Romans 16

I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a servant1 of the congregation that is at Cenchreae, 2that you receive her in the Lord, in a way worthy of the saints, and that you assist her in whatever matter she may need from you, for she herself also has been a helper of many, and of my own self.

3Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in AL-MASIH2 ‘ISA3, 4who for my life, laid down their own necks; to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the non-Jewish congregations. 5Greet the congregation that meets in their house. Greet Epaenetus, my beloved, who is the first fruits of Achaia to AL-MASIH. 6Greet Maryam, who laboured much for us. 7Greet Andronicus and Junias, my relatives and my fellow prisoners, who are notable among the apostles, who also were in AL-MASIH before me. 8Greet Amplias, my beloved in the Lord. 9Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in AL-MASIH, and Stachys, my beloved. 10Greet Apelles, the approved in AL-MASIH. Greet those who are of the household of Aristobulus. 11Greet Herodion, my kinsman. Greet them of the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord. 12Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who labour in the Lord. Greet Persis, the beloved, who laboured much in the Lord. 13Greet Rufus, the chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine. 14Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers4 who are with them. 15Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. 16Greet one another with a holy kiss. The congregations of AL-MASIH greet you.

17Now I beg you, brothers, look out for those who are causing the divisions and occasions of stumbling, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and turn away from them. 18For those who are such do not serve our LORD ‘ISA AL-MASIH, but their own belly; and by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts of the innocent. 19For your obedience has become known to all. I rejoice therefore over you. But I desire to have you wise in that which is good, but innocent in that which is evil. 20And the God of peace will quickly crush Shaitan5 under your feet. The grace of our LORD ‘ISA AL-MASIH be with you.

21Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you, as do Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my relatives. 22I, Tertius, who write the letter down, greet you in the Lord. 23Gaius, my host and host of the whole congregation, greets you. Erastus, the treasurer of the city, greets you, as does Quartus, the brother. 24The grace of our LORD ‘ISA AL-MASIH be with you all! Amen.25Now to him who is able to establish you according to my Injil 6 and the message of ‘ISA AL-MASIH, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret through long ages, 26but now is revealed, and by the writings of the Prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is made known for obedience of faith to all the nations; 27to the only wise God, through ‘ISA AL-MASIH, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

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  1. 16:1 servant, or, deacon. ↩︎
  2. 16:3 AL-MASIH – an Arabic title equivalent to the Messiah (Hebrew) or Christ (Greek), all of which mean the Anointed One, that is, God’s Chosen One. In ancient times, divinely-appointed kings, priests and prophets were anointed with oil to signify their appointment to office. All of them point ahead to God’s ultimate Anointed One, the Messiah, AL-MASIH.  Al-Kitab unanimously points to ‘ISA Ibn Maryam as the only person worthy to bear the title AL-MASIH. He is the one whom God sent into this world to save people from sin, and to usher in God’s Kingdom at his Second Coming. ↩︎
  3. 16:3 ‘ISA – The names ‘ISA (Arabic), ISHO (Syriac) and JESUS (Greek, IESOUS) are all derived from the Hebrew name YEHOSHUA, which means “YAHWEH saves.” (YAHWEH is God’s personal name revealed to Prophet Musa in the Taurat, Exodus 3:15 – God said moreover to Musa, “You shall tell Bani-Israel this, ‘YAHWEH, the God of your fathers, the God of Ibrahim, the God of Ishaq, and the God of Yaqub, has sent me to you.’ This is my Name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered to all generations.”) ↩︎
  4. 16:14 The word for “brothers” here and where context allows may also be correctly translated “brothers and sisters” or “siblings.” ↩︎
  5. 16:20 Shaitan, is derived from the Hebrew Satan, which means “adversary” or “accuser.” ↩︎
  6. 16:25 Injil, this Arabic word is derived from Euangel (Greek) and means “good news” or “Gospel” (old English for ‘good news’). Depending on context, Injil can refer to, 
    1. the whole Christian New Testament containing 27 books, 
    2. the first 4 books of the New Testament, that is, the Injil according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, or,
    3. the message or “good news” of forgiveness of sins through ‘ISA AL-MASIH. ↩︎