WHAT THIS VERSE DOESN’T SAY

Romans 8:28 is a longtime favorite memory verse—but one that has often been mistranslated, misread, and misused. This verse does not promise that everything goes smoothly for followers of Jesus. The tragic experiences of most of the apostles and many faithful believers should demonstrate this clearly. This verse does not promise that God works out everything for the best, even if things might seem a little difficult for a while.

This verse does not say that God causes or sends suffering for our good or for purposes that only He understands, so we have to just trust grimly.

This verse does not say that tragedy, sorrow, and disappointments do not matter or that true believers can merely shrug their shoulders at suffering.

This verse does not argue that tragedies and suffering make sense somehow or that multiple evils somehow add up to a greater good in our lives.

This verse does not promise—or demand—that we will never be afraid of the bad things that will happen to all of us and those we love over the course of our lives.

What Romans 8:28 does say is that even on the worst day of our life, God is with us. Even amid troubles, trials, and tragedies, God is always with us by His Spirit.

While all the circumstances around us, and even within us, might be pushing us the other way, God is working with us and for our good.

And in His love, grace, and power, He can salvage and redeem something even from our most difficult experiences—something that we may be able to look back on as a blessing from some future vantage point. Despite its various misreadings, Romans 8:28 remains a remarkable promise and a worthwhile memory verse.