But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Parallel translations
- WEB But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
- BSB But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
- NKJV But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
- NASB But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
- NLT But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
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
God proves his love in that Christ died for us while we were still sinners. Divine love is shown to the undeserving.
Overview
This climactic verse declares that God 'commends' or demonstrates his own love by Christ's death for us 'while we were yet sinners,' not after we reformed. Unlike rare human sacrifice for the worthy, God gave his Son for the unworthy. The cross is thus the definitive display of God's love and the ground of the believer's assurance.
Cross-references & the web
Theme
- The Love of God"God shows his love in that while we were sinners, Christ died for us."
Cross-references · 13
- John 15:13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
- John 3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
- Rom 5:6For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
- 1 Pet 3:18For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
- 1 Jn 3:16Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
- 1 Jn 4:9–10In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
- Isa 53:6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
- Eph 2:7That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
- Rom 4:25Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
- Eph 1:6–8To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
- Rom 5:20Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
- 1 Tim 1:16Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.
- Rom 3:5But if our unrighteousness commend the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance? (I speak as a man)
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 5:8 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.