³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(A)everyone who practices sin is a slave^[a] to sin.

¹⁶ Do you not know that if you present yourselves ^(A)to anyone as obedient slaves,^[a] you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?

¹⁹ They promise them ^(A)freedom, ^(B)but they themselves are slaves^[a] of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.

^8 (A)Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was ^(B)to destroy the works of the devil. ^9 (C)No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's^[a] seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. ¹⁰ By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, ^(D)nor is the one who ^(E)does not love his brother.

¹² Let not ^(A)sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.

⁶ We know that ^(A)our old self^{[a] (B)}was crucified with him in order that ^(C)the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

³ For ^(A)we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

^19 (A)I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For ^(B)just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members ^(C)as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

^20 (D)For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.