Thematic Bible




Thematic Bible



Therefore, what [is] the advantage of the Jew, or what [is] the use of circumcision? Much in every way. For first, that they were entrusted with the oracles of God. {What is the result} if some refused to believe? Their unbelief will not nullify the faithfulness of God, [will it]? read more.
May it never be! But let God be true but every human being a liar, just as it is written, "In order that you may be justified in your words, and may prevail when you are judged." But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? God, who inflicts wrath, [is] not unjust, [is he]? (I am speaking according to a human perspective.) May it never be! For otherwise, how will God judge the world? But if by my lying, the truth of God abounded to his glory, why am I also still condemned as a sinner? And [why] not (as we are slandered, and as some affirm that we say), "Let us do evil, in order that good may come [of it]? Their condemnation is just! What then? Do we have an advantage? Not at all. For we have already charged both Jews and Greeks are all under sin, just as it is written, "[There] is no one righteous, not even one; [there] is no one who understands; [there] is no one who seeks God. All have turned aside together; they have become worthless; [There] is no one who practices kindness; [there] is not even one. Their throat [is] an opened grave; they deceive with their tongues; the venom of asps [is] under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet [are] swift to shed blood; destruction and distress [are] in their paths, and they have not known the way of peace. The fear of God is not before their eyes." Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those under the law, in order that every mouth may be closed and the whole world may become accountable to God. For by the works of the law {no person will be declared righteous} before him, for through the law [comes] knowledge of sin. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, being testified about by the law and the prophets-- that is, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. For [there] is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

What then shall we say [that] Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh, has found? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? "And Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness." read more.
Now to the one who works, his pay is not credited according to grace, but according to his due. But to the one who does not work, but who believes in the one who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited for righteousness, just as David also speaks about the blessing of the person to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: "Blessed [are they] whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins are covered over. Blessed [is] the person against whom the Lord will never count sin." Therefore, [is] this blessing for {those who are circumcised}, or also for {those who are uncircumcised}? For we say, "Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness." How then was it credited? [While he] was {circumcised} or {uncircumcised}? Not {while circumcised} but {while uncircumcised}! And he received the sign of circumcision [as] a seal of the righteousness by faith which [he had] {while uncircumcised}, so that he could be the father of all who believe {although they are uncircumcised}, so that righteousness could be credited to them, and the father {of those who are circumcised} to those who are not only from the circumcision, but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith of our father Abraham {which he had while uncircumcised}. For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants, [that] he would be heir of the world, [was] not through the law, but through the righteousness by faith. For if those of the law [are] heirs, faith is rendered void and the promise is nullified. For the law produces wrath, but where [there] is no law, neither [is there] transgression. Because of this, [it is] by faith, in order that [it may be] according to grace, so that the promise may be secure to all the descendants, not only to those of the law, but also to those of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all

But it was not written for the sake of him alone that it was credited to him, but also for the sake of us to whom it is going to be credited, to those who believe in the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over on account of our trespasses, and was raised up in the interest of our justification.


for as many [of you] as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

And John answered [and] said, "Master, we saw someone expelling demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him, because he does not follow in company with us." But Jesus said to him, "Do not prevent [him], because whoever is not against you is for you."

John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone expelling demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us." But Jesus said, "Do not prevent him, because there is no one who does a miracle in my name and will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For whoever is not against us is for us. read more.
For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in [my] name because you are Christ's, truly I say to you that he will never lose his reward.

Therefore if God gave them the same gift as also to us [when we] believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I [to be] able to hinder God?" And [when they] heard these [things], they became silent and praised God, saying, "Then God has granted the repentance [leading] to life to the Gentiles also!"

And some men came down from Judea [and] began teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom [prescribed] by Moses, you cannot be saved." And [after] there was no little strife and debate by Paul and Barnabas against them, they appointed Paul and Barnabas and some others from among them to go up to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem concerning this issue. So they were sent on their way by the church, [and] passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, telling in detail the conversion of the Gentiles and bringing great joy to all the brothers. read more.
And [when they] arrived in Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and reported all that God had done with them. But some of those who had believed from the party of the Pharisees stood up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them and to command [them] to observe the law of Moses!" Both the apostles and the elders assembled to deliberate concerning this matter. And [after] there was much debate, Peter stood up [and] said to them, "Men [and] brothers, you know that in the early days God chose among you through my mouth [that] the Gentiles should hear the message of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, testified to them [by] giving [them] the Holy Spirit, just as he also [did] to us. And he made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. So now why are you putting God to the test [by] placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe [we] will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus in {the same} way those also [are]." And the whole group became silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul describing all the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. And after they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, "Men [and] brothers, listen to me! Simeon has described how God first concerned himself to take from among the Gentiles a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written: 'After these [things] I will return and build up again the tent of David that has fallen, and the [parts] of it that had been torn down I will build up again and will restore it, so that the rest of humanity may seek the Lord, even all the Gentiles {who are called by my name}, says the Lord, who makes these [things] known from of old.' Therefore I conclude we should not cause difficulty for those from among the Gentiles who turn to God, but we should write a letter to them to abstain from the pollution of idols and from sexual immorality and from what has been strangled and from blood. For Moses has those who proclaim him in every city from ancient generations, [because he] is read aloud in the synagogues on every Sabbath." Then it seemed best to the apostles and the elders, together with the whole church, to send men chosen from among them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas--Judas who was called Barsabbas and Silas, men [who were] leaders among the brothers-- writing [this letter] {to be delivered by them}: The apostles and the elders, brothers. To the brothers [who are] from among the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia. Greetings! Because we have heard that some have gone out from among us--to whom we gave no orders--[and] have thrown you into confusion by words upsetting your {minds}, it seemed best to us, {having reached a unanimous decision}, [and] having chosen men, to send [them] to you together with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul, men who have risked their lives on behalf of the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, and they will report the same [things] by word of mouth. For it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to us to place on you no greater burden except these necessary things: [that you] abstain from food sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. [If you] keep yourselves from {these things} you will do well. Farewell. So [when] they were sent off, they came down to Antioch, and [after] calling together the community, they delivered the letter. And [when they] read [it] aloud, they rejoiced at the encouragement.

Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called [to be] an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised previously through his prophets in the holy scriptures, concerning his Son, who was born {a descendant} of David according to the flesh, read more.
who was declared Son of God in power according to {the Holy Spirit} by the resurrection from the dead of Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship for the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles on behalf of his name, among whom you also are [the] called of Jesus Christ. To all those in Rome who are loved by God, called [to be] saints. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. Thus {I am eager} to proclaim the gospel also to you who [are] in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

For by the works of the law {no person will be declared righteous} before him, for through the law [comes] knowledge of sin. But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, being testified about by the law and the prophets-- that is, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. For [there] is no distinction, read more.
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by his grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God made publicly available as the mercy seat through faith in his blood, for a demonstration of his righteousness, because of the passing over of previously committed sins, in the forbearance of God, for the demonstration of his righteousness in the present time, so that he should be just and the one who justifies the [person] by faith in Jesus. Therefore, where [is] boasting? It has been excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. For we consider a person to be justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or [is God] the God of the Jews only? [Is he] not also [the God] of the Gentiles? Yes, also of the Gentiles, since God [is] one, who will justify {those who are circumcised} by faith and {those who are uncircumcised} through faith. Therefore, do we nullify the law through faith? May it never be! But we uphold the law.

Therefore, [because we] have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have [obtained] access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

For he himself is our peace, who made both one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition, the enmity, in his flesh, invalidating the law of commandments in ordinances, in order that he might create the two in himself into one new man, [thus] making peace, and might reconcile both in one body to God through the cross, killing the enmity in himself. read more.
And coming, he proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to the ones who were near,

where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, slave, [or] free, but Christ [is] all, and in all. Therefore, as [the] chosen of God, holy and [dearly] loved, put on affection, compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, putting up with one another and forgiving one another. If anyone should have a complaint against anyone, just as also the Lord forgave you, thus also you [do the same]. read more.
And to all these [things] [add] love, which is [the] bond of perfection. And the peace of Christ must rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful.








Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Neither sexually immoral people, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor passive homosexual partners, nor dominant homosexual partners, nor thieves, nor greedy persons, not drunkards, not abusive persons, not swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And some of you were these [things], but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

For we also were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, enslaved to various desires and pleasures, spending our lives in wickedness and envy, despicable, hating one another. But when the kindness and love for mankind of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not by deeds of righteousness that we have done, but because of his mercy, through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit, read more.
whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed? For he went up like shoot before him, and like root from dry ground. He had no form and no majesty that we should see him, and no appearance that we should take pleasure in him. [He was] despised and rejected [by] men, a man of suffering, and acquainted with sickness, and like {one from whom others hide their faces}, [he was] despised, and we did not hold him in high regard. read more.
However, he was the one who lifted up our sicknesses, and he carried our pain, yet we ourselves assumed him stricken, struck down [by] God and afflicted. But he [was] pierced because of our transgressions, crushed because of our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace [was] upon him, and by his wounds {we were healed}. All of us have wandered about like sheep; we each have turned to his own way; and Yahweh let fall on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was brought like lamb to [the] slaughter, and like a sheep is dumb before its shearers, so he did not open his mouth. He was taken by restraint of justice, and who concerned himself with his generation? For he was cut off from the land of [the] living; he [received a] blow because of the transgression of my people. He made his grave with [the] wicked, and with [the] rich in his death, although he had done no violence, and [there was] no deceit in his mouth. Yet Yahweh was pleased to crush him; he {made him sick}. If she places his life a guilt offering, he will see offspring. He will prolong days, and the will of Yahweh will succeed in his hand. From the trouble of his life he will see; he will be satisfied. In his knowledge, [the] righteous [one], my servant, shall declare many righteous, and he is the one who will bear their iniquities.

this [promise] God has fulfilled to our children [by] raising Jesus, as it is also written in the second psalm, 'You are my Son; today I have fathered you.' But that he has raised him from the dead, no more going to return to decay, he has spoken in this way: 'I will give you the reliable divine decrees of David.' Therefore he also says in another [psalm], 'You will not permit your Holy One to experience decay.' read more.
For David, [after] serving the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and {was buried with} his fathers, and experienced decay. But he whom God raised up did not experience decay. "Therefore let it be known to you, men [and] brothers, that through this one forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and from all [the things] from which you were not able to be justified by the law of Moses, by this one everyone who believes is justified!

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by his grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus,

For [while] we were still helpless, yet at the proper time Christ died for the ungodly. For only rarely will someone die on behalf of a righteous person (for on behalf of a good person possibly someone might even dare to die), but God demonstrates his own love for us, [in] that [while] we were still sinners, Christ died for us. read more.
Therefore, by much more, [because we] have been declared righteous now by his blood, we will be saved through him from the wrath. For if, [while we] were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, by much more, having been reconciled, we will be saved by his life. And not only [this], but also [we are] boasting in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Because of this, just as sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death spread to all people because all sinned. For until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not charged to one's account [when there] is no law. But death reigned from Adam until Moses even over those who did not sin in the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who is to come. {But the gift is not like the trespass}, for if by the trespass of the one, the many died, by much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, multiply to the many. And the gift [is] not as through the one who sinned, for on the one hand, judgment from the one [sin] [led] to condemnation, but the gift, from many trespasses, [led] to justification. For if by the trespass of the one [man], death reigned through the one [man], much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ. Consequently therefore, as through one trespass [came] condemnation to all people, so also through one righteous deed [came] justification of life to all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man, the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one, the many will be made righteous.

but knowing that a person is not justified by the works of the law, if not by faith in Jesus Christ, and we have believed in Christ Jesus so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law {no human being will be justified}. But if [while] seeking to be justified by Christ, [we] ourselves also have been found [to be] sinners, then [is] Christ an agent of sin? May it never be! For if I build up again these [things] which I destroyed, I show myself [to be] a transgressor. read more.
For through the law I died to the law, in order that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me, and that [life] I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

then he has said, "Behold, I have come to do your will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second, by which will we are made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands every day serving and offering the same sacrifices many times, which are never able to take away sins. read more.
But this one, [after he] had offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, from now on waiting until his enemies are made a footstool for his feet. For by one offering he has perfected for all time those who are made holy.