sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, worked in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from law sin [is] dead. •9Now I was once alive apart from law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. •10And this [very] commandment which [was meant to lead] to life, I found [to lead] to death. •11For sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed [me]. •12So the law [is] holy, and the commandment [is] holy and just and good.

•13Did what is good, then, become death to me? Definitely not! But sin, so that it might appear [as] sin, [was] working death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment sin might become sinful to the extreme.

•14For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am fleshly, sold under sin. •15For I do not understand what I keep doing.² For [it is] not what I wish [to do] that I practice, but what I hate [is] what I keep doing. •16But if what I do not wish [to do is] what I keep doing, I agree with the law that [it is] good. •17But now [it is] no longer I who am doing² it, but the sin that indwells in me. •18For I know that [what is] good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh. For the [ability] to be wishing for what is good is present in me, but the [ability] to be doing² [it is] not. •19For [it is] not the good that I wish [to do] that I keep doing, but the evil that I do not wish [to do is] what I practice. •20But if what I do not wish [to do is] what I keep doing, [it is] no longer I who am doing² it, but the sin that dwells in me.

Romans 7

•21I find [it] then [to be] a law that when I wish to be doing what is good, what is evil is present in me. •22For I delight in the law of God in [my] inner man, •23but I see another law in my members at war with the law of my mind and making me captive within³ the law of sin which is in my members. •24Miserable man [that] I [am]! Who will rescue me from this body of death? •25But thanks [be] to God⁴ through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself am serving [the] law of God with [my] mind, but with [my] flesh [I am serving the] law of sin.

8•1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.¹ •2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you² free from the law of sin and death. •3For what was impossible for the law, in that it was being weakened through the flesh, God [has done]: sending his [own] Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and [as an offering] for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, •4so that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. •5For those who exist according to the flesh think about the things of the flesh, but those [who live] according to the Spirit [think about] the things of the Spirit. •6For the flesh's way of thinking [is] death, but the Spirit's way of thinking [is] life and peace. •7Because the flesh's way of thinking [is] hostility against God; for it does not submit to the law of God, for it cannot; •8and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

•9But ^†you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in ^†you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his. •10But if Christ [is] in ^†you, although the body [is] dead because of sin, yet the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness. •11Now if the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in ^†you, the One who raised Christ³ from the dead will give life to ^†your mortal bodies also through⁴ his Spirit that indwells in ^†you.

Romans 8

•12So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to keep living according to the flesh—•13for if ^†you live according to the flesh ^†you are going to die, but if by the Spirit ^†you put to death the deeds of the body ^†you will live. •14For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. •15For ^†you did not receive a spirit of slavery [to fall] again into fear, but ^†you have received the Spirit of adoption [as sons], by which we cry, "Abba! Father!" •16The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit that we are children of God, •17and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with [him] so that we may also be glorified with [him].

•18For I consider that the sufferings of the present time [are] not worthy [to be compared] with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. •19For the creation with eager expectation is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God. •20For the creation was subjected to vanity, not voluntarily, but by the One who subjected [it], in hope •21that⁵ even the creation itself will be set free from [its] slavery to corruption for the glorious freedom of the children of God. •22For we know that all creation has been groaning and having birth-pangs together until now; •23and not only [the creation], but also we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit—we ourselves also groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption [as sons],⁶ the redemption of our body. •24For in [this] hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes⁷ for what he sees?⁸ •25But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for [it] through endurance.

•26And in a similar way the Spirit also helps [us] in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes [for us]⁹ in groanings¹⁰ too deep for words. •27And the One who searches the hearts [of men] knows what the Spirit's way of thinking [is], because¹¹ [the Spirit] intercedes for the saints according to [the will of] God.

Romans 8

•28And we know that he works all things together¹² for good for those who love God, who are called according to [his] purpose. •29Because those whom he foreknew he also predestined [to be] conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brothers. •30And those whom he predestined, these he also called; and those whom he called, these he also justified;¹³ and those whom he justified,¹³ these he also glorified.

•31What then shall we say to these things? If God [is] for us, who [is] against us? •32He who did not spare even [his] own Son but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also freely give us all things with him? •33Who shall bring a charge against God's chosen ones? God [is] the One who justifies.¹⁴ •34Who [is] the one that condemns? Christ Jesus¹⁵ [is] the One who died, and more [than that], was raised,¹⁶ who is at the right [hand] of God, who indeed intercedes for us? •35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?¹⁷ [Shall] tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? •36Just as it is written,

•37But in all these things we are completely victorious through the One who loved us. •38For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things future, nor powers, •39nor height, nor depth,¹⁹ nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

9•1I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, and my conscience is testifying to me in the Holy Spirit, •2that I have great sorrow and unceasing pain in my heart. •3For I could wish that I

Romans 9

myself were accursed [and cut off] from Christ on behalf of my brothers, my relatives according to the flesh. •4They are Israelites, [and] to them [belong] the adoption [as sons], and the glory, and the covenants,¹ and the giving of the law, and the [ritual] service, and the promises; •5to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, [came] the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever.² Amen.

•6But [it is] not as though the word of God has failed. For not all these who are [descended] from Israel [belong to] Israel, •7and [just] because they are the offspring of Abraham, [they are] not all [his] children; but "In Issac they will be called your offspring."³ •8That is, [it is] not the children of the flesh who [are] the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as offspring. •9For this [is] the word of the promise, "At this time [next year] I will come [back] and Sarah shall have a son."⁴ •10And not only [so], but also when Rebecca had conceived [children] by one [man], our father Isaac, •11though they were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God's purpose in choosing might continue, not by works but by the One who calls, •12it was said to her, "The older will serve the younger."⁵ •13Just as it is written, "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."⁶

•14What shall we say then? [There is] not unrighteousness with God, [is there]? Definitely not! •15For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I have compassion."⁷ •16So then, [it does] not [depend] on the one who wishes nor the one who runs [hard], but on God who shows mercy. •17For the scripture says to Pharoah, "For this very purpose I have raised you up, so that I might show my power in you, and so that my name might be publicized in all the earth."⁸ •18So then he has mercy on whom he wishes, and he hardens [the heart] of whom he wishes.

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•19You will say to me then, "Why then does he still find fault? For who has [ever] resisted his intention?" •20On the contrary, O man, who are you to answer back to God? What is molded will not say to the one who molded it, "Why did you make me like this?" [will it]?⁹ •21Or does not the potter have the right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? •22But if, although God wished to show [his] wrath and to make known his power, he has borne with much patience the vessels of wrath ready for destruction, •23then¹⁰ [he has done so] in order that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory, •24even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles. •25As indeed he says in Hosea,

•27And Isaiah cries out regarding Israel: "Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, [only] a remnant will be saved; •28for the Lord will do [what he said in his] word on the earth, completing [it] and cutting [it] short."¹³ •29And just as Isaiah predicted,

"If the Lord of Armies¹⁴ had not left us offspring,
we would have become like Sodom and would have been made like Gomorrah."¹⁵

•30What shall we say then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have obtained righteousness, that is, righteousness that is by faith; •31but [that] Israel who pursued a law of righteousness did not attain to [that] law.¹⁶ •32Why? Because [they did] not [pursue it] by faith, but as by works.¹⁷ They have stumbled over the stone of stumbling, •33just as it is written,

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10•1Brothers, my heart's desire¹ and petition to God for them² [is] for [their] salvation. •2I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but [it is] not according to knowledge. •3For, being ignorant of the righteousness that [comes] from God, and seeking to establish [their] own righteousness,³ they did not submit to the righteousness that [comes] from God. •4For Christ [is] the end of law as [a way of] righteousness for everyone who belives.

•5For Moses writes regarding the righteousness that [comes] by the law, "The man who does them shall live by means of them."⁴ •6But the righteousness [that comes] by faith speaks like this, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'"⁵ (that is, to bring Christ down) •7"or, 'Who will descend into the abyss?'"⁶ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). •8But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart"⁷ (that is, the word of faith which we preach); •9because, if you confess⁸ with your mouth [that] Jesus [is] Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. •10For with the heart one believes for [his] righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses for [his] salvation. •11For the scripture says, "Anyone who believes on him will not be put to shame."⁹ •12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same [Lord is] Lord of all and is rich toward all who call on him. •13For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved."¹⁰

•14How then shall they call on [him] in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe [in him] of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without [someone]

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preaching? •15And how shall they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "How beautiful [are] the feet of those who proclaim the gospel of good things!"¹¹

•16But they have not all obeyed the gospel; for Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?"¹² •17So faith [comes] from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.¹³ •18But I say, [it was] not that they did not hear, [was it]? On the contrary,

11•1I say then, God has not rejected his people, [has he]? Definitely not! For even I am an Israelite, from the offspring of Abraham, [a member] of the tribe of Benjamin. •2"God has not rejected his people"¹ whom he foreknew. Or do ^†you not know what the scripture says in [the passage about] Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? •3"Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they are seeking my life."² •4But what does the divine response say to him? "I have left for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed a knee to Baal."³ •5So then at the present time there is also a remnant, in

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accordance with the choosing of grace. •6But if [it is] by grace, [it is] no longer by works; otherwise grace is no longer grace.⁴

•7What then? Israel did not obtain this that it is seeking for, but the chosen obtained [it]. And the rest were made callous, •8just as it is written,

•11I say then, they did not trip so as to fall, [did they]? Definitely not! But though their trespass salvation [has come] to the Gentiles, in order to provoke them to jealousy. •12Now if their trespass [means] riches for the world, and their defeat [means] riches for the Gentiles, how much more [will] their fullness [mean]!

•13Now I am speaking to ^†you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I glorify my ministry •14[to see] whether somehow I might provoke my [Jewish brothers in] the flesh to jealousy, and [thus] save some of them. •15For if their rejection [means] the reconciliation of the world, what [could their] acceptance [mean] except life from the dead? •16Now if the [dough offered as] firstfruits [is] holy, [so] also [is] the [whole] lump; and if the root [is] holy, [so] also [are] the branches.

•17But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, who were a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them and became partners with [them] in the rich root⁷ of the olive tree, •18do not be boasting over the branches. But if you do boast, [remember it is] not you [that] support the root, but the root [that supports] you. •19You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." •20Well [said]; because of unbelief they were broken off, but you stand fast because of

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faith. Quit thinking [such] haughty things, and start being afraid. •21For if God did not spare the natural branches, perhaps⁸ he will neither spare you. •22See then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness toward you, if you continue in [his] kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. •23And even those [others], if they do not continue in [their] unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. •24For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural [branches] be grafted [back] into [their] own olive tree.

•25For I do not wish, brothers, for ^†you to stay ignorant of this mystery, lest ^†you be smart in ^†your [own sight], that a callousness has happened in part to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles should come in, •26and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,

•28As regards the gospel [they are] enemies [of God], because of ^†you; but as regards [his] choosing [they are] beloved because of the fathers. •29For the free gifts and the calling of God [are] without regret.¹¹ •30For just as ^†you were once disobedient to God but now have obtained mercy by their disobedience, •31so also they have now been disobedient so that by the mercy shown to ^†you they also may now¹² obtain mercy. •32For God has confined all [people] in disobedience, so that he may have mercy on all.

•33O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable [are] his judgments and untraceable his ways!

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•36Because from him and through him and to him [are] all things. To him [be] glory forever. Amen.

12•1I appeal to ^†you therefore, brothers, by the compassion of God, to present ^†your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy [and] pleasing to God, [which is] ^†your spiritual¹ service. •2And quit being conformed to this age, but keep being transformed by the renewal of [^†your] mind, in order that ^†you may prove what [is] the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.²

•3For through the grace given to me I say to everyone who is among ^†you not to think [of himself] more highly than he ought to think, but to think with prudence, each as the measure of faith which God has distributed to [him]. •4For just as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, •5so we, [who are] many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. •6Now having charismatic gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, [let us use them]: whether prophecy, in proportion to [our] faith; •7or service, in [our] serving; or the one who teaches, in [his] teaching; •8or the one who exhorts, in [his] exhortation; the one who gives, with generosity; the one who directs, with diligence; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

•9[Let] love [be] unhypocritical. [Keep] detesting what is evil, clinging to what is good. •10[Be] tenderly loving toward one another with brotherly love; [keep] outdoing one another in [showing] honor. •11[Do] not [be] lazy in diligence, [but be] fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.³ •12[Keep] rejoicing in [^†your] hope, enduring in tribulation, continuing constantly in prayer. •13[Keep] contributing to the needs of the saints; [keep] pursuing hospitality.

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•14Keep blessing those who persecute ^†you⁴; keep blessing and do not be cursing [them]. •15Keep rejoicing with those who rejoice; keep weeping with those who weep. •16[Keep] agreeing in ^†your thinking⁵ toward one another; [do] not [be] thinking haughty things, but associate with the lowly;⁶ do not be smart in ^†your [own sight]. •17[Be] repaying no one evil for evil; [rather, keep] taking into consideration what is good in the sight of all men.⁷ •18If possible, so far as it depends on ^†you, [be] living peaceably with all men. •19Beloved, [do] not [be] taking revenge ^†yourselves, but give the wrath [of God] a chance; for it is written, "Vengeance [is] mine, I will repay, says the Lord."⁸ •20But "if your enemy is hungry, keep feeding him; if he is thirsty, keep giving him a drink; for by doing this you will heap coals of fire on his head."⁹ •21Do not keep being overcome by evil, but keep overcoming evil with good.

13•1Every person¹ must stay subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. •2So the one who opposes [this] authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will receive judgment for themselves. •3For rulers are not a cause for fear to [any] good work, but to evil. Now do you wish that you were not afraid of [this] authority? [Then] keep doing what is good, and you will have praise from it, •4for it is the servant of God for your good. But if you are doing what is evil, be afraid, for [the government] does not wear the sword in vain; for it is the servant of God [as] an avenger to [execute his] wrath on the one who practices what is evil. •5Therefore it is a necessity [for ^†you] to stay subject, not only because of [God's] wrath but also because of [^†your] conscience. •6For this [same reason] ^†you are also paying² taxes,³ for [the authorities] are ministers of God, continuing

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constantly in this very thing. •7Pay back all [of them their] dues, tax³ to whom tax³ [is due], tariff to whom tariff [is due], respect⁴ to whom respect⁴ [is due], honor to whom honor [is due].

•8Owe no one anything, except to keep loving one another; for the one who loves the other [person] has fulfilled [the] law. •9For the [commandments], "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal,⁵ You shall not covet,"⁶ and any other commandment besides, are summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."⁷ •10Love does no evil to a neighbor; therefore love [is] the fulfilling of [the] law.

•11And [^†you must do] this, since ^†you know what season it is, that [it is] already the hour for ^†you⁸ to wake from sleep. For now our salvation [is] nearer than when we [first] believed. •12The night is far gone, the day has come near. Let us then take off⁹ the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; •13let us walk decently, as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and unrestrained sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. •14But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to [gratify its] desires.

14•1Now the one who is weak in faith ^†you must receive, [but] not for quarrels over opinions.¹ •2One believes he may eat anything, but the one who is weak eats [only] vegetables. •3The one who eats must not be scorning the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat must not be judging the one who does eat; for God has received him. •4Who are you to judge the servant of another? [It is] before [his] own lord [that] he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord² is able to make him stand.

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•5Why, one [person] esteems [one] day [as] more [holy] than another, and another [person] esteems every day [as holy]. Each one must be fully convinced in [his] own mind. •6The one who thinks the day [is special], thinks [so] in the Lord's [honor].³ And the one who eats, eats in the Lord's [honor], for he gives thanks to God; and the one who does not eat, [it is] in the Lord's [honor that] he does not eat, and he gives thanks to God. •7For none of us lives to himself, and none [of us] dies to himself. •8For if we live, we live in the Lord's [honor], and if we die, we die in the Lord's [honor]. Therefore, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. •9For to this [end] Christ died and lived [again], so that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

•10But you, why do you judge your brother? Or indeed you, why do you scorn your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God.⁴ •11For it is written,

•13Therefore let us no longer keep judging one another, but rather decide⁸ this, that ^†you will not put a stumbling block or a snare [to sin] in the [way of a] brother. •14I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing [is] defiled of itself; except to that one who considers something to be defiled, [it is] defiled. •15For if your brother is being injured⁹ because of the food [you eat], you are no longer walking in love. Do not be destroying with your food that one for whom Christ died. •16Therefore, what is good to ^†you must not be slandered [because of ^†your actions]. •17For the kingdom of God is not [a matter of] eating and drinking, but [of] righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. •18For the one who serves Christ in this way [is] pleasing to God and approved by men. •19So then, let us keep pursuing¹⁰ the things that [make] for peace and the things that [produce] upbuilding of one another. •20Do not, for the sake of food, be tearing down the work of God. All things indeed [are] clean, but [they are] evil for the man who eats at the expense of causing [another] to stumble. •21[It is] good not to eat meat nor drink wine nor [do anything] by which your brother stumbles.¹¹ •22The faith that you have, keep [it] to yourself before God. Blessed [is] the one

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who does not condemn himself by what he approves. •23But the one who doubts is condemned if he eats, because [he does] not [act] from faith; now everything that [does] not [proceed] from faith is sin.¹²

15•1Now we who are strong ought to be bearing with the weaknessess of those who are not strong, and not to be pleasing ourselves. •2Each of us must be pleasing [his] neighbor for [his] good, to [his] upbuilding. •3For even Christ did not please himself; but, just as it is written, "The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me."¹ •4For whatever was previously written was written for our teaching, so that through endurance and through the comfort of the scriptures we might have hope. •5Now may the God of endurance and comfort grant ^†you to agree in ^†your thinking² among one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, •6so that with one accord ^†you may with one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

•7Therefore, keep receiving one another, just as Christ has also received ^†you,³ for the glory of God. •8For I say that Christ became a servant to the circumcised on behalf of God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises [given] to the patriarchs, •9and for the Gentiles to glorify God for [his] mercy. Just as it is written,

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•14Now I myself also am persuaded about ^†you, my brothers, that ^†you ^†yourselves are indeed full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, [and] able also to admonish one another. •15But I have written to ^†you rather daringly⁹ on some points, as [a way of] reminding [^†you], because of the grace given me by¹⁰ God •16in order for me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, working in a priestly way for the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. •17I have therefore a reason for boasting in Christ Jesus of the [priestly service] to God. •18For I will not dare to speak of anything that Christ has not worked through me to [win] obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, •19in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God,¹¹ so that from Jerusalem and as far round as Illyricum I have fully preached¹² the gospel of Christ. •20And so I am making it my ambition to proclaim the gospel, not where Christ has [already] been named, lest I build on another [man's] foundation, •21but just as it is written,

•22That is why also I have been hindered many times from coming to ^†you. •23But now, since I no longer have any place in these regions, and since I have had a longing for many years to come to ^†you •24whenever I am going to Spain, [I will do so];¹⁴ for I hope to see ^†you as I pass through, and to be assisted on my journey there by ^†you, if I may first enjoy ^†your [company] for a while. •25But now I am going to Jerusalem in service for the saints. •26For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. •27For they were pleased [to do it], and [indeed] they are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in

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their spiritual [blessings], they owe it [to the Jews] also to minister to them in material¹⁵ [blessings]. •28When therefore I have finished this, and have sealed to them this fruit [of the collection], I shall go on by way of ^†you to Spain. •29And I know that when I come to ^†you I shall come in the fullness of the blessing¹⁶ of Christ.

•30Now I appeal to ^†you, brothers, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to struggle together with me in [^†your] prayers to God on my behalf, •31that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and [that] my service¹⁷ for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, •32so that I may come to ^†you in joy through the will of God and refresh [myself] in ^†your [company]. •33Now [may] the God of peace [be] with ^†you all. Amen.¹⁸

16•1Now I commend to ^†you our sister Phoebe, who is also a deacon¹ of the church that is in Cenchreae, •2that ^†you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever matter she may be needing ^†you, for indeed she has been a helper² of many and of myself [as well].

•3Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, •4who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I but also all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks; •5and [greet] the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits³ of Asia⁴ for Christ. •6Greet Mary, who has labored much for ^†you.⁵ •7Greet Andronicus and Junia,⁶ my relatives and my fellow-captives; they are notable among the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. •8Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. •9Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and Stachys my beloved. •10Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those from the [household] of Aristobulus. •11Greet Herodion, my relative. Greet those from the [household] of Narcissus who are in the Lord. •12Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who labor in the Lord. Greet the beloved Persis, who

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has labored much in the Lord. •13Greet Rufus, a choice [man] in the Lord, also his mother and mine. •14Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. •15Greet Philologus and Julia,⁷ Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. •16Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet ^†you.

•17Now I appeal to ^†you, brothers, to be taking note of those who cause dissensions and snares [to sin], contrary to the teaching which ^†you have learned; and be turning away from them. •18For such [persons] are not serving our Lord Christ, but their [own] stomach, and through smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. •19For [the report of] ^†your obedience has reached to all; therefore I rejoice over ^†you, but I wish ^†you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil. •20And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under ^†your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus [be] with ^†you.⁸

•21Timothy, my fellow worker, greets ^†you; and [so do] Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my relatives.

•22I Tertius, who wrote [this] letter, greet ^†you in the Lord.

•23Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets ^†you. Erastus, the city treasurer, greets ^†you, and [so does our] brother Quartus.⁹

•25Now to the One who is able to strengthen ^†you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which was concealed in silence through [past] times eternal •26but is now made apparent, and through the prophetic writings, according to the command of the eternal God, is made known to all nations, for [their] obedience of faith—•27to the only wise God, to whom¹⁰ [be] glory through Jesus Christ forever! Amen.¹¹