Romans 7:5

You know, we all have a bad part in us that wants us to do bad things. And at first, when we didn’t believe in Jesus, that bad part in us was our boss. And when that law told us not to do bad things, that bad part in us made us think about those bad things and want to do them, and so we did them anyway. So we had to die.

Plain English Version

In The King James Version

For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.

In Context

4You know that Jesus died for us. His body was dead on the cross. And, my friends, you believe in Jesus, so it is like you died too. So that old law is not for you any more. You belong to Jesus now. He came alive again, and it’s like you have a new life now too. God gave you that life so that you can do a lot of good things for him.

6But now we believe in Jesus, we don’t have to live that old way any more. It’s like we died to that old way, so we don’t have to follow that old law any more. We have the Holy Spirit in us now, and he helps us to do what God wants us to do. So we live that new way now.

Read all of Romans 7

Cross References

Romans 1:26So, after people turned away from God, he let them do whatever dirty things they thought about. Even women didn’t want to sleep with men any more, like wives do with their husbands, but instead they did things with each other that were not normal.

Romans 4:15People try to follow that law, but they can’t do it, and whenever they break that law, God gets angry with them and punishes them. So all the law does is give us trouble. (The only way people will not break the law is if there is no law to break.)

Romans 6:21And what did you get after you did bad things? You got shame, that’s all. And you know that people that do those bad things have to die.

Romans 7:7Some people might reckon that the old law is no good because it made us go wrong, but that’s not true. The law is good. You see, God gave people the law to clearly show them what is right and what is wrong. For example, a part of that law says, “If something belongs to somebody else, don’t think about getting it for yourself.” Now think about this. If somebody doesn’t know that law, they don’t know that it is wrong to want to get other people’s things.

Matthew Henry on Romans 7:2-7

Observations Respecting the Law. ( a. d. 58.) 1 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? 2 For the woman which hath a husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no… Read the whole commentary →

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