inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Romans 5:21)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, translators typically select the inclusive form for “our Lord” (including the reader of the letter).

Source: SIL International Translation Department (1999).

Translation commentary on Romans 5:21

The concepts presented in this verse have been commented on in earlier passages. However, for purposes of translation the use of righteousness in this verse needs to be made clear. Righteousness is best understood in the sense of “God’s putting men right with himself,” which is understood as the beginning point and eternal life as the final point of the salvation experience. The meaning, then, is that God’s grace rules us by putting us into a right relation with him and by leading us to eternal life (see 6.22) through Jesus Christ our Lord. The phrase through Jesus Christ our Lord must be connected in meaning both with the matter of putting men right with God and of leading them to eternal life.

The transition so then may be rendered in some languages as “to sum up everything,” “finally we may say,” or “as a conclusion.”

Though in some languages one cannot say sin ruled, it may be possible to say “sin was powerful.” By means of death would then be rendered as “because all people had to die.” The second principal clause may thus be translated in a parallel fashion: “so also God’s way of showing grace is powerful because he puts men right with himself” or “… by means of putting men right with himself.”

The phrase leading us to eternal life may be rendered in some languages as a causative: “he causes us to live without end” or “he causes us to always live truly” (the addition of “truly” implying a qualitative distinction in an “unending life”).

Through Jesus Christ our Lord may be expressed as means—for example, “Jesus Christ our Lord made this possible” or “… caused this to be.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Romans. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1973. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Romans 5:21

5:21a–b

so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness: The phrase so that introduces the purpose of grace abounding all the more (5:20c). The purpose is that grace will reign.

Paul included a comparison to sin reigning in this purpose clause. In some languages it is more clear or more natural to have the comparison to sin after. For example:

so that grace might reign through righteousness, like/as sin reigned in death,

5:21a

sin reigned: This clause speaks of sin as if it were a person. It indicates that all people sin. Some languages can translate the figure of speech literally and people will understand the correct meaning. For example:

sin ruled (Good News Translation)

But some languages must translate the meaning of the figure of speech. For example:

sin had power over ⌊all who lived⌋

See how you translated reigned in 5:14.

in death: Here this phrase is a figure of speech. It indicates that sin was like a king in the land of death. Some languages can translate the figure of speech literally and people will understand the correct meaning.

But some languages must translate the meaning of the figure of speech. For example:

in ⌊the land of⌋ death
-or-
in ⌊this world of⌋ death

5:21b

grace might reign: This clause speaks of grace as if it were a person. It indicates that God is kind to all people. Some languages can translate the figure of speech literally and people will understand the correct meaning. For example:

grace will/might rule

But some languages must translate the meaning of the figure of speech. For example:

grace will have power over ⌊all who lived⌋

through righteousness: This phrase refers to God making believers righteous. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

by means of righteousness (Good News Translation)
-or-
by making people right with him (New Century Version)

5:21c

to bring eternal life: When God declares believers righteous, the result is eternal life. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

and resulting in eternal life (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
This means that we will have eternal life (Contemporary English Version)

through Jesus Christ our Lord: Believers receive righteousness and eternal life because of what Jesus did for them.

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Commentaire sur la traduction de la lettre aux Romains 5.21

Les idées exprimées dans ce verset ont déjà été commentées précédemment (voir Rom 5.12, Rom 5.15, Rom 5.17). Il s’agit du règne du péché et de la grâce.

afin que : la conjonction ἵνα hina introduit le but de cette grâce. Pour alléger le style, la Bible en français courant commence une nouvelle phrase ici, avec « Ainsi ». Comme il s’agit de la fin de la section, on pourrait aussi dire « Pour conclure », « Pour résumer tout cela », « Finalement… »

Comme… ainsi : il s’agit encore une fois de deux propositions contrastives. La Parole de Vie met en évidence le contraste en disant « Autrefois…de même maintenant ».

comme le péché avait régné pour la mort : voir Rom 5.14.

ainsi, par la justice, la grâce règne pour la vie éternelle par Jésus-Christ, notre Seigneur : en grec, le texte est litt. « ainsi aussi la grâce a régné à travers la justification en vue de la vie éternelle à travers Jésus-Christ notre sauveur ». Pour grâce et régner, voir Rom 5.14. Pour vie éternelle, voir Rom 2.7.

Le mot justice (δικαιοσύνη dikaiosunê) fait de nouveau allusion à l’intervention de Dieu pour rendre les hommes justes à ses yeux. Cette justification est le point de départ de la vie éternelle, le but final de l’expérience du salut. Paul va réitérer l’idée en Rom 6.22, « …de recevoir, à la fin, la vie éternelle », Bible en français courant. Plusieurs versions restructurent ce verset, voir la Bible en français courant et la Parole de Vie. Dans certaines langues, il sera nécessaire de rendre explicite que cette grâce de Dieu « fait que nous vivrons sans fin ».

par Jésus Christ, notre Seigneur doit être relié à la fois à justice et à la vie éternelle. Dans certaines langues, l’idée de moyen (par) sera exprimée parfois par « Jésus-Christ, notre Seigneur, a rendu tout cela possible » ou « …a fait qu’il en soit ainsi ». Pour notre Seigneur, voir Rom 1.3.

Source: Margot, Jean-Claude & Zogbo, Lynell. La lettre aux Romains – Manuel de traduction – Commentaire linguistique et exégétique de la Bible. Alliance biblique universelle, 2021.