Righteousness
Romans 5:21
The concepts presented in this verse have been commented on in earlier passages. However, for purposes of translation the use of righteousness in this verse needs to be made clear. Righteousness is best understood in the sense of “God’s putting men right with himself,” which is understood as the beginning point and eternal life as the final point of the salvation experience. The meaning, then, is that God’s grace rules us by putting us into a right relation with him and by leading us to eternal life (see verse Romans 6:22) through Jesus Christ our Lord. The phrase through Jesus Christ our Lord must be connected in meaning both with the matter of putting men right with God and of leading them to eternal life.
The transition so then may be rendered in some languages as “to sum up everything,” “finally we may say,” or “as a conclusion.”
Though in some languages one cannot say sin ruled, it may be possible to say “sin was powerful.” By means of death would then be rendered as “because all people had to die.” The second principal clause may thus be translated in a parallel fashion: “so also God’s way of showing grace is powerful because he puts men right with himself” or “… by means of putting men right with himself.”
The phrase leading us to eternal life may be rendered in some languages as a causative: “he causes us to live without end” or “he causes us to always live truly” (the addition of “truly” implying a qualitative distinction in an “unending life”).
Through Jesus Christ our Lord may be expressed as means—for example, “Jesus Christ our Lord made this possible” or “… caused this to be.”
Newman, Barclay Moon, and Eugene Albert Nida. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Romans. New York: United Bible Societies, 1973. Print. UBS Handbook Series.
Comments