Scripture Translations
The Passion Translation
King James Version
New King James Version
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
The Message
New Living Translation
Romans 3:4 TPT - God will always be proven faithful and true to his word, while people are proven to be liars. This will fulfill what was written in the Scriptures: Your words will always be vindicated and you will rise victorious when you are being tried by your critics!

Teaching Videos
Commentaries
Romans Chapter 3:1-4
Romans 3:1-4 NLT - Then what's the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision? Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God.
True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful? Of course not! Even is everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him, "You will be proved right in what you say, and you will win your case in court."
The Passion Translation Footnotes
Romans 3:2 - Actually, there are numerous advantages. Most important, God distinguished the Jews from all other people by entrusting them with the revelation of his prophetic promises.
TPT Footnote:These prophetic promises (“messages,” “oracles,” or “sayings”) include the entire scope of revelation given to the Jews through the teachings of the Torah and the many prophecies of the coming Messiah, all finding their fulfillment in Jesus, the Anointed One.
Be Right - How to be right with God, yourself, and others - By Warren W. Wiersbe
Paul's summation (Romans 3:1-8) - All of Paul’s four witnesses agreed: The Jews were guilty before God. In Romans 3:1-8, Paul summed up the argument and refuted those Jews who tried to debate with him. They raised three questions: (1) “What advantage is it to be a Jew?” Reply: Every advantage, especially possessing the Word of God; (2) “Will Jewish unbelief cancel God’s faithfulness?” Reply: Absolutely not–it establishes it; (3) “If our sin commends His righteousness, how can He judge us?” Reply: We do not do evil that good may come of it. God judges the world righteously.
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:2 AMPC - Much in every say. To begin with, to the Jews were entrusted the oracles (the brief communications, the intentions, the utterances) of God.
Psalm 147:19 AMPC - He declares His word to Jacob, His statutes and His ordinances to Israel.
Romans 3:3 NIV - What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God's faithfulness?
Despite what we do, God is the same. We can run away, but God stays - He is the anchor in the same place.
2 Timothy 2:13 TPT
But even if we are faithless, he will still be full of faith, for he never wavers in his faithfulness to us!
Romans 3:3 AMPC - Does their lack of faith and their faithlessness nullify and make ineffective and void the faithfulness of God and His fidelity [to His Word]?
God is faithful to His Word. We need to know His Word - meditate on it day and night.
Psalm 1:1-3 AMPC - Blessed (happy, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather.
But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night.
And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity].
Romans 3:4 TPT - Absolutely not! God will always be proven faithful and true to his word, while people are proven to be liars. This will fulfill what was written in the Scriptures: Your words will always be vindicated and you will rise victorious when you are being tried by your critics!
The power of God's word, makes me think about this scripture:
Isaiah 55:11 AMPC - So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth: it shall not return to Me void [without producing any effect, useless], but it shall accomplish that which I please and purpose, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
Romans 3:3-4 The Message - So, what if, in the course of doing that, some of those Jews abandoned their post? God didn't abandon them. Do you think their faithlessness cancels out his faithfulness? Not on your life! Depend on it: God keeps his word even when the whole world is lying through its teeth.
God keeps his word. He is faithful - always!
2 Timothy 2:11-13 NIV
Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him, we also live with him;
If we endure, we will also reign with him.
If we disown him, he will also disown us;
If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.
Worship Songs
Romans 3:5-8
Romans 3:5-8 NKJV - But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.) Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world? For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? And why not say, "Let us do evil that good may come'? - as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
WHY DID SOME ACCUSE PAUL OF PROMOTING EVIL? (3:8)
They thought Paul’s message of grace would devalue the law, leading people to abandon their moral standards and do whatever they wanted to do. Paul’s critics did not understand that grace gives people the power to live holy lives—just as God always intended. Grace not only justifies, it also transforms. We are made right by grace, and by grace we can also live right.
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:6 The Message - How else would things get straightened out if God didn't do the straightening?
God is Holy. He doesn't need us. We need Him. He transforms us by the power of His Holy Spirit
2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJV - But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Romans Chapter 3:9-20
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
WHY DID PAUL STRING OLD TESTAMENT QUOTES TOGETHER AS IF THEY WERE ONE QUOTATION? (3:10–18)
Paul was not suggesting that all these quotes were from one source. It is written is a general heading covering God’s written revelation. It was common in Paul’s day to pull together Biblical passages dealing with a single theme. The challenge with such an approach is to avoid pulling verses out of context, something Paul did not do. All these verses speak about the fact that everyone has sinned.
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:9 NKJV - What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
We have all sinned.
Isaiah 53:6 NLT - All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God's path to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.
Romans 3:9 The Message - Basically, all of us, whether insiders or outsiders, start out in identical conditions, which is to say that we all start out as sinners. Scripture leaves no doubt about it.
We all need redeeming.
Ephesians 1:6b-7 - God has given us this grace in the one he dearly loves. In him, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of offenses, according to the riches of his grace.
Romans 3:13-14 AMPC - Their throat is a yawning grave; they use their tongues to deceive (to mislead and to deal treacherously). The venom of asps is beneath their lips. Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.
The power of the tongue!
Proverbs 18:20-21 - From the fruit of their mouth a person's stomach is filled; with the harvest of their lips they are satisfied. The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
James 3:8-10 - But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.
A prayer for us ....
Psalm 19:14 - Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
Psalm 141:3 - Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips.
Romans 3:17 AMPC - And they have no experience of the way of peace [they know nothing about peace, for a peaceful way they do not even recognize].
No experience of the way of peace. Who gives peace?
John 14:27 NIV - Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
Matthew 5:9 NIV - Blessed are the peacemakes, for they will be called children of God.
Romans 3:18 AMPC - There is no [reverential] fear of God before their eyes.
What is reverential fear of God?
Proverbs 1:7 AMPC - The reverent fear and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; but fools despise skillful and godly Wisdom, instruction, and discipline.
Proverbs 8:13 AMPC - The reverent fear and worshipful awe of the Lord [includes] the hatred of evil; pride, arrogance, the evil way, and perverted and twisted speech I hate.
Proverbs 14:27 AMPC - Reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death.
Psalm 111:10 AMPC - The reverent fear and worship of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom and skill [the preceding and the first essential, the prerequisite and the alphabet]; a good understanding, wisdom, and meaning have all those who do [the will of the Lord]. Their praise of Him endures forever.
Romans 3:18 TPT - They shut their eyes to the awe-inspiring God!
People choose not to see God. For example, in creation.
Psalm 19:1 TPT - God's splendor is a tale that is told; his testament is written in the stars. Space itself speaks his story every day through the marvels of the heavens. His truth is on tour in the starry vault of the sky, showing his skill in creation's craftsmanship.
Romans 3:19 NKJV - Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
We are accountable to God - every mouth, all the world.
Philippians 2:9-11 NIV - Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowlege that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Romans 3:19 The Message - This makes it clear, doesn't it, that whatever is written in these Scriptures is not what God says about others but to us to whom these Scripture were addressed in the first place!
God is speaking to us. We always need to think about the log in our own eye, and not to be quick to judge others.
Matthew 7:3 NLT - "And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a long in your own?
Worship Songs
Romans Chapter 3:21-26
Joyce Meyer - The Everyday Life Bible
Romans 3:23
We sometimes fall into the trap of thinking we are the worst people on the face of the earth and that nobody does as many wrong things as we do. But Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory (excellence) of God. Every man, woman, or child who was ever born, or ever will be, has a problem with sin. But the good news is that God has provided an answer to our dilemma.... Satan wants us to feel wrong, worthless, and like hopeless messes. He knows that without confidence we will never step out in faith to fulfill our God-ordained destinies. He knows if he can keep us in the prison of self-hatred, self-rejection, or just plain not liking ourselves that he will prevent us from making progress or ever being a threat to him and to the kingdom of darkness.
The Passion Translation - Footnotes
Romans 3:25 TPT - Jesus’ God-given destiny was to be the sacrifice to take away sins, and now he is our mercy seat* because of his death on the cross. We come to him for mercy, for God has made a provision for us to be forgiven by faith in the sacred blood of Jesus. This is the perfect demonstration of God’s justice, because until now, he had been so patient—holding back his justice out of his tolerance for us. So he covered over the sins of those who lived prior to Jesus’ sacrifice.
Footnote - Or "propitiation." The mercy seat becomes a metonymy for the sacrificial, redemptive work of Christ. The mercy seat was the lid to the ark of the covenant, which was carried throughout the wilderness for years and finally found a home in the temple of Jerusalem. "Blood of mercy" was sprinkled on the mercy seat (or "place of satisfaction") yearly on the Day of Atonement, which covered the sins of the people until Jesus sprinkled his blood on the mercy seat in the heavens. The mercy seat was not seen by the people; only the high priest went into the holy of holies to sprinkle blood upon the mercy seat. Yet Jesus was publicly offered as the satisfaction for sin's consequences.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
HOW DID JESUS’ DEATH SHOW GOD’S JUSTICE? (3:25–26)
Justice means that a wrong has been made right, either through payment or punishment. Since God is perfectly just, our sin needed to be paid for, and the penalty of sin is death (6:23). Jesus’ death on the cross not only saved us but also revealed God’s justice. God punished our sin by taking our penalty on himself.
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:21 TPT - But now, independently of the law, the righteousness of God is tangible and brought to light through Jesus, the Anointed One.
Jesus, the Light of the World. Are we shining His light?
Matthew 5:14-15 NKJV - "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine becore men, that they may see your good words and glorify your Father in heaven."
Romans 3:22-23 AMPC - Namely, the righteousness of God which comes by believing with personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ (the Messiah). [And it is meant] for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and are falling short of the honour and glory which God bestows and receives.
What rating would you give your personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ?
Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV - Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Hebrews 10:39 NIV - But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.
Romans 3:23 The Message - Since we've compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us, God did it for us.
We all fall short. Jesus makes the way for us to be reconciled.
Colossians 1:19-20 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, but making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
John 14:6 NKJV Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Romans 3:25 NKJV - whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blod, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.
The night of the Passover, deliverance from the final plague before God delivered the Israelites out of Egypt.
Exodus 12:12-13 "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgement on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. The blood will be a sing for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt."
Worship Songs
Egypt by Bethel Music and Cory Asbury
Jesus you gave it all - Hillsong Worship
Nothing but the blood by Hillsong Worship
Romans Chapter 3:27-28
Be Right - How to be right with God, yourself, and others - By Warren W. Wiersbe
To establish the law (vv. 27-31). Because of his Jewish readers, Paul wanted to say more about the relationship of the gospel to the law. The doctrine of justification by faith is not against the law, because it establishes the law. God obeyed His own law in working out the plan of salvation. Jesus in His life and death completely fulfilled the demands of the law. God does not have two ways of salvation, one for the Jews and one for the Gentiles, for He is one God. He is consistent with His own nature and His own law. If salvation is through the law, then men can boast, but the principle of faith makes it impossible for men to boast. The swimmer, when he is saved from drowning, does not brag because he trusted the lifeguard. What else could he do? When a believing sinner is justified by faith, he cannot boast of his faith, but he can boast in a wonderful Savior.
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:27 The Message - So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and counterclaims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we've learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does.
We respond to what God does. He loved us first.
1 John 4:19 NLT - We love each other because he loved us first.
Romans 3:27 TPT - Where, then, is there room for boasting? Do our works bring God's acceptance? Not at all! It was not our works of keeping the law but our faith in his finished work that makes us right with God.
We put our faith in what someone else did - ie what Jesus did.
Galatians 6:14 NIV - May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
Worship Songs
Romans Chapter 3:29-31
Case for Christ Study Bible
3:30 only one God. By appealing to the first article of Jewish faith (“the Lord is one,” Dt 6:4; see note there), Paul argues that there is only one way of salvation for both Jew (“circumcised”) and Gentile (“uncircumcised”), namely, faith in Christ.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
IF PEOPLE ARE SAVED BY FAITH, THEN WHY DID GOD GIVE THE LAW? (3:30–31)
The Mosaic Law itself is consistent with God’s righteousness, and when we look at it, we see our unrighteousness. We realize we have failed to obey it, so through the law we become conscious of our sin (v. 20). Paul pictured it beautifully when he said that the law was our guardian until Christ came (Gal 3:24).
New Spirit-filled Life Bible
Re: Romans 3:31 - God’s moral laws are not abolished by the gospel of Christ. Rather, the whole plan of salvation, including Christ’s obeying the Law for us and dying to pay the penalty for our breaking the Law, shows that God’s moral standards are eternally valid. See notes on Matt. 5:17; Mark 7:19.
The Passion Translation - Footnotes
Romans 3:31 TPT - Does emphasising our faith invalidate the law? Absolutely now. Instead, our faith establishes the role the law should rightfully have.
Footnote: The rightful role of the law is to bring conviction of sin (vv. 19-20) and to present God's standard of holiness, now fulfilled in Christ (8:24).
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 3:30 AMPC - Since it is one and the same God Who will justify the circumcised by faith [which germinated from Abraham] and the uncircumcised through their [newly acquired] faith. [For it is the same trusting faith in both cases, a firmly relying faith in Jesus Christ].
A firmly relying faith in Jesus Christ - What or Who are we putting our faith in today?
Romans 10:17 - So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Romans 3:31 The Message - But by shifting our focus from what we do to what God does, don't we cancel out all our careful keeping of the rules and ways God commanded? Not at all. What happens, in fact, is that by putting that entire way of life in its proper place, we confirm it.
We need to submit and yield to God.
Matthew 6:9-10 NKJV - In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Hebrews 12:9 TPT - And isn't it true that we respect our earthly fathers even though they corrected and disciplined us? Then we should demonstrate an even greater respect for God, our spiritual Father, as we submit to his life-giving discipline.
James 4:7 NKJV - Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Mark 14:36 NKJV - And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will but what You will."
Worship Songs
What's next?
Some questions to consider:
1. What did God say to you when studying this passage?
2. What does that mean for how you live your life? (ie is there something you believe God wants you to do differently?)
3. How can we as a Lifegroup support you?