Romans 1:23 kjv

And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Romans 1:23 nkjv

and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man?and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

Romans 1:23 niv

and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

Romans 1:23 esv

and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Romans 1:23 nlt

And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

Romans 1 verses

Romans 1 23 Meaning

This verse states a profound spiritual corruption where humanity deliberately turned away from worshiping the transcendent, everlasting, and unchangeable God. Instead of honoring His radiant presence and intrinsic divine nature, they made a willful choice to venerate images crafted in the likeness of perishable and inferior aspects of creation, starting with frail human beings and descending to various forms of animals, birds, and reptiles. This act represents a fundamental reorientation of worship from the Creator to the created, signifying spiritual degradation and profound folly.

Romans 1 23 Context

Romans 1:23 stands within Paul’s foundational argument in the letter to the Romans, addressing humanity’s universal sinfulness and need for God’s righteousness. Specifically, it concludes Paul's exposition on why Gentile humanity stands condemned. The preceding verses (Rom 1:18-22) explain that God’s wrath is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness because, despite having clear evidence of God's eternal power and divine nature in creation (Rom 1:19-20), people "suppressed the truth" (Rom 1:18). This rejection led to them failing to honor God or give Him thanks (Rom 1:21a), becoming futile in their thinking, and experiencing a darkening of their foolish hearts (Rom 1:21b). Verse 22 culminates in the ironic statement that "professing to be wise, they became fools." Romans 1:23 then elaborates on the precise nature of this folly: it was manifest in the perverse exchange of the true God for created idols. This descent into idolatry is presented not as a consequence of ignorance but as a willful act rooted in the rejection of revealed truth, paving the way for God to "give them over" to the consequences of their ungodliness, detailed in subsequent verses (Rom 1:24, 26, 28). Historically, this context speaks to the widespread polytheism and animal worship in the Greco-Roman world, alongside the common practice of creating cultic images.

Romans 1 23 Word analysis

• and exchanged (Gk. ēllaxanto): The verb implies a deliberate and voluntary transaction, a purposeful trade-off, not an accidental or passive occurrence. It denotes a switch in loyalty or focus from one thing to another. This highlights human culpability – a conscious turning away from the Creator.
• the glory (Gk. doxan): Refers to the visible manifestation of God’s nature, His honor, majesty, power, and radiant presence. It is His inherent, weighty splendor and perfect attributes. Exchanging God's glory means replacing His divine essence and rightful worship with something far inferior.
• of the immortal God (Gk. aphthartou Theou): "Immortal" (ἀφθάρτου) emphasizes God's incorruptibility, eternity, and unchangeable nature, contrasting sharply with anything created. This highlights the foolishness and theological offense of exchanging the imperishable for the perishable. God is not subject to decay, death, or change, unlike all created things.
• for images (Gk. homoiōmati): Means "in the likeness of" or "similarity." It points to something made to look like an original, an imitation or representation. This is not the original itself but a fabricated resemblance. The word choice here further underlines the departure from reality and truth.
• made to look like (Gk. eikonos): An "image" or "likeness," often referring to a statue or figure. Paired with homoiōmati, it emphasizes that what humanity worshiped was not reality but a double removal: a likeness (homoioma) of an image (eikon), stressing the utter irrationality of the idolatry.
• mortal human beings (Gk. phthartou anthrōpou): "Mortal" (φθαρτοῦ) directly contrasts with "immortal" God, highlighting the stark downgrade. Human beings, despite being made in God's image, are finite, frail, and subject to decay and death. Worshipping them (or images of them) represents a fundamental denial of God's transcendence and uniqueness.
• and birds (Gk. peteinōn): Refers to creatures of the air.
• and animals (Gk. tetrapodōn): Specifically "four-footed" creatures, encompassing beasts of the land.
• and reptiles (Gk. herpetōn): Refers to crawling creatures.

• "exchanged the glory... for images": This phrase succinctly describes the act of idolatry as a spiritual transaction where something infinitely valuable (God's glory/presence) is wilfully given up for something utterly worthless and deceptive (man-made images). It is an act of supreme irreverence and foolishness.
• "the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal human beings and birds and animals and reptiles": This complete phrase powerfully contrasts the two sides of the exchange. On one side, God's enduring, majestic, and incorruptible nature; on the other, the finite, perishable, and ultimately base forms of created life. The downward progression from humans to the lowest forms of life (creeping things) illustrates the depth of humanity's spiritual degradation, moving further and further from the divine. It systematically negates the majesty of the Creator by replacing Him with lesser, perishable aspects of His creation, reversing the natural order of worship and respect.

Romans 1 23 Bonus section

The concept of "glory" (Hebrew: kavod; Greek: doxa) is foundational to understanding God's nature throughout the Scriptures. To "exchange" God's glory implies a deliberate act against His manifest presence and authority. It suggests not just ignoring God, but actively re-orienting one's ultimate reverence and devotion to something else. This also speaks to a core human impulse: the need to worship. When the true object of worship (the immortal God) is rejected, humanity inevitably creates substitutes, leading to a degraded spiritual state where the worshiped object's characteristics (mortality, finiteness) are implicitly adopted by the worshipper. This process of degradation is often subtle and can manifest in modern societies not as literal statues, but as idolatrous affections towards consumerism, self-image, scientific progress, or even human leaders, thereby diminishing God and elevating creation. The downward spiral illustrated by the progression from "mortal human beings" to "birds, animals, and reptiles" serves as a profound warning that a perverted spiritual vision invariably leads to moral and ethical decline, for what one worships, one ultimately becomes like (Psa 115:8).

Romans 1 23 Commentary

Romans 1:23 pinpoints a fundamental theological and spiritual failing that undergirds human ungodliness: the wilful displacement of God. It's not about lacking knowledge of God (Rom 1:19-20) but about the deliberate refusal to honor Him and the active decision to exchange His supreme glory for corrupted alternatives. The severity of this sin lies in the contrast: an uncreated, infinite, incorruptible, and sovereign God replaced by images resembling mortal, finite, and corruptible creatures—a staggering exchange that demonstrates ultimate spiritual foolishness (Rom 1:22).

The imagery descends from humanity to the lowliest of creatures (reptiles), signifying the depths of moral and spiritual degradation resulting from such worship. This passage doesn't just condemn physical idol worship common in ancient cultures but speaks to any elevation of created things (wealth, power, self, relationships, intellectual pursuits) to the place due only to God. When God's ultimate worth is devalued, His place is taken by anything, no matter how base. This initial misdirection of worship sets the stage for God "giving them over" to the escalating consequences of their rejection (Rom 1:24, 26, 28), leading to moral decay and social disintegration. It highlights humanity's inexcusability because they had abundant evidence of God, yet actively suppressed and perverted the truth concerning Him.

Examples:

• A person seeking ultimate fulfillment and identity in professional achievements, allowing their career to dictate their morality and life's purpose, effectively exchanges God's glory for human achievement.
• Someone finding ultimate solace or security in financial wealth, where their trust and deepest allegiances are to their riches rather than to the Provider of all things, is mirroring this ancient exchange.