1Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; 2through whom we also have our access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3Not only this, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance; 4and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; 5and hope doesn’t disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
6For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7For one will hardly die for a righteous man. Yet perhaps for a good person someone would even dare to die. 8But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
9Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we will be saved from God’s wrath through him. 10For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we will be saved by his life.
11Not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. 12Therefore, as sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin, so death passed to all men because all sinned. 13For until the law, sin was in the world; but sin is not charged when there is no law. 14Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those whose sins weren’t like Adam’s disobedience, who is a foreshadowing of him who was to come.
15But the free gift isn’t like the trespass. For if by the trespass of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. 16The gift is not as through one who sinned; for the judgment came by one to condemnation, but the free gift followed many trespasses to justification. 17For if by the trespass of the one, death reigned through the one; so much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, Jesus Christ.
18So then as through one trespass, all men were condemned; even so through one act of righteousness, all men were justified to life. 19For as through the one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the one, many will be made righteous. 20The law came in that the trespass might abound; but where sin abounded, grace abounded more exceedingly, 21that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 5:12 begins a section of Scripture that is fundamental to the understanding of the nature of sin. Pelegians, Semi-Pelegians and Calvinists alike have turned to the passage for support. My desire in the following study will attempt to explicate the major questions that arise in the study of the text.
In verse 12, Paul begins with the words "therefore" (διὰ τοῦτο), which is a phrase showing a logical connection with what precedes. Whether it refers back to verse 11 only, or to 5:1-11, or even to the majority of what was begin enunciated before is difficult to determine. In my opinion the dia touto (διὰ τοῦτο) probably refers to the preceding 11 verses.
Paul begins the next clause with a comparison using the words "just as" (ὣσπερ), but this comparison is not completed. The technical name for such a grammatical procedure is called anacolutha. This occurs several times in Paul's writings. His was an active mind and as he reasoned through his letter laying down his argument and meticulously in verse 12, most likely he felt compelled to better clarify the ramifications of his reasoning before proceeding.
We find in verse 12 the first mention of a thought contained throughout the rest of the chapter, namely, the concept of "the one man." Paul says "through one man" (δι᾽ ἑνὸς ἀνθρώπου) the sin came into the world. This concept, "the one," is found almost in every verse in verses 12-21 and is central to Paul's doctrine of sin and grace. Paul states "through one man," indicating an indirect agency. Adam and Eve were agents through whom Satan worked. Sin was already existent but had not, until Adam and Eve sinned, entered into the "world" or man's sphere of existence.
Sin brought penalty for verse 12 Paul says and continues in saying that death came through sin; death passed through men. Disagreement among expositors of Scripture arise in the question of what death is Paul refers to in this verse. In Genesis 2:17 the death that Adam incurred is literally "dying you will die" (מותת מות) indicating emphasis. God said that they would die in the day that they ate of the tree. At first glance it would seem they were to die the same day that they sinned but this does not seem to be the best interpretation. "In the day" (ביום) is a temporal expression referring to an indefinite period of time. "Death" (מות) probably pertains to physical death in Romans 5, with spiritual death implied from this reality.
Why, though, must the rest of mankind be punished for the sin of Adam? Must the son bear the sins of the father? Paul sees mankind bearing the guilt and penalty of sin, not just because Adam sinned as our representative but because it participated. The phrase "because" (᾽εφ᾽ ῳ πάντες ἣμαρτον) shows why death has passed through or permeated all men. The phrase eph ho (᾽εφ᾽ ῟ὧ᾽) carries the meaning "because." All die because all sinned. The entire human race was in Adam and share his sin, his guilt and the result, which is physical death.