God’s Word Translation
Romans 10:3
3They don’t understand ⌞how to receive⌟ God’s approval. So they try to set up their own way to get it, and they have not accepted God’s way for receiving his approval.
Romans 10:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
- New International Version (NIV)Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness.
- New King James Version (NKJV)For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.
Context of Romans 10:3
1Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God on behalf of the Jewish people is that they would be saved. 2I can assure you that they are deeply devoted to God, but they are misguided. They don’t understand ⌞how to receive⌟ God’s approval. So they try to set up their own way to get it, and they have not accepted God’s way for receiving his approval. 4Christ is the fulfillment of Moses’ Teachings so that everyone who has faith may receive God’s approval. 5Moses writes about receiving God’s approval by following his laws. He says, “The person who obeys these laws will live because he obeys them.”
Read all of Romans 10Romans 10:3 word by word
ἀγνοοῦντες γὰρ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ δικαιοσύνην καὶ τὴν ἰδίαν δικαιοσύνην ζητοῦντες στῆσαι τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ τοῦ θεοῦ οὐχ ὑπετάγησαν.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Forγάρgar · forG1063
- being ignorant ofἀγνοέωagnoeō · be ignorantG50
- God’sθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- righteousnessδικαιοσύνηdikaiosunē · righteousnessG1343
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- going aboutζητέωzēteō · to seekG2212
- to establishἵστημιhistēmi · to standG2476
- their ownἴδιοςidios · one's own/privateG2398
- haveὑποτάσσωhupotassō · to subjectG5293
- notοὐou · noG3756
Cross-references for Romans 10:3
- Romans 1:17God’s approval is revealed in this Good News. This approval begins and ends with faith as Scripture says, “The person who has God’s approval will live by faith.”
- Romans 3:22Everyone who believes has God’s approval through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no difference between people.
- Romans 5:19Clearly, through one person’s disobedience humanity became sinful, and through one person’s obedience humanity will receive God’s approval.
- Romans 9:30So what can we say? We can say that non-Jewish people who were not trying to gain God’s approval won his approval, an approval based on faith.
- Psalms 71:15My mouth will tell about your righteousness, about your salvation all day long. Even then, it is more than I can understand.
- Isaiah 51:6Look at the sky. Look at the earth below. The sky will vanish like smoke. The earth will wear out like clothing, and those who live there will die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, and my righteousness will never fail.
- Isaiah 56:1This is what the Lord says: Preserve justice, and do what is right. My salvation is about to come. My righteousness is about to be revealed.
- Jeremiah 23:5“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will grow a righteous branch for David. He will be a king who will rule wisely. He will do what is fair and right in the land.
- Daniel 9:24“Seventy sets of seven time periods have been assigned for your people and your holy city. These time periods will serve to bring an end to rebellion, to stop sin, to forgive wrongs, to usher in everlasting righteousness, to put a seal on a prophet’s vision, and to anoint the Most Holy One.
- John 16:9He will convict the world of sin, because people don’t believe in me.
- 2 Corinthians 5:21God had Christ, who was sinless, take our sin so that we might receive God’s approval through him.
- 2 Peter 1:1From Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. To those who have obtained a faith that is as valuable as ours, a faith based on the approval that comes from our God and Savior, Jesus Christ.
- Romans 9:31The people of Israel tried to gain God’s approval by obeying the laws in Moses’ Teachings, but they did not reach their goal.
- Isaiah 57:12I’ll tell you about your righteous ways and what you have done, but they won’t help you.
- Isaiah 64:6We’ve all become unclean, and all our righteous acts are like permanently stained rags. All of us shrivel like leaves, and our sins carry us away like the wind.
- Luke 10:29But the man wanted to justify his question. So he asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?”
Commentaries on Romans 10:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3For - being ignorant of God's righteousness - Not knowing God's method of saving sinners, which is the only proper and efficient method: and going about to establish their own righteousness - seeking to procure their salvation by means of their own contriving; they have not submitted - they have not bowed to the determinations of the Most High, relative to his mode of saving mankind, viz. through faith in Jesus Christ, as the only available sacrifice for…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3For they being ignorant - The ignorance of the Jews was voluntarily, and therefore criminal. The apostle does not affirm that they could not have known what the plan of God was; for he says Romans 10:18-21 that they had full opportunity of knowing. An attentive study of their own Scriptures would have led them to the true knowledge of the Messiah and his righteousness; see John 5:39; compare Isaiah 53:1-12, etc. Yet the fact that they were ignorant…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3God’s righteousness: See 1:17; 3:21–26. Paul uses this phrase to explain Israel’s failure using the core message of the gospel. God showed his righteousness through the work of Jesus Christ. However, most Jews did not understand what God was doing. This was partly because they were focused on keeping the law as a way to establish their own righteousness, rather than trusting what God had done through Christ.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness--that is, for the justification of the guilty (see on Ro 1:17). and going about--"seeking" to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God--The apostle views the general rejection of Christ by the nation as one act.Read the comment
Topics related to Romans 10:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Romans 10
- 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
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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