Romans 5:21
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so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
That as sin--Observe, the word "offense" is no more used, as that had been sufficiently illustrated; but--what better befitted this comprehensive summation of the whole matter--the great general term sin. hath reigned unto death--rather, "in death," triumphing and (as it were) revelling in that complete destruction of its victims. even so might grace reign--In Rom 5:14, Rom 5:17 we had the reign of death over the guilty and condemned in Adam; here it is the reign of the mighty causes of these--of SIN which clothes Death a Sovereign with venomous power (Co1 15:56) and with awful authority (Rom 6:23), and of GRACE, the grace which originated the scheme of salvation, the grace which "sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world," the grace which "made Him to be sin for us who knew no sin," the grace which "makes us to be the righteousness of God in Him," so that "we who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness do reign in life by One, Jesus Christ!" through righteousness--not ours certainly ("the obedience of Christians," to use the wretched language of GROTIUS) nor yet exactly "justification" [STUART, HODGE]; but rather, "the (justifying) righteousness of Christ" [BEZA, ALFORD, and in substance, OLSHAUSEN, MEYER]; the same which in Rom 5:19 is called His "obedience," meaning His whole mediatorial work in the flesh. This is here represented as the righteous medium through which grace reaches its objects and attains all its ends, the stable throne from which Grace as a Sovereign dispenses its saving benefits to as many as are brought under its benign sway. unto eternal life--which is salvation in its highest form and fullest development for ever. by Jesus Christ our Lord--Thus, on that "Name which is above every name," the echoes of this hymn to the gl…
Open source ↗The apostle, having made good his point, and fully proved justification by faith, in this chapter proceeds in the explication, illustration, and application of that truth. I. He shows the fruits of justification (Rom 5:1-5). II. He shows the fountain and foundation of justification in the death of Jesus Christ, which he discourses of at large in the rest of the chapter.
Open source ↗Cross-references
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For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone.
Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who did not sin in the way that Adam transgressed. He is a pattern of the One to come.
For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive an abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death was passed on to all men, because all sinned.
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires.
And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore you, secure you, strengthen you, and establish you.