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Romans 3:23 KJV
Romans · chapter 3 · verse 23
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;Romans 3:23 · King James Version
What Romans 3:23 means
All have sinned puts everybody on the same footing, which is exactly the argument Paul is making in this chapter. Come short of the glory of God is an archery picture — the arrow falls short of the mark, whether by an inch or a mile. That's why the next verse, about being justified freely by his grace, has to follow it.
Study note provided by TheWay Bible App, separate from the KJV text. Read the full chapter in context and compare interpretations. Report a correction.
Romans 3:23 in context
21But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;
22Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:
23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Commentary
Cross references
- Ecclesiastes 7:20
- 1 John 1:8-10
- Romans 3:9
- Galatians 3:22
- Romans 11:32
- Romans 3:19
- 1 Thessalonians 2:12
- 2 Thessalonians 2:14
Key words (Strong's)
- sinnedhamartanōto be without a share in, to miss the mark, to err, be mistaken, to miss or wander from…G264 →
- shorthystereōbehind, to come late or too tardily, to be left behind in the race and so fail to reach…G5302 →
- glorydoxaopinion, judgment, view, opinion, estimate, whether good or bad concerning someone, in…G1391 →
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From all this Paul infers that it is in vain to look for justification by the works of the law, and that it is to be had only by faith, which is the point he has been all along proving, from Rom 1:17, and which he lays down (Rom 3:28) as the summary of his discourse, with a quod erat demonstrandum - which was to be…
— Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on verses 19-31