Romans 8:38-39

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For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV)

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (NIV)

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (KJV)

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow — not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below — indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (NLT)

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (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

For I am convinced [and continue to be convinced beyond any doubt] that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present and threatening, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the [unlimited] love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (AMP)

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

For I am persuaded beyond doubt (am sure) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (AMPC)

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMPC), Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

I'm absolutely convinced that nothing — nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable — absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.

Romans 8:38-39 (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

Paul Exhausts the Universe to Make the Point

Paul does not simply say nothing can separate us. He lists categories: death and life (the two poles of human experience), angels and principalities (spiritual hierarchy), present and future (all time), height and depth (all space), and then adds "any other created thing" as a catch-all. He is not being redundant. He is being exhaustive. Every category he names and every category he does not name falls under that final phrase. The logic is airtight: if all created things cannot do it, and you are a created being, then nothing you do, nothing done to you, and nothing that exists can break this bond.

Peithein: Persuaded Beyond Reasonable Doubt

The Greek word pepeismai, translated "I am persuaded" or "I am convinced," is a perfect passive participle indicating a settled state arrived at through evidence and reasoning. Paul is not expressing hope or optimism. He has been persuaded by the argument of the entire preceding chapter. Romans 8 builds from no condemnation (v. 1) through the Spirit's work (vv. 2-17) through glory outweighing suffering (vv. 18-27) through God working all things for good (v. 28) through predestination, justification, glorification (vv. 29-30) through the rhetorical tower of vv. 31-37. By the time he reaches verse 38, he is not guessing. He has arrived.

Notice what is not on the list: your sin, your failures, your inconsistency, your doubt. Paul does not write "neither sin nor shame." That is not an oversight. It is because the entire premise of Romans 8 is that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (v. 1). The love of God in Christ Jesus has already dealt with sin. What remains after the cross cannot separate you either.

Application for Your Life

This Is a Statement About Security, Not Permission

Some read Romans 8:38-39 with unease, as if the confidence it describes is dangerous. But the purpose of this passage is not to encourage carelessness. It is to give you a foundation of security from which to live. A child who knows their parent loves them unconditionally does not behave worse. They behave from a place of rootedness rather than anxiety. God's love as an unshakeable foundation produces freedom, not license.

Your Circumstances Are Not Evidence Against God's Love

Romans 8:35 asks: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?" Paul is listing real things people experience and implying that believers were experiencing them. His answer is not that those things prove God does not love you. His answer is that in all those things, you are more than conquerors. The hard season you are in is not God's withdrawal. His grip does not loosen when your circumstances get hard.

Prayer Based on This Passage

Father, I stand on Romans 8:38-39 right now. Not as a platitude but as a settled legal reality. Nothing in the universe has the power to sever me from Your love. Not what is happening to me. Not what has happened to me. Not what I have done. Not what may yet come. Not death. Not the future. Not any force seen or unseen. Your love for me in Christ Jesus is the most stable thing in my life. More stable than my circumstances, my feelings, my performance, or my faith on any given day. I receive this. I rest in this. I live from this. In Jesus' name. Amen.