There Is None Righteous
Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Great in every respect. First of all, that athey were entrusted with the boracles of God. 3 What then? If asome did not believe, does their unbelief abolish the faithfulness of God? 4 aMay it never be! Rather, let God be true and every man ba liar, as it is written,
“cThat You may be justified in Your words,
And overcome when You are judged.”
5 But if our unrighteousness ademonstrates the righteousness of God, bwhat shall we say? Is the God who inflicts wrath unrighteous? (cI am speaking in human terms.) 6 aMay it never be! For otherwise, how will bGod judge the world? 7 But if through my lie athe truth of God abounded to His glory, bwhy am I also still being judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say (as we are slanderously reported and as some claim that we say), “aLet us do evil that good may come”? Their condemnation is just.
9 What then? aAre we better? Not at all; for we have already charged that both bJews and cGreeks are dall under sin; 10 as it is written,
“aThere is none righteous, not even one;
11 There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
12 All have turned aside, together they have become worthless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”
13 “aTheir throat is an open tomb,
With their tongues they keep deceiving,”
“bThe poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “aWhose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”;
15 “aTheir feet are swift to shed blood,
16 Destruction and misery are in their paths,
17 And the path of peace they have not known.”
18 “aThere is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the aLaw says, it speaks to bthose who are in the Law, so that every mouth may be shut and call the world may become accountable to God; 20 because aby the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for bthrough the Law comes the knowledge of sin.
The Righteousness of God through Faith
21 But now apart from the Law athe righteousness of God has been manifested, being bwitnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the arighteousness of God through bfaith cin Jesus Christ for dall those who believe; for ethere is no distinction; 23 for all ahave sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift aby His grace through bthe redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25 whom God displayed publicly as aa propitiation bin His blood through faith, for a demonstration of His righteousness, because in the cforbearance of God He dpassed over the sins previously committed; 26 for the demonstration of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
27 Where then is aboasting? It is excluded. By bwhat kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28 For awe maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. 29 Or ais God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since indeed aGod, bwho will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that faith, cis one.
31 Do we then abolish the Law through faith? aMay it never be! On the contrary, we bestablish the Law.