Romans 10
Contemporary English Version
10 Dear friends, my greatest wish and my prayer to God is for the people of Israel to be saved. 2 I know they love God, but they don't understand 3 what makes people acceptable to him. So they refuse to trust God, and they try to be acceptable by obeying the Law. 4 But Christ makes the Law no longer necessary[a] for those who become acceptable to God by faith.
Anyone Can Be Saved
5 (A) Moses said a person could become acceptable to God by obeying the Law. He did this when he wrote, “If you want to live, you must do all the Law commands.”
6 (B) But people whose faith makes them acceptable to God will never ask, “Who will go up to heaven to bring Christ down?” 7 Neither will they ask, “Who will go down into the world of the dead to raise him to life?”
8 All who are acceptable because of their faith simply say, “The message is as near as your mouth or your heart.” And this is the same message we preach about faith. 9 So you will be saved, if you honestly say, “Jesus is Lord,” and if you believe with all your heart that God raised him from death. 10 God will accept you and save you, if you truly believe this and tell it to others.
11 (C) The Scriptures say no one who has faith will be disappointed, 12 no matter if that person is a Jew or a Gentile. There is only one Lord, and he is generous to everyone who asks for his help. 13 (D) All who call out to the Lord will be saved.
14 How can people have faith in the Lord and ask him to save them, if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear, unless someone tells them? 15 (E) And how can anyone tell them without being sent by the Lord? The Scriptures say it is a beautiful sight to see even the feet of someone coming to preach the good news. 16 (F) Yet not everyone has believed the message. For example, the prophet Isaiah asked, “Lord, has anyone believed what we said?”
17 No one can have faith without hearing the message about Christ. 18 (G) But am I saying that the people of Israel did not hear? No, I am not! The Scriptures say,
“The message was told
everywhere on earth.
It was announced
all over the world.”
19 (H) Did the people of Israel understand or not? Moses answered this question when he told that the Lord had said,
“I will make Israel jealous
of people
who are a nation
of nobodies.
I will make them angry
with people
who don't understand
a thing.”
20 (I) Isaiah was fearless enough to tell that the Lord had said,
“I was found by people
who were not looking
for me.
I appeared to the ones
who were not asking
about me.”
21 (J) And Isaiah said about the people of Israel,
“All day long the Lord
has reached out
to people who are stubborn
and refuse to obey.”
Footnotes
- 10.4 But Christ makes the Law no longer necessary: Or “But Christ gives the full meaning to the Law.”
Romans 10
Legacy Standard Bible
10 Brothers, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation. 2 For I testify about them that they have (A)a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For not knowing about the (B)righteousness of God and (C)seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. 4 For (D)Christ is the [a]end of the law for righteousness to (E)everyone who believes.
Faith Comes by Hearing
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of law: “(F)The man who does these things shall live by them.” 6 But (G)the righteousness of faith speaks in this way: “(H)Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or ‘Who will go down into the (I)abyss?’ (that is, to (J)bring Christ up from the dead).” 8 But what does it say? “(K)The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 [b]that (L)if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and (M)believe in your heart that (N)God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, [c]leading to righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, [d]leading to salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “(O)Whoever believes upon Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For (P)there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is (Q)Lord of (R)all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him, 13 for “(S)Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him (T)whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without (U)a preacher? 15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “(V)How beautiful are the feet of those who (W)proclaim good news of good things!”
16 However, they (X)did not all heed the [e]good news, for Isaiah says, “(Y)Lord, who has believed our report?” 17 So faith comes from (Z)hearing, and hearing by (AA)the word [f]of Christ.
18 But I say, have they never heard? On the contrary, they have;
19 But I say, did Israel not know? First Moses says,
“(AC)I will (AD)make you jealous by that which is not a nation,
By a nation without understanding will I anger you.”
20 And Isaiah is very bold and says,
“(AE)I was found by those who did not seek Me,
I became manifest to those who did not ask for Me.”
21 But as for Israel He says, “(AF)All day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”
Footnotes
- Romans 10:4 Or goal
- Romans 10:9 Or because
- Romans 10:10 Lit to righteousness
- Romans 10:10 Lit to salvation
- Romans 10:16 Or gospel
- Romans 10:17 Or concerning Christ
- Romans 10:18 Or inhabited earth
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