Deliverance from the Law of Sin and Death (Romans 8:1-11)

 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.¹ For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:1-2, ESV). 

No Condemnation in Christ

Because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” all accountable persons are subject to God’s wrath and judgment in need of redemption (3:5-23). The prospect of forgiveness offers reconciliation to God (5:10-11), implying a prior separation due to sin. This pre-conversion predicament is described as “death” (5:12-21; 6:16, 23), essentially meaning “condemnation” (5:16, 18). Having laid the preliminary groundwork in the previous chapters, Paul gives his sanctified readers (1:7) the assurance of “no condemnation … in Christ.”²

To be “in Christ” is to be integrated into the only spiritual realm wherein God’s gracious blessings are available, including “redemption” (3:24), “alive to God” (6:11), “eternal life” (6:23), “no condemnation” (8:1), and “free … from the law of sin and death” (8:2). These and all other spiritual blessings³ are provided to penitent believers “who have been baptized into Christ Jesus …” (6:3-4; cf. Gal. 3:26-27), synonymous with “baptized into one body …” (1 Cor. 12:13). To be “in Christ” is to be incorporated into his emblematic “body” – the church, the community of the saved.⁴

Also “in Christ Jesus,” that which “has set you free” is elsewhere identified as obedience “from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed” (6:17-18, 22). As opposed to “the law of sin and death,” here we have “the law of the spirit of life.” The “spirit” [πνεῦμα] is parallel to the “heart” [καρδία] just as “law” is parallel to the “standard of teaching.” Although most translators and commentators interpret this as a reference to “the Spirit,” it immediately follows the apostle’s affirmation of serving “the law of God with my mind,” in opposition to “my flesh” (7:25). In the previous chapter, “spirit” (7:6) is synonymous with “inner being” (7:22) and “mind” or “will” (7:22-25), whereby one is able to “determine,” “wish,” or “desire” (7:15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21). In chap. 8 the same contrast continues between “flesh” and “spirit,” with particular reference to walking/living “according to flesh” and walking/living “according to spirit” (vv. 1-17). The use of φρονέω (“set the mind”) in v. 5 and φρόνημα (“‘mind”) in vv. 6-7 further points to one’s inner spirit.

“Spirit” or “spirit”?

The term πνεῦμα (“S/spirit”) occurs nineteen times in chap. 8, in contrast to only four times before and seven times after this chapter. The Holy Spirit does not seem to be the focal point until perhaps v. 9b, which reads: “since [the] Spirit of God [πνεῦμα θεοῦ] dwells in you.” However, the accompanying references to having “[the] spirit of Christ” [πνεῦμα Χριστοῦ] (v. 9c) and “if Christ [is] in you” (v. 10a), followed by the contrast between “body” that is dead because of sin and “spirit” that is life because of righteousness, raise additional questions. Are the allusions to “Spirit of God” and “spirit of Christ” to be understood separately or interchangeably? Are they to be viewed in the sense of the mind, will or disposition of God and Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 2:16; Phil 2:5)? Is Christ to be understood as indwelling the Christian representatively through God’s Spirit (cf. 1 John 3:24)?

Our Cooperation with God

“For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” (Rom. 8:3-4, ESV).

Near the end of the previous chapter, Paul asked: “Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (7:24). The answer is implied by his immediate response: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (7:25). Here the question is explicitly answered: “For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do” (cf. 6:19; 7:5, 18, 25), accomplished “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin.” Jesus was never guilty of sin, but he did become a flesh-and-blood human being, susceptible to temptation, to conquer sin’s stranglehold on the rest of humanity.⁵ Thus, “he condemned sin in the flesh” (cf. v. 37).

This enables “the righteous requirement of the law” to be “fulfilled in us” (cf. 3:31; 7:12), as long as we “walk not according to the flesh …” (cf. 7:5). Conversely, walking according to πνεῦμα is part of the extended “flesh-spirit” dichotomy (7:5–8:18), which seems more likely to be in reference to the renewed “spirit” (cf. 1:9; 8:16; 12:11) of the redeemed rather than the more popular rendering “the Spirit.” Parallel to the “heart” (2:29), “inner being” (7:22), and “mind” (7:22-25), we walk according to our renewed spirit, “in newness of life” (6:4), “properly” (13:13), and “in love” (14:15). 

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom. 8:5-8, ESV).

Here Paul employs the verbal φρονέω (v. 5)⁶ and cognate noun φρόνημα (vv. 6, 7, 27),⁷ yet there is no single word in the English language that exactly corresponds to or captures the full sense of the Greek. Nor is there consistency in any standard Bible translation in how the verb form is rendered in English.⁸ The corresponding noun φρήν (1 Cor. 14:20) refers to the diaphragm or inward parts surrounding the heart; metaphorically the inner self that regulates external behavior. The fundamental idea is “a pattern of judgment that involves thinking, feeling, and acting.”⁹ It describes “a state of mind, an inward disposition. It signifies sympathetic interests and concern, reflecting the action of the ‘heart’ as well as the ‘head’.”¹⁰ When Paul speaks here of the “mind,” it intrinsically involves thinking-feeling-doing activity.¹¹

The apostle continues to contrast πνεῦμα (“spirit”) and σάρξ (“flesh”) as two mutually exclusive ways of living or distinct lifestyles (v. 4), distinguished as per the following: (a) different mindsets: fleshly-minded vs. spiritually-minded (v. 5); (b) the end result of the respective mentalities: death vs. life (v. 6a); (c) opposing relationships with God: enmity vs. peace (vv. 6b-7a); and (d) diverse responses to God’s law: implicit rebellion vs. submission (v. 7b).¹² Notwithstanding the obvious contrast between the outward and inward components of humans (2:28-29), the biblical concept of “flesh” does not exclude an internal pattern of thinking (8:5-8; Col. 2:18), nor is “spirit” divorced from an external mode of behavior (8:4; Gal. 5:16, 25). 

Those “in the flesh,” driven by “sinful passions” (cf. 7:5), have developed a corrupt disposition “hostile to God” that can neither “submit to God’s law” nor “please God” (cf. 1:18–23). This is descriptive of the “natural” [ψυχικός] person (1 Cor. 2:14), who is earthly-minded, cannot understand with this mindset spiritual things, and considers them foolish (cf. 1 Cor. 1:18-25).¹³ It is also comparable to “those who are perishing,” blinded to the gospel (2 Cor. 4:3) because of prejudices and predispositions that render them incapable of receptivity, unwilling to understand and obey, leading to spiritual demise (cf. 1 Cor. 1:18, 23; 2:14; 2 Cor. 3:14-15). They have allowed themselves to fall into “the snare of the devil, having been captured by him to do his will” (2 Tim. 2:26; cf. 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 Tim. 3:7; 6:9).

The Indwelling Spirit of God and Spirit of Christ

“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him” (Rom. 8:9, ESV).

In contrast to those “in the flesh,” the sanctified ones in Rome (1:7), as baptized believers with God’s indwelling Spirit (5:5; 6:3-4a), having been set free “in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death” (8:1-2), are now walking “in newness of life” (6:4b), living “according to spirit” (8:4), and “serve in newness of spirit” (7:6). They are among the spiritual [πνευματικός] ones (1 Cor. 2:15), open to God, discerning spiritual truths, and rightly judged only by God’s standard rather than man’s.¹⁴

When qualifiers like “holy” or “of God” are added to πνεῦμα, the reference is clearly to “the Spirit of God” (8:9, 14; 15:19), i.e., “the Holy Spirit” (5:5; 9:1; 14:17; 15:13, 16). However, as the wording changes to “the Spirit of Christ,” instead of being equivalent to the aforementioned Holy Spirit (as most commentators assume), “Christ’s spirit” [πνεῦμα Χριστοῦ]¹⁵ seems more likely to be in view. In fact, the flow of thought easily becomes “Christ in you” in the following verse. No doubt God’s Spirit is part of Paul’s focus in the ensuing discussion (8:14, 16, 26-27), but note also further contrasts with “body” and “flesh” (8:10, 11, 12, 13, 23; cf. 7:5–8:13) and the distinction between “a spirit of slavery” and “a spirit of adoption” (8:15). Moreover, the emphasis on Christ continues (8:11, 17, 29, 32, 34, 35, 37, 39), including the concepts of being “joint heirs with Christ” (8:17, 32) and “conformed to the image of [God’s] Son” (8:29). The Christian’s renewed spirit, in the image of God’s Son, seems to be the sense of having the “spirit of Christ” and thus “Christ in you.”

“But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Rom. 8:10-11, ESV).

While Paul’s “in Christ” theme is predominant in his writings, here he conversely speaks of Christ “in you.”¹⁶ The contrast is between the σῶμα (“body”) that is dead because of sin and the πνεῦμα (“spirit”) that is life because of righteousness. If “Christ is in you,” the old sinful self (“in the flesh”) is replaced “by a new focus of personality, Christ himself,” displaying “more and more the character of Christ,” so “the objective for believers going on in the Christian life is that they become like Jesus.”¹⁷ Surely this is the significance of having “the spirit of Christ” (v. 9).¹⁸ As the emphasis on Christ continues (vv. 11, 17, 29, 32, 34, 35, 37, 39), the divine purpose for believers is affirmed: “to be conformed to the image of his Son” (v. 29).¹⁹

Because of the ambiguity of Paul’s use of the term πνεῦμα (“spirit”), at times there seems to be a merging of allusions regarding the Spirit of God, the spirit of Christ, and the renewed spirit of the Christian. Seeing that the believer’s renewed spirit is sealed with God’s Spirit and molded into the spirit of Christ, the ambiguity may be intentional to avoid pedantic dissecting and narrowing of what God is doing in our lives. Note the simultaneous intercession of the Spirit and of Christ before God’s throne on behalf of his children (vv. 26-27, 34). 

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ The Byzantine Majority Text has the added, “who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (NKJV), also affirmed in v. 4.

     ² Despite one’s individual (“I”) struggles portrayed in the previous chapter (7:14-25), in God’s family no one is ever really alone. Note the heavy concentration in this chapter of words attached to the συν- (“with”) prefix: “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit …” (v. 16); we are “heirs with Christ … we suffer with him” (v. 17); “the whole creation groans with and agonizes with …” (v. 22); “the Spirit helps with our weakness …” (v. 26); “all things work together with …” (v. 28); “how will he not also with him freely give us all things?” (v. 32).

     ³ Eph. 1:3; cf. also 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 1:7, 11; Col. 1:14; 2:10; 2 Tim. 2:10; et al.

     ⁴ Cf. Rom. 1:6-7; 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 1:2; 12:12-27; Eph. 1:22-23; 2:16; 3:6; 4:4, 12, 16; 5:23, 30; Col. 1:18, 24. 

     ⁵ See K. L. Moore, “Jesus Christ: the Son of Man,” Moore Perspective (25 Jan. 2017), <Link>.

     ⁶ Elsewhere in Romans eight other times in 11:20; 12:3, 16; 14:6; 15:5. Its heaviest concentration is in Philippians.

     ⁷ These are the only occurrences of this noun in the NT.

     ⁸ For example, in Phil. 1:7, as Paul expresses heartfelt gratitude for the saints in Philippi, English translators have rendered his words, “just as it is right for me to think this of you all …” (NKJV), and “It is right for me to feel this way about you all …” (ESV). The challenge is finding an English equivalent for the present infinitive φρονεῖν. While expressing something current and ongoing, the word “think” misses the emotional aspect, the word “feel” leaves out the cognitive component, and neither conveys the behavioral overtones.

     ⁹ J. W. Thompson and B. W. Longenecker, Philippians and Philemon 30.

     ¹⁰ I.-Jin Loh and E. A. Nida, A Translator’s Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Philippians 54.

     ¹¹ See K. L. Moore, “Lost in Translation: A Closer Look at the NT Greek Term PHRONÉŌ,” Moore Perspective (15 April 2020), <Link>.

     ¹² Adapted from J. A. Fitzmyer, Romans 488-89.

     ¹³ Cf. Matt. 5:8; 16:23; Mark 6:52; John 8:43-47; 2 Cor. 4:3-4; Phil. 3:19. 

     ¹⁴ Cf. 1 Cor. 4:3; 11:32; Gal. 6:1. 

     ¹⁵ Besides here, the same terminology is used in 2 Cor. 3:17, and “the spirit of his Son” in Gal. 4:6. Outside of Paul, cf. Acts 16:7 (although note the textual variant as per the BMT omitting Ἰησοῦ); Heb. 9:14; and 1 Pet. 1:11. 

     ¹⁶ See also Gal. 1:16; 2:20; 4:19; 2 Cor. 13:5; Eph. 3:17; Col. 1:27. In contrast to the Romans, the “senseless Galatians” needed to heed the apostle’s rebukes and directives “until Christ is formed in you” (Gal. 4:19).

     ¹⁷ J. D. G. Dunn, Theology of Galatians 119-20.

     ¹⁸ See also 1 Cor. 2:16; Gal. 4:6; Phil. 1:19; 2:5; 2 Cor. 3:17; Heb. 9:14; cf. Acts 16:7; 1 Pet. 1:11.

     ¹⁹ When we are baptized into Christ (Rom. 6:3-4), we “put on Christ” (Gal. 3:26-27), i.e., we take on Christ’s character, virtues, and intentions (cf. BAGD 264; A. Oepke, TDNT 2:319).

Related Posts: No Law, No Transgression (Rom 4:15), Baptism: Death, Burial, Resurrection (Rom 6:1-4), Struggle with Sin (Rom 7:15-25), Adopted into God's Family (Rom 8:12-18)

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The Internal Struggle with Sin (Romans 7:15-25)

“For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me” (Romans 7:15-20, ESV). 

Paul is employing first person terminology to convey a general truth (cf. 3:7), replacing the past tense of the previous paragraph (vv. 7-13) with the present tense. Some scholars refer to this as “speech-in-character.”¹ But even in a generic sense, who would be included in the “I” references? As Paul seems to be using himself as an example, is he speaking hypothetically or of his own true-life experience? Is this before or after conversion to Christ? His argument is from the perspective of a mid-first-century Jewish Christian, though its application is almost certainly not intended to be limited so narrowly. Historically the “I” [ἐγώ] in this section has been applied to (a) reflections of a Christian; (b) an unbeliever’s observations; or (c) both.²

Who is “I”

The plethoric interpretive positions can be roughly categorized as follows: (1) Paul’s autobiographical view of (a) his current Christian experience; (b) his pre-Christian experience in Judaism; or (c) his pre-Christian Jewish experience from the perspective of his current regenerate state. (2) Paul’s personal view of the Jew currently living under the Mosaic Law. (3) The general Christian view (speech-in-character) of (a) the Jew currently living under the Mosaic Law; (b) the regenerate Christian; or (c) the weak in faith. (4) Adamic humanity, thus the biography of everyone. (5) The experience of the unbeliever. (6) The experience of the old-covenant Jew before the time of Christ, whether (a) unfaithful to the Mosaic Law, or (b) frustrated by the inability to keep the Mosaic Law. (7) The experience of Israel as a nation. (8) The experience of a judaized Christian trying to keep the Mosaic Law.

There is no convincing reason to think this is not descriptive of Paul’s own experience, and yet certainly not unique to him. It is an authentic portrayal representing, not “the human race,”³ but the experience of any Christian who struggles under the weight of sin.⁴ The letter is not written to all people everywhere but to “saints” (1:7), particularly for their benefit, as they live in the real world ladened with sin. Paul writes as an evangelist to those who have already been evangelized, so whatever he discusses surely relates to internal Christian matters.

Resuming the imagery of slavery (6:6–7:6), having been “sold under sin” (v. 14), the apostle describes himself as one going through the motions in deference to a master, constrained to “not do what I want” and to “do the very thing I hate.” Paul is not evading responsibility but reveals the all-too-real struggle of transitioning from one master to another (cf. 6:6-22), highlighting the tenacious grip of sin as the pressing issue rather than “the law,” which “is good.”⁵

The Battle Within

“So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin” (Rom. 7:21-25).

The inner strain between “sin that dwells within me” and “the desire to do what is right” does not necessarily center around the old Mosaic system in its entirety, but the holiness, justness, and goodness of the law as a spiritual guiding principle (cf. 3:27; 8:2). This is the most apparent usage in 7:12-14, 16, 18-19, 21-23, 25; 8:7. Paul does not ask, “What will deliver me?”—as if a law or commandment could rectify his dilemma—but “Who will deliver me …?” Rather than “I myself” or “the works of the law” (9:32), the solution rests with “God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (cf. 8:3). The tension persists between “my mind,” striving to “serve” (as a slave) [δουλεύω] the “law of God,” and “my flesh,” committed to the “law of sin.”

The law itself (8:3, 4), unable to defeat “the law [‘principle’ or ‘authority’] of sin and death” (7:23, 25; 8:2), has been replaced by something far more effective in the spiritual realm of God, Christ, and the Spirit where “life” can be reclaimed (8:1-11). 

Conclusion

Although Paul has more to say, any Christian trying to leave behind the tenacious clutches of sin can surely relate to the struggle depicted in these verses. “Without chapter 7 we would not be able to appreciate to the full the truths presented in chapter 8.”⁶ As a prelude to what follows in the next chapter, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ See, e.g., S. K. Stowers, “Romans 7.7-25 as a Speech-in-Character,” in Paul in His Hellenistic Context (ed. T. Enberg-Pedersen): 180-202. Compare 1 Cor. 10:29-30. 

     ² See J. F. Hart, “Paul as Weak in Faith in Romans 7:7-25,” BibSac 170 (July-Sept. 2012): 316-17.

     ³ F. F. Bruce, Romans 140-41. Those who have become “futile in their thinking” (1:21-25), “whose consciences are seared” (1 Tim. 4:2), typically do not have “the desire to do what is right” or struggle to avoid evil. 

     ⁴ C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans 1:356; L. Morris, Romans 285-87; R. H. Mounce, Romans167; A. Nygren, Romans 287, 292; cf. J. D. G. Dunn, Romans 1:396-405.

     ⁵ “He is like a person living simultaneously on two planes, eagerly longing to lead a life in keeping with the higher plane but sadly aware of the strength of indwelling sin that keeps on pulling him to the lower plane…. Christians in general live in two worlds, with the tension that this involves” (F. F. Bruce, Romans 143).

     ⁶ E. F. Harrison, “Romans” 83-85.

Related Posts: The Law: Holy, Righteous, Good (Rom 7:7-14), Deliverance from Sin (Rom 8:1-11 

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The Law: a Harbinger of Death or Holy, Righteous and Good? (Romans 7:7-14)

“What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’ But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me” (Romans 7:7-11, ESV). 

In these verses Paul resumes the instructional method of question-answer in the first person, “What then shall we say?” (cf. 3:5-9, 27-31; 4:1, 9; 6:1-4, 15), switching from the plural (“we”) to the singular (“I”), with which the chapter began (vv. 1-4). Having forsaken the way of life “in the flesh” by dying to the law in order to serve “in newness of spirit” (vv. 4-6), the rest of the chapter addresses the struggle between “the spirit” wanting to do good and “the flesh” yearning to sin in both the past (vv. 7-13) and the present (vv. 14-25).

The Problem is Sin, Not the Law

Lest anyone gets the misguided impression that Paul is anti-law, he offers clarification here. The law, in revealing and enhancing “knowledge of sin” (3:19-20), was a gracious gift to Israel for guidance and protection (2:18; 7:12, 14; 9:4). Seeing that sin and death were realities long before the law made its appearance in history (5:12-14), the human predicament cannot legitimately be blamed on the law. “But sin seizes the opportunity provided by the law to what humankind’s curiosity as to what the commandment may be forbidding. In this way desire for the forbidden is stirred up and becomes an insatiable force, whose final outworking is death.”¹

Paul notes in particular the Decalogue’s tenth commandment, “You shall not covet” (Ex. 20:17), probably because the basis of all sin has long been recognized as illicit desire (cf. Jas. 1:15). It is “the commandment,” which was meant to regulate righteous living, that became a channel of “death” (cf. v. 5). But the responsibility lies, not with the commandment itself or the One who gave it, but with sin and the human appetite to pursue it. 

When Paul says, “I was once alive apart from the law,” contextually (vv. 1, 7) and thematically (2:12, 18, 20; 3:20) this would be applicable to knowledge of the law. There was a time in his life when he was without this knowledge, i.e., in his infancy and early childhood (cf. 1 Cor. 13:11; 14:20).² One is not conscience of any sinful inclination until one’s obedience is tested. As his learning capacity developed and he was “instructed from the law” (2:18), “sin came alive” and he “died” spiritually.

The Law is Good

“So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin” (Rom. 7:12-14). 

Even though the Mosaic law was not designed as a means of justifying sinners (3:20), during the centuries it was in force provisions were made for atonement and forgiveness,³ salvation was attainable,⁴ and one could even be counted “blameless.”⁵  Faith, love, and mercy were essential components,⁶ and it was beneficial to all who submitted to it.⁷ Therefore, Paul can readily describe the law as “holy and righteous and good” (cf. 1 Tim. 1:8), as well as “spiritual.” After all, it has emanated from God and is therefore a reflection of his holy, righteous, good character, “the embodiment of knowledge and truth” (2:20). 

Conclusion

The problem is “sin” and the weakness of human “flesh,” as the law openly exposes the true nature of sin. Any apparent negativity toward the law is in response to its misappropriation and abuse (vv. 10-11; 2:17-27; 8:3, 7; 9:31-32).⁸

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ J. D. G. Dunn, Theology of Paul the Apostle 99.

     ² See Deut. 1:39; Isa. 7:16; 8:4; 28:9; Neh. 8:2-3; Ezek. 28:15.

     ³ Lev. 4:20, 26, 31, 35; 5:13, 16, 18.

     ⁴ 1 Sam. 2:1; 2 Sam. 22:51; 1 Chron. 16:23; Psa. 3:8; 13:5.

     ⁵ Luke 1:6; Phil. 3:6; cf. Acts 22:3; 26:4-5; Gal. 1:14. “Israel’s problem in the Old Testament was not with their inability to keep the law; it was with their choosing not to do so” (G. D. Fee and D. Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth [4th ed.]: 175, emp. in the text).

     ⁶ Deut. 6:4-9; 10:12-21; Mic. 6:8; Hab. 2:4; Matt. 23:23.

     ⁷ Deut. 6:24-25; 10:13; 12:28; cf. Psa. 78:1-7.

     ⁸ Cf. Matt. 5:20-48; 23:1-39; Gal. 2:16, 21; 3:2-5, 10-13; 5:4.

Related Posts: No Law, No Transgression (Rom 4:15), From Law to Christ (Rom 7:1-6), Struggle with Sin (Rom 7:15-25)

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From Law to Christ (Romans 7:1-6)

“Or do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives? For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage.Accordingly, she will be called an adulteress if she lives with another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law, and if she marries another man she is not an adulteress” (Romans 7:1-3, ESV). 

Following the rhetorical “do you not know,” the seventh chapter of Romans opens with an address to those “knowing law,” which may be an allusion to the basic legal principle rather than to a specific law,¹ although the Law of Moses appears to be the focus in vv. 4 ff. Paul has been tracing the Christian’s spiritual journey from a sinful past characterized by “death” (cut off from God) to a new life in Christ, illustrating the point with images of slavery and now marriage. Each situation has intrinsic obligations, and transitioning into a different status does not negate binding expectations but implements new ones. 

The Marriage Analogy

Marriage is a lifelong commitment.² The death of a spouse severs the marriage bond and frees the widowed spouse to enter another union with an eligible marriage partner. Otherwise, if a woman is joined to another man while her husband is still living, “she will be called an adulteress.” Adultery involves voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than his or her lawful spouse.³ But if the husband is dead, adultery is not committed in a second marriage.⁴ The illustration is intended to convey the same truth as the previous example of a freed slave committed to another master, from an old life to a new life.

Released from One and Joined to Another 

“Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God. For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code” (Rom. 7:4-6).

The “death” analogy continues from 5:12–7:3, as Paul speaks of dying to “the law” (vv. 4-6) and contrasts “life in the flesh” under the law (v. 5) with serving “in newness of spirit” (v. 6, ASV, KJV). The law itself is holy and intended for good, but fallible human distortion has made it an agent of sin (vv. 7-12). Paul and his Christian brethren had “died to the law” (vv. 4, 6), severing reliant ties so completely in Christ that there could be no return. The aorist ἐθανατώθητε (“you … died”) “is fixed by reference” to 6:3-6. “The aorist refers to the definite time at which in their baptism the old life (and with it all its legal obligations) came to an end.”⁵ This “death” is “through the body of Christ,” a probable allusion to his crucified and resurrected body, although perhaps inclusive of his emblematic body, the church.⁶

Flesh Vs. Spirit

In the first four verses of this chapter Paul contrasts himself (first person singular) with his reading audience (second person plural), but in vv. 4b-6 both are joined together with seven inclusive first person plurals. The pre-Christian experience is described as “living in the flesh.” The antithesis between “flesh” [σάρξ] and “spirit” [πνεῦμα] (7:5–8:18) has particular application to two mutually exclusive ways of living (cf. 8:4-5). Although there is a sense in which “flesh” and “spirit” can each be corrupted (2 Cor. 7:1; Eph. 2:3), the term “flesh” is typically used to categorize a selfish or worldly disposition estranged from God, while “spirit” generally conveys a spiritual disposition focused on the divine will. 

The problem of “sinful passions, aroused by the law” does not implicate God’s law, rather the weakness of the flesh informed and instructed by the law yet choosing to defy God anyway. People would not even know what “the passions of sins” were without the law (cf. v. 7). Paul continues from the previous chapter the terminology of “members” (cf. 6:12) and bearing “fruit for death” (cf. 6:21-22).

In contrast to “serving (as slaves)” [δουλεύειν] “the old way of the written code,” lit. the “oldness of [the] letter” [παλαιότητι γράμματος] (cf. 2 Cor. 3:6), we serve as slaves “in newness of spirit” [ἐν καινότητι πνεύματος] (cf. 8:4), which is not necessarily “the new way of the Spirit” (ESV). The πνεῦμα (“spirit”) of v. 6 is synonymous with τὸν ἔσω ἄνθρωπον (“inner being”) of v. 22 and νοῦς (“mind” or “will”) of vv. 22-25, whereby one is able to θέλω (“determine,” “wish,” “desire”), a verb used seven times in vv. 15, 16, 18, 19, 20 and 21. The contrast here is between the external “letter” [γράμμα] or written law-code and the internal “spirit” [πνεῦμα], fulfilling the long-anticipated new-covenant promise (cf. Jer. 31:31-34). 

Conclusion

The regulative principle that was supplied by the external law-code of the Jews has been superseded by something much better. Jesus Christ and his new covenant system are now available for all people, irrespective of race, nationality, social status, or gender (cf. Gal. 3:26-27; Heb. 8:6-13). 

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ Whether Paul specifically has in mind Roman law (J. B. Lightfoot, Notes 300) or Jewish law (C. K. Barrett, Romans 135; J. D. G. Dunn, Romans 1:359) “is a question impossible to answer” (C. H. Dodd, Romans 100).   

     ² Marriage is the lawful union of a husband and wife (1 Cor. 7:2), ordained by God (Matt. 19:4-6) and consummated according to the legal system to which the couple is amenable, as long as it does not conflict with the divine will (Rom. 13:1-5; cf. Acts 5:29). But not all “marriages” are sanctioned by God, even if recognized by civil law (e.g., Mark 6:17-18; 10:11-12).

     ³ The noun μοιχεία (John 8:3), the verb μοιχάω (Matt. 5:32; 19:9; Mark 10:11-12), and the verb μοιχεύω (Matt. 5:27; 19:18; Rom. 2:22) are all related. The secondary sense, used figuratively of spiritual adultery, is applied to the relationship between God and his erring people (cf. Jer. 3:6-9; Ezek. 16:32; Hos. 3:1; 4:12; Jas. 4:4), but when used with reference to a man and a woman, it refers to illegitimate sexual intercourse (cf. Lev. 20:10; 18:20; Deut. 22:22; Prov. 6:32; Matt. 5:28; John 8:3; Heb. 13:4).

     ⁴ See K. L. Moore, “The Biblical Doctrine of Divorce and Remarriage: Part 2,” Moore Perspective (7 May 2015), <Link>, and Part 3 (14 May 2015), <Link>.

     ⁵ J. Denney, “Romans” 637-38.

     ⁶ Since this statement immediately follows the marriage analogy, it is not without significance that Paul uses a similar comparison in Eph. 5:22-33. Note also Matt. 9:15; John 3:29; Rev. 21:2-9; 22:17. 

Related Posts: Free from Sin (Rom 6:15-23), The Law: Holy, Righteous, Good (Rom 7:7-14)

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