Discovery BoxRomans 5:2
Context5:2 through whom we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice 1 in the hope of God’s glory.
Romans 5:1
Context5:1 2 Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have 3 peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Romans 12:1-21
Context12:1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, 4 by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive, holy, and pleasing to God 5 – which is your reasonable service. 12:2 Do not be conformed 6 to this present world, 7 but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve 8 what is the will of God – what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.
12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think, but to think with sober discernment, as God has distributed to each of you 9 a measure of faith. 10 12:4 For just as in one body we have many members, and not all the members serve the same function, 12:5 so we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually we are members who belong to one another. 12:6 And we have different gifts 11 according to the grace given to us. If the gift is prophecy, that individual must use it in proportion to his faith. 12:7 If it is service, he must serve; if it is teaching, he must teach; 12:8 if it is exhortation, he must exhort; if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity; if it is leadership, he must do so with diligence; if it is showing mercy, he must do so with cheerfulness.
12:9 Love must be 12 without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil, cling to what is good. 12:10 Be devoted to one another with mutual love, showing eagerness in honoring one another. 12:11 Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord. 12:12 Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering, persist in prayer. 12:13 Contribute to the needs of the saints, pursue hospitality. 12:14 Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. 12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 12:16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. 13 Do not be conceited. 14 12:17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil; consider what is good before all people. 15 12:18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people. 16 12:19 Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, 17 for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” 18 says the Lord. 12:20 Rather, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head. 19 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
[5:1] 2 sn Many interpreters see Rom 5:1 as beginning the second major division of the letter.
[5:1] 3 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.
[12:1] 3 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
[12:1] 4 tn The participle and two adjectives “alive, holy, and pleasing to God” are taken as predicates in relation to “sacrifice,” making the exhortation more emphatic. See ExSyn 618-19.
[12:2] 4 tn Although συσχηματίζεσθε (suschmatizesqe) could be either a passive or middle, the passive is more likely since it would otherwise have to be a direct middle (“conform yourselves”) and, as such, would be quite rare for NT Greek. It is very telling that being “conformed” to the present world is viewed as a passive notion, for it may suggest that it happens, in part, subconsciously. At the same time, the passive could well be a “permissive passive,” suggesting that there may be some consciousness of the conformity taking place. Most likely, it is a combination of both.
[12:2] 5 tn Grk “to this age.”
[12:2] 6 sn The verb translated test and approve (δοκιμάζω, dokimazw) carries the sense of “test with a positive outcome,” “test so as to approve.”
[12:3] 5 tn The words “of you” have been supplied for clarity.
[12:3] 6 tn Or “to each as God has distributed a measure of faith.”
[12:6] 6 tn This word comes from the same root as “grace” in the following clause; it means “things graciously given,” “grace-gifts.”
[12:9] 7 tn The verb “must be” is understood in the Greek text.
[12:16] 8 tn Or “but give yourselves to menial tasks.” The translation depends on whether one takes the adjective “lowly” as masculine or neuter.
[12:16] 9 tn Grk “Do not be wise in your thinking.”
[12:17] 9 tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used as a generic and refers to both men and women.
[12:18] 10 tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used as a generic and refers to both men and women.
[12:19] 11 tn Grk “the wrath,” referring to God’s wrath as the remainder of the verse shows.
[12:19] 12 sn A quotation from Deut 32:35.
[12:20] 12 sn A quotation from Prov 25:21-22.
