33 34 35 36 Who shall bring a charge against God's chosen? Who is it that condemns? It is Christ who died-yes, and who was raised, Who also pleads for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Distress or calamity or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword (even as it is written : For thy sake are we killed the whole day long, We are reckoned as sheep for the slaughter)? 37 Nay in all this we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life nor angels nor princi39 palities nor the present nor the future nor powers nor height nor depth nor aught else created shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 91 I speak the truth in Christ, I lie not--my conscience bears me witness 2 in the holy Spirit-that I suffer great sorrow and unceasing pain in my 3 heart. For I could wish myself accursed and banished from Christ for 4 the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh, men who are Israelites, whose are the sonship and the Glory and the covenants and the giving of the law and the services of worship and the promises, 5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is Christ (so far as regards the 6 flesh). He who is over all is God, blessed for ever: Amen. Not, however, that the word of God has failed! Far from it. 7 For not all those who belong to Israel are Israel; Nay, and all are not children because they are Abraham's offspring: 8 That is, the children of the flesh are not children of God, it is the 9 children of the promise who are counted as offspring. For this is the word of promise: About this time I will come and Sara shall have a son. 10 And further, when Rebekah also conceived by one man, by our father 11 Isaac-though the children were not yet born and had done nothing, either good or bad (that the Divine purpose which works by choice might 12 stand, independent of deeds, entirely a matter of his calling)-she was 13 told, The elder shall serve the younger; even as it is written, Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. 14 What then shall we say? Is there injustice with God? God forbid ! 15 He saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, And I will have compassion on whom I have compassion. 16 So then it is not a question of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but 17 of God who has mercy. For the scripture saith to Pharaoh, 18 19 For this very end have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, and that my name might be published abroad in all the earth. So then, he has mercy on whom he wills, And whom he wills he renders stubborn. Thou wilt say to me then, "Why does he still find fault? who can 20 oppose his purpose?" Nay, but who art thou, O man, to answer back to God? Shall the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why didst thou 21 make me thus?" What! has not the potter a right over the clay to make 1 Omitting [[Inooûs]]. out of the same lump one part a vessel for honour and another for dis22 honour? And what if God, though wishing to show his wrath and display his power, tolerated with much longsuffering vessels of wrath 23 fashioned for destruction, that 1 he might display the riches of his majesty upon vessels of mercy which he had previously prepared for majesty, 24 even upon us whom he called not only from the Jews but also from the 25 Gentiles? As he saith also in Hosea : 26 Those who were not my people I will call "my people,” And her who was not beloved, "beloved"; And it shall be that in the place where they were told, "You are not my people," There shall they be called "Sons of the living God." 27 And Isaiah cries regarding Israel: Though the number of the sons of 28 Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is the remnant that shall be saved; for the Lord will accomplish his word upon the earth with completeness and despatch. 29 And even as Isaiah has foretold: Had not the Lord of Sabaoth left us a residue, We had become like Sodom, we had been made like Gomorra. 30 What then shall we say? That Gentiles who did not press on after uprightness overtook uprightness, aye and the uprightness which is from 31 faith; while Israel, who did press on after the law of uprightness, failed 32 to attain the law. And why? Because they pressed on, not by faith but as 33 by deeds. They stumbled over the stone of stumbling: even as it is written, Lo I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of hindrance, Yet he who believes on him shall not be disappointed. 10 1 Brothers, my heart's wish and my prayer to God is for their salva2 tion. I bear them witness: they have zeal for God, but not according 3 to knowledge. For, as they were ignorant of God's uprightness and sought to set up their own, they did not submit themselves to the up4 rightness of God. For Christ is the end of the law, that everyone who believes may have uprightness. 5 6 Moses writes of the uprightness which is from the law : But the uprightness which is from faith speaks in this way: 8 9 Who shall ascend into heaven?" (That is, to bring Christ down) "Who shall descend into the abyss?' (That is, to bring Christ up from the dead). Nay, what does it say? The word is near thee, In thy mouth and in thy heart (That is, the word of faith which we preach). For if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, "Jesus is Lord," And believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved: With the heart man believes and is upright, With the mouth he makes confession and is saved. No one who believes on him shall be disappointed. 10 11 For, saith the scripture, 12 13 There is no difference between Jew and Greek, The same One is Lord of all, rich to all who call upon him: 1 Omitting [[xi]]. 14 15 16 How then are they to call on One on whom they have not believed? And how are people to preach, unless they are sent? Even as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good! But they did not all obey the glad tidings. For Isaiah says, Lord, 17 who has had faith in our message? So then, faith comes from the message, 18 and the message through the word about Christ. But, I ask, "Have they not heard?" Yes indeed : Their sound went out into all the earth, And their words to the ends of the world 19 But, I ask, "Has Israel not known?" First Moses says: I will stir you to jealousy by what is no nation, 20 And Isaiah makes bold to say: I have been found by those who were not seeking me, I am disclosed to those who inquired not after me. 21 But of Israel he says, The whole day long have I stretched out my hands to a 11 1 people disobedient and refractory. I ask then, "Has God thrust 10 aside his people?" God forbid! For I too am an Israelite myself, of 2 Abraham's offspring, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not thrust aside his people whom he foreknew. What! do you not know what the scripture saith in the place "Elijah"? How he pleads with God against 3 Israel, Lord, they have killed thy prophets, they have destroyed thy altars; 4 and I alone am left, and they seek my life. But what saith the oracle to him? I have left myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee 5 to Baal. So also at the present time, then, there is a remnant due to the 6 selection of grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer a matter of 7 deeds; otherwise grace would cease to be grace. What then is the result? that Israel has not obtained what it craves, while the chosen have 8 obtained it. And the rest have been hardened; just as it is written, God gave them a spirit of torpor, Eyes not to see, ears not to hear, down to this very day. 9 [And David says, Let their feast be made a snare and a trap, Yea a pitfall and a requital to them; And make thou their back bend continually.] 11 I ask then, “Did they stumble that they should fall?" God forbid ! Nay rather, it is by their slip that salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as 12 to stir themselves up to jealousy. Now if their slip proves the riches of the world, and their defect the riches of the Gentiles, how much more their 13 fulness! I am speaking to you, Gentiles. So far as I at least am 14 an apostle to the Gentiles I exalt my ministry, to see if I can somehow 15 stir those who are my flesh to jealousy, and so save some of them. For if their rejection proves the world's reconciliation, what shall their reception be? What but life from the dead? 16 Now if the firstfruit is holy, so is the lump: 17 If some of the branches were broken off, while thou, a wild olive, wast grafted in among them and didst come to share with them in the root of 18 the olive's fatness, exult not at the expense of the branches. And if thou art exulting, bethink thyself: thou bearest not the root, the root bears 19 thee. Thou wilt argue then, "Branches were broken off, that I might 20 be grafted in"? Truc, they were broken off by their unbelief, and thou 21 standest by thy faith. Be not highminded, but fear. For if God did not 22 spare the natural branches, neither will he spare thee. Look then at God's kindness and severity. Severity to those who fell, but God's kindness to thee if thou continue in his kindness. Otherwise thou too shalt 23 be cut out. Yea, and if they continue not in their unbelief, they too 24 shall be grafted in. God is able to graft them in again. For if thou wast cut out of what was by nature a wild olive and grafted, contrary to nature, into a garden olive, how much more shall these natural branches be grafted into their own olive? 25 For I would not have you ignorant of this secret, brothers, that you may not be wise in your own conceits: Israel has been but hardened in 26 part until the full number of the Gentiles should come in; and thus all Israel shall be saved. Even as it is written, 27 From Zion shall come the rescuer, He shall banish impieties from Jacob: Yea this is my covenant for them, When I take their sins away. 28 As regards the gospel they are indeed enemies for your sake, 29 But as regards the selection they are beloved for the sake of the fathers: For God never takes back his free gifts and his calling. 30 As you were once disobedient to God But have now obtained mercy through their disobedience : 31 So too these are now disobedient, 1 That they may become objects of the same mercy which was shown to you. 32 For God has shut up all under disobedience, 33 34 35 36 121 That upon all he may have mercy. O the depth of God's riches and wisdom and knowledge! How unsearchable his ways! Yea who has known the Lord's mind? Or who has been his counsellor? Or who has first given to him, And is to be repaid? Since from him and by him and for him all things exist To him be the majesty for ever: Amen. I appeal to you then, brothers, by the tender mercies of God, present your bodies as a sacrifice, living, holy, well-pleasing, to God: that 2 is the rational worship for you. And be not fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so as to prove what is the will of God, namely, what is good and well-pleasing and perfect. 3 For, through the grace granted to me, I tell every man who is among you, not to think over highly of himself, beyond what he should think; but to think soberly, in view of the measure of faith which God has 4 assigned to each. For in the same way as we have many members in one 5 body, and all the members have not the same function, so, many as we are, we are one body in Christ and separately members of each another. 6 And as we have talents which differ with the grace granted us-be it 7 prophecy, let us employ it in proportion to our faith: be it ministry, let 1 Omitting Y. 8 us employ it in ministering: the teacher in his teaching: he who exhorts, in his exhortation: he who contributes, with generosity: the president, 9 with earnest care: he who shows pity, with cheerfulness. Let love be un10 feigned. Abhor what is evil: cling to what is good. Be affectionate 11 to one another, in brotherly love; outdo one another in giving honour. Be not backward in earnestness, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord, 12, 13 rejoice in hope, be patient in distress, give yourselves to prayer, con14 tribute to the needs of the saints, aim at being hospitable. Bless those 15 who persecute you, bless them and curse not. Rejoice with the joyful, 16 weep with the weeping. Be of the same mind to one another; mind not what is high, but give yourselves up to what is lowly. Be not wise in 17 your own conceits. Render no man evil for evil. Be concerned for what is 18 honourable in the sight of all men. If possible, as far as it rests with 19 you, be at peace with all men. Beloved, avenge not yourselves, but let the Wrath have way for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord. For by doing this thou shalt heap burning coals upon his head. 21 Be not conquered by evil; but conquer evil by good. 13 1 Let every soul be subject to the higher authorities, for there is no authority which is not from God, and the existing authorities are instituted by 2 God. So that he who resists authority opposes what God has instituted; 3 and those who oppose shall be sentenced themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to evil. Wouldst thou have no terror of 4 authority? Then do good, and thou shalt get praise from it; for it is God's servant to thee for good. But if thou doest evil, be in terror; for not in vain does it wear the sword: it is God's servant, an avenger 5 for punishing him who practises evil. Wherefore subject you must be, out of regard not merely for the punishment, but also for conscience. 6 This also is the reason why you pay tribute; for magistrates are servants 7 of God, as they give themselves to this very business. Render to all their dues, tribute to whom tribute is due, customs to whom customs, 8 respect to whom respect, honour to whom honour. Owe no man anything, except to love one another--for he who loves another has 9 fulfilled the law. Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not murder, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not covet, these with any other commandment are gathered up in this word, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as 10 thyself. Love does no evil to its neighbour: to love, then, is to fulfil 11 the law. And do this, as you know the time; now is the hour for us to wake from sleep, for salvation is nearer us to-day than 12 when we first believed. The night is advanced, and the day is near. Then let us put away the deeds of the darkness, and put on the armour 13 of the light. Let us behave ourselves with propriety, as in the day: with no bouts of revelry and drunkenness, with no lewd and sensual acts, 14 with no quarrelling and jealousy. Nay, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to satisfy its desires. 14 1 Receive one who is weak in faith, but not to pass judgment upon 2 scruples. While one man has confidence to eat anything, he who is weak eats nothing but vegetables. 3 Let not him who eats despise him who refrains; Nor let him who refrains judge him who eats, 1 Reading ἡμᾶς. |