Romans 15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Please Others, Not Yourselves
15 We who are strong ought to put up with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.(A) 2 Each of us must please our neighbor for the good purpose of building up the neighbor.(B) 3 For Christ did not please himself, but, as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” 4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.(C) 5 May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus,(D) 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Gospel for Jews and Gentiles Alike
7 Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the promises given to the ancestors(E) 9 and that the gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written,
“Therefore I will confess you among the gentiles
and sing praises to your name”;(F)
10 and again he says,
“Rejoice, O gentiles, with his people”;
11 and again,
“Praise the Lord, all you gentiles,
and let all the peoples praise him”;
12 and again Isaiah says,
“The root of Jesse shall come,
the one who rises to rule the gentiles;
in him the gentiles shall hope.”(G)
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.(H)
Paul’s Reason for Writing So Boldly
14 I myself feel confident about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another.(I) 15 Nevertheless, on some points I have written to you rather boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God(J) 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.(K) 17 In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast of my work for God. 18 For I will not be so bold as to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to win obedience from the gentiles, by word and deed, 19 by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit,[a] so that from Jerusalem and as far around as Illyricum I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ.(L) 20 Thus I make it my ambition to proclaim the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, so that I do not build on someone else’s foundation,(M) 21 but as it is written,
“Those who have never been told of him shall see,
and those who have never heard of him shall understand.”(N)
Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome
22 This is the reason that I have so often been hindered from coming to you. 23 But now, with no further place for me in these regions, I desire, as I have for many years, to come to you(O) 24 when I go to Spain. For I do hope to see you on my journey and to be sent on by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a little while. 25 At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem in a ministry to the saints,(P) 26 for Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to share their resources with the poor among the saints at Jerusalem.(Q) 27 They were pleased to do this, and indeed they owe it to them, for if the gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material things.(R) 28 So, when I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been collected,[b] I will set out by way of you to Spain, 29 and I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing[c] of Christ.
30 I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in earnest prayer to God on my behalf,(S) 31 that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my ministry[d] to Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company.(T) 33 The God of peace be with all of you.[e] Amen.(U)
Romans 15
New English Translation
Exhortation for the Strong to Help the Weak
15 But we who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not just please ourselves.[a] 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up. 3 For even Christ did not please himself, but just as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”[b] 4 For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures we may have hope. 5 Now may the God of endurance and comfort give you unity with one another[c] in accordance with Christ Jesus, 6 so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Exhortation to Mutual Acceptance
7 Receive one another, then, just as Christ also received you, to God’s glory. 8 For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised[d] on behalf of God’s truth to confirm the promises made to the fathers,[e] 9 and thus the Gentiles glorify God for his mercy.[f] As it is written, “Because of this I will confess you among the Gentiles, and I will sing praises to your name.”[g] 10 And again it says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.”[h] 11 And again, “Praise the Lord all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him.”[i] 12 And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, and the one who rises to rule over the Gentiles, in him will the Gentiles hope.”[j] 13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in him,[k] so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul’s Motivation for Writing the Letter
14 But I myself am fully convinced about you, my brothers and sisters,[l] that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another. 15 But I have written more boldly to you on some points so as to remind you, because of the grace given to me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. I serve[m] the gospel of God[n] like a priest, so that the Gentiles may become an acceptable offering,[o] sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
17 So I boast[p] in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in order to bring about the obedience[q] of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem even as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 20 And in this way I desire to preach where Christ has not been named, so as not to build on another person’s foundation, 21 but as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.”[r]
Paul’s Intention of Visiting the Romans
22 This is the reason I was often hindered from coming to you. 23 But now there is nothing more to keep me[s] in these regions, and I have for many years desired[t] to come to you 24 when I go to Spain. For I hope to visit you when I pass through and that you will help me[u] on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.
25 But now I go to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia are pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do this, and indeed they are indebted to the Jerusalem saints.[v] For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are obligated also to minister to them in material things. 28 Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them,[w] I will set out for Spain by way of you, 29 and I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of Christ’s blessing.
30 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters,[x] through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf. 31 Pray[y] that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea and that my ministry in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. 33 Now may the God of peace be with all of you. Amen.[z]
Footnotes
- Romans 15:1 tn Grk “and not please ourselves.” NT Greek negatives used in contrast like this are often not absolute, but relative: “not so much one as the other.”
- Romans 15:3 sn A quotation from Ps 69:9.
- Romans 15:5 tn Grk “grant you to think the same among one another.”
- Romans 15:8 tn Grk “of the circumcision”; that is, the Jews.
- Romans 15:8 tn Or “to the patriarchs.”
- Romans 15:9 tn There are two major syntactical alternatives which are both awkward: (1) One could make “glorify” dependent on “Christ has become a minister” and coordinate with “to confirm” and the result would be rendered “Christ has become a minister of circumcision to confirm the promises…and so that the Gentiles might glorify God.” (2) One could make “glorify” dependent on “I tell you” and coordinate with “Christ has become a minister” and the result would be rendered “I tell you that Christ has become a minister of circumcision…and that the Gentiles glorify God.” The second rendering is preferred.
- Romans 15:9 sn A quotation from Ps 18:49.
- Romans 15:10 sn A quotation from Deut 32:43.
- Romans 15:11 sn A quotation from Ps 117:1.
- Romans 15:12 sn A quotation from Isa 11:10.
- Romans 15:13 tn Grk “in the believing” or “as [you] believe,” with the object “him” supplied from the context. The referent could be God (15:13a) or Christ (15:12).
- Romans 15:14 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
- Romans 15:16 tn Grk “serving.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text, but in keeping with contemporary English style, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
- Romans 15:16 tn The genitive in the phrase τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ θεοῦ (to euangelion tou theou, “the gospel of God”) could be translated as either a subjective genitive (“the gospel which God brings”) or an objective genitive (“the gospel about God”). Either is grammatically possible. This is possibly an instance of a plenary genitive (see ExSyn 119-21; M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek, §§36-39). If so, an interplay between the two concepts is intended: The gospel which God brings is in fact the gospel about himself.
- Romans 15:16 tn Grk “so that the offering of the Gentiles may become acceptable.” This could be understood to refer to an offering belonging to the Gentiles (a possessive genitive) or made by the Gentiles (subjective genitive), but more likely the phrase should be understood as an appositive genitive, with the Gentiles themselves consisting of the offering (so J. D. G. Dunn, Romans [WBC 38], 2:860). The latter view is reflected in the translation “so that the Gentiles may become an acceptable offering.”
- Romans 15:17 tc ‡ After οὖν (oun), several significant Alexandrian and Western mss (B C D F G 81 365) have τήν (tēn). The article is lacking in א A Ψ 33 1175 1241 1505 1739 1881 M however. P46 supplies a relative pronoun and has a different reading entirely (“which I have [as a] boast”). Articles were frequently introduced to clarify the meaning of the text. In this instance, since the word modified (καύχησιν, kauchēsin) is third declension, a visual oversight (resulting in omission) is less likely. Hence, the shorter reading is probably earlier. The difference in translation between these first two options is negligible (“I have the boast” or “I have a boast”). NA28 puts the article in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.tn Grk “Therefore I have a boast.”
- Romans 15:18 tn Grk “unto obedience.”
- Romans 15:21 sn A quotation from Isa 52:15.
- Romans 15:23 tn Grk “now no longer having a place…I have.”
- Romans 15:23 tn Grk “but having a desire…for many years.”
- Romans 15:24 tn Grk “and to be helped by you.” The passive construction was changed to an active one in the translation.
- Romans 15:27 tn Grk “to them”; the referent (the Jerusalem saints) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Romans 15:28 tn Grk “have sealed this fruit to them.”
- Romans 15:30 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
- Romans 15:31 tn Verses 30-31 form one long sentence in the Greek but have been divided into two distinct sentences for clarity in English.
- Romans 15:33 tc Some mss lack the word “Amen” here, one of them (P46) also inserting 16:25-27 at this point. See the tc note at 16:25 for more information.
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