Discovery BoxRomans 4:1--11:36
Context4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh, 1 has discovered regarding this matter? 2 4:2 For if Abraham was declared righteous 3 by the works of the law, he has something to boast about – but not before God. 4:3 For what does the scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited 4 to him as righteousness.” 5 4:4 Now to the one who works, his pay is not credited due to grace but due to obligation. 6 4:5 But to the one who does not work, but believes in the one who declares the ungodly righteous, 7 his faith is credited as righteousness.
4:6 So even David himself speaks regarding the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:
4:7 “Blessed 8 are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
4:8 blessed is the one 9 against whom the Lord will never count 10 sin.” 11
4:9 Is this blessedness 12 then for 13 the circumcision 14 or also for 15 the uncircumcision? For we say, “faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.” 16 4:10 How then was it credited to him? Was he circumcised at the time, or not? No, he was not circumcised but uncircumcised! 4:11 And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised, 17 so that he would become 18 the father of all those who believe but have never been circumcised, 19 that they too could have righteousness credited to them. 4:12 And he is also the father of the circumcised, 20 who are not only circumcised, but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham possessed when he was still uncircumcised. 21
4:13 For the promise 22 to Abraham or to his descendants that he would inherit the world was not fulfilled through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 4:14 For if they become heirs by the law, faith is empty and the promise is nullified. 23 4:15 For the law brings wrath, because where there is no law there is no transgression 24 either. 4:16 For this reason it is by faith so that it may be by grace, 25 with the result that the promise may be certain to all the descendants – not only to those who are under the law, but also to those who have the faith of Abraham, 26 who is the father of us all 4:17 (as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”). 27 He is our father 28 in the presence of God whom he believed – the God who 29 makes the dead alive and summons the things that do not yet exist as though they already do. 30 4:18 Against hope Abraham 31 believed 32 in hope with the result that he became the father of many nations 33 according to the pronouncement, 34 “so will your descendants be.” 35 4:19 Without being weak in faith, he considered 36 his own body as dead 37 (because he was about one hundred years old) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 4:20 He 38 did not waver in unbelief about the promise of God but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God. 4:21 He was 39 fully convinced that what God 40 promised he was also able to do. 4:22 So indeed it was credited to Abraham 41 as righteousness.
4:23 But the statement it was credited to him 42 was not written only for Abraham’s 43 sake, 4:24 but also for our sake, to whom it will be credited, those who believe in the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 4:25 He 44 was given over 45 because of our transgressions and was raised for the sake of 46 our justification. 47
5:1 48 Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have 49 peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 5:2 through whom we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice 50 in the hope of God’s glory. 5:3 Not 51 only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 5:4 and endurance, character, and character, hope. 5:5 And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God 52 has been poured out 53 in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
5:6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 5:7 (For rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person perhaps someone might possibly dare to die.) 54 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 5:9 Much more then, because we have now been declared righteous 55 by his blood, 56 we will be saved through him from God’s wrath. 57 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, since we have been reconciled, will we be saved by his life? 5:11 Not 58 only this, but we also rejoice 59 in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received this reconciliation.
5:12 So then, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all people 60 because 61 all sinned – 5:13 for before the law was given, 62 sin was in the world, but there is no accounting for sin 63 when there is no law. 5:14 Yet death reigned from Adam until Moses even over those who did not sin in the same way that Adam (who is a type 64 of the coming one) transgressed. 65 5:15 But the gracious gift is not like the transgression. 66 For if the many died through the transgression of the one man, 67 how much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man Jesus Christ multiply to the many! 5:16 And the gift is not like the one who sinned. 68 For judgment, resulting from the one transgression, 69 led to condemnation, but 70 the gracious gift from the many failures 71 led to justification. 5:17 For if, by the transgression of the one man, 72 death reigned through the one, how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ!
5:18 Consequently, 73 just as condemnation 74 for all people 75 came 76 through one transgression, 77 so too through the one righteous act 78 came righteousness leading to life 79 for all people. 5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man 80 many 81 were made sinners, so also through the obedience of one man 82 many 83 will be made righteous. 5:20 Now the law came in 84 so that the transgression 85 may increase, but where sin increased, grace multiplied all the more, 5:21 so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
6:1 What shall we say then? Are we to remain in sin so that grace may increase? 6:2 Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 6:3 Or do you not know that as many as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 6:4 Therefore we have been buried with him through baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may live a new life. 86
6:5 For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, we will certainly also be united in the likeness of his resurrection. 87 6:6 We know that 88 our old man was crucified with him so that the body of sin would no longer dominate us, 89 so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 6:7 (For someone who has died has been freed from sin.) 90
6:8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 6:9 We know 91 that since Christ has been raised from the dead, he is never going to die 92 again; death no longer has mastery over him. 6:10 For the death he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life he lives, he lives to God. 6:11 So you too consider yourselves 93 dead to sin, but 94 alive to God in Christ Jesus.
6:12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires, 6:13 and do not present your members to sin as instruments 95 to be used for unrighteousness, 96 but present yourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead and your members to God as instruments 97 to be used for righteousness. 6:14 For sin will have no mastery over you, because you are not under law but under grace.
6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not! 6:16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves 98 as obedient slaves, 99 you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or obedience resulting in righteousness? 100 6:17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you obeyed 101 from the heart that pattern 102 of teaching you were entrusted to, 6:18 and having been freed from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness. 6:19 (I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.) 103 For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 6:20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness.
6:21 So what benefit 104 did you then reap 105 from those things that you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death. 6:22 But now, freed 106 from sin and enslaved to God, you have your benefit 107 leading to sanctification, and the end is eternal life. 6:23 For the payoff 108 of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
7:1 Or do you not know, brothers and sisters 109 (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law is lord over a person 110 as long as he lives? 7:2 For a married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as he lives, but if her 111 husband dies, she is released from the law of the marriage. 112 7:3 So then, 113 if she is joined to another man while her husband is alive, she will be called an adulteress. But if her 114 husband dies, she is free from that law, and if she is joined to another man, she is not an adulteress. 7:4 So, my brothers and sisters, 115 you also died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you could be joined to another, to the one who was raised from the dead, to bear fruit to God. 116 7:5 For when we were in the flesh, 117 the sinful desires, 118 aroused by the law, were active in the members of our body 119 to bear fruit for death. 7:6 But now we have been released from the law, because we have died 120 to what controlled us, so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code. 121
7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! Certainly, I 122 would not have known sin except through the law. For indeed I would not have known what it means to desire something belonging to someone else 123 if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” 124 7:8 But sin, seizing the opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of wrong desires. 125 For apart from the law, sin is dead. 7:9 And I was once alive apart from the law, but with the coming of the commandment sin became alive 7:10 and I died. So 126 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life brought death! 127 7:11 For sin, seizing the opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it I died. 128 7:12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good.
7:13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? Absolutely not! But sin, so that it would be shown to be sin, produced death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful. 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual – but I am unspiritual, sold into slavery to sin. 129 7:15 For I don’t understand what I am doing. For I do not do what I want – instead, I do what I hate. 130 7:16 But if I do what I don’t want, I agree that the law is good. 131 7:17 But now it is no longer me doing it, but sin that lives in me. 7:18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For I want to do the good, but I cannot do it. 132 7:19 For I do not do the good I want, but I do the very evil I do not want! 7:20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer me doing it but sin that lives in me.
7:21 So, I find the law that when I want to do good, evil is present with me. 7:22 For I delight in the law of God in my inner being. 7:23 But I see a different law in my members waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that is in my members. 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 7:25 Thanks be 133 to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, 134 I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but 135 with my flesh I serve 136 the law of sin.
8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 137 8:2 For the law of the life-giving Spirit 138 in Christ Jesus has set you 139 free from the law of sin and death. 8:3 For God achieved what the law could not do because 140 it was weakened through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 8:4 so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
8:5 For those who live according to the flesh have their outlook shaped by 141 the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their outlook shaped by the things of the Spirit. 8:6 For the outlook 142 of the flesh is death, but the outlook of the Spirit is life and peace, 8:7 because the outlook of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to the law of God, nor is it able to do so. 8:8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 8:9 You, however, are not in 143 the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him. 8:10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, but 144 the Spirit is your life 145 because of righteousness. 8:11 Moreover if the Spirit of the one 146 who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, the one who raised Christ 147 from the dead will also make your mortal bodies alive through his Spirit who lives in you. 148
8:12 So then, 149 brothers and sisters, 150 we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh 8:13 (for if you live according to the flesh, you will 151 die), 152 but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live. 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are 153 the sons of God. 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery leading again to fear, 154 but you received the Spirit of adoption, 155 by whom 156 we cry, “Abba, Father.” 8:16 The Spirit himself bears witness to 157 our spirit that we are God’s children. 8:17 And if children, then heirs (namely, heirs of God and also fellow heirs with Christ) 158 – if indeed we suffer with him so we may also be glorified with him.
8:18 For I consider that our present sufferings cannot even be compared 159 to the glory that will be revealed to us. 8:19 For the creation eagerly waits for the revelation of the sons of God. 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility – not willingly but because of God 160 who subjected it – in hope 8:21 that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage of decay into the glorious freedom of God’s children. 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers together until now. 8:23 Not only this, but we ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, 161 groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption, 162 the redemption of our bodies. 163 8:24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with endurance. 164
8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, 165 but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. 8:27 And he 166 who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit 167 intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God’s will. 8:28 And we know that all things work together 168 for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose, 8:29 because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that his Son 169 would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 170 8:30 And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified.
8:31 What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 8:32 Indeed, he who 171 did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, freely give us all things? 8:33 Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? 172 It is God who justifies. 8:34 Who is the one who will condemn? Christ 173 is the one who died (and more than that, he was raised), who is at the right hand of God, and who also is interceding for us. 8:35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will trouble, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 174 8:36 As it is written, “For your sake we encounter death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 175 8:37 No, in all these things we have complete victory 176 through him 177 who loved us! 8:38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, 178 nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, 8:39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
9:1 179 I am telling the truth in Christ (I am not lying!), for my conscience assures me 180 in the Holy Spirit – 9:2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 181 9:3 For I could wish 182 that I myself were accursed – cut off from Christ – for the sake of my people, 183 my fellow countrymen, 184 9:4 who are Israelites. To them belong 185 the adoption as sons, 186 the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple worship, 187 and the promises. 9:5 To them belong the patriarchs, 188 and from them, 189 by human descent, 190 came the Christ, 191 who is God over all, blessed forever! 192 Amen.
9:6 It is not as though the word of God had failed. For not all those who are descended from Israel are truly Israel, 193 9:7 nor are all the children Abraham’s true descendants; rather “through Isaac will your descendants be counted.” 194 9:8 This means 195 it is not the children of the flesh 196 who are the children of God; rather, the children of promise are counted as descendants. 9:9 For this is what the promise declared: 197 “About a year from now 198 I will return and Sarah will have a son.” 199 9:10 Not only that, but when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, 200 our ancestor Isaac – 9:11 even before they were born or had done anything good or bad (so that God’s purpose in election 201 would stand, not by works but by 202 his calling) 203 – 9:12 204 it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger,” 205 9:13 just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” 206
9:14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice with God? Absolutely not! 9:15 For he says to Moses: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 207 9:16 So then, 208 it does not depend on human desire or exertion, 209 but on God who shows mercy. 9:17 For the scripture says to Pharaoh: 210 “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may demonstrate my power in you, and that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.” 211 9:18 So then, 212 God 213 has mercy on whom he chooses to have mercy, and he hardens whom he chooses to harden. 214
9:19 You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who has ever resisted his will?” 9:20 But who indeed are you – a mere human being 215 – to talk back to God? 216 Does what is molded say to the molder, “Why have you made me like this?” 217 9:21 Has the potter no right to make from the same lump of clay 218 one vessel for special use and another for ordinary use? 219 9:22 But what if God, willing to demonstrate his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience the objects 220 of wrath 221 prepared for destruction? 222 9:23 And what if he is willing to make known the wealth of his glory on the objects 223 of mercy that he has prepared beforehand for glory – 9:24 even us, whom he has called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 9:25 As he also says in Hosea:
“I will call those who were not my people, ‘My people,’ and I will call her who was unloved, 224 ‘My beloved.’” 225
9:26 “And in the very place 226 where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called ‘sons of the living God.’” 227
9:27 And Isaiah cries out on behalf of Israel, “Though the number of the children 228 of Israel are as the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved, 9:28 for the Lord will execute his sentence on the earth completely and quickly.” 229 9:29 Just 230 as Isaiah predicted,
“If the Lord of armies 231 had not left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom,
and we would have resembled Gomorrah.” 232
9:30 What shall we say then? – that the Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness obtained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith, 9:31 but Israel even though pursuing 233 a law of righteousness 234 did not attain it. 235 9:32 Why not? Because they pursued 236 it not by faith but (as if it were possible) by works. 237 They stumbled over the stumbling stone, 238 9:33 just as it is written,
“Look, I am laying in Zion a stone that will cause people to stumble
and a rock that will make them fall, 239
yet the one who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 240
10:1 Brothers and sisters, 241 my heart’s desire and prayer to God on behalf of my fellow Israelites 242 is for their salvation. 10:2 For I can testify that they are zealous for God, 243 but their zeal is not in line with the truth. 244 10:3 For ignoring the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking instead to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law, with the result that there is righteousness for everyone who believes.
10:5 For Moses writes about the righteousness that is by the law: “The one who does these things will live by them.” 245 10:6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, 246 ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” 247 (that is, to bring Christ down) 10:7 or “Who will descend into the abyss?” 248 (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 10:8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” 249 (that is, the word of faith that we preach), 10:9 because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord 250 and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10:10 For with the heart one believes and thus has righteousness 251 and with the mouth one confesses and thus has salvation. 252 10:11 For the scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 253 10:12 For there is no distinction between the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all, who richly blesses all who call on him. 10:13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. 254
10:14 How are they to call on one they have not believed in? And how are they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to hear without someone preaching to them 255 ? 10:15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How timely 256 is the arrival 257 of those who proclaim the good news.” 258 10:16 But not all have obeyed the good news, for Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” 259 10:17 Consequently faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the preached word 260 of Christ. 261
10:18 But I ask, have they 262 not heard? 263 Yes, they have: 264 Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world. 265 10:19 But again I ask, didn’t Israel understand? 266 First Moses says, “I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation; with a senseless nation I will provoke you to anger.” 267 10:20 And Isaiah is even bold enough to say, “I was found by those who did not seek me; I became well known to those who did not ask for me.” 268 10:21 But about Israel he says, “All day long I held out my hands to this disobedient and stubborn people!” 269
11:1 So I ask, God has not rejected his people, has he? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 11:2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew! Do you not know what the scripture says about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? 11:3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars; I alone am left and they are seeking my life!” 270 11:4 But what was the divine response 271 to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand people 272 who have not bent the knee to Baal.” 273
11:5 So in the same way at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 11:6 And if it is by grace, it is no longer by works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace. 11:7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was diligently seeking, but the elect obtained it. The 274 rest were hardened, 11:8 as it is written,
“God gave them a spirit of stupor,
eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear,
to this very day.” 275
11:9 And David says,
“Let their table become a snare and trap,
a stumbling block and a retribution for them;
11:10 let their eyes be darkened so that they may not see,
and make their backs bend continually.” 276
11:11 I ask then, they did not stumble into an irrevocable fall, 277 did they? Absolutely not! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make Israel 278 jealous. 11:12 Now if their transgression means riches for the world and their defeat means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full restoration 279 bring?
11:13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Seeing that I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 11:14 if somehow I could provoke my people to jealousy and save some of them. 11:15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 11:16 If the first portion 280 of the dough offered is holy, then the whole batch is holy, and if the root is holy, so too are the branches. 281
11:17 Now if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among them and participated in 282 the richness of the olive root, 11:18 do not boast over the branches. But if you boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you. 11:19 Then you will say, “The branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” 11:20 Granted! 283 They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but fear! 11:21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, perhaps he will not spare you. 11:22 Notice therefore the kindness and harshness of God – harshness toward those who have fallen, but 284 God’s kindness toward you, provided you continue in his kindness; 285 otherwise you also will be cut off. 11:23 And even they – if they do not continue in their unbelief – will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 11:24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree?
11:25 For I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, 286 so that you may not be conceited: A partial hardening has happened to Israel 287 until the full number 288 of the Gentiles has come in. 11:26 And so 289 all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
“The Deliverer will come out of Zion;
he will remove ungodliness from Jacob.
11:27 And this is my covenant with them, 290
when I take away their sins.” 291
11:28 In regard to the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but in regard to election they are dearly loved for the sake of the fathers. 11:29 For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. 11:30 Just as you were formerly disobedient to God, but have now received mercy due to their disobedience, 11:31 so they too have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now 292 receive mercy. 11:32 For God has consigned all people to disobedience so that he may show mercy to them all. 293
11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how fathomless his ways!
11:34 For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor? 294
11:35 Or who has first given to God, 295
that God 296 needs to repay him? 297
11:36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever! Amen.
[4:1] 1 tn Or “according to natural descent” (BDAG 916 s.v. σάρξ 4).
[4:2] 3 tn Or “was justified.”
[4:3] 5 tn The term λογίζομαι (logizomai) occurs 11 times in this chapter (vv. 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 22, 23, 24). In secular usage it could (a) refer to deliberations of some sort, or (b) in commercial dealings (as virtually a technical term) to “reckoning” or “charging up a debt.” See H. W. Heidland, TDNT 4:284, 290-92.
[4:3] 6 sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
[4:4] 7 tn Grk “not according to grace but according to obligation.”
[4:5] 9 tn Or “who justifies the ungodly.”
[4:8] 13 tn The word for “man” or “individual” here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” However, as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, here it is “equivalent to τὶς someone, a person.”
[4:8] 14 tn The verb translated “count” here is λογίζομαι (logizomai). It occurs eight times in Rom 4:1-12, including here, each time with the sense of “place on someone’s account.” By itself the word is neutral, but in particular contexts it can take on a positive or negative connotation. The other occurrences of the verb have been translated using a form of the English verb “credit” because they refer to a positive event: the application of righteousness to the individual believer. The use here in v. 8 is negative: the application of sin. A form of the verb “credit” was not used here because of the positive connotations associated with that English word, but it is important to recognize that the same concept is used here as in the other occurrences.
[4:8] 15 sn A quotation from Ps 32:1-2.
[4:9] 17 sn See the note on “circumcision” in 2:25.
[4:9] 19 sn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
[4:11] 17 tn Grk “of the faith, the one [existing] in uncircumcision.”
[4:11] 18 tn Grk “that he might be,” giving the purpose of v. 11a.
[4:11] 19 tn Grk “through uncircumcision.”
[4:12] 19 tn Grk “the father of circumcision.”
[4:12] 20 tn Grk “the ‘in-uncircumcision faith’ of our father Abraham.”
[4:13] 21 sn Although a singular noun, the promise is collective and does not refer only to Gen 12:7, but as D. Moo (Romans 1-8 [WEC], 279) points out, refers to multiple aspects of the promise to Abraham: multiplied descendants (Gen 12:2), possession of the land (Gen 13:15-17), and his becoming the vehicle of blessing to all people (Gen 12:13).
[4:14] 23 tn Grk “rendered inoperative.”
[4:16] 27 tn Grk “that it might be according to grace.”
[4:16] 28 tn Grk “those who are of the faith of Abraham.”
[4:17] 29 tn Verses 16-17 comprise one sentence in Greek, but this has been divided into two sentences due to English requirements.
[4:17] 30 tn The words “He is our father” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to show that they resume Paul’s argument from 16b. (It is also possible to supply “Abraham had faith” here [so REB], taking the relative clause [“who is the father of us all”] as part of the parenthesis, and making the connection back to “the faith of Abraham,” but such an option is not as likely [C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:243].)
[4:17] 31 tn “The God” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity.
[4:17] 32 tn Or “calls into existence the things that do not exist.” The translation of ὡς ὄντα (Jw" onta) allows for two different interpretations. If it has the force of result, then creatio ex nihilo is in view and the variant rendering is to be accepted (so C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:244). A problem with this view is the scarcity of ὡς plus participle to indicate result (though for the telic idea with ὡς plus participle, cf. Rom 15:15; 1 Thess 2:4). If it has a comparative force, then the translation given in the text is to be accepted: “this interpretation fits the immediate context better than a reference to God’s creative power, for it explains the assurance with which God can speak of the ‘many nations’ that will be descended from Abraham” (D. Moo, Romans [NICNT], 282; so also W. Sanday and A. C. Headlam, Romans [ICC], 113). Further, this view is in line with a Pauline idiom, viz., verb followed by ὡς plus participle (of the same verb or, in certain contexts, its antonym) to compare present reality with what is not a present reality (cf. 1 Cor 4:7; 5:3; 7:29, 30 (three times), 31; Col 2:20 [similarly, 2 Cor 6:9, 10]).
[4:18] 31 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:18] 32 tn Grk “who against hope believed,” referring to Abraham. 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.
[4:18] 33 sn A quotation from Gen 17:5.
[4:18] 34 tn Grk “according to that which had been spoken.”
[4:18] 35 sn A quotation from Gen 15:5.
[4:19] 33 tc Most
[4:19] 34 tc ‡ Most witnesses (א A C D Ψ 33 Ï bo) have ἤδη (hdh, “already”) at this point in v. 19. But B F G 630 1739 1881 pc lat sa lack it. Since it appears to heighten the style of the narrative and since there is no easy accounting for an accidental omission, it is best to regard the shorter text as original. NA27 includes the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.
[4:20] 35 tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here.
[4:21] 37 tn Grk “and being.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[4:21] 38 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:22] 39 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:23] 41 tn A quotation from Gen 15:6.
[4:23] 42 tn Grk “his”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:25] 43 tn Grk “who,” referring to Jesus. 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.
[4:25] 44 tn Or “handed over.”
[4:25] 45 tn Grk “because of.” However, in light of the unsatisfactory sense that a causal nuance would here suggest, it has been argued that the second διά (dia) is prospective rather than retrospective (D. Moo, Romans [NICNT], 288-89). The difficulty of this interpretation is the structural balance that both διά phrases provide (“given over because of our transgressions…raised because of our justification”). However the poetic structure of this verse strengthens the likelihood that the clauses each have a different force.
[4:25] 46 sn Many scholars regard Rom 4:25 to be poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage.
[5:1] 45 sn Many interpreters see Rom 5:1 as beginning the second major division of the letter.
[5:1] 46 tc A number of important witnesses have the subjunctive ἔχωμεν (ecwmen, “let us have”) instead of ἔχομεν (ecomen, “we have”) in v. 1. Included in the subjunctive’s support are א* A B* C D K L 33 81 630 1175 1739* pm lat bo. But the indicative is not without its supporters: א1 B2 F G P Ψ 0220vid 104 365 1241 1505 1506 1739c 1881 2464 pm. If the problem were to be solved on an external basis only, the subjunctive would be preferred. Because of this, the “A” rating on behalf of the indicative in the UBS4 appears overly confident. Nevertheless, the indicative is probably correct. First, the earliest witness to Rom 5:1 has the indicative (0220vid, third century). Second, the first set of correctors is sometimes, if not often, of equal importance with the original hand. Hence, א1 might be given equal value with א*. Third, there is a good cross-section of witnesses for the indicative: Alexandrian (in 0220vid, probably א1 1241 1506 1881 al), Western (in F G), and Byzantine (noted in NA27 as pm). Thus, although the external evidence is strongly in favor of the subjunctive, the indicative is represented well enough that its ancestry could easily go back to the original. Turning to the internal evidence, the indicative gains much ground. (1) The variant may have been produced via an error of hearing (since omicron and omega were pronounced alike in ancient Greek). This, of course, does not indicate which reading was original – just that an error of hearing may have produced one of them. In light of the indecisiveness of the transcriptional evidence, intrinsic evidence could play a much larger role. This is indeed the case here. (2) The indicative fits well with the overall argument of the book to this point. Up until now, Paul has been establishing the “indicatives of the faith.” There is only one imperative (used rhetorically) and only one hortatory subjunctive (and this in a quotation within a diatribe) up till this point, while from ch. 6 on there are sixty-one imperatives and seven hortatory subjunctives. Clearly, an exhortation would be out of place in ch. 5. (3) Paul presupposes that the audience has peace with God (via reconciliation) in 5:10. This seems to assume the indicative in v. 1. (4) As C. E. B. Cranfield notes, “it would surely be strange for Paul, in such a carefully argued writing as this, to exhort his readers to enjoy or to guard a peace which he has not yet explicitly shown to be possessed by them” (Romans [ICC], 1:257). (5) The notion that εἰρήνην ἔχωμεν (eirhnhn ecwmen) can even naturally mean “enjoy peace” is problematic (ExSyn 464), yet those who embrace the subjunctive have to give the verb some such force. Thus, although the external evidence is stronger in support of the subjunctive, the internal evidence points to the indicative. Although a decision is difficult, ἔχομεν appears to be the authentic reading.
[5:2] 47 tn Or “exult, boast.”
[5:3] 49 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
[5:5] 51 tn The phrase ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ θεοῦ (Jh agaph tou qeou, “the love of God”) could be interpreted as either an objective genitive (“our love for God”), subjective genitive (“God’s love for us”), or both (M. Zerwick’s “general” genitive [Biblical Greek, §§36-39]; D. B. Wallace’s “plenary” genitive [ExSyn 119-21]). The immediate context, which discusses what God has done for believers, favors a subjective genitive, but the fact that this love is poured out within the hearts of believers implies that it may be the source for believers’ love for God; consequently an objective genitive cannot be ruled out. It is possible that both these ideas are meant in the text and that this is a plenary genitive: “The love that comes from God and that produces our love for God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (ExSyn 121).
[5:5] 52 sn On the OT background of the Spirit being poured out, see Isa 32:15; Joel 2:28-29.
[5:7] 53 sn Verse 7 forms something of a parenthetical comment in Paul’s argument.
[5:9] 55 tn Grk “having now been declared righteous.” The participle δικαιωθέντες (dikaiwqente") has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.
[5:9] 56 tn Or, according to BDF §219.3, “at the price of his blood.”
[5:9] 57 tn Grk “the wrath,” referring to God’s wrath as v. 10 shows.
[5:11] 57 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
[5:11] 58 tn Or “exult, boast.”
[5:12] 59 tn Here ἀνθρώπους (anqrwpou") has been translated as a generic (“people”) since both men and women are clearly intended in this context.
[5:12] 60 tn The translation of the phrase ἐφ᾿ ᾧ (ef Jw) has been heavily debated. For a discussion of all the possibilities, see C. E. B. Cranfield, “On Some of the Problems in the Interpretation of Romans 5.12,” SJT 22 (1969): 324-41. Only a few of the major options can be mentioned here: (1) the phrase can be taken as a relative clause in which the pronoun refers to Adam, “death spread to all people in whom [Adam] all sinned.” (2) The phrase can be taken with consecutive (resultative) force, meaning “death spread to all people with the result that all sinned.” (3) Others take the phrase as causal in force: “death spread to all people because all sinned.”
[5:13] 61 tn Grk “for before the law.”
[5:13] 62 tn Or “sin is not reckoned.”
[5:14] 64 tn Or “disobeyed”; Grk “in the likeness of Adam’s transgression.”
[5:15] 65 tn Grk “but not as the transgression, so also [is] the gracious gift.”
[5:15] 66 sn Here the one man refers to Adam (cf. 5:14).
[5:16] 67 tn Grk “and not as through the one who sinned [is] the gift.”
[5:16] 68 tn The word “transgression” is not in the Greek text at this point, but has been supplied for clarity.
[5:16] 69 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
[5:16] 70 tn Or “falls, trespasses,” the same word used in vv. 15, 17, 18, 20.
[5:17] 69 sn Here the one man refers to Adam (cf. 5:14).
[5:18] 71 tn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[5:18] 72 tn Grk “[it is] unto condemnation for all people.”
[5:18] 73 tn Here ἀνθρώπους (anqrwpou") has been translated as a generic (“people”) since both men and women are clearly intended in this context.
[5:18] 74 tn There are no verbs in the Greek text of v. 18, forcing translators to supply phrases like “came through one transgression,” “resulted from one transgression,” etc.
[5:18] 75 sn One transgression refers to the sin of Adam in Gen 3:1-24.
[5:18] 76 sn The one righteous act refers to Jesus’ death on the cross.
[5:18] 77 tn Grk “righteousness of life.”
[5:19] 73 sn Here the one man refers to Adam (cf. 5:14).
[5:19] 75 sn One man refers here to Jesus Christ.
[5:20] 75 tn Grk “slipped in.”
[6:4] 77 tn Grk “may walk in newness of life,” in which ζωῆς (zwhs) functions as an attributed genitive (see ExSyn 89-90, where this verse is given as a prime example).
[6:5] 79 tn Grk “we will certainly also of his resurrection.”
[6:6] 81 tn Grk “knowing this, that.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[6:6] 82 tn Grk “may be rendered ineffective, inoperative,” or possibly “may be destroyed.” The term καταργέω (katargew) has various nuances. In Rom 7:2 the wife whose husband has died is freed from the law (i.e., the law of marriage no longer has any power over her, in spite of what she may feel). A similar point seems to be made here (note v. 7).
[6:7] 83 sn Verse 7 forms something of a parenthetical comment in Paul’s argument.
[6:9] 85 tn Grk “knowing.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[6:9] 86 tn The present tense here has been translated as a futuristic present (see ExSyn 536, where this verse is listed as an example).
[6:11] 87 tc ‡ Some Alexandrian and Byzantine
[6:11] 88 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
[6:13] 89 tn Or “weapons, tools.”
[6:13] 90 tn Or “wickedness, injustice.”
[6:13] 91 tn Or “weapons, tools.”
[6:16] 91 tn Grk “to whom you present yourselves.”
[6:16] 92 tn Grk “as slaves for obedience.” See the note on the word “slave” in 1:1.
[6:16] 93 tn Grk “either of sin unto death, or obedience unto righteousness.”
[6:17] 93 tn Grk “you were slaves of sin but you obeyed.”
[6:19] 95 tn Or “because of your natural limitations” (NRSV).
[6:21] 98 tn Grk “have,” in a tense emphasizing their customary condition in the past.
[6:22] 99 tn The two aorist participles translated “freed” and “enslaved” are causal in force; their full force is something like “But now, since you have become freed from sin and since you have become enslaved to God….”
[6:23] 101 tn A figurative extension of ὀψώνιον (oywnion), which refers to a soldier’s pay or wages. Here it refers to the end result of an activity, seen as something one receives back in return. In this case the activity is sin, and the translation “payoff” captures this thought. See also L&N 89.42.
[7:1] 103 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[7:1] 104 sn Here person refers to a human being.
[7:2] 105 tn Grk “the,” with the article used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
[7:3] 107 tn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[7:3] 108 tn Grk “the,” with the article used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).
[7:4] 109 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[7:4] 110 tn Grk “that we might bear fruit to God.”
[7:5] 111 tn That is, before we were in Christ.
[7:5] 112 tn Or “sinful passions.”
[7:5] 113 tn Grk “our members”; the words “of our body” have been supplied to clarify the meaning.
[7:6] 113 tn Grk “having died.” The participle ἀποθανόντες (apoqanonte") has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.
[7:6] 114 tn Grk “in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.”
[7:7] 115 sn Romans 7:7-25. There has been an enormous debate over the significance of the first person singular pronouns (“I”) in this passage and how to understand their referent. Did Paul intend (1) a reference to himself and other Christians too; (2) a reference to his own pre-Christian experience as a Jew, struggling with the law and sin (and thus addressing his fellow countrymen as Jews); or (3) a reference to himself as a child of Adam, reflecting the experience of Adam that is shared by both Jews and Gentiles alike (i.e., all people everywhere)? Good arguments can be assembled for each of these views, and each has problems dealing with specific statements in the passage. The classic argument against an autobiographical interpretation was made by W. G. Kümmel, Römer 7 und die Bekehrung des Paulus. A good case for seeing at least an autobiographical element in the chapter has been made by G. Theissen, Psychologische Aspekte paulinischer Theologie [FRLANT], 181-268. One major point that seems to favor some sort of an autobiographical reading of these verses is the lack of any mention of the Holy Spirit for empowerment in the struggle described in Rom 7:7-25. The Spirit is mentioned beginning in 8:1 as the solution to the problem of the struggle with sin (8:4-6, 9).
[7:7] 116 tn Grk “I would not have known covetousness.”
[7:7] 117 sn A quotation from Exod 20:17 and Deut 5:21.
[7:8] 117 tn Or “covetousness.”
[7:10] 119 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate the result of the statement in the previous verse. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.
[7:10] 120 tn Grk “and there was found in/for me the commandment which was for life – this was for death.”
[7:11] 121 tn Or “and through it killed me.”
[7:14] 123 tn Grk “under sin.”
[7:15] 125 tn Grk “but what I hate, this I do.”
[7:16] 127 tn Grk “I agree with the law that it is good.”
[7:18] 129 tn Grk “For to wish is present in/with me, but not to do it.”
[7:25] 131 tc ‡ Most
[7:25] 132 tn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[7:25] 133 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
[7:25] 134 tn The words “I serve” have been repeated here for clarity.
[8:1] 133 tc The earliest and best witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western texts, as well as a few others (א* B D* F G 6 1506 1739 1881 pc co), have no additional words for v. 1. Later scribes (A D1 Ψ 81 365 629 pc vg) added the words μὴ κατὰ σάρκα περιπατοῦσιν (mh kata sarka peripatousin, “who do not walk according to the flesh”), while even later ones (א2 D2 33vid Ï) added ἀλλὰ κατὰ πνεῦμα (alla kata pneuma, “but [who do walk] according to the Spirit”). Both the external evidence and the internal evidence are compelling for the shortest reading. The scribes were evidently motivated to add such qualifications (interpolated from v. 4) to insulate Paul’s gospel from charges that it was characterized too much by grace. The KJV follows the longest reading found in Ï.
[8:2] 135 tn Grk “for the law of the Spirit of life.”
[8:2] 136 tc Most
[8:5] 139 tn Grk “think on” or “are intent on” (twice in this verse). What is in view here is not primarily preoccupation, however, but worldview. Translations like “set their mind on” could be misunderstood by the typical English reader to refer exclusively to preoccupation.
[8:6] 141 tn Or “mindset,” “way of thinking” (twice in this verse and once in v. 7). The Greek term φρόνημα does not refer to one’s mind, but to one’s outlook or mindset.
[8:9] 143 tn Or “are not controlled by the flesh but by the Spirit.”
[8:10] 145 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
[8:10] 146 tn Or “life-giving.” Grk “the Spirit is life.”
[8:11] 147 sn The one who raised Jesus from the dead refers to God (also in the following clause).
[8:11] 148 tc Several
[8:11] 149 tc Most
[8:12] 149 tn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[8:12] 150 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[8:13] 151 tn Grk “are about to, are certainly going to.”
[8:13] 152 sn This remark is parenthetical to Paul’s argument.
[8:14] 153 tn Grk “For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are.”
[8:15] 155 tn Grk “slavery again to fear.”
[8:15] 156 tn The Greek term υἱοθεσία (Juioqesia) was originally a legal technical term for adoption as a son with full rights of inheritance. BDAG 1024 s.v. notes, “a legal t.t. of ‘adoption’ of children, in our lit., i.e. in Paul, only in a transferred sense of a transcendent filial relationship between God and humans (with the legal aspect, not gender specificity, as major semantic component).”
[8:16] 157 tn Or possibly “with.” ExSyn 160-61, however, notes the following: “At issue, grammatically, is whether the Spirit testifies alongside of our spirit (dat. of association), or whether he testifies to our spirit (indirect object) that we are God’s children. If the former, the one receiving this testimony is unstated (is it God? or believers?). If the latter, the believer receives the testimony and hence is assured of salvation via the inner witness of the Spirit. The first view has the advantage of a σύν- (sun-) prefixed verb, which might be expected to take an accompanying dat. of association (and is supported by NEB, JB, etc.). But there are three reasons why πνεύματι (pneumati) should not be taken as association: (1) Grammatically, a dat. with a σύν- prefixed verb does not necessarily indicate association. This, of course, does not preclude such here, but this fact at least opens up the alternatives in this text. (2) Lexically, though συμμαρτυρέω (summarturew) originally bore an associative idea, it developed in the direction of merely intensifying μαρτυρέω (marturew). This is surely the case in the only other NT text with a dat. (Rom 9:1). (3) Contextually, a dat. of association does not seem to support Paul’s argument: ‘What standing has our spirit in this matter? Of itself it surely has no right at all to testify to our being sons of God’ [C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:403]. In sum, Rom 8:16 seems to be secure as a text in which the believer’s assurance of salvation is based on the inner witness of the Spirit. The implications of this for one’s soteriology are profound: The objective data, as helpful as they are, cannot by themselves provide assurance of salvation; the believer also needs (and receives) an existential, ongoing encounter with God’s Spirit in order to gain that familial comfort.”
[8:17] 159 tn Grk “on the one hand, heirs of God; on the other hand, fellow heirs with Christ.” Some prefer to render v. 17 as follows: “And if children, then heirs – that is, heirs of God. Also fellow heirs with Christ if indeed we suffer with him so we may also be glorified with him.” Such a translation suggests two distinct inheritances, one coming to all of God’s children, the other coming only to those who suffer with Christ. The difficulty of this view, however, is that it ignores the correlative conjunctions μέν…δέ (men…de, “on the one hand…on the other hand”): The construction strongly suggests that the inheritances cannot be separated since both explain “then heirs.” For this reason, the preferred translation puts this explanation in parentheses.
[8:18] 161 tn Grk “are not worthy [to be compared].”
[8:20] 163 tn Grk “because of the one”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:23] 165 tn Or “who have the Spirit as firstfruits.” The genitive πνεύματος (pneumatos) can be understood here as possessive (“the firstfruits belonging to the Spirit”) although it is much more likely that this is a genitive of apposition (“the firstfruits, namely, the Spirit”); cf. TEV, NLT.
[8:23] 166 tn See the note on “adoption” in v. 15.
[8:25] 167 tn Or “perseverance.”
[8:26] 169 tn Or “for we do not know what we ought to pray for.”
[8:27] 171 sn He refers to God here; Paul has not specifically identified him for the sake of rhetorical power (for by leaving the subject slightly ambiguous, he draws his audience into seeing God’s hand in places where he is not explicitly mentioned).
[8:27] 172 tn Grk “he,” or “it”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:28] 173 tc ὁ θεός (Jo qeos, “God”) is found after the verb συνεργεῖ (sunergei, “work”) in v. 28 by Ì46 A B 81 sa; the shorter reading is found in א C D F G Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï latt sy bo. Although the inclusion is supported by a significant early papyrus, the alliance of significant Alexandrian and Western witnesses favors the shorter reading. As well, the longer reading is evidently motivated by a need for clarification. Since ὁ θεός is textually suspect, it is better to read the text without it. This leaves two good translational options: either “he works all things together for good” or “all things work together for good.” In the first instance the subject is embedded in the verb and “God” is clearly implied (as in v. 29). In the second instance, πάντα (panta) becomes the subject of an intransitive verb. In either case, “What is expressed is a truly biblical confidence in the sovereignty of God” (C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:427).
[8:29] 175 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God’s Son) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:29] 176 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[8:32] 177 tn Grk “[he] who.” The relative clause continues the question of v. 31 in a way that is awkward in English. The force of v. 32 is thus: “who indeed did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – How will he not also with him give us all things?”
[8:33] 179 sn An allusion to Isa 50:8 where the reference is singular; Paul applies this to all believers (“God’s elect” is plural here).
[8:34] 181 tc ‡ A number of significant and early witnesses, along with several others (Ì46vid א A C F G L Ψ 6 33 81 104 365 1505 al lat bo), read ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsous, “Jesus”) after Χριστός (Cristos, “Christ”) in v. 34. But the shorter reading is not unrepresented (B D 0289 1739 1881 Ï sa). Once ᾿Ιησοῦς got into the text, what scribe would omit it? Although the external evidence is on the side of the longer reading, internally such an expansion seems suspect. The shorter reading is thus preferred. NA27 has the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.
[8:35] 183 tn Here “sword” is a metonymy that includes both threats of violence and acts of violence, even including death (although death is not necessarily the only thing in view here).
[8:36] 185 sn A quotation from Ps 44:22.
[8:37] 187 tn BDAG 1034 s.v. ὑπερνικάω states, “as a heightened form of νικᾶν prevail completely ὑπερνικῶμεν we are winning a most glorious victory Ro 8:37.”
[8:37] 188 tn Here the referent could be either God or Christ, but in v. 39 it is God’s love that is mentioned.
[8:38] 189 tn BDAG 138 s.v. ἀρχή 6 takes this term as a reference to angelic or transcendent powers (as opposed to merely human rulers). To clarify this, the adjective “heavenly” has been supplied in the translation. Some interpreters see this as a reference to fallen angels or demonic powers, and this view is reflected in some recent translations (NIV, NLT).
[9:1] 191 sn Rom 9:1–11:36. These three chapters are among the most difficult and disputed in Paul’s Letter to the Romans. One area of difficulty is the relationship between Israel and the church, especially concerning the nature and extent of Israel’s election. Many different models have been constructed to express this relationship. For a representative survey, see M. Barth, The People of God (JSNTSup), 22-27. The literary genre of these three chapters has been frequently identified as a diatribe, a philosophical discussion or conversation evolved by the Cynic and Stoic schools of philosophy as a means of popularizing their ideas (E. Käsemann, Romans, 261 and 267). But other recent scholars have challenged the idea that Rom 9–11 is characterized by diatribe. Scholars like R. Scroggs and E. E. Ellis have instead identified the material in question as midrash. For a summary and discussion of the rabbinic connections, see W. R. Stegner, “Romans 9.6-29 – A Midrash,” JSNT 22 (1984): 37-52.
[9:1] 192 tn Or “my conscience bears witness to me.”
[9:2] 193 tn Grk “my sorrow is great and the anguish in my heart is unceasing.”
[9:3] 195 tn Or “For I would pray.” The implied condition is “if this could save my fellow Jews.”
[9:3] 196 tn Grk “brothers.” See BDAG 18-19 s.v. ἀδελφός 2.b.
[9:3] 197 tn Grk “my kinsmen according to the flesh.”
[9:4] 197 tn Grk “of whom.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[9:4] 198 tn The Greek term υἱοθεσία (Juioqesia) was originally a legal technical term for adoption as a son with full rights of inheritance. BDAG 1024 s.v. notes, “a legal t.t. of ‘adoption’ of children, in our lit., i.e. in Paul, only in a transferred sense of a transcendent filial relationship between God and humans (with the legal aspect, not gender specificity, as major semantic component).” Although some modern translations remove the filial sense completely and render the term merely “adoption” (cf. NAB, ESV), the retention of this component of meaning was accomplished in the present translation by the phrase “as sons.”
[9:4] 199 tn Or “cultic service.”
[9:5] 199 tn Grk “of whom are the fathers.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[9:5] 200 tn Grk “from whom.” Here the relative pronoun has been replaced by a personal pronoun.
[9:5] 201 tn Grk “according to the flesh.”
[9:5] 202 tn Or “Messiah.” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed.”)
[9:5] 203 tn Or “the Christ, who is over all, God blessed forever,” or “the Messiah. God who is over all be blessed forever!” or “the Messiah who is over all. God be blessed forever!” The translational difficulty here is not text-critical in nature, but is a problem of punctuation. Since the genre of these opening verses of Romans 9 is a lament, it is probably best to take this as an affirmation of Christ’s deity (as the text renders it). Although the other renderings are possible, to see a note of praise to God at the end of this section seems strangely out of place. But for Paul to bring his lament to a crescendo (that is to say, his kinsmen had rejected God come in the flesh), thereby deepening his anguish, is wholly appropriate. This is also supported grammatically and stylistically: The phrase ὁ ὢν (Jo wn, “the one who is”) is most naturally taken as a phrase which modifies something in the preceding context, and Paul’s doxologies are always closely tied to the preceding context. For a detailed examination of this verse, see B. M. Metzger, “The Punctuation of Rom. 9:5,” Christ and the Spirit in the New Testament, 95-112; and M. J. Harris, Jesus as God, 144-72.
[9:6] 201 tn Grk “For not all those who are from Israel are Israel.”
[9:7] 203 tn Grk “be called.” The emphasis here is upon God’s divine sovereignty in choosing Isaac as the child through whom Abraham’s lineage would be counted as opposed to Ishmael.
[9:8] 205 tn Grk “That is,” or “That is to say.”
[9:8] 206 tn Because it forms the counterpoint to “the children of promise” the expression “children of the flesh” has been retained in the translation.
[9:9] 207 tn Grk “For this is the word of promise.”
[9:9] 208 tn Grk “About this time I will return.” Since this refers to the time when the promised child would be born, it would be approximately a year later.
[9:9] 209 sn A quotation from Gen 18:10, 14.
[9:10] 209 tn Or possibly “by one act of sexual intercourse.” See D. Moo, Romans (NICNT), 579.
[9:11] 211 tn Grk “God’s purpose according to election.”
[9:11] 212 tn Or “not based on works but based on…”
[9:11] 213 tn Grk “by the one who calls.”
[9:12] 213 sn Many translations place this verse division before the phrase “not by works but by his calling” (NA27/UBS4, NIV, NRSV, NLT, NAB). Other translations place this verse division in the same place that the translation above does (NASB, KJV, NKJV, ASV, RSV). The translation has followed the latter to avoid breaking the parenthetical statement.
[9:12] 214 sn A quotation from Gen 25:23.
[9:13] 215 sn A quotation from Mal 1:2-3.
[9:15] 217 sn A quotation from Exod 33:19.
[9:16] 219 sn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[9:16] 220 tn Grk “So then, [it does] not [depend] on the one who desires nor on the one who runs.”
[9:17] 221 sn Paul uses a typical rabbinic formula here in which the OT scriptures are figuratively portrayed as speaking to Pharaoh. What he means is that the scripture he cites refers (or can be applied) to Pharaoh.
[9:17] 222 sn A quotation from Exod 9:16.
[9:18] 223 sn There is a double connective here that cannot be easily preserved in English: “consequently therefore,” emphasizing the conclusion of what he has been arguing.
[9:18] 224 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:18] 225 tn Grk “So then, he has mercy on whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires.”
[9:20] 226 tn Grk “On the contrary, O man, who are you to talk back to God?”
[9:20] 227 sn A quotation from Isa 29:16; 45:9.
[9:21] 227 tn Grk “Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make from the same lump.”
[9:21] 228 tn Grk “one vessel for honor and another for dishonor.”
[9:22] 229 tn Grk “vessels.” This is the same Greek word used in v. 21.
[9:22] 230 tn Or “vessels destined for wrath.” The genitive ὀργῆς (orghs) could be taken as a genitive of destination.
[9:22] 231 tn Or possibly “objects of wrath that have fit themselves for destruction.” The form of the participle could be taken either as a passive or middle (reflexive). ExSyn 417-18 argues strongly for the passive sense (which is followed in the translation), stating that “the middle view has little to commend it.” First, καταρτίζω (katartizw) is nowhere else used in the NT as a direct or reflexive middle (a usage which, in any event, is quite rare in the NT). Second, the lexical force of this verb, coupled with the perfect tense, suggests something of a “done deal” (against some commentaries that see these vessels as ready for destruction yet still able to avert disaster). Third, the potter-clay motif seems to have one point: The potter prepares the clay.
[9:23] 231 tn Grk “vessels.” This is the same Greek word used in v. 21.
[9:25] 233 tn Grk “and her who was not beloved, ‘Beloved.’”
[9:25] 234 sn A quotation from Hos 2:23.
[9:26] 235 tn Grk “And it will be in the very place.”
[9:26] 236 sn A quotation from Hos 1:10.
[9:28] 239 tc In light of the interpretive difficulty of this verse, a longer reading seems to have been added to clarify the meaning. The addition, in the middle of the sentence, makes the whole verse read as follows: “For he will execute his sentence completely and quickly in righteousness, because the Lord will do it quickly on the earth.” The shorter reading is found largely in Alexandrian
[9:29] 241 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
[9:29] 242 tn Traditionally, “Lord of hosts”; Grk “Lord Sabaoth,” which means “Lord of the [heavenly] armies,” sometimes translated more generally as “Lord Almighty.”
[9:29] 243 sn A quotation from Isa 1:9.
[9:31] 243 tn Or “who pursued.” The participle could be taken adverbially or adjectivally.
[9:31] 244 tn Or “a legal righteousness,” that is, a righteousness based on law. This translation would treat the genitive δικαιοσύνης (dikaiosunh") as an attributed genitive (see ExSyn 89-91).
[9:31] 245 tn Grk “has not attained unto the law.”
[9:32] 245 tn Grk “Why? Because not by faith but as though by works.” The verb (“they pursued [it]”) is to be supplied from the preceding verse for the sake of English style; yet a certain literary power is seen in Paul’s laconic style.
[9:32] 246 tc Most
[9:32] 247 tn Grk “the stone of stumbling.”
[9:33] 247 tn Grk “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.”
[9:33] 248 sn A quotation from Isa 28:16; 8:14.
[10:1] 249 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[10:1] 250 tn Grk “on behalf of them”; the referent (Paul’s fellow Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[10:2] 251 tn Grk “they have a zeal for God.”
[10:2] 252 tn Grk “in accord with knowledge.”
[10:5] 253 sn A quotation from Lev 18:5.
[10:6] 255 sn A quotation from Deut 9:4.
[10:6] 256 sn A quotation from Deut 30:12.
[10:7] 257 sn A quotation from Deut 30:13.
[10:8] 259 sn A quotation from Deut 30:14.
[10:9] 261 tn Or “the Lord.” The Greek construction, along with the quotation from Joel 2:32 in v. 13 (in which the same “Lord” seems to be in view) suggests that κύριον (kurion) is to be taken as “the Lord,” that is, Yahweh. Cf. D. B. Wallace, “The Semantics and Exegetical Significance of the Object-Complement Construction in the New Testament,” GTJ 6 (1985): 91-112.
[10:10] 263 tn Grk “believes to righteousness.”
[10:10] 264 tn Grk “confesses to salvation.”
[10:11] 265 sn A quotation from Isa 28:16.
[10:13] 267 sn A quotation from Joel 2:32.
[10:14] 269 tn Grk “preaching”; the words “to them” are supplied for clarification.
[10:15] 271 tn The word in this context seems to mean “coming at the right or opportune time” (see BDAG 1103 s.v. ὡραῖος 1); it may also mean “beautiful, attractive, welcome.”
[10:15] 272 tn Grk “the feet.” The metaphorical nuance of “beautiful feet” is that such represent timely news.
[10:15] 273 sn A quotation from Isa 52:7; Nah 1:15.
[10:16] 273 sn A quotation from Isa 53:1.
[10:17] 275 tn The Greek term here is ῥῆμα (rJhma), which often (but not exclusively) focuses on the spoken word.
[10:17] 276 tc Most
[10:18] 277 tn That is, Israel (see the following verse).
[10:18] 278 tn Grk “they have not ‘not heard,’ have they?” This question is difficult to render in English. The basic question is a negative sentence (“Have they not heard?”), but it is preceded by the particle μή (mh) which expects a negative response. The end result in English is a double negative (“They have not ‘not heard,’ have they?”). This has been changed to a positive question in the translation for clarity. See BDAG 646 s.v. μή 3.a.; D. Moo, Romans (NICNT), 666, fn. 32; and C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans (ICC), 537, for discussion.
[10:18] 279 tn Here the particle μενοῦνγε (menounge) is correcting the negative response expected by the particle μή (mh) in the preceding question. Since the question has been translated positively, the translation was changed here to reflect that rendering.
[10:18] 280 sn A quotation from Ps 19:4.
[10:19] 279 tn Grk “Israel did not ‘not know,’ did he?” The double negative in Greek has been translated as a positive affirmation for clarity (see v. 18 above for a similar situation).
[10:19] 280 sn A quotation from Deut 32:21.
[10:20] 281 sn A quotation from Isa 65:1.
[10:21] 283 sn A quotation from Isa 65:2.
[11:3] 285 sn A quotation from 1 Kgs 19:10, 14.
[11:4] 287 tn Grk “the revelation,” “the oracle.”
[11:4] 288 tn The Greek term here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which only exceptionally is used in a generic sense of both males and females. In this context, it appears to be a generic usage (“people”) since when Paul speaks of a remnant of faithful Israelites (“the elect,” v. 7), he is not referring to males only. It can also be argued, however, that it refers only to adult males here (“men”), perhaps as representative of all the faithful left in Israel.
[11:4] 289 sn A quotation from 1 Kgs 19:18.
[11:7] 289 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
[11:8] 291 sn A quotation from Deut 29:4; Isa 29:10.
[11:10] 293 sn A quotation from Ps 69:22-23.
[11:11] 295 tn Grk “that they might fall.”
[11:11] 296 tn Grk “them”; the referent (Israel, cf. 11:7) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[11:12] 297 tn Or “full inclusion”; Grk “their fullness.”
[11:16] 299 tn Grk “firstfruits,” a term for the first part of something that has been set aside and offered to God before the remainder can be used.
[11:16] 300 sn Most interpreters see Paul as making use of a long-standing metaphor of the olive tree (the root…the branches) as a symbol for Israel. See, in this regard, Jer 11:16, 19. A. T. Hanson, Studies in Paul’s Technique and Theology, 121-24, cites rabbinic use of the figure of the olive tree, and goes so far as to argue that Rom 11:17-24 is a midrash on Jer 11:16-19.
[11:17] 301 tn Grk “became a participant of.”
[11:20] 303 tn Grk “well!”, an adverb used to affirm a statement. It means “very well,” “you are correct.”
[11:22] 305 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
[11:22] 306 tn Grk “if you continue in (the) kindness.”
[11:25] 307 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[11:25] 308 tn Or “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.”
[11:25] 309 tn Grk “fullness.”
[11:26] 309 tn It is not clear whether the phrase καὶ οὕτως (kai Joutws, “and so”) is to be understood in a modal sense (“and in this way”) or in a temporal sense (“and in the end”). Neither interpretation is conclusive from a grammatical standpoint, and in fact the two may not be mutually exclusive. Some, like H. Hübner, who argue strongly against the temporal reading, nevertheless continue to give the phrase a temporal significance, saying that God will save all Israel in the end (Gottes Ich und Israel [FRLANT], 118).
[11:27] 311 sn A quotation from Isa 59:20-21.
[11:27] 312 sn A quotation from Isa 27:9; Jer 31:33-34.
[11:31] 313 tc Some important Alexandrian and Western
[11:32] 315 tn Grk “to all”; “them” has been supplied for stylistic reasons.
[11:34] 317 sn A quotation from Isa 40:13.
[11:35] 319 tn Grk “him”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[11:35] 320 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
