Passage
Romans 3
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Doctrine
Faith
Personal trust in Christ specifically; not generic religious devoutness (虔诚) that could be directed at any deity or practice.
ROM.3.22-28
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Glossary Term
Faith
Personal trust placed in Christ specifically; object of faith must be stated in context.
ROM.3.22-28
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Doctrine
Fulfillment of Prophecy
Linear, one-time historical fulfillment (OT to NT), not the cyclical dynastic-rise-and-fall pattern (治乱循环, the recurring order-chaos-order cycle of Chinese historiography) that shapes how many Chinese readers intuitively read long historical narratives.
ROM.3.21
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Glossary Term
Gentiles
NEVER use 夷人 (yírén, historically 'barbarian' in the classical Hua-Yi [华夷] distinction between civilized Chinese and outside peoples) — using it would ironically import the very insider/outsider hierarchy Romans 'no distinction' language dismantles.
ROM.3.29-30
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Doctrine
Grace
Unmerited favor directly contradicts the Buddhist merit-accounting worldview (功德, 阴德) present in Chinese folk religion, where good outcomes are earned through accumulated good deeds.
ROM.3.24
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Glossary Term
Grace
CRITICAL: NEVER use 功德 (gōngdé) — Buddhist accumulated merit earned through good deeds, transferable and quantifiable.
ROM.3.24
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Glossary Term
Israel
Proper name; CUV established form.
ROM.3.29-30
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Glossary Term
Law
The Mosaic Law.
ROM.3.21
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Glossary Term
Prophecy
God-inspired declaration of what he will do; distinguish from 算卦/占卜 (divination, e.g.
ROM.3.21
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Glossary Term
Sin
罪 also means criminal guilt (as in 罪犯, 'criminal') and, in folk usage, is linked to 报应 (bàoyìng, karmic retribution for wrongdoing across a person's fortune/lineage).
ROM.3.23
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Doctrine
Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Directly challenges any lingering insider/outsider ethnic hierarchy; must translate with theological clarity rather than softened diplomatic language.
ROM.3.29-30
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Doctrine
Universal Human Accountability
All humanity equally guilty before God, regardless of social or civilizational standing; retain universal language without softening toward a graded moral-hierarchy reading.
ROM.3.23