Romans 3–4

Chapter 3

What advantage then hath the Jew: or what is the profit of circumcision?

²Much every way. First indeed, because the words of God were committed to them.

³For what if some of them have not believed? Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid!

⁴But God is true and every man a liar, as it is written: That thou mayest be justified in thy words and mayest overcome when thou art judged.

⁵But if our injustice commend the justice of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust, who executeth wrath?

⁶(I speak according to man.) God forbid! Otherwise how shall God judge this world?

⁷For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie, unto his glory, why am I also yet judged as a sinner?

⁸And not rather (as we are slandered and as some affirm that we say) let us do evil that there may come good? Whose damnation is just.

⁹What then? Do we excel them? No, not so. For we have charged both Jews and Greeks, that they are all under sin.

¹⁰As it is written: There is not any man just.

¹¹There is none that understandeth: there is none that seeketh after God.

¹²All have turned out of the way: they are become unprofitable together: there is none that doth good, there is not so much as one.

¹³Their throat is an open sepulchre: with their tongues they have dealt deceitfully. The venom of asps is under their lips.

¹⁴Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:

¹⁵Their feet swift to shed blood:

¹⁶Destruction and misery in their ways:

¹⁷And the way of peace they have not known.

¹⁸There is no fear of God before their eyes.

¹⁹Now we know that what things soever the law speaketh, it speaketh to them that are in the law: that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may be made subject to God.

²⁰Because by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified before him. For by the law is the knowledge of sin.

²¹But now, without the law, the justice of God is made manifest, being witnessed by the law and the prophets.

²²Even the justice of God, by faith of Jesus Christ, unto all, and upon all them that believe in him: for there is no distinction.

²³For all have sinned and do need the glory of God.

²⁴Being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

²⁵Whom God hath proposed to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to the shewing of his justice, for the remission of former sins,

²⁶Through the forbearance of God, for the shewing of his justice in this time: that he himself may be just and the justifier of him who is of the faith of Jesus Christ

²⁷Where is then thy boasting? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith.

²⁸For we account a man to be justified by faith, without the works of the law.

²⁹Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? yes, of the Gentiles also.

³⁰For it is one God that justifieth circumcision by faith and uncircumcision through faith.

³¹Do we then, destroy the law through faith? God forbid! But we establish the law.

Chapter 4

What shall we say then that Abraham hath found, who is our father according to the flesh?

²For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory, but not before God.

³For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God: and it was reputed to him unto justice.

⁴Now to him that worketh, the reward is not reckoned according to grace but according to debt.

⁵But to him that worketh not, yet believeth in him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reputed to justice, according to the purpose of the grace of God.

⁶As David also termeth the blessedness of a man to whom God reputeth justice without works:

⁷Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven: and whose sins are covered.

⁸Blessed is the man to whom the Lord hath not imputed sin.

⁹This blessedness then, doth it remain in the circumcision only or in the uncircumcision also? For we say that unto Abraham faith was reputed to justice.

¹⁰How then was it reputed? 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 justice of the faith which he had, being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, being uncircumcised: that unto them also it may be reputed to justice:

¹²And he might be the father of circumcision; not to them only that are of the circumcision, but to them also that follow the steps of the faith that is in the uncircumcision of our father Abraham.

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 justice of faith.

¹⁴For if they who are of the law be heirs, faith is made void: the promise is made of no effect.

¹⁵For the law worketh wrath. For where there is no law, neither is there transgression.

¹⁶Therefore is it of faith, that according to grace the promise might be firm 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: I have made thee a father of many nations), before God, whom he believed: who quickeneth the dead and calleth those things that are not, as those that are.

¹⁸Who against hope believed in hope; that he might be made the father of many nations, according to that which was said to him: So shall thy seed be.

¹⁹And he was not weak in faith. Neither did he consider his own body, now dead (whereas he was almost an hundred years old), nor the dead womb of Sara.

²⁰In the promise also of God he staggered not by distrust: but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God:

²¹Most fully knowing that whatsoever he has promised, he is able also to perform.

²²And therefore it was reputed to him unto justice.

²³Now it is not written only for him. that it was reputed to him unto justice,

²⁴But also for us, to whom it shall be reputed, if we believe in him that raised up Jesus Christ, our Lord, from the dead,

²⁵Who was delivered up for our sins and rose again for our justification.