Romans 6:15-22

The Believer’s Enslavement to God’s Righteousness

6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not! 6:16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves ¹  as obedient slaves, ²  you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or obedience resulting in righteousness? ³  6:17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you obeyed ⁴  from the heart that pattern ⁵  of teaching you were entrusted to, 6:18 and having been freed from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness. 6:19 (I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.) ⁶  For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 6:20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness.

6:21 So what benefit ⁷  did you then reap ⁸  from those things that you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death. 6:22 But now, freed ⁹  from sin and enslaved to God, you have your benefit ¹⁰  leading to sanctification, and the end is eternal life.

[6:16]  ¹ tn Grk “to whom you present yourselves.”

[6:16]  ² tn Grk “as slaves for obedience.” See the note on the word “slave” in 1:1.

[6:16]  ³ tn Grk “either of sin unto death, or obedience unto righteousness.”

[6:17]  ⁴ tn Grk “you were slaves of sin but you obeyed.”

[6:17]  ⁵ tn Or “type, form.”

[6:19]  ⁶ tn Or “because of your natural limitations” (NRSV).

[6:21]  ⁷ tn Grk “fruit.”

[6:21]  ⁸ tn Grk “have,” in a tense emphasizing their customary condition in the past.

[6:22]  ⁹ tn The two aorist participles translated “freed” and “enslaved” are causal in force; their full force is something like “But now, since you have become freed from sin and since you have become enslaved to God….”

[6:22]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “fruit.”