ROM 6:21 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT So what fruit were you then having because of which things you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.

UST So, formerly you did not benefit from those sinful things you did that now embarrass you. This is because those things will eventually kill you eternally.

BLB What fruit, therefore, did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.

AICNT What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.

OEB But what were the fruits that you reaped from those things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of such things is death.

WEBBE What fruit then did you have at that time in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET So what benefit did you then reap from those things that you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death.

LSV What fruit, therefore, were you having then, in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those [is] death.

FBV But what were the results back then? Aren't you ashamed of the things you did? Such things that lead to death!

TCNT So what fruit did you have at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? The end result of those things is death.

T4T Nevertheless, doing those things resulted in your being separated from God, so you did not benefit at all from doing the sinful things that you are now ashamed of. [RHQ]

LEB Therefore what sort of fruit did you have then, about which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.

BBE What fruit had you at that time in the things which are now a shame to you? for the end of such things is death.

Moff Well, what did you gain then by it all? Nothing but what you are now ashamed of! The end of all that is death;

Wymth At that time, then, what benefit did you get from conduct which you now regard with shame? Why, such things finally result in death.

ASV What fruit then had ye at that time in the things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

DRA What fruit therefore had you then in those things, of which you are now ashamed? For the end of them is death.

YLT what fruit, therefore, were ye having then, in the things of which ye are now ashamed? for the end of those [is] death.

Drby What fruit therefore had ye then in the things of which ye are now ashamed? for the end of them [is] death.

RV What fruit then had ye at that time in the things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
(What fruit then had ye/you_all at that time in the things whereof ye/you_all are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. )

SLT Therefore what fruit had ye then of what ye are now ashamed? for the end of these, death.

Wbstr What fruit had ye then in those things of which ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

KJB-1769 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
(What fruit had ye/you_all then in those things whereof ye/you_all are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. )

KJB-1611 What fruit had yee then in those things, whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps What fruite had ye then in those thynges, wherof ye are nowe ashamed? For the ende of those thynges, is death.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from marking of added words (and possibly capitalisation and punctuation))

Gnva What fruit had ye then in those things, whereof ye are nowe ashamed? For the ende of those things is death.
(What fruit had ye/you_all then in those things, whereof ye/you_all are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. )

Cvdl What frute had ye at that tyme in those thinges, wherof ye are now ashamed? For the ende of soch thinges is death.
(What fruit had ye/you_all at that time in those things, whereof ye/you_all are now ashamed? For the end of such things is death.)

TNT What frute had ye then in tho thinges wher of ye are now ashamed. For the ende of tho thynges is deeth.
(What fruit had ye/you_all then in those things wher of ye/you_all are now ashamed. For the end of those things is death. )

Wycl Therfor what fruyt hadden ye thanne in tho thingis, in whiche ye schamen now? For the ende of hem is deth.
(Therefore what fruit had ye/you_all then in those things, in which ye/you_all shamen now? For the end of hem is death.)

Luth Was hattet ihr nun zu der Zeit für Frucht? Welcher ihr euch jetzt schämet; denn das Ende derselbigen ist der Tod.
(What had you(pl)/their/her now to/for the/of_the time/period for/in_favour_of fruit? Which you(pl)/their/her you now/currently shamet; because/than the end(n) the_same is the/of_the death.)

ClVg Quem ergo fructum habuistis tunc in illis, in quibus nunc erubescitis? nam finis illorum mors est.[fn]
(Which therefore fruit you_hads then in/into/on to_them, in/into/on to_whom now erubescitis? for/surely end/limit of_them death it_is. )

6.21 Quem ergo fructum. Hæc rememoratio facit priora abhorrere, et magis obnoxios gratiæ. Erubescitis. Est enim quædam temporalis confusio, scilicet, perturbatio animi respicientis peccata sua, et respectione horrentis, et horrore erubescentis, et erubescendo corrigentis. Finis illorum, etc. Quia mors est digna retributio pro peccato: sed vita æterna, quæ est finis justorum, sola gratia datur per Christum, quia et merita ex gratia, et reddetur gratia pro gratia.

6.21 Which therefore fruit. This rememoratio he_does previous abhorrere, and more obnoxios thanks. Erubescitis. It_is because some temporal confusion, namely, perturbatio of_the_soul respicientis sins his_own, and respectione horrentis, and horrore erubescentis, and erubescendo corrigentis. End of_them, etc. Because death it_is worthy retribution for sin: but life eternal, which it_is end/limit of_the_righteous, alone grace given through Christ/Messiah, because and merits from grace, and will_returnur grace for grace.

UGNT τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε, ἐφ’ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε? τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος.
(tina oun karpon eiⱪete tote, ef’ hois nun epaisⱪunesthe? to gar telos ekeinōn thanatos.)

SBL-GNT τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε ἐφʼ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε; τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος·
(tina oun karpon eiⱪete tote efʼ hois nun epaisⱪunesthe? to gar telos ekeinōn thanatos;)

RP-GNT Τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε ἐφ' οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε; Τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος.
(Tina oun karpon eiⱪete tote ef' hois nun epaisⱪunesthe; To gar telos ekeinōn thanatos.)

TC-GNT Τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε ἐφ᾽ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε; Τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος.
(Tina oun karpon eiⱪete tote ef hois nun epaisⱪunesthe; To gar telos ekeinōn thanatos. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, orange:accents differ, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 6:15–23: Become as slaves to righteousness

In this section, Paul told the believers in Rome that they must not sin even if they are not under the Laws of Moses. He told them that if they obey sin then they are slaves to sin. Instead, they must become slaves of righteousness, that is, doing things that God says are right to do. This command includes all parts of their lives.

Paul further explained that when they were always obeying the desires of sin, they were free from doing things that God says are right to do. He reminded them that they were now ashamed of those sins and the consequences. The final consequence of those sins is death. God had set them free from a life of sin and they had become like slaves of God. The consequences of that is becoming holy and receiving eternal life. For sinning earns a person death, but when that person believes in Jesus, God gives him eternal life.

Here are other possible headings for this section:

We must be slaves of God doing righteous deeds

We must always do what God says is right to do

We are servants of straight/upright behavior

6:21a–b

What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed?: There are two ways to interpret where the question mark goes:

It should occur after the word ashamed. For example:
What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? (NIV) (BSB, RSV, NIV, GNT, NASB, KJV, NABRE, NET, GNT3)
It should occur after the phrase at that time. For example:
and what did you gain from living like that? Experiences of which you are now ashamed (NJB) (NJB, NLT, GW, CEV, REB, GNT4,5)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), because interpretation (2) forces the plural Greek relative pronoun to connect to the singular fruit, but that is not good Greek grammar.Lenski (page 433). Schreiner (page 399) also supports interpretation (1). Other scholars support interpretation (2), but their arguments for it seem weak and their objections to interpretation (1) are easily answered. Many of the major English versions support interpretation (1). But, for this author, the main argument for interpretation (1) is to take ef´ hois as meaning “about which things” and not connect it the singular “fruit” as interpretation (2) requires, even though fruit is a mass noun implying plural fruits. The word fruit is still technically singular in the Greek.

This is a rhetorical question. It emphasizes that those deeds that the believers were now ashamed of did not benefit them. Translate this clause with that meaning. Here are some ways:

As a rhetorical question. For example:
what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? (NASB)
As a statement. For example:
you were getting no good fruit from the things you did then that you are now ashamed of

6:21a

What fruit did you reap at that time

At that time what benefits were you^(plur) receiving
And certainly no good things came to you at that time

The Greek of 6:21a begins with a word that is usually translated as “but.” Here, it probably does not indicate contrast. Rather, it was likely used to show that Paul continued to speak about the same kinds of things as he had before this verse. Some languages will not see contrast here to 6:20. For example:

What… (BSB, NIV)

And what… (REB)

What fruit: Here the word fruit is a metaphor that refers to the results of people’s deeds. Paul questioned what good result could have possibly come from the things they were now ashamed of. Some languages do not use the word fruit to refer to the results of deeds. For example:

what did you gainKankanaey Back Translation on TW.

good thing/wayKamula Back Translation, unpublished manuscript, Papua New Guinea.

did you reap: Like harvesting fruit, this phrase asks what benefit the believers received from those evil deeds. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

were you gaining

were you receiving

The Greek tense indicates that they were doing those things over a period of time. But in some languages it is more natural to refer generally to that time, only implying that this occurred over a period of time. For example:

did you gainKankanaey Back Translation on TW.

did you receiveUma Back Translation on TW.

at that time: Here this phrase refers to the time before the believers in Rome believed in Jesus, when they were enslaved to sin (6:20).

6:21b

from the things of which you are now ashamed?

from your behavior which now makes you feel ashamed?
from deeds you did then, which now you are ashamed about!

the things of which you are now ashamed: The word things here refers to deeds of impurity, lawlessness and other kinds of sin. The believers in Rome were now ashamed of those deeds.

now: Here this word refers to the time that Paul wrote to the believers in Rome.

ashamed: The word ashamed refers to feeling humiliation, moral discomfort, or loss of self-respect when that person has done something wrong.

6:21c

The outcome of those things is death.

For such behavior results in death.
For those deeds cause you to die.

The Greek of 6:21c begins with a word that is usually translated as “for.” Here this word introduces why the believers were ashamed. Some languages can omit this word and still connect 6:21c to 6:21b with the right meaning.

The outcome of those things is death: Here the word outcome refers to the end or result of those deeds that the believers were now ashamed of. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

Those things result in death! (NIV)

the result of those things is death! (ESV)

they lead to death

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

τίνα & καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε, ἐφ’ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε? τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος

what & (Some words not found in SR-GNT: τίνα Οὖν καρπόν εἴχετε τότε ἐφʼ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε τό Γάρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος)

If it would be more natural in your language, you could reverse the order of these sentences since the second sentence gives the reason for the result that the first sentence describes. Alternate translation: [since the outcome of those things is death, what fruit were you then having because of which things you are now ashamed?]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

τίνα οὖν καρπὸν εἴχετε τότε, ἐφ’ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε

what (Some words not found in SR-GNT: τίνα Οὖν καρπόν εἴχετε τότε ἐφʼ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε τό Γάρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος)

Paul is using a rhetorical question here to emphasize the futility of being “slaves to sin” in the previous verse. If you would not use a rhetorical question for this purpose in your language, you could translate his words as a statement or an exclamation in order to communicate the emphasis in another way. Alternate translation: [So you were not then having any fruit because of which things you are now ashamed!]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom

καρπὸν

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: τίνα Οὖν καρπόν εἴχετε τότε ἐφʼ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε τό Γάρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος)

Here, fruit is an idiom that refers to a benefit or advantage. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent idiom or use plain language. Alternate translation: [advantage] or [profit]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ἐφ’ οἷς & ἐκείνων

in which & ˱of˲_those_‹things›

Here, which things and those things refer to sins. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: [because of which sins … of those sins]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τὸ γὰρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: τίνα Οὖν καρπόν εἴχετε τότε ἐφʼ οἷς νῦν ἐπαισχύνεσθε τό Γάρ τέλος ἐκείνων θάνατος)

If your language does not use abstract nouns for the ideas of outcome and death, you could express the same ideas in another way. Alternate translation: [For those things finally result in you dying]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

θάνατος

death_‹is›

Here, death refers to spiritual death, which is eternal punishment in hell that occurs after physical death. See how you translated the same use of death in [6:16](../06/16.md).

Parallel ROM 6:21

Section 6:15–23: Become as slaves to righteousness

6:21a–b

6:21a

6:21b

6:21c