Romans 9:1-18
Christian Standard Bible
Israel’s Rejection of Christ
9 I speak the truth in Christ(A)—I am not lying; my conscience testifies to me through the Holy Spirit[a]— 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish(B) that I myself were cursed(C) and cut off[b] from Christ for the benefit of my brothers and sisters, my own flesh and blood. 4 They are Israelites,(D) and to them belong the adoption,(E) the glory,(F) the covenants,(G) the giving of the law,(H) the temple service,(I) and the promises.(J) 5 The ancestors are theirs,(K) and from them, by physical descent,[c] came the Christ,(L) who is God(M) over all,(N) praised forever.[d](O) Amen.
God’s Gracious Election of Israel
6 Now it is not as though the word of God has failed,(P) because not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.(Q) 7 Neither is it the case that all of Abraham’s children are his descendants.[e](R) On the contrary, your offspring will be traced[f] through Isaac.[g](S) 8 That is, it is not the children by physical descent[h] who are God’s children,(T) but the children of the promise(U) are considered to be the offspring. 9 For this is the statement of the promise: At this time I will come, and Sarah will have a son.[i](V) 10 And not only that,(W) but Rebekah conceived children(X) through one man, our father Isaac. 11 For though her sons had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to election might stand(Y)— 12 not from works but from the one who calls—she was told, The older will serve the younger.[j](Z) 13 As it is written: I have loved Jacob, but I have hated Esau.[k](AA)
God’s Selection Is Just
14 What should we say then?(AB) Is there injustice with God?(AC) Absolutely not!(AD) 15 For he tells Moses, I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.[l](AE) 16 So then, it does not depend on human will or effort(AF) but on God who shows mercy.(AG) 17 For the Scripture tells Pharaoh, I raised you up for this reason so that I may display my power in you and that my name may be proclaimed in the whole earth.[m](AH) 18 So then, he has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy and he hardens whom he wants to harden.(AI)
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- 9:1 Or testifying with me by the Holy Spirit
- 9:3 Lit to be anathema
- 9:5 Lit them, according to the flesh
- 9:5 Or the Messiah, the one who is over all, the God who is blessed forever, or Messiah. God, who is over all, be blessed forever
- 9:7 Lit seed
- 9:7 Lit called
- 9:7 Gn 21:12
- 9:8 Lit children of the flesh
- 9:9 Gn 18:10,14
- 9:12 Gn 25:23
- 9:13 Mal 1:2–3
- 9:15 Ex 33:19
- 9:17 Ex 9:16
Deuteronomy 32:3-12
Christian Standard Bible
3 For I will proclaim the Lord’s name.(A)
Declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock(B)—his work is perfect;
all his ways are just.(C)
A faithful God,(D) without bias,
he is righteous and true.
5 His people have acted corruptly toward him;(E)
this is their defect[a]—they are not his children
but a devious and crooked generation.(F)
6 Is this how you repay the Lord,
you foolish and senseless people?(G)
Isn’t he your Father and Creator?[b](H)
Didn’t he make you and sustain you?
7 Remember the days of old;
consider the years of past generations.
Ask your father, and he will tell you,
your elders, and they will teach you.
8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance[c]
and divided the human race,(I)
he set the boundaries of the peoples(J)
according to the number of the people of Israel.[d]
9 But the Lord’s portion is his people,
Jacob, his own inheritance.(K)
10 He found him in a desolate land,
in a barren, howling wilderness;
he surrounded him, cared for him,(L)
and protected him as the pupil of his eye.(M)
11 He watches over[e] his nest like an eagle
and hovers over his young;
he spreads his wings, catches him,
and carries him on his feathers.(N)
12 The Lord alone led him,
with no help from a foreign god.
Ephesians 1:3-6
Christian Standard Bible
God’s Rich Blessings
3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ.(A) 4 For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him.[a](B) 5 He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace(C) that he lavished on us in the Beloved One.(D)
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- 1:4 Or in his sight. In love
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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