Romans 5:1

A
B
C

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 (NKJV)

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 (NIV)

Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 (KJV)

Therefore, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.

Romans 5:1 (NLT)

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 (ESV)

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:1 (NASB)

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Therefore, since we have been justified [that is, acquitted of sin, declared blameless before God] by faith, [let us grasp the fact that] we have peace with God [and the joy of reconciliation with Him] through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).

Romans 5:1 (AMP)

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP), Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Therefore, since we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).

Romans 5:1 (AMPC)

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMPC), Copyright © 1954, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us, s et us right with him, make us fit for him, w e have it all together with God because of what Jesus did.

Romans 5:1 (MSG)

Scripture quotations from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.

New Covenant Meaning

Justified: The Verdict Has Already Been Rendered

The Greek dikaiothentes is an aorist passive participle: having been justified. The aorist tense marks a completed event. The passive voice indicates that someone else performed the action. Paul is saying that the justification has already happened to us, accomplished by God, and is now the established fact from which we live. This is not a verdict we are working toward or hoping to achieve. It is a verdict already handed down. "Having been justified" is the permanent foundation from which "we have peace" flows.

Peace with God: The War Is Over

Romans 1-3 established that humanity is in a state of enmity with God, under His righteous wrath (1:18). Justification ends that state. When Paul says "we have peace with God," he is declaring that the hostility that existed between the holy God and sinful humanity has been resolved through Christ. This is not the subjective feeling of peace. It is the objective state of no longer being at war. The wrath has been propitiated (3:25). The enemy status has been removed. Romans 5:10 confirms it: "we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son." Peace is the treaty term for the end of hostility.

There is a textual variant in Romans 5:1. Some manuscripts read "let us have peace" (echomen with subjunctive, an exhortation) while others read "we have peace" (echomen with indicative, a statement of fact). The difference in Greek is a single letter. Most modern scholars prefer the indicative reading ("we have peace") because it fits Paul's argument: he is establishing the results of justification, not exhorting effort. The peace is not something believers must maintain or achieve. It is a state they already occupy because of the justification already accomplished. You do not need to work to have peace with God. You need to recognize that you already do.

Application for Your Life

You Are Not Trying to Make Peace with God. You Have It.

Religious effort is often driven by the subconscious sense that one must appease God, that He is still somewhat displeased or at a distance. Romans 5:1 is the direct contradiction of that assumption. God is not distant. The hostility is gone. The war is over. You have peace with God through your Lord Jesus Christ. This peace is not contingent on this morning's quiet time or yesterday's obedience. It is the permanent state of the person who has been justified by faith. Walk from that ground, not toward it.

Peace with God Is the Foundation of Everything Else

Romans 5 builds everything that follows on the foundation of verse 1. From the peace of justification flows access to grace (v. 2), confidence in tribulation (v. 3), hope that does not disappoint (v. 5), the love of God poured into the heart (v. 5), reconciliation (v. 10), and ultimately the reign of life (v. 17). The peace of verse 1 is not just one benefit among many. It is the foundation from which all the other benefits of the gospel become accessible and livable.

Prayer Based on This Verse

Father, I have been justified by faith. The verdict has been rendered. I receive it fully: I am declared righteous in Your sight through the work of Jesus Christ. And because I am justified, I have peace with You. Not someday. Not when I get it together. Now. The war between my sin and Your holiness was resolved at the cross. I am not Your enemy. I am not on probation. I am in peace with You through my Lord Jesus Christ. I choose to live from that peace today, not to strive toward it. I receive it as the foundation of everything else You have for me. In Jesus' name. Amen.