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Greeting

¹Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, ⚓called to be an apostle, ⚓separated to the gospel of God ²⚓which He promised before ⚓through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, ³concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was ⚓born of the seed of David according to the flesh, ⁴and⚓declared to be the Son of God with power according ⚓to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. ⁵Through Him ⚓we have received grace and apostleship for ⚓obedience to the faith among all nations ⚓for His name, ⁶among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
⁷To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, ⚓called to be saints:
⚓Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Desire to Visit Rome

⁸First, ⚓I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that ⚓your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. ⁹For ⚓God is my witness, ⚓whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that ⚓without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, ¹⁰making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you. ¹¹For I long to see you, that ⚓I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established— ¹²that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by ⚓the mutual faith both of you and me.
¹³Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but ⚓was hindered until now), that I might have some ⚓fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles. ¹⁴I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. ¹⁵So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.

The Just Live by Faith

¹⁶For ⚓I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for ⚓it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, ⚓for the Jew first and also for the Greek. ¹⁷For ⚓in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ⚓“The just shall live by faith.”

God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

¹⁸⚓For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and ⚓unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, ¹⁹because ⚓what may be known of God is manifest in them, for ⚓God has shown it to them. ²⁰For since the creation of the world ⚓His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, ²¹because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but ⚓became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²²⚓Professing to be wise, they became fools, ²³and changed the glory of the ⚓incorruptible ⚓God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.
²⁴⚓Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, ⚓to dishonor their bodies ⚓among themselves, ²⁵who exchanged ⚓the truth of God ⚓for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
²⁶For this reason God gave them up to ⚓vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. ²⁷Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.
²⁸And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things ⚓which are not fitting; ²⁹being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, ³⁰backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, ³¹undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; ³²who, ⚓knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things ⚓are deserving of death, not only do the same but also ⚓approve of those who practice them.