What does the Bible say about salvation being unmerited?

According to Scripture, salvation is a gift of God's grace and cannot be earned through personal merit. Romans 5:12-21 emphasizes that through one man's sin, all men fell short of God's glory, yet it is through one man's righteousness—Jesus Christ—that many are made righteous. Hence, no matter how moral or upright, every person is in need of grace because we inherently lack any worthiness to earn salvation. It's crucial to recognize that all have sinned and thus, salvation must be unmerited to be genuine and reflective of God's nature as the justifier of the ungodly.