Romans 1-2

Romans 1

¹Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

²which he promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,

³concerning his Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,

⁴who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection of the dead; even Jesus Christ our Lord,

⁵through whom we received grace and apostleship, unto obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name’s sake:

⁶among whom are ye also, called to be Jesus Christ’s:

⁷To all that are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁸First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world.

⁹For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of his Son, how unceasingly I make mention of you, always in my prayers

¹⁰making request, if by any means now at length I may be prospered by the will of God to come unto you.

¹¹For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;

¹²that is, that I with you may be comforted in you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine.

¹³And I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you (and was hindered hitherto), that I might have some fruit in you also, even as in the rest of the Gentiles.

¹⁴I am debtor both to Greeks and to Barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.

¹⁵So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you also that are in Rome.

¹⁶For I am not ashamed of the gospel: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

¹⁷For therein is revealed a righteousness of God by faith unto faith: as it is written, But the righteous shall live by faith.

¹⁸For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold down the truth in unrighteousness;

¹⁹because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God manifested it unto them.

²⁰For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse:

²¹because that, knowing God, they glorified him not as God, neither gave thanks; but became vain in their reasonings, and their senseless heart was darkened.

²²Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

²³and changed the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things.

²⁴Wherefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts unto uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonoured among themselves:

²⁵for that they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

²⁶For this cause God gave them up unto vile passions: for their women changed the natural use into that which is against nature:

²⁷and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another, men with men working unseemliness, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was due.

²⁸And even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up unto a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

²⁹being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

³⁰backbiters, hateful to God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

³¹without understanding, covenant-breakers, without natural affection, unmerciful:

³²who, knowing the ordinance of God, that they which practise such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but also consent with them that practise them.

Romans 2

¹Wherefore thou art without excuse, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest dost practise the same things.

²And we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against them that practise such things.

³And reckonest thou this, O man, who judgest them that practise such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

⁴Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

⁵but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up for thyself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;

⁶who will render to every man according to his works:

⁷to them that by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honour and incorruption, eternal life:

⁸but unto them that are factious, and obey not the truth, but obey unrighteousness, shall be wrath and indignation,

⁹tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that worketh evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Greek;

¹⁰but glory and honour and peace to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek:

¹¹for there is no respect of persons with God.

¹²For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned under law shall be judged by law;

¹³for not the hearers of a law are just before God, but the doers of a law shall be justified:

¹⁴for when Gentiles which have no law do by nature the things of the law, these, having no law, are a law unto themselves;

¹⁵in that they shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness therewith, and their thoughts one with another accusing or else excusing them;

¹⁶in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men, according to my gospel, by Jesus Christ.

¹⁷But if thou bearest the name of a Jew, and restest upon the law, and gloriest in God,

¹⁸and knowest his will, and approvest the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law,

¹⁹and art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them that are in darkness,

²⁰a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having in the law the form of knowledge and of the truth;

²¹thou therefore that teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?

²²thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou rob temples?

²³thou who gloriest in the law, through thy transgression of the law dishonourest thou God?

²⁴For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you, even as it is written.

²⁵For circumcision indeed profiteth, if thou be a doer of the law: but if thou be a transgressor of the law, thy circumcision is become uncircumcision.

²⁶If therefore the uncircumcision keep the ordinances of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be reckoned for circumcision?

²⁷and shall not the uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfill the law, judge thee, who with the letter and circumcision art a transgressor of the law?

²⁸For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:

²⁹but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.