The wages of sin is death.

Romans 6:23 — 'The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.' This is the most compact summary of the gospel in one verse.

'Wages' — that's what you earn. Sin pays what it owes. Death isn't a punishment imposed from the outside. It's the natural result of cutting yourself off from the source of life.

But the second half is the twist. 'The gift of God is eternal life.' Not wages. Gift. You didn't earn it. You can't earn it. It's given. Through Christ Jesus. That's the gospel.

The whole verse is a contrast: wages vs. gift, sin vs. God, death vs. life. And the gift wins. That's the good news that only makes sense once you hear the bad news.