Romans 11:6

Romans 11:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.
• New International Version (NIV)And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.

Context of Romans 11:6

4This was God's answer to Elijah: ‘There are still 7,000 men that I have kept for myself. Those men have not worshipped the false god Baal.’ 5It is the same at this time too. There is a small number of Israel's people that God has chosen to trust him. He has chosen them because he is very kind. This shows that God has not chosen them because of any good things that they have done. If that was true, we could not say that God was really being kind to them. It would not be his gift. 7So we can say this: Israel's people did not all find what they were looking for. Only those people that God had chosen received it. But the other people of Israel became unable to understand God's message. 8It says this in the Bible: ‘God caused them to be like people who are sleeping. Even until this day, their eyes cannot really see, and their ears cannot really hear.’

Romans 11:6 word by word

εἰ δὲ χάριτι οὐκέτι ἐξ ἔργων, ἐπεὶ ἡ χάρις οὐκέτι γίνεται χάριςRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andδέde · thenG1161
• ifεἰei · ifG1487
• by graceχάριςcharis · graceG5485
• thenοὐκέτιouketi · not any moreG3765
• ofἐκek ex · out fromG1537
• worksἔργονergon · workG2041
• otherwiseἐπείepei · sinceG1893
• graceὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• isγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• is itεἰμίeimi · to beG1510

Cross-references for Romans 11:6

• Romans 3:27So then, nobody should be proud that they are good enough. Nobody becomes right with God because they have done good things. No! God accepts a person only if that person believes in Jesus Christ.
• Romans 4:4When a person works to get money, it is right for him to receive his money. That money is not a gift. It is what that person ought to receive as a result of his work.
• Romans 5:20God gave his Law to Moses to show more clearly that people were doing wrong things. But when people did more and more wrong things, God continued to be kind in more and more ways.
• Deuteronomy 9:4The Lord your God will chase them away. After he has done that, be careful! Do not say to yourselves, ‘The Lord has brought us into this land because we do right things.’ No! It is because these nations are doing wicked things. That is why the Lord is chasing them out of the land so that you can live there.
• 1 Corinthians 15:10But God was very kind to me. He helped me to become a different person. And because God has been so kind to me, the result has been great. I have worked more than all the other apostles. But it was not really I myself who could do that work. No, I could do it because God was so kind to me.
• Galatians 2:21So I do not refuse to accept the kind gift of God. If the rules of God's Law could make me right with him, then Christ would have died for no reason!
• Galatians 5:4I say this to you people who try to obey the rules of God's Law. If you think that God will accept you as right because you do that, you have turned away from Christ. You no longer agree to accept God's kind gift.
• Ephesians 2:4But God is very good and kind! He loved us very much.
• 2 Timothy 1:9God is the one who has saved us. He has chosen us to serve him with good, clean lives. He did not save us because of any good things that we have done. He chose to do it because he is very kind. He decided to do that before time began, because of what Christ Jesus would do for us.

Commentaries on Romans 11:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6And if by grace - And let this very remnant of pious Jews, who have believed in Christ Jesus, know that they are brought in, precisely in the same way as God has brought in the Gentiles; the one having no more worthiness to plead than the other; both being brought in, and continued in by God's free grace, and not by any observance of the Mosaic law. And this is done according to the election of grace, or the rule of choosing any persons to be the people…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6And if grace … - If the fact that any are reserved be by grace, or favor, then it cannot be as a reward of merit. Paul thus takes occasion incidentally to combat a favorite notion of the Jews, that we are justified by obedience to the Law. He reminds them that in the time of Elijah it was because God had reserved them; that the same was the case now; and therefore their doctrine of merit could not be true; see Romans 4:4-5; Galatians 5:4; Ephesians 2:8-9…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-32n this section, Paul addresses a serious question. Many Jews did not believe in Jesus. If God had promised salvation to Israel, how could Jesus truly fulfill God’s plan when so few Jews believed (9:1–5)? In response, Paul uses the Old Testament to show that God always planned to save only a remnant, that is, a smaller group within Israel (9:6–29). Paul also explains that many Jews did not accept Christ because they refused to trust in him (9:30–10:21)…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. And, &c.--better, "Now if it (the election) be by grace, it is no more of works; for [then] grace becomes no more grace: but if it be of works," &c. (The authority of ancient manuscripts against this latter clause, as superfluous and not originally in the text, though strong, is not sufficient, we think, to justify its exclusion. Such seeming redundancies are not unusual with our apostle). The general position here laid down is of vital importance…Read the comment

Topics related to Romans 11:6

• Grace of God
• Salvation
• Works

In the dictionaries

• Cast
• Conclude
• Dark
• Depth
• Election
• Election of Grace
• Emulation
• Grace
• Judgment
• Rest

Commentaries on Romans 11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings