ROM 7:8 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 7:7–12: It is sin that is bad, not the laws

In the last section Paul said that believers died to the law of Moses (7:4), that it is obsolete (7:6), and that it arouses sinful passions (7:5). In this section Paul answered a possible wrong conclusion that someone might make from what he just said. Someone might think that Paul meant that the law is sinful. But Paul clearly indicated that he did not think that. The laws of Moses point out what is sin, and sin causes people to want to do the things that the law says are sin. Sinning leads to death. The laws of Moses are holy and good. But the commandments make it clear what sin is and at the same time arouse sinful passions. Those passions lead to death.

Here are other possible headings for this section:

What about the Laws of Moses and sin?

God’s Law Reveals Our Sin (NLT)

Sin deceives us but the law is holy

General Comment on 7:7–25

Paul used the word “I” in this section and 7:13–25 too. There are at least seven different waysSee Cranfield (pages 342–344). that scholars think what Paul meant by “I” here. Here are the five main ones:

Paul was referring to himself as a Christian,See Schreiner (pages 359–364). implying all believers think the same way and have the same struggles.
Paul, as a believer, spoke of his experience before he believed. He spoke generally enough so that other people can see that they had similar struggles.See Jewett (pages 441–444). Paul then spoke about where we stand as believers regarding these struggles in chapter 8.
It refers generally to anyone who is not a believer but wants to be a good person by following the law. Paul used “I” to make the struggles in these verses more personal. Chapter 8 then explains the victory that believers have in contrast to the person of 7:7–25.
Paul was referring to Adam and from that all people.
Paul was referring to the history of Israel.

It is recommended that you use “I” in these verses.The English versions also use “I” and do not explain it in their translations.

7:8a–b

But sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment, produced in me: The figure of speech here speaks of sin as a person that seized its opportunity. Some languages must translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:

through the existence of the commandment, the power of sin caused me to have

sin was like a bad/evil person, who seeing an opportunity because of what the commandment said, caused/pulled me into

7:8a

But sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment,

And sin took the opportunities/openings by using the command
With that law/command as/like a tool, sin took any chance/occasion

But: There is contrast of “Do not covet” (7:7e) with sin producing all kinds of coveting (7:8a–b). But there is no contrast to the main point of 7:7 (“if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin”). Some languages will not see the connection as contrast here. For example:

When…Otomi Back Translation on TW.

And (NCV)

seizing its opportunity: The Greek word that the BSB translates as seizing is literally “having taken.” Sin, as if it were a person, saw an opportunity to cause Paul to covet. That opportunity came about because the law said “do not covet,” and Paul (and anyone for that matter) then wanted what did not belong to him. Here are other ways to translate these words:

finding an opportunity (NABRE)

took the opportunity (GW)

its opportunity: The word opportunity refers to a situation that someone can use to their benefit. Paul may have seen a nice house or nice clothing that belonged to someone else, and sin took that situation and tempted Paul to covet those things. Here are other ways to translate this word:

a chance

a road/way

possibility

through the commandment: Here the word through refers to something being used as a tool to do something.Dunn (page 380) calls it the “instrument” of sin. Here it indicates that the commandment was like a tool that sin used to influence Paul. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

in the commandment (NABRE)

using this commandment

the commandment: This refers to the words of someone in authority saying what should be done or what should not be done.

The word commandment is singular and a different Greek word that the word translated as “law” in 7:7. So it probably refers to the one law Paul mentioned in 7:7: “You shall not covet.”Jewett (pages 449–450), Witherington (page 189), Moo (on TW).

Some languages use the same word for “law” and commandment. If that is true in your language, refer to the law in 7:7e. For example:

that law

7:8b

produced in me every kind of covetous desire.

and created in me every kind of desire to take for myself the things of someone else,
and caused inside me to desire all kinds of other people’s things.

produced in me: The Greek word that the BSB translates as produced refers to causing something to existBDAG (page 531). and focuses on the result rather than the action itself.Moulton and Milligan (page 335). Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

making me have (CEV)

work in my heart with the result thatUma Back Translation on TW.

The Greek tense is a simple past. It is not clear if Paul implied whether this action had stopped or continued at the time he wrote this letter. Later he talked about his feelings at the time using the present tense. But here you should use the past tense.

every kind of covetous desire: The phrase covetous desire refers to desiring to possess for oneself something that belongs to someone else, like “covet” in 7:7. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

all kinds of coveting

all ways to covet

7:8c

For apart from the law, sin is dead.

because without the Laws, sin is like something dead.
For if the laws of Moses did not exist, sinning would have no power.

For: This conjunction introduces the basis for Paul saying that sin used the law like a tool to cause Paul to covet. Here is another way to translate this word:

because

apart from the law: This phrase supposes there is no law for the sake of what Paul said next. Here are other ways to translate this phrase:

without the law (KJV)

If there were no law (NLT)

the law: Here the word law refers to the laws of Moses.

sin is dead: The Greek has no verb here. In English usually a form of “be/is” can be added. Another way to translate this expression is:

sin lies dead (ESV)

The word dead is figurative here. It refers to sin being without power. Some languages will need to:

Change it to a simile. For example:
sin is like a dead thing
Translate without the figure of speech. For example:
sin has no power (NCV)

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / personification

ἀφορμὴν & λαβοῦσα ἡ ἁμαρτία διὰ τῆς ἐντολῆς, κατειργάσατο ἐν ἐμοὶ πᾶσαν ἐπιθυμίαν

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀφορμήν Δέ λαβοῦσα ἡ ἁμαρτία διά τῆς ἐντολῆς κατειργάσατο ἐν ἐμοί πασᾶν ἐπιθυμίαν χωρίς γάρ νόμου ἁμαρτία νεκρά)

Here Paul speaks of sin as if it were a person who could take an opportunity and produce covetousness within a person. Paul means that his desire to sin by coveting increased when he learned the commandment that prohibits coveting. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [my desire to sin, increasing as a result of the commandment, led me to covet]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

τῆς ἐντολῆς

the commandment

Here, the commandment refers specifically to the command, “You will not covet,” in the previous verse. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: [the command that we should not covet]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

τῆς ἐντολῆς

the commandment

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of commandment, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [what God commanded]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

ἐπιθυμίαν

covetousness

See how you translated covetousness in the previous verse.

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / personification

χωρὶς & νόμου, ἁμαρτία νεκρά

Here Paul speaks of sin as if it were something which could be dead. Paul means that his desire to sin would not have increased if God had not given his laws. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [if there were no law, my desire to sin would not have been stimulated]

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.

OET interlinear ROM 7:8