Romans 5:17

For if, by the trespass of the one, death reigned through the one: much more shall they receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one, even Jesus Christ.

Continuing the presentation of the contrasts between the two Adams, Paul here noted the contrast in the quality of the consequences deriving from the actions of each. The reign of condemnation deriving from Adam was through death; the reign of righteousness deriving from Christ was through life. Life is more than death, "much more"! Furthermore, the life in Christ reaches ultimately an eternal status. Paul had, with this verse, concluded the discursive detour that he began with Romans 5:13, and was about to affirm (Romans 5:18-19) that the universal justification in Jesus Christ (potentially) is the counterpart of the universal condemnation in Adam. Immediately, in the next two verses, Paul would state the great conclusion which he had in mind as far back as Romans 5:12, but which he did not state until he had laid the logical ground of it in the intervening paragraph, which although not set apart by marks of parenthesis, is, despite that, truly parenthetical.

The gift of righteousness ... is a mistranslation, as a glance at the English Revised Version (1885) margin reveals. The Greek text says, "an act of righteousness," meaning, of course, God's act of righteousness. Thus this passage does not support the concept of "a righteousness" in the sense of Romans 5:1:17, although it appears that the translators might have had that in mind by such a rendition.

Attention is again called to the admitted difficulties in the interpretation of these verses (Romans 5:13-17); and, in view of the extensive dissertations of scholars, and the many conflicting opinions of the learned, it is appropriate to enter a disclaimer of dogmatism. What has been advocated here is that which the words, as they stand in English, appear to this writer to say; and since our Lord himself said, "What is written in the law; how readest thou?" we have dared to put it down.

There are striking contrasts in this chapter: (1) There is the contrast between the two Adams (see under Romans 5:14); (2) there is the contrast between the two reigns, (a) that of sin and death and (b) that of grace and righteousness; and (3) also the multiple contrasts heralded by Paul's five successive "much more's" (Romans 5:9,10,15,17,20). A more detailed study of the latter is in order:

(1) Contrasted with the fact that Christ died for us while we were sinners, is the truth that we are "much more" saved by his life. (2) Contrasted with our sinful condition, we are "much more" saved by Christ in our state of reconciliation. (3) Contrasted with the fact that worldwide condemnation resulted from one man's sin, and that only in a single act, "much more" did the grace of God reach out to cover all the sins of all the men who ever lived (potentially). (4) Contrasted with the reign of death through the one (Adam), "much more" shall Christians receive abundance of grace through God's righteous act in the one (Christ). (5) Contrasted with the abounding of sin because the law came in, is the abounding of grace "more exceedingly." These five "much more's" loom like mountain peaks and are suggestive of the great "I am's" of the Gospel of John.