Paul's Greeting and Longing to Visit Rome
Study note
Paul opens with his credentials as a called apostle, set apart for the gospel that was promised through the Old Testament prophets and centered on Jesus Christ. He expresses deep affection for the Roman believers, thanking God for their well-known faith and sharing his persistent desire to visit them. Paul feels a sense of obligation to preach the gospel to all people, whether cultured or uncultured, and he is eager to share it in Rome as well.
1 I, Paul, am writing this letter. I belong to Jesus Christ and serve him. God picked me and gave me a special job: to tell everyone the amazing message that comes from God. Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,
2 This message is not new. God talked about it a long time ago through people who spoke for him, and it was written down in the holy scriptures. (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)
3 The message is all about God's Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. As a human being, he was born into King David's family. Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
4 But when God raised him from the dead, the Holy Spirit proved that Jesus truly is the powerful Son of God. And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
5 Jesus gave us an amazing gift and a job to do. He sent us out so that people from every nation would hear about him, trust him, and follow him. By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
6 You are part of that group too. God has called you to belong to Jesus Christ. Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:
7 I am writing to all of you in Rome. God loves you and has invited you to be his holy people. May you experience kindness and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
8 Before anything else, I want to thank God through Jesus Christ for every one of you. People everywhere are talking about how strong your faith is. First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.
9 God knows I am telling the truth -- I serve him with all my heart by spreading the good news about his Son. And I never stop praying for you. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;
10 Every time I pray, I ask God to somehow make it possible for me to finally visit you. Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.
11 I want to see you so I can share something from God that will help your faith grow stronger. For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;
12 What I mean is this: when we get together, your faith and my faith will lift each other up. That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.
13 I want you to know, my friends, that I have tried to come see you many times, but something always got in the way. I wanted to see good things happen among you, just like I have seen among other non-Jewish people. Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles.
14 I owe it to everyone to share this message. It does not matter what culture they come from or whether they are educated or not. I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.
15 Therefore I am so excited to come and share the good news with you in Rome too. So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
Study note
These two verses form the thesis statement of the entire letter. Paul declares without shame that the gospel is God's power for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. In the gospel, God's righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, quoting the prophet Habakkuk to establish that the righteous person lives by faith rather than by human effort.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
17 This message shows us how God makes people right with him. It all starts with faith and it all ends with faith. The scriptures say it this way: 'The person who is right with God will live by trusting him.' For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
God's Wrath Against Unrighteousness
Study note
Paul begins his case that all humanity needs the gospel by showing that God's wrath is revealed against those who suppress the truth. Although God has made himself known through creation, people exchanged his glory for idols and were given over to degrading passions and a depraved mind. The downward progression from idolatry to immorality to a comprehensive catalog of wickedness illustrates what happens when people abandon the knowledge of God.
18 But God also shows his anger from heaven. He is angry at everyone who pushes away the truth and lives in a wicked way. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19 They can clearly see what God is like because he has shown it to them. Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.
20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
21 Even though they knew about God, they refused to treat him like God or say thank you to him. Their thinking became pointless, and darkness filled their foolish hearts. Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 They thought they were so smart, but they turned out to be fools. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 Instead of worshiping the glorious God who lives forever, they made statues. The statues looked like people who die, and like birds, animals, and snakes. And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
24 So God stepped back and let them follow the sinful wishes of their hearts. They treated their own bodies in shameful ways. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25 They swapped what is true about God for something fake. They bowed down to things God made instead of to God himself, who deserves praise forever. Amen. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26 Because of this, God let them chase shameful desires. Women stopped having natural relations. They started having unnatural ones. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 Men did the same thing. They turned away from natural relations with women and burned with desire for each other. Men did shameful things with other men and suffered the consequences that their wrong choices brought on them. And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28 They decided God was not worth thinking about. So God let their minds get so twisted that they did things no one should ever do. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
29 Their lives are packed with every kind of wrong -- sexual sin, evil, selfishness, and cruelty. They overflow with jealousy, violence, fighting, lying, and mean thoughts. They spread rumors, Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
30 they trash other people's names, they hate God, they are rude, stuck-up, and full of themselves. They dream up new ways to do wrong, and they refuse to listen to their parents. Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
31 They have no understanding, they break their promises, they show no love, and they never show mercy. Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
32 They know perfectly well that God says people who live this way deserve death. But they keep right on doing these things anyway, and they cheer on others who do them too. Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.