Romans 3

¹Then what advantage has the Jew ? Or what is the value of circumcision ?

²Much in every way . To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God .

³What if some were unfaithful ? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God ?

⁴By no means ! Let God be true though every one were a liar , as it is written , That you may be justified in your words , and prevail when you are judged .

⁵But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God , what shall we say ? That God is unrighteous to wrath on us? ( I speak in a human way .)

⁶By no means ! For then how could God judge the world ?

⁷But if through my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory , why am I still being condemned as a sinner ?

⁸And why not do evil that good may come ?— as some people slanderously charge us with saying . Their condemnation is just .

⁹What then ? Are we Jews any better off? No , not at all . For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks , are under sin ,

¹⁰as it is written : None is righteous , no, not one ;

¹¹no one understands ; no one seeks for God .

¹²All have turned aside ; together they have become worthless ; no one does good , not even one .

¹³Their throat is an open grave ; they use their tongues to deceive . The venom of asps is under their lips .

¹⁴Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness .

¹⁵Their feet are swift to shed blood ;

¹⁶in their paths are ruin and misery ,

¹⁷and the way of peace they have not known .

¹⁸There is no fear of God before their eyes .

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law , so that every mouth may be stopped , and the whole world may be held accountable to God .

²⁰For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight , since through the law comes knowledge of sin .

²¹But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law , although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—

²²the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe . For there is no distinction :

²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God ,

²⁴and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus ,

²⁵whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood , to be received by faith . This was to show God’s righteousness , because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins .

²⁶It was to show his righteousness at the present time , so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus .

²⁷Then what becomes of our boasting ? It is excluded . By what kind of law ? By a law of works ? No , but by the law of faith .

²⁸For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law .

²⁹Or is God the God of Jews only ? Is he not the God of Gentiles also ? Yes , of Gentiles also ,

³⁰since God is one — who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith .

³¹Do we then overthrow the law by this faith ? By no means ! On the contrary , we uphold the law .