Augustine of Hippo — Commentary on Scripture

Romans 7:25

I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Though his carnal desires still exist, the man who is renewed by grace by not giving in to sin does not serve them. With his mind he serves the law of God, even though with his flesh he serves the law of sin. Paul calls the law of sin the mortal condition which stems from the transgression of Adam, because of which we are born mortal. It is because the flesh has fallen that the lusts of the flesh entice us.

Romans 8:1

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

There is no condemnation just because carnal desires exist; it is only if we give in to them and sin that we are condemned.

Romans 8:3 · 3 passages

For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

The reason why grace was bestowed on us through our mediator is that we who were polluted by sinful flesh might be purified by the “likeness of sinful flesh.”

What does sinful flesh have? Death and sin. What does the likeness of sinful flesh have? Death without sin. If it had sin it would be sinful flesh; if it did not have death it would not be the likeness of sinful flesh. As such he came—he came as Savior. He died but he vanquished death. In himself he put an end to what we feared; he took it upon himself and he vanquished it—as a mighty hunter he captured and slew the lion.

Here Paul clearly teaches that the precepts of the law were not fulfilled (though they should have been) because those who had the law before grace were given over to worldly goods, from which they were trying to get happiness. Nor did they have any fear except when adversity threatened these goods, and when that happened they easily withdrew from the precepts of the law. Therefore the law grew weaker as its commands went unheeded. This was not the fault of the law but came about through the flesh, because those who went after worldly goods did not love the righteousness of the law but put temporal advantage ahead of it.And so our deliverer, the Lord Jesus Christ, took on mortal flesh and came in the likeness of the flesh of sin. For death is the reward due to the flesh of sin. Of course the Lord’s death was voluntary and not something which he owed. Yet nevertheless the apostle calls the assumption of mortal flesh “sin” even if it was sinless, because when the Savior died he was made sin, so to speak. But “he condemned sin in the flesh,” for the Lord’s death ensured that death would…

Here Paul clearly teaches that the precepts of the law were not fulfilled (though they should have been) because those who had the law before grace were given over to worldly goods, from which they were trying to get happiness. Nor did they have any fear except when adversity threatened these goods, and when that happened they easily withdrew from the precepts of the law. Therefore the law grew weaker as its commands went unheeded. This was not the fault of the law but came about through the flesh, because those who went after worldly goods did not love the righteousness of the law but put temporal advantage ahead of it.And so our deliverer, the Lord Jesus Christ, took on mortal flesh and came in the likeness of the flesh of sin. For death is the reward due to the flesh of sin. Of course the Lord’s death was voluntary and not something which he owed. Yet nevertheless the apostle calls the assumption of mortal flesh “sin” even if it was sinless, because when the Savior died he was made sin, so to speak.
But “he condemned sin in the flesh,” for the Lord’s death ensured that death would not be dreaded, that worldly goods would not be sought and that worldly evils would not be feared by those who had previously been wise in the ways of the world and thus unable to fulfill the commands of the law.

Romans 8:4

That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

But since this worldly wisdom has been destroyed and removed in the Lord made man, the righteousness of the law is fulfilled when a man walks not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Whence it is most rightly said: “I came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. For love is the fulfilling of the law.” Love belongs to those who walk according to the Spirit. For love belongs to the grace of the Holy Spirit. When there was no love of righteousness but only fear, the law was not fulfilled.

Romans 8:7

Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

Paul explains why he said “hostile” so that no one should think that there is some nature derived from an opposing principle which God did not create and which fights against him. An enemy of God is one who does not submit to his law and who behaves this way because of the wisdom of the flesh. This means that he seeks worldly goods and is afraid of worldly evils. The normal definition of wisdom is to seek what is good and avoid what is evil. Therefore the apostle is right to describe the wisdom of the flesh as the longing for “goods” which do not remain with a man and when there is a fear for losing those things which one day will have to be left behind anyway. Wisdom of this kind cannot submit to the law of God. It must be destroyed so that the wisdom of the Spirit, which does not place its hope in worldly goods nor is afraid of worldly evils, may take its place. For the one nature of the soul has both the wisdom of the flesh when it follows lower things and the wisdom of the Spirit when it chooses higher things, just as the one nature of water freezes in the cold and melts in the h…

Paul explains why he said “hostile” so that no one should think that there is some nature derived from an opposing principle which God did not create and which fights against him. An enemy of God is one who does not submit to his law and who behaves this way because of the wisdom of the flesh. This means that he seeks worldly goods and is afraid of worldly evils. The normal definition of wisdom is to seek what is good and avoid what is evil. Therefore the apostle is right to describe the wisdom of the flesh as the longing for “goods” which do not remain with a man and when there is a fear for losing those things which one day will have to be left behind anyway. Wisdom of this kind cannot submit to the law of God. It must be destroyed so that the wisdom of the Spirit, which does not place its hope in worldly goods nor is afraid of worldly evils, may take its place. For the one nature of the soul has both the wisdom of the flesh when it follows lower things and the wisdom of the Spirit when it chooses higher things, just as the one nature of water freezes in the cold and melts in the heat.

Romans 8:8

So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

In the same way, snow cannot tolerate heat. For when snow is heated it melts; it becomes warm as water, but no one can then call it snow.

Romans 8:10 · 2 passages

And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

Paul calls the body “dead” because it is mortal. Furthermore, it is because of this mortality that the lack of earthly things troubles the soul and arouses certain desires, to which the man who serves the law of God in his mind does not submit and sin.

Paul shows that both life and death exist in a man living in his body—death in his body, life in his spirit.

Romans 8:11 · 2 passages

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

This is a very explicit witness to the resurrection of the body, and it is sufficiently clear that as long as we are in this life there will be no lack of both the annoyances occasioned by the mortal flesh and some excitations arising from carnal pleasures. For although he who is established under grace serves the law of God with his mind and does not yield, nevertheless, with the flesh he continues to serve the law of sin.

Paul now explains the fourth of the four states which we mentioned above. But this state is not attained in this life. It belongs to the hope by which we await the redemption of our body, when this corruptible matter will put on incorruption and immortality. Then there will be perfect peace, because the soul will no longer be troubled by the body, which will be revived and transformed into a heavenly substance.

Romans 8:13 · 3 passages

For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

I have quoted this passage so that I might make use of the apostle’s words to deter your free will from evil and to exhort it to what is good. Nor should you on this account glory in man, i.e., in yourselves and not in the Lord. You are not living according to the flesh but are putting the deeds of the flesh to death by the Spirit.

That we should mortify the deeds of the flesh by the Spirit is required of us, but that we may live is offered to us.… Shall we therefore agree to say that the mortification of the flesh is not a gift of God and not confess it to be a gift of God, since we hear that it is required of us, with life offered as a reward to us if we have done it?

When by our spirit we put to death the works of the flesh we are impelled by the Spirit of God, which grants the continence by which we restrain, master and overcome concupiscence.

Romans 8:15 · 3 passages

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

The fear of slaves, although it renders belief to the Master, contains no love of righteousness but only the fear of damnation. The cry of sons is “Abba, Father!”—two words, one of which belongs to the circumcision and the other to the uncircumcision.

Paul is speaking of the fear which was inspired in the Old Testament, lest the temporal be lost which God had promised to those who were not yet his sons under grace but still servants under the law.

The dispensations of the two Testaments are clearly different. The Old Testament is one of fear; the New Testament is one of love. But, you may ask, what is this spirit of slavery? If the spirit of our adoption as sons is the Holy Spirit, then the spirit of slavery to fear is the one which has the power of death. It is because of this fear that those who lived under the law and not under grace were condemned to slavery for their entire lives. Nor is it surprising that those who went after worldly goods received the spirit of slavery by divine providence … for this spirit of slavery has nobody in its power unless he has been handed over by the command of divine providence, since God’s righteousness gives every man his due.

Romans 8:17

And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

By spiritual regeneration we therefore become sons and are adopted into the kingdom of God, not as aliens but as his creatures and offspring.

Romans 8:18

For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

The humble and holy servants of God who suffer doubly when temporal evils befall them, because they suffer with the wicked as well as at their hands, have their own consolations and the hope of the world to come.