Romans 8:36 · Bible study
Romans 8:36 Commentary: Killed All Day, Sheep for Slaughter
Greek · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 to show that constant suffering for God does not separate believers from His love in Christ.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 to show that constant suffering for God is expected, but does not separate from His love.
- Key words: θανατούμεθα (we are killed, present passive), ἐλογίσθημεν (we were regarded, aorist passive), σφαγῆς (slaughter).
- Main debate: Whether the psalm originally referred to Maccabean martyrs (Calvin) or general suffering of the righteous.
- Theological theme: Suffering for righteousness and the certainty of God's faithful love in Christ.
- Best use: Comfort for persecuted believers and assurance in times of chronic trial.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
As it is written: “For Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
WEB World English Bible 2000
Even as it is written, “For your sake we are killed all day long. We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
KJV King James Version 1769
As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
(according as it hath been written--`For Thy sake we are put to death all the day long, we were reckoned as sheep of slaughter,')
Darby Darby Bible 1890
According as it is written, For thy sake we are put to death all the day long; we have been reckoned as sheep for slaughter.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
(As it is written: For thy sake, we are put to death all the day long. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.)
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Como está escrito: Por causa de ti somos muertos todo el tiempo: somos estimados como ovejas de matadero.
Como está escrito: “Pois por causa de ti somos entreges à morte o dia todo; somos contados como ovelhas para o matadouro”.
selon qu’ il est écrit:
wie geschrieben steht: “Um deinetwillen werden wir getötet den ganzen Tag; wir sind geachtet wie Schlachtschafe.”
(Gelijk geschreven is: Want om Uwentwil worden wij den gansen dag gedood; wij zijn geacht als schapen ter slachting.)
Come è scritto: Per amor di te noi siamo tutto il giorno messi a morte; siamo stati considerati come pecore da macello.
Jako napisano: Dla ciebie cały dzień zabijani bywamy, poczytaniśmy jako owce na rzeź naznaczone;
за Тебя умерщвляют нас всякий день, считают нас за овец, обреченных на заклание.
如 經上所記： 我們為你 的緣故 終日 被殺；人看 我們如 將宰的 羊。
As it is said in the holy Writings, Because of you we are put to death every day; we are like sheep ready for destruction.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Koine Greek)
New Testament · Koine Greek · Romans 8:36
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 to demonstrate the continuity of suffering for God's people across the ages. Barnes notes that the psalmist's words are 'aptly descriptive' of the Christian condition. Calvin observes that the passage shows it is 'no new thing for the Lord to permit his saints to be undeservedly exposed to the cruelty of the ungodly.' Gill adds that the quotation is meant to show that 'suffering death has been the common lot of the saints in all ages.' The Cambridge Bible highlights that Paul indicates 'the continuity of the believing Church of all time.' The consensus is that this grim reality does not undermine Paul's argument; rather, it underscores that suffering is the believer's expected experience, yet it cannot separate them from Christ's love. The quote directly addresses the final item in Paul's list in verse 35: 'or sword?'
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Paul teaches that suffering for the sake of God, even to the point of death, is the expected experience of believers, yet it does not separate them from the love of God in Christ.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Original context of the quotation | Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 to describe the experience of suffering for God. | Calvin sees the psalm as originally describing oppression under Antiochus. Barnes treats it as a general description of the saints' condition. Both agree it is aptly applied to Christians. |
| Meaning of 'sheep for slaughter' | The image depicts vulnerability, meekness, and the brutality of persecutors. | Gill suggests an allusion to daily temple sacrifices. Other commentators focus on the contempt shown by enemies. The difference is whether sacrificial or dehumanizing aspects are primary. |
| Application to the believer's experience | All traditions read this as describing the real possibility of death for faithfulness. | Some emphasize literal martyrdom as normative; others view it as exposure to danger that may or may not result in death. The verse is used across traditions to validate both physical persecution and social suffering. |
| Relationship to the triumph in verse 37 | The quotation sets up Paul's declaration of victory over all sufferings. | Calvin sees the quotation as proving that death is not a reason to fall away; Gill and others view it as a background for the contrast between suffering and victory. Both read it as foundational for assurance. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Paul quotes from Psalm 44:22, a communal lament of Israel crying out to God while suffering defeat and persecution. The psalm originally described the nation's experience under foreign oppression, Calvin suggests it may refer to the tyranny of Antiochus. By citing it, Paul connects the suffering of Old Testament believers with that of New Testament Christians. The phrase 'all the day long' (Greek holēn tēn hēmeran) indicates continual, unceasing danger, not a single event. It is a present-tense reality: 'we are killed' (Greek thanatoumetha, present passive), meaning believers live under constant threat of death.
The image of 'sheep for slaughter' (Greek probata sphagēs) carries deep Old Testament resonance. Sheep were daily sacrificed in the temple (morning and evening lambs, as Gill notes). Prophets like Jeremiah and Isaiah used the same imagery for the suffering righteous (Jeremiah 11:19; Isaiah 53:7). The phrase evokes vulnerability, meekness, and the brutal treatment of the innocent. For Paul's first readers, many facing persecution from both Jewish and Roman authorities, this language described their lived reality. Yet the quotation appears within Paul's argument that nothing can 'separate us from the love of Christ' (v. 35). The very sufferings that seem to deny God's care are, in fact, the path along which His love remains unbroken.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The quotation follows the Septuagint (LXX) text of Psalm 44:22 closely. Differences among English translations (e.g., 'we are killed' vs. 'we face death') reflect interpretive choices in rendering the Greek verb thanatoumetha and the aorist passive elogisthēmen.
Reception History
Throughout church history, this verse has been a primary text for believers facing persecution. Early Christian writers cited it in martyrdom accounts to show continuity with the Old Testament faithful. Reformation-era commentators like Calvin used it to encourage steadfastness, insisting that suffering was not a sign of God's absence but a mark of true discipleship. Matthew Henry (1710) read it as part of Paul's 'holy triumph' over all adversities. In modern times, the verse has offered language for Christians enduring chronic persecution in various regions, reminding them that their experience is not new and that it does not separate them from the love of God in Christ.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The reality of suffering for faith. Paul quotes a psalm that confesses ongoing, deadly persecution. This is not hypothetical; it is the normal experience of God's people across both Testaments.
- The reason for suffering: 'For your sake.' Suffering comes not from sin but from loyalty to God. As Barnes says, it is 'on account of attachment to him.' It is a costly witness.
- The response: unshakeable confidence. Paul does not gloss over the pain. Instead, he lets the grim quotation stand, then answers it with the triumph of verse 37: 'we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.'
Five-point outline
- The source of the quotation. Psalm 44:22, a lament from Israel's history that becomes a prophecy of the church's experience.
- The intensity: 'all day long.' The suffering is chronic, not occasional. It wears the believer down.
- The dehumanization: 'accounted as sheep for slaughter.' The world treats believers with contempt, as disposable objects.
- The continuity across eras. The same pattern holds for Old Testament saints, for Paul's generation, and for every age. The church is one flock under one Shepherd.
- The anchor: none of this separates from God's love. The quotation sets up Paul's climax: suffering proves the depth of love, not its absence.
Illustration hooks
- A long illness. A Christian who battles a chronic disease may feel like they are being 'killed all day long.' The verse gives language for that exhaustion while insisting God's love remains.
- Workplace hostility. An employee regularly mocked or passed over for their faith can feel 'accounted as sheep for slaughter.' Paul says this is part of the pattern, not a sign of abandonment.
- Global persecution news. Stories of believers jailed or executed are not anomalies; they are the continuation of what the psalmist and Paul described.
Questions your congregation is asking
- If I suffer because I follow Christ, does that mean God has left me?
- How can I endure when the danger never stops?
- Does this verse mean every Christian should expect to be killed?
Leading a Discussion
This verse confronts us with the harsh reality of suffering for faith, even as Paul assures us of God's unshakeable love. It forces us to look squarely at persecution and ask what it means for our confidence in Christ.
Discussion questions
- Why does Paul choose this particular quotation from the Old Testament at this point in his argument? What does it add to the list in verse 35?
- What does the phrase 'all day long' communicate about the nature of suffering for God's people?
- The Greek word elogisthēmen (we were accounted) means 'to be reckoned or regarded.' How does being counted as 'sheep for slaughter' make you feel? What does it reveal about the world's view of believers?
- How does the fact that this quotation comes from a psalm of lament shape your understanding of suffering? Is lament allowed in the Christian life?
- In what ways have you experienced (or seen others experience) suffering 'for Your sake' that is directly linked to faith in Christ?
- How does Paul move from this bleak quotation to the triumphant claim in verse 37 that 'we are more than conquerors'? What bridge does he build?
- How can this verse help you (or someone you know) endure a season of persistent trial without doubting God's love?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Psalms 44:22 | Yes, for your sake we are killed all day long. We are regarded as sheep for the slaughter. |
| Psalms 141:7 | “As when one plows and breaks up the earth, our bones are scattered at the mouth of Sheol.” |
| Isaiah 53:7 | He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he didn’t open his mouth. As a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he didn’t open his mouth. |
| Jeremiah 11:19 | But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter. I didn’t know that they had devised plans against me, saying, “Let’s destroy the tree with its fruit, and let’s cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.” |
| Jeremiah 12:3 | But you, Yahweh, know me. You see me, and test my heart toward you. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, and prepare them for the day of slaughter. |
| Jeremiah 51:40 | “I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams with male goats. |
| John 16:2 | They will put you out of the synagogues. Yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers service to God. |
| Acts 8:32 | Now the passage of the Scripture which he was reading was this, “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter. As a lamb before his shearer is silent, so he doesn’t open his mouth. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke argues that persecution of believers is neither surprising nor unusual. It follows naturally from the world's fallen condition, and the prophet who wrote the psalm foresaw that a sinful world would always oppose God's true followers. Such suffering is what believers should expect.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes stresses that Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 not because it originally referred to Christians, but because it aptly describes their constant danger and suffering for God's cause. He explains each phrase: being "killed all the day long" means continuous exposure to death, and being "accounted as sheep for the slaughter" means enemies regard believers as fit for slaughter with no more concern than for sheep.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin stresses that the psalmist's "death daily" is not a reason to abandon faith but the normal experience of God's servants throughout history. He notes that the saints protest their innocence even as they suffer unjustly for true religion. For Calvin this affirms that suffering for righteousness is not new, and God permits it for their ultimate good.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator notes that Paul quotes the Greek version of Psalm 44 word for word, applying an Old Testament psalm of martyrs directly to New Testament believers. This deliberate choice reveals Paul’s conviction that the same believing Church continues across both eras, joined in suffering and divine purpose.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
As it is written, For thy sake are we killed all day long: we are counted as sheepe for the slaughter.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill connects the suffering of God's people to the daily temple sacrifices, seeing the same pattern in both. He notes that saints in every age have been continually exposed to death for God's sake, treated as helpless sheep destined for slaughter, yet responding with the meekness of lambs.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB observes that Paul quotes this psalm as a standing description of what God's faithful people should expect from their enemies. When hatred of righteousness is stirred up and nothing restrains it, hostility follows. This pattern of persecution repeats in every age (Galatians 4:29).
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange treats the groaning of creation as a real and painful longing, not a mere poetic image. This subjection to decay is part of a labor that points toward a glorious freedom, where even the material world will share in the redemption of God's children.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley notes that "all the day" means every day, continually. He distinguishes that being accounted as sheep for slaughter applies from two perspectives: our enemies view us this way, and we also view ourselves this way.