Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Romans 7:1

"Or are ye ignorant, brethren (for I speak to men who know the law), that the law hath dominion over a man for so long time as he liveth?" — Romans 7:1 (ASV)

The readers are described as those who know “the law.” The fact that “law” (GK 3795) here does not have a definite article in the Greek suggests that Paul is primarily interested not in the specifics of the Mosaic law but in its essential character as law, as that which has binding force. In this opening statement, the principle is laid down that law imposes a lifelong obligation on a person.

Already in this initial statement we have a clue for determining the thought that Paul is about to develop. The law has authority over a person only during his or her lifetime. Since the believer has died with Christ (ch. 6), one can anticipate the conclusion—that whatever authority the law continues to exercise over others, for believers that power has been abrogated. The law remains, of course, an entity that expresses the will of God. The life under grace does not belittle the ethical demands of the law.