罗马书 9
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
上帝的选民
9 我在基督里说真话，绝无谎言。我被圣灵感动的良心可以作证， 2 我心里极为忧愁，痛苦不止！ 3 为了我的弟兄——我的同胞以色列人，即使我自己被咒诅、与基督隔绝，我也愿意！ 4 身为以色列人，他们拥有上帝儿子的名分、上帝的荣耀、诸约、律法、圣殿敬拜和各种应许。 5 蒙拣选的族长是他们的先祖，基督降世为人也是做以色列人。祂是至大至尊，永远当受称颂的上帝。阿们！
6 当然，这并不表示上帝的话落了空，因为从以色列生的，不一定都是以色列人， 7 亚伯拉罕的后裔不一定都是亚伯拉罕的儿女，圣经上说：“以撒生的才可算为你的后裔。” 8 这话的意思是：亚伯拉罕凭血气所生的儿女并不是上帝的儿女，只有凭应许所生的才算是他的后裔。 9 因为上帝曾这样应许他：“明年这时候，我会再来，撒拉必生一个儿子。”
10 后来，利百加和我们的先祖以撒结婚，怀了双胞胎。 11 在这对孩子还未出生，还没有显出谁善谁恶之前，上帝为了显明自己拣选人并不是按人的行为，而是按祂自己的旨意， 12 便对利百加说：“将来大的要服侍小的。” 13 正如圣经上说：“我爱雅各，厌恶以扫。”
14 这样看来，我们该怎么下结论呢？难道上帝不公平吗？当然不是！ 15 祂曾对摩西说：
“我要怜悯谁就怜悯谁，
要恩待谁就恩待谁。”
16 可见这并不在于人的意志和努力，而在于祂的怜悯。 17 圣经记载着上帝对法老说的话：“我使你兴起是为了在你身上彰显我的权能，使我的名传遍天下。” 18 总之，上帝要怜悯谁，就怜悯谁；要叫谁顽固，就叫谁顽固。
上帝的烈怒和怜悯
19 这样，你肯定会对我说：“为什么上帝还指责人呢？谁能抗拒祂的旨意呢？” 20 你这个人啊！你是谁啊？竟敢顶撞上帝！受造之物怎能对造物主说：“你为什么把我造成这样？” 21 陶匠难道不可以从一团泥中拿一部分造贵重的器皿，又拿一部分造平凡的器皿吗？
22 倘若上帝要显示祂的烈怒和权能，就尽量容忍那些祂预备要毁灭的器皿， 23 以便在那些祂怜悯并预备赐予荣耀的器皿上彰显祂丰盛的荣耀，这难道不可以吗？ 24 那些蒙怜悯的器皿就是我们这些从犹太人和外族人中被上帝呼召的人。 25 正如上帝在《何西阿书》上说：
“本来不是我子民的，
我要称他们为‘我的子民’；
本来不是我所爱的，
我要称他们为‘我所爱的’。
26 从前我在什么地方对他们说，
‘你们不是我的子民。’
将来也要在那里对他们说，
‘你们是永活上帝的儿女。’”
27 关于以色列人，以赛亚先知曾疾呼：
“以色列人虽多如海沙，
但得救的只是剩余的人，
28 因为上帝要在世上迅速、
彻底地执行祂的判决。”
29 以赛亚又说：
“若不是万军之主给我们存留后裔，
我们早就像所多玛和蛾摩拉一样灭亡了。”
以色列人和福音
30 这样看来，我们该说什么呢？本来不追求义的外族人却因信而得到了义。 31 以色列人靠遵行律法追求义，却徒劳无功。 32 为什么会这样呢？因为他们不凭信心，只靠自己的行为去追求义，结果就在那块“绊脚石”上跌倒了。 33 正如圣经上说：
“看啊！我在锡安放了一块绊脚石，
一块使人跌倒的磐石。
但信靠祂的人必不致蒙羞。”
Romans 9
Expanded Bible
God and the Jewish People
9 I am telling you the truth ·as a follower of Christ [or with Christ as my witness; L in Christ]; I do not lie. My conscience is ·ruled by [or guided by] the Holy Spirit, and it ·tells [testifies to] me I am not lying. 2 I have great sorrow and ·always feel much sadness [unceasing/constant anguish]. 3 [L For] I would even wish that I were cursed and cut off from ·Christ [or the Messiah] ·if that would help [for the sake of] my Jewish brothers and sisters, my ·people [countrymen; L relatives according to the flesh]. 4 They are the people of Israel, God’s ·chosen [L adopted] children. They ·have seen [or have] the glory of God, and they have the ·agreements that God made between himself and his people [L covenants]. God gave them the law of Moses and the ·right way of worship [or temple worship] and his promises. 5 ·They are the descendants of our great ancestors [L They have the fathers/patriarchs], and ·they are the earthly family into which Christ was born [or from their descendants the Messiah came], ·who is God over all. Praise him forever [or May God, who is over all, be praised forever]! Amen.
6 It is not that ·God failed to keep his promise to them [L God’s word failed]. ·But only some of the people of Israel are truly God’s people [L Because not all those (descended) from Israel are Israel], 7 ·and only some of Abraham’s descendants are true children of Abraham [L nor are all of Abraham’s seed/descendants (true) children]. But God said to Abraham: “·The descendants I promised you will be from Isaac [or Through Isaac your descendants will carry on your name; Gen. 21:12].” 8 This means that ·not all of Abraham’s descendants [L it is not the children of the flesh who] are God’s true children. [L But; Rather] ·Abraham’s true children [L Those counted as Abraham’s descendants/seed] are ·those who become God’s children because of the promise God made to Abraham [L the children of the promise]. 9 God’s promise to Abraham was this: “·At the right time [At the appointed time; or About this time next year] I will return, and Sarah will have a son [Gen. 18:10, 14].” 10 And that is not all. Rebekah’s sons ·had the same father, [or were conceived at the same time by] our ·father [ancestor; forefather] Isaac.
14 So what should we say about this? Is God ·unfair [unjust]? ·In no way [Absolutely not!; May it never be!; 7:13]. 15 [L For] God said to Moses, “I will show ·kindness [mercy] to anyone to whom I want to show ·kindness [mercy], and I will show ·compassion [pity] to anyone to whom I want to show ·compassion [pity; Ex. 33:19].” 16 So God’s choice does not depend on ·what people want [human desire; or human will] or ·try to do [effort; exertion], but on God’s ·mercy [kindness]. 17 The Scripture says to ·the king of Egypt [L Pharaoh]: “I ·made you king [L raised you up] for this reason: to show my power in you so that my name will be ·talked about [proclaimed] in all the earth [Ex. 9:16].” 18 So God shows mercy where he wants to show mercy, and he ·makes stubborn [hardens] the people he wants to ·make stubborn [harden].
19 So one of you will ask me: “Then why does God ·blame us for our sins [L blame; find fault]? Who can ·fight [resist; oppose] his will?” 20 ·You are only human, and human beings have no right to question God [L Who are you, a mere human being, to talk back to God?]. ·An object [or A thing molded] should not ask the ·person who made it [molder], “Why did you make me like this? [Is. 29:16; 45:9]” 21 ·The potter can make anything he wants to make [L Doesn’t the potter have authority over the clay?]. He can use the same ·clay [L lump] to make one ·thing [vessel; pot] for ·special [honorable] use and another thing for ·daily [common; dishonorable] use.
22 ·It is the same way with God. He [L What if he…?] wanted to show his ·anger [wrath] and to let people see his power. But he ·patiently stayed with [endured with great patience] those ·people he was angry with [L vessels/objects of wrath]—people who were ·made ready [prepared] to be destroyed. 23 He waited with patience so that he could make known ·his rich glory [the riches of his glory] to the ·people who receive his [L vessels/objects of] mercy. He has prepared these people ·to have his glory [to experience his glory; L for glory], 24 and we are those people whom God called. He called us not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles. 25 As ·the Scripture [or God] says in Hosea:
“I will ·say, ‘You are my people’ [call them ‘my people’]
to those who were not my people.
And I will ·show my love [call her ‘beloved’]
to ·those people [her] I did not love [Hos. 2:1, 23; C in Hosea, a reference to apostate Israel; here applied to the Gentiles].”
26 “And in the same place where they were called,
‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called
‘children of the living God [Hos. 1:10].’”
27 And Isaiah cries out about Israel:
“[L Though] The ·people [L children; sons] of Israel are numbered
like the grains of sand ·by [or of] the sea.
But only ·a few of them [the remnant] will be saved,
28 because the Lord will quickly and completely ·punish the people [carry out/execute his sentence; settle his account] on the earth [Is. 10:22–23].”
29 It is as Isaiah said:
“If the Lord ·All-Powerful [of Hosts; of Heaven’s Armies]
had not ·allowed a few of our descendants to live [left us offspring/seed],
We would have become like Sodom
and would resemble Gomorrah [Is. 1:9; C OT cities destroyed by God because of their wickedness; Gen. 19].”
30 ·So what does all this mean [L What, then, shall we say]? Those who are Gentiles ·were not trying to make themselves right with God [L did not pursue righteousness], but they ·were made right with God [obtained righteousness] ·because of their faith [L —that is, a righteousness that is by faith]. 31 The people of Israel tried to ·follow [pursue] a law ·to make themselves right with God [L of righteousness]. But they did not ·succeed [reach/attain it], 32 [L Why?] because they tried to make themselves right by ·the things they did [works] instead of ·trusting in God to make them right [L by faith]. They stumbled over the stone that causes people to stumble. 33 As it is written in the Scripture:
“[L Look; T Behold] I will put in ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C a poetic term for Jerusalem and symbolizing the nation Israel] a stone that causes people to stumble,
a rock that makes them fall [Is. 8:14].
Anyone who ·trusts [believes; has faith] in him will never be ·disappointed [put to shame; disgraced; Is. 28:16].”
Chinese Contemporary Bible Copyright © 1979, 2005, 2007, 2011 by Biblica® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.