| Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Let everyone submit to the governing authorities, since there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are instituted by God. | 1Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. |
| 2So then, the one who resists the authority is opposing God's command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves. | 2So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. |
| 3For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have its approval. | 3For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. |
| 4For it is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, because it does not carry the sword for no reason. For it is God's servant, an avenger that brings wrath on the one who does wrong. | 4The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. |
| 5Therefore, you must submit, not only because of wrath but also because of your conscience. | 5So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience. |
| 6And for this reason you pay taxes, since the authorities are God's servants, continually attending to these tasks. | 6Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. |
| 7Pay your obligations to everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, and honor to those you owe honor. | 7Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority. Love Fulfills God’s Requirements |
| 8Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. | 8Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. |
| 9The commandments, Do not commit adultery; do not murder; do not steal; do not covet; and any other commandment, are summed up by this commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself. | 9For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” |
| 10Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law. | 10Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law. |
| 11Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. | 11This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. |
| 12The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. | 12The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. |
| 13Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. | 13Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. |
| 14But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and don't make plans to gratify the desires of the flesh. | 14Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires. |
| The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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