The Meaning of Romans 8:16: Explained

Romans 8:16:

KJV: The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

YLT: The Spirit himself doth testify with our spirit, that we are children of God;

Darby: The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God.

ASV: The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are children of God:

Discover Romans 8:16:

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Romans 8:16:?

MEANING: What does Romans 8:16: Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Romans 8:16: mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Romans 8:16:?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The Spirit  itself  beareth witness  with our  spirit,  that  we are  the children  of God: 

What does Romans 8:16: Mean?

Study Notes

children
(Greek - τέκνον , "one born," a child (and so in Romans 8:17 ; Romans 8:21 ); not, as in Romans 8:14 , "sons" (gr. huios). See Galatians 4:1 ; Galatians 4:7 where babyhood and sonhood are contrasted. Also "Adoption"; Romans 8:15 ; Romans 8:23 ; Ephesians 1:5 .

Verse Meaning

God has provided the believer with two witnesses to his or her salvation, the Holy Spirit and our human spirit (cf. Deuteronomy 17:6; Matthew 18:16). The former witness is objective in Scripture and subjective (cf. Romans 8:14), while the latter is only subjective. Another view is that the Holy Spirit bears witness to God when we pray ( Romans 8:15). [1] Incidentally, this second reference to "spirit" is probably the only one in Romans 8 that is not a reference to the Holy Spirit.
The term "children" identifies our family relationship based on regeneration whereas "sons" stresses our legal standing based on adoption. We are both God"s children, by new birth, and His sons, by adoption.

Context Summary

Romans 8:10-17 - Children And Heirs Of God
The Spirit here is of course the Holy Spirit, by whom Christ our Lord lives within us. It is passing wonderful that as the life which throbs in the heart beats also in the pulse, so the very life which is in Christ in glory is also in our hearts. Our main task is to put aside every barrier to its full expression. This is what the Apostle means by doing to death the practices, stratagems, and lawless promptings of the body, which are ever calling for ease and self-indulgence. There is no stage of our earthly pilgrimage at which we can dispense with the power of the Spirit of God for deliverance from the deeds of the body.
But there is another most blessed function of the divine Spirit, Romans 8:14. He is willing to lead us, to prompt our actions, to inspire our purposes, and to mold our characters. The more we yield to Him, the deeper becomes our awareness of that filial relationship with God which breathes in the cry, Abba, Father. But note the wonderful climax, Romans 8:17. If we yield to the Holy Spirit, He will conduct us into the divine treasure-house and bid us avail ourselves of the infinite resources which are there stored for our use, not in the next life, but in this. [source]

Chapter Summary: Romans 8

1  Those who are in Christ are free from condemnation
5  What harm comes of the flesh;
13  and what good of the Spirit
19  The glorious deliverance the creation longs for,
29  was beforehand decreed from God
38  Nothing can sever us from his love

Greek Commentary for Romans 8:16:

The Spirit himself [αυτο το πνευμα]
The grammatical gender of πνευμα — pneuma is neuter as here, but the Greek used also the natural gender as we do exclusively as in John 16:13 εκεινος — ekeinos (masculine he), το πνευμα — to pneuma (neuter). See also John 16:26 It is a grave mistake to use the neuter “it” or “itself” when referring to the Holy Spirit. [source]
Beareth witness with our spirit [συμμαρτυρει τωι πνευματι ημων]
See note on Romans 2:15 for this verb with associative instrumental case. See 1 John 5:10. for this double witness. [source]

What do the individual words in Romans 8:16: mean?

Himself the Spirit bears witness with the spirit of us that we are children of God
αὐτὸ τὸ Πνεῦμα συμμαρτυρεῖ τῷ πνεύματι ἡμῶν ὅτι ἐσμὲν τέκνα Θεοῦ

αὐτὸ  Himself 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Nominative Neuter 3rd Person Singular
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.
Πνεῦμα  Spirit 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Neuter Singular
Root: πνεῦμα  
Sense: a movement of air (a gentle blast.
συμμαρτυρεῖ  bears  witness  with 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: συμμαρτυρέω  
Sense: to bear witness with, bear joint witness.
πνεύματι  spirit 
Parse: Noun, Dative Neuter Singular
Root: πνεῦμα  
Sense: a movement of air (a gentle blast.
ἡμῶν  of  us 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive 1st Person Plural
Root: ἐγώ  
Sense: I, me, my.
ὅτι  that 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: ὅτι  
Sense: that, because, since.
ἐσμὲν  we  are 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 1st Person Plural
Root: εἰμί  
Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.
τέκνα  children 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Neuter Plural
Root: τέκνον  
Sense: offspring, children.
Θεοῦ  of  God 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: θεός  
Sense: a god or goddess, a general name of deities or divinities.

What are the major concepts related to Romans 8:16:?

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Similar Scriptures for Romans 8:16:

1 John 4:13 [18]
2 Corinthians 1:22 [16]
2 Corinthians 5:5 [11]
1 John 3:19-22 [8]
Ephesians 1:13 [6]
2 Corinthians 1:12 [5]
Romans 8:23 [5]
1 John 5:10 [4]
Romans 8:26 [4]
Ephesians 4:30 [4]
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