What Is Sin? Understanding Law, Transgression, and Iniquity in the Bible

We tend to call it by many names: a mistake, an accident, a weakness, or even a temptation. But what is sin? In order to know what sin is we need to know what the law of God is.

There are three main words used in the Bible that are often misunderstood: sin, transgression, and iniquity. These words are very similar but not identical. So, what are sin, transgression, and iniquity? Let’s define them:

Transgression – This word is similar to the term “trespass.” It means crossing a boundary. God has set boundaries for our behavior, and when we disobey, we cross over those boundaries.

Sin – This word also refers to breaking the law. However, the difference between transgression and sin is that transgression is always an intentional act of unrighteousness, while sin can be either intentional or unintentional. The word is almost like a catch all term for anything not in the will of God.

Iniquity – This word is often associated with wickedness, which implies something twisted. Iniquity isn’t just an action—it is a state of being. Both sin and transgression acknowledge that a law has been broken, but iniquity does not. It attempts to twist the truth.

All transgression and iniquity are forms of sin. It seems straightforward, doesn’t it? Sin is unrighteousness—it is failing to meet the standard of God’s holiness. Many people use the definition “missing the mark,” which certainly applies here.

The point I am making is that there are true moral laws, even though we break them often and in many ways.

The Law Never Changes

We all have a basic understanding of right and wrong, but when iniquity enters the picture, things become wicked (twisted). Wrong suddenly seems right, and good suddenly seems evil. We lose sight of the difference.

Have you ever wondered why we have laws? Think about what would happen without them. If God had given us no declaration of right and wrong—no law from the Lawgiver—we would have to decide for ourselves what is right and wrong.

Because of our fallen nature, we might call good evil and evil good. We would fall into a state of chaos where everything depended on how we felt rather than on truth, which is absolute. When we are “wise in our own eyes,” thinking that we are the standard of righteousness, that standard becomes shifting sand.

The law is truth. It is absolute. The law is the anchor that holds us firm, telling us what is good and what is not. Therefore, the law is good even if it condemns us. It brings order to our world of uncertainty. It says, “Thou shalt not,” and it doesn’t change based on who reads it.

The law never changes.

The reason the law never changes is that it was given by the God who never changes. In our world today, people seem to have forgotten this truth. Many believe the law is written by us and can, therefore, be changed by us. That may be true for the laws of the land, but the law of God will never change.

Jesus Himself said He would not change or remove the law.

You may be asking, “Why, then, does the Bible seem to say that the law has been done away with in several places?”

These are a few of the passages often cited to make the claim that the law has been done away with. We seem to have two extremes in front of us. But remember that the scriptures do not contradict each other. There is always a bridge that connects two seemingly opposing thoughts.

In this case, Jesus Himself is that bridge.

In reality, it was God who created the law. And if Jesus is God (He is), then it was He who gave the law to Moses. God is not opposed to the law. It was His idea in the first place. And we already looked at passages where Jesus says it will not pass away.

So how does Jesus connect the passages that say the law will never be done away with to the passages that say it was taken away?

We need to look at those passages more closely. What do they really say?

Ephesians and Colossians don’t tell us Jesus removed the law. They tell us He fulfilled the law (Matthew 5:17-18). Because the law wasn’t just a bunch of “thou shalt nots.” The law also included the penalties that would have to be paid for breaking them. Death was the ultimate penalty.

Jesus didn’t remove the law. Jesus fulfilled the law by paying the penalty for us. The law was therefore satisfied, not removed.

Notice the words used. It was the enmity (hostility) of the law and the handwriting of ordinances that was against us (the charges) that He removed. He didn’t remove the law; He dropped the charges.

That’s why in Romans it says Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. It didn’t say it was the end of the law altogether. It said it was the end of having to gain righteousness through keeping the law. There’s a big difference there.

Hebrews tells us there was a disannulling of a commandment, which means it was made void. The question is how? It wasn’t by simply saying there is no law anymore. It was by the sacrifice of Jesus that paid the penalty of the law, which made its claim against us void.

Jesus became the bridge connecting the passages that establish the law forever with the passages that remove its penalties against us. He removed the need for us to keep it in order to be righteous by keeping it Himself and applying His righteousness to us through substitution.

The law remains; it just has no more power over those in Christ.

It is very much still in effect today. But the question is not whether it is in effect. The question is: Who does it affect, and how?

In Acts chapter 15, we find the account of those who taught that, to be saved, people had to be circumcised according to the law. The issue, however, was not merely circumcision. The real question was this: Do we still have to keep the law in order to be saved?

This is the same issue we face when we ask whether there are certain laws Christians are still required to follow. We do not get to pick and choose which commandments we want to obey—the law is the law. At the same time, we need to understand the purpose of the law and who it applies to.

There is a time appointed for every person to die, and after that comes judgment. The law is for both Jew and Gentile. The Jews have the benefit of having the details of the law written on stone, while the Gentiles have the law written on their hearts. No one can say they did not know the law.

It applies to all of us. But remember, part of the law was the sacrifice that could pay the penalty of death. Every person had to make that sacrifice personally. There was also a yearly sacrifice made for the nation as a whole, but you had to be part of the nation for it to apply to you.

That is where we find our answer. Those who remain under the penalty of the law are those who have not had a sacrifice pay their penalty. They are not part of the nation (the kingdom of God), and they have not personally claimed that sacrifice as their own. Those who reject Jesus reject the only sacrifice that satisfies the penalty of the law.

The sacrifice of Jesus was made available to all. But if it is not personally received, it cannot apply to you. Therefore, you remain under the penalty of the law. Those who have received His sacrifice are no longer under that penalty.

What Happens to People Who Never Hear About Jesus?

But what happens to people who never hear about Jesus? If they do not know about His sacrifice, how can they accept it?

The Bible says that what can be known about God is clearly seen through creation. No one can claim ignorance of the law, nor can they claim ignorance of God. And that makes all the difference.

In every nation, whether or not people have heard of Jesus, there are those who worship Him. They may do so in ignorance, but they know there is a God who will judge and who will show mercy. If they trust Him, even if they do not know the details of how He saves, they will be saved by Him.

At one time, God overlooked the ignorance of these people. He had mercy on those who did not know any better. This still applies to all who have never heard of Him or who are not mentally capable of understanding.

But when you do hear and understand, you are held accountable for that knowledge. Since God does not want people to worship in ignorance, He commands that the gospel be shared with all. He wants us to know Him.

But when He is made known and is rejected, those who have learned of Him can no longer say they worship in ignorance. Their ignorance is gone because they have now rejected the One they once worshipped without fully knowing.

The Purpose of the Law

No one is saved from the Judge by doing what is in the law. We are only found to be unrighteous because we are human and will inevitably break the law. If we could somehow keep the law perfectly, there would be no need for faith in Jesus. But, obviously, we cannot be saved by keeping the law due to our weakness.

Now let us consider the point of the matter:

That is the true purpose of the law. It shows us that we have a choice to make. We can either try to be justified by our works and attempt to gain salvation through our ability to keep the law (which we will fail at), or we can come to God and ask for mercy.

Those who ask for mercy are the ones who fall in love with God. As Jesus taught, he who is forgiven much loves much. These are the ones who bear the fruits of righteousness. They are the ones who will proclaim His name, even at the cost of their lives. They are the ones who will live forever with Him.

Those who do not have another fate. We will talk about that as we continue our studies. But first, let us learn how to properly understand the law. How do we decide what to do when we are in a situation where following one law would violate another? We will go over that in our next study.

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