Bible Verse (NIV)
“There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
— Romans 3:10–12 (NIV)
Reflection
At first, these words from Paul may sound shocking. After all, don’t we see people doing good every day? We see acts of kindness, charity, and sacrifice from our loved ones. So, how can the Bible say there is no one good?
The answer lies in how God defines good. From a human perspective, when we define the word good, we usually base it on commendable actions such as kindness and generosity. However, most of us who do these acts are usually motivated by a sense of duty, personal gain, or society expectations rather than a pure heart.
But God doesn’t define it that way. His standard of good is himself, pure, holy, and perfect. Romans 3:23 reminds us that we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That means even with our best efforts, we still fall short. No matter how many good deeds we do, they cannot erase our sins or measure up to God’s holiness. Our human good may look impressive compared to others, but compared to God’s righteousness, it will never be enough.
This is why the Bible teaches that we are not righteous on our own. We sin because we are born with a sinful nature. Even the little sins like lying, gossiping or selfish motives reveal that we are not as good as we think. But through Jesus, God removes our sin and covers us with his righteousness.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, we confess that on our own we are not righteous and we fall short of your glory. Thank you for sending Jesus to be our righteousness and to give us new life. Change our hearts so that our actions reflect your love and remind us daily that true goodness comes only from you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
In Other Translations
KJV (King James Version):
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
AMP (Amplified Bible):
“As it is written and forever remains written, There is none righteous [none that meets God’s standard], not even one. There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God. All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, no, not one.”
NLT (New Living Translation):
“As the Scriptures say, ‘No one is righteous— not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.’”
NASB (New American Standard Bible):
“As it is written: ‘There is no righteous person, not even one; There is no one who understands, There is no one who seeks out God; They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, There is not even one.’”
ESV (English Standard Version):
“As it is written: ‘None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.’”
Related Verses
Romans 3:23 – “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Isaiah 64:6 – “All our righteous acts are like filthy rags.”
Psalm 14:3 – “All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
Ephesians 2:8–9 – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith… not by works, so that no one can boast.”
2 Corinthians 5:21 – “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
