My deep desire and earnest prayer is that God will save the Jews, who do not understand how to seek him correctly.

1My fellow believers, what I deeply desire and what I pray to God earnestly for is that he will save my own people, the Jews.

2I declare truthfully about them that although they ◄zealously seek/very much want to know► God, they do not understand how to seek/know him correctly.

3They did not ◄submit themselves to/accept► the way that God erases the record of people’s sins. They did not want to recognize that way because they wanted him to do it their own way.

4They wanted God to erase the record of their sins as a result of their obeying his laws. But because of what Christ has done, it is no longer necessary for people to obey the laws God gave Moses in order for the record of their sins to be erased. Now God will erase the record of sins of everyone who trusts in what Christ has done.

The message of Scripture is that those who confess publicly that Jesus is their Lord and who believe inwardly that God brought Jesus back to life will be saved, because God accepts people only because of their faith, Jews and non-Jews alike.

5In regard to the old way, Moses wrote concerning people who obey God’s laws, “It is the people who have done perfectly the things that the laws require who will gain eternal life by doing them.”

6But those whose record of sins God has erased as a result of their believing in Christ can say to anyone [PRS] as Moses said, “You should not critically think inwardly, ‘◄Someone will have to go up and enter heaven!/Who will go up and enter heaven?►’ [RHQ]” That is to say, someone will have to go up and bring Christ down to bring the message of salvation to us!

7“Or you should not think inwardly, ‘◄Someone will have to go down and enter the place where the spirits of dead persons are!/Who will go down and enter the place where the spirits of dead persons are?►’ [RHQ]” That is to say, someone will have to go down and bring Christ up from there to bring the message of salvation to us. You should not say that because Christ has already come down to save us, and has already become alive after he died!

8But instead, those who believe in Christ [PRS] can say what [RHQ] Moses also said, “You (sg) can find out about God’s message very easily. You can speak [MTY] about it; you can think [MTY] about it.” This is the message that we proclaim, that people must believe in Christ.

9This message is that if anyone of you confesses/says publicly that Jesus is Lord, and if you (sg) believe that God ◄caused him to become alive again after he died/raised him from the dead►, you will be saved {God will save you}.

10If people believe that Christ died and that God caused him to become alive again [CHI], the result is that God will erase the record of their sins. And for those who state/declare publicly that Jesus is their Lord, the result is that God will save them.

11It is written {Isaiah wrote} in the Scriptures [PRS] about the Messiah, “Whoever believes in him will not be disappointed.”

12God treats Jews and non-Jews similarly. Because he is the same Lord for all people who believe in him, he abundantly blesses all who ask him to save them.

13This is just like what the prophet Joel wrote: “All those who ask the Lord God to save them will be saved {The Lord God will save all those who ask him to save them}.”

There may be those who object by saying, “If God does not send someone to preach to the Jews, they cannot ask Christ to save them.” My reply to them is that God has already sent people to preach about Christ to them, but most of the Jews have not accepted the gospel. However, some Jews do believe in Christ, and many other people are indeed hearing the message.

14In regard to the people of Israel rejecting the gospel, some people might object by saying, (OR, This raises another problem about the Jews:) “◄They certainly cannot ask Christ to save them if they have not first believed in him!/How can they ask Christ to help/save them if they have not first believed in him?► [RHQ] And ◄they certainly cannot believe in him if they have not heard about him!/how can they believe in him if they have not heard about him?► [RHQ] And ◄they certainly cannot hear about him if someone does not preach to them about him!/how can they hear about him if someone does not preach to them about him?► [RHQ]

15And those who preach to them about Christ, ◄certainly cannot preach if they are not sent by God {if God does not send them} to preach!/how can they preach if they are not sent by God {if God does not send them} to preach?► [RHQ] His sending messengers to them would be just like it is written {like someone wrote} in the Scriptures, ‘The arrival [MTY] of those who preach the good message is wonderful!’ ”

16I would reply in this way to people who say such things: God has indeed sent people to preach the message about Christ. But not all the people of Israel have paid attention to the good message! It is like what Isaiah said when he felt very discouraged, “Lord, it seems as if hardly anyone believed what they heard us (exc) preach! [RHQ]”

17So then, I tell you that people are believing in Christ as a result of hearing the message about him, and people are hearing the message as a result of people preaching about Christ!

In reply to a question of whether the Jews have heard or understood about Christ, I would say that, as is supported by the Scriptures, they have heard it and should have understood it, because even non-Jews, who were not searching for God, understood it.

18But if someone were to ask, “Have not the people of Israel heard the message about God?” I would reply that they certainly have heard it! It is like what is written in the Psalms, People living all over the world [PRS, MTY] have seen the stars, and what they indicate about God’s character has reached people living in the most remote places in the world [DOU]!

19But someone might ask, “Is it true that the people of [MTY] Israel understood the message about Christ?” I would reply that certainly they understood it, but they rejected it! Remember that Moses was the first one who warned the people of Israel about disobeying God. He told them that God said, You consider that non-Jewish groups are not nations at all [CHI]. But some of them will believe in me, and I will bless them. Then you will envy them. I will cause you to be angry with those people whom you Jews think do not understand my ways [IRO].

20Remember also what God said very boldly to Isaiah: Non-Jews who did not ◄try to know/seek► me will surely find me [DOU]!
I will surely reveal what I am like to those who did not ask for me!

21But concerning the people of Israel, Isaiah tells us that God said: For a long time I have held out my arms to people who disobeyed and rebelled against me, in order to invite them to return to me.