Bible Strands
Romans 16:13
Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me as well.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The apostle Paul writes to the Roman church, concluding his letter with a direct commission to exchange personal greetings with specific believers and workers.
The words — ἀσπάσασθε (aspasasthe) translates to do greet, and ἐκλεκτὸν (eklekton) translates to chosen.
The thread — Mark 15:21 records a Rufus whose father was Simon of Cyrene, while 1 Timothy 5:2 and 2 John 1:1 apply similar familial and elected terminology to Christian relationships.
Why it lands — The text commands the Roman believers to greet Rufus and recognize his mother as Paul’s own, explicitly tying Rufus’s identity to being chosen in the Lord. This requires readers to treat spiritual kinship as a concrete duty that demands active greeting and reciprocal care.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Salute Rufus chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
Cross-references
- Mark 15:21 Now 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 Timothy 5:2 older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.
- 2 John 1:1 The 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—
- John 15:16 You 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.
- Matthew 12:49 Pointing to His disciples, He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers.
- Matthew 20:16 So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
- Mark 3:35 For whoever does the will of God is My brother and sister and mother.”
- John 19:27 Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home.
- Ephesians 1:4 For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we should always thank God for you, brothers who are loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning to be saved by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth.