Last updated on September 21st, 2025
Everyone driving up Sun Valley Blvd has seen the Sun Valley scripture—the yellow, roadside sign proclaiming, “Whosoever believes in Jesus Christ shall recieve forgiveness of sin (Romans 10:9).”
Sun Valley residents with a keen eye, however, may have noticed that the word “receive” on the sign is misspelled, and that Romans 10:9 doesn’t actually say this…
What does Romans 10:9 really say?
Romans is a New Testament book in the Holy Bible, authored by Paul the Apostle (also known as St. Paul, Saul of Tarsus, and the Hebrew name Sha’ul). The book of Romans is more fully known as “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Romans,” and is penned as a letter to believing followers of Jesus living in Rome at the time (circa A.D. 55-59), consisting of Christians coming from both Jewish and Gentile backgrounds.
As most people know, there are many different translations of the Bible, in English and in other languages, of course. Each translation and language can emphasize subtle differences in meaning. With that being said, some of the common Bible translations render Romans 10:9 thus:
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (King James Version, KJV)
Because if you make hoda’ah (confession) "with your PEH" of Adoneinu Yehoshua, and have emunah "in your LEV" that G-d raised him from the Mesim, you will be delivered. (Orthodox Jewish Bible, OJB)
Que si confesares con tu boca que Jesús es el Señor, y creyeres en tu corazón que Dios le levantó de los muertos, serás salvo. (Reina-Valera, RVR1960)
For if thou confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thy heart that God hath raised him up from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (Douay-Rheims, DRA)
If you confess with your lips, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (New Catholic Bible, NCB)
Si tu confesses de ta bouche le Seigneur Jésus, et si tu crois dans ton cœur que Dieu l’a ressuscité des morts, tu seras sauvé. (Louis Segond, LSG)
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (New International Version, NIV)
That if thou acknowledge in thy mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and believest in thine heart, that God raised him from death [that God raised him from dead], thou shalt be safe. (Wycliffe Bible, WYC)
For, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (New American Bible Revised Edition, NABRE)
That if you acknowledge publicly with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord and trust in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be delivered. (Complete Jewish Bible, CJB)
If you openly admit by your own mouth that Jesus Christ is the Lord, and if you believe in your own heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (J.B. Phillips New Testament, PHILLIPS)
If you declare that Yeshua is Lord, and believe that God brought him back to life, you will be saved. (Names of God Bible, NOG)
The original message above (regardless of which translation you prefer) was written by Paul the Apostle in his epistle to the Roman believers.
Why does the sign say something different?
I believe the message on the sign is possibly a paraphrased version of Acts 10:43, which reads:
Every one of the prophets has said that all who have faith in Jesus will have their sins forgiven in his name. (Contemporary English Version, CEV)
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (King James Version, KJV)
Unto him all the prophets give witness, that whosoever believes in him shall receive remission of sins through his name. (Jubilee Bible 2000, JUB)
To him all the prophets bear witness that every one that believes on him will receive through his name remission of sins. (Darby Translation, DARBY)
All the prophets testify to this: everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins through his name. (International Standard Version, ISV)
Los profetas hablaron acerca de Jesús, y dijeron que Dios perdonará a todos los que confíen en él. Sólo por medio de él podemos alcanzar el perdón de Dios. (Traducción en lenguaje actual, TLA)
A éste dan testimonio todos los profetas, de que todos los que en él creyeren, recibirán perdón de pecados por su nombre. (Spanish Blue Red and Gold Letter Edition, SRV-BRG)
Huic omnes prophetae testimonium perhibent remissionem peccatorum accipere per nomen eius omnes qui credunt in eum. (Biblia Sacra Vulgata, VULGATE)
Tout pwofèt yo te gentan pwofetize pawòl sa a konsènan Jezi: Nenpòt moun ki mete konfyans li nan Jezi ap resevwa padon pou peche l yo, grenmesi puisans non Kris la. (Nouvo Testaman: Vèsyon Kreyòl Fasil, VKF)
τουτω παντες οι προφηται μαρτυρουσιν αφεσιν αμαρτιων λαβειν δια του ονοματος αυτου παντα τον πιστευοντα εις αυτον (1550 Stephanus New Testament, TR1550)
Tous les prophètes rendent de lui le témoignage que toute personne qui croit en lui reçoit par son nom le pardon des péchés. (Segond 21, SG21)
Y los profetas, por su parte, testifican unánimemente que todo el que crea en él alcanzará, por su medio, el perdón de los pecados. (La Palabra Hispanoamérica, BLPH)
These words in Acts chapter 10 were spoken by the apostle Peter (also known as Simon Peter, Simon Bar-Jonah, and Cephas*), as recorded by Luke.
From a historical standpoint, the author of Romans is the apostle Paul (a Jew), but the author of the book of Acts (The Acts of the Apostles) is Luke the physician (also known as Luke the Evangelist), a Gentile. Although Luke was a missionary companion to Paul on his journeys throughout the Mediterranean countries, they were two different authors from two different backgrounds, writing to two different audiences.
Alternatively, the Sun Valley sign may be referencing John 3:16 (“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”) or Ephesians 1:7 (“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace”).
*Fun Fact: Cephas in Aramaic means ‘stone’, Peter in Greek (Petros/Petra) means ‘stone’ or ‘rock’, and the French name Pierre (Peter’s name in French-language Bible translations) also means ‘stone’. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus tells Simon that “That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,” possibly referencing Simon Peter’s foundational role as the senior apostle, the leader of the Christian church on Earth after Christ’s Ascension.
Isn’t this just semantics?
In the general sense, I may just be splitting hairs, since the general theme of these inspiring Biblical verses is the same—that faith in Jesus Christ is necessary for salvation and redemption from sin.
However, because of my innate curiosity of annoyingly minute details, I question things that others may not notice. In this case, the misspelling is only slightly annoying, but more importantly, I wonder why the bible message printed on the sign is not the one referenced.
Now, the argument could be made that the Sun Valley signmaker was just paraphrasing, or perhaps recalling the message from memory (without verifying the actual quote). Maybe it was just an honest mistake. I can understand these likelihoods, and any of them do seem possible. Does it matter, though? Perhaps not, except that it’ll continue to occupy a nagging, little corner of my brain that houses unsolved mysteries. Ha ha, but that’s my problem, not yours…
Let us know in the comments below which translation of the Bible you prefer. 📖🙏⛪🕊️ ✝️
