1 This letter is from Paul. I am a servant owned by Jesus Christ and a missionary chosen by God to preach His Good News. ² The Good News was promised long ago by God’s early preachers in His Holy Writings. ³ It tells of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Who was born as a person in the flesh through the family of King David. ⁴ The Holy Spirit proved by a powerful act that Jesus our Lord is the Son of God because He was raised from the dead. ⁵ Jesus has given us His loving-favor and has made us His missionaries. We are to preach to the people of all nations that they should obey Him and put their trust in Him. ⁶ You have been chosen to belong to Jesus Christ also. ⁷ So I write to all of you in the city of Rome. God loves you and has chosen you to be set apart for Himself. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you His loving-favor and peace.

⁸ First of all, I keep thanking my God, through Jesus Christ, for all of you. This is because the whole world knows of your faith in Christ. ⁹ God knows how I work for Him. He knows how I preach with all my heart the Good News about His Son. He knows how I always pray for you. ¹⁰ I pray that I might be able to visit you, if God wants me to. ¹¹ I want to see you so I can share some special gift of the Holy Spirit with you. It will make you strong. ¹² Both of us need help. I can help make your faith strong and you can do the same for me. We need each other.

¹³ Christian brothers, many times I have wanted to visit you. Something has kept me from going until now. I have wanted to lead some of you to Christ also, as I have done in other places where they did not know God. ¹⁴ I must help the people who have had a chance to hear the Good News and those who have not. I must help those with much learning and those who have never learned from books. ¹⁵ So I want to preach the Good News to you who live in Rome also.

¹⁶ I am not ashamed of the Good News. It is the power of God. It is the way He saves men from the punishment of their sins if they put their trust in Him. It is for the Jew first and for all other people also. ¹⁷ The Good News tells us we are made right with God by faith in Him. Then, by faith we live that new life through Him. The Holy Writings say, “A man right with God lives by faith.” ^(A)

¹⁸ We see the anger of God coming down from heaven against all the sins of men. These sinful men keep the truth from being known. ¹⁹ Men know about God. He has made it plain to them. ²⁰ Men cannot say they do not know about God. From the beginning of the world, men could see what God is like through the things He has made. This shows His power that lasts forever. It shows that He is God. ²¹ They did know God, but they did not honor Him as God. They were not thankful to Him and thought only of foolish things. Their foolish minds became dark. ²² They said that they were wise, but they showed how foolish they were. ²³ They gave honor to false gods that looked like people who can die and to birds and animals and snakes. This honor belongs to God Who can never die.

²⁴ So God let them follow the desires of their sinful hearts. They did sinful things among themselves with their bodies. ²⁵ They traded the truth of God for a lie. They worshiped and cared for what God made instead of worshiping the God Who made it. He is the One Who is to receive honor and thanks forever. Let it be so.

²⁶ Because of this, God let them follow their sinful desires which lead to shame. Women used their bodies in ways God had not planned. ²⁷ In the same way, men left the right use of women’s bodies. They did sex sins with other men. They received for themselves the punishment that was coming to them for their sin.

²⁸ Because they would not keep God in their thoughts anymore, He gave them up. Their minds were sinful and they wanted only to do things they should not do. ²⁹ They are full of everything that is sinful and want things that belong to others. They hate people and are jealous. They kill other people. They fight and lie. They do not like other people and talk against them. ³⁰ They talk about people, and they hate God. They are filled with pride and tell of all the good they do. They think of new ways to sin. They do not obey their parents. ³¹ They are not able to understand. They do not do what they say they will do. They have no love and no loving-pity. ³² They know God has said that all who do such things should die. But they keep on doing these things and are happy when others do them also.

2 So you can say nothing because you are guilty when you say someone else is guilty. While you say someone is guilty, you are doing the same things he does. ² We know that God will say those who do such things are guilty. ³ Do you think God will punish others for doing wrong and let you keep sinning? ⁴ Do you forget about His loving-kindness to you? Do you forget how long He is waiting for you? You know that God is kind. He is trying to get you to be sorry for your sins and turn from them. ⁵ Because you are not sorry for your sins and will not turn from them, you will be punished even more on the day of God’s anger. God will be right in saying you are guilty. ⁶ He will give to every man what he should get for the things he has done. ⁷ Those who keep on doing good and are looking for His greatness and honor will receive life that lasts forever. ⁸ Those who love only themselves and do not obey the truth, but do what is wrong, will be punished by God. His anger will be on them. ⁹ Every Jew and every person who is not a Jew who sins will suffer and have great sorrow. ¹⁰ But God will give His greatness and honor and peace to all those who obey the truth. Both Jews and those who are not Jews will receive this. ¹¹ God does not show favor to one man more than to another.

¹² Those who have sinned without having the Law will be lost without the Law being used. Those who have the Law and have sinned will be judged by the Law. ¹³ Just to hear the Law does not make a man right with God. The man right with God is the one who obeys the Law. ¹⁴ The people who are not Jews do not have the Law. When they do what the Law tells them to do, even if they do not have the Law, it shows they know what they should do. ¹⁵ They show that what the Law wants them to do is written in their hearts. Their own hearts tell them if they are guilty. ¹⁶ There will be a day when God will judge because He knows the secret thoughts of men. He will do this through Jesus Christ. This is part of the Good News I preach.

¹⁷ You are a Jew and think you are safe because of the Law. You tell others about how you know God. ¹⁸ You know what He wants you to do. You understand how the Law works. You know right from wrong. ¹⁹ You think you can lead a blind man. You think you can give light to those in darkness. ²⁰ You think you can teach foolish people and children about God. You have in the Law the plan of truth and wisdom. ²¹ You teach others. Why do you not teach yourselves? You tell others not to steal. Do you steal? ²² You say that no one should do sex sins. Do you do sex sins? You hate false gods. Do you rob the houses where they are kept? ²³ You are proud of the Law. Do you take honor away from God when you do not obey the Law? ²⁴ The Holy Writings say, “God’s name is hated by the people who are not Jews because of you.” ^(B)

²⁵ Going through the religious act of becoming a Jew is worth something if you obey the Law. If you do not obey the Law, it is worth nothing to you. ²⁶ If a person who is not a Jew and has not gone through the act of becoming a Jew, obeys the Law, God will think of him as a Jew. ²⁷ You Jews have the Law but do not obey it. You have gone through the religious act also. At the same time those who are not Jews obey the Law even if they have not gone through the religious act of becoming a Jew. In this way, these people show you are guilty. ²⁸ A man is not a Jew just because he goes through the religious act of becoming a Jew. ²⁹ The true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. The religious act of becoming a Jew must be done in the heart. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. The Law does not do that kind of work. The true Jew gets his thanks from God, not from men.

3 Do the Jews have anything that those who are not Jews do not have? What good does it do to go through the religious act of becoming a Jew? ² Yes, the Jews have much more in every way. First of all, God gave the Jews His Law. ³ If some of them were not faithful, does it mean that God will not be faithful? ⁴ No, not at all! God is always true even if every man lies. The Holy Writings say, “Speak the truth and you will not be proven guilty.” ^(C)

⁵ If our sins show how right God is, what can we say? Is it wrong for God to punish us for it? (I am speaking as men do.) ⁶ No, not at all! If it were wrong for God to punish us, how could He judge the world? ⁷ If my lies honor God by showing how true He is, why am I still being judged as a sinner? ⁸ Why not say, “Let us sin that good will come from it.” (Some people have said I talk like this!) They will be punished as they should be.

⁹ What about it then? Are we Jews better than the people who are not Jews? Not at all! I have already said that Jews and the people who are not Jews are all sinners. ¹⁰ The Holy Writings say, “There is not one person who is right with God. No, not even one! ¹¹ There is not one who understands. There is not one who tries to find God.” ^{(D) 12} Everyone has turned away from God. They have all done wrong. Not one of them does what is good. No, not even one! ¹³ Their mouth is like an open grave. They tell lies with their tongues. ^(E) Whatever they say is like the poison of snakes. ¹⁴ Their mouths speak bad things against God. They say bad things about other people. ^{(F) 15} They are quick to hurt and kill people. ¹⁶ Wherever they go, they destroy and make people suffer. ¹⁷ They know nothing about peace. ^{(G) 18} They do not honor God with love and fear.” ^(H)

¹⁹ Now we know that the Law speaks to those who live under the Law. No one can say that he does not know what sin is. Yes, every person in the world stands guilty before God. ²⁰ No person will be made right with God by doing what the Law says. The Law shows us how sinful we are.

²¹ But now God has made another way to make men right with Himself. It is not by the Law. The Law and the early preachers tell about it. ²² Men become right with God by putting their trust in Jesus Christ. God will accept men if they come this way. All men are the same to God. ²³ For all men have sinned and have missed the shining-greatness of God. ²⁴ Anyone can be made right with God by the free gift of His loving-favor. It is Jesus Christ Who bought them with His blood and made them free from their sins. ²⁵ God gave Jesus Christ to the world. Men’s sins can be forgiven through the blood of Christ when they put their trust in Him. God gave His Son Jesus Christ to show how right He is. Before this, God did not look on the sins that were done. ²⁶ But now God proves that He is right in saving men from sin. He shows that He is the One Who has no sin. God makes anyone right with Himself who puts his trust in Jesus.

²⁷ What then do we have to be proud of? Nothing at all! Why? Is it because men obey the Law? No! It is because men put their trust in Christ. ²⁸ This is what we have come to know. A man is made right with God by putting his trust in Christ. It is not by his doing what the Law says. ²⁹ Is God the God of the Jews only? Is He not the God of the people who are not Jews also? He is for sure. ³⁰ He is one God. He will make Jews and the people who are not Jews right with Himself if they put their trust in Christ. ³¹ Does this mean that we do away with the Law when we put our trust in Christ? No, not at all. It means we know the Law is important.