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 Benjamin 4:3 and Romans 12:19

Pseudepigrapha, Testaments · New Testament

Summary

The Testament of Benjamin praises the good man who shows mercy even to those who harm him, overcoming evil through kindness rather than retaliation. In Romans, Paul uses similar language in teaching to overcome evil with good.

Passages

Testament of Benjamin 4:3

Pseudepigrapha, Testaments · Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs

1 Do you see, then, my children, the end of the good man? Follow his compassion with a good mind, so that you also may wear crowns of glory. 2 For the good man does not have an evil eye, for he shows mercy to everyone, even to sinners. 3 Even though others scheme against him with evil intent, by doing good he overcomes evil, being shielded by God; and he loves the righteous as his own soul. 4 If someone is honored, he does not envy him; if someone grows rich, he is not jealous; if someone is brave, he praises him. He commends the virtuous, shows mercy to the poor, has compassion on the weak, and sings praises to God. 5 As for the one who fears God, he protects him as with a shield; the one who loves God he helps; the one who rejects the Most High he warns and turns back; and the one who has the grace of a good spirit he loves as his own soul.

100 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Testament of Benjamin

Romans 12:19

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

"... When reading Matthew 5:38-42 in the context of the New Testament as a whole, two things must be noted. First, Romans 12:17, 19; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; and 1 Peter 3:9 continue the theme of non-retaliation. Second, Matthew 5:39 must be heard in connection with Romans 13:1-7, where the state is given the power of the sword (power of life and death) to deal with wrongdoers. In fact, if Romans 12:19 exhorts individual Christians never to avenge themselves but to leave it to God's wrath, Romans 13:4 says the state is ordained by God to execute wrath on the wrongdoer in this age before the resurrection ... The Matthean Jesus here sets forth his interpretation of "Love your neighbor." The roots for this sentiment may be found in Exodus 23:4-5; Deuteronomy 22:4; and Proverbs 25:21. Post-biblical Judaism sometimes voiced a similar perspective (compare Testament of Benjamin 4:3-"The good man loves all those who wrong him as he loves his own life"; 2 Enoch 50:4; 2 Baruch 52:6- "Why do you look for the decline of your enemies?") ..."

Charles H. Talbert, Reading the Sermon on the Mount: Character Formation and Decision Making in Matthew 5–7 (Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina, 2004), 92–94.

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

Romans16 chapters

Compare Testament of Benjamin 4:3 and Romans 12:19

Summary

Passages

Testament of Benjamin 4:3

Romans 12:19

References

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