Romans 7:1-2. Overview of Romans 7

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1 Romans 7:1-2 Overview of Romans 7 Romans chapter seven continues the fourth major section in the book of Romans. The first major section of the book of Romans contains the introduction to the epistle of Romans and appears in Romans 1:1-17 and deals with the revelation of God s righteousness. The second major section in the book of Romans is contained in 1:18-3:20, and in this passage the apostle Paul demonstrates to his readers that both Gentile and Jew have a need for the righteousness of God. The third major section in the book of Romans appears in Romans 3:21-5:21, which teaches how the sinner acquires the righteousness of God, which is through imputation after exercising faith alone in Christ alone. The fourth major section in the book of Romans that appears in Romans 6:1-8:39 teaches the believer how to experience the righteousness of God after being declared justified by God, which he identifies as sanctification. The main theme of Romans chapter six is the Christian s freedom from the tyranny of the sin nature. The chapter can be divided into two sections. The first appears in Romans 6:1-14 and teaches that the justified sinner is dead to the sin nature but alive in Christ as a result of his union with Christ in His death and resurrection. The second appears in Romans 6:15-23 and teaches that the believer is now obligated and free to be a slave of righteousness now that he has been identified with Christ. The first paragraph (verses 1-14) emphasizes the negative aspect of this transfer, namely, the freedom from the sin nature whereas the second (verses 15-23) emphasizes the positive, namely, living in the righteousness of God. The second explains or elaborates on the first by using the imagery of slavery, which would appeal to the frame of reference of Paul s audience since slavery was an institution in Rome in the first century. Romans chapter seven addresses the Christian s relationship to the Mosaic Law. If you recall, in Romans chapter six, Paul teaches the Roman Christians that they have died to the sin nature and are no longer under its dominion and authority. In this chapter, he instructs them that they are equally not under the dominion and authority of the Mosaic Law. It is interesting that chapter six and seven resemble each other in many ways. For example, in Romans 6:2, the believer is said to be dead to the sin nature whereas Romans 7:4, says he is dead to the Law. Romans 6:7 and 18 teaches that the believer is freed from the tyranny of the sin nature whereas Romans 7:3 and 6 says that he is free from the Law. Then, in Romans 6:4, Paul taught that the 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1

2 Christian can now walk in newness of life whereas Romans 7:6 teaches that he can serve now in newness of Spirit. In Romans 7:1-6, the apostle Paul uses the analogy of marriage and argues that a person s bondage to the Law must be severed in order that he or she might be place into union with Christ. From this point, he addresses the origin and nature of the Mosaic Law, which he answers in verses He teaches in these verses that the Mosaic Law originates from God but was designed to demonstrate to men that they are sinners by nature and that God is holy and that an infinite gulf exists between the two as a result. In Romans chapter seven, Paul presents an extensive treatment and explanation of the negative effects of the Mosaic Law, which he mentioned briefly throughout the first six chapters of the book of Romans. In this chapter, he teaches that the Law was not designed to deliver them from the power of the sin nature, which only Christ could do. Paul has taught us that no one will ever be justified by obedience to the law because of the presence of the sin nature but rather the Law actually serves to condemn the human race (3:19) and makes the sinner aware of sin in his life (3:20). Romans 3:19-20, Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. The apostle Paul teaches in Romans 4:15 that the purpose of the Law was to bring about wrath but where there is no law, there is no violation. Romans 4:15, for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation. In Romans 5:20, Paul teaches that the introduction of the Law increased the transgression of Adam in the sense that the Law exposed man s sinful nature to disobey the revealed will of God and in fact stimulated man s sinful nature to disobey the revealed will of God. Romans 5:20, The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. In Romans 6:14, Paul taught that the sin nature, will, as a certainty, never again, have dominion over the believer. Romans 6:14, For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. If this is the case, then he is equally not under the dominion of the Law since it was an addendum to the sin nature in the sense that it made the sinner aware that 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2

3 he was a sinner by nature and that God was holy. The Law served to condemn the sinner before a holy God, thus demonstrating his need of a Savior. There can be no freedom from the power of the sin nature without a corresponding deliverance from the power and authority of the Law. So if a person is under the dominion or authority of the Law, then he is not under the authority or dominion of grace and vice versa. Paul presents the contrast again between Law and grace since he also has his Jewish contemporaries in mind who erroneously taught that the Law justifies the sinner. He uses the contrast between law and grace since he wants to make clear that obedience to the Law as a way of justification is in total opposition to God s grace policy towards sinners. Therefore, if the sinner justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ is no longer under the dominion of the sin nature, then likewise, he is no longer under the authority or dominion of the Law and is no longer condemned by it since the Law was an addendum to the sin nature so as to point out the sinner s need for a Savior. Romans chapter seven teaches that the Christian is not only dead to the indwelling old Adamic sin nature but also to the Mosaic Law, which served only to condemn him prior to being declared justified through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. In Romans 7, the apostle Paul addresses the legalistic Jewish Christians who might insist that the Law is necessary to restrain sin. Chapter six deals with one extreme that the sin nature can head in, namely, license (we are free to do as we please) and chapter seven deals with the other extreme, namely, legalism (we are to live under the Law if we are to please God). The Judaizers taught that one must live under the Law in order to please God. They originated with the Pharisees and were composed of both believing and unbelieving Jews who taught strict adherence to the 613 mandates found in the Mosaic Law as well as the oral traditions of the Rabbis, which are now, documented in the Mishna and the Talmud. The Judaizers derived their name from the fact that they believed and taught that in order to be saved one must become a Jew through circumcision and strict adherence to the Mosaic Law and the oral traditions of the Rabbis. Many of the Judaizers were believers since Acts 6:7, 15:5 and 21:20 state that many of the priests and Pharisees who were teachers of the Mosaic Law believed in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation but after salvation they still adhered to the Mosaic Law rather than the mystery doctrine for the church age that Paul was teaching. The Judaizers taught that one had to observe and practice the Mosaic Law in order to get saved whereas Paul taught that salvation by grace through faith in Christ and not through the works of the Mosaic Law (Eph. 2:8-9; Gal. 2:16). In 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 3

4 Philippians 3:2 Paul issues a warning to the Philippians to beware of the Judaizers who taught that in order to be saved a man must be circumcised. Philippians 3:2, Beware of those dogs, beware of those evil workers, beware of the mutilation. The Judaizers claimed that circumcision was necessary for salvation but the 1 st church council in Jerusalem disagreed since the Holy Spirit revealed to the council that it was through faith in Christ that was one received the promise of eternal life regardless if you were a Jew or Gentile racially (Acts 15). The Judaizers were very religious and legalistic people. Theologically, religion is the antithesis to Biblical Christianity in that it is the ignorant, presumptuous, vain and arrogant attempt by man to gain the approbation of God by depending upon a legalistic, meritorious system of human works rather than the impeccable Person and Finished Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Webster s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary defines the noun legalism, strict adherence, or the principle of strict adherence, to law or prescription, especially to the letter rather than the spirit. The Judaizers like the Pharisees taught strict adherence to the letter of the Law, especially to the letter rather than the spirit of the Law (Mk. 2-3)! The legalism of the Pharisees from whom the Judaizers originated is illustrated by their critical attitude of our Lord Jesus when he healed on the Sabbath. Under the Mosaic Law, the Sabbath was designed to benefit Israel by prohibiting Israel from working on this day and yet the Pharisees criticized the Lord for healing on the Sabbath, thus they strictly adhered to letter of the Law rather than the spirit of the Law. So in Romans 7:1-13, the apostle Paul informs his readers that they are dead to the Law as a result of their faith in Christ. In Romans 7:1-6, he teaches that the believer is no longer under the authority of the Law because he died to the Law and is now under the authority of Christ. Therefore, we are under no obligation to keep the Law because of our union with Christ. Romans 7:1-6, Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 4

5 released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. In Romans 7:7-13, he teaches the Roman Christians regarding the ministry of the Law or its purpose in relation to sinners. In this passage, Paul teaches that the Law reveals sin (verse 7), it kills (verses 10-11) and it shows the sinfulness of sin. Paul s argument in these verses is that the Law is not sinful but holy, righteous and good. However, it reveals to men that they are sinners by nature and that God is holy. It also stimulates the sin nature and then uses the sin nature to kill us. Thus, Paul teaches how terrible sin is in that something good like God s Law can serve to condemn us. The problem is not with the Law but with the sinful nature. Romans 7:7-13, What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, YOU SHALL NOT COVET. But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful. Then, in Romans 7:14-25 he relates to the Roman Christians of the inability of the Law in that the Law cannot resolve the problem with the sin nature (verse 14), it cannot enable to you to do God s will (verse 15-21), and cannot set us free but only our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can (verses 21-25). Romans 7:14-25, For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 5

6 the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 6

7 Romans 7:1-The Law Has Jurisdiction Over A Person As Long As They Live As we have noted in Romans chapter six, Paul teaches the Roman Christians that they have died to the sin nature and are no longer under its dominion and authority. Now, in chapter seven, he goes to instruct them that they are equally not under the dominion and authority of the Mosaic Law. In Romans 7, the apostle Paul addresses the legalistic Jewish Christians who might insist that the Law is necessary to restrain sin whereas in Romans 6, he addressed not only the legalistic Jewish Christians but also those Gentile Christians who might erroneously conclude that grace is a license to sin. Therefore, chapter six deals with one extreme that the sin nature can head in, namely, license (we are free to do as we please) and chapter seven deals with the other extreme, namely, legalism (we are to live under the Law if we are to please God). In Romans 7:1-6, the apostle Paul uses the analogy of marriage and argues that the Christian s bondage to the Law has been severed because they have died with Christ and have been freed from the Law and placed in union with Christ. Therefore, the Christian is no longer obligated to keep the Law because of his union with Christ. In Romans 7:1, Paul poses a rhetorical question to the Jewish Christians in Rome and asks if they are ignorant of the fact that the Mosaic Law has jurisdiction over a person as along as he lives. Then, in Romans 7:2-3, he employs the marriage analogy by teaching that according to the Mosaic Law, a woman is not bound legally to her husband if he dies. Then, in Romans 7:4-6, he makes an application for his readers by stating that in the same way the Christian is freed from the Law and is thus no longer under its authority since He died with Christ and has been placed in union with Him. Let s read Romans 7:1-6 and then concentrate on verse one. Romans 7:1-6, Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 7

8 released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. Let s look at in detail verse one. Romans 7:1, Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? Or is the disjunctive conjunction, that is also called a particle of separation e (h&) (ay), which introduces a rhetorical question that presents a related alternative to Paul s statements in Romans 6: Romans 6:14 teaches that the justified sinner, i.e. the Christian is no longer under the Law in the sense that the Law has no authority or sovereign power over him since he is now under God s grace policy. Romans 6:14, For the sin nature, will, as a certainty, never again, have dominion over all of you for all of you, as an eternal spiritual truth, are by no means under the authority and dominion of the Law but rather under the authority and dominion of grace. In Romans 6:14, Paul resumes the contrast between law and grace that served as motivation for his teaching in Romans 6:1-14. He returns to the subject of the Law since in the first half of Romans 6:14, he teaches that the sin nature, will, as a certainty, never again, have dominion over the believer. If this is the case, then he is equally not under the dominion of the Law since according to Romans 5:20 it was an addendum to the sin nature in the sense that it made the sinner aware that he was a sinner by nature and that God was holy and it was also to lead him to the Savior, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:20, Now, the Law was an addendum in order that the transgression might increase but where personal sin increased, grace infinitely abounded. Therefore, if the sinner justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ is no longer under the dominion of the sin nature, then likewise, he is no longer under the authority or dominion of the law and is no longer condemned by it since the law was an addendum to the sin nature so as to point out the sinner s need for a Savior. In Romans 6:12, the apostle Paul prohibits the believers in Rome from letting the sin nature reign as king in their bodies with the result that they obey its lusts. In Romans 6:13a, the apostle Paul prohibits the Roman believers from placing the members of their bodies at the disposal of the sin nature as instruments of unrighteousness. Then, in Romans 6:13b, he commands the believers in Rome to place the members of their body at the disposal and benefit of the Father as instruments of righteousness William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 8

9 Therefore, Paul s statement in Romans 6:14 gives the reason why he prohibits the believers in Rome from letting the sin nature reign as king in their bodies with the result that they obey its lusts. His statement in Romans 6:14 gives the reason why he prohibits the believers in Rome from placing the members of their body at the disposal and benefit of the sin nature as instruments, which produce unrighteousness. Lastly, it gives the reason why he commands them to place the members of their body at the disposal and benefit of the Father as instruments, which produce righteousness. Therefore, Paul prohibited the believers in Rome in Romans 6:12 from letting the sin nature reign as king in their bodies with the result that they obey its lusts because the sin nature will, as a certainty, never again, have dominion over the believer since they are under God s grace and not the Law. Also, he prohibited the believers in Rome in Romans 6:13a from placing the members of their body at the disposal and benefit of the sin nature as instruments, which produce unrighteousness because the sin nature will, as a certainty, never again, have dominion over them since they are under God s grace and not the Law. Lastly, Paul commands the believers in Rome in Romans 6:13b to place the members of their body at the disposal and benefit of the Father as instruments, which produce righteousness because the sin nature will as a certainty never again have dominion over them since they are under the dominion of Christ and God s grace. All this implies that the believer is obligated to obey the prohibition in Romans 6:12 and 6:13a and the command in Romans 6:13b since they are under the dominion of Christ and God s grace and no longer under the tyranny of the sin nature. Therefore, in Romans 6:14 Paul gives the reason why the believer has the capacity or ability to obey his prohibitions in Romans 6:12 and 13a and his command in Romans 6:13b. They have the capacity to obey the prohibition in Romans 6:12 and 13a and the command in Romans 6:13b precisely because the sin nature no longer has dominion over them! Romans 6:14 is a promise to the believer that he is no longer under the tyranny of the sin nature and the law but rather under God s grace. In Romans 6:15, in response to any possible misconceptions regarding his teaching in Romans 6:14 by those Jews who insist that the Law is necessary to restrain sin and those Christians who might erroneously conclude that grace is a license to sin, Paul emphatically rejects any idea that grace is a license to sin. Romans 6:15, What shall we conclude then? Should we commit an act of sin because we, as an eternal spiritual truth, are by no means under the authority and dominion of the Law but rather under the authority and dominion of grace? Absolutely not! 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 9

10 Romans 6:16 emphasizes that there is no compromise with sin now that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under God s grace policy. He is either a slave to the sin nature, which results in temporal spiritual death, i.e. loss of fellowship with God or he is a slave to obedience to the Father s will, which results in the believer experiencing the divine righteousness imputed to him the moment he exercised faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. Romans 6:16, Are you totally unaware concerning this fact, namely that the one whom you desire to place yourselves at the disposal of as slaves for obedience, you will be slaves for the benefit of this one whom you desire to obey, either the sin nature resulting in temporal spiritual death or obedience to the Father s will resulting in righteousness? In Romans 6:17, Paul thanks the Father because the Roman believers were once perpetual slaves to the sin nature but then they obeyed the gospel. Romans 6:17, But now, thank God! Because all of you were once in a perpetual state of being slaves to the sin nature but then all of you obeyed from the heart that particular doctrinal standard with respect to which all of you were taught. Romans 6:18 presents an additional reason why Paul thanked the Father, namely, that he thanked the Father because having been set free from the sin nature when they obeyed the gospel, the Roman Christians became servants of righteousness, i.e. God. Romans 6:18, And also, because having been set free from the tyranny of the sin nature, all of you became slaves of righteousness. The apostle Paul in Romans 6:19 commands the believers in Rome to present the members of their bodies as slaves to righteousness just as they presented the members of their bodies as slaves to impurity and lawlessness prior to being declared justified through faith in Christ. Romans 6:19, I am speaking according to your human frame of reference because of the weakness, which is your flesh. Therefore, just as all of you placed your members as slaves at the disposal of and with respect to that which is impurity and in addition with respect to that which is lawlessness resulting in further lawlessness, in the same way, now, I solemnly charge all of you to place your members as slaves at the disposal of and with respect to righteousness resulting in sanctification and do it now! In this passage, he informs them that he is appealing to their human frame of reference by using the analogy of slavery throughout this chapter since slavery was an institution in the Roman Empire in the first century when Paul penned this epistle William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 10

11 In Romans 6:20, the apostle Paul teaches the Roman Christians that prior to being declared justified through faith in Christ, when they were in a perpetual state of being slaves to the sin nature, they were free with respect to righteousness. Romans 6:20, For you see, when all of you were once in a perpetual state of being slaves to the sin nature, all of you were in a perpetual state of being free with respect to righteousness. Romans 6:20 introduces a paragraph that serves to explain why the Roman Christians should obey the command to place their members as slaves at the disposal of and with respect to God who as to His nature is righteousness. In Romans 6:21, Paul poses a rhetorical question to the Christians in Rome reminding them that prior to their conversion to Christianity that their actions of which they now were ashamed only served to perpetuate their unregenerate status of being spiritually dead. Romans 6:21, Therefore, what benefit were all of you at that time in a perpetual state of possessing because of those things, which all of you are now at the present time ashamed of? In fact, the result produced by these things is, as an eternal spiritual truth spiritual death. Then, the apostle Paul in Romans 6:22 teaches that because the Roman Christians have been freed from the sin nature and enslaved to God, the benefit that they now possess is that of being a servant of God rather than the sin nature, which results in sanctification and eternal life. Romans 6:22, But now, at the present time, because all of you have been set free from the tyranny of the sin nature and because all of you have become slaves to God the Father all of you at the present time possess your benefit (of being a servant of God) resulting in sanctification and the result, eternal life. As we can see, in verse 21, Paul teaches that serving the sin nature results in spiritual death whereas in verse 22 he teaches that serving God results in eternal life. Then, in verse 23 he explains why this is the case, namely that the wages of sin is spiritual death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23, For you see the sin nature pays out spiritual death however God the Father graciously gives eternal life in the Person of Christ, who is Jesus, our Lord. Romans 6:23 teaches that the wages of sin is spiritual death resulting in physical death and ultimately the second death in the eternal lake of fire but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, we can see that in Romans 6:14-23, Paul employs the analogy of slavery to teach his readers that the Christian does not have a license to sin because he is no longer under the Law but under grace but rather it frees him and obligates him to obey God. His statements in Romans 6:15-23 are in response to any 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 11

12 possible false inference that might be concluded from his statement in Romans 6:14 that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace. Now, in Romans 7:1-6, he employs the analogy of marriage in order to teach his readers a related analogy that teaches the same truth that the Christian is no longer under the authority of the Law but under grace. In this paragraph, he teaches that just as a woman is no longer under her husband s authority when he dies so the Christian is no longer under the authority of the Law since he died to the Law. He died to the Law when he was identified with Christ in His physical death through the baptism of the Spirit the moment he was declared justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ as his Savior. Therefore, in Romans 7:1, the conjunction e is introducing a paragraph that extends to Romans 7:6. This paragraph presents a related analogy to Paul s slavery analogy in Romans 6:15-23 that was in response to any false inference that might be concluded from his teaching in Romans 6:14 that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace. In Romans 6:14-23, Paul taught that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace and employs the analogy of slavery to illustrate that even though this is the case that this does not give him a license to sin but rather frees him and obligates him to obey God instead. Then, in Romans 7:1-6, Paul presents another analogy, namely, marriage that is related to the analogy of slavery that he used in Romans 6:15-23 to teach that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace and is now free and obligated to obey God. Both analogies teach that the Christian is no longer under the authority of the Law but under grace because they are in union with Christ. Therefore, the conjunction e introduces a paragraph that is not only related to Paul s statement in Romans 6:14 but also to the slavery analogy in Romans 6:15-23 that follows. Thus, Romans 7:1-6 continues Paul s thought, which began in Romans 6:14b and continued through Romans 6: To conclude that the conjunction e is introducing a statement that is only connected to Romans 6:14 is incorrect since the word is relating that the preceding slavery analogy in Romans 6:15-23 and the marriage analogy in Romans 7:1-6 correspond to each other since both teach the same truth. Namely, that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace. Therefore, the conjunction e indicates that Paul s statements in Romans 7:1-6 are related to his statements in Romans 6:14-23 since in both paragraphs, Paul employs analogies that teach the same truth that the Christian is no longer under the authority of the Law but under grace. We will translate the conjunction e, or. Romans 7:1, Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 12

13 Do you not know is the second person plural present active indicative form of the verb agnoeo (a)gnoevw) (ag-no-eh-o), which is composed of the alpha prefix, not and the verb noeo, to perceive, understand, thus the word literally means, to not understand. This is the fourth time that we have seen the verb agnoeo in the book of Romans. In Romans 1:13, the word is used in relation to Paul s desire that the Roman believers would not be ignorant of his desire to visit them but that his work in the churches throughout the Roman Empire had prevented to that point. Romans 1:13, Now, I absolutely do not want all of you to be ignorant spiritual brothers that I have often planned in order to come to all of you and was prevented so far in order that I might also produce some fruit among all of you. In Romans 2:4, the verb agnoeo means, to refuse to think about or pay attention to, to ignore since the explanatory clause that follows states that the ignorance of the self-righteous Jew with regards to the character and nature of God is culpable. Romans 2:4, Or do you continue to hold in contempt His infinite kindness and tolerance and patience, habitually ignoring the fact that the kindness originating from God s character and nature is, as an eternal spiritual truth, leading you to repentance? In Romans 6:3, the verb means, to be ignorant concerning the teaching that sinners are identified with Jesus Christ in His physical death through the baptism of the Holy Spirit the moment they were declared justified by God the Father as a result of exercising faith in Jesus Christ. Romans 6:3, Or, are some of you in a state of ignorance concerning the fact that all of us who have been identified with Christ, who is Jesus, have been identified with His spiritual death? In Romans 7:1, the verb means, to be ignorant and is used to pose a rhetorical question of Paul s Jewish Christian readers regarding the fact that the Mosaic Law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives. This rhetorical question that the verb agnoeo introduces, implies or presupposes that Jewish Roman Christians were expected to know this. The verb agnoeo in this rhetorical question indicates quite clearly that these Jewish Roman Christians were familiar with this truth about the Law that it has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives but no longer does once the person dies. This is also indicated by the verb ginosko that appears in Romans 7:1 and is translated to those who know. Ginosko denotes that these Jewish Christians in Rome would be very familiar with the Mosaic Law William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 13

14 Robert Mounce writes, Verse 1 states a basic principle with which all would agree, that is, legal claims are binding upon a person only during that person s lifetime. (The New American Commentary, volume 27, Romans, page 160; Broadman and Holman Publishers). Leon Morris commenting on the phrase do you know not writes, It implies that the readers do know this and will go along with the argument as it is developed. (The Epistle to the Romans; page 244; W. B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press) The present tense of the verb agnoeo in Romans 7:1 is customary, which is used to signal either an action that regularly occurs, i.e. repeated action or an ongoing state. In our passage, the customary present tense emphasizes the ongoing state of ignorance concerning the fact that the Law has jurisdiction over a person as long as they live. The active voice is stative meaning that the subject exists in the state indicating by the verb. This indicates that the Jewish Roman believers, as the subject are existing in a state of being ignorant that the Law has jurisdiction over a person as long as they live. Of course, as we noted earlier, this rhetorical question indicates quite clearly that these Jewish Roman Christians were familiar with this truth about the Law that it has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives but no longer does once the person dies. This is an interrogative indicative where an assertion is expected from the Jewish believers in Rome who read this epistle. The assertion is that they would not be ignorant concerning the fact that the Mosaic Law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives but does not once the person dies. They would be cognizant of this fact. The second person plural form of the verb refers to a particular group of Christians, namely, those Jewish Christians that might contend that the Law was necessary to restrain sin and that grace gives one a license to sin. That Paul is speaking to the Jewish Christians is clearly indicated by his qualifying statement, I am speaking to those who know the Law. Some expositors contend that Paul would not be singling out the Jewish Christians in Rome specifically and that he is speaking to both Gentile and Jewish Christians here. They contend that Paul s use of nomos, Law here does not necessarily indicate that he is addressing Jewish believers since many Gentile converts would have been exposed to the Old Testament. However, in Romans 7:1, the verb ginosko speaks of a familiarity with the Mosaic Law, which only would be the case with the Jewish Christians and not the Gentiles William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 14

15 The Jewish Christians would have been very familiar with the Mosaic Law since they were taught since childhood concerning the Law in their homes and synagogues whereas the Gentiles came from pagan idolatry. Some contend that nomos refers to an axiom of political justice both Jewish and Roman. However, the context indicates quite clearly that Paul has had the Mosaic Law in mind since Romans 5:20 and that it has never left his thought process. Paul s slavery analogy in Romans 6:15-23 was in response to any false inference that might be concluded from his teaching in Romans 6:14 that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace. He employs this analogy to illustrate that even though the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace this does not give him a license to sin but rather frees him and obligates him to obey God instead. Some contend that the anarthrous construction of nomos in the parenthesis in Romans 7:1 indicates that Paul is not speaking specifically of the Mosaic Law but rather an axiom of political justice that is common to both Jewish and Gentile law. However, nomos was anarthrous in Romans 5:20 where it clearly spoke of the Mosaic Law! Furthermore, the conjunction e in Romans 7:1 clearly indicates that Paul s statements in Romans 7:1-6 are related to his slavery analogy in Roman chapter 6. His statements in Romans 6:1-14a were motivated by any possible false inference from his statements in Romans 5:20 that where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. His statements in Romans 6:15-23 were motivated by any possible false inference from his statement in Romans 6:14b that the Christian is no longer under the Law but under grace. Therefore, it is clear from the context that the Mosaic Law has never left Paul s mind. It appears that some interpreters have a problem with Paul singling out the Jewish Christians. This should not be the case since he did so in Romans 2 and even Romans 4. In Romans 2:1-16, Paul is addressing his Jewish readers in this section as indicated in that his discussion of the Law in Romans 2:12-16 would have been more meaningful to a Jew than to a Gentile since the Law was given to the Jew. Also, in Romans 2:17, Paul addresses the reader as a Jew, which would be strange way to address his readers if in the first half of the chapter he were addressing Gentiles. In Romans 2, Paul suddenly stops in his discourse from addressing the conduct of the heathen Gentiles to addressing pointedly the self-righteous Jew. So while the Jews are not identified in Romans 2:1-16, it is clear from Romans 2:17 and on the principles of divine judgment in Romans 2:1-16 are also applicable to the Jew (Romans 2:17-24) and his covenant status (Romans 2:25-29) William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 15

16 In Romans 2:1-3:8, the apostle Paul will address the sin of the Jews and will do so in three stages: (1) Without naming his opponent, but establishes the principles of divine judgment by which the Jew is clearly condemned, thus the Jews are as guilty as the pagan Gentiles and will likewise receive the wrath of God (Romans 2:1-16). (2) Paul explains how the Law condemns (2:17-29). (3) Paul adds a parenthetical response to possible misconceptions of what he has said (3:1-8). In chapter four, Paul demonstrated to his Jewish audience that the message of his gospel, that justification by means of faith, is not a new method of salvation since God has always declared men justified by means of faith in Him. He attempts to answer possible objections, which might be offered by his Jewish audience as a result of his teaching in Romans chapter three. In chapter four, Paul calls two witnesses from the Jewish Old Testament to testify that justification is by means of faith apart from observing the Law, namely the Law and the Prophets, which he mentions in Romans 3:21. In Romans 4:1-5, Paul presents Abraham as an example from the Mosaic Law whose story is recorded in the first book of the Law, Genesis. Paul quotes Genesis 15:6, which emphasizes that Abraham was declared justified by means of his faith in the Lord. Then, in Romans 4:6-8, he presents David as an example from the Prophets. On the day of Pentecost, Peter attested to the fact that David was not only a king but also a prophet from God (See Acts 2:29-30). Thus, in Romans chapter four, Paul presents incontrovertible evidence from the Old Testament Scriptures that justification by means of faith has always been the method by which God saves the sinner. In fact, in Romans 9-11, he speaks of his love for his Jewish countrymen and that God still has a plan for Israel even though as a nation she rejected Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah. Therefore, it should not seem unusual that Paul is now speaking to Jewish Christians specifically here in Romans 7:1-6 since he has done so in Romans 2 and 4. In Romans 2 and 4, he was speaking in the context of how a person can be justified, i.e. saved. Thus, it appears that some expositors believe that once he has demonstrated to the Jews that justification is by faith and not by obedience to the Mosaic Law that he no longer would have a need to address the Jews again. However, this fails to take into consideration the historical background in that the Judaizers taught not only that obedience to the Law was the basis for justification but they were also teaching that it was the basis for the Christian s spiritual life. This is indicated by Paul s statement in Galatians chapter five where the Galatian Christians were exposed to the teaching of the Judaizers who were teaching them that they need to put themselves under the authority of the Mosaic Law and observe rituals like circumcision William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 16

17 Paul addresses the problem of the Judaizers teaching in Philippians 3:1-11, Colossians 2:16-17 and 1 Timothy 1:6-11. Here in Romans chapter seven, Paul is attempting to demonstrate to his Jewish readers that not only are they justified by grace through faith in Jesus Christ but also now that they are justified that they are to conduct themselves according to the same principle (See Colossians 2:6). By addressing the Jewish Christians regarding the relationship of the Mosaic Law to the Christian way of life, he would also be teaching the Gentile believers who heard this epistle read. Thus, instead of translating the second person plural form of the verb agnoeo in Romans 7:1, you or all of you, it should be translated some of you. Therefore, we will translate the verb agnoeo, are some of you in a state of ignorance concerning the fact? Romans 7:1, Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? Brethren is the vocative masculine plural form of the noun adelphos (a)delfov$), which refers specifically to the Jewish Christians in Rome since Paul qualifies that he is addressing those individuals who were familiar with the Mosaic Law. The noun adelphos is compounded from delphys, the womb, and the copulative a, and hence means one born from the same womb. It was originally used for brother in the physical sense. The masculine plural could cover all the children of a family, male and female. It came to signify all near relatives, e.g. nephew, brother-in-law, etc. In Greek literature adelphos is used for a physical brother or close relation, and metaphorically for companion, friend, fellow-man. It might indicate an ethnic relationship, such as fellow-kinsman, compatriot. Also, it might be used of a colleague or associate. The word was as a term of affection it could even be used by a wife of her husband. Grammatically, adelphos is also an adjective meaning brotherly, or sisterly. In general terms it describes anything paired or related. In addressing letters, it was also applied to a fellow-official or a fellow-member of a society. There is evidence that adelphos was used in the sense of a fellowmember in a religious fraternity or guild, that use, however, was probably imported from the East. The term was widely used in the Baal cults. The successors of Alexander the Great granted the title adelphos as a mark of honour. In the Mithras cult the initiates were called adelphos, brothers. The Stoics used the term for the brotherhood of man which is from the standpoint of a universal humanity William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 17

18 Liddell and Scott list the following classical meanings for the word as a substantive (page 20): (1) brother (2) kinsman (3) colleague, associate (4) term of address used by kings, as a term of affection, applicable by wife to husband. Josephus wrote that the Essenes referred to one another as adelphos, brother (War of the Jews 2.8.3). In speaking of the relationship between things of the world, Plotinus (Enneads ) said that they were all adelphoi, brothers (Von Sodon, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament 1:146). Johannes Beutler notes that the word adelphos was used as a self-designation and form of address among the soldiers of Bar Cochba cf. a letter published by B. Lifshitz, Aegyptus 42 [1962] ) (Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament 1.30). Plato used adelphos for compatriots (Menex. 239a); Xenophon for friends (Anabasis VII, 2, 25). The Septuagint uses adelphos to translate 11 Hebrew terms and it is especially used to translate `ach, brother in the physical or genetic sense, or close relative. Also it was used in the Septuagint for one s neighbor or fellow member of the community in which you live. The word is used to translate the following Hebrew terms in the Septuagint: (1) `ach (ja), brother (Gn. 4:2; Nm. 32:6). (2) `ish (vya), individual, each (Lev. 26:37). (3) dodh (dwd), beloved (SS 5:1; 6:1). (4) kahan (whk), priest (2 Ch. 35:14). (5) rea (ur), brother (Gn. 43:33; Jr. 31:34 [38:34] ). Adelphos referred to tribal relationships or blood relationships. The word is used in Hosea 1:10-2:1 in order to portray God s relationship with His people. It can refer to the citizens of Israel and thus can be applied to both unbelievers and believers in a client nation. The Qumran community expected love of fellow members of its community, but brother or neighbor applied only to those within the community. The distinction between brother and neighbor was a burning issue in later Judaism, as is reflected in the legal expert s questioning of Jesus, And who is my neighbor? (Lk. 10:29). The rabbis distinguished between brother and neighbor. Brother was the adherent to Judaism in contrast to the stranger living in the land who did not belong to the people of God. The full proselyte was also a brother. By contrast the neighbor was the inhabitant who was a non-israelite (cf. SB I 276). There are approximately 350 instances of adelphos in the Greek New Testament and has two basic usages: (1) literal: related to physical birth or genetics. (2) figurative: related to spiritual birth or regeneration. Adelphos was used in the New Testament as a technical term for members of the royal family who are related to each other and the Lord Jesus Christ through 2008 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 18

19 spiritual birth, i.e., regeneration, thus, the word refers to a fellow-believer, fellow-christian. Through faith alone in Christ alone Christians are sons (articular huios) of God (Rm. 8:14; 2 Co. 6:18; Ga. 3:26). They are called His children (articular teknon) (Rm. 8:16 f.; Jn. 1:12). All this makes intelligible the use of adelphos as a title for a brother in the Christian faith. The children of God are His household (Ga. 6:10; Eph. 2:19). Bauer, Gingrich and Danker list the following New Testament meanings for the word (A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature pages 15-16): (1) Literally, brother (2) Figuratively, brother (3) fellow countryman (4) neighbor (5) form of address used by a king to persons in very high position. The New Thayer s Greek-English Lexicon list the following meanings (pages 10-11): (1) a brother (whether born of the same two parents, or only of the same father or the same mother) (2) having the same national ancestor belonging to the same people, countryman (3) any fellow-man (4) a fellow-believer, united to another by the bond of affection (5) an associate in employment or office (6) brethren of Christ is used of His brothers by blood, all men, apostles, Christians. Louw and Nida list the following meanings in the New Testament for the word (Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains volume 2): (1) a male having the same father and mother as the reference person - brother (page 118). (2) a close associate of a group of persons having a welldefined membership (in the NT adelphos refers specifically to fellow believers in Christ)- fellow believer (Christian) brother (page 125). (3) a person belonging to the same socio-religious entity and representing an older age group than the socalled reference person- father, elder (page 125). (4) a person who is a member of the same patria or phule nation - fellow countryman (page 130). (5) a persons who lives close beside others and who thus by implication is a part of a so-called in group, that is, the group with which an individual identifies both ethnically and culturally - neighbor, brother (page 135). Johannes Beutler list the following New Testament meanings (Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament 1.28): (1) physical brother (2) fellow kinsman, fellow countryman, neighbor (3) fellow Christian, fellow believer (4) friend, coworker, fellow soldier. Deissmann states that the employment of the name brother to designate the members of Christian communities is illustrated by the similar use, made known to us by the Papyri, of adelphos in the technical language of the Serapeum at Memphis (Bible Studies pages 87-88). He also states that in the secular world the word was used for the members of a community (Light from the Ancient East page 107) William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 19