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What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. |
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.” |
What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary I would not have come to know sin except through the Law (through law); for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “ |
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What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” |
What then do we conclude? Is the Law identical with sin? Certainly not! Nevertheless, if it had not been for the Law, I should not have recognized sin or have known its meaning. [For instance] I would not have known about covetousness [would have had no consciousness of sin or sense of guilt] if the Law had not [repeatedly] said, You shall not covet and have an evil desire [for one thing and another]. |
What therefore shall we say? The law, is it sin? Away with the thought. Certainly I did not come into an experiential knowledge of sin except through the instrumentality of law, for I had not known evil desire except that the law kept on saying, You shall not desire evil. |
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It now begins to look as if sin and the Law were the same thing – can this be a fact? Of course it cannot. But it must be admitted that I should never have had sin brought home to me but for the Law. For example, I should never have felt guilty of the sin of coveting if I had not heard the Law saying “Thou shalt not covet.” |
What are we then to conclude? Is the law sin? Of course not! Yet, if it had not been for the law, I should not have learned what sin was, for I should not have known what an evil desire was, if the law had not said, “You must not have an evil desire.” |
- No cross references or parallel passage have been cited for this verse.
- A Doctrine of Grace; - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format )
- Gospel of Grace - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format )
- Legalism and Tradition; Lords of Darkness - Neil Girrard
- The Mighty Antithesis: Sin and Grace - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format )
- Too Deeply - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format )
- Whose Slave Are You? - Neil Girrard - ( in Adobe/pdf format )