Romans 6:2
God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Original Language Analysis
μὴ
God forbid
G3361
μὴ
God forbid
Strong's:
G3361
Word #:
1 of 11
(adverb) not, (conjunction) lest; also (as an interrogative implying a negative answer (whereas g3756 expects an affirmative one)) whether
γένοιτο
G1096
γένοιτο
Strong's:
G1096
Word #:
2 of 11
to cause to be ("gen"-erate), i.e., (reflexively) to become (come into being), used with great latitude (literal, figurative, intensive, etc.)
οἵτινες
shall we that
G3748
οἵτινες
shall we that
Strong's:
G3748
Word #:
3 of 11
which some, i.e., any that; also (definite) which same
τῇ
G3588
τῇ
Strong's:
G3588
Word #:
5 of 11
the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in english idiom)
πῶς
How
G4459
πῶς
How
Strong's:
G4459
Word #:
7 of 11
an interrogative particle of manner; in what way? (sometimes the question is indirect, how?); also as exclamation, how much!
Cross References
Colossians 3:3For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.1 John 3:9Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.Romans 7:4Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.1 Peter 2:24Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.Galatians 2:19For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.Romans 7:6But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.1 Peter 1:14As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:Colossians 2:20Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,Psalms 119:104Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.Galatians 6:14But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.
Historical Context
In Roman law, death freed a person from all legal obligations—Paul uses this legal metaphor. The Greek concept of death as separation from former relationships would resonate with his audience. Jewish thought connected righteousness with life and sin with death (Ezekiel 18), providing theological background for Paul's argument about dying to sin's dominion.
Questions for Reflection
- What does it mean practically that you have 'died to sin' while still experiencing temptation?
- How does understanding your death to sin's dominion change your battle against specific sins?
- In what ways might you be 'living' in what you've already died to?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
God forbid (mē genoito, μὴ γένοιτο)—Paul's strongest negation, appearing 10 times in Romans. Literally "may it never be!" This emphatic rejection introduces Paul's theological explanation: believers have died to sin (apethanomen tē hamartia, ἀπεθάνομεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ)—the aorist tense indicating a definite past event at conversion.
The phrase "dead to sin" uses the dative of reference: believers died with respect to sin, breaking sin's mastery. This isn't sinless perfection but a changed relationship—sin no longer has legal dominion over justified believers. Paul's rhetorical question expects the answer: How shall we... live any longer therein? The question assumes moral impossibility: for those truly united to Christ's death, habitual sin is theologically and spiritually incongruous. The present tense zēsomen (ζήσομεν) asks about ongoing lifestyle, not isolated acts.