New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 What then are we to say was gained by Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh?
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What, then, may we say that Abraham, our father after the flesh, has got?
2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
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For if Abraham got righteousness by works, he has reason for pride; but not before God.
3 For what does the scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness."
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But what does it say in the holy Writings? And Abraham had faith in God, and it was put to his account as righteousness.
4 Now to one who works, wages are not reckoned as a gift but as something due.
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Now, the reward is credited to him who does works, not as of grace but as a debt.
5 But to one who without works trusts him who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness.
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But to him who without working has faith in him who gives righteousness to the evil-doer, his faith is put to his account as righteousness.
6 So also David speaks of the blessedness of those to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:
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As David says that there is a blessing on the man to whose account God puts righteousness without works, saying,
7 "Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
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Happy are those who have forgiveness for their wrongdoing, and whose sins are covered.
8 blessed is the one against whom the Lord will not reckon sin."
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Happy is the man against whom no sin is recorded by the Lord.
9 Is this blessedness, then, pronounced only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We say, "Faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness."
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Is this blessing, then, for the circumcision only, or in the same way for those who have not circumcision? for we say that the faith of Abraham was put to his account as righteousness.
10 How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised.
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How, then, was it judged? when he had circumcision, or when he had it not? Not when he had it, but when he did not have it:
11 He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the ancestor of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have righteousness reckoned to them,
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And he was given the sign of circumcision as a witness of the faith which he had before he underwent circumcision: so that he might be the father of all those who have faith, though they have not circumcision, and so that righteousness might be put to their account;
12 and likewise the ancestor of the circumcised who are not only circumcised but who also follow the example of the faith that our ancestor Abraham had before he was circumcised.
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And the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who keep to the way of that faith which our father Abraham had before he underwent circumcision.
13 For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith.
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For God's word, that the earth would be his heritage, was given to Abraham, not through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
14 If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void.
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For if they who are of the law are the people who get the heritage, then faith is made of no use, and the word of God has no power;
15 For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.
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For the outcome of the law is wrath; but where there is no law it will not be broken.
16 For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us,
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For this reason it is of faith, so that it may be through grace; and so that the word of God may be certain to all the seed; not only to that which is of the law, but to that which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all,
17 as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations")—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
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(As it is said in the holy Writings, I have made you a father of a number of nations) before him in whom he had faith, that is, God, who gives life to the dead, and to whom the things which are not are as if they were.
18 Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become "the father of many nations," according to what was said, "So numerous shall your descendants be."
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Who without reason for hope, in faith went on hoping, so that he became the father of a number of nations, as it had been said, So will your seed be.
19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb.
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And not being feeble in faith though his body seemed to him little better than dead (he being about a hundred years old) and Sarah was no longer able to have children:
20 No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God,
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Still, he did not give up faith in the undertaking of God, but was made strong by faith, giving glory to God,
21 being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.
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And being certain that God was able to keep his word.
22 Therefore his faith "was reckoned to him as righteousness."
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For which reason it was put to his account as righteousness.
23 Now the words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone,
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Now, it was not because of him only that this was said,
24 but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,
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But for us in addition, to whose account it will be put, if we have faith in him who made Jesus our Lord come back again from the dead,
25 who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.
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Who was put to death for our evil-doing, and came to life again so that we might have righteousness.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.