A Living and Holy Sacrifice
Therefore aI exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to bpresent your bodies as a sacrifice—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not abe conformed to bthis world, but be transformed by the crenewing of your mind, so that you may dapprove what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect.
3 For through athe grace given to me I say to each one among you bnot to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound thinking, as God has allotted to ceach a measure of faith. 4 For ajust as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, awho are many, are bone body in Christ, and individually members one of another, 6 but having gifts that adiffer according to the grace given to us: whether bprophecy, in agreement with the faith; 7 or aservice, in his serving; or he who bteaches, in his teaching; 8 or he who aexhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with bgenerosity; che who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with dcheerfulness.
9 Let alove be without hypocrisy—by babhorring what is evil, clinging to what is good, 10 being adevoted to one another in brotherly love, giving preference to one another bin honor, 11 not lagging behind in diligence, being afervent in spirit, bserving the Lord, 12 arejoicing in hope, bpersevering in affliction, being cdevoted to prayer, 13 acontributing to the needs of the saints, bpursuing hospitality.
14 aBless those who persecute you; bless, and do not curse. 15 aRejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep, 16 by abeing of the same mind toward one another, bnot being haughty in mind, but associating with the humble. cDo not be wise in your own mind. 17 aNever paying back evil for evil to anyone, brespecting what is good in the sight of all men, 18 if possible, aso far as it depends on you, bbeing at peace with all men, 19 anever taking your own revenge, beloved—instead leave room for the wrath of God. For it is written, “bVengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 “aBut if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Be Subject to Government
Every aperson is to be in bsubjection to the governing authorities. For cthere is no authority except from God, and those which exist have been appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists that authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. 3 For arulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of that authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same; 4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword in vain, for it is a minister of God, an aavenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. 5 Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of that wrath, but also because of aconscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. 7 aRender to all what is due them: btax to whom tax is due; ccustom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for ahe who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 For this, “aYou shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this word, “bYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does not work evil against a neighbor; therefore alove is the fulfillment of the Law.
11 And do this, knowing the time, that it is aalready the hour for you to bawaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 aThe night is almost gone, and bthe day is at hand. Therefore let us lay aside cthe deeds of darkness and put on dthe armor of light. 13 Let us awalk properly as in the day, bnot in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. 14 But aput on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh bin regard to its lusts.
Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another
Now aaccept the one who is bweak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on opinions. 2 aOne person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is bweak eats vegetables only. 3 The one who eats must not aview the one who does not eat with contempt, and the one who does not eat must not bjudge the one who eats, for God caccepted him. 4 aWho are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 aOne person judges one day above another, another judges every day alike. Each person must be bfully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who regards the day, regards it for the Lord, and he who eats, eats for the Lord, for he agives thanks to God; and he who does not eat, for the Lord he does not eat and gives thanks to God. 7 For not one of us alives for himself, and not one dies for himself; 8 for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore awhether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end aChrist died and lived again, that He might be bLord both of the dead and of the living.
10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you aview your brother with contempt? For bwe will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For it is written,
“aAs I live, says the Lord, bto Me every knee shall bow,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”
12 So then aeach one of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not ajudge one another anymore, but rather judge this—bnot to put a stumbling block or offense before a brother. 14 I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that anothing is defiled in itself; but to him who bconsiders anything to be defiled, to him it is defiled. 15 For if because of food your brother is grieved, you are no longer awalking according to love. bDo not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore ado not let what is for you a good thing be slandered; 17 for the kingdom of God ais not eating and drinking, but righteousness and bpeace and bjoy in the Holy Spirit. 18 For he who in this way aserves Christ is bpleasing to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us apursue the things which make for peace and the bbuilding up of one another. 20 aDo not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. bAll things indeed are clean, but cthey are evil for the man who eats and gives offense. 21 aIt is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles. 22 The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Blessed is he who adoes not judge himself in what he approves. 23 But ahe who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.
Bearing the Weaknesses of Others
Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of athose without strength and not just please ourselves. 2 Each of us is to aplease his neighbor for his good, to his bbuilding up. 3 For even aChrist did not please Himself; but as it is written, “bThe reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.” 4 For awhatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through the perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 5 Now may the aGod of perseverance and encouragement grant you bto be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, 6 so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify athe God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ, the Hope of Jews and Gentiles
7 Therefore, aaccept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. 8 For I say that Christ has become a servant to athe circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm bthe promises given to the fathers, 9 and for athe Gentiles to bglorify God for His mercy; as it is written,
“cTherefore I will give praise to You among the Gentiles,
And I will sing to Your name.”
10 And again he says,
“aRejoice, O Gentiles, with His people.”
11 And again,
“aPraise the Lord all you Gentiles,
And let all the peoples praise Him.”
12 And again Isaiah says,
“aThere shall come bthe root of Jesse,
And He who arises to rule over the Gentiles,
cIn Him shall the Gentiles hope.”
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all ajoy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope bby the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul’s Ministry Plans
14 But I myself am also convinced about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of agoodness, having been filled with ball knowledge and being able also to admonish one another. 15 But I have written very boldly to you on some points so as to remind you again, because of athe grace that was given me by God 16 for me to be aa minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, ministering as a priest the bgospel of God, so that my coffering of the Gentiles may become acceptable, having been sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 Therefore in Christ Jesus I have areason for boasting in bthings pertaining to God. 18 For I will not be bold to speak of anything except what aChrist has brought about through me, leading to the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed, 19 in the power of asigns and wonders, bin the power of the Spirit; so that cfrom Jerusalem and all around as dfar as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 20 And in this way I make it my ambition to aproclaim the gospel, not where Christ was already named, bso that I would not build on another man’s foundation; 21 but as it is written,
“aThey who had no declaration of Him shall see,
And they who have not heard shall understand.”
22 For this reason aI have often been prevented from coming to you; 23 but now, with no further place for me in these regions, and since I ahave had for many years a longing to come to you 24 whenever I ago to Spain—for I hope, passing through, to see you, and to be bhelped on my way there by you, when I have first cenjoyed your company for a while. 25 But now aI am going to Jerusalem to bserve the saints. 26 For aMacedonia and bAchaia were pleased to share with the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 Yes, they were pleased to do so, and they are indebted to them. For aif the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things. 28 Therefore, when I have completed this and ahave put my seal on this fruit of theirs, I will bgo on by way of you to Spain. 29 And I know that when aI come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.
30 Now I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by athe love of the Spirit, to bstrive together with me in your prayers to God for me, 31 that I may be arescued from those who are disobedient in Judea, and that my bservice for Jerusalem may prove acceptable to the csaints; 32 so that aI may come to you in joy by bthe will of God and find rest in your company. 33 Now may athe God of peace be with you all. Amen.
Final Instructions and Greetings
Now I acommend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church which is at bCenchrea; 2 that you areceive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the bsaints, and that you help her in whatever matter she may have need of you; for she herself has also been a benefactor of many, and of myself as well.
3 Greet aPrisca and Aquila, my fellow workers bin cChrist Jesus,
4 who for my life risked their own necks, to whom not only do I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles;
5 also greet athe church that is in their house.
Greet Epaenetus, my beloved, who is the bfirst convert to Christ from cAsia.
6 Greet Mary, who has labored much for you.
7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my akinsmen and my bfellow prisoners, who are outstanding to the apostles, who also were cin Christ before me.
8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord.
9 Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker ain Christ, and Stachys my beloved.
10 Greet Apelles, the approved ain Christ. Greet those who are of the household of Aristobulus.
11 Greet Herodion, my akinsman.
Greet those of the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord.
12 Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, laborers in the Lord.
Greet Persis the beloved, who labored much in the Lord.
13 Greet aRufus, a choice man in the Lord, also his mother and mine.
14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the brothers with them.
15 Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all athe saints who are with them.
16 aGreet one another with a holy kiss.
All the churches of Christ greet you.
17 Now I urge you, brothers, to keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and stumblings acontrary to the teaching which you learned, and bturn away from them. 18 For such men are aslaves, not of our Lord Christ but of btheir own stomach, and by their csmooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. 19 For the report of your obedience ahas reached to all. Therefore I am rejoicing over you, but bI want you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil. 20 aAnd the God of peace will soon crush bSatan under your feet.
cThe grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
21 aTimothy my fellow worker greets you, and so do bLucius and cJason and dSosipater, my ekinsmen.
22 I, Tertius, who awrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.
23 aGaius, host to me and to the whole church, greets you. bErastus, the city treasurer greets you, and Quartus, the brother. 24 [The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.]
25 aNow to Him who is able to strengthen you baccording to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of cthe mystery which has been kept secret for dlong ages past, 26 but now is manifested, and by athe Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the Gentiles, leading to bobedience of faith; 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, abe the glory forever. Amen.