Romans 7:12
So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Romans 7:12
So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
It's easy to read this verse and think, "Okay, the law is good." But the real gem is that Paul uses four distinct words to describe its goodness: holy, righteous, good, and even repeating "holy" for the commandment itself. This isn't just a casual affirmation; it's a passionate defense, emphasizing that the law's pure nature is absolutely not the source of sin or death, even when it feels like it is.
Paul is responding to an imagined objection: if the law leads to death, is the law itself the problem? He emphatically rejects this, declaring the law holy, righteous, and good. The problem isn't the law, he explains, but how sin uses the good law to expose itself and ultimately bring about death.
Paul declares the Law is 'holy and righteous and good.' But how can something so good lead to such struggle and even death?
In Romans 7:12, Paul is making a crucial point: the problem isn't with God's Law itself. He uses strong, positive terms to describe it:
The commentators agree that the Law, in its essence, is perfect. It's a pure reflection of God's character and will. If we could perfectly obey it, it would lead us to life and blessing. The issue arises not from the Law's nature, but from how our sinful nature interacts with it.
Paul knows the Law is good, yet he feels condemned by it. How does something inherently good become a source of death?
The 'wherefore' at the beginning of verse 12 signals a conclusion. Paul has been wrestling with the reality of sin and the Law's inability to fix it. He realizes the Law isn't the cause of sin, but it reveals it with stark clarity.
Think of it like a pristine white cloth. If you spill ink on it, the stain is immediately obvious. The cloth isn't stained because it's bad; it's stained because its whiteness makes the dark ink so apparent. Similarly, God's holy Law shines a light on our sin, exposing its vileness and the death it brings. It doesn't create sin, but it makes us aware of how deeply entangled we are in it.
Understand the original words
nomos · Greek Noun
The revealed will of God, often referring to the Mosaic law or the moral requirements of God, which are perfect and reflect His nature.
hagios · Greek Adjective
Set apart as belonging to God; morally pure, distinct from common use, and possessing the intrinsic character of God.
dikaios · Greek Adjective
Conforming to God's standard of justice; acting in accordance with what is right before God and man.
This passage beautifully praises the law of the Lord, calling it perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, and true, echoing the description of the commandment as holy, just, and good even when confronting sin.
Deuteronomy 6:5The Shema highlights the 'love' commanded towards God, illustrating the inherent goodness and righteous purpose of God's commands, which are meant to guide us toward life and relationship with Him.
Galatians 3:21This verse addresses the perceived power of the law, explaining that while the law was not powerless, it couldn't give life on its own, contrasting with its stated goodness and aligning with Paul's experience in Romans 7.
1 Timothy 1:8This passage directly states that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, reinforcing the inherent positive nature of God's commands, which are for righteous living rather than condemnation in themselves.
bensonRomans 7:12: "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good."
Romans 7:12-13 . Wherefore — Since then, by what has been said, it appears that the law is not the cause of sin or death, except indirectly and by accident, it must be acquitted from this charge, and acknowledged to be holy; and the commandment — The preceptive part of the moral law, and every particular precept of it; is holy, just, and good — It springs from and partakes of the holy nature of God; tends on…
pulpitRomans 7:12: "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good."
Verses 12, 13. - So that the Law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Has then that which is good become death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, through that which is good working death unto me; that sin might become exceeding sinful through the commandment. The question of ver. 7, "Is the Law sin?" has now been answered so far as this - that, far from being so, the co…
It's easy to read this verse and think, "Okay, the law is good." But the real gem is that Paul uses four distinct words to describe its goodness: holy, righteous, good, and even repeating "holy" for the commandment itself. This isn't just a casual affirmation; it's a passionate defense, emphasizing that the law's pure nature is absolutely not the source of sin or death, even when it feels like it is.
Paul is responding to an imagined objection: if the law leads to death, is the law itself the problem? He emphatically rejects this, declaring the law holy, righteous, and good. The problem isn't the law, he explains, but how sin uses the good law to expose itself and ultimately bring about death.
Paul is responding to an imagined objection: if the law leads to death, is the law itself the problem? He emphatically rejects this, declaring the law holy, righteous, and good. The problem isn't the law, he explains, but how sin uses the good law to expose itself and ultimately bring about death.
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"So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good." — It's easy to read this verse and think, "Okay, the law is good." But the real gem is that Paul uses four distinct words to describe its goodness: holy, righteous, good, and even repeating "holy" fo…