Romans 3 - EasyEnglish Bible 2024（EASY）

Chapter 3

1So someone may ask, ‘Does it help a person if they are a Jew, rather than a Gentile? Does it help a person if someone has circumcised them?’

2Yes, it helps in many ways. The first is that God chose to give his messages to the Jewish people.

3But you might say, ‘Some Jews did not believe God's messages as they should have done. Because of that, maybe God will not help them, as he said he would do.’

4No, certainly it does not mean that! God is always faithful. He will always say what is true, even if everyone in the world should tell lies. This is what is written in the Bible:

‘People will know that what you say is true.

If people judge you,

it will always be clear that you are right.’

5Some people might say, ‘The wrong things that we do show more clearly that God is always right. So perhaps God is wrong to punish us.’ That is a human way to talk.

6It is completely wrong! God always decides what is right and fair. That is why he is able to judge everyone in the world.

7Someone might also say, ‘When I tell lies, that shows how great and good God is. My lies show more clearly that God always says what is true. So God should not say that I am a bad person. He should not punish me.’

8But if that is true, you could also say, ‘We should do more and more bad things. Then something good will happen as a result.’ Some people even say that is the message which I teach. But if they say that, they are insulting me. It is right that God should punish those people.

Nobody is right with God

9So, what do we learn from that? We cannot say that we Jews are in less danger than other people. No, certainly we cannot say that! I have said already that sin has power over everyone. That is true for both Jews and Gentiles.

10This is written in the Bible:

‘There is nobody who is right with God.

There is not even one person who is like that.

11There is nobody who understands what is true.

There is nobody who wants to know God.

12Everyone has turned away from God.

All people have become completely bad.

Nobody does what is good or kind.

There is not even one person who is like that.

13Bad words come out of their mouths,

like a bad smell from a grave.

They tell lies all the time,

so that they deceive people.

The things that they say hurt people, like a snake's poison.

14They are always saying bad things against people,

because they want to cause trouble for them.

15They hurry to kill people.

16Everywhere they go, they destroy things.

They make people very sad.

17They have never known how to live in peace.

18They refuse to respect God in any way.’

19We know that God's Law belongs to the Jews. God told them to obey everything that his Law teaches. As a result, nobody can say: ‘I am not guilty.’ Everybody in the world must stand in front of God and he will judge them.

20Nobody can become right with God because they obey the Law's commands. Instead, God's Law shows people clearly the wrong things that they have done.

God accepts everyone who believes in Christ

21But now we know how to become right with God. God has shown us the way that he will accept people as right with himself. This is not part of the Law that he gave to Moses. But God's Law and the messages of his prophets have told us about it.

22God accepts people as right with himself because Jesus Christ did what God wanted. God accepts every person who believes in Christ. It is the same way for everyone, whether they are Jews or Gentiles.

23All people have done wrong things. Nobody is as good as God in his glory wants them to be.

24But because God is very kind, he accepts us as right with himself. That is God's gift to us. Jesus Christ has paid for our sins so that we have become free.

25God showed clearly that Jesus Christ died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. God forgives us if we trust in Jesus and the blood of his sacrifice. God did this to show clearly that he is always right and fair. In past times, God was patient. He did not punish people who did wrong things.

26He did this to show us today that he is completely right and fair. He accepts people as right with himself if they believe in Jesus.

27So nobody should boast about themselves. Nobody becomes right with God because they have done good things. No! God accepts someone only if they believe in Jesus Christ.

28So this is what we are saying: A person becomes right with God if they trust in Christ. It is not because they do the good things which God's Law teaches.

29God is not God only for Jewish people. He is also God for the Gentiles. Yes! He is the God for all people.

30There is only one God. He will accept Jews as right with himself if they believe in Christ. He will also accept other people as right with himself if they believe in Christ.

31What does this show us about God's Law which he gave to Moses? When we say that all people need to believe in Jesus, does that mean that God's Law has no purpose? No! When we believe in Jesus, we are showing the true purpose of God's Law.