But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Parallel translations
- KJV But God commendeth his 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 has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
- John 3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
- Rom 5:6For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
- 1 Pet 3:18Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;
- 1 Jn 3:16By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
- 1 Jn 4:9–10By this God’s love was revealed in us, that God has sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
- Isa 53:6All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
- Eph 2:7that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus;
- Rom 4:25who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.
- Eph 1:6–8to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he freely gave us favor in the Beloved,
- Rom 5:20The law came in besides, that the trespass might abound; but where sin abounded, grace abounded more exceedingly;
- 1 Tim 1:16However, for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first, Jesus Christ might display all his patience, for an example of those who were going to believe in him for eternal life.
- Rom 3:5But if our unrighteousness commends the righteousness of God, what will we say? Is God unrighteous who inflicts wrath? I speak like men do.
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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.