Romans 3:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.

NIV: Why not say--as some slanderously claim that we say--'Let us do evil that good may result'? Their condemnation is just!

NASB: And why not say (just as we are slanderously reported and as some claim that we say), 'Let’s do evil that good may come of it'? Their condemnation is deserved.

CSB: 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!

NLT: And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, 'The more we sin, the better it is!' Those who say such things deserve to be condemned.

KJV: 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.

NKJV: And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.

Paul finally gets to the heart of one reason for the question-and-answer format he has been using. He is answering the slanderous charges of some of his accusers. Because Paul teaches that human sinfulness demonstrates God to be completely righteous—because He remains faithful even when we do not—they have been saying that Paul is telling people to keep sinning. Paul calls this for what it is: slander, a deliberate, dishonest lie meant to damage his reputation and his efforts.

These critics go so far as to say that the logical outcome of Paul's teaching is to provoke people to sin more to make more good: "Why not do evil that good may come?" Paul has described this as a human argument (Romans 3:5). It clearly does not make any sense. It sounds like the twisted logic of a condemned man trying to talk himself out of punishment he has earned.

In fact, this is such a foolish idea that Paul doesn't even bother to debate it, at least not now. The fact that God remains righteous and faithful in the face of human sinfulness does not mean that God wants humans to sin more. It means that He is being consistent to His own nature.

Instead of arguing the point further, Paul simply says this of those who are accusing him of telling people to go on sinning: "Their condemnation is just." In other words, they have earned God's wrath. He will return to a more detailed look at this challenge, later in this letter (Romans 6:1).

Romans 3:1–8 contains a series of questions which might have come from someone opposed to Paul's teaching in Romans 2. Using this challenge-response structure, Paul clarifies that being Jewish and circumcised still comes with great advantages. He also points out that God remains faithful to the Jewish people in spite of their sin. In fact, His faithfulness in the face of unfaithfulness increases His glory. That does not mean, however, that God wants human beings to continue to sin, as some were accusing Paul of teaching.

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.