Romans 3:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one;

NIV: As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one;

NASB: as it is written: 'THERE IS NO RIGHTEOUS PERSON, NOT EVEN ONE;

CSB: as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one.

NLT: As the Scriptures say, 'No one is righteous — not even one.

KJV: As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

NKJV: As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;

Paul has proclaimed in the previous verse that everyone, Jew and non-Jew alike, is "under sin." He is showing that Jews cannot hope to be shielded from God's judgment for their personal sin, simply because they belong to the nation of Israel. Every person, Jew or Gentile, will be judged by God on the basis of their own right and wrong choices. By that standard, every person, Jew or Gentile, will be found to be "under sin" or guilty and deserving of God's anger.

Now Paul begins to back up that claim with a series of quotes from the Hebrew Scriptures—what we now call the Old Testament. He wants to show that this idea of universal sinfulness is not a new idea. David wrote the same thing in Psalm 14:3, "There is none who does good, not even one." The following two verses will complete the reference, which thoroughly eliminates the possibility that any person has ever "done good" sufficient to make them holy in the eyes of God.

This verse is often-quoted, and for good reason. The idea that all people—without exception—are in need of salvation is a key point of the gospel. Scripture leaves no room for anyone to claim they are "good enough" to deserve heaven. Paul will return to this same idea, using different phrasing, in Romans 3:23.

Romans 3:9–20 contains a string of quotes from the Old Testament Scriptures. Paul uses these to demonstrate that both Jews and Greeks alike are under sin. After establishing that ''there is none who does good'' from Psalm 14:1, Paul uses quotes from Psalms and Isaiah to show ways we have always used our bodies—throats, tongues, lips, feet, and eyes—to express our sinfulness. He concludes the section with his strongest statement, yet, that no human being will be justified in God's sight by following the works of the law. The law can only show us our sin, not save us from it.

Romans 3 begins with a question-and-answer scheme. These are responses one might expect from someone opposed to what Paul wrote in Romans 2. Next, Paul quotes from a series of Old Testament passages. These Scriptures show that those writers also agreed that nobody, not one person, deserves to be called righteous. Paul declares emphatically that no one will be justified by following the works of the law. Finally, though, he arrives at the good news: righteousness before God is available apart from the law through faith in Christ's death for our sin on the cross.

The prior chapter explained that God's judgment on sin will come to all men, whether or not they understand the literal law. Faith in God, in the heart, matters more to God than rote obedience. At the start of this chapter, Paul answers a series of questions from an imagined objector to those teachings. Next, he quotes a series of Old Testament passages which support His teaching that human beings are by nature sinful. Each of us turns away from God. Nobody can be justified by the law, Paul insists. Fortunately, it is possible to attain God's righteousness: but only by His grace, through faith in Christ's atoning sacrifice for our sin on the cross. We must come to this by faith, and it is available to Jews and Gentiles alike.

The book of Romans is the New Testament's longest, most structured, and most detailed description of Christian theology. Paul lays out the core of the gospel message: salvation by grace alone through faith alone. His intent is to explain the good news of Jesus Christ in accurate and clear terms. As part of this effort, Paul addresses the conflicts between law and grace, between Jews and Gentiles, and between sin and righteousness. As is common in his writing, Paul closes out his letter with a series of practical applications.