Theology in the Raw S9 Ep993: #993 - Why Romans 7 is NOT Talking about Christians: Dr. Joey Dodson
Jul 25, 2022
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Scholarly Consensus Diverges From Pulpit Reading
- Among modern New Testament scholars, reading Romans 7 as pre-conversion or a non-Christian persona is mainstream, while post-conversion readings remain common in pulpits.
- Historical interpreters (Origen, Erasmus, Jerome, Wesley) largely favored a non-believer/persona reading.
Romans 5–8 Is One Argument
- Romans 5–8 forms a single argumentative unit and Romans 7 unpacks the pre-conversion law-driven predicament described in Romans 5:12–21 and 7:5.
- Verse 6 signals the transition to life in the Spirit and frames Romans 7 as a portrayal of life under the law, not the Spirit.
Paul Adopts A Persona In Romans 7
- Paul uses a rhetorical persona in Romans 7, signaled by the emphatic Greek ego ("I myself"), to portray a law-bound, fleshly state.
- That persona plausibly reflects Paul’s pre-conversion condition or a first-century Jew striving under Mosaic law.