"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
— Romans 3:23 (NIV)
Romans 3:23 is the "all have sinned" verse, one of the most quoted lines in Paul's letter to the Romans. It is almost always read together with the next verse, which finishes the sentence. This page gives the verse, where it sits in Romans 3, and a plain reading. For more on the theme, see Bible verses about grace, Bible verses about salvation, and Bible verses about guilt.
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The verse
The King James reads: "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
"Have sinned" is hamartano (G264), to miss the mark, here in a past tense that sums up every life. "Fall short" (KJV "come short") is hystereo (G5302), to lack or be behind, in the present tense: people keep falling short. "Glory" is doxa (G1391), God's splendor and honor.
Where it sits in Romans 3
Paul has spent the first chapters of Romans showing that Jews and Gentiles alike stand guilty before God, summed up in Romans 3:10: "There is no one righteous, not even one."
Then he turns: "This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile" (Romans 3:22). Verse 23 explains why there is no difference, and verse 24 completes the thought: "and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."
What the verse is saying
Romans 3:23 puts everyone on the same level. No one is closer to God's glory by their own effort; all have sinned and all keep falling short.
That is not where Paul stops. The same "all" who fall short in verse 23 are offered justification "freely by his grace" in verse 24. The bad news is universal so the good news can be universal too. Later in the letter Paul puts both halves in one line in Romans 6:23: "the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Questions people ask
What does Romans 3:23 say?
In the NIV it says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." The KJV reads, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
What does Romans 3:23 mean?
It means every person has sinned and keeps falling short of God's glory, so no one can be made right with God by their own record. In context it explains why righteousness through faith is offered to all, with no difference between Jew and Gentile.
What is Romans 3:23-24?
Read together, the two verses say, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Verse 23 is the problem and verse 24 is God's answer.
What does "fall short of the glory of God" mean?
"Fall short" translates the Greek hystereo, to lack or come up behind. People lack the glory and goodness God made them for, and the present tense means it is ongoing, not a one-time failure.
What other verses are like Romans 3:23?
Romans 3:10 (there is no one righteous, not even one), Romans 6:23 (the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life), and Romans 5:8 (while we were still sinners, Christ died for us) are close companions.
