Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse emphasizes that our salvation is not just approaching, but is closer now than it was when we first believed. This means that every moment that passes moves us further from our initial faith journey and nearer to the final fulfillment of God's promises, urging us to live with greater urgency and awareness.
Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The apostle is transitioning from specific instructions on love and mutual obligations to a broader exhortation based on the imminent reality of God's kingdom. He urges believers to live with urgency and holiness, not out of fear, but because their ultimate salvation is drawing ever closer than when they first believed. This imminent hope should spur them to shed the darkness of their past and embrace the light of Christ's coming.
Have you ever felt like time is slipping away, that you need to act NOW? Paul reminds the Roman believers that their present moment is critical.
Paul uses the Greek word 'kairos' to describe the specific, opportune moment they are living in. This isn't just any time; it's a 'high time,' a critical juncture demanding attention.
Paul says our salvation is 'nearer now than when we first believed.' What does this mean for those who might feel like they're waiting a long time?
This verse speaks to a profound truth about the Christian journey: salvation, in its ultimate fulfillment, is a continuously approaching reality.
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Understand the original words
kairos · Greek Noun
A specific period or epoch in God's redemptive timeline, often referring to the eschatological or decisive moment in history.
sōtēria · Greek Noun
The act of being delivered from the penalty, power, and ultimately the presence of sin; it is both a present reality and a future hope of final glorification.
hypnos · Greek Noun
A metaphor for spiritual lethargy, ignorance of God's truth, or moral inactivity; being spiritually asleep means lacking awareness of one's spiritual condition.
The early church, including Paul and his readers, lived with a strong, palpable expectation that Jesus' return was very near. This wasn't just a theological concept but a lived reality that deeply influenced their daily lives and choices.
c. AD 30-33
Jesus' Crucifixion and Resurrection
The central event of Christianity, leading to the disciples' expectation of Jesus' imminent return.
c. AD 49
First Epistle to the Thessalonians
Paul addresses concerns about believers who have died before Christ's return, indicating an early expectation of the Second Coming.
c. AD 57— this verse
Writing of the Epistle to the Romans
Paul writes to the church in Rome, encouraging them to live holy lives in light of the nearing end times and Christ's imminent return.
c. AD 62
Destruction of Jerusalem
While not the final end, this event served as a significant judgment and a typical foreshadowing of future divine reckoning.
c. AD 95
Book of Revelation Written
John's vision reinforces the imminent return of Christ and the ultimate consummation of God's salvation.
This passage uses a similar 'day and night' metaphor to contrast the state of believers with unbelievers, urging watchfulness and sobriety, echoing Romans 13:11's call to 'wake from sleep'.
Ephesians 5:11This verse directly connects living in darkness with 'futile deeds' and calls believers to 'expose them,' reinforcing the idea of 'waking up' from a state of spiritual slumber and engaging in the 'works of light'.
1 Peter 4:7Peter states 'the end of all things is at hand,' urging believers to be self-controlled and sober for prayer, paralleling the sense of urgency in Romans 13:11 that salvation is nearer now.
Luke 21:28Jesus tells his disciples that when they see these signs, they should 'stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near,' which aligns with the 'salvation is nearer' theme in Romans 13:11.
Philippians 3:13-14Paul speaks of forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, pressing on toward the 'goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus,' reflecting the forward-looking urgency and sense of approaching completion found in Romans 13:11.
ellicottRomans 13:11: "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed."
(11-14) The Apostle now gives a reason for enforcing this and other duties upon his readers. The end of the world itself is near. St. Paul, like the other Apostles (comp. 1Peter 4:7; Revelation 22:20, et al.), certainly believed that the Parusia, or Second Coming of Christ, was near at hand. This was in strict accordance with Mark 13:32, and resulted…
pulpitRomans 13:11: "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed."
Verses 11-14. - There is now interposed among the particular admonitions a call to watchfulness, with a view to holiness in all relations of life, on the ground that the day is at hand. There can be little, if any, doubt that the apostle had in view the second coming of Christ, which he with others supposed might be close at hand, Our Lord had said t…
The verse emphasizes that our salvation is not just approaching, but is closer now than it was when we first believed. This means that every moment that passes moves us further from our initial faith journey and nearer to the final fulfillment of God's promises, urging us to live with greater urgency and awareness.
The apostle is transitioning from specific instructions on love and mutual obligations to a broader exhortation based on the imminent reality of God's kingdom. He urges believers to live with urgency and holiness, not out of fear, but because their ultimate salvation is drawing ever closer than when they first believed. This imminent hope should spur them to shed the darkness of their past and embrace the light of Christ's coming.
The apostle is transitioning from specific instructions on love and mutual obligations to a broader exhortation based on the imminent reality of God's kingdom. He urges believers to live with urgency and holiness, not out of fear, but because their ultimate salvation is drawing ever closer than when they first believed. This imminent hope should spur them to shed the darkness of their past and embrace the light of Christ's coming.
"Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed." — The verse emphasizes that our salvation is not just approaching, but is closer now than it was when we first believed. This means that every moment that passes moves us further from our initial f…
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Last reviewed October 2026