Romans 6:21–22

Context

This passage belongs to the latter part of chapter 6 of Romans, the letter Paul sent to the Christians in Rome. In Romans 6:1 Paul asks, "Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?" He then explains that those who have been united with Christ through baptism have died to sin. Beginning in verse 15, he turns to an analogy of servants (slaves) and masters, saying that a person is either a servant of sin or a servant of righteousness.

Verses 21–22 conclude this analogy by contrasting "then" (before faith) with "now" (after faith). The former life is now a cause of shame, and its end is death. The present life bears "fruit unto holiness," and its end is everlasting life. Verse 23, which immediately follows ("For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life"), sums up this contrast in a single sentence.

Interpretation

• "Fruit" and "end": The Greek word telos, translated "end," means end, outcome, or goal. For this reason many interpreters see the passage as comparing two ways of life by their results.
• The Reformed reading: The Reformed tradition, including Presbyterians, reads "holiness" (Greek hagiasmos) as sanctification, the process by which a person who has been justified grows progressively holier. This tradition emphasizes that sanctification is the fruit of justification, not the ground of salvation, and that eternal life is, in the words of verse 23, a "gift."
• The Wesleyan reading: Denominations in the line of Wesleyan theology, such as the Methodist, Holiness, and Nazarene churches, place weight on the statement that believers have been "made free" from sin. They read the passage as grounds for holding that believers can actually be freed from the dominion of sin and live holy lives, and they sometimes connect it with the doctrine of holiness.
• The servant analogy: "Become servants to God" is part of an analogy that Paul, in verse 19, explicitly says he speaks "after the manner of men" (that is, by comparison with human customs). Many interpreters read the expression not as a picture of oppression but as meaning that the master one serves has changed.

Debates and Issues

• The relationship between sanctification and eternal life: Readings differ over whether a holy life is a condition for attaining eternal life or a result that follows in those who have received eternal life. Calvinism reads the passage in light of the perseverance of the saints, the view that true believers are preserved to the end. Arminianism and the Wesleyan tradition tend to emphasize that believers must continue to respond to grace. Both sides, however, agree that eternal life is not a reward for works but a gift of God.
• Punctuation of verse 21: Ancient Greek manuscripts contain very little punctuation, so translations differ on where the question ends. If the question ends at "What fruit had ye then?", as in the Korean Revised Version, the following clause reads like an answer describing that fruit. If it is read continuously as "What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed?", it becomes a rhetorical question implying that nothing was gained. Either way, the main point—that the end of those things is death—remains the same.

Perspective: Korean Protestant practiceHow this idea is used in Korean churches, kept from the original Korean article.

In Korean Protestant churches, verse 23, which immediately follows, is widely quoted in evangelism tracts and similar materials to explain the gospel. In preaching, verses 21–22 are often grouped with verse 23 as a text contrasting life before and after faith.

Related Passages

• Romans 6:23
• Romans 6:13
• Romans 6:3–6
• Galatians 6:8–10
• Hebrews 12:14