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.
• 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.
• 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 shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.

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 19:20“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
• Luke 10:25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
• Luke 15:29But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.
• Luke 18:9To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable:
• Philippians 3:5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;
• Matthew 5:21“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’
• Matthew 15:4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’
• Mark 7:8You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.”
• Romans 3:19Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.
• Romans 10:5Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.”
• Psalms 40:12For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.
• Galatians 3:10For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”
• James 2:10For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.
• Romans 7:21So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.
• Romans 8:7The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
• Romans 7:4So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong 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