Voice of "Be Not Conformed" in Romans 12:2 Analyzed
Voice of "Be Not Conformed" in Romans 12:2 Analyzed
Romans 12:2 employs the present imperative in Greek, rendered in Young's Literal Translation as "be not conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" [1]. The voice and mood of these commands carry exegetical weight: both verbs appear as passive imperatives, signaling that the action is something believers receive or allow rather than accomplish by sheer willpower.
Literary Context and Structure
This verse opens the paraenetic (ethical instruction) section of Romans, following eleven chapters of doctrinal exposition. Paul transitions from indicative theology—what God has done in Christ—to imperative ethics, grounding moral exhortation in the mercies of God mentioned in 12:1. The dual command structure ("be not conformed... but be transformed") sets up a contrast between two opposing forces acting upon the believer.
The Passive Voice and Its Implications
The passive construction in both imperatives indicates that transformation is not self-generated. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown note that the verb translated "transformed" is the same Greek root used for Christ's transfiguration in Matthew 17:2, emphasizing "such an inward spiritual transformation as makes the whole life new—new in its motives and ends" [4]. The passive voice suggests divine agency: believers are called to yield to God's transforming work rather than manufacture change through external conformity alone.
The negative command "be not conformed" (present passive imperative with negation) carries durative force—a continuous refusal to let the present age press believers into its mold. Cross-references to Ephesians 2:2 [2] reinforce this contrast between the world's pattern and God's design. John Gill identifies "this world" as either the Mosaic dispensation or "carnal and unregenerate" patterns of life [3], though most interpreters favor the latter.
The Agent of Transformation
The phrase "by the renewing of your mind" specifies the means of transformation. While the imperative is passive, the dative construction points to mental renewal as the instrumental cause. This renewal, though divinely initiated, requires the believer's active cooperation in submitting to God's reshaping work. The passive voice thus holds together divine sovereignty and human responsibility: God transforms, but believers must position themselves to receive that transformation by refusing conformity to worldly patterns.
The result clause—"for your proving what is the will of God" [1]—indicates that this transformation enables discernment, making the renewed mind capable of testing and approving God's good, acceptable, and perfect will.
Sources
- Romans “Romans 12:2 (YLT) — and be not conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, for your proving what <FI>is<Fi> the will of God--the good, and acceptable, and perfect.”
- OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Eph.2.2 → Rom.12.2 (confidence: 12 votes)”
- Romans (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Romans 12:2: And be not conformed to this world,.... By this world is meant, either the Mosaic dispensation, and Jewish church state, so called in opposition to , "the world to come", the Gospel dispensation; in which there were a worldly sanctuary, and the rites and ceremonies of which are styled the rudiments and elements of the world; to which believers in the present state are by no means to conform, there being sacrifices and ordinances of another nature, it is the will of God they should observe and attend unto: or else the men of the world are designed, carnal and unregener”
- Romans (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Romans 12:2: And be ye not conformed to this world--Compare Eph 2:2; Gal 1:4, Greek. but be ye transformed--or, "transfigured" (as in Mat 17:2; and Co2 3:18, Greek). by the renewing of your mind--not by a mere outward disconformity to the ungodly world, many of whose actions in themselves may be virtuous and praiseworthy; but by such an inward spiritual transformation as makes the whole life new--new in its motives and ends, even where the actions differ in nothing from those of the world--new, considered as a whole, and in such a sense as to be wholly unattain”