Romans 16
English Standard Version
Personal Greetings
16 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant[a] of the church at (A)Cenchreae, 2 that you (B)may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well.
3 Greet (C)Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. 5 Greet also (D)the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was (E)the first convert[b] to Christ in Asia. 6 Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia,[c] my kinsmen and my (F)fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles,[d] and they were in Christ before me. 8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. 10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those (G)who belong to the family of Aristobulus. 11 Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 12 Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers[e] who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. 16 (H)Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.
Final Instructions and Greetings
17 I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles (I)contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; (J)avoid them. 18 For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but (K)their own appetites,[f] and (L)by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. 19 For (M)your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you (N)to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. 20 (O)The God of peace (P)will soon crush Satan under your feet. (Q)The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
21 (R)Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen.
22 I Tertius, (S)who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 (T)Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus, greet you.[g]
Doxology
25 (U)Now to him who is able to strengthen you (V)according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, (W)according to the revelation of the mystery (X)that was kept secret for (Y)long ages 26 but (Z)has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, (AA)to bring about the obedience of faith— 27 to (AB)the only wise God (AC)be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.
Footnotes
- Romans 16:1 Or deaconess
- Romans 16:5 Greek firstfruit
- Romans 16:7 Or Junias
- Romans 16:7 Or messengers
- Romans 16:14 Or brothers and sisters; also verse 17
- Romans 16:18 Greek their own belly
- Romans 16:23 Some manuscripts insert verse 24: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen
Romans 16
The Voice
Before Paul treks west to Rome, he must complete an important mission he started years earlier. He must carry to Jerusalem an offering for the poor collected from the outsider churches. Paul, the emissary, hopes not only that the offering will alleviate the human need and suffering brought on by years of famine, but that it will also build a bridge between his mainly non-Jewish churches and the Jewish mother church in Jerusalem. But when he arrives in Jerusalem, Paul’s enemies trump up charges against him that ultimately land him in jail. So Paul makes it to Rome, but not as he planned. Several years later, after a lengthy confinement in Caesarea and a perilous journey at sea, he is led into Rome as a prisoner of the empire.
16 I commend to you our beloved sister Phoebe; she serves the church in Cenchrea as a faithful deacon. 2 It is important that you welcome her in the Lord in a manner befitting your saintly status. Join in her work, and assist her in any way she needs you. She has spent her energy and resources helping others, and I am blessed to have her as my benefactor as well.
3 Give my best to Prisca and Aquila; they are not only my colleagues in my profession of tent making, but more importantly they are my fellow servants of Jesus the Anointed. 4 They put their lives on the line to keep me safe. Not only do I owe them my thanks, so do all the churches of the non-Jews. 5 Send my regards to the church that meets in their house.
Send greetings to Epaenetus. I love him dearly and celebrate his journey to faith because he was the first to believe in the Anointed One in all of Asia.
6 Salute Mary for me; she has worked hard for all of you.
7 Give my regards to Andronicus and Junias, who are part of my own family and served time in prison with me. They are well known among the emissaries[a] and have been in the Anointed longer than I.
8 Give my best to Ampliatus whom I love in the Lord, 9 and greet Urbanus (our fellow worker in service to the Anointed One) and my beloved Stachys.
10 Send greetings to Apelles, a tried and true believer in the Anointed, and to the entire family of Aristobulus.
11 Do not forget to greet Herodion, another of my relatives, and everyone in the family of Narcissus who belong to the Lord.
12 Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, faithful laborers in the Lord, and our beloved Persis, who also has accomplished a great deal in the Lord.
13 Give my best to Rufus, clearly one of the Lord’s chosen, and also his mother. She’s like a mother to me.
14 My regards also go to Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and all the brothers and sisters who are along with them.
15 Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and let me not forget Olympas and all the saints who journey with them.
16 Greet each other with a holy kiss. All of the churches of the Anointed under my care send their greetings to all of you.
17 I am pleading with all of you, brothers and sisters, to keep up your guard against anyone who is causing conflicts and enticing others with teachings contrary to what you have already learned. If there are people like that in your churches, stay away from them. 18 These kinds of people are not truly serving our Lord Jesus the Anointed; they have devoted their lives to satisfying their own appetites. With smooth talking and a well-rehearsed blessing, they lead a lot of unsuspecting people down the wrong path. 19 The stories about the way you are living in obedience to God have traveled to all the churches. So celebrate your faithfulness to God that is being displayed in your lives—seek wisdom about the good life, and remain innocent when it comes to evil. 20 If you do this, the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet soon. May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, the Liberating King, be ever present with you.
21 Timothy, my coworker in the spreading of the gospel, also sends his greeting to all of you, as do my kinsmen, Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater.
22 I, Tertius, the one who wrote this letter for Paul, greet you in the name of the Lord. 23 Gaius, my host here as well as patron for the whole church, sends his[b] best to all of you. Erastus, the city administrator, sends his greetings along with brother Quartus. [24 May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, touch you all. Amen.][c]
25 So to the One who is able to strengthen you to live consistently with my good news and the preaching of Jesus, the Anointed, with the revelation of the ancient mystery that has been kept secret since the earliest days, 26 this mystery is revealed through the prophetic voices passed down in the Scriptures, as they have been commanded by the Eternal God. In this time, this mystery is being made known to the nations so that all may be led to faith-filled obedience.
27 To the one true and wise God, we offer glory for all times through Jesus, the Anointed One. Amen.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.