Romans 12–13

A Life Dedicated to God

12Therefore I exhort you, brothers, through the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. ²And do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may approve what is the good and well-pleasing and perfect will of God.

A Variety of Gifts in the Body of Christ

³For by the grace given to me I say to everyone who is among you not to think more highly of yourself than what one ought to think, but to think sensibly^a, as God has apportioned a measure of faith to each one. ⁴For just as in one body we have many members, but all the members do not have the same function, ⁵in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually^b members of one another, ⁶but having different gifts according to the grace given to us: if it is prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; ⁷if it is service, by service; if it is one who teaches, by teaching; ⁸if it is one who exhorts, by exhortation; one who gives, with sincerity; one who leads, with diligence; one who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

Living in Love

⁹Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; be attached to what is good, ¹⁰being devoted to one another in brotherly love, esteeming one another more highly in honor, ¹¹not lagging in diligence, being enthusiastic in spirit, serving the Lord, ¹²rejoicing in hope, enduring in affliction, being devoted to prayer, ¹³contributing to the needs of the saints, pursuing hospitality.

¹⁴Bless those who persecute,^c bless and do not curse them. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. ¹⁶Think the same thing toward one another; do not think arrogantly^d, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own sight^e. ¹⁷Pay back no one evil for evil. Take thought for what is good in the sight of all people. ¹⁸If it is possible on your part, be at peace with all people. ¹⁹Do not take revenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,”^f says the Lord. ²⁰But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by^* doing this, you will heap up coals of fire upon his head.”^{g 21}Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Obedience to the Governing Authorities

13Let every person be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except by God, and those that exist are put in place by God. ²So then, the one who resists authority resists the ordinance which is from God, and those who resist will receive condemnation on themselves. ³For rulers are not a cause of terror for a good deed, but for bad conduct. So do you want not to be afraid of authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from it, ⁴for it is God’s servant to you for what is good. But if you do what is bad, be afraid, because it does not bear the sword to no purpose. For it is God’s servant, the one who avenges for punishment on the one who does what is bad. ⁵Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath but also because of conscience. ⁶For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities^a are servants of God, busily engaged in this very thing. ⁷Pay to everyone what is owed: pay taxes to whom taxes are due; pay customs duties to whom customs duties are due; pay respect to whom respect is due; pay honor to whom honor is due.^b

Love Fulfills the Law

⁸Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another, for the one who loves someone else has fulfilled the law. ⁹For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, you shall not commit murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,”^c and if there is any other commandment, are summed up in this statement: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”^{d 10}Love does not commit evil against a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

¹¹And do this because you^* know the time, that it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we believed. ¹²The night is far gone, and the day has drawn near. Therefore let us throw off^e the deeds of darkness and put on the weapons of light. ¹³Let us live decently, as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and licentiousness, not in strife and jealousy. ¹⁴But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and do not make provision for the desires of the flesh.