Romans 7:13 – Eminently sin.

Became good, then, death to me? May it not be coming to that! But Sin, that it may be appearing Sin, is producing death to me through good, that Sin may become an inordinate sinner through the precept.

The commandment is holy, just and good (: 12). But if the commandment (such as “you shall not covet”; verse 7) then loosens and stirs up the sin in me, has the good (commandment) become my death? Paul’s answer: absolutely not! It is sin that, of all things, finds a motive for sin in the good commandment. And with that, sin proves to be exactly what it is: sin. She can do this by subtle deception (: 11).

Sin assigns a meaning to the words “you shall” which it does not have. “You shall” is not imperative but indicative. Seen purely grammatically, this formulation says what something will be like in the future tense. It was said to Hagar, “You shall bear a son” (Gen. 16:11). And Abraham was promised, “You shall be the father of many nations” (Genesis 17: 4). And “you shall be buried in an old age” (Gen.15:15). Were those assignments? Of course not! They were prophecies.

Whoever turns a liberating promise into a burdensome command is sinning! It turns what is good and what is alive into a deadly sting.

Delen: