New Living Translation
Romans 1:26
26That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other.
Romans 1:26 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
- New International Version (NIV)Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature;
- New King James Version (NKJV)For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.
Context of Romans 1:26
24So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. 25They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. 27And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. 28Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done.
Read all of Romans 1Romans 1:26 word by word
Διὰ τοῦτο παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς ὁ θεὸς εἰς πάθη ἀτιμίας· αἵ τε γὰρ θήλειαι αὐτῶν μετήλλαξαν τὴν φυσικὴν χρῆσιν εἰς τὴν παρὰ φύσιν,Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Forδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
- thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
- Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- gaveπαραδίδωμιparadidōmi · to deliverG3860
- themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- untoεἰςeis · towardG1519
- vileἀτιμίαatimia · dishonourG819
- affectionsπάθοςpathos · passionG3806
- forγάρgar · forG1063
- evenτεte · and/bothG5037
- womenθῆλυςthēlus · femaleG2338
- did changeμεταλλάσσωmetallassō · to exchangeG3337
- the naturalφυσικόςphusikos · naturalG5446
- useχρῆσιςchrēsis · useG5540
- againstπαράpara · from/with/besideG3844
- natureφύσιςphusis · natureG5449
Cross-references for Romans 1:26
- Romans 1:24So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies.
- Genesis 19:5They shouted to Lot, “Where are the men who came to spend the night with you? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!”
- Leviticus 18:22“Do not practice homosexuality, having sex with another man as with a woman. It is a detestable sin.
- Deuteronomy 23:17“No Israelite, whether man or woman, may become a temple prostitute.
- Judges 19:22While they were enjoying themselves, a crowd of troublemakers from the town surrounded the house. They began beating at the door and shouting to the old man, “Bring out the man who is staying with you so we can have sex with him.”
- 1 Corinthians 6:9Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality,
- Ephesians 4:19They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
- Ephesians 5:12It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret.
- 1 Timothy 1:10The law is for people who are sexually immoral, or who practice homosexuality, or are slave traders, liars, promise breakers, or who do anything else that contradicts the wholesome teaching
- Jude 1:7And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment.
Commentaries on Romans 1:26
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 26For this cause God gave them up, etc. - Their system of idolatry necessarily produced all kinds of impurity. How could it be otherwise, when the highest objects of their worship were adulterers, fornicators, and prostitutes of the most infamous kind, such as Jupiter, Apollo, Mars, Venus, etc.? Of the abominable evils with which the apostle charges the Gentiles in this and the following verse I could produce a multitude of proofs from their own writings…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 26For this cause - On account of what had just been specified; to wit, that they did not glorify him as God, that they were unthankful, that they became polytheists and idolaters. In the previous verses he had stated their speculative belief. He now proceeds to show its practical influences on their conduct. Vile affections - Disgraceful passions or desires. That is, to those which are immediately specified. The great object of the apostle here, it will be…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 26-32Verses 26-32 In the horrid depravity of the heathen, the truth of our Lord's words was shown: "Light was come into the world, but men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil; for he that doeth evil hateth the light." The truth was not to their taste. And we all know how soon a man will contrive, against the strongest evidence, to reason himself out of the belief of what he dislikes. But a man cannot be brought to greater slavery…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 26Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones: In this context, the natural way refers to the nature of the world as God made it. As in the Old Testament, Paul refers to same-sex sexual behavior as one example of how people have turned away from honoring the true God (see Genesis 19:1–28; Leviticus 18:22; Leviticus 20:13; Deuteronomy 23:17–18). God created human beings as male and female, and engaging in same-sex sexual activity is a…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 26-2726-27. For this cause God gave them up--(See on Ro 1:24). for even their women--that sex whose priceless jewel and fairest ornament is modesty, and which, when that is once lost, not only becomes more shameless than the other sex, but lives henceforth only to drag the other sex down to its level. did change, &c.--The practices here referred to, though too abundantly attested by classic authors, cannot be further illustrated, without trenching on things…Read the comment
Topics related to Romans 1:26
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Romans 1
- 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
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