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Read the New Testament in 24 Weeks

A reading plan that walks through the entire New Testament in 24 weeks of daily readings.

Duration: 168 days

Romans 2-3

Chapter 2

God’s Just Judgment. ¹^[a]Therefore, you are without excuse,^(A) every one of you who passes judgment.^[b] For by the standard by which you judge another you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the very same things. ²We know that the judgment of God on those who do such things is true. ³Do you suppose, then, you who judge those who engage in such things and yet do them yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God?^(B) ⁴Or do you hold his priceless kindness, forbearance, and patience in low esteem, unaware that the kindness of God would lead you to repentance?^(C) ⁵By your stubbornness and impenitent heart,^(D) you are storing up wrath for yourself for the day of wrath and revelation of the just judgment of God, ⁶^(E)who will repay everyone according to his works:^[c] ⁷eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, ⁸but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness.^(F) ⁹Yes, affliction and distress will come upon every human being who does evil, Jew first and then Greek. ¹⁰^(G)But there will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good, Jew first and then Greek. ¹¹^[d]^(H)There is no partiality with God.

Judgment by the Interior Law.^[e] ¹²All who sin outside the law will also perish without reference to it, and all who sin under the law will be judged in accordance with it.^(I) ¹³For it is not those who hear the law who are just in the sight of God; rather, those who observe the law will be justified.^(J) ¹⁴For when the Gentiles who do not have the law by nature observe the prescriptions of the law, they are a law for themselves even though they do not have the law.^(K) ¹⁵They show that the demands of the law are written in their hearts,^[f] while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even defend them ¹⁶on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge people’s hidden works through Christ Jesus.^(L)

Judgment by the Mosaic Law.^[g] ¹⁷Now if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast of God^(M) ¹⁸and know his will and are able to discern what is important since you are instructed from the law,^(N) ¹⁹and if you are confident that you are a guide for the blind and a light for those in darkness,^(O) ²⁰that you are a trainer of the foolish and teacher of the simple,^(P) because in the law you have the formulation of knowledge and truth— ²¹then you who teach another, are you failing to teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal?^(Q) ²²You who forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? ²³You who boast of the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? ²⁴^(R)For, as it is written, “Because of you the name of God is reviled among the Gentiles.”^[h]

²⁵^(S)Circumcision, to be sure, has value if you observe the law; but if you break the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.^(T) ²⁶Again, if an uncircumcised man keeps the precepts of the law, will he not be considered circumcised?^(U) ²⁷Indeed, those who are physically uncircumcised but carry out the law will pass judgment on you, with your written law and circumcision, who break the law. ²⁸One is not a Jew outwardly. True circumcision is not outward, in the flesh.^(V) ²⁹Rather, one is a Jew inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart, in the spirit, not the letter; his praise is not from human beings but from God.^(W)

Chapter 3

Answers to Objections. ¹^[i]What advantage is there then in being a Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? ²Much, in every respect. [For] in the first place, they were entrusted with the utterances of God.^(X) ³What if some were unfaithful? Will their infidelity nullify the fidelity of God?^(Y) ⁴Of course not! God must be true, though every human being is a liar,^[j] as it is written:

“That you may be justified in your words,
and conquer when you are judged.”^(Z)

⁵But if our wickedness provides proof of God’s righteousness, what can we say? Is God unjust, humanly speaking, to inflict his wrath?^(AA) ⁶Of course not! For how else is God to judge the world? ⁷But if God’s truth redounds to his glory through my falsehood, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? ⁸And why not say—as we are accused and as some claim we say—that we should do evil that good may come of it? Their penalty is what they deserve.^(AB)

Universal Bondage to Sin.^[k] ⁹Well, then, are we better off? Not entirely, for we have already brought the charge against Jews and Greeks alike that they are all under the domination of sin,^(AC) ¹⁰as it is written:^(AD)

“There is no one just, not one,
¹¹    there is no one who understands,
        there is no one who seeks God.
¹²All have gone astray; all alike are worthless;
    there is not one who does good,
        [there is not] even one.
¹³Their throats are open graves;
    they deceive with their tongues;
the venom of asps is on their lips;^(AE)
¹⁴    their mouths are full of bitter cursing.^(AF)
¹⁵Their feet are quick to shed blood;^(AG)
¹⁶    ruin and misery are in their ways,
¹⁷and the way of peace they know not.
¹⁸    There is no fear of God before their eyes.”^(AH)

¹⁹Now we know that what the law^[l] says is addressed to those under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world stand accountable to God,^(AI) ²⁰since no human being will be justified in his sight^[m] by observing the law; for through the law comes consciousness of sin.^(AJ)

III. Justification Through Faith in Christ

Justification Apart from the Law.^[n] ²¹But now^[o] the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, though testified to by the law and the prophets,^(AK) ²²the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction;^(AL) ²³all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God.^(AM) ²⁴They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus,^(AN) ²⁵whom God set forth as an expiation,^[p] through faith, by his blood, to prove his righteousness because of the forgiveness of sins previously committed,^(AO) ²⁶through the forbearance of God—to prove his righteousness in the present time, that he might be righteous and justify the one who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷^(AP)What occasion is there then for boasting?^[q] It is ruled out. On what principle, that of works? No, rather on the principle of faith.^[r] ²⁸For we consider that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law.^(AQ) ²⁹Does God belong to Jews alone? Does he not belong to Gentiles, too? Yes, also to Gentiles,^(AR) ³⁰for God is one and will justify the circumcised on the basis of faith and the uncircumcised through faith.^(AS) ³¹Are we then annulling the law by this faith? Of course not!^(AT) On the contrary, we are supporting the law.^[s]

Footnotes

2:1–3:20 After his general indictment of the Gentile, Paul shows that in spite of special revelation Jews enjoy no advantage in moral status before God (Rom 3:1–8). With the entire human race now declared guilty before God (Rom 3:9–20), Paul will then be able to display the solution for the total problem: salvation through God’s redemptive work that is revealed in Christ Jesus for all who believe (Rom 3:21–31).
2:1–11 As a first step in his demonstration that Jews enjoy no real moral supremacy over Gentiles, Paul explains that the final judgment will be a review of performance, not of privilege. From this perspective Gentiles stand on an equal footing with Jews, and Jews cannot condemn the sins of Gentiles without condemning themselves.
2:6 Will repay everyone according to his works: Paul reproduces the Septuagint text of Ps 62:12 and Prv 24:12.
2:11 No partiality with God: this sentence is not at variance with the statements in Rom 2:9–10. Since Jews are the first to go under indictment, it is only fair that they be given first consideration in the distribution of blessings. Basic, of course, is the understanding that God accepts no bribes (Dt 10:17).
2:12–16 Jews cannot reasonably demand from Gentiles the standard of conduct inculcated in the Old Testament since God did not address its revelation to them. Rather, God made it possible for Gentiles to know instinctively the difference between right and wrong. But, as Paul explained in Rom 1:18–32, humanity misread the evidence of God’s existence, power, and divinity, and “while claiming to be wise, they became fools” (Rom 1:22).
2:15 Paul expands on the thought of Jer 31:33; Wis 17:11.
2:17–29 Mere possession of laws is no evidence of virtue. By eliminating circumcision as an elitist moral sign, Paul clears away the last obstacle to his presentation of justification through faith without claims based on the receipt of circumcision and its attendant legal obligations.
2:24 According to Is 52:5 the suffering of Israel prompts her enemies to revile God. Paul uses the passage in support of his point that the present immorality of Israelites is the cause of such defamation.
3:1–4 In keeping with the popular style of diatribe, Paul responds to the objection that his teaching on the sinfulness of all humanity detracts from the religious prerogatives of Israel. He stresses that Jews have remained the vehicle of God’s revelation despite their sins, though this depends on the fidelity of God.
3:4 Though every human being is a liar: these words reproduce the Greek text of Ps 116:11. The rest of the verse is from Ps 51:6.
3:9–20 Well, then, are we better off?: this phrase can also be translated “Are we at a disadvantage?” but the latter version does not substantially change the overall meaning of the passage. Having explained that Israel’s privileged status is guaranteed by God’s fidelity, Paul now demonstrates the infidelity of the Jews by a catena of citations from scripture, possibly derived from an existing collection of testimonia. These texts show that all human beings share the common burden of sin. They are linked together by mention of organs of the body: throat, tongue, lips, mouth, feet, eyes.
3:19 The law: Paul here uses the term in its broadest sense to mean all of the scriptures; none of the preceding texts is from the Torah or Pentateuch.
3:20 No human being will be justified in his sight: these words are freely cited from Ps 143:2. In place of the psalmist’s “no living person,” Paul substitutes “no human being” (literally “no flesh,” a Hebraism), and he adds “by observing the law.”
3:21–31 These verses provide a clear statement of Paul’s “gospel,” i.e., the principle of justification by faith in Christ. God has found a means of rescuing humanity from its desperate plight: Paul’s general term for this divine initiative is the righteousness of God (Rom 3:21). Divine mercy declares the guilty innocent and makes them so. God does this not as a result of the law but apart from it (Rom 3:21), and not because of any merit in human beings but through forgiveness of their sins (Rom 3:24), in virtue of the redemption wrought in Christ Jesus for all who believe (Rom 3:22, 24–25). God has manifested his righteousness in the coming of Jesus Christ, whose saving activity inaugurates a new era in human history.
3:21 But now: Paul adopts a common phrase used by Greek authors to describe movement from disaster to prosperity. The expressions indicate that Rom 3:21–26 are the consolatory answer to Rom 3:9–20.
3:25 Expiation: this rendering is preferable to “propitiation,” which suggests hostility on the part of God toward sinners. As Paul will be at pains to point out (Rom 5:8–10), it is humanity that is hostile to God.
3:27–31 People cannot boast of their own holiness, since it is God’s free gift (Rom 3:27), both to the Jew who practices circumcision out of faith and to the Gentile who accepts faith without the Old Testament religious culture symbolized by circumcision (Rom 3:29–30).
3:27 Principle of faith: literally, “law of faith.” Paul is fond of wordplay involving the term “law”; cf. Rom 7:21, 23; 8:2. Since “law” in Greek may also connote “custom” or “principle,” his readers and hearers would have sensed no contradiction in the use of the term after the negative statement concerning law in Rom 3:20.
3:31 We are supporting the law: giving priority to God’s intentions. God is the ultimate source of law, and the essence of law is fairness. On the basis of the Mosaic covenant, God’s justice is in question if those who sinned against the law are permitted to go free (see Rom 3:23–26). In order to rescue all humanity rather than condemn it, God thinks of an alternative: the law or “principle” of faith (Rom 3:27). What can be more fair than to admit everyone into the divine presence on the basis of forgiveness grasped by faith? Indeed, this principle of faith antedates the Mosaic law, as Paul will demonstrate in Rom 4, and does not therefore mark a change in divine policy.

New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.