What advantage then hath the Jew? or what is the profit of circumcision?
Much every way: first of all, that they were intrusted with the oracles of God.
For what if some were without faith? shall their want of faith make of none effect the faithfulness of God?
{Greek: Be it not so: and so elsewhere.}God forbid: yea, let God be found true, but every man a liar; as it is written,
{Psalm 51:4}That thou mightest be justified in thy words,
And mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.
But if our unrighteousness commendeth the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who visiteth with wrath? (I speak after the manner of men.)
{Greek: Be it not so: and so elsewhere.}God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?
{Many ancient authorities read For.}But if the truth of God through my lie abounded unto his glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner?
and why not (as we are slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say), Let us do evil, that good may come? whose condemnation is just.
What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we before laid to the charge both of Jews and Greeks, that they are all under sin;
as it is written,
{Psalm 14:1 ff.; 53:1 ff}There is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none that understandeth,
There is none that seeketh after God;
They have all turned aside, they are together become unprofitable;
There is none that doeth good, no, not so much as one:
{Psalm 5:9}Their throat is an open sepulchre;
With their tongues they have used deceit:
{Psalm 140:3}The poison of asps is under their lips:
{Psalm 10:7}Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
{Isaiah 59:7 f.}Their feet are swift to shed blood;
Destruction and misery are in their ways;
And the way of peace have they not known:
{Psalm 36:1}There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it speaketh to them that are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be brought under the judgment of God:
because {Greek: out of.}by {Or, works of law}the works of the law shall no flesh be {Or, accounted righteous}justified in his sight; for {Or, through law}through the law cometh the knowledge of sin.
But now apart from the law a righteousness of God hath been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
even the righteousness of God through faith {Or, of}in Jesus Christ unto all {Some ancient authorities add and upon all.}them that believe; for there is no distinction;
for all {Greek: sinned.}have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;
being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
whom God set forth {Or, to be propitiatory}to be a propitiation, through faith, in his blood, to show his righteousness because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God;
for the showing, I say, of his righteousness at this present season: that he might himself be {See chapter 2:13 margin.}just, and the {See chapter 2:13 margin.}justifier of him that {Greek: is of faith.}hath faith in Jesus.
Where then is the glorying? It is excluded. By what manner of law? of works? Nay: but by a law of faith.
{Many ancient authorities read For we reckon.}We reckon therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from {Or, works of law}the works of the law.
Or is God the God of Jews only? is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yea, of Gentiles also:
if so be that God is one, and he shall justify the circumcision {Greek: out of. Galatians 3:8.}by faith, and the uncircumcision {Or, through the faith Galatians 2:16.}through faith.
Do we then make {Or, law}the law of none effect {Or, through the faith Galatians 2:16.}through faith? God forbid: nay, we establish {Or, law}the law.
Querverweise zu Römer 3,3 Röm 3,3
But it is not as though the word of God hath come to nought. For they are not all Israel, that are of Israel:
For the gifts and the calling of God are not repented of.
They go from strength to strength;Every one of them appeareth before God in Zion.
But they did not all hearken to the {Or, gospel}glad tidings. For Isaiah saith, {Isaiah 53:1}Lord, who hath believed our report?
God is not a man, that he should lie,Neither the son of man, that he should repent:Hath he said, and will he not do it?Or hath he spoken, and will he not make it good?
For of his fulness we all received, and {Or, grace upon grace.}grace for grace.
I say then, Did God cast off his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
God did not cast off his people which he foreknew. Or know ye not what the scripture {1 Kings 19:10}saith of {Or, in…Compare Mark 12:26}Elijah? how he pleadeth with God against Israel:
Lord, they have killed thy prophets, they have digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.
But what {1 Kings 19:18}saith the answer of God unto him? I have left for myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to Baal.
Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.
But if it is by grace, it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace.
What then? That which Israel seeketh for, that he obtained not; but the election obtained it, and the rest were hardened:
And also the {Or, Victory Or, Glory}Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent.
But we all, with unveiled face {Or, reflecting as a mirror}beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.
For indeed we have had {Or, a gospel}good tidings preached unto us, even as also they: but the word of hearing did not profit them, because {Many ancient authorities read they were.}it was not united by faith with them that heard.
For this is as the waters of Noah unto me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah shall no more go over the earth, so have I sworn that I will not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
We are bound to give thanks to God always to you, brethren, even as it is meet, for that your faith growth exceedingly, and the love of each one of you all toward one another aboundeth;
For the mountains may depart, and the hills be removed; but my lovingkindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall my covenant of peace be removed, saith Jehovah that hath mercy on thee.
Paul, a {Greek: bondservant.}servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness,
so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
in hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised {Or, long ages ago}before times eternal;
And ye shall leave your name for {Hebrew: an oath.}a curse unto my chosen; and the Lord Jehovah will slay thee; and he will call his servants by another name:
so that he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of {Hebrew: Amen. See 2 Corinthians 1:20; Revelation 3:14.}truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of {Hebrew: Amen. See 2 Corinthians 1:20; Revelation 3:14.}truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.
Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which Jehovah did choose, he hath cast them off? thus do they despise my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.
Thus saith Jehovah: If my covenant of day and night stand not, if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth;
then will I also cast away the seed of Jacob, and of David my servant, so that I will not take of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will {Or, return to their captivity}cause their captivity to return, and will have mercy on them.
Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
if we are faithless, he abideth faithful; for he cannot deny himself.
For when God made promise to Abraham, since he could swear by none greater, he sware by himself,
saying, {Genesis 22:16 f.}Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
And thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
For men swear by the greater: and in every dispute of theirs the oath is final for confirmation.
Wherein God, being minded to show more abundantly unto the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, {Greek: mediated.}interposed with an oath;
that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us: