Romans / Chapter 6

Romans 6

23 verses • SBL Greek New Testament 1 tradition available

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Romans 6 answers the objection provoked by 5:20-21: if grace increases where sin increases, should believers keep sinning to get more grace? Paul's emphatic answer is no — believers have died to sin through baptism into Christ's death and have been raised to walk in newness of life. The old self was crucified so that the body of sin would be rendered powerless. Believers are now dead to sin and alive to God. The chapter then addresses a second form of the question (v. 15): since believers are under grace, not law, can they sin freely? Again no — they have changed masters, from sin leading to death to obedience leading to righteousness. They are now slaves of righteousness.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

Paul's baptismal theology here is the most developed in his letters. Baptism is not merely a ritual of initiation but a participation in Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. The 'old self' (palaios anthrōpos, v. 6) was co-crucified with Christ — a past, completed event. The slavery metaphor (vv. 15-23) is deliberately provocative: true freedom is not autonomy but willing submission to the right master. The chapter's logic is identity-based: believers do not avoid sin to become righteous; they avoid sin because they are righteous — their identity has changed.

Translation Friction

The relationship between the indicative ('you have died to sin') and the imperative ('do not let sin reign') is central to Pauline ethics and has been variously interpreted. We render both as Paul states them without resolving the tension. The phrase 'body of sin' (sōma tēs hamartias, v. 6) may mean 'the sinful body,' 'the body dominated by sin,' or 'sin considered as a body/corporate entity.'

Connections

The baptismal language connects to Galatians 3:27 and Colossians 2:12. The 'old self/new self' contrast develops in Ephesians 4:22-24 and Colossians 3:9-10. The slavery-to-righteousness theme echoes 1 Corinthians 7:22. The 'wages of sin is death' conclusion (v. 23) is one of the most quoted verses in Christian tradition. **Tradition comparisons:** The Latin Vulgate shaped Western theology here: Stipendia peccati mors (the wages/pay of sin is death) — stipendia (soldier's pay, wages) renders Greek opsōnia (rations, wages). The military metaphor of sin paying its soldiers in death became vivid... See the [Vulgate Romans](/vulgate/romans).

Romans 6:1

Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν; ἐπιμένωμεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἵνα ἡ χάρις πλεονάσῃ;

What shall we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may increase?

KJV What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The deliberative subjunctive epimenōmen ('should we continue, shall we remain') poses a question Paul's opponents actually raised (cf. 3:8). The verb epimenō means to remain in a place or state — to persist in sin as a way of life. Paul takes the objection seriously because it follows logically from 5:20 if grace is misunderstood as mere permission.
Romans 6:2

μὴ γένοιτο. οἵτινες ἀπεθάνομεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, πῶς ἔτι ζήσομεν ἐν αὐτῇ;

Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

KJV God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The aorist apethanomen ('we died') describes a definitive past event, not an ongoing process. The dative tē hamartia ('to sin') indicates separation — death severs the relationship. Paul's argument is not moral exhortation ('you should not sin') but ontological declaration ('you have died to sin') — continuing in sin contradicts who believers now are.
Romans 6:3

ἢ ἀγνοεῖτε ὅτι ὅσοι ἐβαπτίσθημεν εἰς Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν εἰς τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ ἐβαπτίσθημεν;

Or do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

KJV Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The phrase eis Christon Iēsoun ('into Christ Jesus') indicates incorporation — baptism unites the believer to Christ's person and story. The phrase eis ton thanaton autou ('into his death') specifies the particular aspect of Christ's story that baptism enacts. Paul assumes his readers know the basic baptismal theology — the question 'do you not know?' (ē agnoeite) implies established teaching.
Romans 6:4

συνετάφημεν οὖν αὐτῷ διὰ τοῦ βαπτίσματος εἰς τὸν θάνατον, ἵνα ὥσπερ ἠγέρθη Χριστὸς ἐκ νεκρῶν διὰ τῆς δόξης τοῦ πατρός, οὕτως καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐν καινότητι ζωῆς περιπατήσωμεν.

We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

KJV Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The compound verb synetaphēmen ('we were co-buried') emphasizes union with Christ — his burial became our burial. The phrase dia tēs doxēs tou patros ('through the glory of the Father') attributes resurrection power to the Father's kavod — his weighty, substantial, overwhelming power. The phrase kainotēti zōēs ('newness of life') is qualitative: not merely continued existence but a fundamentally different kind of life. The verb peripatēsōmen ('we might walk') uses the Hebraic metaphor of 'walking' for daily conduct.
Romans 6:5

εἰ γὰρ σύμφυτοι γεγόναμεν τῷ ὁμοιώματι τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἀναστάσεως ἐσόμεθα·

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.

KJV For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The adjective symphytoi ('grown together, united, fused') suggests organic union, like a graft into a living tree. The word homoiōmati ('likeness, form') indicates that baptism is an enacted likeness of Christ's death, not the death itself. The future esometha ('we will be') may refer to the final bodily resurrection or to present resurrection-life — the ambiguity is likely intentional.
Romans 6:6

τοῦτο γινώσκοντες ὅτι ὁ παλαιὸς ἡμῶν ἄνθρωπος συνεσταυρώθη, ἵνα καταργηθῇ τὸ σῶμα τῆς ἁμαρτίας, τοῦ μηκέτι δουλεύειν ἡμᾶς τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ·

We know this: that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

KJV Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The phrase palaios anthrōpos ('old self, old person, old humanity') refers to who the believer was in Adam — the entire pre-Christ identity. The verb synestaurōthē ('was co-crucified') is an aorist passive — a completed event, not an ongoing process. The verb katargēthē ('might be rendered powerless, nullified, put out of commission') does not mean 'destroyed' (KJV) but 'made ineffective' — the body is not annihilated but freed from sin's control. The verb douleuein ('to serve as a slave') identifies the prior condition as slavery.
Romans 6:7

ὁ γὰρ ἀποθανὼν δεδικαίωται ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας.

For the one who has died has been set free from sin.

KJV For he that is dead is freed from sin.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb dedikaiōtai ('has been justified, freed, acquitted') is the same verb used for justification in chapters 3-5, here applied to the believer's liberation from sin's mastery. A dead person has no further obligation to a former master. Paul applies a legal principle: death cancels all claims.
Romans 6:8

εἰ δὲ ἀπεθάνομεν σὺν Χριστῷ, πιστεύομεν ὅτι καὶ συζήσομεν αὐτῷ·

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

KJV Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The conditional ei ('if') assumes the reality of the condition — 'since we died with Christ.' The verb syzēsomen ('we will co-live') is future, suggesting that while death with Christ is past and completed, the fullness of life with Christ awaits the resurrection. However, present resurrection-life is also implied (cf. v. 4, 'walk in newness of life').
Romans 6:9

εἰδότες ὅτι Χριστὸς ἐγερθεὶς ἐκ νεκρῶν οὐκέτι ἀποθνῄσκει· θάνατος αὐτοῦ οὐκέτι κυριεύει.

We know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, will never die again. Death no longer has mastery over him.

KJV Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb kyrieuei ('has mastery, lords over, dominates') treats death as a would-be lord — but Christ's resurrection broke its claim permanently. The adverb ouketi ('no longer') implies death once had a temporary hold on Christ during his passion but was decisively defeated at the resurrection.
Romans 6:10

ὃ γὰρ ἀπέθανεν, τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ἀπέθανεν ἐφάπαξ· ὃ δὲ ζῇ, ζῇ τῷ θεῷ.

For the death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

KJV For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word ephapax ('once for all') is emphatic — Christ's death was a unique, unrepeatable event. The dative tē hamartia ('to sin') parallels tō theō ('to God'): Christ's death severed the connection to sin's realm; his life is directed entirely toward God. This pattern — death to sin, life to God — is the template for Christian existence (v. 11).
Romans 6:11

οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς λογίζεσθε ἑαυτοὺς εἶναι νεκροὺς μὲν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ζῶντας δὲ τῷ θεῷ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ.

In the same way, consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

KJV Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb logizesthe ('consider, reckon, count') is the same word used for God's reckoning in chapter 4. Here believers are told to reckon themselves what God has already declared them to be — dead to sin and alive to God. This is not self-deception but faith appropriating an accomplished reality. The phrase en Christō Iēsou ('in Christ Jesus') is Paul's most characteristic phrase, denoting the new sphere of existence in which the believer lives.
Romans 6:12

Μὴ οὖν βασιλευέτω ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐν τῷ θνητῷ ὑμῶν σώματι εἰς τὸ ὑπακούειν ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις αὐτοῦ,

Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires.

KJV Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The shift from indicative (vv. 2-11, what is true) to imperative (vv. 12-14, what to do) is the hallmark of Pauline ethics: become what you are. The verb basileuetō ('let reign') echoes the personification of sin as king from 5:21. The phrase thnētō sōmati ('mortal body') acknowledges that the body remains subject to death and therefore vulnerable to sin's attempts to reassert control.
Romans 6:13

μηδὲ παριστάνετε τὰ μέλη ὑμῶν ὅπλα ἀδικίας τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἀλλὰ παραστήσατε ἑαυτοὺς τῷ θεῷ ὡσεὶ ἐκ νεκρῶν ζῶντας καὶ τὰ μέλη ὑμῶν ὅπλα δικαιοσύνης τῷ θεῷ.

Do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments of righteousness.

KJV Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word hopla can mean 'instruments' or 'weapons' — the military connotation fits the context of two competing kingdoms. The verb paristanete/parastēsate shifts from present imperative (stop the ongoing practice) to aorist imperative (make a decisive commitment). The phrase hōsei ek nekrōn zōntas ('as those alive from the dead') grounds the imperative in the indicative — believers can choose God because they have already been raised with Christ.
Romans 6:14

ἁμαρτία γὰρ ὑμῶν οὐ κυριεύσει· οὐ γάρ ἐστε ὑπὸ νόμον ἀλλ' ὑπὸ χάριν.

For sin will not have mastery over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

KJV For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. This is a promise, not a command: sin will not master you. The reason is surprising: not 'because you try harder' but 'because you are under grace, not under law.' Paul implies that law actually empowers sin rather than defeating it (a theme he develops in chapter 7). Grace, not moral effort, is sin's antidote. This statement provokes the next question in verse 15.
Romans 6:15

Τί οὖν; ἁμαρτήσωμεν, ὅτι οὐκ ἐσμὲν ὑπὸ νόμον ἀλλ' ὑπὸ χάριν; μὴ γένοιτο.

What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not!

KJV What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. A second version of the opening question (v. 1), now triggered by verse 14. The verb hamartēsōmen is aorist subjunctive — 'should we commit acts of sin?' (punctiliar) rather than the present tense of verse 1 ('should we continue in sin?' — habitual). Paul addresses both the lifestyle of sin and individual sinful acts.
Romans 6:16

οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ᾧ παριστάνετε ἑαυτοὺς δούλους εἰς ὑπακοήν, δοῦλοί ἐστε ᾧ ὑπακούετε, ἤτοι ἁμαρτίας εἰς θάνατον ἢ ὑπακοῆς εἰς δικαιοσύνην;

Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey — either of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?

KJV Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Paul introduces the slavery metaphor that dominates the rest of the chapter. The logic is straightforward: everyone serves someone. The only question is which master. The two options are mutually exclusive: sin → death, or obedience → righteousness. There is no neutral ground, no true autonomy. The second option ('obedience') is the opposite of sin, not a separate concept from faith (cf. 1:5, 'obedience of faith').
Romans 6:17

χάρις δὲ τῷ θεῷ ὅτι ἦτε δοῦλοι τῆς ἁμαρτίας ὑπηκούσατε δὲ ἐκ καρδίας εἰς ὃν παρεδόθητε τύπον διδαχῆς,

But thanks be to God that although you were once slaves of sin, you have become obedient from the heart to the pattern of teaching to which you were entrusted,

KJV But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The past tense ēte ('you were') marks a definitive change of status. The phrase ek kardias ('from the heart') indicates genuine, interior transformation, not mere external compliance. The phrase typon didachēs ('pattern of teaching') refers to the body of apostolic instruction about the gospel. The passive paredothēte ('you were entrusted/delivered') is unusual — normally teaching is delivered to people, but here people are delivered to teaching. The gospel is the master to whom they have been handed over.
Romans 6:18

ἐλευθερωθέντες δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἐδουλώθητε τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ.

Having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

KJV Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The passive eleutherōthentes ('having been freed') attributes liberation to God's action. The paradox is deliberate: freedom from sin is slavery to righteousness. True freedom is not the absence of all obligation but service to the right master. The language of slavery is uncomfortable — Paul will acknowledge this in verse 19.
Romans 6:19

ἀνθρώπινον λέγω διὰ τὴν ἀσθένειαν τῆς σαρκὸς ὑμῶν. ὥσπερ γὰρ παρεστήσατε τὰ μέλη ὑμῶν δοῦλα τῇ ἀκαθαρσίᾳ καὶ τῇ ἀνομίᾳ εἰς τὴν ἀνομίαν, οὕτως νῦν παραστήσατε τὰ μέλη ὑμῶν δοῦλα τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ εἰς ἁγιασμόν.

I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

KJV I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Paul apologizes for the slavery metaphor — anthrōpinon legō ('I speak in human terms') acknowledges that comparing service to God with slavery is inadequate. The phrase 'weakness of your flesh' means their limited human capacity to grasp spiritual realities. The progression anomia eis anomian ('lawlessness to lawlessness') describes sin's self-compounding nature; the parallel hagiasmon ('sanctification, holiness') describes the progressive outworking of the new identity.
Romans 6:20

ὅτε γὰρ δοῦλοι ἦτε τῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἐλεύθεροι ἦτε τῇ δικαιοσύνῃ.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.

KJV For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The ironic 'freedom' — when enslaved to sin, they were 'free' from righteousness, meaning righteousness had no claim on them. This is not genuine freedom but its perverse inversion. Paul is pointing out the absurdity: no one boasts of that kind of freedom.
Romans 6:21

τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε; ἐφ' οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε· τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος.

What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.

KJV What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The agricultural metaphor of 'fruit' (karpos) asks about the harvest of the former life. The answer is shame and death. The verb epaischynesthe ('you are ashamed') uses the same root as 1:16 ('I am not ashamed of the gospel') — the contrast is pointed. The word telos ('end, outcome, goal') can mean both 'result' and 'destination.'
Romans 6:22

νυνὶ δέ, ἐλευθερωθέντες ἀπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας δουλωθέντες δὲ τῷ θεῷ, ἔχετε τὸν καρπὸν ὑμῶν εἰς ἁγιασμόν, τὸ δὲ τέλος ζωὴν αἰώνιον.

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you reap leads to sanctification, and the outcome is eternal life.

KJV But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The 'but now' (nyni de) mirrors 3:21 — marking the decisive change from the old situation to the new. The fruit contrast is complete: sin's fruit → shame and death (v. 21); God's slavery → sanctification and eternal life (v. 22). The word hagiasmon ('sanctification') here denotes the progressive transformation of the believer's life.
Romans 6:23

τὰ γὰρ ὀψώνια τῆς ἁμαρτίας θάνατος, τὸ δὲ χάρισμα τοῦ θεοῦ ζωὴ αἰώνιος ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῷ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

KJV For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word opsōnia ('wages, soldier's pay, rations') is a military term for the compensation a soldier earns. Sin pays what it owes: death. The contrast with charisma ('free gift') is absolute: death is earned; eternal life is given. Paul deliberately avoids saying 'the wages of righteousness is eternal life' — life is never a wage earned but always a gift received. The chapter ends, as always in Romans, with the phrase 'in Christ Jesus our Lord.'

Latin Vulgate (Jerome, 384 CE)

"For the wages of sin are death, but the grace of God is eternal life"

Stipendia peccati mors (the wages/pay of sin is death) — stipendia (soldier's pay, wages) renders Greek opsōnia (rations, wages). The military metaphor of sin paying its soldiers in death became vivid in Latin. Gratia Dei vita aeterna (the grace of God is eternal life) — Jerome uses gratia (grace) where the Greek has charisma (gift), collapsing the gift-grace distinction and reinforcing the centrality of gratia.

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