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Romans

About this book
Chapter 12

1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—alive, holy, and pleasing to God—which is your reasonable service.⁠ 2 Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God—what is good and well-pleasing and perfect. 3 For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think, but to think with sober discernment, as God has distributed to each of you a measure of faith. 4 For just as in one body we have many members, and not all the members serve the same function, 5 so we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually we are members who belong to one another. 6 And we have different gifts according to the grace given to us. If the gift is prophecy, that individual must use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is service, he must serve; if it is teaching, he must teach; 8 if it is exhortation, he must exhort; if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity; if it is leadership, he must do so with diligence; if it is showing mercy, he must do so with cheerfulness. 9 Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil, cling to what is good.⁠ 10 Be devoted to one another with mutual love, showing eagerness in honoring one another. 11 Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering, persist in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints, pursue hospitality.⁠ 14 Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil; consider what is good before all people.⁠ 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people. 19 Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,”⁠ says the Lord.⁠ 20 Rather, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head.⁠ 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Testament of Gad 6:6 and Romans 12:17

Pseudepigrapha, Testaments · New Testament

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Summary

The Testament of Gad says that when someone continues doing wrong, they should still be forgiven, knowing God will judge them. In Romans, Paul follows the same principle, urging that evil should not be repaid with evil and that judgment belongs to God.

Passages

Testament of Gad 6:6

Pseudepigrapha, Testaments · Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs
5 Do not let another man hear your private words during a dispute, or he may come to hate you and become your enemy and commit a great sin against you, for often he speaks to you deceitfully or busies himself about you with wicked intent. And if he denies it but shows shame when rebuked, stop rebuking him. 6 For the one who denies it may repent and not wrong you again; he may even honor you, fear, and be at peace with you. And if he is shameless and persists in his wrongdoing, even then forgive him from the heart, and leave the vengeance to God.
100 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Testament of Gad

Romans 12:17

New Testament
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil; consider what is good before all people. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people. 19 Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 Rather, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head. 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
55–58 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Romans

References

"... Testament of Gad 6:7 urges forgiveness even of the one who persists in wrongdoing, adding, "and leave vengeance to God" (Charlesworth 1983, 1:816). The hymn that concludes the Community Rule found at Qumran includes these lines (1QS 10:17, Vermes 1995, 85): I will pay no man the reward of evil; I will pursue him with goodness. For judgment of all things is with God and it is He who will render to man his reward. In this whole legacy, vengeance is forbidden, not because it is morally destructive, but because it pre-empts the role of God ..."
Leander E. Keck, Romans (Nashville: Abingdon, 2005), 307–309.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Testament of Gad 6:6 and Romans 12:17

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