Summary: Man's unrighteousness brought death, but God's righteousness brings life
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With this discussion of the reign of life or death for the sinner, Paul is now back to the subject matter that introduced this whole section in the first place. Thus at this point he logically completes the comparison that was interrupted after verse 12.
Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. 19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
In these two sentences, we see why Paul has put so much emphasis on the transferred effect of Adam’s sin. What Adam did had its effect on all the world. Paul has pointed out that even without a Mosaic Law for people to break and thus incur personal and individual guilt by willful sinning, all died because all had been infected with inherited sin. Adam’s guilt was passed on to them. We could say that Adam’s guilt was imputed, or charged, to them.
The point is important for Paul’s comparison here. Just as one trespass on Adam’s part brought condemnation to all people, so there is also a blessed counterpart to that. By a similar transfer process, the righteous conduct of one man, Christ, came to be credited to that same world of sinners who had been infected by the one man, Adam. Because of what Christ has done for the world of sinners, God now looks at them as being holy and sinless.
The world of sinners has done nothing to bring about a change. They have not changed themselves so as to actually become holy. It is rather that in Christ, God looks at them as if they were holy. He declares them to be just; he justifies them. Thus, they have a new and changed status before God.
When Paul says that this is a justification “that brings life for all men,” we need to take that at face value. What Christ did for sinners truly brings life, but it is a blessing that needs to be accepted by faith. Life and salvation are there for all, but unbelief rejects what is there and thus loses the benefits a gracious God has provided.
Paul continues, “For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.” This sentence is virtually a repetition of the previous one, with only a few variations. “Many” replaces the “all” of the previous verse, but as already stated, many simply means that the group under discussion is large. This is not in conflict with the information of the previous verse but simply states that this large group in fact includes all the world.
Referring to this whole group, Paul says, “the many will be made righteous.” Here also, “to make righteous” does not mean that they actually become holy and without sin. Rather, in Christ their sins have been paid for so that God can now look at them as if they were without sin. Being viewed by God as being righteous reflects their new and changed status before him.
Note that verse 18 introduced this section with the adverb consequently. When Paul now says that the many “will be made righteous,” he is not referring to a future time but rather to the logical consequence of Christ’s work. That consequence, or connection, is, in fact, the point illustrated and taught by the comparison Paul sets forth. Just as what Adam did had its effect on all people, so it logically follows that a similar effect, or consequence, may be expected from what Christ did. That consequence is that sinners “will be made righteous” in God’s sight.
Notable throughout this whole section is the frequent use of terms such as “more” (verses 15,17), “overflow” (verse 15), “abundant provision” (verse 17), and the like. All are terms highlighting the grace and generosity of our Savior-God. It is no surprise, then, that Paul one more time sets up a “just as . . . so” comparison to show that the blessings Christ accomplished by his obedience are greater and more abundant than the damage done by man’s disobedience. In this last comparison, Paul moves ahead and includes not just the sin of one man, Adam, but the guilt of everyone who has ever gone contrary to God’s holy will as expressed in his law. Adding these “actual” sins to the damning “inherited” sins increases the quantity of guilt to a frightening load. But even this poses no insurmountable problem for a gracious God. As man’s sin increased, God’s grace in Christ simply increased all the more.