2 Wherefore 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 honor 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 honor 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 the law: and as many as have sinned under the law shall be judged by the law; 13for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified: 14(for when Gentiles that have not the law do by nature the things of the law, these, not having the law, are the law unto themselves; 15in that they show 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 dishonorest 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 fulfil the law, judge thee, who with the letter and circumcision art a transgressor of the law? 28For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh: 29but he is a Jew who 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.

3 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what is the profit of circumcision? 2Much every way: first of all, that they were intrusted with the oracles of God. 3For what if some were without faith? shall their want of faith make of none effect the faithfulness of God? 4God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written,

That thou mightest be justified in thy words,

And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.

5But if our unrighteousness commendeth the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who visiteth with wrath? (I speak after the manner of men.) 6God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world? 7But if the truth of God through my lie abounded unto his glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? 8and why not (as we are slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say), Let us do evil, that good may come? whose condemnation is just.

9What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we before laid to the charge both of Jews and Greeks, that they are all under sin; 10as it is written,

There is none righteous, no, not one;

11There is none that understandeth,

There is none that seeketh after God;

12They have all turned aside, they are together become unprofitable;

There is none that doeth good, no, not so much as one:

13Their throat is an open sepulchre;

With their tongues they have used deceit:

The poison of asps is under their lips:

14Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:

15Their feet are swift to shed blood;

16Destruction and misery are in their ways;

17And the way of peace have they not known:

18There is no fear of God before their eyes.

19Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it speaketh to them that are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be brought under the judgment of God: 20because by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight; for through the law cometh the knowledge of sin.

21But now apart from the law a righteousness of God hath been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ unto all them that believe; for there is no distinction; 23for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; 24being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25whom God set forth to be a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God; 26for the showing, I say, of his righteousness at this present season: that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus. 27Where then is the glorying? It is excluded. By what manner of law? of works? Nay: but by a law of faith. 28We reckon therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 29Or is God the God of Jews only? is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yea, of Gentiles also: 30if so be that God is one, and he shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through faith.

31Do we then make the law of none effect through faith? God forbid: nay, we establish the law.

4 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, hath found according to the flesh? 2For if Abraham was justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not toward God. 3For what saith the scripture? And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness. 4Now to him that worketh, the reward is not reckoned as of grace, but as of debt. 5But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned for righteousness. 6Even as David also pronounceth blessing upon the man, unto whom God reckoneth righteousness apart from works, 7saying,

Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven,

And whose sins are covered.

8Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not reckon sin. 9Is this blessing then pronounced upon the circumcision, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say, To Abraham his faith was reckoned for righteousness. 10How then was it reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision: 11and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while he was in uncircumcision: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be in uncircumcision, that righteousness might be reckoned unto them; 12and the father of circumcision to them who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham which he had in uncircumcision. 13For not through the law was the promise to Abraham or to his seed that he should be heir of the world, but through the righteousness of faith. 14For if they that are of the law are heirs, faith is made void, and the promise is made of none effect: 15for the law worketh wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there transgression. 16For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace; to the end that the promise may be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17(as it is written, A father of many nations have I made thee) before him whom he believed, even God, who giveth life to the dead, and calleth the things that are not, as though they were. 18Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19And without being weakened in faith he considered his own body now as good as dead (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; 20yet, looking unto the promise of God, he wavered not through unbelief, but waxed strong through faith, giving glory to God, 21and being fully assured that what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22Wherefore also it was reckoned unto him for righteousness. 23Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was reckoned unto him; 24but for our sake also, unto whom it shall be reckoned, who believe on him that raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.