Romans 4:5 惟有不做工的，只信称罪人为义的　神，他的信就算为义。

4:5 MSG

逐节对照

新标点和合本 - 惟有不做工的，只信称罪人为义的　神，他的信就算为义。
和合本2010（上帝版-简体） - 但那不做工的，只信那位称不敬虔之人为义的，他的信就算为义。
和合本2010（神版-简体） - 但那不做工的，只信那位称不敬虔之人为义的，他的信就算为义。
当代译本 - 但人不靠行为，只信称不敬虔之人为义人的上帝，他就因信而被算为义人。
圣经新译本 - 可是，那不作工而只信那称不敬虔的人为义的　神的，他的信就算为义了。
中文标准译本 - 但是，一个人虽没有做工，却信靠那称不敬虔之人为义的神，这人的信就被算为义。
现代标点和合本 - 唯有不做工的，只信称罪人为义的神，他的信就算为义。
和合本（拼音版） - 惟有不作工的，只信称罪人为义的上帝，他的信就算为义。
New International Version - However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.
New International Reader's Version - But things are different with God. He makes ungodly people right with himself. If people trust in him, their faith is accepted even though they do not work. Their faith makes them right with God.
English Standard Version - And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,
New Living Translation - But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners.
Christian Standard Bible - But to the one who does not work, but believes on him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited for righteousness.
New American Standard Bible - But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,
New King James Version - But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,
Amplified Bible - But to the one who does not work [that is, the one who does not try to earn his salvation by doing good], but believes and completely trusts in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited to him as righteousness (right standing with God).
American Standard Version - But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned for righteousness.
King James Version - But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
New English Translation - But to the one who does not work, but believes in the one who declares the ungodly righteous, his faith is credited as righteousness.
World English Bible - But to him who doesn’t work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.
新標點和合本 - 惟有不做工的，只信稱罪人為義的神，他的信就算為義。
和合本2010（上帝版-繁體） - 但那不做工的，只信那位稱不敬虔之人為義的，他的信就算為義。
和合本2010（神版-繁體） - 但那不做工的，只信那位稱不敬虔之人為義的，他的信就算為義。
當代譯本 - 但人不靠行為，只信稱不敬虔之人為義人的上帝，他就因信而被算為義人。
聖經新譯本 - 可是，那不作工而只信那稱不敬虔的人為義的　神的，他的信就算為義了。
呂振中譯本 - 而對那沒有作工、只信那稱不虔之人為義的、他的信就算為他的義了。』
中文標準譯本 - 但是，一個人雖沒有做工，卻信靠那稱不敬虔之人為義的神，這人的信就被算為義。
現代標點和合本 - 唯有不做工的，只信稱罪人為義的神，他的信就算為義。
文理和合譯本 - 不行者、第信其稱不虔之人為義、其信即以之為義矣、
文理委辦譯本 - 無行法而信、稱罪人以義者、即其信亦稱為義、
施約瑟淺文理新舊約聖經 - 不行而信稱罪人為義之主、則其信稱為義、
吳經熊文理聖詠與新經全集 - 正惟不以事功為言、而篤信赦罪之主、乃能因其信德而稱義耳。
Nueva Versión Internacional - Sin embargo, al que no trabaja, sino que cree en el que justifica al malvado, se le toma en cuenta la fe como justicia.
현대인의 성경 - 그러나 아무 공로가 없어도 경건치 않은 사람을 의롭다고 하시는 하나님을 믿는 사람에게는 그의 믿음이 의로운 것으로 인정을 받습니다.
Новый Русский Перевод - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Богу, оправдывающему нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Всевышнему, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод, версия с «Аллахом» - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Аллаху, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод, версия для Таджикистана - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Всевышнему, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
La Bible du Semeur 2015 - Et si quelqu’un n’accomplit pas les œuvres requises par la Loi mais place sa confiance en Dieu qui déclare justes les pécheurs, Dieu le déclare juste en portant sa foi à son crédit.
Nestle Aland 28 - τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην·
unfoldingWord® Greek New Testament - τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ, πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ, λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην,
Nova Versão Internacional - Todavia, àquele que não trabalha, mas confia em Deus, que justifica o ímpio, sua fé lhe é creditada como justiça.
Hoffnung für alle - Aber bei Gott ist das anders. Bei ihm werde ich nichts erreichen, wenn ich mich auf meine Taten berufe. Nur wenn ich Gott vertraue, der den Gottlosen von seiner Schuld freispricht, kann ich vor ihm bestehen.
Kinh Thánh Hiện Đại - Còn người được kể là công chính không vì việc họ làm, nhưng do tin Đức Chúa Trời, Đấng tha tội cho mình.
พระคริสตธรรมคัมภีร์ไทย ฉบับอมตธรรมร่วมสมัย - ส่วนคนที่ไม่ได้อาศัยการประพฤติ แต่วางใจพระเจ้าผู้ทรงทำให้คนชั่วเป็นผู้ชอบธรรม พระองค์ทรงถือว่าความเชื่อของเขาเป็นความชอบธรรม
พระคัมภีร์ ฉบับแปลใหม่ - อย่างไรก็ตาม ผู้ที่ไม่ได้อาศัยการปฏิบัติตน แต่ได้วางใจพระเจ้าผู้โปรดให้คนชั่วร้ายพ้นผิด จึงนับได้ว่าความเชื่อของเขาเป็นความชอบธรรม

交叉引用

Joshua 24:2 - “This is what God, the God of Israel, says: A long time ago your ancestors, Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor, lived to the east of the River Euphrates. They worshiped other gods. I took your ancestor Abraham from the far side of The River. I led him all over the land of Canaan and multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac. Then I gave Isaac Jacob and Esau. I let Esau have the mountains of Seir as home, but Jacob and his sons ended up in Egypt. I sent Moses and Aaron. I hit Egypt hard with plagues and then led you out of there. I brought your ancestors out of Egypt. You came to the sea, the Egyptians in hot pursuit with chariots and cavalry, to the very edge of the Red Sea!
1 Timothy 1:15 - Here’s a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I’m proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever. Deep honor and bright glory to the King of All Time— One God, Immortal, Invisible, ever and always. Oh, yes! I’m passing this work on to you, my son Timothy. The prophetic word that was directed to you prepared us for this. All those prayers are coming together now so you will do this well, fearless in your struggle, keeping a firm grip on your faith and on yourself. After all, this is a fight we’re in.
Zechariah 3:3 - Joshua, standing before the angel, was dressed in dirty clothes. The angel spoke to his attendants, “Get him out of those filthy clothes,” and then said to Joshua, “Look, I’ve stripped you of your sin and dressed you up in clean clothes.”
Habakkuk 2:4 - “Look at that man, bloated by self-importance— full of himself but soul-empty. But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive.
Romans 5:6 - Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.
John 5:24 - “It’s urgent that you listen carefully to this: Anyone here who believes what I am saying right now and aligns himself with the Father, who has in fact put me in charge, has at this very moment the real, lasting life and is no longer condemned to be an outsider. This person has taken a giant step from the world of the dead to the world of the living.
John 6:29 - Jesus said, “Sign on with the One that God has sent. That kind of a commitment gets you in on God’s works.”
Romans 3:27 - So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and counterclaims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we’ve learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We’ve finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade.
Romans 3:29 - And where does that leave our proud Jewish claim of having a corner on God? Also canceled. God is the God of outsider non-Jews as well as insider Jews. How could it be otherwise since there is only one God? God sets right all who welcome his action and enter into it, both those who follow our religious system and those who have never heard of our religion.
Romans 8:31 - So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Romans 1:18 - But God’s angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.
1 Corinthians 6:9 - Don’t you realize that this is not the way to live? Unjust people who don’t care about God will not be joining in his kingdom. Those who use and abuse each other, use and abuse sex, use and abuse the earth and everything in it, don’t qualify as citizens in God’s kingdom. A number of you know from experience what I’m talking about, for not so long ago you were on that list. Since then, you’ve been cleaned up and given a fresh start by Jesus, our Master, our Messiah, and by our God present in us, the Spirit.
Galatians 2:17 - Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a pretender.
Galatians 3:9 - So those now who live by faith are blessed along with Abraham, who lived by faith—this is no new doctrine! And that means that anyone who tries to live by his own effort, independent of God, is doomed to failure. Scripture backs this up: “Utterly cursed is every person who fails to carry out every detail written in the Book of the law.”
Galatians 3:11 - The obvious impossibility of carrying out such a moral program should make it plain that no one can sustain a relationship with God that way. The person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God arranges for him. Doing things for God is the opposite of entering into what God does for you. Habakkuk had it right: “The person who believes God, is set right by God—and that’s the real life.” Rule-keeping does not naturally evolve into living by faith, but only perpetuates itself in more and more rule-keeping, a fact observed in Scripture: “The one who does these things [rule-keeping] continues to live by them.”
Galatians 3:13 - Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham’s blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God’s life, his Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it. * * *
Titus 3:3 - It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, easy marks for sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.

逐节对照

交叉引用

新标点和合本 - 惟有不做工的，只信称罪人为义的　神，他的信就算为义。
和合本2010（上帝版-简体） - 但那不做工的，只信那位称不敬虔之人为义的，他的信就算为义。
和合本2010（神版-简体） - 但那不做工的，只信那位称不敬虔之人为义的，他的信就算为义。
当代译本 - 但人不靠行为，只信称不敬虔之人为义人的上帝，他就因信而被算为义人。
圣经新译本 - 可是，那不作工而只信那称不敬虔的人为义的　神的，他的信就算为义了。
中文标准译本 - 但是，一个人虽没有做工，却信靠那称不敬虔之人为义的神，这人的信就被算为义。
现代标点和合本 - 唯有不做工的，只信称罪人为义的神，他的信就算为义。
和合本（拼音版） - 惟有不作工的，只信称罪人为义的上帝，他的信就算为义。
New International Version - However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.
New International Reader's Version - But things are different with God. He makes ungodly people right with himself. If people trust in him, their faith is accepted even though they do not work. Their faith makes them right with God.
English Standard Version - And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,
New Living Translation - But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners.
Christian Standard Bible - But to the one who does not work, but believes on him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited for righteousness.
New American Standard Bible - But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,
New King James Version - But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,
Amplified Bible - But to the one who does not work [that is, the one who does not try to earn his salvation by doing good], but believes and completely trusts in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited to him as righteousness (right standing with God).
American Standard Version - But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned for righteousness.
King James Version - But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
New English Translation - But to the one who does not work, but believes in the one who declares the ungodly righteous, his faith is credited as righteousness.
World English Bible - But to him who doesn’t work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.
新標點和合本 - 惟有不做工的，只信稱罪人為義的神，他的信就算為義。
和合本2010（上帝版-繁體） - 但那不做工的，只信那位稱不敬虔之人為義的，他的信就算為義。
和合本2010（神版-繁體） - 但那不做工的，只信那位稱不敬虔之人為義的，他的信就算為義。
當代譯本 - 但人不靠行為，只信稱不敬虔之人為義人的上帝，他就因信而被算為義人。
聖經新譯本 - 可是，那不作工而只信那稱不敬虔的人為義的　神的，他的信就算為義了。
呂振中譯本 - 而對那沒有作工、只信那稱不虔之人為義的、他的信就算為他的義了。』
中文標準譯本 - 但是，一個人雖沒有做工，卻信靠那稱不敬虔之人為義的神，這人的信就被算為義。
現代標點和合本 - 唯有不做工的，只信稱罪人為義的神，他的信就算為義。
文理和合譯本 - 不行者、第信其稱不虔之人為義、其信即以之為義矣、
文理委辦譯本 - 無行法而信、稱罪人以義者、即其信亦稱為義、
施約瑟淺文理新舊約聖經 - 不行而信稱罪人為義之主、則其信稱為義、
吳經熊文理聖詠與新經全集 - 正惟不以事功為言、而篤信赦罪之主、乃能因其信德而稱義耳。
Nueva Versión Internacional - Sin embargo, al que no trabaja, sino que cree en el que justifica al malvado, se le toma en cuenta la fe como justicia.
현대인의 성경 - 그러나 아무 공로가 없어도 경건치 않은 사람을 의롭다고 하시는 하나님을 믿는 사람에게는 그의 믿음이 의로운 것으로 인정을 받습니다.
Новый Русский Перевод - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Богу, оправдывающему нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Всевышнему, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод, версия с «Аллахом» - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Аллаху, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
Восточный перевод, версия для Таджикистана - Тому же, кто не полагается на дела, но верит Всевышнему, Который оправдывает нечестивого, в праведность вменяется сама его вера.
La Bible du Semeur 2015 - Et si quelqu’un n’accomplit pas les œuvres requises par la Loi mais place sa confiance en Dieu qui déclare justes les pécheurs, Dieu le déclare juste en portant sa foi à son crédit.
Nestle Aland 28 - τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην·
unfoldingWord® Greek New Testament - τῷ δὲ μὴ ἐργαζομένῳ, πιστεύοντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν δικαιοῦντα τὸν ἀσεβῆ, λογίζεται ἡ πίστις αὐτοῦ εἰς δικαιοσύνην,
Nova Versão Internacional - Todavia, àquele que não trabalha, mas confia em Deus, que justifica o ímpio, sua fé lhe é creditada como justiça.
Hoffnung für alle - Aber bei Gott ist das anders. Bei ihm werde ich nichts erreichen, wenn ich mich auf meine Taten berufe. Nur wenn ich Gott vertraue, der den Gottlosen von seiner Schuld freispricht, kann ich vor ihm bestehen.
Kinh Thánh Hiện Đại - Còn người được kể là công chính không vì việc họ làm, nhưng do tin Đức Chúa Trời, Đấng tha tội cho mình.
พระคริสตธรรมคัมภีร์ไทย ฉบับอมตธรรมร่วมสมัย - ส่วนคนที่ไม่ได้อาศัยการประพฤติ แต่วางใจพระเจ้าผู้ทรงทำให้คนชั่วเป็นผู้ชอบธรรม พระองค์ทรงถือว่าความเชื่อของเขาเป็นความชอบธรรม
พระคัมภีร์ ฉบับแปลใหม่ - อย่างไรก็ตาม ผู้ที่ไม่ได้อาศัยการปฏิบัติตน แต่ได้วางใจพระเจ้าผู้โปรดให้คนชั่วร้ายพ้นผิด จึงนับได้ว่าความเชื่อของเขาเป็นความชอบธรรม

Joshua 24:2 - “This is what God, the God of Israel, says: A long time ago your ancestors, Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor, lived to the east of the River Euphrates. They worshiped other gods. I took your ancestor Abraham from the far side of The River. I led him all over the land of Canaan and multiplied his descendants. I gave him Isaac. Then I gave Isaac Jacob and Esau. I let Esau have the mountains of Seir as home, but Jacob and his sons ended up in Egypt. I sent Moses and Aaron. I hit Egypt hard with plagues and then led you out of there. I brought your ancestors out of Egypt. You came to the sea, the Egyptians in hot pursuit with chariots and cavalry, to the very edge of the Red Sea!
1 Timothy 1:15 - Here’s a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I’m proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever. Deep honor and bright glory to the King of All Time— One God, Immortal, Invisible, ever and always. Oh, yes! I’m passing this work on to you, my son Timothy. The prophetic word that was directed to you prepared us for this. All those prayers are coming together now so you will do this well, fearless in your struggle, keeping a firm grip on your faith and on yourself. After all, this is a fight we’re in.
Zechariah 3:3 - Joshua, standing before the angel, was dressed in dirty clothes. The angel spoke to his attendants, “Get him out of those filthy clothes,” and then said to Joshua, “Look, I’ve stripped you of your sin and dressed you up in clean clothes.”
Habakkuk 2:4 - “Look at that man, bloated by self-importance— full of himself but soul-empty. But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive.
Romans 5:6 - Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.
John 5:24 - “It’s urgent that you listen carefully to this: Anyone here who believes what I am saying right now and aligns himself with the Father, who has in fact put me in charge, has at this very moment the real, lasting life and is no longer condemned to be an outsider. This person has taken a giant step from the world of the dead to the world of the living.
John 6:29 - Jesus said, “Sign on with the One that God has sent. That kind of a commitment gets you in on God’s works.”
Romans 3:27 - So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and counterclaims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we’ve learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We’ve finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade.
Romans 3:29 - And where does that leave our proud Jewish claim of having a corner on God? Also canceled. God is the God of outsider non-Jews as well as insider Jews. How could it be otherwise since there is only one God? God sets right all who welcome his action and enter into it, both those who follow our religious system and those who have never heard of our religion.
Romans 8:31 - So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one. None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Romans 1:18 - But God’s angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.
1 Corinthians 6:9 - Don’t you realize that this is not the way to live? Unjust people who don’t care about God will not be joining in his kingdom. Those who use and abuse each other, use and abuse sex, use and abuse the earth and everything in it, don’t qualify as citizens in God’s kingdom. A number of you know from experience what I’m talking about, for not so long ago you were on that list. Since then, you’ve been cleaned up and given a fresh start by Jesus, our Master, our Messiah, and by our God present in us, the Spirit.
Galatians 2:17 - Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a pretender.
Galatians 3:9 - So those now who live by faith are blessed along with Abraham, who lived by faith—this is no new doctrine! And that means that anyone who tries to live by his own effort, independent of God, is doomed to failure. Scripture backs this up: “Utterly cursed is every person who fails to carry out every detail written in the Book of the law.”
Galatians 3:11 - The obvious impossibility of carrying out such a moral program should make it plain that no one can sustain a relationship with God that way. The person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God arranges for him. Doing things for God is the opposite of entering into what God does for you. Habakkuk had it right: “The person who believes God, is set right by God—and that’s the real life.” Rule-keeping does not naturally evolve into living by faith, but only perpetuates itself in more and more rule-keeping, a fact observed in Scripture: “The one who does these things [rule-keeping] continues to live by them.”
Galatians 3:13 - Christ redeemed us from that self-defeating, cursed life by absorbing it completely into himself. Do you remember the Scripture that says, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”? That is what happened when Jesus was nailed to the cross: He became a curse, and at the same time dissolved the curse. And now, because of that, the air is cleared and we can see that Abraham’s blessing is present and available for non-Jews, too. We are all able to receive God’s life, his Spirit, in and with us by believing—just the way Abraham received it. * * *
Titus 3:3 - It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, easy marks for sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.