10:1 Sisters and brothers, my heartfelt desire and request to God on their behalf is for their salvation.

10:2 I can vouch for their enthusiasm for God, but they don’t understand what they are so enthusiastic about.

10:3 They are ignorant of the justice of God and try to establish their own; thus they were not justified by God.

10:4 For the Anointed is the fulfillment of law, such that everyone who believes is cleared of all charges.

10:5 In writing about the justice of the law, Moses said, “The person who does all of this will live by it.”

10:6 Yet the justice of faith says this: “Don’t ask yourself, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’ (that is, to lead the Anointed down),

10:7 or ‘Who will go down into the Abyss?’ (that is, to lead the Anointed up from the dead).”

10:8 But what does it say? “The declaration is near you, in your mouth and in your mind” (that is, the declaration of the faith we are proclaiming):

10:9 If you openly state that Jesus is Master and believe that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

10:10 For it is with the mind that you believe and are cleared of all charges, and with the mouth you speak out and are saved.

10:11 As the scripture says, “No one who puts their trust in him will be embarrassed.”

10:12 For there is no distinction between Judean and Greek, because the same One is Master of all and is generous to all who call to him for help—

10:13 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Master for help will be saved.”

10:14 But how can they ask for help from someone they have not put their trust in? And how can they trust someone they haven’t heard of? And how will they hear if no one tells them?

10:15 Yet how will anyone tell them if they are not sent out? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

10:16 But not all heed this good news; as Isaiah says, “Master, who believed what we told them?”

10:17 So it follows that faith comes from being told, and being told comes from the declaration of the Anointed.

10:18 But am I saying that Israel didn’t hear? Of course they did: “Their speech went out into all the earth, their declarations to the farthest reaches of civilization.”

10:19 So am I saying Israel didn’t know? First of all, Moses says “I will provoke you to jealousy over those who are not a nation; I will annoy you over a clueless nation.”

10:20 Yet Isaiah boldly stated, “I was found by those who weren’t even looking for me; I was revealed to those who weren’t even asking about me.”

10:21 To Israel he says, “All day long I stretched out my hands toward people who are hostile to faith and argue with me.”