Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me as well.
Parallel translations
- WEB Greet Rufus, the chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
- KJV Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
- NKJV Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
- NASB Greet Rufus, a choice man in the Lord, also his mother and mine.
- NLT Greet Rufus, whom the Lord picked out to be his very own; and also his dear mother, who has been a mother to me.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Paul greets Rufus, called 'chosen in the Lord,' and his mother, whom Paul regards as a mother to himself. It pictures the warm family bonds created within the body of Christ.
Overview
Rufus may well be the son of Simon of Cyrene, who carried Jesus' cross (Mark 15:21 names Simon's sons Alexander and Rufus for a reason familiar to his readers). Paul calls him 'chosen,' likely meaning a notable or distinguished believer, and speaks of Rufus's mother as having cared for him like her own son. The verse beautifully illustrates how faith in Christ knits believers into a spiritual family that transcends natural kinship.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- 2 Jn 1:1The elder, To the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I alone, but also all who know the truth—
- Mark 15:21Now Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and the soldiers forced him to carry the cross of Jesus.
- 1 Tim 5:2older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.
- John 15:16You did not choose Me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will remain—so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.
- Mark 3:35For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”
- 2 Th 2:13But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth.
- Matt 20:16So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
- Matt 12:49–50Pointing to His disciples, He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers.
- John 19:27Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home.
- Eph 1:4For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.
How Romans 16:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.