1There is therefore now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. [8:2] For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. [8:3] For what the law was utterly incapable of doing, in that it was powerless through the flesh, God did: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh — [8:4] so that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. [8:5] For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. [8:6] For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. [8:7] Because the mind set on the flesh is hostility toward God — for it does not submit to the law of God, for it is not even able to — [8:8] and those who are in the flesh are not able to please God. [8:9] But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him. [8:10] But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the Spirit is life because of righteousness. [8:11] And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
ROM 8:1-11
Walking by the Spirit
In the world it was spoken into
In the Roman world, the concept of law was central to civic and religious life, governing both societal order and personal conduct. For Jewish listeners, the Torah was not merely a legal code but a divine covenant, yet its inability to fully address sin’s power was a recognized tension. Paul’s audience would have understood the flesh as the human condition prone to weakness and sin, a concept familiar in both Jewish and Greco-Roman thought. The Spirit , by contrast, represented divine power and life, a transformative force that could fulfill the law’s righteous requirements . The idea of walking was a common metaphor for ethical living, evoking a deliberate, ongoing way of life. Paul’s claim that Christ came in the likeness of sinful flesh would resonate with Jewish listeners familiar with the incarnation’s paradox and Gentile listeners acquainted with divine figures taking human form. The Spirit’s indwelling would signify a profound reorientation of one’s entire being.
›See the receipts
How other translations render this
ROM 8:1
- KJV
- There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
- BSB
- Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
- Koinōnos
- There is therefore now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.
ROM 8:2
- KJV
- For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
- BSB
- For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set you free from the law of sin and death.
- Koinōnos
- For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.
ROM 8:3
- KJV
- For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
- BSB
- For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh,
- Koinōnos
- For what the law was utterly incapable of doing, in that it was powerless through the flesh, God did: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh —
ROM 8:4
- KJV
- That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
- BSB
- so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
- Koinōnos
- so that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
ROM 8:5
- KJV
- For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
- BSB
- Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
- Koinōnos
- For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
ROM 8:6
- KJV
- For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
- BSB
- The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace,
- Koinōnos
- For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.
ROM 8:7
- KJV
- Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
- BSB
- because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to Godʼs law, nor can it do so.
- Koinōnos
- Because the mind set on the flesh is hostility toward God — for it does not submit to the law of God, for it is not even able to —
ROM 8:8
- KJV
- So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
- BSB
- Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God.
- Koinōnos
- and those who are in the flesh are not able to please God.
ROM 8:9
- KJV
- But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
- BSB
- You, however, are controlled not by the flesh, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
- Koinōnos
- But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him.
ROM 8:10
- KJV
- And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
- BSB
- But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
- Koinōnos
- But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
ROM 8:11
- KJV
- But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
- BSB
- And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.
- Koinōnos
- And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Only verses where the wording diverges meaningfully are shown. Identical phrasings are suppressed.
Translator's notes
ROM 8:3
- powerless [being]:The word translated 'powerless' here describes something utterly incapable of achieving its purpose, not merely weak. It conveys a sense of complete inability or futility.
- likeness:The term translated 'likeness' suggests a close resemblance or representation, not just a general similarity. It implies something that shares the essential characteristics or form of another.
ROM 8:4
- righteousness:The word translated 'righteousness' here refers to a specific righteous act or requirement, rather than the general state of righteousness. It points to an ordinance or a just demand.
ROM 8:6
- mind:The word translated 'mind' encompasses not just intellectual thought, but also one's disposition, purpose, and the direction of their will. It describes the whole bent of one's inner being.