Delivered from the Law

Romans 7: 1-6

Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 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.

This is the entire passage that will be addressed throughout this blog. I plan to break it down and cover everything that is vital to the understanding of what is being said here.

Romans 7: 1

Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives?

The very first thing that stands out in this chapter is that Paul is speaking to the men that KNOW the law. Basically we need to stop reading right here until we know the law of the Torah which is being discussed. Here are some verses concerning the law that is being discussed.

Deuteronomy 24: 1-4

When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, when she has departed from his house, and goes and becomes another man’s wife, if the latter husband detests her and writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her as his wife, then her former husband who divorced her must not take her back to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that is an abomination before the Lord, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

Leviticus 20: 10

The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death.

Jeremiah 3:1

“They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife, And she goes from him And becomes another man’s, May he return to her again?’ Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; Yet return to Me,” says the Lord.

Deuteronomy 25: 3

“If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the widow of the dead man shall not be married to a stranger outside the family; her husband’s brother shall go in to her, take her as his wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her.

Numbers 30: 10-11

If she vowed in her husband’s house, or bound herself by an agreement with an oath, and her husband heard it, and made no response to her and did not overrule her, then all her vows shall stand, and every agreement by which she bound herself shall stand.

As we can see from all these verses, the law states that

1.       The woman is bound to her husband by oath

2.       The woman is only bound to her husband until the husband dies

3.       If there is a divorce, the first husband may never take her back if she was defiled by another

Romans 7: 2

For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband.

This is stating that the woman is released from the marriage law when the husband dies, this makes her free to marry anyone she chooses.

Romans 7: 3

So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man.

At this point you should be making some connections with what Christ has done for us. Knowing that we are grafted into Israel, and Israel was the divorced wife of YHWH we can conclude that we were considered the adulterous wife. This will be much more apparent after reading the next verse in this chapter.

Romans 7:4

Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.

Here it is, this is the meaning of verse four. We are dead to the law through the dead body of Christ. This is why Christ can be no other than YHWH in the flesh. He absolutely had to die in order for us to be released from the marriage law. This is the only way we could ever be reconciled back to YHWH. According to YHWH’s own Law, He could never take us back. It doesn’t matter how much He wants us or how much we wanted to go back, it is, according to Deuteronomy 24, “an abomination before the Lord”.

Romans 7: 5

For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.

Before Christ’s death, we could do nothing but continue to sin. There was no choice, we were divorced and could not come back.

Romans 7: 6

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.

Now that we have been released from that law, we are free to be reconciled and obtain the Holy Spirit and follow the commands of YHWH freely. It is no longer an abomination before the Lord to be taken back by Him. His death brought peace and a new chance to choose to follow the Creator. His death released us from the marriage covenant law that caused us to live in sin.