Romans Chapter 7 Vs. 11

 

The Law and Sin

For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. Rom 7:11

For sin, taking... Sin took advantage of my helpless state and used the law to deceive me and kill me.

By leading man to expect life from his keeping of the law, when what he found was death and by convincing him that he is acceptable to God because of his own merit and good works.

The result was that the principle of sin within made its presence and power known (it sprang to life) in his violations of the commandment. As a result Paul died spiritually (cf. Rom. 6:23) under the sentence of judgment by the Law he had broken. The commandment not to covet was given to help people see how to live, but it actually produced death because of the sin in human hearts.

Repeating from Rom. 7:8 his description of sin’s relationship to the commandment, Paul declared that sin… deceived me. Apart from the Law, the principle of sin was dormant and inactive; but using the commandments of the Law, it demonstrated its controlling force over one’s actions. So this sin deceived him (exēpatēsen, “led [him] astray”; cf. 2Cor. 11:3; 1Tim. 2:14) and put him to death (lit., “killed” him), not physically but spiritually.