⁵ But if our unrighteousness highlights God’s righteousness, what are we to say? I am using a human argument: Is God unrighteous to inflict wrath? ⁶ Absolutely not! Otherwise, how will God judge the world? ⁷ But if by my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I also still being judged as a sinner? ⁸ And why not say, just as some people slanderously claim we say, “Let us do what is evil so that good may come”? Their condemnation is deserved!

⁹ What then? Are we any better off? Not at all! For we have already charged that both Jews and Gentiles are all under sin, ¹⁰ as it is written:

There is no one righteous, not even one.
¹¹ There is no one who understands;
there is no one who seeks God.
¹² All have turned away;
all alike have become worthless.
There is no one who does what is good,
not even one.
¹³ Their throat is an open grave;
they deceive with their tongues.
Vipers’ venom is under their lips.
¹⁴ Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
¹⁵ Their feet are swift to shed blood;
¹⁶ ruin and wretchedness are in their paths,
¹⁷ and the path of peace they have not known.
¹⁸ There is no fear of God before their eyes.

¹⁹ Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are subject to the law, so that every mouth may be shut and the whole world may become subject to God’s judgment. ²⁰ For no one will be justified in his sight by the works of the law, because the knowledge of sin comes through the law.

²¹ But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, attested by the Law and the Prophets. ²² The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction. ²³ For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. ²⁴ They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. ²⁵ God presented him as an atoning sacrifice in his blood, received through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. ²⁶ God presented him to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.

1) If “no one is good, not even one”, how do people become righteous before God?
Before Jesus’ sacrificial death, people lived by the Law and offered sacrifices to atone for their sin. In the Old Testament, we see that Job was blameless in God’s sight (Job 1:1). He lived uprightly before the Lord and offered sacrifices for his children’s sin, but even Job was not perfectly good. In this passage, Paul is reminding the Roman church that they were no longer under the bondage of the Law, but had been set free because of Christ’s atoning sacrifice through His death. Since no one is good (Romans 3:10), and no amount of “right action” could make them righteous in God’s sight, Paul implores them to reject doing works to attain salvation, but rather to rest in the free gift of Christ’s own righteousness available through the grace of Jesus Christ (v. 24).

2) Why do people say “Let us do what is evil so that good may come”?
The early church didn’t quite understand this new concept of grace. This was their thought process: “Grace is a good thing, right?! Let’s sin more so that grace increases! (Romans 6:1)” Paul rebukes this way of thinking and reminds the Romans that grace leads to repentance and a new heart, which means a new way of living life. Jesus came so that they could be made new and pursue righteousness, leaving their desire for sin behind as well as their obligation to follow their sin nature.

3) Why does Paul say that both Jews and Gentiles are guilty
In this letter to the Romans, Paul is addressing both Jews and Gentiles. The Jews of the day were used to the idea that only they were God’s chosen people. They had fallen into a way of thinking that said although Gentiles now have access to God, the Jews had a “better” citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven. Paul calls out this idea and proclaims that all are guilty before the Holy God, both Jew and Gentile. They had all turned away (v. 12). The Jews needed grace and forgiveness just the same as the Gentiles, there was to be no distinction in Christ (Galatians 3:27-29).

1) If “no one is good, not even one”, how do people become righteous before God?
Offering sacrifices is no longer a part of our culture, but there are countless other ways that we try to gain righteousness. We think if we strive enough or serve enough or pray just the right way, then we will earn righteous status and become “good enough” for Heaven. Just like the church in Rome, not one of us is good either. The way to righteousness for us is the same as it was for the Romans. We become righteous by receiving the free gift of grace through Jesus Christ. Have you recognized that when Paul says no one is good, that includes you? Have you repented and trusted in Jesus to pay your debt?

2) Why do people say “Let us do what is evil so that good may come”?
Have you ever heard someone justify their sin by saying that it’s okay because God will forgive them? “I can go out and party on Saturday night because God will forgive me on Sunday morning.” This way of thinking is the modern-day version of what the Romans were experiencing. Grace was a new concept for the Romans, but we can experience the opposite effect – it can be too normalized for us so that we take it for granted. Only when we understand the true weight of our sin and the supreme gift of salvation will we treasure grace and walk with a repentant heart.

3) Why does Paul say that both Jews and Gentiles are guilty?
It’s easy for Christians to look around and think, “Well at least I haven’t done that,” or “I would never do anything that bad.” We love to compare our “small” sins to the “big” sins of others in order to puff up our own self-righteous ego and justify our own sinfulness. But Paul’s words to the Romans are still true for us, too. All are guilty – Jew, Gentile, man, woman, upper class, low income, suburban mom, inner-city dad, perfectionist and drug addict. We have all turned away and are in equal need of God’s grace and forgiveness. Where are you in wrestling through your need for Christ’s righteousness?

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Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

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Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

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