Chapter 7
This is a pivotal chapter in the whole epistle, which if not grasped well will place those sitting on the fence thus far into one of 2 camps:
a. Staunch proponents of Torah
b. Torah detractors
It is crucial that a brief synopsis of the chapter is given, in order for the narrative of Paul to be appreciated better once read. The crux of the chapter obviously continuous of chapter 6 is to bring to the reader’s understanding that a carnal approach to Torah allows sin to take advantage of our feebleness, and this sin uses Torah’s in-built curses to our detriment. Faith in the justification through Yeshua leads to the superseding power of Elohim’s grace upon us to die with His Son in water baptism/immersion, killing the carnal approach to Torah (for the Jews in Paul’s time), or lack thereof (for Gentiles in his time), and resurrecting in a spiritual, life giving approach to Torah cf Rom 8:2
V1 brethren refers to Paul’s fellow Jews within the Roman ecclesia who knew Torah. Torah does indeed have dominion over a man, who is not living in the superseding realm of grace as elucidated in ch 6. Very important to not read ch 7 separate from the rest of the letter as it will lead to creation of unbiblical doctrines, alien to Paul’s teachings.
V2-3 we know from 6:7 a dead person’s body cannot succumb to sin and is in essence free from its nefarious implications. Allegory is deliberately used here for those Jewish members of the Roman ecclesia who were familiar with Torah commandments surrounding marriage and adultery. Paul cleverly compares this to our old, carnal, degenerate man life, compared to our new, spiritual, regenerate man life.
V4 Hence when we die with Messiah (who is ridden with all of the world’s sins which he bore for us) in water baptismal immersion, we are dying and being separated from our marriage to the law of sin and death i.e. from our futile carnal approach to law, devoid of spiritual power, culminating in a hopeless repetition of our feeble bodies succumbing to sin taking advantage of this Torah, to break it via temptation and other wiles of Satan, and hence setting in motion the associated curses attached to Torah as outlined in Deut chapters 27-28. In so dying to this futile approach to Torah, we resurrect with Messiah symbolized in the rising out of baptismal water, married to the living Messiah unto Elohim, bringing forth much fruit in the law of the Spirit of life. Without reading ch 6 and 8, none of this narrative can possibly make sense hence the need to take the whole epistle into context before foolishly creating doctrines that are contrary to it.
V5-6 Paul begins to explain his allegory. Sin cannot operate in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Satan’s kingdom scurries at the very mention of The Name Yeshua haMashiach of Nazareth. Imagine how they flee at the very presence of the Holy Spirit of Yeshua Himself! Satan’s demonic forces prey and feast to their fill upon one who follows law by letter i.e. by his own confidence and belief in self, in abject pride and self-delusion, as the scribes and Pharisees did. Without Holy Spirit protection, one is open to all manner of false doctrine and an overwhelmingly desperate poverty of discernment, and the law is used by sin perpetrated upon the lost soul, to keep him in a bondage that is almost impossible to be freed from.
V6 But thanks be to the Most High Elohim, Yehovah Almighty for that provision given to us by His forbearance and grace, through the blood He permitted to be shed of His Son, our Lord and our Saviour and our King Yeshua haMashiach of Nazareth hallelujah! Belief in Him, leads to our justification and in-pouring and filling by the Holy Spirit. This is why every Gentile mentioned in the book of Acts, who would have been totally ignorant and unfamiliar with Torah, were through justification, so filled with the Holy Spirit that their first act and manifestation was speaking in tongues in holy language. What power, what glory, what grace, all praise to Yah!
V7 For those still not following his very important train of thought, Paul by the Holy Spirit as usual rapidly dispels a false take on his words, and makes his disclaimer that he is not remotely against the law nor vilifying it. Rather, he acknowledges the great importance of the law/Torah, which points out to him what is right versus what is wrong, lest he unknowingly was to commit sin. Yehovah set laws for man and all creation. Whether or not creation is aware of these laws does not change the fact that they exist. Let’s be logical for a minute. Does a 2-year-old toddler who throws a temper tantrum and slaps their mother mean that their behaviour must be condoned? Obviously not. The toddler is obviously too young to know what is right and what is wrong, but it does not mean that the laws acceptable to the rest of mature society must be abolished simply because the child is not mature enough to know. In the same vein, Gentiles ignorant of Torah in Paul’s day and unfamiliar with the gospel pertaining to Yeshua, did not mean the Torah and the gospel should have been abolished either. Torah serves the purpose of identifying sin, regardless of our opinion regarding it.
V8 Just as the toddler unfamiliar of societal behavioural laws, was dead to the consequences, i.e. not being reprimanded as would a 15-year-old slapping their mother would be, so if the Torah were not present for us to know what was permitted and not, sin would be dead too, as there would be nothing to identify it.
V9 Before Paul knew Torah i.e. in his infancy (Jewish children were taught Torah from age 5), he was not accountable to sin, but the moment he became knowledgeable of right and wrong, sin took advantage of his weakness as mortal man and he succumbed to it. This explains why Yehovah strictly prohibited Adam from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil i.e. Torah knowledge, as he was then open to temptation of the devil and his malevolent forces. The term ignorance is bliss does have some substance of truth after all.
V10-11 Torah was designed to give life Deut 32:46-47, if followed in spirit and in truth, but actually slays one who follows it without Holy Spirit power, as Satan uses cunning to trip up the unprotected soul.
V12 is in my opinion the most important verse of this chapter and amongst the most in the whole epistle. It crushes every false doctrine against Torah through misinterpretation of Paul’s words. Torah is:
a. holy
b. just and
c. good
I fear for anybody who despises that which is holy, just and good as these are the qualities of YHVH.
V13 Furthermore Paul lays it out straight that he is not in the slightest suggesting that Torah is bad, nor is it to blame for his spiritual mortality and ultimate bodily death. Rather it is sin (which is of the devil’s works) using the associated curses of the law to its advantage to trip the unprotected individual seeking justification by his own deeds, through deception, delusion, counterfeit doctrines, carnal lusts etc.
V14 we are carnal yet trying to justify ourselves by upholding that which is spiritual-the Torah. The carnal and the spiritual are at great odds with each other and never mix.
a. Spiritual/pneumatikos-regenerate, life giving, serves Elohim (Divine nature)
b. Carnal/sarkikos-unregenerate, fleshy, governed by animal appetites, human nature
V15-24 needs verse by verse exposition. Paraphrasing the KJV language may assist:
V15-the righteousness I should perform, I prohibit and do not perform, yet sin which I actually hate I find myself performing
V16 If I hence sin willingly, I confess then that the Torah is good
V17 Because I hate this sin yet do it, surely it is not I doing it but sin itself (works of the devil) that dwells in me that is responsible
V18 I know for sure that my flesh is totally ravaged by the works of evil and has no space for good, for my soul wishes to do right, but I of my own volition am not capable of doing so nor know how to
V19 For I fail to do the good that I wish to do no matter how hard I try, yet the evil which I hate, I find myself doing
V20 I repeat since I am doing evil against the will of my soul’s desires, it surely cannot be my soul intended desire responsible for this, but sin that dwells within it.
V21 I discover then that a law must exist in me that prohibits my intentions for good, but rather promotes evil
V22 For I truly delight in the law of Elohim that should be in my inner man
V23 Yet I see this other pernicious law in my body/carnal plane battling against my nous/intellectual faculty, and keeping me in bondage of this carnal law of sin in my body
V24 Oh what a hopeless man I am, who shall free me from this sin-ridden body of death? Ps 119:5-6
V25 Paul thanks Elohim through Yeshua for providing a redeemer and saviour. The mind is capable of following Torah in a profitable manner and reap life from it when the Spirit of Messiah is in the mix, and there is hope to supersede and overpower the law of sin which operates in our flesh cf Matt 5:29-30. Satan and his demon host operate on the flesh to bring us down and keep us in bondage. The Holy Spirit, once allowed by our freewill to believe in Yeshua’s redemptive blood, to enter our souls, then operates in our minds to overpower the forces of evil in the flesh cf Eph 3:16; Phil 2:13. Hence why we must decrease and the spirit of Messiah must increase as we grow in our Christian walk Jn 3:30