Romans 7 6

Romans 7:6 kjv

But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.

Romans 7:6 nkjv

But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

Romans 7:6 niv

But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Romans 7:6 esv

But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.

Romans 7:6 nlt

But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.

Romans 7 verses

Romans 7 6 Meaning

Romans 7:6 signifies the Christian's emancipation from the Law's condemning power and its function as an instrument that made sin more evident and powerful in fallen human nature. Believers, through spiritual identification with Christ's death, have died to that old system where the Law held them captive, prompting service not through external rules but through the internal, transforming power of the Holy Spirit. This marks a profound shift from a covenant of external observance, revealing sin, to a covenant of inward transformation and new life.

Romans 7 6 Context

Romans chapter 7 continues Paul's exposition on the Law's role, particularly in light of Christ's work and the believer's new identity. In Romans 6, Paul established that believers have died to sin's dominion and are alive to God. Chapter 7:1-3 uses the analogy of marriage, where death dissolves the legal bond, making the surviving spouse free to marry another without adultery. This sets up the idea that just as death released a person from a marital law, believers have "died" to the Law through Christ's body (Rom 7:4), allowing them to be joined to Christ and bear fruit for God.

Verse 6 serves as a pivotal conclusion to this analogy, articulating the practical result of this spiritual "death" to the Law's former authority. It clarifies that this release is not license for lawlessness but a transfer of allegiance and a shift in the way God is served, moving from external constraint to internal empowerment. Historically, for Paul's largely Jewish or Gentile audience deeply familiar with the Law (Torah) as central to God's covenant with Israel, this statement addresses fundamental questions about the Law's continued relevance and how it relates to salvation and sanctification in the New Covenant. Paul is implicitly arguing against legalistic adherence to the Mosaic code as a means of righteousness, repositioning the Law in light of the Spirit's work.

Romans 7 6 Word analysis

• But now (νυνὶ δέ, nyni de): This phrase signals a significant shift and often carries an eschatological connotation in Paul's writings, indicating a new era inaugurated by Christ. It marks the transition from the old era dominated by the Law to the new era of the Spirit. This "now" contrasts sharply with the "then" of bondage and death, signifying the believer's current state in Christ.
• we are released (κατηργήθημεν, katērgēthēmen): From katargeō, meaning "to make ineffective," "to abolish," "to nullify," or "to put out of commission." It does not mean the Law itself is sinful or destroyed (Rom 7:7, 12), but its power to condemn, accuse, and hold believers in bondage is rendered inoperative. The Law no longer acts as a direct means of obtaining righteousness or as a taskmaster dictating one's relationship with God. The passive voice implies that God accomplished this release for believers.
• from the law: This refers to the Mosaic Law as a system for salvation and sanctification by strict observance, particularly its demanding nature on fallen humanity and its consequent power to condemn. It is about liberation from the Law's legal demands for justification and its power over the individual for condemnation.
• having died (ἀποθανόντες, apothanontes): A perfect participle, emphasizing a completed action with continuing results. This is not physical death but a spiritual identification with Christ's death (Rom 6:2-7). Through Christ's death, believers have also died to their old self, which was "married" to the Law in a way that produced sinful desires (Rom 7:5).
• to that which held us captive (ἐν ᾧ κατειχόμεθα, en hō kateichometha): Literally "in which we were held fast" or "kept under control." This phrase points back to the Law's role as a prison guard (Gal 3:23) or a spouse from the analogy (Rom 7:1-3) that, though good, when joined with the sinful nature, empowered sin and death. It describes the condition of bondage before Christ.
• so that we serve (ὥστε δουλεύειν, hōste douleuein): "So that" introduces the purpose and result of being released. The liberation is not for idleness or rebellion but for a new, divinely empowered service. Douleuein implies a committed, bond-servant relationship, here with God.
• in the new way of the Spirit (ἐν καινότητι πνεύματος, en kainotēti pneumatos): "New way" (kainotēti) implies a qualitatively new state, freshness, and innovativeness, not merely a new time. It refers to a life animated and directed by the Holy Spirit. This contrasts with external conformity; it's an internal transformation, leading to true righteousness and spiritual vitality (Rom 8:4-6).
• and not in the old way of the written code (καὶ οὐ παλαιότητι γράμματος, kai ou palaiotēti grammatos): "Old way" (palaiotēti) denotes obsolescence and formerness. "Written code" (grammatos) refers to the Law as an external document, a letter on stone or parchment. This "old way" relies on human effort to keep external rules, which ultimately condemns due to the inability of the flesh to perfectly keep it, hence fostering sin and death (2 Cor 3:6).

Romans 7 6 Bonus section

This verse beautifully articulates a key distinction between the old covenant and the new covenant. While the Law of Moses (the "written code") was righteous and good, it lacked the power to effect change in the fallen human heart, thus leading to condemnation for failure (Rom 3:20; Gal 3:10). The New Covenant, facilitated by Christ's death and resurrection and actualized by the indwelling Spirit, shifts the dynamic entirely. God's moral will is no longer just external demands but becomes internalized and empowered within the believer (Heb 8:10; Jer 31:33). This is a crucial theological point, clarifying that Christian liberty is not antinomianism (anti-law) but a Spirit-empowered ability to genuinely love God and neighbor, fulfilling the Law's intent from within (Rom 8:4; Gal 5:13-14).

Romans 7 6 Commentary

Romans 7:6 is a climactic statement summarizing the profound change in the believer's relationship with God's Law. Through identification with Christ's death, believers have been permanently severed from the Law's previous dominion, which, though holy, amplified sin and condemned the flesh. This release is not for an existence devoid of moral standards but rather enables a fundamentally different mode of obedience. Instead of a striving born from the letter that revealed inadequacy and strengthened sin, believers now serve God through the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit indwells, transforms, and enables an inner desire to fulfill God's righteous will, creating genuine spiritual fruit. It moves from external compliance based on an old, humanly-flawed understanding to internal enablement driven by the divine.