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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive 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.

Context of Romans 7:9

7What 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.” 8But 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; 10and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; 11for sin, taking 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

• I was onceποτέpote · once/whenG4218
• aliveζάωzaō · to liveG2198
• apartχωρίςchōris · withoutG5565
• from the Lawνόμοςnomos · lawG3551
• but when the commandmentἐντολήentolē · commandmentG1785
• cameἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• sinἁμαρτίαhamartia · sinG266
• becameἀναζάωanazaō · to reviveG326
• and I diedἀποθνήσκωapothnēskō · to dieG599

Cross-references for Romans 7:9

• Matthew 19:20The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?”
• Luke 10:25And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
• Luke 15:29But he answered and said to his father, ‘Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;
• Luke 18:9And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt:
• Philippians 3:5circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee;
• Matthew 5:21“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’
• Matthew 15:4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother is to be put to death.’
• Mark 7:8Neglecting the commandment of God, you 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 closed and all the world may become accountable to God;
• Romans 10:5For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness.
• Psalms 40:12For evils beyond number have surrounded me; My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see; They are more numerous than the hairs of my head, And my heart has failed me.
• Galatians 3:10For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.”
• James 2:10For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.
• Romans 7:21I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good.
• Romans 8:7because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,
• Romans 7:4Therefore, 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.

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