Romans 8:17

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and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Romans 8:17 (NKJV)

Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Romans 8:17 (NIV)

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Romans 8:17 (KJV)

And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.

Romans 8:17 (NLT)

and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

Romans 8:17 (ESV)

and if [we are His] children, [then we are His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His spiritual blessing and inheritance], if indeed we share in His suffering so that we may also share in His glory.

Romans 8:17 (AMP)

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

and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.

Romans 8:17 (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

Think of it! All that he is and has. We don't, of course, have the right to go around telling God what to do. But we can anticipate and look forward to "coming into our own" when we'll see with our own eyes what God has in store for us.

Romans 8:17 (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

Joint Heirs With Christ Is the Most Extraordinary Status in the Universe

Galatians 4:7 says "if a son, then an heir of God through Christ." Romans 8:17 takes it further: joint heirs with Christ. Not just heirs of God but co-heirs with His Son. Everything that belongs to Christ by virtue of His sonship is shared with those who are in Him. Ephesians 1:3 says God has blessed believers with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Romans 8:17 grounds that blessing in the status of joint heirship. You share the inheritance with the One who owns everything.

The Suffering Clause Is About Identification, Not Earning

The phrase "if indeed we suffer with Him" has been used to argue that believers must suffer to earn their inheritance, or that suffering is God's primary means of maturation. But the Greek structure and context point in a different direction. The suffering Paul is describing is the suffering that comes with identifying with Christ in a hostile world: rejection, persecution, hardship in ministry. It is not the suffering of sickness, poverty, or divine chastisement. The pattern is: we share His suffering (identification with Him in a fallen world) and therefore we share His glory (the outcome of that identification).

Romans 8:16 sets up verse 17: "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God." The inner witness of the Spirit is what confirms the status. You do not know you are an heir by calculating your moral performance. You know it because the Spirit witnesses it in your heart. That witness, combined with the declaration of verse 17, is your title deed to the inheritance. Inheritance does not depend on the heir's performance. It depends on the testator's will and the heir's identity.

Application for Your Life

Receive the Inheritance You Did Not Earn

An inheritance is not a salary. You do not receive it because of your work. You receive it because of your relationship to the one who died. For believers, the inheritance flows from union with Christ. He died, rose, and now lives. His inheritance is yours by virtue of being in Him. This means you do not earn your way into the promises of God. You receive them as an heir. The blessing of Abraham (Galatians 3:14), the fullness of life (John 10:10), the peace of God (Philippians 4:7): these are inheritance items, not achievement unlocks.

Walk in the Dignity of Your Inheritance

An heir who does not know their inheritance lives like a pauper while sitting on a fortune. Romans 8:17 is the description of what you actually have in Christ. Knowing this changes how you pray (not begging but claiming), how you face adversity (not as someone at the mercy of circumstances but as an heir whose inheritance is secure), and how you view yourself (not as a struggling sinner but as a child of God and joint heir with Christ). The inheritance is already secured. The question is whether you walk in it.

Prayer Based on This Verse

Father, I receive my status as an heir of God and joint heir with Christ. Everything that belongs to Your Son is shared with me because I am in Him. This is not a reward for performance. It is the reality of sonship. The Spirit Himself witnesses with my spirit that I am Your child. I believe it. I walk in it today. I receive the fullness of the inheritance: healing, provision, peace, authority, righteousness, and the life of the age to come, all of which are already mine in Christ. I am not a beggar. I am an heir. In Jesus' name. Amen.