Romans 8:18-25
Paul does not minimise present suffering by comparison with future glory — he says the whole created order is groaning under the same tension, and hope is defined precisely as waiting for what is not yet seen.
18For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 20For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, 21Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 23And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 24For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? 25But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Scripture first. Everything else is clearly labelled.
What the labels mean
- ScriptureThe King James Version, public domain, quoted exactly. Never edited, never paraphrased.
- Context / MeaningEditorial background and plain-language explanation written for this app.
- Modern interpretationPsychology, behaviour or science, shown only when it genuinely helps. Never proof of a theological claim.
- ReflectiveSymbolic and personal readings. Ways of thinking with the text, not what the author meant.
- PracticeSomething realistic you might do. An invitation you choose, not a command from God.
Written study
A curated study written for these verses: context, meaning, connections, reflection, alignment and practice.
Start here
The short version
- What is happening
- Paul widens the scope from the individual believer's suffering-and-glory (8:17) to cosmic scale: creation itself, personified as groaning and in bondage, waiting for the revealing of God's children.
- Why it matters here
- Paul weighs present sufferings against a coming glory and finds them not worth comparing — not because suffering is small, but because the glory is large.
- One key idea
- Paul does not minimise present suffering by comparison with future glory — he says the whole created order is groaning under the same tension, and hope is defined precisely as waiting for what is not yet seen.
- One connection
- Paul — Person
Where have I treated ongoing groaning as evidence that something is wrong, rather than as part of what Paul says this life is?
A summary of what follows. Editorial, not Scripture.
New to the Bible?
Adds short explanations of the names, places and words in these verses, right where they come up.
Ask about this
What would you like to understand?
Answers are drawn from what is written for Romans 8:18-25, the people and places named in it, and this book's background. No AI service is connected in this build, so nothing here is machine-generated.
UnderstandWhat is happening herePlain language, faithful to the setting — plus who wrote it and why.
Paul weighs present sufferings against a coming glory and finds them not worth comparing — not because suffering is small, but because the glory is large. Creation itself is described as subjected to futility, not by its own choice, and waiting eagerly, like childbirth, for its own liberation. Believers, who already have the Spirit as a firstfruit, groan too, waiting for full adoption and bodily redemption. Hope, Paul says explicitly, is for what is not yet seen — seen hope would not be hope at all.
Who wrote this, to whom, and why
Editorial background written for this app. Not Scripture.
New to this? What “context” means here
Every part of the Bible was written by someone, for someone, in a particular time and place. Knowing who wrote it, who first read it and what came just before and after usually settles most questions about what it means.
Where we are not sure, we say so. “Traditional” means a long-standing attribution; “debated” means scholars genuinely disagree.
- Author
- Paul. (established)
- Audience
- The Roman church.
- Literary setting
- Paul widens the scope from the individual believer's suffering-and-glory (8:17) to cosmic scale: creation itself, personified as groaning and in bondage, waiting for the revealing of God's children.
- Surrounding argument
- This section extends the suffering-with-glory link named at the end of 8:12–17 outward to all creation, and closes by defining hope as patient waiting for what is unseen — setting up 8:26–30, where Paul turns to how the Spirit helps in exactly that condition of not-yet-seeing, especially in prayer.
- Historical background
- Jewish apocalyptic writing sometimes pictured creation's suffering as birth pains preceding a new age; Paul's image of creation groaning 'as in travail' draws on that expectation without laying out a timetable.
What remains uncertain
What exactly 'the creature' or 'creation' includes — the natural world, humanity, or both — and how literally to take its 'bondage of corruption' is debated; Paul's language is evocative rather than systematic here.
References
- Romans 8:18–25
- Genesis 3:17–19 — The ground's curse, often read as background.
- Romans 8:26–30 — Turns to the Spirit's help while waiting.
ConnectWho and what this connects to1 person, place or idea named in these verses — and where you are in the story.
Tap any of these to see who or what it is, why it matters here, and where else it appears in our library. Editorial material, not Scripture.
AnglesSee it from a few anglesBiblical, human and — clearly marked — reflective readings, converging on one life.
These are ways of seeing, not competing theories to collect. They are editorial interpretation rather than Scripture, and they are here to meet in the alignment step below.
Biblical
What this contributes within Scripture
The passage links the fate of creation to the fate of God's children rather than treating them as separate concerns — a theme with roots in Genesis 3, where the ground itself is affected by human sin.
Human pattern
Common human tendencies at work
Naming groaning as normal, not as a sign that something has gone wrong with one's faith, is one of the more countercultural moves in the passage: waiting itself is treated as part of the shape of this life, not a failure to arrive somewhere.
Historical
Background that changes the meaning
Paul's original readers lived under real hardship — social marginalisation and, before long, state persecution. 'Sufferings of this present time' was not an abstraction for them.
Reflective anglesReflective
Ways of thinking with the text. They are not claims about what the original writer intended.
What this might symbolise
Some readers hear the image of creation's labour pains as a picture of any long, painful process that is nonetheless moving toward something. That is a reflective resonance the image invites; Paul's own claim is about the created order, not a general metaphor for personal struggle.
What it might illuminate in a life
What are you currently waiting for that you cannot yet see — and how does 'hope' as Paul defines it differ from optimism that it will turn out fine?
ReflectWhat this brings up for youOpen questions that assume nothing about your situation. Answers stay on this device.
Where have I treated ongoing groaning as evidence that something is wrong, rather than as part of what Paul says this life is?
What am I waiting for right now that fits Paul's definition of hope — unseen, and worth waiting for anyway?
How do I tend to compare present difficulty with future good, and does that comparison hold up?
What needs to come into alignment?
Am I trying to see my way out of waiting, when Paul says hope is precisely for what is not seen?
- Notice
- Understand
- Choose
- Practise
Alignment is coherence between what you understand, believe, choose and do. It is not a score, and no one is measuring you. Anything suggested here is a possibility to weigh, never a command from God to you personally.
In your own words, what does this passage say?
In yourself, honestly, as you read it.
What you actually hold to be true here.
Your real behaviour, not your intentions.
Between what you believe and what you do.
Your own discernment — this app will not tell you what God requires of you.
One concrete action for the next 24 hours. Small and specific beats ambitious and vague.
Name it as waiting, not failure
Identify one situation you have been treating as a problem to solve immediately. Today, simply name it instead as something you are waiting on, and let that be enough for the day.
Next 24 hours
If you keep practising this
Paul turns next to how the Spirit helps in exactly this condition of groaning and not-yet-seeing — particularly in prayer, where believers often do not know what to ask for (8:26–30).
A possible direction, not a promised outcome.
RememberWhat to carry forwardOne takeaway, one memory hook, and anything you want to keep.
Build my understanding
Remember this much
- Who / what
- Romans 8:18-25 — Letter in Romans
- Where
- Romans · Letters to the first churches
- What happened
- Paul widens the scope from the individual believer's suffering-and-glory (8:17) to cosmic scale: creation itself, personified as groaning and in bondage, waiting for the revealing of God's children.
- Why it matters
- Paul weighs present sufferings against a coming glory and finds them not worth comparing — not because suffering is small, but because the glory is large.
- Key idea
- Paul does not minimise present suffering by comparison with future glory — he says the whole created order is groaning under the same tension, and hope is defined precisely as waiting for what is not yet seen.
“Am I trying to see my way out of waiting, when Paul says hope is precisely for what is not seen?”
Connected
Optional, in your own words. Private to this device.
Know someone who might want to read this too?
You choose what the card says. Your notes and reflections stay on this device.
Community perspective
Have a perspective on this passage?
Share what you noticed. Your perspective is not added to Scripture. It is kept separate and labelled as a perspective.
Translation
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Prefer to read the surrounding chapter? Open Romans 8.