Romans 2:5-9

2:5 But because of your stubbornness ¹  and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath for yourselves in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed! ²  2:6 He ³  will reward ⁴  each one according to his works: ⁵  2:7 eternal life to those who by perseverance in good works seek glory and honor and immortality, 2:8 but ⁶  wrath and anger to those who live in selfish ambition ⁷  and do not obey the truth but follow ⁸  unrighteousness. 2:9 There will be ⁹  affliction and distress on everyone ¹⁰  who does evil, on the Jew first and also the Greek, ¹¹ 

¹ tn Grk “hardness.” Concerning this imagery, see Jer 4:4; Ezek 3:7; 1 En. 16:3.

² tn Grk “in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.”

³ tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

⁴ tn Or “will render,” “will recompense.” In this context Paul is setting up a hypothetical situation, not stating that salvation is by works.

⁵ sn A quotation from Ps 62:12; Prov 24:12; a close approximation to Matt 16:27.

⁶ tn This contrast is clearer and stronger in Greek than can be easily expressed in English.

⁷ tn Grk “those who [are] from selfish ambition.”

⁸ tn Grk “are persuaded by, obey.”

⁹ tn No verb is expressed in this verse, but the verb “to be” is implied by the Greek construction. Literally “suffering and distress on everyone…”

¹⁰ tn Grk “every soul of man.”

¹¹ sn Paul uses the term Greek here and in v. 10 to refer to non-Jews, i.e., Gentiles.