# Romans 03 📖: All Have Sinned [[📚 Explore the Bible Books]] [[-Romans Overview]] | [[Romans 02]] | [[Romans 04]] > [!info] Table of Contents > [[#📜 Scripture Text (NET)]] > [[#📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary]] > [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]] > [[#🧠 Chapter Summary]] > [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]] > [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]] > [[#💬 Discussion Questions]] > [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]] > [[#🔗 Related Passages]] > [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]] > [[#📂 Internal Notes]] ## 📜 Scripture Text (NET) (The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005) ### Paul Answers An Objection **Principle**: God's law is the standard. [[#Verse 01.]] Therefore what advantage does the Jew have, or what is the value of circumcision? [[#Verse 02.]] Actually, there are many advantages. First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. [[Deuteronomy 04#Verse 08.|Deuteronomy 4:8]] | [[Psalm 147#Verse 09.|Psalm 147:9]] [[#Verse 03.]] What then? If some were unfaithful, their unfaithfulness will not nullify God’s faithfulness, will it? [[Hebrews 04#02|Hebrews 4:2]] | [[2 Timothy 02#Verse 13.|2 Timothy 2:13]] [[#Verse 04.]] Absolutely not! Let God be proven true, and every human being shown up as a liar, just as it is written: “.” [[John 03#33|John 3:33]] | [[Psalm 116#Verse 11.|Psalm 116:11]] | [[John 08#Verse 26.|John 8:26]] | [[Psalm 62#09|Psalm 62:9]] | [[Job 09#32|Job 9:32]] | [[Luke 20#16|Luke 20:16]] [[#Verse 05.]] But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? The God who inflicts wrath is not unrighteous, is he? (I am speaking in human terms.) [[Romans 06#01|Romans 6:1]] | [[Galatians 03#Verse 15.|Galatians 3:15]] | [[1 Corinthians 09#Verse 08.|1 Corinthians 9:8]] | [[2 Corinthians 06#04|2 Corinthians 6:4]] | [[Galatians 02#18|Galatians 2:18]] | [[Romans 07#01|Romans 7:1]] [[#Verse 06.]] Absolutely not! For otherwise how could God judge the world? [[Genesis 18#25|Genesis 18:25]] | [[Job 08#03|Job 8:3]] [[#Verse 07.]] For if by my lie the truth of God enhances his glory, why am I still actually being judged as a sinner? [[#Verse 08.]] And why not say, “Let us do evil so that good may come of it”?—as some who slander us allege that we say. (Their condemnation is deserved!) [[Romans 06|Romans 6:1]] ### The Condemnation of the World **Principle**: The law is necessary because it shows how far from God we are. [[#Verse 09.]] What then? Are we better off? Certainly not, for we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin, [[Galatians 03#Verse 22.|Galatians 3:22]] | [[Proverbs 20#Verse 09.|Proverbs 20:9]] | [[Ephesians 02#Verse 01.|Ephesians 2:1-3]] | [[Ecclesiastes 07#Verse 20.|Ecclesiastes 7:20]] [[#Verse 10.]] just as it is written: “ [[Psalm 14#Verse 01.|Psalm 14:1]] | [[Psalm 53#Verse 01.|Psalm 53:1-3]] [[#Verse 11.]] . [[#Verse 12.]] ” [[Psalm 14]] [[#Verse 13.]] “.” [[Psalm 10]] [[Psalm 05#Verse 09.|Psalm 5:9]] | [[Psalm 140#03|Psalm 140:3]] | [[Jeremiah 05#16|Jeremiah 5:16]] [[#Verse 14.]] “.” [[Psalm 10#Verse 07.|Psalm 10:7]] [[#Verse 15.]] “ [[Proverbs 01#16|Proverbs 1:16]] | [[Isaiah 59#Verse 07.|Isaiah 59:7-8]] [[#Verse 16.]] , [[#Verse 17.]] .” [[Luke 01|Luke 1:79]] [[#Verse 18.]] “.” [[#Verse 19.]] Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable to God. [[John 10#Verse 34.|John 10:34]] | [[Romans 02#Verse 12.|Romans 2:12]] | [[Job 05#16|Job 5:16]] | [[Psalm 63#11|Psalm 63:11]] | [[Ezekiel 16#63|Ezekiel 16:63]] [[#Verse 20.]] For no one is declared righteous before him by the works of the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin. [[Acts 13#39|Acts 13:39]] | [[Galatians 02#16|Galatians 2:16]] | [[Romans 07#07|Romans 7:7]] | [[Psalm 143#Verse 02.|Psalm 143:2]] ### The Righteousness of God Through Faith **Principle**: Believing loyalty = Jesus did it all. We cannot earn it. [[#Verse 21.]] But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (although it is attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed— [[#Verse 22.]] namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, [[#Verse 23.]] for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. [[#Verse 24.]] But they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. [[#Verse 25.]] God publicly displayed him at his death as the mercy seat accessible through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed. [[#Verse 26.]] This was also to demonstrate his righteousness in the present time, so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who lives because of Jesus’ faithfulness. ### Boasting Excluded **Principle**: The law points to our need for Jesus. [[#Verse 27.]] Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded! By what principle? Of works? No, but by the principle of faith! [[#Verse 28.]] For we consider that a person is declared righteous by faith apart from the works of the law. [[#Verse 29.]] Or is God the God of the Jews only? Is he not the God of the Gentiles too? Yes, of the Gentiles too! [[#Verse 30.]] Since God is one, he will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. [[#Verse 31.]] Do we then nullify the law through faith? Absolutely not! Instead we uphold the law. ## 📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary ###### Overall. - Why the Jews / God is faithful / We are not. - **1-8:** God's faithfulness. - All are under God's judgment. - Overall title: **God's Judgment Defended.** - **1-8:** God is faithful. - **9-20:** All have sinned. **Verses 1-8. God Shows His Goodness.** Paul is now bringing his case to a close. He has been arguing since Romans 1:18 that all mankind has sinned and is without excuse. He spent chapter 2 talking about how both Gentiles and Jews are without excuse. He has been writing as though he is engaged in a debate, and he now answers various rebuttals. Because Paul has been a Christian and church planter for over 25 years at this point, he has likely dealt with many of these before. ###### Verse 01. - Paul answers the first rebuttal, which would have been a major concern for the Roman church. Since the Jewish and gentile communities were not in unity, the question would be whether the Jewish people deserved less than normal treatment. - Upside to having the Law? Yes! - Value in being labeled as His? Yes! - Rhetorical questions. Disobedience nullifies any advantage. ###### Verse 02. - The answer is, yes. God blessed the Jewish people to receive the Word of God, and through them, the Messiah came to Earth. Therefore, they are blessed by God as a nation. That does not mean they are given a complete pass on everything. They can still sin and deserve the penalties. It simply means they have been given a great blessing. - “First of all” — greatest: entrusted with God's Word. Whole revelation — Genesis to Malachi — fulfilled in Jesus. ###### Verse 03. - The unfaithfulness of the Jewish people who rejected the Messiah does not invalidate the promises of God. This also means that when we do not accept or receive God's promises, they are not invalidated. - The honor of the revelation. - If someone plays Mozart wrong, Mozart is not bad; they are. - God is faithful even if some are unfaithful. ###### Verse 04. - This is from Psalm 51. - David wrote this song after Nathan confronted him about his great sin. David says that he had sinned mainly against God. Paul is showing that God's faithfulness is great, even when we sin. - God — source of objective truth. - God is proven right. - OT — David's confession after adultery: Psalm 51:4; 2 Samuel 11. God is **RIGHT** for punishing sin. Unbelief does not nullify God's faithfulness. God doesn't “meet our energy” when it comes to His faithfulness. ###### Verse 05. - The next question Paul addresses is why God would punish us if our sin shows His righteousness. This is simply someone trying to find a way around God's righteousness and make Him seem unjust. - First-century fallacy to excuse sin. - “Merely human POV” — evil mindset. Get away with less. Thinking that way proves depravity. ###### Verse 06. - Paul answers by reminding the reader that God is completely just. There are no "loopholes" in God's kingdom. - God is just. - God doesn't condone any form of sin. ###### Verse 07. - The next question leads to a heresy that is still going on today called antinomianism. This heresy says that our sin actually brings God glory because it shows how powerful He is. Therefore, we do not have to work to be holy. We simply sin as much as we want, and God's righteousness continually forgives us. - How can God condemn me for doing what is natural? - Paul being accused of not preaching holiness — encouraging people to sin. ###### Verse 08. - Saying it doesn't matter — wrong. - [[M0023- Antinomianism]] **Verse 09-20** - Gentiles: **1:18-32**. Jews: **2:1-3:8**. All. ###### Verse 09. - Paul indicates that the very question shows the depth of our corruption. Grace is unearned forgiveness. It is not guaranteed. So expecting it is misunderstanding its worth. It is a gift to be treasured, not a right to be demanded. - **No one righteous:** Paul concludes his indictment of all mankind. - “We” = Jews. No advantage from power of sin. - Sin = crime against God. **Verse 10-18** - OT passages: Psalm 14:1-3; 5:9; 36:1; 140:3; 10:7; Proverbs 1:16; Isaiah 59:7-8. Seven OT passages. ###### Verse 10. - This series of Scriptures shows the result of going our own way. The power of sin takes over and leaves us without excuse. ###### Verse 11. - Sin destroys our ability to see clearly. - "Truly wise” — able to comprehend moral wisdom given by God." ###### Verse 12. - Sin destroys our ability to live rightly. - “You do you” doesn't work when getting to God. - “Turned away” — literally means a soldier running in the wrong direction. ###### Verse 13. - Sin destroys our ability to speak with kindness. - Showing how far we have fallen. - “Open tomb” — stink of death — from corrupt hearts. ###### Verse 14. - Sin destroys our desire to build others up. - Out of the heart the mouth speaks. Speak bad. - Cursing/bitterness — evil toward neighbors. ###### Verse 15. - Sin destroys our value for life. - Actions evil. Action bad. ###### Verse 16. - Sin destroys our desire to build holy lifestyles. - Results bad. ###### Verse 17. - Sin destroys our peace. - End up without peace. - Depravity because they lack peace. ###### Verse 18. - Sin destroys our awe of God. - Turned from God. - No fear of God = practical atheism. ###### Verse 19. - “Law” — OT Scriptures. “Under the law” — also under condemnation. ###### Verse 20. - These verses give the verdict. The Law of God is not evil. It is a signpost. God gave it to help people see how far they had fallen from Him. When we see the depth of our fallenness, we realize our need for a Savior. - Law reveals how far we have fallen. Shows we cannot get there. **Verses 21-31**- This passage begins with "But Now God." This shows a distinct shift in the narrative. Paul has been spending the last couple of chapters talking about the state we are in. Now, Paul talks about what Christ has done about it. ###### Verse 21. - _**But Now**_- Definite change in tone. It is not necessary to speak of temporal space. The passage is speaking of a pivot in the narrative. - _**Made right**_- This refers to the debt of sin being satisfied. - _**Without keeping the requirements of the law**_- Paul is saying this is the way to get to God without being perfect in the law, because He has established that this is not possible. - _**The law and the prophets**_- Many Jewish people called the law and the prophets the "righteousness of God" because the whole counsel of God revealed His full will to His people. ###### Verse 22. - _****Right with God****_- This passage is a debate among Greek readers. One way to render this text is as shown. Another way to render the text is to be made right "because of the faithfulness" of Christ. I tend to lean toward the second rendering. This places more of the power of salvation upon Christ and, therefore, works most closely with the surrounding text. - Universality of salvation- Paul says both Jews and Gentiles can reach out to God. - Definition of faith- Faith is not believing where there is no evidence. It is believing enough to trust something. Faith = trust. ###### Verse 23. - Definition of sin: Paul defines sin as "falling short of God's glorious standard." This distinction matters because it reminds us that we cannot reach God without His help. ###### Verse 24. - **Makes us right in His sight**- other translations use the phrase "Justification." This is a legal term that means "just as if I" had never sinned. Because of what Christ has done, we are not simply pardoned from our sin. To be pardoned from our sin means we still have sin; we have just been forgiven of our transgressions. We still have to walk around aware of what we did and live with the secondary consequences of our sin. What Christ did completely expunged our sin so that it was as if it never happened in the eyes of God. - _****He freed us from the penalty of sin****_- other translations use the word "Redemption." This is a commercial term that was often used in slave auctions. To redeem something was to buy it outright. To buy it completely. If it referred to a person, it meant you weren't renting their services; you were purchasing them for the rest of their natural life. It was a big deal. Depending on the person, it could be very expensive. Paul specifically uses this term because it is said that at some point, up to 70% of the people in the city of Rome may have been in some form of subjection. They understood this to mean that Christ had purchased their freedom and then given it to them. ###### Verse 25. - _**God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin**_- The technical term for this is penal substitutionary atonement. This term describes how Jesus took our place. Some translations call it "Propitiation." This is the reminder that the Cross of Christ belonged to all of us who have sinned. He took our sin and shame and bought our freedom. ###### Verse 26. - _**God was being fair in previous generations**_- This is a possibly thorny passage because it is hard to discern what is being said without the context. The previous passage has been speaking of how God has had a plan, but not all have been a part of the finalized portion. It seems to indicate that those who were before the Law was given were able to receive mercy due to ignorance because of the work of salvation on the Cross. This is not a blanket act of salvation for those who did not know Jesus. It is demonstrating that God has been completely just in all He has done. They were judged according to what they knew. Those people were judged justly according to what they knew. We are now not "let off the hook." Our sins still need forgiveness. God can't just say, "Don't worry about it," because that would be unjust to all those who came before. So God couldn't look past our sin and instead sent Jesus to make a way. ###### Verse 27. - Paul reminds us that we cannot boast about anything. Faith is so important because it points to God, not to our sufficiency. ###### Verse 28. - Our righteousness comes from the finished work of Jesus. ###### Verse 29. - God is the same God to all. There is no division between Jews and Gentiles. This also speaks to the division between dispensationalists and those who promote covenant theology. Paul is saying there is no end to the grace extended to the Jewish people. It is just now extended fully to the Gentiles. ###### Verse 30. - _**There is only One God**_. Paul quotes the Shema, which declares that God is One. ###### Verse 31. - Paul is fighting against anyone who would try to say he is promoting [The Danger of Antinomianism or Sloppy Grace.](https://www.brandoncannon.com/the-danger-of-antinomianism-or-sloppy-grace/) He says Jesus did not come so we would not have to fulfill the essence of the Law. Rather, it is through Jesus that we can do so. ## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights - This Scripture has some of the more difficult passages to interpret. - Verse 7-8: The danger of antinomianism. 1. In 3:10-18 Paul strings together a chain of Old Testament quotations from the Psalms, Proverbs, and Isaiah. 2. The chain of quotations moves through the body: throat, tongue, lips, mouth, feet, and eyes (3:13-18). 3. The word translated "mercy seat" or "atoning sacrifice" in 3:25 (*hilastērion*) is the word the Greek Old Testament uses for the lid of the ark of the covenant. 4. "Redemption" (*apolytrōsis*, 3:24) was used for buying a slave's freedom or ransoming a prisoner. 5. "Justify" is a courtroom word meaning to declare someone righteous, to give a verdict of not guilty. 6. "But now" (3:21) marks a major turning point in the letter, from the bad news of 1:18-3:20 to the good news of God's righteousness in Christ. 7. The phrase in 3:22 can be translated "faith in Jesus Christ" or "the faithfulness of Jesus Christ." The NET Bible uses the second. 8. In 3:4 Paul quotes Psalm 51:4, David's prayer of confession after his sin with Bathsheba. 9. In 3:8 Paul reveals that some were slandering him, claiming he taught, "Let us do evil so that good may come of it." 10. In 3:30 Paul alludes to the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4): because God is one, He is the God of both Jews and Gentiles. ## 🧠 Chapter Summary - 1-8- answering difficult questions about sin up to this point. - 9-20- Final verdict for all people. God's Law shows us our sin. ### The Law Shows the Problem - **Verse 20:** Cross fulfills righteous requirement — verdict. - Purpose of Law was to reveal sin: how far we were from God. - Remember why Law was given: help slave nation stay free and close to God. - Stunned Jews of the time. Thought salvation came through OT. - Paul says it shows us the way to salvation → points to a Savior. - **Hamartiology:** doctrine of sin. - Justified — legal term. ### Paul's Progression | Verse | The problem | Corresponding ideal written beside it | | ----- | ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------------- | | 10 | Not holy — righteous | Need One who is holy | | 11 | Not fully seeking God and His ways | Pure motives | | 12 | Not going in the right direction | Pure intentions | | 12 | Not doing truly good | Truly good | | 13 | Not pure in words | Pure words | | 14-15 | Not fully good toward others | Truly loving | | 16 | Not bringing good to the world | True joy | | 17 | Without peace | True peace | | 18 | Not in holy fear of God | Is God — Jesus | ## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter Christ is the mercy seat God publicly displayed, the sacrifice of atonement through which sinners are declared righteous by faith (3:25). In Him God is both just and the One who justifies (3:26), because He bore our sins (1 Peter 2:24). ## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## 💬 Discussion Questions 1. Paul strings together Old Testament passages to show that no one is righteous (3:10-18). Why must we see our sin clearly before we can see grace clearly? 2. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (3:23). How does that truth level the ground between people? 3. Since we are justified by faith, boasting is excluded (3:27). Where do you still find yourself trying to earn God's approval? ## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember - 📖 verses 10-12: No one is righteous, not even one. - 📖 verse 20: No one is declared righteous by the works of the law; the law brings knowledge of sin. - 📖 verses 23-24: All have sinned, yet believers are declared righteous freely by His grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus. - 📖 verses 25-26: God displayed Jesus as the mercy seat, showing He is both just and the One who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. - 📖 verse 28: A person is declared righteous by faith apart from the works of the law. ## 🔗 Related Passages - 🔗 [[Leviticus 16#Verse 11.|Leviticus 16:11-16]] - The Day of Atonement and the blood sprinkled on the mercy seat (background to 3:25). - 🔗 [[Psalm 14#Verse 01.|Psalm 14:1-3]] - No one does good, not a single one (quoted in 3:10-12). - 🔗 [[Psalm 51#Verse 04.|Psalm 51:4]] - God is proved right in His judgments (quoted in 3:4). - 🔗 [[Ecclesiastes 07#Verse 20.|Ecclesiastes 7:20]] - There is no one on earth who always does good and never sins. - 🔗 [[Isaiah 53#Verse 05.|Isaiah 53:5-6]] - He was pierced for our transgressions; the Lord laid our sin on Him. - 🔗 [[Isaiah 59#Verse 07.|Isaiah 59:7-8]] - Feet that run to evil and do not know the way of peace (quoted in 3:15-17). - 🔗 [[2 Corinthians 05#Verse 21.|2 Corinthians 5:21]] - God made Christ to be sin for us so we could be made right with God. - 🔗 [[Galatians 02#Verse 16.|Galatians 2:16]] - A person is justified by faith in Christ, not by works of the law. - 🔗 [[Ephesians 02#Verse 08.|Ephesians 2:8-9]] - Saved by grace through faith, so no one can boast. - 🔗 [[Hebrews 09#Verse 22.|Hebrews 9:22]] - Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. - 🔗 [[1 John 02#Verse 02.|1 John 2:2]] - Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and the sins of the world. ## 🙏 Devotional Reflection 📝 SOAP: [[Romans 3 - SOAP|Believing Loyalty]] ## 📂 Internal Notes [[SeriesOverview- The Mission (Romans)]] [[M0023- Antinomianism]]