For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

For in that he died to sin, he died once; but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God:

For in that he has died, he has died to sin once for all; but in that he lives, he lives to God.

Death has no longer any power over Him. For by the death which He died He became, once for all, dead in relation to sin; but by the life which He now lives He is alive in relation to God.

For his death was a death to sin, but his life now is a life which he is living to God.

For in as much as he died for sin, he died once. But in as much as he lives, he lives for God.

For the death that he died was a death to sin, once and for all. But the life that he now lives, he lives for God.

Quod enim mortuus est, peccato mortuus est semel, quod autem vivit, vivit Deo.

He died once to sin, etc. What he had said -- that we, according to the example of Christ, are for ever freed from the yoke of death, he now applies to his present purpose, and that is this -- that we are no more subject to the tyranny of sin, and this he proves from the designed object of Christ's death; for he died that he might destroy sin. But we must observe what is suitable to Christ in this form of expression; for he is not said to die to sin, so as to cease from it, as the words must be taken when applied to us, but that he underwent death on account of sin, that having made himself antilutron, a ransom, he might annihilate the power and dominion of sin. [1] And he says that he died once, not only because he has by having obtained eternal redemption by one offering, and by having made an expiation for sin by his blood, sanctified the faithful for ever; but also in order that a mutual likeness may exist between us. For though spiritual death makes continual advances in us, we are yet said properly to die only once, that is, when Christ, reconciling us by his blood to the Father, regenerates us at the same time by the power of his Spirit. But that he lives, etc. Whether you add with or in God, it comes to the same meaning; for he shows that Christ lives a life subject to no mortality in the immortal and incorruptible kingdom of God; a type of which ought to appear in the regeneration of the godly. We must here remember the particle of likeness, so; for he says not that we shall now live in heaven, as Christ lives there; but he makes the new life, which after regeneration we live on earth, similar to his celestial life. When he says that we ought to die to sin, according to his example, we are not to suppose it to be the same kind of death; for we die to sin, when sin dies in us, but it was otherwise with Christ; by dying it was that he conquered sin. But he had just said before, that we believe that we shall have life in common with him, he fully shows by the word believing that he speaks of the grace of Christ: for if he only reminded us of a duty, his mode of speaking would have been this, "Since we die with Christ, we ought also to live with him." But the word believing denotes that he treats here of doctrine which is based on the promises; as though he had said, that the faithful ought to feel assured that they are through the kindness of Christ dead as to the flesh, and that the same Christ will preserve them in newness of life to the end. But the future time of the verb live, refers not to the last resurrection, but simply denotes the continued course of a new life, as long as we peregrinate on the earth.

Footnotes

1 - This difference may be gathered from the general tenor of the whole passage; for his death and our death are said to have a likeness, and not to be same. And farther, in mentioning our death in this connection, in the next verse, he changes his phraseology; it is nekrous and not einai, which means those deprived of life -- the lifeless. "The dead (nekrous) in trespasses and sins," are those who have no spiritual life; and to be dead to sin is not to have life for sin, to be freed from its ruling power. See Romans 6:18 It is usual with the Apostle to adopt the same form of words in different senses, which can only be distinguished by the context or by other parts of Scripture, as it has been noticed in a [4]note on Romans 4:25. -- Ed.

For in that he died - For in respect to the design of his death.
He died unto sin - His death had respect to sin. The design of his death was to destroy sin; to make an atonement for it, and thus to put it away. As his death was designed to effect this, so it follows that Christians being baptized into his death, and having it as their object to destroy sin, should not indulge in it. The whole force of the motive; therefore, drawn from the death of Christ, is to induce Christians to forsake sin; compare 2-Corinthians 5:15, "And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth, live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again."
Once - ἐφάπαξ ephapax. Once only; once for all. This is an adverb denying a repetition (Schleusner), and implies that it will not be done again; compare Hebrews 7:27; Hebrews 9:12; Hebrews 10:10. The argument of the apostle rests much on this, that his death was once for all; that it would not be repeated.
In that he liveth - The object, the design of his living. He aims with his living power to promote the glory of God.
Unto God - He seeks to promote his glory. The argument of Paul is this: Christians by their profession are united to him. They are bound to imitate him. As he now lives only to advance the glory of God; as all his mighty power, now that he is raised from the dead, and elevated to his throne in heaven, is exerted to promote his glory; so should their powers, being raised from the death of sin, be exerted to promote the glory of God.

He died unto sin once - On this clause Rosenmuller speaks thus: "Τῃ ἁμαρτιᾳ απεθανεν εφαπαξ· propter peccatum mortuus est semel, et quidem misera morte. Τῃ ἁμαρτιᾳ , i.e. ὑπερ της ἁμαρτιας, ad expianda peccata; res ipsa docet aliter homines αποθνησκειν τῃ ἁμαρτιᾳ, aliter Christum: amat Paulus parallelismum, in quo interpretando multa cautione opus est." "He died unto sin once: i.e. he died on account of sin, and truly a miserable death. Τῃ ἁμαρτιᾳ, is the same as ὑπερ της ἁμαρτιας, for the expiation of sin. Common sense teaches us that men die to sin in one sense; Christ in another: St. Paul loves parallelisms, in the interpretation of which there is need of much caution." From the whole scope of the apostle's discourse it is plain that he considers the death of Christ as a death or sacrifice for sin; a sin-offering: in this sense no man has ever died for sin, or ever can die.

For in that he died, he died unto sin (m) once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto (n) God.
(m) Once for all.
(n) With God.

For in that he died,.... The death of Christ was settled and agreed to in the covenant and council of peace; it was spoken of by the prophets, and typified by sacrifices; Christ came into the world in order to die, and actually did die the death of the cross; in which the great love of God and Christ is expressed to us; and which is a fundamental article of the Christian faith: and when he died,
he died unto sin once: he died to that, which we by nature are dead in, and could never make atonement for; which he himself never lived in, and which men naturally love to in; and which had he not died for, we must have died for to all eternity; and he died not for any sin of his own, or of angels, nor for the sins of every man, but for the sins of his people; it may be rendered, he died in sin: in the likeness of sinful flesh, in which he was sent; having as a surety sin laid on him, and bore by him, and for which he was wounded, bruised, and died: or rather to sin; that is, to make atonement for it, procure the pardon of it, take it away, and utterly abolish it: and this he did "once"; this is observed, in reference to the repeated sacrifices of the old law, which could never expiate or remove sin; and to show, that Christ's dying once was enough, his sacrifice was fully satisfactory to the law and justice of God:
but in that he liveth: which must be understood, not of his life as God, but as man; and that not on earth, but in heaven; where he lives with God, at the right hand of God, and by him, by the power of God: and
he liveth unto God; to his glory, and to make intercession for us.

For in that he died, he died unto--that is, in obedience to the claims of
sin once--for all.
but in that he liveth, he liveth unto--in obedience to the claims of God.
God--There never, indeed, was a time when Christ did not "live unto God." But in the days of His flesh He did so under the continual burden of sin "laid on Him" (Isaiah 53:6; 2-Corinthians 5:21); whereas, now that He has "put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself," He "liveth unto God," the acquitted and accepted Surety, unchallenged and unclouded by the claims of sin.

He died to sin - To atone for and abolish it. He liveth unto God - A glorious eternal life, such as we shall live also.