16 1 He commendeth Phoebe. 3 He sendeth greeting to many. 17 And warneth to beware of them which are the causes of division.

I [a]Commend unto you Phoebe our sister, which is a servant of the Church of Cenchrea:

That ye receive her in the [b]Lord, as it becometh Saints, and that ye assist her in whatsoever business she needeth of your aid: for she hath given hospitality unto many, and to me also.

Greet (A)Priscilla, and Aquila, my fellow helpers in Christ Jesus.

(Which have for my life laid down their own neck. Unto whom not I only give thanks, but also all the Churches of the Gentiles.)

Likewise greet the [c]Church that is in their house. Salute my beloved Epaenetus, which is the [d]firstfruits of Achaia in Christ.

Greet Mary which bestowed much labor on us.

Salute Andronicus and Junia my cousins and fellow prisoners, which are notable among the Apostles, and were in [e]Christ before me.

Greet Amplias my beloved in the Lord.

Salute Urbanus our fellow helper in Christ, and Stachys my beloved.

10 Salute Apelles approved in Christ. Salute them which are of Aristobulus’ friends.

11 Salute Herodion my kinsman. Greet them which are of the friends of Narcissus which are in the Lord.

12 Salute Tryphena and Tryphosa, which women labor in the Lord. Salute the beloved Persis, which woman hath labored much in the Lord.

13 Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.

14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Mercurius, and the brethren which are with them.

15 Salute Philologus and Julia, Nereus, and his sister, and Olympas and all the Saints which are with them.

16 Salute one another with an (B)holy [f]kiss. The Churches of Christ salute you.

17 [g]Now I beseech you brethren, [h]mark them diligently which cause division and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned, and (C)avoid them.

18 For they that are such, serve not the Lord Jesus Christ but their own bellies, and with [i]fair speech and flattering deceive the hearts of the simple.

19 [j]For your obedience is come abroad among all: I am glad therefore of you: but yet I would have you [k]wise unto that which is good, and [l]simple concerning evil.

20 [m]The God of peace shall tread Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

21 (D)[n]Timothy my helper, and Lucius and Jason, and Sosipater my kinsmen, salute you.

22 I Tertius, which [o]wrote out this Epistle, salute you in the Lord.

23 Gaius mine host, and of the whole Church saluteth you. Erastus the steward of the city saluteth you, and Quartus a brother.

24 [p]The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen.

25 (E)[q]To him now that is of power to establish you according to my Gospel, and preaching of Jesus Christ, (F)by the revelation of the [r]mystery, which was kept secret since the world began:

26 (But now is opened, and [s]published among all nations by the Scriptures of the Prophets, at the commandment of the everlasting God for the obedience of faith.)

27 To God, I say, only wise, be praise through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.

Written to the Romans from Corinth, and sent by Phoebe, servant of the Church which is at Cenchrea.

Footnotes

  1. Romans 16:1 Having made an end of the whole disputation, he cometh now to familiar commendations and salutations, and that to good consideration and purpose, to wit, that the Romans might know, who are most to be honored and made account of amongst them, and also whom they ought to set before them to follow: and therefore he attributeth unto every of them peculiar and singular testimonies.
  2. Romans 16:2 For Christ’s sake, which is proper to the Christians, for the heathen Philosophers have resemblances of the same virtues.
  3. Romans 16:5 The company of the faithful, for in so great a city as that was, there were divers companies.
  4. Romans 16:5 For he was the first of Achaia that believed in Christ: and this kind of speech is an allusion to the ceremonies of the Law.
  5. Romans 16:7 Ingrafted by faith.
  6. Romans 16:16 He calleth that an holy kiss, which proceedeth from an heart that is full of that holy love: now this is to be referred to the manner used in those days.
  7. Romans 16:17 As by namely describing them, which were worthy of commendation, he sufficiently declared when they ought to hear and follow, so doth he now point out unto them whom they ought to take heed of, yet he nameth them not, for that it was not needful.
  8. Romans 16:17 Warily and diligently, as though you should scout out for your enemies in a watch tower.
  9. Romans 16:18 The word which he useth, signifieth a promising which performeth nothing, and if thou hearest any such, thou mayest assure thyself that he that promiseth thee is more careful of thy matters, than of his own.
  10. Romans 16:19 Simplicity must be joined with wisdom.
  11. Romans 16:19 Furnished with the knowledge of the truth, and wisdom, that you may embrace good things, and eschew evil, beware of the deceits and snares of false prophets, and resist them openly: and this place doth plainly destroy the Papists’ faith of credit, whereas they maintain it to be sufficient for one man to believe as another man believeth, without further knowledge, or examination what the matter is, or what ground it hath: using these daily speeches, We believe as our fathers believed, and we believe as the Church believeth.
  12. Romans 16:19 As men that know no way to deceive, much less to deceive in deed.
  13. Romans 16:20 We must fight, with a certain hope of victory.
  14. Romans 16:21 He annexeth salutations, partly to renew mutual friendship, and partly to the end that this Epistle might be of some weight with the Romans, having the confirmation of so many that subscribed unto it.
  15. Romans 16:22 Wrote it as Paul uttered it.
  16. Romans 16:24 Now taking his leave of them this third time, he wisheth that unto them, whereupon dependeth all the force of the former doctrine.
  17. Romans 16:25 He setteth forth the power and wisdom of God with great thanksgiving, which especially appears in the Gospel, and maketh mention also of the calling of the Gentiles to confirm the Romans in the hope of this salvation.
  18. Romans 16:25 That secret and hidden thing, that is to say, the calling of the Gentiles.
  19. Romans 16:26 Offered and exhibited to all nations to be known.

Personal Greetings

16 I commend(A) to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon[a][b] of the church in Cenchreae.(B) I ask you to receive her in the Lord(C) in a way worthy of his people(D) and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.

Greet Priscilla[c] and Aquila,(E) my co-workers(F) in Christ Jesus.(G) They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

Greet also the church that meets at their house.(H)

Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert(I) to Christ in the province of Asia.(J)

Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.

Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews(K) who have been in prison with me.(L) They are outstanding among[d] the apostles, and they were in Christ(M) before I was.

Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.

Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ,(N) and my dear friend Stachys.

10 Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test.(O)

Greet those who belong to the household(P) of Aristobulus.

11 Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.(Q)

Greet those in the household(R) of Narcissus who are in the Lord.

12 Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.

Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.

13 Greet Rufus,(S) chosen(T) in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.

14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.

15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord’s people(U) who are with them.(V)

16 Greet one another with a holy kiss.(W)

All the churches of Christ send greetings.

17 I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned.(X) Keep away from them.(Y) 18 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ,(Z) but their own appetites.(AA) By smooth talk and flattery they deceive(AB) the minds of naive people. 19 Everyone has heard(AC) about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.(AD)

20 The God of peace(AE) will soon crush(AF) Satan(AG) under your feet.

The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.(AH)

21 Timothy,(AI) my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius,(AJ) Jason(AK) and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.(AL)

22 I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.

23 Gaius,(AM) whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.

Erastus,(AN) who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. [24] [e]

25 Now to him who is able(AO) to establish you in accordance with my gospel,(AP) the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery(AQ) hidden for long ages past, 26 but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings(AR) by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from[f] faith(AS) 27 to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.(AT)

Footnotes

  1. Romans 16:1 Or servant
  2. Romans 16:1 The word deacon refers here to a Christian designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Phil. 1:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8,12.
  3. Romans 16:3 Greek Prisca, a variant of Priscilla
  4. Romans 16:7 Or are esteemed by
  5. Romans 16:24 Some manuscripts include here May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen.
  6. Romans 16:26 Or that is