ROMANS 3 - Annotated Notes

Romans 3:1  [AV]
What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?

ANNOTATED NOTES:
advantage=perissos:  special advantage, superiority, pre-eminence

profit=opheleia:  help, gain, profit, benefit;  only other use in NT is Mk 8:36

** It’s worth remembering that there were no chapter or verse divisions in the original text that God gave to the apostle Paul by revelation.  3:1 is a congruent continuation from chapter 2, with the first question in the verse pertaining to 2:17-24, and the second question to 2:25-29.  Although the Judeans were blessed with the advantage of having the Word of God committed to them, along with the profit of having the outward sign of the covenant God made with Abraham, they still fell under the condemnation of sin along with the Gentile, which is clearly stated in 3:9,19, 20.  Rom 3:1-20 will drive home the truth of ALL being guilty before God, without hope for ANY one of ANY background to be justified by the deeds of the Law.  The Jew will not be exempt from God’s righteous judgment.  3:1 asks two logical questions that are the first in a series of questions in this section (count the question marks from v1-9).  God uses penetrating questions to get the reader to think - providing His unambiguous answer of Truth to all questions, rhetorical or otherwise.  This Q&A isn't “Paul’s style” as some theologians propound - this is God’s revelation of the gospel concerning His Son, Jesus Christ, who was raised from the dead (1:1-4).

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:1  [AMP]
Then what advantage remains to the Jew? [How is he favored?] Or what is the value or benefit of circumcision?

Romans 3:1  [GNB]
Have the Jews then any advantage over the Gentiles? Or is there any value in being circumcised?

Romans 3:1  [WNT]
What pre-eminence or advantage is there therefore which the Jew possesses? Or, what profit is there in circumcision?

Romans 3:2  [AV]
Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
chiefly:  primarily, firstly;  this answers the question about advantage from v1;  “firstly” implies there are other advantages, but only the first in importance is going to be listed - its importance being sufficient enough to make the point

committed=pisteuo:  entrusted, committed to one’s trust  

oracles=logion:  utterances, declarations;  referring to the declared words of God (see Acts 7:38).  God had given the Law, His Word, to Israel:  Ps 147:19-20a states: “He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel.  He hath not dealt so with any nation [H:goy=Gentiles]…”.  The OT scriptures had been given to the Jews to write down and to preserve.  Though not needing to be listed here in 3:2, later in Rom 9:4-5 more advantages are listed: “For they are Israelites, and to them belong God’s adoption [as a nation] and the glorious Presence (Shekinah). With them were the special covenants made, to them was the Law given. To them [the temple] worship was revealed and [God’s own] promises announced.  To them belong the patriarchs, and as far as his natural descent was concerned, from them is the Christ…” [AMP].  That last benefit listed means that not only had the written Word of God been entrusted to their care, so also had the living Word, the Christ, been sent to them (see Rom 15:8;  Matt 15:22-24;  Acts 3:25-26).  Yet, with all the advantages that the Jews had been given, it only served to highlight, not their exemption from, but their subjection to the righteous judgment of God.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:2  [GW]
There are all kinds of advantages. First of all, God entrusted them with his word.

Romans 3:2  [NLT]
Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God.

Romans 3:3  [AV]
For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?

ANNOTATED NOTES:
For what if...:  it’s a bold question, in the essence of “So what if some did not believe!?”   It was scripturally well-documented that many in Israel fell into unbelief (see Rom 9:27-29; 10:16; 11:1-5;  1 Cor 10:1-12).

did not believe: could be translated “were unfaithful”;  

faith:  could accurately be translated “faithfulness", or “trustworthiness" - “faith” could also be handled as the FOS Metonymy, referring to that which is to be believed, meaning God's Word.  Therefore this verse could mean either that their faithlessness does not nullify God's faithfulness to His promises, or that their unbelief does not nullify the Word of God that was entrusted to them, as was declared in the previous verse.  Either way gives the same basic truth: Israel may have failed to be faithful to God, but God had not failed them by being unfaithful, nor had His Word been made worthless or untrustworthy by them.

make..without effect=katargeo: to reduce to inactivity, invalidate, nullify

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:3  [AMP]
What if some did not believe and were without faith? Does their lack of faith and their faithlessness nullify and make ineffective and void the faithfulness of God and His fidelity [to His Word]?

Romans 3:4    [AV]
God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse is God’s emphatic answer to the question posed in v3

God forbid=me ginomai:  this Gr. phrase communicates a loathing of something so repugnant that it should not even enter one’s thinking.  This strongly assertive phrase appears 14x in the Church Epistles, 10 of them in Romans (see 3:6,31;  6:2,15; 7:7,13;  9:14;  11:1,11;  1 Cor 6:15;  Gal 2:17;  3:21;  6:14)

liar:  God is not only NOT a liar, He is incapable of lying (Titus 1:2: “in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began";  also see Heb 6:17-18;  Num 23:19; 1 Sam 15:29;  Ps 89:30-34).  If every single man is shown to be a liar (which is the case), God would still be true to every single word within His Word (also the case).  All the world could reject the Word of God in unbelief, even refute it with lies, but that would not make God's Word untrustworthy (see 2 Tim 2:13).  Man’s lies do not nullify the Word of God, nor does man’s believing of that Word validate it.  God’s Word needs no such validation - it is eternal Truth regardless of man’s rejection or acceptance, whether met with belief or unbelief.  (see Heb 4:2-3;  1 Thes 2:13)

it is written: the rest of the verse is cited from Ps 51:4;  this is one of 74 references to the OT in Romans (see notes on Rom 1:2, 17)

justified: in this instance, it is referring to how God will be acknowledged to be right, or regarded as just  

thy sayings=ho logos:  the Word

overcome:  prevail

art judged:  come into judgment;  This citing of Ps 51:4 paints a picture of how God, as if in a legal court setting, will prevail with a judicial victory when His judgments are called into question by man.  This period in history is man’s day of judgment - so unjust men, in their love of judging others, dares even to put God's justice on trial.  As has been the focus of this entire section of Romans, God’s judgment of man is true and trustworthy - man’s judgment of man is meaningless, lying to himself in self-justification.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:4  [AMP]
By no means! Let God be found true though every human being is false and a liar, as it is written, That You may be justified and shown to be upright in what You say, and prevail when You are judged [by sinful men]. [Ps. 51:4.]

Romans 3:4  [TLB]
Of course not! Though everyone else in the world is a liar, God is not. Do you remember what the book of Psalms says about this? That God’s words will always prove true and right, no matter who questions them.

Romans 3:5  [AV]
But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance? (I speak as a man)

ANNOTATED NOTES:
our unrighteousness:  it could apply to any man’s unrighteousness, but in the flow of the context it’s specific to Israel’s unfaithfulness and their failure to believe

commend=sunistemi:  show, display, make known and conspicuous, establish

righteousness of God:  this refers to the justness or righteousness of God according to an established standard;  God is absolutely faithful to His Word and righteous in His judgments according to an established standard;  Israel's unfaithfulness and unrighteousness makes conspicuous God's faithfulness and righteousness, as He stands true to His Word despite their unbelief.

what shall we say?:  this phrase appears 7x in Romans (see 4:1; 6:1; 7:7; 8:31; 9:14, 30)

taketh:  inflicts

vengeance=orge:  wrath;  (*see the note on Rom 1:18, the opening verse to this section of Romans on “the wrath of God”);  orge is a reference to the wrath of God that will be brought upon the unjust ones at the time of judgment in the future.

I speak as a man:  that is not to mean Paul is not speaking by revelation; it means what he is presenting, by revelation, is knowingly from a low point of view, from a faulty human standpoint.  It’s absurd to think that God, who created man, is being unjust Himself when He judges unjust man as worthy of wrath.  The essence of the question posed in this verse is:  “If our faithlessness causes the faithfulness of God to shine more gloriously, isn’t God being unjust to inflict wrath upon us?”  The answer given in v6 will be emphatic.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:5  [NLT]
“But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.)

Romans 3:5  [PHILIPS]
But if our wickedness advertises the goodness of God, do we feel that God is being unfair to punish us in return? (I'm using a human tit-for-tat argument.)

Romans 3:6  [AV]
God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?

ANNOTATED NOTES:
God forbid=me ginomai:  see note on 3:4;  this is the emphatic answer to the question posed in v5

how shall God judge:  God, as Judge, is undeniably righteous and just, as well as merciful and gracious in His judgments.  If He were unjust in judging unfaithful Jews, as questioned in v5, then He would be barred from judging the world, and in no position to bring future wrath upon anyone (1:18).  If that were the case, this entire section of Romans beginning in 1:18 would become a meaningless sham, as God would be unqualified as a Judge.  But the truth is that man’s judgment of man is what is meaningless - man is wholly unqualified to render his own eternal judgment.  God’s judgment of man is impartial to all (2:11), and according to truth (2:2).  “God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ” (2:16), and that judgment will be according to God's established standard of righteousness (see note on 1:17!!).

world:  figuratively speaking of people;  it’s the FOS Metonymy, where the physical world is put for the people living in the world (see Acts 17:31)

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:6  [NEB]
Certainly not!  If God were unjust, how could he judge the world?

Romans 3:7  [AV]
For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory; why yet am I also judged as a sinner?

ANNOTATED NOTES:
For:  But

truth of God:  in the context, it's referring to God’s truthfulness and faithfulness to fulfill His Word, regardless of all men being liars (v4).  Man’s unbelief and dishonesty does not and cannot negate God’s faithfulness and integrity.

hath more abounded=perisseuo: to be in abundance, to exceed, abound, overflow;  here, in the essence of “overflowed even more", "became more conspicuous in abundance"

my lie:  in the context, referring to man's lack of integrity and unbelief (all men are liars - v4).  The first person usage (“my”, “I”) serves to emphasize this universal attribute of all men.  If unfaithfulness in any man, even Paul, serves to make God's faithfulness all the more apparent, thus bringing greater glory to God, why should Paul or anyone else be condemned as a sinner?  This is the twisted argument of self-justification that men were actually engaging in:  If sin seemingly benefits God in some way, how could He turn around and condemn the sinner?

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:7  [NLT]
“But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights his truthfulness and brings him more glory?”

Romans 3:8  [AV]
And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
And not rather:  a clearer translation would be "And why not say"

affirm=phemi:  this Gr word occurs 58x in the NT, and in every case it is translated “say”, except here.  The phrase should read “as some say that we say”.  People were slanderously misrepresenting Paul in saying he was telling people to do evil things that good things may result.  He said no such thing.

evil=ho kakos:  the evil things

that:  in order that

good=ho agathos:  the good things

damnation:  condemnation;  The teaching that we should do evil things in order that good things may result is justly condemned - and anyone who teaches such things is justly condemned - and the people falsely saying that Paul taught it are justly condemned.  To do evil so good can come is asinine.  Similar fallacious reasoning will be addressed in Rom 6:1-2:  “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  God forbid”!  

SIDE NOTE:
**  To speak biblically of the concept of evil and good, many instances could be cited from the Scriptures where God's goodness came forth after an evil act of man's wickedness.  However, in none of those biblical records is man’s sin justified.  

For instance, in Gen 50:20, Joseph said to his brothers: “Even though you planned evil against me, God planned good to come out of it.  This was to keep many people alive, as he is doing now.”[GW]  It’s undebatable that the motives of Joseph’s brothers were evil.  But God (Who “is light and in him is no darkness at all”, 1 Jn 1:5), turned the situation around and brought good to pass in the midst of it.  The good that God brought to pass did not absolve his brothers from guilt.  Even when God brings something good out of a situation, sin is still sin.

Another instance:  the most magnanimous manifestation of God's love toward mankind was in giving His Son as an offering for our sin.  The sufferings and death of Christ were required according to God's plan of redemption, as prophesied (see Gen 3:15;  Lk 24:25-26, 45-46;  Acts 3:18; 17:2-3;  1 Pet 1:11).  Concerning Jesus Christ’s death, Acts 2:23 reads:  “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.”  It’s clear that God had foreknowledge of what would be done to His Son.  It’s also clear that He considered those men guilty of the wicked acts they carried out against His Son (“crucified”, “slain”).  God will hold them accountable and that wickedness will be judged, even though their actions (which God saw in His foreknowledge) contributed to the fulfillment of His plan of redemption.  

In Acts 3:14-15, Peter, addressing a group of Israelites, stated:  "The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;  And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.”  Men killed him - God raised him.  Those men are not exonerated for crucifying Christ just because God raised him from the dead.  

It’s insanity to think that God would have men to do evil so that good may come.  Evil deserves condemnation, not commendation.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:8  [HCSB]
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!

Romans 3:9  [AV]
What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin;

ANNOTATED NOTES:
we:  talking about Jews, addressing the extremely prevalent sentiment among Jews that they were better than Gentiles.  But the Jews’ measurement for comparison was false, and thus gave them a false sense of superiority.  God’s standard of measurement leveled all mankind in the dust, as will be detailed in v10-18, which contain a multitude of OT scripture references that the Jews prided themselves in knowing so well.

better=proechomai:  better off, superior, preferred, have preeminence over;  The truth is, Jews are no better or no worse than Gentiles.  Whether Jew or Gentile, ALL are under sin and in need of a Savior.

than they:  not in the Gr. text

in no wise:  not at all, in no way

before proved:  previously brought a charge against, in the sense of a forensic accusation;  the case has previously been made, from 1:18 to this point, that every Jew and Gentile is under sin and deserving of God’s wrath (see Rom 1:18;  2:5, 8;  3:5)

all:  emphatic in the Greek (ALL! NO EXCEPTIONS!)

under=hupo:  in the sense of “under the power of” or “under the authority of”;  All are under sin, subject to its power (see Rom 7:14;  Gal 3:22)

sin=hamartia: a noun derived from the verb meaning "to miss the mark", "to wander from the path” (see Isa 53:6);  Whether the mark is missed by an inch or missed by a mile, the mark is still missed.  In that sense, sin is sin.  The reference to “sin" is not to be taken as “sins”.  Sin is speaking of the root problem within man.  The root problem is “sin”, and the fruit that comes from the root is “sins”.

** The first 9 verses of chapter 3 contain a series of questions and answers, aimed at pointing out the certainty of God’s just and righteous judgment upon all men as being under sin.  There has been a special focus on the Jew who just might think that having been given the “oracles of God” makes for special considerations in God’s judgments.  Over the next 9 verses, 10-18, God will use solely citations from those “oracles of God” (from Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Isaiah) to document the utter depravity of ALL men.  So the Jews, who were especially counted trustworthy of receiving God’s Word, will especially be held accountable in light of those declared Truths.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:9 [AMP]
Well then, are we [Jews] superior and better off than they? No, not at all. We have already charged that all men, both Jews and Greeks (Gentiles), are under sin [held down by and subject to its power and control].

Romans 3:10  [AV]
As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
it is written:  The epistle of Romans, in the first 2 verses, opened up with it being about "the gospel of God”, which He had promised by His prophets “in the holy scriptures”.  There are 74 different citings of those “holy scriptures” in the book of Romans, some of which are, by divine design, prefaced with “it is written”.  1:17 has the first occurrence of “it is written” in Romans, where the central theme of the entire Epistle is introduced, i.e. “the righteousness of God".  In 1:18, the subject matter of the wrath of God is brought into the picture, a wrath which will be "against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men".  The remainder of chapter 1 goes into some detail concerning that ungodliness and unrighteousness, which is worthy of death.  Chapter 2 then sets forth the standard of God's judgment upon every man, regardless of whether they come from a Judean or a Gentile background.  Man’s judgment of man is meaningless, even self-condemning - only God’s judgment of man is true.  So chapter 2 includes what work would be required by God to gain eternal life, and what work would result in His indignation and wrath.  The opening 9 verses of chapter 3 established that God is righteous and just as the Judge of all men, and His judgment is that every man, whether an advantaged Jew or a non-advantaged Gentile, is under sin.  Not that further proof is needed, but in 3:10-18 God has Paul, in rapid fire, cite a series of OT scriptures declaring God's unequivocal evaluation of the works of every man.  The citations are from the Greek version of the OT (called the Septuagint), and include Ps 5:9, Ps 10:7, Ps 14:1-3, Ps 36:1, Ps 53:1-3, Ps 140:3, Eccl 7:20, and Isa 59:7-8.  Romans 3:10-12 are general in nature, showing how sin has affected every man born of human parents, while the citations in v13-18 give a few graphic particulars on how every part of man, from top to bottom, is affected.

righteous=dikaios: upright, righteous, just;  a quality of being just based on God’s standard of justice or rightness;  

none righteous, no, not one:  In v10-12, the repetition of exclusionary words is empathic:  none - no not one - none - none - none - no not one!  God's judgment is universally true for every man or woman born from the bloodline of Adam - and if one fancies themself as the rare exception, these verses slam the door shut on that self-judgment. There is not ONE righteous person, no, not even ONE.  This 1st citation in the list from v10-18 is highly significant, in that it addresses man’s most basic need as pertains to the central theme of the entire epistle, right relationship with God (see notes on 1:17).  God’s indictment upon all men, detailed from 1:18 to 3:20, will soon be followed by God’s sole solution to man’s need, i.e. "the righteousness of God…unto all and upon all them that believe.” (3:22).

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:10  [HCSB]
as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one.

Romans 3:11  [AV]
There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** v11 and 12 are cited from Ps 14:2-3

none:  in both instances should be translated “not one” or “no one"

understandeth=suniemi:  from sun (together or together with) and hiemi (to put, to bring);  suniemi means to put together to the end one comprehends, understands, perceives.  This comprehending activity of the mind entails assembling of individual parts into an organized whole, as collecting the pieces of a puzzle and putting them together - to see, perceive, and understand the proper relationship between all the parts.  The noun form was used of the confluence or flowing together of two rivers.

seeketh after=ekzeteo: to enquire diligently, to exert considerable effort and care in examining and learning something;  

** Without the Word of God and the spirit of God within, no one is able to put together an understanding of God, no one is able to even seek out and learn of God.  Fallen man, being just body and soul, being spiritually dead in trespasses and sins, is simply not capable of learning and understanding God or spiritual matters (see 1 Cor 2:14;  Jn 3:3).

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:11 [HCSB]
There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.

Romans 3:12   [AV]
They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse is a continued citing of Ps 14:2-3, which is paralleled in Ps 53:1-3.

together:  totally, all at once, at the same time;  The fall of man, all at once, brought a universal consequence upon all men born of Adam (see Rom 5:12)

unprofitable:  worthless, unfit for any useful purpose;  Regardless of what a prideful man might think about the profitability of his own life and all that he does, God’s judgment is that any life lived apart from Him is useless, worthless and wasted.  No self-exaltation or self-justification will change that.

no, not one:  the continued repetition of 100% exclusionary terms in v10-12 (none - no not one - none - none - none - no not one!), serves to highlight the irrefutable truth that all men have failed miserably in meeting God’s standard for receiving eternal life, which was set forth in chapter 2 (see 2:7-11).

good=chrestos:  goodness, kindness, benevolence in action;  The same Gr word was used in Rom 2:4 where it says the goodness and kindness of God leads a person to repentance - 2:4 also says people despised the riches of that goodness and kindness.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:12  [NLT]
All have turned away; all have become useless.  No one does good, not a single one.

Romans 3:13  [AV]
Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Ps 5:9 and 140:3.      

Their:  In the context, it’s talking about the people referred to generally in v10-12, those who are not righteous, who have no understanding, who do not seek God, who have gone out of the way, who have totally become worthless, who do no good and are good for absolutely nothing.  Every man from Adam’s bloodline is born into this category.  Going further into the context, it is referring to those who are boasters of their own righteousness (Rom 2:17, 23), but are actually unclean workers of iniquity who are worthy of death (Ps 5:5-6; Rom 1:24-32).

throat: this is the FOS Metonomy, where the throat is used for that which comes from the throat, i.e. words spoken, speech.

open selpuchre=anoigo taphos:  A taphos can refer to a fresh grave that has not been covered up yet, one that has the dead body in it, open for the stench to permeate the air around it.  In the East, they would often bury the dead quickly, because they didn’t use embalming practices as we do in our culture.  So a body laid in an open grave would stink from the decomposition, to the point that they might even place burning incense close to the grave to help cover the smell of rotting flesh.  Via the FOS Hypocatastasis (comparison by implication), it’s saying when they open their mouth, they stink, spiritually, like a dead rotting body in a newly opened grave.  The figurative language in this verse gives emphasis to the graphic reality.

used deceit:  in the Hebrew of Ps 5:9, the phrase means “smoothed their tongues”;  smooth, flattering lies to hide the delivery of deadly poison.

asps:  refers to small but extremely venomous snakes (asp, cobra, viper);  The poison of the Egyptian cobra, a most deadly serpent, was contained in a bag under the lips.  A similar concept is seen in James 3:8: “But the tongue…is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.”  See Matt 15:11-20 and Mark 7:15-23 (also see Matt 3:7;  12:34;  23:33)

lips: as was the case with “throat” earlier, this is the FOS Metonomy, where “lips" is put for that which comes forth between the lips, i.e. words, speech.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:13 [TLB]
Their talk is foul and filthy like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are loaded with lies. Everything they say has in it the sting and poison of deadly snakes.

Romans 3:14 [AV]
Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Ps 10:7.

full=gemo:  to be full, stuffed, to be heavy laden with

cursing:  this commonly referred to a form of a prayer that was used to put a “hex” on people.  It's a prayer for evil - what practitioners of voodoo and other "black arts" use at times, when they get a doll, put the name of a person they want to kill on that doll, and then start sticking pins in it.  It's a prayer for evil, formally called an imprecation malediction.    Their mouth is stuffed full with bitter, malicious prayers.

Verses 13-14 use multiple FOS to describe man’s words, and the description isn’t pretty:  throat…tongue…lips…mouth - likened unto the stench of a dead body in an open grave, smooth-sounding lies, the deadly poison of a serpent, filled with bitter malicious prayers.  (see James 3:2-10)  What comes out of the mouth reveals what is happening in the heart (Matt 12:34;  15:18-20).

These verses are part of Romans 1:18-3:20, which gives an accurate description of the death that man was born into.  But the description of deliverance from death for the born-again Christian is soon to follow, where God’s words of Life concerning Jesus Christ can be believed in the heart, able to transform every aspect of a person’s life, taking them from a Christless death to a Christ-filled Life (see Acts 26:18;  Rom 6:3-4;  7:24-25;  8:2;  10:9-13;  Eph 2:1-6;  Col 1:13;  etc. etc. etc.)

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:14  [WUEST]
whose mouth is full of imprecations and bitterness;

Romans 3:15 [AV]
Their feet are swift to shed blood:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Isa 59:7.  

feet:  this is the FOS Synecdoche of the Part, where an integral part of man is put for the whole man.  Feet move the man, but they don’t choose to do evil on their own - it’s the man himself who chooses to do evil.  Prov 1:15-16 echoes that choice:  “..walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.”  

** Verses 13-14 dealt with words, and v15-17 will deal with deeds.  From top to bottom, head to toe, unredeemed man is filled with iniquity.  But with the gospel of peace, which is ours through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, things can be different - see Rom 10:15;  Eph 6:15).

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:15  [WEY]
Their feet move swiftly to shed blood.

Romans 3:15  [GNB]
They are quick to hurt and kill;

Romans 3:16  [AV]
Destruction and misery are in their ways:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Isa 59:7

destruction=suntrimma:  a ruinous breaking to pieces;  this word was used to describe the shattering destruction a war club would bring to a skull or other bones when struck during warfare.

misery=talaiporia:  hardship, calamity, misery

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:16  [WEY]
Ruin and misery mark their path;

Romans 3:16  [GW]
There is ruin and suffering wherever they go.

Romans 3:17 [AV]
And the way of peace have they not known:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Isa 59:8

the way of peace:  when someone's heart is engulfed in darkness and set on death and destruction (v16), there is going to be no peace in all that they do, until they come to the light and the prince of peace (Luke 1:79:  “To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace”.)

ways…way: the FOS Anadiplosis is used in v16-17, where one clause begins with the same word that ended the previous clause.  v16 ends with “ways” (Gr:hodos -plural) and v17 begins with "way” (Gr:hodos -singular).  They walk in ways that bring destruction and misery, and the one godly way to walk, the path of peace, they have never set foot on.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:17  [GNB]
They have not known the path of peace,

Romans 3:18 [AV]
There is no fear of God before their eyes.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse is cited from Ps 36:1

fear of God:  awe and respect for God, a sense of His all-powerful presence with a reverential regard.  In the biblical usage of the word “fear”, it will always refer to either being afraid of someone or something, in a negative sense - or being in a state of awe, reverence and respect of someone or something, in a positive sense.  The context will indicate which meaning is to be accurately applied.  This statement that there is no reverence or respect of God before their eyes is certainly damning, especially in light of Prov 1:7 (“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”), Prov 9:10 ("The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”), and Eccl 12:13 (“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:  Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”)

** From Rom 3:10 to 3:18, numerous scriptures are consecutively cited, as an amalgamated composite showing the state of unredeemed man.  V10-12 are general in nature, showing how every man born of human parents is utterly unrighteous, using language that leaves NO MAN exempt.  Citations in v13-17 give a few particulars on how every part of man, from top to bottom, is affected, and manifests itself in words and works.  V18 closes the series of quotations by dealing with what’s in the heart of man, man’s attitude and viewpoint of God:  “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” (see Jer 17:9)

Taken as a whole, we see in v10-18 a nothing-but-straight-scripture summation of the total depravity of man, how sin has affected ALL of mankind, and how it has affected every part of his being.  It doesn’t mean that every man has committed every sin, but it speaks to the sin nature within every man born of Adam’s bloodline, a nature which is capable of committing any sin, no matter how vile or wicked.  To many, murdering another human being is as wicked of an act as can be committed, worthy of the harshest of judgment.  But Jesus Christ shed light on that judgment in Matt 5:21-22.  He also spoke of the first and great commandment, lending insight to sin (Matt 22:36-40;  Mk 12:28-31).  See Ps 19:9-12.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:18  [NEB]
and reverence for God does not enter their thoughts.

Romans 3:19  [AV]
Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
know=oida:  to perceive

law:  “law” can refer to just the 1st 5 books of the OT (called the “Torah” by the Jews), or it can refer to the entire OT - the verse within its context will indicate the accurate reference.  Since the OT citations in the preceding 9 verses were from Psalms, Ecclesiastes, and Isaiah, this usage of “law” refers to the entire OT.
 
every mouth: every Jew and every Gentile is included in this “every mouth” - there are no exceptions, no, not even one.  

stopped=phrasso: to fence in, close up, block up;  as used with mouth (Gr:stoma), it means to put to silence, block up the mouth, to remove any reason to speak, to stop everyone from having anything to say.  There is no defense someone can offer on their own behalf - there are no self-justifying excuses to be uttered by anyone. (see Ps 63:11;  107:42;  Ezek 16:63)

all the world:  again, every man born of human parents is included, no exceptions.  God had given the law to the Judeans, not the Gentiles, and not a single Judean was able to keep it perfectly.  But the failure was not due to their lineage traced back to Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob, but rather their lineal descent from Adam (Rom 5:12).  And lineage to Adam includes every Gentile.  So even though when the law speaks it speaks to those under the law, the innate inability to live perfectly by that law is all inclusive of all men born of Adam.  Hence, "all the world" is rightly declared guilty before God.

world:  use of the FOS Metonymy, where the physical world is put for the people living in the world;  the same FOS was employed in 3:6 (also see Acts 17:31)

guilty=hypodikos:  literally, "under judgment";  all the world will be subject to judgment before God.  “hypodikos” here refers to accused persons who cannot refute the charges leveled against them in light of the overwhelming evidence.  God is the Judge, but in a legal sense, He also represents the injured party.  He created man and woman and gave them all He could give, and the treasonous disobedience on Adam’s part brought great loss to Him.  Some affects of that loss are detailed in chapter 1, evidenced by Gentiles.  But if Jews think they are exempt from judgment, they might want to take a 2nd look at the evidence: God entered a covenant with Judeans and stayed faithful to every part of it - but the Judeans broke every part of that covenant, bringing great loss to the other party.  In other words, whether Jew or Gentile, every single person is legally condemned as guilty before God, and deserves to personally pay the penalty of sin, which is death.

** The stage is being set to resume the theme of Romans set forth in 1:16-17, the full declaration of the righteousness of God to every one who believes the gospel concerning Jesus Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation.  

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:19  [AMP]
Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that [the murmurs and excuses of] every mouth may be hushed and all the world may be held accountable to God.

Romans 3:19  [PHILIPS]
We know what the message of the Law is, to those who live under it--that every excuse may die on the lips of him who makes it and no living man can be beyond the judgment of God.

Romans 3:19  [TLB]
So the judgment of God lies very heavily upon the Jews, for they are responsible to keep God’s laws instead of doing all these evil things; not one of them has any excuse; in fact, all the world stands hushed and guilty before Almighty God.

Romans 3:20 [AV]
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
** This verse cites Ps 143:2: “…for in thy sight shall no man living be justified.” (also see Prov 20:9;  Ps 130:3;  Job 15:14;  25:4)

Therefore:  indicates the result, the conclusion from the verses that preceded

deeds=ergon:  works (ergon is translated “work(s)” 152x in the AV)

law:  this reference is to the law given to Israel, but the truth would also apply to Gentiles, some of whom, according to Rom 2:14-15, endeavored to do (by nature and conscience) the things contained in the law (see notes on 2:14 and 2:15)

flesh:  FOS synecdoche, where flesh, one part of man, is put for the whole, the man himself.  

justified=dikaioo:  declared righteous according to God’s established standard;  It is clear that no human being will be justified (made righteous) in God's sight by an adherence to the law.  It simply cannot be done by a man with sin nature born within.   In James 2:10, it  is written, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in ONE point, he is guilty of ALL.”  So ALL mankind falls short and is guilty of ALL the law.

by the law:  it is the law that is like a straight line, so that when men test themselves by it, they see how crooked they are.  The law is like a mirror, where you can use it to see that your face is dirty, but the mirror is not designed to wash your dirty face.  The law is useful to convict a man of sin, but it is useless to save a man from sin.  The Law was not given to justify, but to condemn.

knowledge=epignosis:  it is the root gnosis (knowledge) with the prefix of epi making it intensive;  not just knowledge, but a full and complete knowledge;  

sin:  note that it does not say “sins”, but “sin", referring to the root, the very nature of man after the fall.  “sin” is the root, “sins” are the fruit.  Not only does the law give a full and complete knowledge of man’s sin nature, as stated here - in Rom 5:20 [AMP] it says the “Law came in, [only] to expand and increase the trespass [making it more apparent and exciting opposition]…sin increased and abounded”.  So the law not only made sin known, when the law said “thou shalt not”, it served to incite the sin nature within man to oppose the command, causing sin to increase and abound.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:20 [PHILIPS]
No man can justify himself before God by a perfect performance of the Law's demands--indeed it is the straight-edge of the Law that shows us how crooked we are.

Romans 3:20 [NLT]
For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

NOTE:  Now that you have Annotated Notes for each verse thus far, from the Introductory section (1:1-17) through the Wrath of God section (1:18-3:20), I thought it might be helpful to give you a running compilation of various translations of those verses.  The verse numbers (which, of course, were not in the original text) have been removed, to make for easy consumption without distraction.  Enjoy.

THE EPISTLE OF ROMANS:  (a Compilation of Various Translations, with Outline Structure)

1:1-17   Introductory Section:  
Gospel of God is concerning Jesus Christ, revealing the Righteousness of God
1:17  Theme Verse for Romans:  
The person who is put right with God through believing shall live.

Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ, a called apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh, who was marked out as the Son of God with power according to the Spirit, Who is Holiness, by the resurrection from the dead - Jesus Christ our Lord.

By whom we have received the grace accorded an apostle, for the obedience of believing among all the Gentiles, for his name’s sake.  And this includes you, called of Jesus Christ and invited [as you are] to belong to him.  To all who are beloved of God in Rome, called as saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Before I go any further, let me first say that I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your believing concerning Jesus Christ is being talked about all over the world.  God has seen how I never stop praying for you, while I serve him with all my heart and tell the good news about his Son;  always in my prayers beseeching, if by any means now at length I shall have a prosperous journey, by the will of God, to come unto you.  For I am yearning to see you, that I may impart and share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen and establish you.  What I mean is that both you and I will be helped at the same time, you by my faith and I by yours.

I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that often I have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.  For I owe a great debt to you and to everyone else, both to civilized people and uncivilized alike;  yes, to the educated and uneducated alike.  So, to the fullest extent of my ability, I am ready to come also to you in Rome to preach God’s Good News.  It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else!

For the gospel reveals how God puts people right with Himself: it is through faith from beginning to end.  As the scripture says, “The person who is put right with God through believing shall live.”

1:18 - 3:20   Wrath of God Revealed - Deserved by ALL MEN

1:18-32   Exchanging the Truth for the Lie - there were and are Consequences

 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.  For that which can be known about God is plainly evident to them, because God has made it plain to them.  For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.  So they are without excuse.  For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude.  Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened.  Claiming to be wise, they became fools [professing to be smart, they made simpletons of themselves].  And then, instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they took wood and stone and made idols for themselves, carving them to look like mere birds and animals and snakes and puny men.

 So God let these people go their own way. They did what they wanted to do, and their filthy thoughts made them do shameful things with their bodies, because they exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creation instead of the Creator, Who is blessed forever!  Amen - this is surely so!

Because people did those things, God left them and let them do the shameful things they wanted to do.  Women stopped having natural sex and started having sex with other women. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.  Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.  And so, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God or approve of Him or consider Him worth the knowing, God gave them over to a base and condemned mind to do things not proper or decent but loathsome, until they were filled (permeated and saturated) with every kind of unrighteousness, iniquity, grasping and covetous greed, and malice.  [They were] full of envy and jealousy, murder, strife, deceit and treachery, ill will and cruel ways.  [They were] secret backbiters and gossipers, slanderers, hateful to God, full of insolence, arrogance, [and] boasting;  inventors of new forms of evil, disobedient and undutiful to parents.  They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless [undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful].  Though they are fully aware of God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them themselves but approve and applaud others who practice them.

2:1-3:8  Only God’s Judgment of man stands True - man’s judgment of man does not

You therefore have no defense - you who sit in judgment, whoever you may be - for in judging your fellow-man you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, are equally guilty.  [But] we know that the judgment (adverse verdict, sentence) of God falls justly and in accordance with truth upon those who practice such things.  And do you imagine - you who pass judgement on the guilty while committing the same sins yourself - do you imagine that you, any more than they, will escape the judgment of God?  Or do you think lightly of his wealth of kindness, of tolerance, and of patience, without recognizing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to a change of heart?

But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.  He will give each one whatever his deeds deserve:  to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.  But for those who are self-seeking and self-willed and disobedient to the Truth but responsive to wickedness, there will be indignation and wrath, affliction and distress for every human being who does evil, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek;  but He will give glory, honor, and peace to everyone who does good—to the Jews first and also to those who are not Jews.  For there is no partiality with God.

All who have sinned without the Law will also perish without [regard to] the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged and condemned by the Law (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified).  So, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, instinctively do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law.  They show that the essential requirements of the Law are written in their hearts and are operating there, with which their consciences (sense of right and wrong) also bear witness;  and their [moral] decisions [their arguments of reason, their condemning or approving thoughts] will accuse or perhaps defend and excuse [them].

The day will surely come when at God’s command Jesus Christ will judge the secret lives of everyone, their inmost thoughts and motives;  this is all part of God’s great plan, which I proclaim.

If you are called by the name of Jew, if you take your rest in the Law, if you boast in God and know his will, if you give your approval to the excellent things, if you are instructed in the Law, if you believe yourself to be a leader of the blind, a light in darkness, and educator of the foolish, a teacher of the simple, if you believe yourself to have the very shape of knowledge and of truth in the Law— do you, then, who instruct another, not instruct yourself?  Do you, who proclaim to others that stealing is forbidden, steal yourself?  Do you, who forbid others to commit adultery, commit adultery yourself?  Do you, who shudder at idols, rob temples?  Do you, who boast in the Law, dishonour God by transgressing the Law?  For, as it is written, The name of God is maligned and blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you! [The words to this effect are from your own Scriptures.]

That most intimate sign of belonging to God that we call circumcision does indeed mean something if you obey God’s Law.  But if you don’t obey God’s Law, you are no better off than an uncircumcised Gentile.  Conversely, if an uncircumcised man keep the Law's commandments, does he not thereby "circumcise" himself?  Moreover, is it not plain to you that those who are physically uncircumcised, and yet keep the Law, are a continual judgment upon you, who for all your circumcision and knowledge of the Law, break it?  

For you are not real Jews just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the Jewish initiation ceremony of circumcision.  But the true Jew is one inwardly, and true circumcision is heart-circumcision — not literal, but spiritual;  and such people receive praise not from men, but from God.

Have the Jews then any advantage over the Gentiles? Or is there any value in being circumcised? There are all kinds of advantages.  First of all, God entrusted them with his Word.  What if some did not believe and were without faith?  Does their lack of faith and their faithlessness nullify and make ineffective and void the faithfulness of God and His fidelity [to His Word]?  Of course not! Though everyone else in the world is a liar, God is not.  Do you remember what the book of Psalms says about this? That God’s words will always prove true and right, no matter who questions them.  

“But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is.  Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.)  Certainly not!  If God were unjust, how could he judge the world?  “But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights His truthfulness and brings Him more glory?”  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!

3:9-20  Man’s Report Card:  ALL FAILED, not just an “F”, but ZERO.  ALL Guilty before God.

Well then, are we [Jews] superior and better off than they?  No, not at all.  We have already charged that all men, both Jews and Gentiles, are under sin [held down by and subject to its power and control], as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one.  There is no one who understands;  there is no one who seeks God.  All have turned away;  all have become useless.  No one does good, not a single one.  Their talk is foul and filthy like the stench from an open grave.  Their tongues are loaded with lies.  Everything they say has in it the sting and poison of deadly snakes, whose mouth is full of imprecations and bitterness.  Their feet move swiftly to shed blood. Ruin and misery mark their path.  They have not known the path of peace, and reverence for God does not enter their thoughts.

So the judgment of God lies very heavily upon the Jews, for they are responsible to keep God’s laws instead of doing all these evil things;  not one of them has any excuse;  in fact, all the world stands hushed and guilty before Almighty God.  For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands.  The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

Romans 3:21a   [AV]
But now...

ANNOTATED NOTES:
God’s Word is perfect - every book within the book, every sentence within each book, every word within each sentence, every letter within each word - Perfect!!  Jesus Christ, in speaking of the surety of each letter within the whole of God’s Word at that time, uttered: "For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished” [Matthew 5:18 NASB].  In the AV it reads “…one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass…”.  The ESV renders it “…not an iota, not a dot, will pass…”.  In John 10:35 Christ categorically stated, “...the Scripture cannot be broken”.  He knew and believed Psalm 119:89:  “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven”.  Since it’s settled in heaven, forever, it would be wise for us to do likewise in our hearts while here on earth.

When partaking of the book of Romans, we can approach it with the same surety that Christ spoke of, for nothing has changed - every word written in Romans is God’s eternal Truth, Holy Scripture which cannot be broken.  So when God takes from 1:18 through 3:20 to detail man in all his frailty and failure, all his depravity and degradation, pointing out man's self-destructive nature mixed with his self-justifying mentality, there’s a reason for that revelation.  No matter what millennium it may be, no matter what continent one calls home, those words speak of man’s inner brokenness and his inability to please God with his own goodness.  

In closing out this section (1:18-3:20) covering the legal condition of all mankind and the deserved wrath of God, Romans 3:20 makes the point once more that absolutely no person can be justified by his own works.  Man, if ever he is to be made righteous in the sight of God, must be utterly dependent upon God’s grace, putting NO trust in his flesh.  The law was never given as a means for man to earn true righteousness or eternal life (Gal 3:21).  If we could earn it, then God would never have needed for His Son to die for man's sins - Christ died in vain.  But the truth is, man could never and will never be able to earn it himself by what he does.  Man must turn to Christ, who has DONE it on his behalf.  Christ alone, without any help from us, has fulfilled the whole law and paid the FULL legal price for our redemption and salvation, the price being his innocent, precious blood (I Pet 1:18-19; Matt 27:4).  

For man to walk in the greatness of God’s grace, he must repudiate any sense of self-worth void of a Savior.  This section of Romans on "the wrath of God" is irreplaceably vital as a part of the gospel, the good news of God’s grace.  Without our awareness of how utterly helpless and hopeless we are in achieving right standing with God by our own works, we will only see our Savior as the one who filled up the final measure of what we were missing.  That would be a perversion of the gospel (Gal 1:6-7).

To use a monetary analogy, if salvation were to cost $1 million, and I work hard to earn $750,000 – and thus judge my intrinsic net worth to be 3/4 of the required payment, then I erroneously look to Christ to pay the final $250,000 (just 1/3 of my personal payment).  I also judge myself “better” than the man who works hard and comes up with less than I came up with (perhaps only $50,000).  I will judge my intrinsic net worth as a person to be 15 times more than that other person’s worth.  The converse negative self-judgment would no doubt be in place for the $50,000 man, comparing himself to me.  But the truth is, whatever good any of us believes we bring to the table – it’s worth $0.00 – ZERO-POINT-ZERO-ZERO - completely devoid of worth in God’s presence.  When we come to seek salvation from God through His Son’s sacrifice on our behalf, we need to realize he paid the FULL price - no strings attached – no small print with retraction disclaimers at the bottom – no interest payments owed by us as we try to pay back the principle over a lifetime.  The FULL price has been paid.  That’s grace.  Pure gift.  That brings us all, Jew or Gentile, to the death of self, and leads us to find our life in the death of Christ.  Justification by believing in Christ’s full redemptive payment cannot be fully appreciated while there remains the least lingering shred of hope in ourselves.

To use an earthy analogy, if we had dug ourselves into a deep, deep hole and needed to get out in order to stay alive, we could use both our brains and brawn to get 3/4 of the way up and out, but acknowledge we need help with the last 1/4 - and thus turn to someone else to give us a hand with that last stretch.  But the reality is, we weren’t just in a simple hole we dug for ourselves - it was a grave.  And we weren’t at the bottom of that grave alive and able to work our way up and out - we were flat out DEAD - dead in trespasses and sins, without God and without hope (Eph 2:1,12).  A dead man doesn’t dig himself out of a grave.  A dead man must be raised from the dead if he is to live.  Based on his own works, the only thing he has to look forward to is standing before the judgment seat of God, in silence and shame, declared as guilty, with the sentence of death hanging over his head.  Their is no hope in his future, just judgment, "the wrath of God”.

So when Romans 3:21 begins with “But”, in the starkest of contrast to the section preceding it, that makes it one of the biggest “but’s” in the entire Word of God.  Man is born dead in trespasses and sins, BUT God has provided a way up and out!  The section of Romans that follows this “but” is truly a thing of beauty, bringing Life to the lifeless.  And when the “But” is followed by “now”, we can all rejoice that God has met the urgency of our need with an eternal provision in the NOW.  Every day, every minute of every day, every second of every minute, is NOW.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:21a   [NKJV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [ESV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [NASB]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [AMP]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [TLB]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [NLT]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [DARBY]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [ASV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [GNB]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [HCSB]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [NET]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [NIV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [WUEST]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [PHILIPS]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [ISV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [ERV]
But now…

Romans 3:21a   [WEY]
But now...

Romans 3:21 [AV]
But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;

ANNOTATED NOTES:
now:  chronologically, this "now" became a reality on the day of Pentecost, when for the first time in human history a man or woman could become born again of God’s spirit (see John 3:3-7;  1 Pet 1:23;  Rom 10:9-10;  Acts 2:1-4, 21-24, 32-33, 38-39;);  this “now” will continue until Christ comes back to gather the born-again ones (1 Thes 4:13-18).  The stark contrast between where man was, spiritually, and where a born-again man is now, in Christ, is pointed out in Eph 2:1-5, 11-13;  Gal 3:21-26;  4:3-9;  etc.

righteousness of God:  see notes on 1:17;  this righteousness is distinctly different from the righteousness of the law (see Rom 10:1-5, 9-10;  Gal 2:16;  Phil 3:9)

without the law:  apart from the law

manifested=phaneroo:  seen, evidenced

witnessed:  see Rom 1:2;  Acts 3:21-25; 10:43; 26:22;  28:23;  Gal 3:8;  1 Pet 1:10-11.

the law and the prophets:  an expression for the whole OT

** With all that has been declared previously on the wrath of God, showing how man is inexcusable (1:20; 2:1), how not even one is righteous (3:10), how not even one can do good (3:12), and all the world is deserving of a verdict of “guilty" before God (3:19), God will now lay out His plan to righteously save unrighteous sinners.  The just punishment for sin is death.  God’s righteousness demands the sinner’s death, but His love desires the sinner’s eternal deliverance from death.  The gospel reveals how God legally saves sinners without compromising His righteous demands, through the substitutionary sacrifice of His Son.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:21   [AMP]
But now the righteousness of God has been revealed independently and altogether apart from the Law, although actually it is attested by the Law and the Prophets,

Romans 3:21 [NLT]
But now God has shown us a way to be made right with Him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago.

Romans 3:22 [AV]
Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
which is: omitted in text, hence italicized in AV

by=dia:  through

faith=pistis:  believing, faith;  it’s the noun form of the Gr verb pisteuo, which is translated “believe” later in this verse.  This verse ties back to the theme verse of Romans (see notes on 1:17).    A common phrase that gets used in certain circles is “you've got to have faith”, implying that “having faith” is like a blind leap,  accepting the unknowable or inexplicable.  That implication is the opposite of the truth.  pistis (believing, faith) rests on the surest of evidence that can be known, the infallible and unbreakable Word of God (John 10:35b).  Rom 10:17 lays out the simplicity of the matter:  “So then faith (pistis: believing) comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”  In 1 Pet 1:23 it is written: “Being born again, not of corrputible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”  Faith is not unreasonable or based on illogical unknowables.  When God, man’s Creator, says something is true, it’s true.  What could possibly be more reasonable and logical than that we, as the creation, should trust what He, our Creator, says?  When we hear His Word about what His Son has done, we simply believe what His Word says - specifically, regarding Jesus Christ's finished work of Redemption on our behalf.  Simple.  Truth.

faith of Jesus Christ:  can accurately be translated "believing regarding Jesus Christ";  it’s an objective genitive, where Jesus Christ is the object of man's believing;  the righteousness of God is by believing regarding Jesus Christ (see Gal 3:21-26).

and upon all:  most critical Gr texts omit these words

them:  talking about Jews and Gentiles who meet the sole criteria – who believe rightly regarding Jesus Christ

difference=diastole:  distinction, difference;  in light of the sole criteria of believing, there is no distinction between a Jew or Gentile when they meet the criteria.  Rom 10:12 uses the same Gr word to express the same truth concerning Jew and Gentile.  (also see 1 Cor 14:7 for the 3rd and last occurrence of diastole in the NT)

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:22  [AMP]
Namely, the righteousness of God which comes by believing with personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ (the Messiah). [And it is meant] for all who believe. For there is no distinction,

Romans 3:23 [AV]
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

ANNOTATED NOTES:
all:  as was true in v22 and further context, "all" is speaking of all Jews and all Gentiles, no exceptions

have:  omitted in text

sinned=hamartano:  sin, miss the mark;   this verb is in the aorist tense, referring to a one time event in the past (see Rom 5:12, where the same Gr word is used to describe the affect of Adam’s sin on all men).  Every man born of Adam’s bloodline has a sin nature and therefore has missed the mark.

come short=hustereo:  this verb is in the present tense, and could accurately read “are falling short” or "keep on falling short”;   All are not only sinners by nature, but are also falling short of God's standard by their continued action.

glory of God:  referring to the honor and approbation that God bestows upon the worthy, upon those who have passed the test to be worthy of God’s praise and approval.  When put to the test, like how metal is assayed for its worth, all men fail the test based on their nature and what comes forth from their nature.  All are, in and of themselves, unworthy and undeserving of sharing in God’s splendor and glory.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:23  [WUEST]
for all sinned and are falling short of the glory of God;

Romans 3:24   [AV]
Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
Being justified=dikaio:  this verb is in the present tense, continuous action;  it is the formal and legal acquittal from guilt, issued by God as the only just Judge, according to His established standard of righteousness.  It is the legal declaration of the believer being perfectly righteous in God’s sight.  Being in the present tense, continuous action, it is not something that was declared just one time in the past, but rather it is an ever-present reality, declared in the heart of God every moment of every day.  Furthermore, this being justified, this being made right before God, this acquittal from sin and removal of all guilt, is not by one’s own works (v20), whether past, present or future, but by believing rightly concerning Jesus Christ (v22).  Through Jesus Christ, justice has been satisfied.

freely=dorean:  “freely” makes it a gift, and in light of the preceding context, it is an undeserved gift;  The Gr word, dorean, has a twofold meaning.  One meaning is that something is "without charge or cost" (Matt 10:8b: “freely you have received, freely give”).  Another meaning is that it’s “without a cause” (Jn 15:25b: “They hated me without a cause"), where it involves the absence of any cause in the man who is the recipient.  If man was at all involved in earning righteousness, giving cause to receive or paying a cost to receive, it would no longer be a free gift.  Both meaningss apply to this verse.  There was no cost to us - the full price for our redemption was paid by Jesus Christ on the cross (1 Pet 1:18-19).  There was also no cause on our part - no goodness within, no good works without - that caused God to justify us.  We didn't deserve to be set in right standing with God - it was a gift of God’s grace.  See Titus 3:3-7!!

grace=charis:  undeserved favor from God to man;  by definition it can never be earned.  The usage of the word by classical Gr authors was “a favor done out of the spontaneous generosity of the heart without any expectation of return”.  There are no strings attached to grace.

redemption=apolutrosis:  deliverance from the guilt of sin, a releasing from captivity effected by the payment of a ransom;  The root, lutron, denotes the price that is paid for a prisoner of war to set him free.   The verb form means “to deliver”.  There is another Gr word in the NT for the phrase “to redeem”, exagorazo, which means “to redeem, to buy up”.  Just because a price has been paid for someone or something doesn’t necessarily mean deliverance has taken place.  If you were in slavery, someone could come along and pay the price for you, but then keep you as their own slave rather than set you free.  Gal 5:1 [NASB]:  “It was for freedom that Christ set us free…”!!  This Gr word apolutrosis as it’s used here in v24 means that the ransom has been paid and the final deliverance to freedom from the guilt of sin has been given (Eph 1:7).  The word “ransom”, seen in Matt 10:28 and Mk 10:45, includes the concept of substitution.  Men are captives under the power of sin and death, from which they cannot free themselves.  Jesus Christ’s substitutionary death paid the full price to set men free.  We leave the bondage of being slaves to sin, and enter the freedom of being sons of God, righteous in His sight.

in Christ Jesus:  it is SOLELY in what he has already done for us in paying the FULL price, not in any part what we do for ourselves or for him.  God, through the work of His Son, did for us what we were powerless to do for ourselves.  

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:24  [WEY]
gaining acquittal from guilt by His free unpurchased grace through the deliverance which is found in Christ Jesus.

Romans 3:24  [NLT]
Yet God freely and graciously declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.

Romans 3:24  [MSG]
God did it for us.  Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with Himself.  A pure gift.  He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And He did it by means of Jesus Christ.

Romans 3:25   [AV]
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

ANNOTATED NOTES:
Whom:  talking about Christ Jesus, from the end of v24

hath set forth=protithemi:  from pro, meaning “before" or “forth", and tithemi, meaning “to place”;  protithemi means to set forth openly, to propose, to purpose;  That which God purposed within Himself He has set forth openly - the sacrifice of His Son is in view for all to see (see Eph 1:9 in AV, purposed=protithemi)

propitiation=hilasterion:  a covering, a payment, a means of appeasing or expiating, and thus a means by which justice is satisfied;  only other NT usage is translated “mercyseat” in Heb 9:5.  The mercyseat was the lid to the ark of the covenant, upon which the blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement to cover for the sins of all Israel (Lev 16:2-16).  The word “mercyseat” in the OT means “the place where payment is made”.  It is translated “throne of mercy” by some.  See Ex 25:17-22 for how the mercyseat represented access to and communion with God for the children of Israel.  But now, for all (all Jews and all Gentiles), God has set forth openly the sacrifice of His Son, to be the expiating payment for the sins of the world, allowing us full and free access into His presence (1 Jn 2:2: “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”;  also see 1 Jn 4:10).

his blood:  our redemption comes only by the blood of Christ (Heb 9:1-14), who was the sacrifice to end all sacrifices (Heb 10:1-12).  He tasted death for “every man” (Heb 2:9).

declare:  demonstrate, prove

his righteousness:  with the word “his” (Gr:autos) preceding it, this usage of righteousness is not referring to the right standing God gives to man, but rather to God's righteousness as a just Judge.

remission=paresis:  a passing over (see Ex 12:7,13 for the “passover” in the presence of the blood of the lamb;  when they believed what God said and acted on it, the angel of death passed over them);  The Gr word more commonly translated “remission” in the AV is aphesis, meaning "release from sin”.  But this word, paresis, is used only once in NT, and is accurately understood to mean “passing over” or “letting pass”.

sins:  plural, not singular; referring to the fruit, sins, not the root, sin

that are past:  talking about sins previously committed, specifically committed by believers in the OT before Christ came and died for all mankind.  God, with His foreknowledge of Christ’s atoning sacrifice yet to come, mercifully passed over those previous sins due to the payment He knew would be made when Christ became the mercyseat and shed his own blood.  Although animial sacrifices were performed ever since the fall of man as a temporary atonement for sins (Gen 3:21;  Lev 17:11), the blood of animals could never reconcile man back to God, could never pay the full price required for redemption.  The death of Jesus Christ on the cross satisfied the justice that God demands as a payment for sins, and demonstrated His mercy toward all who believe.

forbearance=anoche:  self restraint, a holding back (see Rom 2:4);  a merciful withholding of judgment and punishment for those past sins.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:25  [AMP]
Whom God put forward [before the eyes of all] as a mercy seat and propitiation by His blood [the cleansing and life-giving sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation, to be received] through faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in His divine forbearance He had passed over and ignored former sins without punishment.

Romans 3:26  [AV]
To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
to declare:  could accurately read “To demonstrate” or “To prove";  same core Gr word as used for “declare” in v25 - it’s more than just a declaration with words - it’s a demonstration or proof in full view

I say:  delete - not in Gr text

at this time:  referring to the present time, which is a different administration of time than the one being referred to by “sins that are past” in v25;  In v25 it was through the forbearance of God that He passed over the sins previously committed, i.e. before Christ’s redemptive sacrifice.  “at this time” refers to the present time, which is "the administration of the grace of God” (Eph 3:2), which began on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2.  All that Israel could do under the Law administration was do their best to live by the demands of the Law, which they could never fully do.  The Law only served to show them their sin, not to deliver them from it - so as a result they constantly lived under the debt of sin, as well as the penalty of sin, which is death.  But Jesus Christ was the “end of the law for righteousness” (Rom 10:4), when he paid the price in full for our redemption through the shedding of his blood (1 Pet 1:18-19;  John 1:29; 10:11).  And with that full payment, all the demands of God’s justice were met for us to have the guilt of sin removed and be made righteous on perfectly legal grounds.  In speaking of Jesus Christ, Heb 9:15 [RSV] states:  “Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred which redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.”  Sin has been overcome - the penalty for sin paid for - the bondage of the Law has ended - we are FREE to LIVE!  As the theme verse of Romans (1:17) states:  “The person who is put right with God through believing shall live.”!!

his righteousness:  as was the case for the same phrase in v25, it’s referring to God’s righteousness as a just Judge.

just=dikaios:  could also be translated “righteous”;  the Gr word is translated “just” 33x in the AV, and "righteous” 41x.  It’s referring to a quality of being just or righteous according to an established standard for justice

justifier=dikaioo:  simply means “one who justifies” or “one who makes righteous”;  We do not make ourselves righteous - only God, Who is Just, can do that.  God, through His Son’s finished work, makes us just, righteous in His sight, when we "believe in Jesus”.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:26  [AMP]
It was to demonstrate and prove at the present time (in the now season) that He Himself is righteous and that He justifies and accepts as righteous him who has [true] faith in Jesus.

Romans 3:26  [WEY]
with a view to demonstrating, at the present time, His righteousness, that He may be shown to be righteous Himself, and the giver of righteousness to those who believe in Jesus.

Romans 3:27  [AV]
Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
boasting=kauchesis:  the act of glorying or boasting, expressing a high degree of confidence or pride;     The context of this verse is boasting regarding one’s righteousness, one’s justification.  A carnally-minded man wants to justify himself by his own works, and seeks to make known to others his own goodness (see Matt 6:1,5).  It is an innate desire of the flesh to find grounds for self-boasting, some little added thing to do or endure to make salvation at least partially self-obtained, as if justification through Christ’s work somehow wasn’t complete.  Romans thus far has proven that man is the undeserving recipient of God's gift of righteousness by grace.  Any works performed after receiving the gift won’t change that (Gal 3:2-3).  Jesus Christ’s shocking refusal of credit teaches that in and of one’s self, there is no man that is good (see Mk 10:17-18;  Lk 28:18-19).  Works-based thinking encourages self-congratulation.  Believing-based thinking tends to eliminate it.  Believing-based thinking disavows self-help, self-improvement, self-salvation.  (See 1 Cor 4:7;  1:31;  Gal 6:14;  Jer 9:23-24)

excluded:  shut out, banned;  the Gr word is in the aorist tense, a one time past event, making it completely once-and-for-all "shut out”.

By what law?:  this usage of “law” isn’t referring to the OT Mosaic Law, but to general principle;  could read "By what principle?”, or "Based on what excluding precept?”

works=ho ergon:  literally, “the works”, i.e. the works that a man performs

Nay:  NO!  By no means!    

faith=pistis:  believing;  “the law of faith” should read "the principle of believing”;  specifically, contextually, the principle of believing regarding Jesus Christ’s finished work on our behalf

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:27  [AMP]
Then what becomes of [our] pride and [our] boasting? It is excluded (banished, ruled out entirely). On what principle? [On the principle] of doing good deeds? No, but on the principle of faith.

Romans 3:27  [PHILIPS]
What happens now to human pride of achievement?  There is no more room for it.  Why, because failure to keep the Law has killed it?  Not at all, but because the whole matter is now on a different plane--believing instead of achieving.

Romans 3:28  [AV]
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
Therefore:  this usage of the Gr word indicates an inference or a conclusion reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning

conclude=logizomai:  reckon, logically know;  a simple and reasoned conclusion is being reached.  If God, as a just Judge, justifies a man when he believes in Jesus Christ (v26), leaving a man with NO ground of boasting in himself because the principle of relying on one’s own works for justification is excluded by the principle of believing in Christ’s finished work (v27), then the simple and logical conclusion is that a man is justified by believing without ANY deeds of the law (v28).

justified:  to make just or righteous according to God’s standard of justice

faith=pistis:  believing - in the context, believing regarding Jesus Christ

without the deeds:  without works, apart from works (omit “the”);  The conclusion being reached is supported by all that has been built so far in Romans.  By our own works, all we deserve is the wrath of God.  Instead of deserved wrath, God freely offers us righteousness, right standing and relationship with Him.  To receive that righteousness, God asks of us one thing: BELIEVE regarding Jesus Christ.  No man could ever put himself back into right standing with God through his own efforts, no matter how much good he thinks he does, no matter how much boasting he does in his own achievements.  And one dare never be seduced into thinking that God proclaims “Perfect obedience to the law is not necessary for justification or salvation”.  In truth, He declares “NO degree of obedience to the law is necessary for justification or salvation”.  A man is justified by believing, saved by grace.  The gospel, the good news of God concerning His Son, is crystal clear that what we have in Christ is ours through believing as opposed to law, through grace as opposed to works, a gift as opposed to wages.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:28  [GW]
We conclude that a person has God’s approval because of faith, not because of his own efforts.

Romans 3:28  [AMP]
For we hold that a man is justified and made upright by faith independent of and distinctly apart from good deeds (works of the Law). [The observance of the Law has nothing to do with justification.]

Romans 3:29  [AV]
Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also:

ANNOTATED NOTES:
Gentiles=ethnos (twice):  nations, Gentiles;  refers to those who were not of Israel, those who were non-Jews;  Whether Jew or Gentile, all mankind is covered by God’s gracious provision.  Numerous times in Romans thus far, beginning as early as 1:13, God has specifically referred to “Gentiles” or “Greeks” as inclusive in this revelation (see 1:13,14,16;  2:9,10,14;  3:9).  Paul was given this gospel of God to write down, and inclusive language such as “all”, “every”, and “both” is used throughout.  And yet, after laying out the one means of justification for all, the one way of salvation available to every man, God has to again remind the reader of the non-distinction in His eyes.  It’s apparently a strong tendency in the mind of man to draw lines of distinction where God does not.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATIONS:
Romans 3:29  [NLT]
After all, is God the God of the Jews only? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Of course he is.

Romans 3:29  [DARBY]
Is God the God of Jews only? is he not of the nations also? Yea, of nations also:

Romans 3:30  [AV]
Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
Seeing:  Since

which shall:  who will

justify:  to make just or righteous according to God’s standard of justice

circumcision:  figurative reference to Jews/Judeans, who were required under the Mosaic Law to circumcise every male child

uncircumcision:  figurative reference to Gentiles, who had no such requirement by Law

faith=pistis (twice):  believing, faith;  The one and same God makes both any Jew or any Gentile righteous on the basis of believing, i.e. right believing regarding Jesus Christ.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:30  [LIT]
since there is only one God, who will make the circumcised man righteous by believing regarding Jesus Christ, and the uncircumcise man righteous on the basis of the same believing.

Romans 3:31  [AV]
Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.

ANNOTATED NOTES:
make void=katargeo:  abolish, nullify

God forbid=me genomai:  could be translated "Let it not be!", or "May it not be!", or “May it never happen!";  The Gr words communicate a strong aversion to something so abhorrent that it should not even be thought of.  This strongly assertive phrase appears 14 places in the Church Epistles, 10 of them in Romans (see 3:4,6;  6:2,15;  7:7,13;  9:14;  11:1,11;  1 Cor 6:15;  Gal 2:17;  3:21;  6:14)

establish the law:  Gal 3:21 states “...if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.” [NKJV]   The law, though unable to impart life and make a person righteous, foretold of the coming Redeemer and foreshadowed his redemptive work (Heb 10:1).  In that regard, through believing in Jesus Christ as man's Redeemer, the law is established.  Part of the purpose of the law was to show man what a sinner he was, by nature, and that no matter how hard he tried to be holy, he could never stand worthy before a Holy God - he could never earn right standing before God and obtain eternal life by his own works.  The law gave a knowledge of sin (Rom 3:20), defined sin (Rom 7:7), even incited sin (Rom 5:20a; 7:8;  1 Cor 15:56b).  Every man born of Adam needed a savior because he could never accomplish redemption on his own, for himself or anyone else (Ps 49:7;  Micah 6:7).  But the law, in multiple ways, repeatedly pointed to the one who would redeem man from sin.  Hence, the law is established as to it’s purposes when one believes concerning Jesus Christ.  The justice of God and the mercy of God are displayed in the law, and the law is fulfilled in totality by Christ (Rom 10:4-10).  All of God's demands for justice were met by Christ on the cross.  Through believing concerning Jesus Christ and the price he paid, God has justified us FREELY – without any cost to us and without any cause within us.  Because of God’s unfathomable love, mercy, and grace, the ransom for our redemption has been legally and fully paid - the price being the precious blood of His beloved Son.  (see Jn 1:29;  Isa 53:6-11;  Jn 3:16-17; 10:11;  1 Pet 1:18-21;  Gal 3:17-4:7)

ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION:
Romans 3:31  [NASB]
Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.

Romans 3:31 [PHILIPS]
Are we then undermining the Law by this insistence on faith? Not a bit of it! We put the Law in its proper place.