But now we have been released from the law, because we[a] have died to that by which we were bound, so that we may serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter of the law.

Knowledge of Sin Comes through the Law

What then shall we say? Is the law sin? May it never be! But I would not have known sin except through the law, for I would not have known covetousness if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”[b] But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin is dead.

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Footnotes

  1. Romans 7:6 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“have died”) which is understood as causal
  2. Romans 7:7 A quotation from Exod 20:17; Deut 5:21

But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law(A) so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.(B)

The Law and Sin

What shall we say, then?(C) Is the law sinful? Certainly not!(D) Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law.(E) For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”[a](F) But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment,(G) produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead.(H)

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Footnotes

  1. Romans 7:7 Exodus 20:17; Deut. 5:21