Romans 3:4 (GNV)

Passage

God forbid: yea, let God be true, and euery man a lyar, as it is written, That thou mightest be iustified in thy words, and ouercome, when thou art iudged.

Nearby Context

Romans 3:2 Much euery maner of way: for chiefly, because vnto them were of credite committed the oracles of God.

Romans 3:3 For what, though some did not beleeue? shall their vnbeliefe make the faith of God without effect?

Romans 3:4 God forbid: yea, let God be true, and euery man a lyar, as it is written, That thou mightest be iustified in thy words, and ouercome, when thou art iudged.

Romans 3:5 Now if our vnrighteousnes comend the righteousnes of God, what shall we say? Is God vnrighteous which punisheth? (I speake as a man.)

Romans 3:6 God forbid: els how shall God iudge ye world?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "forbid", "true", "euery", "lyar", "written", "thou", "mightest", and "iustified". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "forbid" and "true", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "For what though some did not beleeue..." into verse 5's "Now if our vnrighteousnes comend the righteousnes...", so "forbid" and "true" belong inside that flow. In Romans context, the local focus is righteousness by faith, union with Christ, life in the Spirit, and God's covenant faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "forbid" and "true" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.