Submission to the Authorities
1
Let every person 1be subject to the governing authorities. For 2there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.
2
Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
3
For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you 3will receive his approval,
4
for 4he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, 5an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.
5
Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also 6for the sake of conscience.
6
For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.
7
7Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
Fulfilling the Law Through Love
8
8Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for 9the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.
9
For the commandments, 10"You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: 11"You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
11
Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you 13to wake from sleep. 14For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
12
15The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us 16cast off 17the works of darkness and 18put on the armor of light.
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.
(English Standard Version - The Holy Bible Online)