Romans 12–13

A Living Sacrifice

12Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you ^cto present your bodies as a living sacrifice, ^dholy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. ^e2Do not be conformed ^fto this age, ^gbut be transformed by the renewing of your mind, ^hso that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will ⁱof God.

Many Gifts but One Body

³For by the grace ^jgiven to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. ^kInstead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith ^lto each one. ⁴Now as we have many parts in one body, ^mand all the parts do not have the same function, ⁵in the same way we who are many ⁿare one body in Christ ^oand individually members of one another. ⁶According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: ^p

If prophecy, ^q

use it according to the standard of one’s ^rfaith;

⁷if service, ^sin service;

if teaching, ^tin teaching;

⁸if exhorting, ^uin exhortation;

giving, with generosity; ^v

leading, ^wwith diligence;

showing mercy, with cheerfulness. ^x

Christian Ethics

⁹Love must be without hypocrisy. ^yDetest evil; ^zcling to what is good. ¹⁰Show family affection to one another with brotherly love. ^aOutdo one another in showing honor. ^b11Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; ^cserve the Lord. ^d12Rejoice in hope; ^ebe patient in affliction; ^fbe persistent in prayer. ^g13Share with the saints in their needs; ^hpursue hospitality. ⁱ¹⁴Bless those who persecute you; ^jbless and do not curse. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; ^kweep with those who weep. ¹⁶Be in agreement with one another. ^lDo not be proud; ^minstead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation. ⁿ¹⁷Do not repay anyone evil for evil. ^oTry to do what is honorable ^pin everyone’s eyes. ¹⁸If possible, on your part, live at peace with everyone. ^q19Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His ^rwrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, ^stsays the Lord. ²⁰But

If your enemy is hungry, feed him. ^u

If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

For in so doing

you will be heaping fiery coals on his head. ^vw

²¹Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.

A Christian’s Duties to the State

13Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, ^xfor there is no authority except from God, ^yand those that exist are instituted by God. ²So then, the one who resists the authority is opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves. ³For rulers are not a terror ^zto good conduct, but to bad. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have its approval. ⁴For government is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, because it does not carry the sword for no reason. For government is God’s servant, an avenger ^athat brings wrath on the one who does wrong. ⁵Therefore, you must submit, not only because of wrath, but also because of your conscience. ^b6And for this reason you pay taxes, since the authorities are God’s public servants, continually attending to these tasks. ^c7Pay your obligations ^dto everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, ^etolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, ^fand honor to those you owe honor.

Love, Our Primary Duty

⁸Do not owe anyone anything, ^gexcept to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ^h9The commandments:

Do not commit adultery;

do not murder;

do not steal; ⁱ

do not covet; ^jk

and whatever other commandment—all are summed up by this: Love your neighbor as yourself. ^lm

¹⁰Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law.

Put On Christ

¹¹Besides this, knowing the time, it is already the hour ⁿfor you ^oto wake up from sleep, ^pfor now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ^q12The night is nearly over, and the daylight is near, ^rso let us discard the deeds of darkness ^sand put on the armor of light. ^t13Let us walk with decency, ^uas in the daylight: not in carousing and drunkenness; ^vnot in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. ¹⁴But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, ^wand make no plans to satisfy the fleshly desires. ^x