ἥμαρτον (emarton) in Romans 3:23: Verb Third Person Plural Second Aorist Active Indicative

Verb: the form states an action, here the act of sinning named in Paul's summary of humanity's condition.

Second Aorist: presents the sinning as a whole assertion in the argument. It does not by itself mean one momentary sin or identify when every person sinned.

Active: presents the plural subject as carrying out the action stated by the verb.

Indicative: states the action as an assertion within Paul's explanation rather than as a command, wish, or possibility.

Third person: speaks about the people named by the subject rather than directly as I, we, or you.

Not applicable: this finite verb does not use noun case to mark its clause role.

Plural: agrees with πάντες, all, and states the action about the whole group in view.

Not applicable: this finite verb does not use grammatical gender to make its point.

The verb is attached to the plural subject πάντες, all, and is coordinated with ὑστεροῦνται, fall short.

The explanatory γὰρ clause in Romans 3:23, which supports the preceding statement that there is no distinction.

It is the first main finite predicate of the verse, asserting that all the people in view have sinned before the verse states their shortfall.

The form does not count individual sins, prove a single punctiliar event, or carry Paul's whole doctrine of sin apart from the surrounding argument.

High: The predicate states the universal sin assertion that introduces Romans 3:23 and prepares for the grace announced in verse 24.

Plural aorist active indicative predicate. states the first coordinated assertion about all the people in view. Attached to the subject πάντες, all. Governed by the explanatory γὰρ clause in Romans 3:23. The subject and the surrounding argument establish universality; the aorist contributes aspect, not the scope by itself.

What does Paul assert about all people before he speaks of justification by grace? He states that all have sinned, then joins that assertion to their falling short of God's glory.

Direct: The third-person plural aorist directly supports the familiar rendering have sinned in this summary clause.

The aorist presents the action as a whole without specifying how many sins each person committed. English have sinned communicates the clause well, but the Greek aspect should not be reduced to an English tense formula. The verse's universal reach comes from πάντες and Paul's argument, not from verbal morphology alone.

Aorist proves a single momentary act: Aorist aspect views the action as a whole; it does not by itself settle duration, frequency, or exact timing. verb morphology alone proves universal sin: The plural form agrees with its subject, while πάντες and the argument establish the universal claim. verse 23 can be taught without verse 24: Paul's diagnosis leads directly into justification by grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus.

Romans 3:23 reads πάντες γὰρ ἥμαρτον, for all sinned, with ἥμαρτον marked as V-2AAI-3P.

The lemma is ἁμαρτάνω, to sin. This guide keeps that lexical identity tied to this one Romans 3 occurrence.

The plural finite verb agrees with πάντες and supplies the first of two coordinated assertions. The aorist presents the action as a whole within Paul's summary, while the clause and wider argument provide its force.

Paul removes any distinction in human standing before God: all have sinned and all fall short, so the justification described in the following verse is entirely by God's grace.

The form serves Romans' wider argument that both Jew and Gentile stand under sin and that righteousness is received through faith rather than secured by works of the law.

Teach the clause with its subject and both predicates: all have sinned and fall short. This keeps the grammar in service of Paul's universal diagnosis and his turn to grace.

Do not use the aorist alone to prove that sin happened only once, and do not derive the universality of the statement from tense alone; πάντες and the argument supply that scope.