Death in Adam, Life in Christ
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What Does Romans 5:12 Mean?
Romans 5:12
When Adam and Eve sinned, God judged them. Since they were the father and mother of all of mankind, and they were the only representatives of mankind at the time, all of mankind figuratively sinned in Adam and Eve. God's judgment was correct, because given the chance, every human has sinned.
What then happened to Adam and Eve? They were ushered out of the Garden, and God put cherubim at its entrance to guard the Garden and the Tree of Life so that nobody could get back in. This is why at times the Bible bids people to return to God when they had never seemingly turned away from Him. Yet, all of mankind did turn away from God in Adam and Eve, and He invites us to return to the place, symbolically, where everything started, back to the environs He occupies, where the Tree of Life is.
The relationship with God is everything to our salvation. Without what Christ did in dying for our sins, we would not be in the position to have one with Him. Christ's payment of our sins opens up the way for a relationship to be built and for us to grow in the Holy Spirit, because now we have access to the Tree of Life in a relationship with God.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Holy Spirit and the Trinity (Part Seven)
Romans 5:12-14
The apostle John defines sin as the breaking of the law (I John 3:4). Paul states that the effect of sin is death (Romans 6:23). He also shows that both sin and death have been a factor in human existence since the start (Romans 5:12-14). The inescapable conclusion is that God's law, His definition of right and wrong, has been in effect since the very beginning! Because His law was in effect, God has ascribed sin to man from the beginning. Without law, there would have been no sin, and thus no death.
Martin G. Collins
The Ten Commandments
Romans 5:12
Sin was introduced and death spread. Adam and Eve never thought that the episode in the garden would have such impact! But it was the crack in the dike that has led to the flood of sins in every facet of man's life.
Our acts may not be as important as Christ's, Abraham's, or Adam and Eve's, but the principle is there and working. We do not live in a vacuum. As part of a body, our actions affect many others.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Little Things Count!
Romans 5:12
Sin is universal, and perhaps this is one reason why the term is so frequently ignored. So many are sinning so frequently that it is a way of life! It has become acceptable because everybody is doing it!
Sin is not like a disease that some contract and others escape. Some may self-righteously think they are better than others because of outward appearance - living by sight - but we have all been soiled by it. "There is none righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10). Perfection is gone. Because of sin, we have all come short of the glory of God.
The phrase in Romans 5:12, "And thus death spread to all men" can be translated into more modern English as, "When death entered the race, it went throughout." It means death indiscriminately affected all because all sinned. It almost seems as though sin is like an amoebic blob whose tentacles reach out to encompass all in its path, absorbing and sweeping everything to its death.
John W. Ritenbaugh
What Sin Is
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Romans 5:12:
Romans 5:12-14
Romans 6:23
1 John 3:4
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When Adam and Eve sinned, God judged them, and because they were the sole representatives and parents of mankind, all figuratively sinned in them. This judgment was correct, for every human, given the chance, has sinned. Sin is universal, soiling everyone; "there is none righteous, no, not one." When death entered the race, it went throughout, indiscriminately affecting all because all sinned. Since sin is breaking the law and its effect is death, God's law has been in effect from the beginning, so He ascribed sin to man from the start. Adam and Eve's episode was the crack in the dike, flooding every facet of life with sin. No one lives in a vacuum; our actions affect many others.