Romans 5:3

Faith Triumphs in Trouble

1 Therefore, ^ahaving been justified by faith,¹ we have ^bpeace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

2 ^athrough whom also we have access by faith into this grace ^bin which we stand, and ^crejoice in hope of the glory of God.

3 And not only that, but ^awe also glory in tribulations, ^bknowing that tribulation produces¹ perseverance;

4 ^aand perseverance,¹ character; and character, hope.

5 ^aNow hope does not disappoint, ^bbecause the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Christ in Our Place

6 For when we were still without strength,¹ in due time ^aChrist died for the ungodly.

7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.

8 But ^aGod demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

9 Much more then, having now been justified ^aby His blood, we shall be saved ^bfrom wrath through Him.

10 For ^aif when we were enemies ^bwe were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved ^cby His life.

11 And not only that, but we also ^arejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Death in Adam, Life in Christ

12 Therefore, just as ^athrough one man sin entered the world, and ^bdeath through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—

13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but ^asin is not imputed when there is no law.

14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, ^awho is a type of Him who was to come.

15 But the free gift is not like the¹ offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded ^ato many.

16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many¹ offenses resulted in justification.

17 For if by the one man’s¹ offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)

18 Therefore, as through¹ one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through ^aone Man’s righteous act the free gift came ^bto all men, resulting in justification of life.

19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by ^aone Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

20 Moreover ^athe law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace ^babounded much more,

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does Romans 5:3 Mean?

Romans 5:1-5

"Hope" appears three times in these verses, and it is tied to justification and the doors that open to us. In verse 2, hope motivates us to rejoice that we can look forward in positive expectation of God's glory! What an awesome opening that is to us! It is not the glory of a perfect human or even of angels, but of God! This is so hard for us to imagine because it almost sounds blasphemous. Is it any wonder that Christians can be optimistic about life in the face of all the evil we are aware of? The goal is so great that it is worth more than all the burden of being human, dealing with our sins and the repercussions of others' sins.

Our hope does not disappoint or bring us to shame because it is based in the reality of God and His promises. The common hopes of man may or may not come to pass because they are fragile and frail at best and in many cases utterly false. Yet, the believer's hope is no fantasy because it is firmly anchored in the person and promises of the Creator God.

As mentioned earlier, the activity of God among us produces hope. This is drawn in part from verses 3-4, where Paul says that trials, borne while God is part of our lives, produces perseverance, character, and hope. Because of this hope a person is never embarrassed through failure because God, who is our hope, never fails. God loves us, and He communicates His love to us through His instruction, fellowship, and discipline. Through these, we come to know Him and His faithfulness. As our admiration for Him grows, these things motivate us to purify ourselves to be like Him (I John 3:1-2).

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Elements of Motivation (Part Three): Hope

**Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Romans 5:3:**

Jeremiah 31:31-34
Lamentations 3:22-24
Matthew 5:10-12
Matthew 27:46
John 5:25-29
Acts 14:22
Romans 12:1
Revelation 2:5

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Romans 5:4 >>

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