Lessons # 91 and 92
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ HCSB = Holman Christian Standard Bible +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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The Judging God not unjust (Rom 3:5-8)
5 But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) 6 Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? 7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?” 8 Why not say—as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say — “Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is deserved.
In our introduction of this section, we indicated that it is concerned with God’s judgment or punishment that confirms His righteous character. We stated that the apostle used five rhetorical questions that helped us to consider our passage as being concerned with understanding that God who judges sin could not be considered anything but just. Thus, there are three assertions the rhetorical questions of the apostle in the section help us to make. The first is that human unrighteousness proves God’s righteousness as derived from verse 5 that we have considered. The second is that His judgment of the world proves He is not unjust as conveyed in verse 6 that we started to consider but did not finish. The third is that even misrepresentation of Paul’s teaching proves God is just as we derive from verses 7 and 8. Because this section is concerned with teaching that God is not unjust because He judges sin, we derive a message we believe the Holy Spirit wants us to hear from the passage before us. This message is that God is just in His punishing of human sinfulness and so, you should avoid His punishment by avoiding sinfulness. With this brief review, we proceed to the second assertion where we stopped in our last study.
The second assertion or point of the apostle in the passage we are studying that is related to the first is that God’s judgment of the world proves He is not unjust. This assertion or point is developed following the phrase of Romans 3:6 Certainly not or literally Never may it be that is intended to convey a strong negation of something that should not happen or occur. Hence, as we started to consider in our last study, the apostle states emphatically that it cannot happen for God to be unjust. Positively, this means emphatically that God is just. This strong negative phrase the apostle used is followed by his third rhetorical question, that is indeed an explanation, in Romans 3:6 If that were so, how could God judge the world? A literal translation reads For otherwise how (will) God judge the world? This is because of the Greek conjunction and particle used.
The expression of the NIV If that were so is how the translators of the NIV translated a Greek conjunction (epei) the apostle used that may be interpreted as a marker of time at which something occurs and so may mean “when, after” as it is used to introduce what happened after the Lord Jesus finished His sermon to the people before He entered Capernaum as we read in Luke 7:1:
When Jesus had finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.
The Greek conjunction may be used as a marker of cause or reason in which case it has the meaning “because, since, for” as Apostle Paul used the word to provide reason for his boast, as we may gather from 2 Corinthians 11:18:
Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast.
The word could also mean “otherwise” as it is used in Apostle Paul’s reason for instructing those in mixed marriages in the sense both spouses were unbelievers when they got married but one of them afterwards got saved, to strive not to divorce for the sake of the position their children would be placed if they divorced as we read in 1 Corinthians 7:14:
For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.
In our passage of Romans 3:6, the conjunction is used as a marker of reason or explanation for the apostle’s emphatic expression that is intended to show that it is impossible for God to be unjust and so means “for otherwise.”
The Greek particle (pōs) the apostle used may be interpreted as a marker in exclamations with the meaning “how” as it is used to report the exclamation of the Jews regarding Jesus’ response towards Lazarus’ death as recorded in John 11:36:
Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”
The Greek particle is used predominantly as a marker of question so that it could be translated “in what way?” or “how?” whether in direct or indirect questions. In direct question, it may be used to determine how something has come to be as in the questioning of the Jews of the man born blind in what way or manner he was healed by Jesus as narrated in John 9:26:
Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
The Greek particle may be used in questions indicating surprise as it is used to describe the question of those Jewish pilgrims regarding how it is possible for the disciples to speak the various languages of their nations because the disciples spoke in tongues as stated in Acts 2:8:
Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language?
The Greek particle may be used in questions denoting disapproval or rejection that it may even be translated “with what right?” or “how dare you?” as the word is used to describe Apostle Paul’s question in disapproval of Apostle Peter’s conduct of withdrawing fellowship with fellow Gentile believers because of fear of some in Jerusalem as we read in Galatians 2:14:
When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?
The particle may be used as a marker of exclamation in which case it may be translated “how…!” as it is used in the Lord Jesus’ exclamation concerning the state of the rich regarding the reign of God as we read in Luke 18:24:
Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!
In our passage of Romans 3:6, the Greek particle is used as a marker of interrogative with the meaning of “how?” where the writer is about to negate another and emphatically deny that the thing inquired about has happened or been done. Thus, the rhetorical question the apostle used is intended to explain how impossible it is for God to be unjust in the question If that were so, how could God judge the world?
The word “judge” is translated from a Greek verb (krinō) that may mean “to judge, pass judgment upon, express an opinion about” as it is used in the Lord Jesus’ instruction against looking down on others in a condemning way in Luke 6:37:
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
The word may mean “to judge as guilty, condemn” as in Nicodemus’ question to Jewish leaders regarding what they said about Jesus as stated in John 7:51:
“Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?”
The word may mean “to punish” as in Stephen’s sermon as he referred to God’s promise to Abraham of punishing those who would enslave his descendants in Acts 7:7:
But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’
The word may mean to make a judgment based on taking various factors into account, hence means “to judge, think, consider, look upon,” as in Apostle Paul’s statement to the Jews who rejected the gospel message, as stated in Acts 13:46:
Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.
In our passage of Romans 3:6, the word means “to judge,” that is, “to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong.”
The word “world” in the question If that were so, how could God judge the world? is translated from a Greek noun (kosmos) with several meanings. It can mean the planet earth in which people live. It is in this sense that Apostle Paul used the word in 1 Timothy 6:7:
For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.
It is in this sense that Apostle Peter used the word in encouraging believers to endure suffering since believers in different parts of the planet earth are suffering the same, according to the instruction in 1 Peter 5:9:
Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
The Greek word translated “world” can also mean that which serves to beautify through decoration, hence means “adornment, adorning”, as in 1 Peter 3:3:
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.
In our passage of Romans 3:6, the word means “world” in the sense of “humanity in general” or “the inhabitants of the earth.”
The rhetorical question of Romans 3:6 If that were so, how could God judge the world? is intended to convey that God is righteous and just since He judges the world. A judge cannot sit in judgment of one charged of a crime if that judge is guilty of the same crime. Thus, the apostle argued that if God were not just or righteous He would not be in a position to judge people of this world. As it is, because God is righteous and just, He judges people of this world. Hence, the second assertion we stated the apostle conveyed in the rhetorical question is that God’s judgment of the world proves He is not unjust. This brings us to the third assertion or point of the apostle.
The third assertion or point of Apostle Paul in the passage we are studying is that even the misrepresentation of his teaching proves God is just. This assertion is derived from the fourth rhetorical question of the apostle. The apostle began with the result of misrepresentation or mischaracterization of his teaching. This he did by setting up a conditional statement that led to his question. This condition is given in the first part of Romans 3:7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory. The sentence Someone might argue is not in the Greek, but it is added by the translators of the NIV probably to interpret a Greek particle the apostle used that was not directly translated in the NIV since literally the Greek reads But if by my falsehood the truth of God abounded to his glory.
The apostle began Romans 3:7 with the same Greek phrase that he began in verse 5. The Greek phrase consists of two Greek particles that we considered in detail in verse 5. The first is the Greek particle (ei) that is used in different ways in the Greek. For example, the Greek particle is used as a marker of condition that exists in fact or hypothetical so that it is translated “if.” On the one hand, if a writer presents an action associated with a verb as real, although the writer may or may not believe the action to be real, there is the implication there is no doubt or uncertainty about what is stated when our Greek particle is used. Thus, in some context, the word “if” may be understood to mean “since”, especially if the action has already taken place. On the other hand, if a writer presents the action associated with a verb as possible, the implication is that the thing in question is possible but uncertain, though assumed probable. In our passage of Romans 3:7, because the apostle used it to state something that has already happened as we will note later, the particle is best translated “since” to indicate that the apostle was not concerned with something that is uncertain, but what is certain. Although, I am not certain, but it seems that this interpretation is one that is adopted by the CEV because verse 7 in it begins with the word “since.”
There is a manuscript variation regarding the second word the apostle used at the beginning of Romans 3:7. Some manuscripts contain a Greek conjunction (gar) that is translated “for” in such English versions as the KJV and the NET while other manuscripts read a Greek particle (de) that is often translated “but” as in this verse in such English versions as the ESV and the NASB among others. The Greek text from which the NIV is translated contains this particle although it was not translated in the NIV. The Greek manuscripts that read the Greek particle that is often translated “but” in the Greek is deemed the reading of the original since that will agree with the Greek phrase the apostle used in Romans 3:5 that is parallel or similar to the condition stipulated in verse 7. Anyway, the question is how to interpret the Greek particle used that we said may mean “but.” The Greek particle (de) the apostle used in verse 7, as we have already alluded, is routinely translated “but” in our English versions to reflect a contrast between clauses but when a simple connective is desired, without contrast being clearly implied, it may be translated “and” or “now” and in certain occurrences the particle may be left untranslated. Other times, the particle is used to provide explanation so may be translated “that is.” In the verse we are considering, the Greek particle is subject to three possible interpretations. It may be interpreted as a marker of contrast with the meaning “but.” Another interpretation is as a marker of continuation of the apostle’s arguments in the passage we are considering and so may be translated “now.” Still another interpretation is that it is used to resume a discourse that has been interrupted in which case it may be translated with the word “now” or any word that may reflect this interpretation. Considering the flow of the apostle’s argument in the passage we are considering, it seemed the apostle used it to resume the pattern of his argument in verse 5. You see in verse 5, he used a conditional clause in his argument to set up his rhetorical question. He then answered the rhetorical question before adding another rhetorical question in verse 6 but in verse 7 he returned to the same pattern of introducing a conditional clause that led to his fourth rhetorical question. This being the case, we could consider verse 6 as parenthetical so that verse 7 resumes the pattern of the question used in verse 5. The implication is that the Greek particle (de) the apostle used is to be taken as a marker that the apostle had resumed the pattern of his argument he began in verse 5. Although I am not certain, it appears that it is this interpretation that is reflected in the REB since verse 7 begins in it with the word “again” implying that there is a reference to verse 5 so that the word “again” would make sense.
All the same, the conditional clause the apostle used to set up his fourth rhetorical question is given in Romans 3:7 If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory. Literally, the Greek reads if by my falsehood the truth of God abounded to his glory. This clause involves sarcasm and something truthful. The sarcasm is in the clause If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness. Let me defend my interpretation since none of the commentaries I consulted after my study of this verse remotely suggest that this clause is concerned with sarcasm.
The apostle’s sarcasm is introduced in the word” falsehood” that is translated from a Greek noun (pseusma) that appears only here in the Greek NT; it means “lie, falsehood.” There is no way that the apostle could have been involved in falsehood in his ministry. Several times in his epistle, he declared that what he asserted was not a lie. In expressing his attitude towards his fellow Jews for their unbelief, he stated he was not lying as recorded in Romans 9:1–2:
1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.
He tells the Corinthians that he was not lying as he described his sufferings because of the gospel of Jesus Christ as stated in 2 Corinthians 11:31:
The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying.
He conveyed to the Corinthians that he was not involved in peddling the word of God as some others were doing in what he wrote in 2 Corinthians 2:17:
Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God.
Apostle Paul is not alone in declaring that there was no trickery or falsehood in his communicating of God’s word so did Apostle Peter according to 2 Peter 1:16:
We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
Anyway, Apostle Paul would not have used lies to preach the gospel of Christ. Lying, the apostle advocated, should not be practiced among believers as per his instruction to the Ephesians as we may gather from Ephesians 4:14:
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.
If he commands against lying, it is inconceivable that the one that asked other believers to follow his example would be involved in any form of lying or falsehood. This aside, we cited these various examples to show that when the apostle wrote the clause of Romans 3:7 If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory or literally if by my falsehood the truth of God abounded to his glory, he must have been involved in sarcasm.
The word “enhances” is translated from a Greek verb (perisseuō) that when used of things may mean to be present in abundance and so may mean “to overflow” as in the prayer of Apostle Paul for believers’ love to be demonstrated in such abundance to one another that it can be said to be overflowing, as in 1 Thessalonians 3:12:
May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.
When used of persons, the word may mean “to abound, to have an abundance” as in the statement of Apostle Paul concerning God making His grace available in abundance to the Corinthians to enable them to be generous and to be involved in good work, as we read in 2 Corinthians 9:8:
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
The word may mean “to excel” as in the commendation and encouragement to the Corinthians by Apostle Paul to be outstanding in generosity, as stated in 2 Corinthians 8:7:
But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
In our passage of Romans 3:7, the word has the sense of “to abound,” that is, “to be abundant or overflow” in what is described in the verbal phrase of Romans 3:7 God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory.
The word “truthfulness” is translated from a Greek noun (alētheia) with a range of meanings. It may mean the quality of being in accord with what is true hence means “truthfulness, dependability, uprightness in thought and deed.” It is in this sense of being in accord with what is truth that Apostle Paul used it in his commendation of the Corinthians for not letting his boasting to Titus about them turn out to be empty and so he was not put to shame as stated in 2 Corinthians 7:14:
I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well.
The verbal phrase has proved to be true is more literally has become truth. The Greek word may mean “reality” as opposed to mere appearance, as it is used by Apostle Paul to describe the reality of God’s grace demonstrated towards believers in Colossians 1:6:
that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.
“Truth” here has the sense of “reality” as opposed to mere appearance. It is for this reason that the translators of the TEV rendered the phrase in all its truth of the NIV as, as it really is. The Greek word that is translated “truth” may mean the content of what is truth and so means “truth.” It is in this sense that the apostle used it to encourage the Ephesians not to be involved with falsehood as they interacted with each other in Ephesians 4:25:
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
The command speak truthfully is literally speak truth. The word is used especially of the content of Christianity as the ultimate truth. It is in this sense Apostle Paul used it in connection with the gospel in Colossians 1:5:
the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel
The phrase the word of truth, the gospel is literally the word of truth of the gospel. The rendering of the NIV is quite good because of the Greek syntax of this phrase. In fact, to communicate fully the idea of the Greek construction we could translate the Greek phrase as the word of truth, that is, the gospel; in this way, it is clearer that the word of truth here is a reference to the gospel message. The apostle used the Greek word to refer to the Christian message that includes doctrine and the gospel message in Galatians 5:7:
You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?
Truth here in Galatians 5:7 refers to the Christian message the apostle delivered to the Galatians that includes the gospel message, the doctrine of justification by faith, and the doctrine that the filling of the Spirit is by faith. The apostle used the Greek word rendered “truth” as a reference to the body of accepted Christian doctrines that the church is the custodian in 1 Timothy 3:15:
if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.
In our passage of Romans 3:7, the word means “truthfulness” in the sense of the “the quality of being in accord with what is true.”
The word “glory” in the clause of Romans 3:7 If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory is translated from a Greek noun (doxa) that may mean “brightness, splendor, radiance”, that is, the condition of being bright or shining and so it is used to describe the physical phenomenon associated with the light that blinded Paul prior to his conversion while on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians, as stated in Acts 22:11:
My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.
The phrase the brilliance of the light is more literally the brightness of the light. The word when used of God means “glory” that could refer to “His power, brilliance, splendor, presence, authority, and majesty.” It is the context that determines which of these meanings is most applicable. Take for example, the word is translated “glory” in connection of the second coming of Jesus Christ as He stated in Matthew 16:27:
For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.
Because after the word “glory,” the verse goes on to speak of judgment, “glory” here has the sense of authority of God the Father. Take another example, the word “glory” is used to describe that which is associated with an angel that announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds as narrated in Luke 2:9:
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
The phrase glory of the Lord is here a visible manifestation of divine presence that appeared in form of light or radiance. Take another example of the word “glory” being used to describe an effect of Jesus’ miracle of turning water into wine that the Holy Spirit through Apostle John indicates reveals an element of Jesus’ true nature in John 2:11:
This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.
The sentence He thus revealed his glory, according to the UBS Translators’ Handbook, may be translated “there he showed how wonderful he was.” Of course, what Jesus revealed was His power or might in the miracle so that “glory” here refers to His power or might. Still take another example where Apostle Paul used the word in the context of speaking about God and His promises to the Corinthians as we read in 2 Corinthians 1:20:
For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.
Glory here refers either to the “honor” or “praise” of God. Thus, we see that the meaning of the word “glory” depends on the context. In our passage of Romans 3:7, the word “glory” is used in the sense of “state of high honor.”
We have considered the key words used in the clause of Romans 3:7 If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory or literally if by my falsehood the truth of God abounded to his glory and so we return to consider what the conditional clause asserts. We should note that the verbal phrase and so increases is how the translators of the NIV rendered a Greek preposition (eis) with different meanings. For example, it may mean “with reference to” as marker of reference or a marker of purpose so that it may be translated “in order to.” That aside, in our passage, it is used as a marker of result so that it could be translated “resulting” or “leading to” the state of high honor for God. In any event, there are two questions we need to answer to interpret the clause we are considering. What does the apostle mean by the phrase my falsehood and how are we to understand the phrase God’s truthfulness?
The phrase my falsehood is one that the apostle used to describe his teaching regarding God’s righteousness and His wrath against sin, that is, His punishing of sinners for their sins. In effect, the apostle had taught that God is righteous and because of His righteousness He expresses His wrath against unrighteousness. There is implied in the phrase the apostle’s teaching about God’s faithfulness that He showed to Israel despite the unfaithfulness of His people. Those who oppose the apostle would consider these teachings false so that the apostle sarcastically referred to them as falsehood when in reality what he taught were true.
To the question about the phrase God’s truthfulness, we should remember that the literal Greek reads the truth of God. The Greek syntax involved implies that we can understand the phrase as the truth about God and the truth from God. Thus, the apostle meant that the so-called falsehood he taught is indeed truth from God and about God. This means that what he taught was received from God and it revealed the truth about God or His character. Hence, the apostle in the clause If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory meant that what he taught about God that is from God although some may consider it false indeed shows the high honor that belongs to God. Thus, the conditional clause leads to the assertion that even misinterpretation of what the apostle taught indeed shows that God is righteous and just.
The conditional clause of the apostle led to the fourth rhetorical question of Romans 3:7 why am I still condemned as a sinner? The word “condemned” is translated from a Greek verb (krinō) we considered previously in verse 6 that in this verse means “to be judged.” The word “sinner” is translated from a Greek noun (hamartōlos) that may refer to a person that has disobeyed any of God’s commandments or one that is involved in wrongdoing and so means “a sinner” as that is the way Apostle Paul used it as he discoursed that the law is good if properly used but then conveys the law is for those who are lawbreakers and sinners as stated in 1 Timothy 1:9:
We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers,
The phrase the ungodly and sinful is literally the ungodly and sinners. The Greek word may mean “sinners” in the sense of “irreligious” or “outsiders” as used by the Jews to describe Gentiles as those who do not observe the Law as Apostle Paul used it to describe Gentiles in Galatians 2:15:
“We who are Jews by birth and not ‘Gentile sinners’
The observant Jews, such as the Pharisees, also used the word to describe other Jews that are considered as unobservant Jews in the complaint of the Pharisees and teachers of the law that Jesus Christ welcome tax collectors and “sinners” as narrated in Luke 15:2:
But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
The word “sinners” here refers probably to Jews that were considered as not observant of the Mosaic tradition according to the interpretation of the Pharisees and teachers of the law. That aside, in our passage of Romans 3:7, the word means “sinner” in the sense of “a person who has disobeyed any divine command or neglected any duty (whether intentionally or unintentionally).” So, the apostle’s rhetorical question why am I still condemned as a sinner? is tantamount to a declaration that he should not be considered a sinner as a person who has not truthfully communicated God or His word but as one who has truthfully communicated God and His word.
In any case, Apostle Paul proceeded to state the fate of those who misrepresent his message. But before he did, he presented his fifth rhetorical question that conveys a content of the misrepresentation. For the apostle wrote in the NIV84 of Romans 3:8 Why not say—as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? or in the NIV2011 Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? The translators of the NIV added such words as “why” and “say” to help the English reader recognize that the Greek sentence is a question. This is because a literal translation reads And not as we are defamed and as some report us to say Let us do evil (things), so that good (things) may come?
The conjunction “and” that appears in the literal translation but not in the NIV is intended to convey that the apostle expected that the correct answer to the rhetorical question of verse 7 is that the apostle indeed was not a sinner in the sense of one who communicated the word of God wrongly but he was one who did so correctly. It is if we understand this use of the word “and” as we explained that what followed in the fifth question makes more sense. That aside, the expression “being slanderously reported” of the NIV84 or “defamed” of the literal translation is translated from a Greek word (blasphēmeō) that means to speak in a disrespectful way in such a way as to harm or injure one’s reputation whether human or divine. Thus, on the one hand, when it is used with respect to humans the appropriate meaning is “to malign, to slander”, as it is used of the conduct expected of believers in Titus 3:2:
to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.
On the other hand, when the word is used with respect to God, the most appropriate meaning is “to blaspheme”, as it is used in the declaration of the Lord Jesus about the Holy Spirit as recorded in Luke 12:10:
And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.
In our passage of Romans 3:8, the sense of the word is “to be slandered,” that is, “to be or become maligned or denigrated with speech.”
Slander of a person involves some form of communication as that is what is introduced in the clause of NIV84 of Romans 3:8 as some claim that we say. The word “claim” is translated from a Greek verb (phēmi) that is concerned with stating something either orally or in writing so it may mean “to declare” as it is used to report what Peter said to the Lord Jesus of not going to deny Him as we read in Mark 14:29:
Peter declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”
The word may mean to say something that provides a fuller explanation of a statement, hence means “to mean, imply” as the word is used by Apostle Paul in explaining what he had said about idols and sacrifice in 1 Corinthians 10:19:
Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything?
In our passage of Romans 3:8, the word means “to mean,” that is, “to say something that provides a fuller explanation of a statement.” Hence, the word is used to provide a fuller explanation of the content of what those who slander the apostle and others who preach the gospel message since the word “we” in the clause as some claim that we say refers to the apostle and others that preach the gospel message.
Anyway, the content of what those who slander the apostle and the others who preach the gospel message is given in the expression of Romans 3:8 “Let us do evil that good may result” or literally Let us do evil (things), so that good (things) may come. The word “evil” is translated from a Greek adjective (kakos) that may pertain to being socially or morally reprehensible and so means “bad, evil.” The word may mean “wrong” in the sense of what is contrary to custom or law, as it is used in Romans 14:20:
Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.
It is used in the sense of “bad” to describe bad desires in Colossians 3:5:
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
The Greek word may mean “wicked”, as it is used in Revelation 2:2:
I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
The Greek word may pertain to being harmful or injurious hence means “injurious, dangerous, pernicious.” It is in this sense that the word is used in Revelation 16:2:
The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image.
The adjective “ugly” is more literally “evil.” Anyway, in our passage of Romans 3:8, the word means “evil” in the sense of morally objectionable behavior.
The word “good” is translated from a Greek adjective (agathos) which when used as a noun may refer to “possession” or “good things” as the word is used in the instruction of the Holy Spirit given to believers with respect to sharing what they have with those who teach them God’s word in Galatians 6:6:
Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.
However, the word as an adjective, as in our passage of Romans 3:8, has the general meaning of “good.” It can refer to the positive moral qualities of the most general nature, as it is used in the question of the Rich young man in Matthew 19:16:
Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
The meaning “good” may refer to generosity, as it is used in Matthew 20:15:
Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
The sentence I am generous is literally I am good. The word may also mean “useful” as it is used in encouraging believers to work hard in Ephesians 4:28:
He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.
Another meaning of the Greek word is “kind” as is expected of a Christian wife in Titus 2:5:
to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.
In our passage of Romans 3:8, the word means “good” in the sense of “moral excellence or admirableness.” Hence, those who slander Apostle Paul and other preachers of the gospel meant that the apostle and the others advocate a sinful life as that will reveal God’s grace more, a concept the apostle later spoke of in the sixth chapter of this epistle. The point is that the opponents mischaracterize the apostle’s preaching as advocating something sinful when that was not the case.
Be that as it may, the apostle indicated that there is consequence for slander, especially as it pertains to God’s word. So, he conveyed that those who malign the teachers of God’s word would be punished. It is this that he stated in the last sentence of Romans 3:8 Their condemnation is deserved. The word “condemnation” is translated from a Greek noun (krima) that may mean “judgment, judging” as the action/function of a judge as it is used of what God does, as stated in 1 Peter 4:17:
For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
The word may refer to legal decision rendered by a judge, that is, “judicial verdict” thus the word may be used for a condemnatory verdict so may mean “condemnation” as the word is used to describe fate of false teachers in 2 Peter 2:3:
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
The word may mean “punishment” as it is used for the prostitute in Revelation 17:1:
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.
In our passage of Romans 3:8, it means “condemnation” in the sense of “condemnatory verdict and sometimes the subsequent punishment.” This, the apostle said is fitting for such persons that slander him and others since the word “deserved” is translated from a Greek adjective (endikos) that here has the sense of “just,” that is, proper or fitting. In other words, the apostle meant to convey that whatever punishment God brings on such individuals, it should be seen as just and fitting for their slander. What the apostle wrote should serve as a warning about slandering those who teach God’s word because they teach something a person does not like although what they teach is true. If you slander them, you expose yourself to divine judgment. Anyway, let me close with a reminder of the message of this section that we have expounded which is that God is just in His punishing of human sinfulness and so, you should avoid His punishment by avoiding sinfulness.
02/20/26