Romans 10:11, Whosoever Believeth On Him Shall Not Be Ashamed

Romans 10:11, “For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”

What Does Romans 10:11 Mean? I have heard some radio preachers butcher this Scripture, teaching heresy. I've heard numerous preachers teach that a person is not saved if they are “ashamed” of Jesus. That is simply not true my friend. Peter was ashamed of Jesus, even denying that he knew Him (John 18:25-27). That is not what Romans 10:11 means at all. The Greek word for “ashamed” here is “kataischuno” and means “put to shame, disgrace.” God is saying that whosoever trusts upon the Lord will not be put to shame, i.e., he will not be disgraced.

Romans 10:11 is a quote from the Old Testament. Isaiah 28:16, “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth SHALL NOT MAKE HASTE.” If we simply cross-reference the Scripture, then we easily find the correct interpretation of Romans 10:11. The Bible is not so lengthy that it cannot be read through in a few months by the average person. Certainly if we read the Holy Bible on a regular basis, we are going to read Bible passages that remind us of other passages, and that is how we learn the Bible.

I heard a sincere Baptist preacher claim that the 54 King James Bible translators made a mistake when they translated Romans 10:11, “For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” According to this pastor, the scholars who worked on the King James Bible should have used the words “should not” instead of “shall not.” But respectfully, that pastor got it all wrong! As I have already shown you from Isaiah 28:16, this passage is not speaking about believers who are ashamed of being identified with Jesus (as was the Apostle Peter); but rather, this passage is about believers who will NEVER be ashamed in the future, if Jesus were to fail to keep His promises.

By the way, this is a good example of why I strongly discourage anyone from attempting to correct the Word of God. We are not supposed to CORRECT the Bible; the Bible is supposed to CORRECT us. The Bible doesn't need to be rewritten, it needs to be reread.

The New Testament quotes the Old Testament HUNDREDS of times. Scholars set that number of quotes at roughly 300. In such passages, we already know that we need to refer to the Old Testament, if we want to correctly interpret that New Testament passage. The Old Testament is the New Testament CONCEALED; and the New Testament is the Old Testament REVEALED. Such is the case in Romans 10:11a, “For the scripture saith...” Romans 10:11 plainly tells us that the apostle Paul is quoting the Old Testament. Unfortunately, lazy preachers fail to look at what the Old Testament says and end up teaching false doctrine.

I heard a radio preacher years ago in Chicago say, that you are not saved if you're ashamed of Jesus, and then he quoted Romans 10:11 to prove his false teaching, taking the Bible verse out of context. Peter was ashamed of knowing Jesus (Matthew 26:70-75). The chief rulers who believed on Jesus were ashamed of confessing Him (John 12:42-43). Yet, they were saved securely. Being ashamed of Jesus doesn't mean you're not saved, it just means that you love the praise of men more than the praise of God (John 12:43). All of the apostles forsook Jesus during His darkest hour of betrayal and trial. They were scared.

Isaiah 28:16 plainly reveals what Romans 10:11 means—God PROMISES that whosoever trusts upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation will NOT be disgraced, will not be disappointed, will not be let down. JESUS NEVER FAILS!!!