1 ¶ I say the truth in Christ, I do not lie, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,

I am telling the truth because I belong to Christ. The Holy Spirit tells my heart that I am not lying.

2 t hat I have great sorrow and continual pain in my heart.

I have much sorrow. The pain in my heart never leaves.

3 F or I could wish that myself were anathema from Christ for my brethren, those who are my kinsmen according to the flesh,

I could even wish that I might be kept from being with Christ if that would help my people to be saved from the punishment of sin. They are of my own flesh and blood.

4 w ho are Israelites, to whom pertains the adoption as sons and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the law and the service of God and the promises,

They are Jews and are the people God chose for Himself. He shared His shining-greatness with them and gave them His Law and a way to worship. They have His promises.

5 w hose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh is the Christ, who is God over all things, blessed for all the ages. Amen.

The early preachers came from this family. Christ Himself was born of flesh from this family and He is over all things. May God be honored and thanked forever. Let it be so.

6 ¶ Not as though the word of God has been deficient. For not all the descendants of Israel are Israelites;

I am not saying that God did not keep His promises. Not all the Jews are people God chose for Himself.

7 n either, because they are the seed of Abraham, are all sons, but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called.

Not all of Abraham’s family are children of God. God told Abraham, “Only the family of Isaac will be called your family.”

8 T hat is, Those who are sons of the flesh, these are not the sons of God; but those who are sons of the promise are counted in the generation.

This means that children born to Abraham are not all children of God. Only those that are born because of God’s promise to Abraham are His children.

9 F or the word of the promise is this, At this time I will come, and Sara shall have a son.

This was the promise God made: “About this time next year I will come, and Sarah will have a son.”

10 A nd not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac

Not only this, but there was Rebecca also. Rebecca gave birth to two sons at the same time. Both of them were sons of Isaac.

11 ( for the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand: not of works, but of him that calls),

Even before the two sons were born, we see God’s plan of choosing. God could choose whom He wanted. It could not be changed because of anything the older son tried to do about it. It was before either one had done anything good or bad.

12 i t was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.

Rebecca was told, “The older son will work for the younger son.”

13 A s it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.

The Holy Writings say, “I loved Jacob, but hated Esau.”

14 ¶ What shall we say then? Is there injustice in God? No, in no wise.

What about it then? Can we say that God is not fair? No, not at all!

15 F or he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.

God said to Moses, “I will have loving-kindness and loving-pity for anyone I want to.”

16 S o then it is not of him that wills, nor of him that runs, but of God that has mercy.

These good things from God are not given to someone because he wants them or works to get them. They are given because of His loving-kindness.

17 F or the scripture saith of Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.

The Holy Writings say to Pharaoh, “I made you leader for this reason: I used you to show My power. I used you to make My name known over all the world.”

18 T herefore he has mercy on whom he will have mercy, and he hardens whom he will.

So God has loving-kindness for those He wants to. He makes some have hard hearts if He wants to.

19 T hou wilt say then unto me, Why does he become angry? For who shall resist his will?

But you will ask me, “Why does God blame men for what they do? Who can go against what God wants?”

20 R ather, O man, who art thou to reply against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?

Who are you to talk back to God? A pot being made from clay does not talk to the man making it and say, “Why did you make me like this?”

21 H as not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour?

The man making the pots has the right to use the clay as he wants to. He can make two pots from the same piece of clay. One can have an important use. The other one can be of little use.

22 W hat if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much meekness the vessels of wrath, prepared for death,

It may be that God wants to show His power and His anger against sin. He waits a long time on some men who are ready to be destroyed.

23 a nd making known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he has prepared unto glory?

God also wanted to show His shining-greatness to those He has given His loving-kindness. He made them ready for His shining-greatness from the beginning.

24 E ven us, whom he has called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles!

We are the ones He chose. He did not only choose Jews. He also chose some from among the people who are not Jews.

25 ¶ As he saith also in Hosea, I will call them my people, who were not my people, and her beloved, who was not beloved.

In the Book of Hosea He says, “Those who are not My people, I will call, ‘My people.’ Those who are not loved, I will call, ‘My loved ones.’”

26 A nd it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there shall they be called sons of the living God.

“And where it said, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called sons of the living God.”

27 I saiah also cries out concerning Israel, Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant shall be saved;

Isaiah says this about the Jews, “Even if there are as many Jews as the sand by the sea, only a few of them will be saved from the punishment of sin.

28 w hen the consumption comes to an end, righteousness shall overflow, because a short sentence will the Lord execute upon the earth.

For the Lord will do on earth what He says in His Word. He will work fast when He says what will happen here.”

29 A nd as Isaiah said before, Except the Lord of the hosts had left us a seed, we had been as Sodom and been made like unto Gomorrha.

Isaiah said also, “If God had not left some of the Jews, we would have all been destroyed like the people who lived in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.”

30 ¶ What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, who did not follow after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, that is to say, the righteousness which is by faith,

What are we to say about these things? The people who are not Jews were not made right with God by the Law. They were made right with God because they put their trust in Him.

31 a nd Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness.

The Jews tried to be right with God by obeying the Law, but they did not become right with God.

32 W hy? Because they followed it not by faith but, as it were, by the works (of the law); therefore, they stumbled on the stumblingstone;

Why? Because they did not put their trust in God. They tried to be right with God by working for it. They tripped over the most important Stone (Christ).

33 a s it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock that will cause some to fall, and whosoever believes in him shall not be ashamed.

The Holy Writings say, “See! I put in Jerusalem a Stone that people will trip over. It is a Rock that will make them fall. But the person who puts his trust in the Rock (Christ) will not be put to shame.”