concerning His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who was a descendant of David according to the flesh

and who has been declared to be the powerful Son of God by the resurrection from the dead according to the Spirit of holiness.

Now I want you to know, brothers, that I often planned to come to you (but was prevented until now) in order that I might have a fruitful ministry among you, just as among the rest of the Gentiles.

If Abraham was justified by works, he has something to brag about—but not before God.

For what does the Scripture say?

Abraham believed God,
and it was credited to him for righteousness.

Is this blessing only for the circumcised, then? Or is it also for the uncircumcised? For we say, Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness.

In what way then was it credited—while he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while he was circumcised, but uncircumcised.

And he received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while still uncircumcised. This was to make him the father of all who believe but are not circumcised, so that righteousness may be credited to them also.

For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would inherit the world was not through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.

He considered his own body to be already dead (since he was about 100 years old) and also considered the deadness of Sarah’s womb, without weakening in the faith.

He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

because he was fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness.

Now it was credited to him was not written for Abraham alone,

He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

In fact, sin was in the world before the law, but sin is not charged to a person’s account when there is no law.

Therefore we were buried with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in a new way of life.

For we know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that sin’s dominion over the body may be abolished, so that we may no longer be enslaved to sin,

So what fruit was produced then from the things you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death.

Therefore, my brothers, you also were put to death in relation to the law through the crucified body of the Messiah, so that you may belong to another—to Him who was raised from the dead—that we may bear fruit for God.

Once I was alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life

and I died. The commandment that was meant for life resulted in death for me.

Therefore, did what is good cause my death? Absolutely not! On the contrary, sin, in order to be recognized as sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment, sin might become sinful beyond measure.

What the law could not do since it was limited by the flesh, God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending His own Son in flesh like ours under sin’s domain, and as a sin offering,

For the creation was subjected to futility—not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it—in the hope

not from works but from the One who calls—she was told: The older will serve the younger.

And Isaiah says boldly:

I was found
by those who were not looking for Me;
I revealed Myself
to those who were not asking for Me.

But what was God’s reply to him? I have left 7,000 men for Myself who have not bowed down to Baal.

What then? Israel did not find what it was looking for, but the elect did find it. The rest were hardened,

For whatever was written in the past was written for our instruction, so that we may have hope through endurance and through the encouragement from the Scriptures.