Romans 10-16

Easy-to-Read Version

10 Brothers and sisters, what I want most is for all the people of Israel to be saved. That is my prayer to God. ² I can say this about them: They really try hard to follow God, but they don’t know the right way. ³ They did not know the way that God makes people right with him. And they tried to make themselves right in their own way. So they did not accept God’s way of making people right. ⁴ Christ ended the law so that everyone who believes in him is made right with God.

⁵ Moses writes about being made right by following the law. He says, “The person who obeys these laws is the one who will have life through them.”^{[a] 6} But this is what the Scriptures say about being made right through faith: “Don’t say to yourself, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’” (This means “Who will go up to heaven to get Christ and bring him down to earth?”) ⁷ “And don’t say, ‘Who will go down into the world below?’” (This means “Who will go down to get Christ and bring him up from death?”)

⁸ This is what the Scripture says: “God’s teaching is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart.”^[b] It is the teaching of faith that we tell people. ⁹ If you openly say, “Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart that God raised him from death, you will be saved. ¹⁰ Yes, we believe in Jesus deep in our hearts, and so we are made right with God. And we openly say that we believe in him, and so we are saved.

¹¹ Yes, the Scriptures say, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disappointed.”^{[c] 12} It says this because there is no difference between those who are Jews and those who are not. The same Lord is the Lord of all people. And he richly blesses everyone who looks to him for help. ¹³ Yes, “everyone who trusts in the Lord^[d] will be saved.”^[e]

¹⁴ But before people can pray to the Lord for help, they must believe in him. And before they can believe in the Lord, they must hear about him. And for anyone to hear about the Lord, someone must tell them. ¹⁵ And before anyone can go and tell them, they must be sent. As the Scriptures say, “How wonderful it is to see someone coming to tell good news!”^[f]

¹⁶ But not all the people accepted that good news. Isaiah said, “Lord, who believed what we told them?”^{[g] 17} So faith comes from hearing the Good News. And people hear the Good News when someone tells them about Christ.

¹⁸ But I ask, “Did those people not hear the Good News?” Yes, they heard—as the Scriptures say,

¹⁹ Again I ask, “Did the people of Israel not understand?” Yes, they did understand. First, Moses says this for God:

²⁰ Then Isaiah is bold enough to say this for God:

²¹ But about the people of Israel God says,

God Has Not Forgotten His People

11 So I ask, “Did God force his people to leave him?” Of course not. I myself am an Israelite. I am from the family of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. ² God chose the Israelites to be his people before they were born. And he did not force them to leave. Surely you know what the Scriptures say about Elijah. The Scriptures tell about Elijah praying to God against the people of Israel. He said, ³ “Lord, they have killed your prophets and destroyed your altars. I am the only prophet still living, and they are trying to kill me now.”^{[h] 4} But what answer did God give to Elijah? God said, “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have never given worship to Baal.”^[i]

⁵ It is the same now. God has chosen a few people by his grace. ⁶ And if he chose them by grace, then it is not what they have done that made them his people. If they could be made his people by what they did, his gift of grace would not really be a gift.

⁷ So this is what has happened: The people of Israel wanted God’s blessing, but they did not all get it. The people he chose did get his blessing, but the others became hard and refused to listen to him. ⁸ As the Scriptures say,

⁹ And David says,

¹¹ So I ask: When the Jews fell, did that fall destroy them? No! But their mistake brought salvation to those who are not Jews. The purpose of this was to make the Jews jealous. ¹² Their mistake brought rich blessings to the world. And what they lost brought rich blessings to the non-Jewish people. So surely the world will get much richer blessings when enough Jews become the kind of people God wants.

¹³ Now I am speaking to you people who are not Jews. I am an apostle to the non-Jewish people. So while I have that work, I will do the best I can. ¹⁴ I hope I can make my own people jealous. That way, maybe I can help some of them to be saved. ¹⁵ God turned away from the Jews. When that happened, he became friends with the other people in the world. So when he accepts the Jews, it will be like bringing people to life after death. ¹⁶ If the first piece of bread is offered to God, then the whole loaf is made holy. If the roots of a tree are holy, the tree’s branches are holy too.

¹⁷ It is as if some of the branches from an olive tree have been broken off, and the branch of a wild olive tree has been joined to that first tree. If you are not a Jew, you are the same as that wild branch, and you now share the strength and life of the first tree. ¹⁸ But don’t act as if you are better than those branches that were broken off. You have no reason to be proud of yourself, because you don’t give life to the root. The root gives life to you. ¹⁹ You might say, “Branches were broken off so that I could be joined to their tree.” ²⁰ That is true. But those branches were broken off because they did not believe. And you continue to be part of the tree only because you believe. Don’t be proud, but be afraid. ²¹ If God did not let the natural branches of that tree stay, he will not let you stay if you stop believing.

²² So you see that God is kind, but he can also be very strict. He punishes those who stop following him. But he is kind to you, if you continue trusting in his kindness. If you don’t continue depending on him, you will be cut off from the tree. ²³ And if the Jews will believe in God again, he will accept them back. He is able to put them back where they were. ²⁴ It is not natural for a wild branch to become part of a good tree. But you non-Jewish people are like a branch cut from a wild olive tree. And you were joined to a good olive tree. But those Jews are like a branch that grew from the good tree. So surely they can be joined to their own tree again.

²⁵ I want you to understand this secret truth, brothers and sisters. This truth will help you understand that you don’t know everything. The truth is this: Part of Israel has been made stubborn, but that will change when enough non-Jewish people have come to God. ²⁶ And that is how all Israel will be saved. The Scriptures say,

²⁸ The Jews refuse to accept the Good News, so they are God’s enemies. This has happened to help you who are not Jews. But they are still God’s chosen people, and he loves them because of the promises he made to their ancestors. ²⁹ God never changes his mind about the people he calls. He never decides to take back the blessings he has given them. ³⁰ At one time you refused to obey God. But now you have received mercy, because the Jews refused to obey. ³¹ And now they are the ones who refuse to obey, because God showed mercy to you. But this happened so that they can also receive mercy from him. ³² All people have refused to obey God. And he has put them all together as people who don’t obey him so that he can show mercy to everyone.

Praise to God

³³ Yes, God’s riches are very great! His wisdom and knowledge have no end! No one can explain what God decides. No one can understand his ways. ³⁴ As the Scriptures say,

³⁶ Yes, God made all things. And everything continues through him and for him. To God be the glory forever! Amen.

Give Your Lives to God

12 So I beg you, brothers and sisters, because of the great mercy God has shown us, offer your lives^[j] as a living sacrifice to him—an offering that is only for God and pleasing to him. Considering what he has done, it is only right that you should worship him in this way. ² Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.

³ God has given me a special gift, and that is why I have something to say to each one of you. Don’t think that you are better than you really are. You must see yourself just as you are. Decide what you are by the faith God has given each of us. ⁴ Each one of us has one body, and that body has many parts. These parts don’t all do the same thing. ⁵ In the same way, we are many people, but in Christ we are all one body. We are the parts of that body, and each part belongs to all the others.

⁶ We all have different gifts. Each gift came because of the grace God gave us. Whoever has the gift of prophecy should use that gift in a way that fits the kind of faith they have. ⁷ Whoever has the gift of serving should serve. Whoever has the gift of teaching should teach. ⁸ Whoever has the gift of comforting others should do that. Whoever has the gift of giving to help others should give generously. Whoever has the gift of leading should work hard at it. Whoever has the gift of showing kindness to others should do it gladly.

⁹ Your love must be real. Hate what is evil. Do only what is good. ¹⁰ Love each other in a way that makes you feel close like brothers and sisters. And give each other more honor than you give yourself. ¹¹ As you serve the Lord, work hard and don’t be lazy. Be excited about serving him! ¹² Be happy because of the hope you have. Be patient when you have troubles. Pray all the time. ¹³ Share with God’s people who need help. Look for people who need help and welcome them into your homes.

¹⁴ Wish only good for those who treat you badly. Ask God to bless them, not curse them. ¹⁵ When others are happy, you should be happy with them. And when others are sad, you should be sad too. ¹⁶ Live together in peace with each other. Don’t be proud, but be willing to be friends with people who are not important to others. Don’t think of yourself as smarter than everyone else.

¹⁷ If someone does you wrong, don’t try to pay them back by hurting them. Try to do what everyone thinks is right. ¹⁸ Do the best you can to live in peace with everyone. ¹⁹ My friends, don’t try to punish anyone who does wrong to you. Wait for God to punish them with his anger. In the Scriptures the Lord says,

²⁰ But you should do this:

²¹ Don’t let evil defeat you, but defeat evil by doing good.

Obey Your Government Rulers

13 All of you must obey the government rulers. Everyone who rules was given the power to rule by God. And all those who rule now were given that power by God. ² So anyone who is against the government is really against something God has commanded. Those who are against the government bring punishment on themselves. ³ People who do right don’t have to fear the rulers. But those who do wrong must fear them. Do you want to be free from fearing them? Then do only what is right, and they will praise you.

⁴ Rulers are God’s servants to help you. But if you do wrong, you have reason to be afraid. They have the power to punish, and they will use it. They are God’s servants to punish those who do wrong. ⁵ So you must obey the government, not just because you might be punished, but because you know it is the right thing to do.

⁶ And this is why you pay taxes too. Those rulers are working for God, and they give all their time to the work of ruling. ⁷ Give everyone what you owe them. If you owe them any kind of tax, then pay it. Show respect to those you should respect. And show honor to those you should honor.

Loving Others Is the Only Law

⁸ You should owe nothing to anyone, except that you will always owe love to each other. The person who loves others has done all that the law commands. ⁹ The law says, “You must not commit adultery, you must not murder anyone, you must not steal, you must not want what belongs to someone else.”^[l] All these commands and all other commands are really only one rule: “Love your neighbor^[m] the same as you love yourself.”^{[n] 10} Love doesn’t hurt others. So loving is the same as obeying all the law.

¹¹ I say this because you know that we live in an important time. Yes, it is now time for you to wake up from your sleep. Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. ¹² The night is almost finished. The day is almost here. So we should stop doing whatever belongs to darkness. We should prepare ourselves to fight evil with the weapons that belong to the light. ¹³ We should live in a right way, like people who belong to the day. We should not have wild parties or be drunk. We should not be involved in sexual sin or any kind of immoral behavior. We should not cause arguments and trouble or be jealous. ¹⁴ But be like the Lord Jesus Christ, so that when people see what you do, they will see Christ. Don’t think about how to satisfy the desires of your sinful self.

Don’t Criticize Others

14 Be willing to accept those who still have doubts about what believers can do. And don’t argue with them about their different ideas. ² Some people believe they can eat any kind of food,^[o] but those who have doubts eat only vegetables. ³ Those who know they can eat any kind of food must not feel that they are better than those who eat only vegetables. And those who eat only vegetables must not decide that those who eat all foods are wrong. God has accepted them. ⁴ You cannot judge the servants of someone else. Their own master decides if they are doing right or wrong. And the Lord’s servants will be right, because the Lord is able to make them right.

⁵ Some people might believe that one day is more important than another. And others might believe that every day is the same. Everyone should be sure about their beliefs in their own mind. ⁶ Those who think one day is more important than other days are doing that for the Lord. And those who eat all kinds of food are doing that for the Lord. Yes, they give thanks to God for that food. And those who refuse to eat some foods do that for the Lord. They also give thanks to God.

⁷ We don’t live or die just for ourselves. ⁸ If we live, we are living for the Lord. And if we die, we are dying for the Lord. So living or dying, we belong to the Lord. ⁹ That is why Christ died and rose from death to live again—so that he could be Lord over those who have died and those who are living.

¹⁰ So why do you judge your brother or sister in Christ? Or why do you think that you are better than they are? We will all stand before God, and he will judge us all. ¹¹ Yes, the Scriptures say,

¹² So each of us will have to explain to God about the things we do.

Don’t Cause Others to Sin

¹³ So we should stop judging each other. Let’s decide not to do anything that will cause a problem for a brother or sister or hurt their faith. ¹⁴ I know that there is no food that is wrong to eat. The Lord Jesus is the one who convinced me of that. But if someone believes that something is wrong, then it is wrong for that person.

¹⁵ If you hurt the faith of your brother or sister because of something you eat, you are not really following the way of love. Don’t destroy anyone’s faith by eating something they think is wrong. Christ died for them. ¹⁶ Don’t allow what is good for you to become something they say is evil. ¹⁷ In God’s kingdom, what we eat and drink is not important. Here is what is important: a right way of life, peace, and joy—all from the Holy Spirit. ¹⁸ Whoever serves Christ by living this way is pleasing God, and they will be accepted by others.

¹⁹ So let’s try as hard as we can to do what will bring peace. Let’s do whatever will help each other grow stronger in faith. ²⁰ Don’t let the eating of food destroy the work of God. All food is right to eat, but it is wrong for anyone to eat something that hurts the faith of another person. ²¹ It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that hurts the faith of your brother or sister.

²² You should keep your beliefs about these things a secret between yourself and God. It is a blessing to be able to do what you think is right without feeling guilty. ²³ But anyone who eats something without being sure it is right is doing wrong. That is because they did not believe it was right. And if you do anything that you believe is not right, it is sin.

15 Some of us have no problem with these things. So we should be patient with those who are not so strong and have doubts. We should not do what pleases us ² but do what pleases them and is for their good. We should do whatever helps everyone grow stronger in faith. ³ Even Christ did not live trying to please himself. As the Scriptures say about him, “Those people who insulted you have also insulted me.”^{[p] 4} Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us. Those things were written so that we could have hope. That hope comes from the patience and encouragement that the Scriptures give us. ⁵ All patience and encouragement come from God. And I pray that God will help you all agree with each other, as Christ Jesus wants. ⁶ Then you will all be joined together. And all together you will give glory to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁷ Christ accepted you, so you should accept each other. This will bring honor^[q] to God. ⁸ I tell you that Christ became a servant of the Jews to show that God has done what he promised their great ancestors. ⁹ Christ also did this so that the non-Jewish people could praise God for the mercy he gives to them. The Scriptures say,

¹⁰ And the Scriptures say,

¹¹ The Scriptures also say,

¹² And Isaiah says,

¹³ I pray that the God who gives hope will fill you with much joy and peace as you trust in him. Then you will have more and more hope, and it will flow out of you by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Paul Talks About His Work

¹⁴ My brothers and sisters, I know without a doubt that you are full of goodness and have all the knowledge you need. So you are certainly able to counsel each other. ¹⁵ But I have written to you very openly about some things that I wanted you to remember. I did this because God gave me this special gift: ¹⁶ to be a servant of Christ Jesus for those who are not Jews. I serve like a priest whose duty it is to tell God’s Good News. He gave me this work so that you non-Jewish people could be an offering that he will accept—an offering made holy by the Holy Spirit.

¹⁷ That is why I feel so good about what I have done for God in my service to Christ Jesus. ¹⁸ I will not talk about anything I did myself. I will talk only about what Christ has done with me in leading the non-Jewish people to obey God. They have obeyed him because of what I have said and done. ¹⁹ And they obeyed him because of the power of the miraculous signs and wonders that happened—all because of the power of God’s Spirit. I have told people the Good News about Christ in every place from Jerusalem to Illyricum. And so I have finished that part of my work. ²⁰ I always want to tell the Good News in places where people have never heard of Christ. I do this because I don’t want to build on the work that someone else has already started. ²¹ But as the Scriptures say,

Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome

²² That’s what has kept me so busy and prevented my coming to see you even though I have wanted to come many times.

²³ Now I have finished my work in these areas. And for many years I have wanted to visit you. ²⁴ So I will visit you when I go to Spain. Yes, I hope to visit you while I am traveling to Spain, and I will stay and enjoy being with you. Then you can help me continue on my trip.

²⁵ Now I am going to Jerusalem to help God’s people there. ²⁶ Some of them are poor, and the believers in Macedonia and Achaia wanted to help them. So they gathered some money to send them. ²⁷ They were happy to do this. And it was like paying something they owed them, because as non-Jews they have been blessed spiritually by the Jews. So now they should use the material blessings they have to help the Jews. ²⁸ I am going to Jerusalem to make sure the poor get this money that has been given for them.

After I finish that, I will leave for Spain and stop to visit you on the way. ²⁹ And I know that when I visit you, I will bring you Christ’s full blessing.

³⁰ Brothers and sisters, I beg you to help me in my work by praying to God for me. Do this because of our Lord Jesus and the love that the Spirit gives us. ³¹ Pray that I will be saved from those in Judea who refuse to accept our message. And pray that this help I am bringing to Jerusalem will please God’s people there. ³² Then, if God wants me to, I will come to you. I will come with joy, and together you and I will have a time of rest. ³³ The God who gives peace be with you all. Amen.

Paul Has Some Final Things to Say

16 I want you to know that you can trust our sister in Christ, Phoebe. She is a special servant of the church in Cenchrea. ² I ask you to accept her in the Lord. Accept her the way God’s people should. Help her with anything she needs from you. She has helped me very much, and she has helped many others too.

¹⁷ Brothers and sisters, I want you to be very careful of those who cause arguments and hurt people’s faith by teaching things that are against what you learned. Stay away from them. ¹⁸ People like that are not serving our Lord Christ. They are only pleasing themselves. They use fancy talk and say nice things to fool those who don’t know about evil. ¹⁹ Everyone has heard that you do what you were taught, and I am very happy about that. But I want you to be wise about what is good and to know nothing about what is evil.

²⁰ The God who brings peace will soon defeat Satan and give you power over him.

The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

²¹ Timothy, a worker together with me, sends you his greetings. Also Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater (these are my relatives) send their greetings.

²² I am Tertius, the one writing this letter for Paul. I send you my own greetings as one who belongs to the Lord.

²³ Gaius is letting me and the whole church here use his home. He sends his greetings to you. Erastus and our brother Quartus also send their greetings. Erastus is the city treasurer here. ^24 [u]

²⁵ Praise God! He is the one who can make you strong in faith. He can use the Good News that I teach to make you strong. It is the message about Jesus Christ that I tell people. That message is the secret truth that was hidden for ages and ages but has been made known. ²⁶ It has now been shown to us. It was made known by what the prophets wrote, as God commanded. And it has now been made known to all people so that they can believe and obey God, who lives forever. ²⁷ Glory forever to the only wise God through Jesus Christ. Amen.