1 Brothers,1Or Brothers and sisters my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. 2 I bear them witness thatbSee Acts 21:20 they have a zeal for God,c[ch. 9:31] but not according to knowledge. 3 For, being ignorant ofdSee ch. 1:17 the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. 4 Fore[Matt. 5:17; Gal. 3:24] Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.1Or end of the law, that everyone who believes may be justified
5 ForfCited from Lev. 18:5 Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, thatgNeh. 9:29; Ezek. 20:11, 13, 21; Matt. 19:17; Luke 10:28; Gal. 3:12; [ch. 7:10] the person who does the commandments shall live by them. 6 ButhSee ch. 9:30 the righteousness based on faith says,i[Deut. 30:12, 13] “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven? ’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 or “‘Who will descend into thejSee Rev. 9:1 abyss? ’ ” (that is,kHeb. 13:20 to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say?lCited from Deut. 30:14 “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart ” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); 9 because, ifmMatt. 10:32; Luke 12:8; [1 Cor. 12:3; Phil. 2:11] you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord andnSee Acts 16:31 believe in your hearto[1 Pet. 1:21]; See Acts 2:24 that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says,pSee ch. 9:33 “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame. ” 12 qSee ch. 3:22, 29 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek;rActs 10:36 the same Lord is Lord of all,sSee ch. 2:4 bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 FortActs 2:21; Cited from Joel 2:32 “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. ”
14 But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in himuEph. 4:21; [John 9:36; 17:20] of whom they have never heard?1Or him whom they have never heard And how are they to hearv[Acts 8:31; Titus 1:3] without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written,wCited from Isa. 52:7; [Nah. 1:15; Eph. 6:15] “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news! ” 16 Butxch. 3:3; Heb. 4:2 they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says,yJohn 12:38; Cited from Isa. 53:1 “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us? ” 17 SozGal. 3:2, 5 faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
18 But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for
aCited from Ps. 19:4; [1 Thess. 1:8] “Their voice has gone outb[Mark 16:15]; See Matt. 24:14 to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world. ”
19 But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,
cCited from Deut. 32:21 “I willdch. 11:11, 14 make you jealous of those who are not a nation;
with ae[Titus 3:3] foolish nation I will make you angry. ”
20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,
fCited from Isa. 65:1; [ch. 9:30] “I have been found by those who did not seek me;
I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me. ”
21 But of Israel he says,gCited from Isa. 65:2 “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people. ”