The Greek adverb anomos (ἀνόμως) means without law, apart from law, or in a lawless manner, from the privative a- and nomos (law). It appears twice in Romans 2:12, in Paul's foundational argument about universal accountability before God.
Romans 2:12 is a cornerstone of Paul's theology of universal judgment: "All who sin apart from the law (anomos) will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law." The principle is striking: Gentiles who never had the Torah are not exempt from moral accountability — they have the law "written on their hearts" (Romans 2:15). Conversely, possession of the law without obedience provides no advantage. Paul's conclusion is that all humanity — those with Torah and those without — stand equally in need of the gospel's righteousness. Grace in Christ is the only level ground.