For sin shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace.

“Those who hold that for them there is no difference between right and wrong force a few passages of Scripture and think they favour their own immoral opinions. In particular they quote the saying: "Sin shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law but under grace," and others of this sort, which there is no reason to add, for I am not proposing to fit out a pirate ship. Let us then briefly put a stop to their argument. The noble apostle himself refutes the charge against him implied in their false exegesis by the words with which he continues after the saying just quoted: "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid." In this inspired and prophetic way he at once destroys the device of these licentious sophists.”

“If then sin hath no more dominion over us, why does he lay so great a charge upon them as he does in the words, "Let not sin reign in your mortal body," and, "yield not ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin?" What does that here said mean then? He is sowing a kind of seed in this statement, which he means to develop afterwards, and to cultivate in a powerful argument. What then is this statement? It is this; that our body, before Christ's coming, was an easy prey to the assaults of sin. For after death a great swarm of passions entered also. And for this cause it was not lightsome for running the race of virtue. For there was no Spirit present to assist, nor any baptism of power to mortify. But as some horse that answereth not the rein, it ran indeed, but made frequent slips, the Law meanwhile announcing what was to be done and what not, yet not conveying into those in the race anything over and above exhortation by means of words. But when Christ had come, the effort became afterwards more easy, and therefore we had a more distant goal set us, in that the assistance we had given us was greater. Wherefore also Christ saith, "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven." But this he says more clearly in the sequel. But at present he alludes here briefly to it, to show that unless we stoop down very low to it, sin will not get the better of us. For it is not the Law only that exhorteth us, but grace too which also remitted our former sins, and secures us against future ones. For it promised them crowns after toils, but this (i.e. grace) crowned them first, and than led them to the contest. Now it seems to me that he is not signifying here the whole life of a believer, but instituting a comparison between the Baptism and the Law. And this he says in another passage also "The letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life." For the Law convinceth of transgression, but grace undoes transgression. As then the former by convincing establisheth sin so the latter by forgiving suffereth us not to be under sin. And so thou art in two ways set free from this thraldom; both in thy not being under the Law, and in thy enjoying grace.”

“This refers to the third state of man, when in his mind he serves the law of God even though his flesh still serves the law of sin. For he does not obey the desire to sin, even though lusts will continue to court him and urge him to surrender until the body is raised to new life and death is swallowed up in victory. Because we do not give in to evil desires we are under grace, and sin does not reign in our mortal bodies. But the man who is controlled by sin even if he wants to resist it is still under the law and not yet under grace.”

“After the Apostle has shown that we must not remain in sin, and that we have the capacity for this, here he concludes with a moral exhortation. And concerning this he does three things: first, he sets forth the admonition; second, he assigns the reason, at the place, "for sin," etc.; third, he raises a question and resolves it, at the place, "What then? Shall we sin?" etc. Concerning the first he does two things: first he sets forth the admonition; second he expounds it, at the place, "that you should obey," etc. He says therefore first: it has been said that our old man was crucified together with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, by which it is given to be understood that the power of sin has been so diminished that it cannot have dominion over us. Therefore let not sin, for the rest, reign in your mortal body. But he does not say: let there be no sin in your mortal body, because as long as our body is mortal, that is, subject to the necessity of death, it cannot be that there is not sin in our body, that is, the tinder of sin. But since we have been freed by God from the reign of sin, we ought to strive that sin, having already lost its dominion in our body, should not recover it in us. And this is what he means when he says, "let not sin reign in your mortal body." And this indeed must be guarded against as long as we bear a mortal body, because it is said in Wisdom 9:15: "the corruptible body is a load upon the soul," etc. Then, when he says, "that you should obey," etc., he expounds the aforesaid admonition. Concerning which it must be considered that sin reigns in man in two ways. In one way, through the interior consent of the mind. And removing this he says, "that you should obey the lusts thereof." For to obey, by the mind's consent, the lusts of sin, is for sin to reign in us. Ecclesiasticus 18:30: "Go not after your lusts." In the second way, sin reigns in us through the execution of the deed. And to exclude this he adds, "but neither yield you your members to sin," that is, to the tinder of sin, "as instruments of iniquity," that is, instruments for carrying out iniquity. For when man, through his members, carries out sin, he carries it out unto iniquity; and by this very act he seems to be fighting to restore the dominion of sin, which grows strong in us through the habit of sinning. Ezekiel 32:27: "they went down to hell with their weapons." Then, when he says, "but present yourselves to God," etc., he exhorts to the contrary, namely that we should present ourselves to God. And first as to interior affection, when he says, "but present yourselves to God," namely that your mind should be subjected to him. Deuteronomy 10:12: "And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but that you fear the Lord your God, and walk in his ways?" And this you ought to do as those who are alive from the dead, that is, as those brought back to the life of grace from the death of fault. For this is also why it is just that he who lives should now no longer live for himself, but for him who died for all, 2 Corinthians 5:15. Second, as to the exterior act, whence he says: "present your members to God," that is, for his service, "as instruments of justice," that is, certain instruments for carrying out justice, by which, namely, you may fight against the enemies of God. Ephesians, last chapter: "Put on the armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the deceits of the devil." Then, when he says, "for sin," etc., he assigns the reason for the aforesaid admonition. For someone could excuse himself, alleging the dominion of sin, by which he might assert that he was hindered from observing the aforesaid admonition. This, therefore, the Apostle first excludes, saying, "for sin shall not have dominion over you," namely if you begin to resist sin and to present yourselves to God, according to that word of James 6:8: "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you: resist the devil, and he will flee from you." As if to say: you are able to observe the aforesaid things for this reason, that you do not find sin having dominion over you, by which you could be drawn back; for we have been freed by Christ, according to that word of John 8:36: "if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed." Second, he makes clear what he had said, saying, "for you are not under the law, but under grace." Here it must be considered that he is not speaking here of the law only as regards the ceremonial precepts, but also as regards the moral precepts; and someone is said to be under this law in two ways. In one way, as one voluntarily subject to the observance of the law. And in this way even Christ was under the law, according to that word of Galatians 4:4: "made under the law"; because, namely, he observed the law, not only as regards the moral precepts, but also as regards the ceremonial precepts. But the faithful of Christ are indeed under the law in this way as regards the moral precepts, but not as regards the ceremonial precepts. In another way someone is said to be under the law as one compelled by the law; and in this sense he is said to be under the law who is compelled to observe the law not voluntarily out of love, but out of fear. Such a one, however, lacks grace, which, if it were present, would incline the will to the observance of the law, so that out of love he would fulfill its moral precepts. Thus, therefore, as long as someone is under the law in such a way that he does not fulfill the law voluntarily, sin has dominion in him, since the will of man is inclined to will that which is contrary to the law; but through grace such dominion is taken away, so that, namely, man keeps the law not as one existing under the law, but as one who is free. Galatians 4:31: "we are not the children of the bondwoman, but of the free: with which liberty Christ has made us free." But the sacraments of the law did not confer this grace which makes men freely fulfill the law; rather, the sacraments of Christ confer it. And therefore those who subjected themselves to the ceremonies of the law, as far as pertains to the power of those legal sacraments themselves, were not under grace, but under the law, unless perhaps they attained grace through faith in Christ. But those who subject themselves to the sacraments of Christ obtain grace from their power, so that they are not under the law, but under grace, unless perhaps through their own fault they subject themselves to the servitude of sin. Then, when he says, "what then," etc., he raises a question against what has been said. And concerning this he does three things: first he sets forth the question; second he resolves it by leading to an absurdity, at the place, "God forbid. Know you not," etc.; third he shows that what he had led to is indeed absurd, at the place, "I thank God," etc. Concerning the first it must be considered that the aforesaid statement could be wrongly understood by some, namely that the faithful of Christ are not under the law as regards the obligation of observing the moral precepts, from which it would follow that it would be lawful for the faithful of Christ to sin, that is, by acting against the moral precepts. And therefore in this sense he raises the question, saying: what then shall we say, shall we sin, namely by acting against the moral precepts of the law, since it has been said that we are not under the law, but under grace? And the Apostle disproves this sense in Galatians 5:13, saying: "you have been called unto liberty, my brothers; only make not liberty an occasion to the flesh." And therefore here too, in answering, he adds, "God forbid," namely that we should sin because we have been freed from the law; for if we were to sin, this absurdity would follow, that we would again be reduced to the servitude of sin. And this is what he means when he says, "know you not, that to him to whom you present yourselves as servants, by your own will, to obey spontaneously, you are servants — to him whom you have obeyed." For to obey is a debt which servants owe to their masters. Ephesians 6:5: "servants, obey your masters according to the flesh." Hence when someone obeys another, by obeying he professes himself to be his servant. Yet different masters are obeyed for a different wage. For he who obeys sin is led, through the servitude of sin, unto death. And this is what he means when he says, "whether of sin," namely you are servants of it by obeying it. And this is "unto death," that is, unto being hurled headlong into eternal damnation, of which it is said in Revelation 2:11: "in these the second death has no place." But he who obeys God becomes the servant of this obedience; because through the habit of obeying, his mind is inclined more and more to obey, and from this he perfects justice. And this is what he means when he says, "or of obedience," namely of the divine precepts, you are servants unto the fulfilling of justice, according to that which was said above, 2:13: "the doers of the law shall be justified." And fittingly enough he opposes obedience to sin, because, as Ambrose says, sin is the transgression of the divine law and disobedience of the heavenly commandments. Then, when he says, "but thanks be to God," he shows this to be absurd, namely that by obeying sin, we should again be brought back into the servitude of sin. First indeed by a reason taken from the benefit which we have obtained. For if someone is freed from servitude through another's favor, it is absurd that he should of his own accord subject himself again to servitude; hence, since we have been freed from sin through the grace of God, it is absurd that we should again of our own accord thrust ourselves back into the servitude of sin. Second, from the condition into which we have been led after liberty from sin, namely that we should be servants of justice. But it is not lawful for someone's servant to subject himself to the servitude of a contrary master; hence it is not lawful for us, since we have been made servants of justice, to return again to the servitude of sin. The Apostle touches on both reasons at once, saying, "I give thanks to God" — thus you too ought to give thanks — that, whereas you were the servants of sin (because "he who commits sin is the servant of sin," John 8:34), you have obeyed, namely by believing, above 1:5: "unto obedience of the faith in all nations"; and this not under compulsion, but from the heart, below 10:10: "with the heart we believe unto justice"; unto that form of doctrine, that is, the doctrine of the Catholic faith, 2 Timothy 1:13: "holding the form of sound words which you have heard from me"; into which you have been delivered, 2 Corinthians 8:5: "they gave their own selves, first to God, then to us by the will of God." And through this you have been freed from sin, and so it is not fitting that you should abandon justice. 1 Corinthians 7:23: "you are bought with a price, and you are not your own."”

“For sin shall not have dominion over you,.... It has dominion over God's people in a state of unregeneracy: and after conversion it is still in them, and has great power oftentimes to hinder that which is good, and to effect that which is evil; it entices and ensnares, and brings into captivity, and seems as though it would regain its dominion, and reign again, but it shall not. This is not a precept, exhortation, or admonition, as before, though some read it as such, "let not sin have dominion over you"; nor does it express merely what ought not to be, but what cannot, and shall not be; it is an absolute promise, that sin shall not have the dominion over believers; and respects not acts of sin, but the principle of sin; and means not its damning power, though that is took away, but its tyrannical, governing power: "it shall not lord it over you", as the words may be rendered; for in regeneration, sin is dethroned; Christ enters as Lord, and continues to be so; saints are in another kingdom, the kingdom of Christ and grace; could sin reign again over them, they might be lost and perish, which they never can: now this is a noble argument why saints should use their members as weapons of righteousness for God and against sin; since they are sure of being conquerors, and are secure from the tyrannical government of sin over them. The Jewish doctors say (x), there are three persons, , "over whom the evil imagination", or "sin, had not the dominion"; and these are they, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; but these are not the only persons, for all Abraham's spiritual seed, all that are of the faith of Abraham, enjoy the same favour: the reason of this is, for ye are not under the law; by which is meant, not the law of nature; nor the civil law of the Jews; nor their ceremonial law; but either the law of sin, as a governing principle; or rather the moral law: this they were under, so as to obey it, but not in order to obtain righteousness by it; or as forced to obey it by its threats and terrors; they were not under its rigorous exaction; nor under its curse and condemnation; nor as irritating sin, and causing it to abound; or as a covenant of works: but under grace; under the covenant of grace, and in the enjoyment of the blessings of it; under the Gospel, and the dispensation of it, which leads and teaches men to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts; under and in the possession of the grace of justification and pardon, which strongly influence to righteousness and holiness; and under regenerating and sanctifying grace as a reigning governing principle in the soul. The apostle's view in this is, to affect the saints with their present privilege, and to engage them in a cheerful conflict with sin, and to stir up in them an abhorrence of living in it. (x) T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 17. 1.”

“Sin shall not have dominion over you - God delivers you from it; and if you again become subject to it, it will be the effect of your own choice or negligence. Ye are not under the law - That law which exacts obedience, without giving power to obey; that condemns every transgression and every unholy thought without providing for the extirpation of evil or the pardon of sin. But under grace - Ye are under the merciful and beneficent dispensation of the Gospel, that, although it requires the strictest conformity to the will of God, affords sufficient power to be thus conformed; and, in the death of Christ, has provided pardon for all that is past, and grace to help in every time of need.”

“You are not under the law of Moses, as some of you were before: but now you are all under grace, or the law of grace, where you may find pardon for your sins. But take care not to abuse this grace of pardon offered you, nor multiply your sins, and defer your conversion, as some may do, by presuming, that after all, by the merits of Christ, you can find pardon. This, says Tertullian, is the greatest ingratitude, to continue wicked, because God is good. Reflect that you make yourselves servants of him whom you obey. By yielding to your passions, you become slaves to sin. If you keep your obedience to the law of Christ, and to his doctrine, the form of which you have delivered to you by the gospel, you are the happy servants of justice, and the servants of God, who is justice itself. (Witham)”

“The want of the article leads us to understand the text of law in general. Christians are not, indeed, free from the moral law, but they are not wholly under it, since grace affords a remedy for transgression. They are not bound by the ceremonial law, under which the power of sin was great, "for the spirit was not at hand to help, nor was baptism yet given to deaden the passions." St. Chry- sostom.”

“For Sin shall not have dominion over you--as the slaves of a tyrant lord. for ye are not under the law, but under grace--The force of this glorious assurance can only be felt by observing the grounds on which it rests. To be "under the law" is, first, to be under its claim to entire obedience; and so, next under its curse for the breach of these. And as all power to obey can reach the sinner only through Grace, of which the law knows nothing, it follows that to be "under the law" is, finally, to be shut up under an inability to keep it, and consequently to be the helpless slave of sin. On the other hand, to be "under grace," is to be under the glorious canopy and saving effects of that "grace which reigns through righteousness unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (see on Rom 5:20-21). The curse of the law has been completely lifted from off them; they are made "the righteousness of God in Him"; and they are "alive unto God through Jesus Christ." So that, as when they were "under the law," Sin could not but have dominion over them, so now that they are "under grace," Sin cannot but be subdued under them. If before, Sin resistlessly triumphed, Grace will now be more than conqueror.”