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Romans 7:13-25
English Standard Version
Romans 7:13-25
English Standard Version
13 Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, (A)sold under sin. 15 For I do not understand my own actions. For (B)I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with (C)the law, that it is good. 17 So now (D)it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells (E)in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19 (F)For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, (G)it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For (H)I delight in the law of God, (I)in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members (J)another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from (K)this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
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Romans 7:13-25
Christian Standard Bible
Romans 7:13-25
Christian Standard Bible
13 Therefore, did what is good become death to me? Absolutely not!(A) But sin, in order to be recognized as sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment, sin might become sinful beyond measure.
The Problem of Sin in Us
14 For we know that the law is spiritual,(B) but I am of the flesh,[a] sold(C) as a slave under sin.(D) 15 For I do not understand what I am doing,(E) because I do not practice what I want to do,(F) but I do what I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 So now I am no longer the one doing it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh.(G) For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. 19 For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, I am no longer the one that does it, but it is the sin that lives in me. 21 So I discover this law:[b](H) When I want to do what is good,[c] evil is present with me. 22 For in my inner self[d] I delight in God’s law,(I) 23 but I see a different law in the parts of my body,[e](J) waging war against the law of my mind and taking me prisoner to the law of sin in the parts of my body. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?(K) 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!(L) So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.
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Romans 7:13-25
New Century Version
Romans 7:13-25
New Century Version
13 Does this mean that something that is good brought death to me? No! Sin used something that is good to bring death to me. This happened so that I could see what sin is really like; the command was used to show that sin is very evil.
The War Within Us
14 We know that the law is spiritual, but I am not spiritual since sin rules me as if I were its slave. 15 I do not understand the things I do. I do not do what I want to do, and I do the things I hate. 16 And if I do not want to do the hated things I do, that means I agree that the law is good. 17 But I am not really the one who is doing these hated things; it is sin living in me that does them. 18 Yes, I know that nothing good lives in me—I mean nothing good lives in the part of me that is earthly and sinful. I want to do the things that are good, but I do not do them. 19 I do not do the good things I want to do, but I do the bad things I do not want to do. 20 So if I do things I do not want to do, then I am not the one doing them. It is sin living in me that does those things.
21 So I have learned this rule: When I want to do good, evil is there with me. 22 In my mind, I am happy with God’s law. 23 But I see another law working in my body, which makes war against the law that my mind accepts. That other law working in my body is the law of sin, and it makes me its prisoner. 24 What a miserable man I am! Who will save me from this body that brings me death? 25 I thank God for saving me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So in my mind I am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful self I am a slave to the law of sin.
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Romans 7:13-25
New International Version
Romans 7:13-25
New International Version
13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good(A) to bring about my death,(B) so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual,(C) sold(D) as a slave to sin.(E) 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.(F) 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.(G) 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.(H) 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[a](I) For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.(J) 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.(K)
21 So I find this law at work:(L) Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being(M) I delight in God’s law;(N) 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war(O) against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin(P) at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?(Q) 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!(R)
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law,(S) but in my sinful nature[b] a slave to the law of sin.(T)
Footnotes
- Romans 7:18 Or my flesh
- Romans 7:25 Or in the flesh
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New Century Version (NCV) 
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.