Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse emphasizes "walking properly" – a concept rooted in Greek words meaning "fittingly" or "becomingly," suggesting that our outward actions should reflect an inner transformation. This isn't just about avoiding specific sins like drunkenness or immorality, but about cultivating a consistent, honorable way of living, as if always in broad daylight.
Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Paul is urging believers to live out their new identity in Christ, contrasting the "works of darkness" with the "armor of light." Having just called them to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ" in the previous verse, he now details the kind of behavior that is incompatible with following Him. This passage is a direct instruction on how to practically live as followers of Jesus in the midst of a world that still operates by different rules.
Ever feel like you're tiptoeing in the dark, trying not to be seen? Paul calls us to something radically different.
Paul uses the powerful metaphor of 'day' versus 'night' to describe our spiritual walk.
Living in the Light
Paul urges believers to 'walk properly as in the day' because their salvation is near, and the 'day' of Christ’s return is approaching. Our new identity in Christ means we no longer belong to the night but to the day.
Paul doesn't just tell us to 'walk in the light'; he gives us a stark, unvarnished list of what belongs to the darkness.
Paul lays out specific behaviors that are incompatible with a life lived in the light of Christ. He groups these sins into three pairs:
The Vices Listed
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These aren't just suggestions; they are explicit calls to reject the old patterns of behavior that defined life before Christ. They are the 'works of darkness' that must be put off.
Understand the original words
peripateō · Greek Verb
In biblical language, this refers to one's conduct, behavior, or pattern of life; to walk is to live out one's faith in daily actions.
aselgeia · Greek Noun
Refers to unrestrained sinful behavior, particularly relating to physical desires, social disorder, and moral impurity.
Paul's exhortation to 'walk properly' and avoid debauchery and strife reflects the tension faced by Roman believers living within a pagan society known for its excesses and the constant need to distinguish themselves as people of light.
c. AD 50-60— this verse
Paul Writes to the Romans
The Apostle Paul writes his letter to the church in Rome, a diverse community of Jewish and Gentile believers navigating life in the heart of the Roman Empire.
c. AD 49
Claudius Expels Jews from Rome
Emperor Claudius banishes Jews from Rome due to disturbances, which would have impacted the early Jewish Christian community there. Many likely returned after Claudius' death.
c. AD 54-68
Nero's Reign
The Roman Empire is ruled by Emperor Nero, a period marked by extravagance, persecution of Christians, and moral decadence, creating a challenging social backdrop.
c. AD 64
Great Fire of Rome
A devastating fire sweeps through Rome. Emperor Nero blames the Christians, leading to the first major persecution of the church in Rome.
This passage lists 'immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like,' which directly parallels the vices Paul warns against in Romans 13:13.
Ephesians 5:11This verse calls believers to 'take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them,' echoing the 'walk properly as in the daytime' instruction and the rejection of nighttime vices.
1 Thessalonians 4:12This passage encourages believers to 'live properly toward outsiders and be in no need of anything,' which is a similar exhortation to live with outward decency and self-control, reflecting the 'walk properly' command.
Colossians 3:5This verse commands believers to 'put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness,' directly addressing the 'sexual immorality and sensuality' warned against in Romans 13:13.
1 Peter 4:3This verse describes the past life of believers as 'time enough already spent in the sensual will of the Gentiles, when you walked in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, revivals, carousing, and lawless idolatry,' mirroring the list of sins Paul confronts.
vincentRomans 13:13: "Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying."
Honestly (εὐσχημόνως)Honest is originally honorable, and so here. Compare Wyclif's version of 1 Corinthians 12:23 : "And the members that be unhonest have more honesty; for our honest members have need of none." From εὐ well, σχῆμα fashion. See on Matthew 17:2. Hence becomingly. Compare 1 Corinthians 14:40; 1 Thessalonians 4:12. The word refers mo…
pulpitRomans 13:13: "Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying."
Verses 13, 14. - As in the day, let us walk honestly (in the sense which honeste bears in Latin of decently, becomingly, with de. serum. The word εὐσχημόνως occurs also in 1 Thessalonians 4:12; 1 Corinthians 7:35: 14:40. It denotes here a walk of life the entire opposite of ἀσχημοσύνη (ch. 1:27), and of the things done in secret of which it is a shame…
The verse emphasizes "walking properly" – a concept rooted in Greek words meaning "fittingly" or "becomingly," suggesting that our outward actions should reflect an inner transformation. This isn't just about avoiding specific sins like drunkenness or immorality, but about cultivating a consistent, honorable way of living, as if always in broad daylight.
Paul is urging believers to live out their new identity in Christ, contrasting the "works of darkness" with the "armor of light." Having just called them to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ" in the previous verse, he now details the kind of behavior that is incompatible with following Him. This passage is a direct instruction on how to practically live as followers of Jesus in the midst of a world that still operates by different rules.
Paul is urging believers to live out their new identity in Christ, contrasting the "works of darkness" with the "armor of light." Having just called them to "put on the Lord Jesus Christ" in the previous verse, he now details the kind of behavior that is incompatible with following Him. This passage is a direct instruction on how to practically live as followers of Jesus in the midst of a world that still operates by different rules.
"Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy." — The verse emphasizes "walking properly" – a concept rooted in Greek words meaning "fittingly" or "becomingly," suggesting that our outward actions should reflect an inner transformation. This isn't j…
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Last reviewed October 2026