Romans 9 (New American Standard)

Solicitude for Israel

1 ¹I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. 3 For ²I could ^awish that I myself were ³accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen ⁴according to the flesh, 4 who are ⁵Israelites, to whom belongs ⁶the adoption as sons, and ⁷the glory and ⁸the covenants and ⁹the giving of the Law and ¹⁰the temple service and ¹¹the promises, 5 whose are ¹²the fathers, and ¹³from whom is ^bthe Christ according to the flesh, ¹⁴who is over all, ¹⁵God ¹⁶blessed ^cforever. Amen. 6 But it is not as though ¹⁷the word of God has failed. ¹⁸For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel ; 7 nor are they all children ¹⁹because they are Abraham's ^ddescendants, but: "^e20THROUGH ISAAC YOUR ^fDESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED." 8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are ²¹children of God, but the ²²children of the promise are regarded as ^gdescendants. 9 For this is the word of promise : "²³AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON." 10 ²⁴And not only this, but there was ²⁵Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac ; 11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that ²⁶God's purpose according to His choice would ^hstand, not ⁱbecause of works but ^jbecause of Him who calls, 12 it was said to her, "²⁷THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER." 13 Just as it is written, "²⁸JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED." 14 ²⁹What shall we say then ? ³⁰There is no injustice with God, is there? ³¹May it never be! 15 For He says to Moses, "³²I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION." 16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who ³³runs, but on ³⁴God who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "³⁵FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED ^kTHROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH." 18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He ³⁶hardens whom He desires. 19 ³⁷You will say to me then, "³⁸Why does He still find fault ? For ³⁹who resists His will ?" 20 On the contrary, who are you, ⁴⁰O man, who ⁴¹answers back to God ? ⁴²The thing molded will not say to the molder, "Why did you make me like this," will it? 21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel ^lfor honorable use and another ^mfor common use ? 22 ⁿWhat if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much ⁴³patience vessels of wrath ⁴⁴prepared for destruction ? 23 And He did so to make known ⁴⁵the riches of His glory upon ⁴⁶vessels of mercy, which He ⁴⁷prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us, whom He also ⁴⁸called, ⁴⁹not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. 25 As He says also in Hosea, "⁵⁰I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE, 'MY PEOPLE,' AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED, 'BELOVED.' " 26 "⁵¹AND IT SHALL BE THAT IN THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS SAID TO THEM, 'YOU ARE NOT MY PEOPLE,' THERE THEY SHALL BE CALLED SONS OF ⁵²THE LIVING GOD." 27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, "⁵³THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE ⁵⁴LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS ⁵⁵THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED ; 28 ⁵⁶FOR THE LORD WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH, ^oTHOROUGHLY AND ^pQUICKLY." 29 And just as Isaiah foretold, "⁵⁷UNLESS ⁵⁸THE LORD OF ^qSABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A ^rPOSTERITY, ⁵⁹WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE ^sRESEMBLED GOMORRAH." 30 ⁶⁰What shall we say then ? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even ⁶¹the righteousness which is ^tby faith ; 31 but Israel, ⁶²pursuing a law of righteousness, did not ⁶³arrive at that law. 32 Why ? Because they did not pursue it ^uby faith, but as though it were ^vby works. They stumbled over ⁶⁴the stumbling stone, 33 just as it is written, "⁶⁵BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION ⁶⁶A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, ⁶⁷AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM ⁶⁸WILL NOT BE ^wDISAPPOINTED."