for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Parallel translations
- WEB for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;
- KJV For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
- BSB for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
- NKJV for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
- NLT For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
All people have sinned and fall short of God's glory. This universal need is why all need the same Savior.
Overview
This famous summary declares the universal reality of sin: every person has missed the mark and lacks the glory God intended for humanity. It grounds the 'no distinction' of the previous verse, since all share the same plight. The verse drives the reader to the only remedy, the free justification offered in Christ described next.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Eccl 7:20Surely there is not a righteous man on earth, who does good and doesn’t sin.
- 1 Jn 1:8–10If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- Rom 3:9What then? Are we better than they? No, in no way. For we previously warned both Jews and Greeks, that they are all under sin.
- Gal 3:22But the Scriptures imprisoned all things under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
- Rom 11:32For God has shut up all to disobedience, that he might have mercy on all.
- Rom 3:19Now we know that whatever things the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may be brought under the judgment of God.
- 1 Th 2:12to the end that you should walk worthily of God, who calls you into his own Kingdom and glory.
- 2 Th 2:14to which he called you through our Good News, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Rom 5:2through whom we also have our access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
- 1 Pet 4:13But because you are partakers of Christ’s sufferings, rejoice; that at the revelation of his glory you also may rejoice with exceeding joy.
- Rom 1:28Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;
- 1 Pet 5:10But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
- Heb 4:1Let us fear therefore, lest perhaps anyone of you should seem to have come short of a promise of entering into his rest.
- 1 Pet 5:1Therefore I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and who will also share in the glory that will be revealed.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Paul unfolds the gospel in full: Christ our righteousness received by faith, the second Adam in whom many are made righteous, in whose death and resurrection we are buried and raised.
How Romans 3:23 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.