Romans 5:18

So then, just as one trespass brought condemnation for all men, so also one act of righteousness brought justification and life for all men.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Paul to the Roman church, mid-way through his Adam–Christ comparison (5:12–21), tightening the "how much more" argument of v. 17 into a balanced parallel.

The words — παραπτώματος (paraptōma, G3900) literally means a "falling away" or "stumbling," a misstep from a path, and is deliberately distinct from ἁμαρτία (hamartia, "missing the mark") used elsewhere in the passage.

The thread — 1 Corinthians 15:22 states the same two-fold structure in its barest form: "as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive." Romans 5:19 restates the verse's logic with "obedience" replacing "act of righteousness."

Why it lands — The verse claims that a single act of righteousness produces justification and life for all men, which forces the reader to confront whether "all" here is genuinely universal or bounded by faith, and to reckon with the weight of the parallel: if one trespass condemned everyone, the scope of the remedy is equally total.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

Cross-references

1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death was passed on to all men, because all sinned.
Romans 5:15 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many!
Acts 13:39 Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Romans 5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Romans 4:25 He was delivered over to death for our trespasses and was raised to life for our justification.
1 Timothy 2:4 who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.
John 1:7 He came as a witness to testify about the Light, so that through him everyone might believe.
Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.