Romans 1

1  FROM PAUL, a bond servant of Jesus Christ (the Messiah) called to be an apostle, (a special messenger) set apart to [preach] the Gospel (good news) of and from God,2  Which He promised in advance [long ago] through His prophets in the sacred Scriptures--3  [The Gospel] regarding His Son, Who as to the flesh (His human nature) was descended from David,4  And [as to His divine nature] according to the Spirit of holiness was openly designated the Son of God in power [in a striking, triumphant and miraculous manner] by His resurrection from the dead, even Jesus Christ our Lord (the Messiah, the Anointed One).5  It is through Him that we have received grace (God’s unmerited favor) and [our] apostleship to promote obedience to the faith and make disciples for His name’s sake among all the nations,6  And this includes you, called of Jesus Christ and invited [as you are] to belong to Him.7  To [you then] all God’s beloved ones in Rome, called to be saints and designated for a consecrated life: Grace and spiritual blessing and peace be yours from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.8  First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because [the report of] your faith is made known to all the world and is commended everywhere.9  For God is my witness, Whom I serve with my [whole] spirit [rendering priestly and spiritual service] in [preaching] the Gospel and [telling] the good news of His Son, how incessantly I always mention you when at my prayers.10  I keep pleading that somehow by God’s will I may now at last prosper and come to you.11  For I am yearning to see you, that I may impart and share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen and establish you;12  That is, that we may be mutually strengthened and encouraged and comforted by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.13  I want you to know, brethren, that many times I have planned and intended to come to you, though thus far I have been hindered and prevented, in order that I might have some fruit (some result of my labors) among you, as I have among the rest of the Gentiles.14  Both to Greeks and to barbarians (to the cultured and to the uncultured), both to the wise and the foolish, I have an obligation to discharge and a duty to perform and a debt to pay.15  So, for my part, I am willing and eagerly ready to preach the Gospel to you also who are in Rome.16  For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God’s power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,17  For in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith. 18  For God’s [holy] wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inoperative.19  For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God [Himself] has shown it to them.20  For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is, His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made (His handiworks). So [men] are without excuse [altogether without any defense or justification], 21  Because when they knew and recognized Him as God, they did not honor and glorify Him as God or give Him thanks. But instead they became futile and godless in their thinking [with vain imaginings, foolish reasoning, and stupid speculations] and their senseless minds were darkened.22  Claiming to be wise, they became fools [professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves].23  And by them the glory and majesty and excellence of the immortal God were exchanged for and represented by images, resembling mortal man and birds and beasts and reptiles.24  Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their [own] hearts to sexual impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves [abandoning them to the degrading power of sin],25  Because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, Who is blessed forever! Amen (so be it). 26  For this reason God gave them over and abandoned them to vile affections and degrading passions. For their women exchanged their natural function for an unnatural and abnormal one,27  And the men also turned from natural relations with women and were set ablaze (burning out, consumed) with lust for one another--men committing shameful acts with men and suffering in their own bodies and personalities the inevitable consequences and penalty of their wrong-doing and going astray, which was [their] fitting retribution.28  And so, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God or approve of Him or consider Him worth the knowing, God gave them over to a base and condemned mind to do things not proper or decent but loathsome,29  Until they were filled (permeated and saturated) with every kind of unrighteousness, iniquity, grasping and covetous greed, and malice. [They were] full of envy and jealousy, murder, strife, deceit and treachery, ill will and cruel ways. [They were] secret backbiters and gossipers,30  Slanderers, hateful to and hating God, full of insolence, arrogance, [and] boasting; inventors of new forms of evil, disobedient and undutiful to parents.31  [They were] without understanding, conscienceless and faithless, heartless and loveless [and] merciless.32  Though they are fully aware of God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them themselves but approve and applaud others who practice them.

Romans 1

Salutation

1 From Paul,t a slavets of Christ Jesus,s called to be an apostle,t set apart for the gospel of God.t2 This gospelt he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures,3 concerning his Son who was a descendantt of David with reference to the flesh,t4 who was appointed the Son-of-God-in-powers according to the Holy Spiritt by the resurrectiont from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.5 Through himt we have received grace and our apostleshipt to bring about the obediencet of faitht among all the Gentiles on behalf of his name.6 You also are among them,t called to belong to Jesus Christ.t

7 To all those loved by God in Rome,s called to be saints:t Grace and peace to yout from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Paul’s Desire to Visit Rome

8 First of all,t I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world.9 For God, whom I serve in my spirit by preaching the gospelt of his Son, is my witness thatt I continually remember you10 and I always askt in my prayers, if perhaps now at last I may succeed in visiting you according to the will of God.t11 For I long to see you, so that I may impart to you some spiritual gifts to strengthen you,12 that is, that we may be mutually comforted by one another’s faith,t both yours and mine.13 I do not want you to be unaware,s brothers and sisters,t that I often intended to come to you (and was prevented until now), so that I may have some fruit even among you, just as I already have among the rest of the Gentiles.t14 I am a debtort both to the Greeks and to the barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.

15 Thus I am eagert also to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome.s

The Power of the Gospel

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.s

17 For the righteousnesst of God is revealed in the gospelt from faith to faith,t just as it is written, “The righteous by faith will live.”s

The Condemnation of the Unrighteous

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of peoplet who suppress the truth by theirt unrighteousness,t19 because what can be known about God is plain to them,t because God has made it plain to them.20 For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So peoplet are without excuse.21 For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or give him thanks, but they became futile in their thoughts and their senseless heartst were darkened.22 Although they claimedt to be wise, they became fools

23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image resembling mortal human beingst or birds or four-footed animalss or reptiles.
24 Therefore God gave them overs in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonort their bodies among themselves.t

25 Theyt exchanged the truth of God for a liet and worshiped and served the creationt rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones,t

27 and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with woment and were inflamed in their passionst for one another. Ment committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God,t God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done.t29 They are filledt with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife witht envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips,30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents,31 senseless, covenant-breakers,t heartless, ruthless.

32 Although they fully knowt God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die,t they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.s