Romans 2
2
The Righteous Judgment of God
1 Therefore, you are without excuse, O man, everyone who judges. For in that which you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge practise the same things. 2 And we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practise such things. 3 But do you suppose this, O man, who judges those who practise such things and do them yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you think against the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? 5 But because of your obstinacy and unrepentant heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and of the revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6 who will repay each one in accordance with his works: 7 to those who, by steadfastness in good works, seek glory and honour and immortality, eternal life; 8 but to those who are self-seeking, and who are disobedient to the truth, and who have confidence in unrighteousness, anger and wrath. 9 There will be tribulation and distress upon every soul of man who works out evil, for the Jew first and also for the Greek; 10 but glory and honour and peace to everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no favouritism with God.
The Law, the Gentiles, and the Jews
12 For as many as have sinned apart from the Law will also perish apart from the Law, and as many as have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law. 13 For it is not the hearers of the Law who are just* before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified.* 14 For when the Gentiles, who do not have the Law, do by nature the things contained in the Law,* these, who do not have the Law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience testifying and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, 16 on the day when God judges the secrets of men* according to my gospel through Christ Jesus.
17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rest upon the Law and boast in God, 18 and know His* will and approve the things that are excellent,* being instructed from the Law, 19 and are confident that you yourself are a guide of the blind, a light to those in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of the immature,* having in the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth— 21 you, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? The one who preaches, “Do not to steal,” do you steal? 22 The one who says, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? The one who detests idols, do you rob temples? 23 You* who boast in the Law dishonour God by the transgression of the Law! 24 For just as it is written: “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles on account of you.”*
True Circumcision
25 For indeed, circumcision is useful if you practise the Law, but if you are a transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. 26 Therefore, if the uncircumcised* keeps the righteous requirements of the Law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? 27 And the uncircumcised by nature,* who fulfils the Law, will judge you, who have the written code* and circumcision, yet are a transgressor of the Law.* 28 For the Jew is not one outwardly, nor is circumcision one outwardly in the flesh. 29 But the Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s* praise is not from men, but from God.
Notes
13 Or righteous
13 Or declared righteous
13 One Greek manuscript inserts before God at the end of the verse, likely to create an antithetical balance with the preceding construction
14 Greek the things of the Law
16 Or everyone, as the term is understood in a generic sense
18 Greek the . Here, the Greek definite article assumes a pronominal role, contextually equivalent to the English possessive pronoun His
23 The pronoun You is supplied to the text on a contextual basis for the purpose of clarification
24 Quoted from Is. 52:5
26 Greek uncircumcision . So also v. 27
27 One Greek manuscript omits the uncircumcised by nature , so that it reads: And the one who fulfils the Law will judge you who, with the letter and circumcision, are a transgressor of the Law
27 Or the letter. So also v. 29
27 Greek And the uncircumcised by nature who fulfils the Law will judge you who, with the letter and circumcision, are a transgressor of the Law
29 Greek of whom
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Copyright © 2026 Michael Adeyemi Adegbola. This Scripture text is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).
