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Romans
7:13-25
 | Reading the Text:
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| Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
 | "The
War Within," Comparative World Scriptures from United
Communities of Spirit. |
|
III.XX.3,
IV.XXXVI.8, Adversus
Haereses,
Irenaeus of Lyons.
(c. 180) |
|
III.3,
III.11,
IV.7, Stromata,
Clement of Alexandria (c 200) |
|
Chapter
XLVI,
Chapter
LI, On the Resurrection of the Flesh,
Tertullian
(c. 211) |
|
V.14, Against
Marcion,
Tertullian
(c. 212) |
|
Chapter
XVII, On Modesty,
Tertullian
(c. 217) |
|
III.IV.2,
III.IV.4, First
Principles (De Principiis),
Origen.
(c.225) |
|
VII.XX,
VII.L,
VIII.LIV, Against
Celsus,
Origen (c. 246) |
| From
Martin Luther's Bible Commentary (1545). |
| From the Geneva Notes.
 | "He sets himself before us as an example, since he has been regenerated,
and in whom may easily appear the strife of the Spirit and the flesh, and therefore of the
law of God, and our wickedness." |
|
| From
Matthew Henry's
Commentary.
| "Compared with the holy rule of conduct in the law of God, the apostle
found himself so very far short of perfection, that he seemed to be
carnal." |
|
| From
Wesley's Notes.
| "St. Paul, having compared together the past and present state of
believers...interweaves the whole process of a man reasoning, groaning, striving, and
escaping from the legal to the evangelical state." |
|
| From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible
(Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
| "...coexistence and mutual hostility of "flesh" and
"spirit" in the same renewed man, which is so clearly taught in Ro 8:4, &c.,
and in Ga 5:16, &c., is the true and only key to the language of this and the
following verses." |
|
| From The People's
New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
| "The inner man, the better nature, our spiritual being, approves of and
delights in the law of God. This is the part of our being that "wills to do
good," spoken of in verse 21, but is overcome by evil." |
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| Contemporary Commentary, Studies and Exegesis:
|
"First
Thoughts on Year A Epistle Passages in the Lectionary,"
Pentecost 8, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in
Australia.
| "Paul is employing observation of human
experience to add further support for his gospel which depends on a
relationship of faith to change people, not observance of the Law." |
|
|
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, God's Saving Work in the Letter to the
Romans: Lectionary Texts for the Pentecost Season, Arland J. Hurtgren,
Word & World Texts in Context, Luther
Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1993. |
|
"Habit's Harsh Bondage," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at)
"Pornographic Culture," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian
Ethics at Baylor University, 2002. |
|
"Struggling with
Sin," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible
Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed
textual notes. |
|
"The
Blame Game," Bill O'Brien, The Christian Century, 2005.
| "Paul’s dilemma is the human dilemma -- all of us
struggle in the battle between good and evil, right and wrong
choices, thoughts and actions." |
|
| "The War
Within (Romans 7:14-25)," by Robert Deffinbaugh at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
| "The Christian’s agony comes from realizing that our sinful flesh
refuses to respond to the requirements of God’s Law." |
|
| "An
Eye for an 'I': The Relevance of the Identification of the 'I' in Romans 7:7-25,"
by D. Wayne Stiles, II, at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
| "The first occurrence of the word
“I” (ejgw) in the book of Romans is in ch. 7. Since in the Greek language no
first-person subject need be stated apart from the verb, Paul’s use of “I”
eight times is for emphasis." |
|
| Reflection on
Romans 7:21 - 8:6, Rev. Tom Harries. At Environmental Reflections, Lectionary Year
A, Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota, Environmental Stewardship Commission.
| "Paul does the flesh and our
physical selves a great disservice here." |
|
|
| Articles & Background:
|
"Romans 5-8 as Pastoral Theology," Stanley N. Olson, Word & World,
1986.
| "The unity and functions of the
exhortation and assurance in Romans 5-8 are clarified when the
section is understood as pastoral theology." |
|
|
"Romans 7:7-25 and the Impotence of the Law," Stefano Romanello,
Biblica, 2003.
| "By means of a literary-rhetorical
analysis, it can be stated that Rom 7,7-25 forms a literary unit,
depending upon the propositio of Rom 7,7a. In fact, the question on
the possible equalization between Mosaic Law and sin raises a new
discussion, carried out precisely in Rom 7,7-25." |
|
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| Articles in
ATLAS Journals. (Direct link when you are
subscribed and logged in to
ATLASerials online collection of Religion and Theology Journals.):
| Bruckner, James K., "The Creational Context of Law
before Sinai: Law and Liberty in Pre-Sinai Narratives and Romans 7,"
Ex Auditu, 1995.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Busch, Austin,
"The Figure of Eve in Romans 7:5-25," Biblical Interpretation,
2004.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Chang, Hae-Kyung, "The Christian Life in a
Dialectical Tension? Romans 7:7-25 Reconsidered," Novum Testamentum,
2007.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Eisenbaum, Pamela,
"A Remedy for Having Been Born of Woman: Jesus, Gentiles, and Genealogy in
Romans," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2004.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Greenberg, Irving,
"The Maturation of Covenant in Judaism and Christianity," The Living
Pulpit, 2005.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Hultgren, Arland J., "God's Saving
Work in the Letter to the Romans: Lectionary Texts for the Pentecost
Season," Word & World, 1993.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Jewett, Robert, "The Basic Human
Dilemma: Weakness or Zealous Violence?" Ex Auditu, 1997.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Marshall, I. Howard,
"Living in the 'Flesh'," Bibliotheca Sacra, 2002.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Napier, Daniel, "Paul's Analysis of Sin and Torah in
Romans 7:7-25," Restoration Quarterly, 2002.
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PDF |
| Neyrey, Jerome H., S.J.,
"God, Benefactor and Patron: The Major Cultural Model for Interpreting the
Deity in Greco-Roman Antiquity," Journal for the Study of the New
Testament, 2005.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Nickle,
Keith F., "Expository Article, Romans 7:7-25," Interpretation,
1979.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| O'Brien, Bill, "The
Blame Game," The Christian Century, 2005.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Olson,
Stanley N., "Romans 5-8 as Pastoral Theology," Word & World, 1986.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Russell, Walt,
"Insights from Postmodernism's Emphasis on Interpretive Communities in
the Interpretation of Romans 7," Journal of the Evangelical
Theological Society, 1994.
Image Browse -
PDF |
| Siefrid, Mark A., "The
Subject of Romans 7:14-25," Novum Testamentum, 1992.
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PDF |
| Smith, Edgar W., Jr.,
"The Form and Religious Background of Romans 7:24-25a," Novum
Testamentum, 1971.
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PDF |
| Snodgrass, Klyne,
"Spheres of Influence: A Possible Solution to the Problem of Paul and
the Law," Journal for the Study of the New Testament,
1988.
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PDF |
| Talbert, Charles H.,
"Tracing Paul's Train of Thought in Romans 6-8," Review & Expositor,
2003.
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PDF |
| Toussaint, Stanley D.,
"The Contrast between the Spiritual Conflict in Romans 7 and Galatians 5,"
Bibliotheca Sacra, 1966.
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PDF |
| Wasserman, Emma, "The Death of the Soul in Romans 7:
Revisiting Paul's Anthropology in Light of Hellenistic Moral
Psychology," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2007.
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PDF |
| Ziesler, J.A., "The Role of the Tenth Commandment in
Romans 7," Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 1988.
Image Browse -
PDF |
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|
Study Links and Resources for the Book of Romans |
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