Romans 2:17-3:8

Common English Bible

Jews will be judged as well

¹⁷    But,
if you call yourself a Jew;
if you rely on the Law;
if you brag about your relationship to God;
¹⁸if you know the will of God;
if you are taught by the Law so that you can figure out the things that really matter;
¹⁹if you have persuaded yourself that you are:
        a guide for the blind;
        a light to those who are in darkness;
²⁰        an educator of the foolish;
        a teacher of infants (since you have the full content of knowledge and truth in the Law);
²¹then why don’t you who are teaching others teach yourself?
If you preach, “No stealing,” do you steal?
²²If you say, “No adultery,” do you commit adultery?
If you hate idols, do you rob temples?

²³If you brag about the Law, do you shame God by breaking the Law? ²⁴As it is written: The name of God is discredited by the Gentiles because of you.^[a]

²⁵Circumcision is an advantage if you do what the Law says. But if you are a person who breaks the Law, your status of being circumcised has changed into not being circumcised. ²⁶So if the person who isn’t circumcised keeps the Law, won’t his status of not being circumcised be counted as if he were circumcised? ²⁷The one who isn’t physically circumcised but keeps the Law will judge you. You became a lawbreaker after you had the written Law and circumcision. ²⁸It isn’t the Jew who maintains outward appearances who will receive praise from God, and it isn’t people who are outwardly circumcised on their bodies. ²⁹Instead, it is the person who is a Jew inside, who is circumcised in spirit, not literally. That person’s praise doesn’t come from people but from God.

God’s faithfulness and justice

3 So what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Or what’s the benefit of circumcision? ²Plenty in every way. First of all, the Jews were trusted with God’s revelations. ³What does it matter, then, if some weren’t faithful? Their lack of faith won’t cancel God’s faithfulness, will it? ⁴Absolutely not! God must be true, even if every human being is a liar, as it is written:

So that it can show that you are right in your words;
and you will triumph when you are judged.^[b]

⁵But if our lack of righteousness confirms God’s justice, what will we say? That God, who brings wrath upon us, isn’t just (I’m speaking rhetorically)? ⁶Absolutely not! If God weren’t just, how could he judge the world? ⁷But if God’s truth is demonstrated by my lie and it increases his glory, why am I still judged as a sinner? ⁸Why not say, “Let’s do evil things so that good things will come out of it”? (Some people who slander us accuse us of saying that, but these people deserve criticism.)