Romans 7:9

Romans 7:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
• New International Version (NIV)Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
• New King James Version (NKJV)I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.
• New Living Translation (NLT)At one time I lived without understanding the law. But when I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life,

Context of Romans 7:9

7What 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." 8But 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. 10The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. 11For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.

Romans 7:9 word by word

ἐγὼ δὲ ἔζων χωρὶς νόμου ποτέ· ἐλθούσης δὲ τῆς ἐντολῆς ἡ ἁμαρτία ἀνέζησεν,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Forδέde · thenG1161
• Iἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• was aliveζάωzaō · to liveG2198
• withoutχωρίςchōris · withoutG5565
• the lawνόμοςnomos · lawG3551
• onceποτέpote · once/whenG4218
• whenἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• the commandmentὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the commandmentἐντολήentolē · commandmentG1785
• sinἁμαρτίαhamartia · sinG266
• revivedἀναζάωanazaō · to reviveG326
• diedἀποθνήσκωapothnēskō · to dieG599

Cross-references for Romans 7:9

• Matthew 19:20The young man said to him, "All these I have kept. What do I still lack?"
• Luke 10:25And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
• Luke 15:29but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends.
• Luke 18:9He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt:
• Philippians 3:5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;
• Matthew 5:21"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.'
• Matthew 15:4For God commanded, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.'
• Mark 7:8You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men."
• Romans 3:19Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.
• Romans 10:5For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them.
• Psalms 40:12For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.
• Galatians 3:10For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them."
• James 2:10For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.
• Romans 7:21So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand.
• Romans 8:7For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.
• Romans 7:4Likewise, 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.

Commentaries on Romans 7:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9I was alive without the law once - Dr. Whitby paraphrases the verse thus: - "For the seed of Abraham was alive without the law once, before the law was given, I being not obnoxious to death for that to which the law had not threatened death; but when the commandment came, forbidding it under that penalty, sin revived, and I died; i.e. it got strength to draw me to sin, and to condemn me to death. Sin is, in Scripture, represented as an enemy that seeks…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9For I - There seems to be no doubt that the apostle here refers to his own past experience. Yet in this he speaks the sentiment of all who are unconverted, and who are depending on their own righteousness. Was alive - This is opposed to what he immediately adds respecting another state, in which he was when he died. It must mean, therefore, that he had a certain kind of peace; he deemed himself secure; he was free from the convictions of conscience and…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-13Verses 7-13 There is no way of coming to that knowledge of sin, which is necessary to repentance, and therefore to peace and pardon, but by trying our hearts and lives by the law. In his own case the apostle would not have known the sinfulness of his thoughts, motives, and actions, but by the law. That perfect standard showed how wrong his heart and life were, proving his sins to be more numerous than he had before thought, but it did not contain any…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9Once I was alive apart from the law: Paul might be referring to his early childhood, before he fully understood the law's demands. but when the commandment came: Paul's experience with the law as he matured reflects everyone's experience. With the law, we have more accountability to God. This gives sin power and leads to greater judgment (7:10; see 4:15; 5:14, 20).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. For I was alive without the law once--"In the days of my ignorance, when, in this sense, a stranger to the law, I deemed myself a righteous man, and, as such, entitled to life at the hand of God." but when the commandment came--forbidding all irregular desire; for the apostle sees in this the spirit of the whole law. sin revived--"came to life"; in its malignity and strength it unexpectedly revealed itself, as if sprung from the dead. and I died--"saw…Read the comment

Topics related to Romans 7:9

• Death
• Good and Evil
• Justification

In the dictionaries

• Appear
• Captivity
• Concupiscence
• Condescend
• Consent
• Delight
• Member
• Mind
• Occasion
• Revive

Commentaries on Romans 7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings