Romans 7:7
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”
Truth to Learn
The Law reveals our sinfulness to us.
Behind the Words
The word translated “known” is a form of ginōskō, which means “to acquire knowledge” or “to have full knowledge.” It is expressed here in the aorist tense indicating action completed at a point in time in the past. Therefore, it should be translated as “I had not known” or “I did not know.”
“Covetousness” is from the Greek word epithumia, which we saw back in Romans 6:12, meaning “to have overly strong thoughts or desires.” It is often translated as “lust.”
Meaning Explained
Any good Jewish Christian having read or heard what Paul has just said about the Law might be inclined to say, “Are you saying that the holy Law of God is not only insufficient to sanctify us, but that it causes sin to increase? Does the Law increase sinful passions, and actually make people worse than they were before?” This is the theoretical objection that Paul is responding to here.
So Paul asks another of his rhetorical questions: “Is the law sin?” And he responds in typical Pauline style with the two Greek words, “me genoito” meaning, “May it not be!” or “No way!” As he will go on to say later in verse twelve, the law is holy and just and good! The evil is not in the law but the law brings out evil in us because of our sin nature.
Look very carefully at what Paul says here about the Law. He says, “I did not know sin except through the law.” You will notice that he did not say that he was not a sinner without the law, just that he did not know about his sin without the law. He then goes on to give an example from the Tenth Commandment, “For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, ‘You shall not covet.’” The law informs us about sin and, because of that, we become more aware of our own sinfulness. And, because of our sin nature, the knowledge of the sin makes us desire it even more, even though we know it is sin. This frustrates all of us at one time or another. Even the Apostle Paul was frustrated by this, which he will express later in this chapter.
In his letter to the Galatian Christians he explains the function of the Law this way,
Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. (Galations 3:24, 25)
The law reveals our sinfulness and amplifies it so that we will be unable to deny our need for a Savior. Fortunately, God’s plan includes our Savior and salvation through faith in His sacrificial death. So you see, the Law, though it produces death, leads us to Christ and to God’s gift of grace which produces life.
Application
Are you still trying to keep the Law? Does it frustrate you because you can’t do it? Do you now recognize your need for a Savior? If so, then it has successfully done its work on you.
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2010 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
If this message or this link was forwarded to you by a friend and you wish to receive future verses directly to your inbox, you can call the church phone 
(618) 614-3070 and leave a message telling us your name and e-mail address or you can send an e-mail to: