| Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which is from God. The authorities that exist have been appointed 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. |
| 2Consequently, whoever resists authority is opposing what God has set in place, and those who do so 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 one in authority? Then do what is right, and you will have his 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 he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not carry the sword in vain. He is God’s servant, an agent of retribution to the wrongdoer. | 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 it is necessary to submit to authority, not only to avoid punishment, but also as a matter of conscience. | 5So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience. |
| 6This is also why you pay taxes. For the authorities are God’s servants, who devote themselves to their work. | 6Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. |
| 7Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due. | 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 |
| 8Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor 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 commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “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 its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. | 10Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law. |
| 11And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, for our salvation is nearer now 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; the day has drawn near. So let us lay aside 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 behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension 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. |
| 14Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for 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. |
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