Romans 16

New International Version

Personal Greetings

16 I commend^(A) to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon^[a]^[b] of the church in Cenchreae.^(B) ²I ask you to receive her in the Lord^(C) in a way worthy of his people^(D) and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.

³Greet Priscilla^[c] and Aquila,^(E) my co-workers^(F) in Christ Jesus.^(G) ⁴They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

⁵Greet also the church that meets at their house.^(H)

Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert^(I) to Christ in the province of Asia.^(J)

⁶Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.

⁷Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews^(K) who have been in prison with me.^(L) They are outstanding among^[d] the apostles, and they were in Christ^(M) before I was.

⁸Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.

⁹Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ,^(N) and my dear friend Stachys.

¹⁰Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test.^(O)

Greet those who belong to the household^(P) of Aristobulus.

¹¹Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.^(Q)

Greet those in the household^(R) of Narcissus who are in the Lord.

¹²Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.

Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.

¹³Greet Rufus,^(S) chosen^(T) in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.

¹⁴Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.

¹⁵Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people^(U) who are with them.^(V)

¹⁶Greet one another with a holy kiss.^(W)

All the churches of Christ send greetings.

¹⁷I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned.^(X) Keep away from them.^(Y) ¹⁸For such people are not serving our Lord Christ,^(Z) but their own appetites.^(AA) By smooth talk and flattery they deceive^(AB) the minds of naive people. ¹⁹Everyone has heard^(AC) about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.^(AD)

²⁰The God of peace^(AE) will soon crush^(AF) Satan^(AG) under your feet.

The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.^(AH)

²¹Timothy,^(AI) my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius,^(AJ) Jason^(AK) and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.^(AL)

²²I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.

²³Gaius,^(AM) whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.

Erastus,^(AN) who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. ^[24]^[e]

²⁵Now to him who is able^(AO) to establish you in accordance with my gospel,^(AP) the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery^(AQ) hidden for long ages past, ²⁶but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings^(AR) by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from^[f] faith^(AS)— ²⁷to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.^(AT)

Footnotes

Romans 16:1 Or servant
Romans 16:1 The word deacon refers here to a Christian designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Phil. 1:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8,12.
Romans 16:3 Greek Prisca, a variant of Priscilla
Romans 16:7 Or are esteemed by
Romans 16:24 Some manuscripts include here May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen.
Romans 16:26 Or that is

Romans 3

New International Version

God’s Faithfulness

3 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? ²Much in every way!^(A) First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.^(B)

³What if some were unfaithful?^(C) Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness?^(D) ⁴Not at all! Let God be true,^(E) and every human being a liar.^(F) As it is written:

“So that you may be proved right when you speak
and prevail when you judge.”^[a]^(G)

⁵But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly,^(H) what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.)^(I) ⁶Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world?^(J) ⁷Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory,^(K) why am I still condemned as a sinner?”^(L) ⁸Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”?^(M) Their condemnation is just!

No One Is Righteous

⁹What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage?^(N) Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin.^(O) ¹⁰As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
¹¹    there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.
¹²All have turned away,
    they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
    not even one.”^[b]^(P)
¹³“Their throats are open graves;
    their tongues practice deceit.”^[c]^(Q)
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”^[d]^(R)
¹⁴    “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”^[e]^(S)
¹⁵“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
¹⁶    ruin and misery mark their ways,
¹⁷and the way of peace they do not know.”^[f]^(T)
¹⁸    “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”^[g]^(U)

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says,^(V) it says to those who are under the law,^(W) so that every mouth may be silenced^(X) and the whole world held accountable to God.^(Y) ²⁰Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law;^(Z) rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.^(AA)

Righteousness Through Faith

²¹But now apart from the law the righteousness of God^(AB) has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.^(AC) ²²This righteousness^(AD) is given through faith^(AE) in^[h] Jesus Christ^(AF) to all who believe.^(AG) There is no difference between Jew and Gentile,^(AH) ²³for all have sinned^(AI) and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴and all are justified^(AJ) freely by his grace^(AK) through the redemption^(AL) that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,^[i]^(AM) through the shedding of his blood^(AN)—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished^(AO)— ²⁶he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

²⁷Where, then, is boasting?^(AP) It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. ²⁸For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.^(AQ) ²⁹Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too,^(AR) ³⁰since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.^(AS) ³¹Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Footnotes

Romans 3:4 Psalm 51:4
Romans 3:12 Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3; Eccles. 7:20
Romans 3:13 Psalm 5:9
Romans 3:13 Psalm 140:3
Romans 3:14 Psalm 10:7 (see Septuagint)
Romans 3:17 Isaiah 59:7,8
Romans 3:18 Psalm 36:1
Romans 3:22 Or through the faithfulness of
Romans 3:25 The Greek for sacrifice of atonement refers to the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant (see Lev. 16:15,16).

Romans 4

New International Version

Abraham Justified by Faith

4 What then shall we say^(A) that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh,^(B) discovered in this matter? ²If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God.^(C) ³What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”^[a]^(D)

⁴Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift^(E) but as an obligation. ⁵However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.^(F) ⁶David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

⁷“Blessed are those
    whose transgressions are forgiven,
    whose sins are covered.
⁸Blessed is the one
    whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”^[b]^(G)

⁹Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised?^(H) We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness.^(I) ¹⁰Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! ¹¹And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised.^(J) So then, he is the father^(K) of all who believe^(L) but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. ¹²And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

¹³It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise^(M) that he would be heir of the world,^(N) but through the righteousness that comes by faith.^(O) ¹⁴For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless,^(P) ¹⁵because the law brings wrath.^(Q) And where there is no law there is no transgression.^(R)

¹⁶Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace^(S) and may be guaranteed^(T) to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.^(U) ¹⁷As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.”^[c]^(V) He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life^(W) to the dead and calls^(X) into being things that were not.^(Y)

¹⁸Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations,^(Z) just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”^[d]^(AA) ¹⁹Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead^(AB)—since he was about a hundred years old^(AC)—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.^(AD) ²⁰Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened^(AE) in his faith and gave glory to God,^(AF) ²¹being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.^(AG) ²²This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”^(AH) ²³The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, ²⁴but also for us,^(AI) to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him^(AJ) who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.^(AK) ²⁵He was delivered over to death for our sins^(AL) and was raised to life for our justification.^(AM)