Romans 1:5

1:5 Through him ¹  we have received grace and our apostleship ²  to bring about the obedience ³  of faith ⁴  among all the Gentiles on behalf of his name.

Romans 1:12

1:12 that is, that we may be mutually comforted by one another’s faith, ⁵  both yours and mine.

Romans 1:20-21

1:20 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 people ⁶  are without excuse. 1:21 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 hearts ⁷  were darkened.

[1:5]  ¹ tn Grk “through whom.”

[1:5]  ² tn Some interpreters understand the phrase “grace and apostleship” as a hendiadys, translating “grace [i.e., gift] of apostleship.” The pronoun “our” is supplied in the translation to clarify the sense of the statement.

[1:5]  ³ tn Grk “and apostleship for obedience.”

[1:5]  ⁴ tn The phrase ὑπακοὴν πίστεως has been variously understood as (1) an objective genitive (a reference to the Christian faith, “obedience to [the] faith”); (2) a subjective genitive (“the obedience faith produces [or requires]”); (3) an attributive genitive (“believing obedience”); or (4) as a genitive of apposition (“obedience, [namely] faith”) in which “faith” further defines “obedience.” These options are discussed by C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans (ICC), 1:66. Others take the phrase as deliberately ambiguous; see D. B. Garlington, “The Obedience of Faith in the Letter to the Romans: Part I: The Meaning of ὑπακοὴ πίστεως (Rom 1:5; 16:26),” WTJ 52 (1990): 201-24.

[1:12]  ⁵ tn Grk “that is, to be comforted together with you through the faith in one another.”

[1:20]  ⁶ tn Grk “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:21]  ⁷ tn Grk “heart.”