Romans 3:18 describes what happens when people live without reverence for God. Paul is saying that the root problem behind human wrongdoing is a missing sense of God’s authority and holiness, the awareness that we answer to him. He wrote this in his letter to the church in Rome, and he was describing humanity as a whole, including both the Jewish people who had the Law and the Gentiles who did not.
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Romans 3:18 (WEB)
What Romans 3:18 Means
The phrase “fear of God” in the Bible does not mainly mean being terrified of him. It refers to reverent awe, the settled recognition that God is holy, that he sees everything, and that he will judge rightly. When Paul says this fear is absent “before their eyes,” he means it is not part of how people look at life. It is not in front of them as a guide for choices, so their decisions are made without reference to God at all.
Paul is pointing to a cause, not just a symptom. The violence and misery he lists in the verses just before this one flow from hearts that have stopped taking God seriously. The verse does not promise that every person is equally wicked or that no one can change. It is a diagnosis of a condition, and the surrounding argument in Romans goes on to show how God answers that condition through Christ.
The Context of Romans 3:18
Romans is a letter written by the apostle Paul, most likely around the middle of the first century, to Christians in Rome. The church there included Jewish believers and Gentile believers, and Paul was addressing both, explaining that all people stand guilty before God and that justification comes by faith, not by keeping the Law. Tradition credits Paul as the author, and the letter is generally accepted as his.
Just before verse 18, Paul quotes a string of Old Testament passages describing human speech and conduct that is corrupt, violent and blind to peace. Verse 18 completes that list by naming the inner root. Verses 19 to 21 then draw the conclusion that the Law cannot make anyone right with God, but that God has now revealed a righteousness apart from the Law. Read this way, verse 18 is the hinge that explains why the whole world needs the gospel.
Key Phrases in Romans 3:18
Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
(WEB)
This verse states directly that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, which helps explain why its absence in Romans 3:18 leads to such destructive living. Proverbs shows the positive side of the same reverence that Paul describes as missing.
Romans 3:23
For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God…
(WEB)
Romans 3:23 follows directly from the picture in verse 18, stating that all people have fallen short of God’s glory. It shows that the lack of reverence is universal, which sets up the need for God’s grace in Christ.
A Short Prayer From Romans 3:18
Lord, you see everything I do and everything I hope for, and I confess that I often act as though you are far away. Forgive the moments when I live as if your judgment does not matter and your holiness does not shape my choices. Restore in me a clear and steady reverence for you, so that you stay in front of my eyes in my work, my words and my quiet thoughts. Help me to walk in the wisdom that begins with fearing you. Amen.
