Romans 7:2

KJV

For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to [her] husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of [her] husband.

KJV (with Strong's)

For {G1063} the woman {G1135} which hath an husband {G5220} is bound {G1210} by the law {G3551} to her husband {G435} so long as he liveth {G2198}; but {G1161} if {G1437} the husband {G435} be dead {G599}, she is loosed {G2673} from {G575} the law {G3551} of her husband {G435}.

Complete Jewish Bible

For example, a married woman is bound by Torah to her husband while he is alive; but if the husband dies, she is released from the part of the Torah that deals with husbands.

Berean Standard Bible

For instance, a married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.

American Standard Version

For the woman that hath a husband is bound by law to the husband while he liveth; but if the husband die, she is discharged from the law of the husband.

Commentary

### SUMMARY
Romans 7:2 presents a legal analogy from the institution of marriage to illustrate a profound theological truth about the believer's relationship to the Mosaic Law. Paul establishes the principle that a woman is legally bound to her husband for the duration of his life, but his death dissolves this bond, freeing her from that specific legal obligation. This foundational premise sets the stage for Paul's subsequent argument that believers have died to the Law through their identification with Christ's death, thereby becoming free to be united with Him and bear fruit for God.

### CONTEXT
* **Literary Context:** Romans 7:2 is an integral part of Paul's intricate argument in [Romans 7](/romans/7 "Romans 7 - The Believer's Relationship to the Law"), which seeks to clarify the Law's role and the believer's freedom from its condemning power. Following his discussion of sanctification and freedom from sin's dominion in [Romans 6](/romans/6 "Romans 6 - Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ"), Paul anticipates a potential objection: if believers are free from sin, does that mean the Law is bad or abolished? Paul uses the marriage analogy in [Romans 7:1-6](/romans/7-1-6 "Romans 7:1-6 - The Marriage Analogy") to explain that just as death dissolves a legal bond, so the believer's spiritual death with Christ dissolves their former bond to the Law, enabling a new union with Christ. This verse specifically lays the groundwork for the pivotal statement in [Romans 7:4](/romans/7-4 "Romans 7:4 - Married to Christ"), where the analogy is directly applied to the believer's union with Christ.

* **Historical & Cultural Context:** In both ancient Jewish and Roman legal traditions, marriage was understood as a lifelong covenant. The wife was legally "bound" to her husband, and this bond was considered indissoluble except by death. Divorce was permissible under certain conditions, particularly for men, but remarriage while the first spouse was alive was generally viewed as adultery, especially for women. Paul draws upon this universally understood legal and social reality to make his point. The audience, comprising both Jewish and Gentile Christians in Rome, would have readily grasped the binding nature of marriage and the definitive release that death provided. This common understanding provides a robust and relatable framework for Paul's theological analogy, making his abstract argument about the Law more concrete.

* **Key Themes:** This verse contributes significantly to several key themes in Romans. Firstly, it underscores the **binding nature of the Law** itself, illustrating how legal covenants create inescapable obligations until a specific condition (death) is met. Secondly, it introduces the theme of **death as a means of release**, which is central to Paul's theology of salvation and sanctification. Just as physical death frees a spouse from a marital bond, spiritual death with Christ frees the believer from the Law's dominion and condemnation. This concept is foundational to understanding the believer's new identity "in Christ" and their freedom from the Law's power to condemn, as elaborated in [Romans 8:1-4](/romans/8-1-4 "Romans 8:1-4 - Life in the Spirit"). Finally, it sets the stage for the theme of **new spiritual union and fruitfulness**, as the freedom from the old bond allows for a new, life-giving relationship with Christ, leading to a life that bears "fruit unto God" ([Romans 7:4](/romans/7-4 "Romans 7:4 - Married to Christ")).

### EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

#### Key Word Analysis
* **woman (Greek, _gynḗ'_):** This term refers to a female, specifically a wife in this context, emphasizing her legal status within the marriage covenant. Paul uses this common social role to represent the individual under the Law.
* **bound (Greek, _déō'_):** This verb signifies being tied, bound, or obligated. It highlights the legal and moral constraint that the Law imposes, illustrating how the individual is held firmly within its jurisdiction and demands.
* **loosed (Greek, _katargéō'_):** This powerful verb means to be rendered entirely idle, useless, abolished, or made of no effect. It denotes a complete and definitive cessation of the legal bond, emphasizing that death utterly nullifies the previous obligation, leaving no lingering claim.

#### Verse Breakdown
* **"For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to [her] husband so long as he liveth":** This clause establishes the first part of the legal premise. It describes the state of a married woman, whose legal and social obligation to her husband is absolute and continues for the duration of his life. The phrase "bound by the law" underscores the legal authority and permanence of the marital covenant.
* **"but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of [her] husband":** This clause presents the counter-condition and its consequence. It states that the death of the husband is the sole event that dissolves the marital bond, thereby freeing the woman from her legal obligation to him. The use of "loosed" (κατήργηται) emphasizes the complete and final termination of the legal tie, making her free to remarry without being considered an adulteress.

#### Literary Devices
Paul employs a powerful **Analogy** in Romans 7:2, comparing the legal bond of marriage and its dissolution by death to the believer's relationship with the Mosaic Law. This analogy serves as a **Pedagogical Tool**, making an abstract theological concept (freedom from the Law) more accessible and understandable through a concrete, universally recognized social institution. The verse also utilizes **Contrast**, setting the state of being "bound" against being "loosed," and the condition of the husband "living" against his being "dead." This stark opposition highlights the definitive nature of death as the ultimate release from legal obligation, preparing the reader for the profound theological application in subsequent verses.

### THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Romans 7:2, though an analogy, carries profound theological implications for understanding the Christian's position. It serves as a crucial bridge in Paul's argument, demonstrating how a legal bond can be definitively broken, thus paving the way for a new relationship. The principle established here—that death dissolves a binding legal obligation—is directly applied to the believer's spiritual death with Christ, which frees them from the dominion and condemnation of the Law. This liberation is not an abolition of God's moral standards but a release from the Law's power to condemn and to incite sin, allowing for a new, Spirit-empowered life of righteousness.

* [Romans 7:4](/romans/7-4 "Romans 7:4 - Married to Christ")
* [Romans 6:14](/romans/6-14 "Romans 6:14 - Not Under Law, But Under Grace")
* [Galatians 2:19-20](/galatians/2-19-20 "Galatians 2:19-20 - Crucified with Christ")

### REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
This verse, while part of a complex theological argument, offers profound insights for personal reflection and application. It reminds us that true freedom often comes through a form of "death" – a dying to old ways, old allegiances, or old understandings. For the believer, this means recognizing that our old self, bound by sin and the Law's condemnation, has died with Christ. This spiritual death is not merely theoretical but has real implications for how we live. We are no longer obligated to a system that exposed our sin and condemned us, but are now free to live in a new relationship of grace and love with Christ. This freedom is not a license for lawlessness, but an empowerment for genuine righteousness, flowing from a heart transformed by the Spirit rather than from a fear of legal repercussions. It calls us to consider what old bonds we might still be clinging to, consciously or unconsciously, that prevent us from fully embracing the new life and freedom offered in Christ.

#### Questions for Reflection
* **In what areas of my life do I still feel "bound" by rules or expectations, rather than living from a place of grace and freedom in Christ?**
* **How does understanding my spiritual "death" with Christ change my perspective on my past failures and my future walk with God?**
* **What are the practical implications of being "loosed from the law" for my daily choices and my pursuit of holiness?**

### FAQ

**Does this verse imply that the Law is bad or that Christians should disregard it?**

Answer: No, Romans 7:2 does not imply that the Law is bad or that Christians should disregard it. Paul explicitly states later in [Romans 7:7](/romans/7-7 "Romans 7:7 - The Law is Holy") that the Law is "holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good." The purpose of the analogy is not to malign the Law but to explain its function and the believer's changed relationship to it. The Law, while good, could not give life and, in fact, highlighted sin. Christians are not "under the law" as a means of justification or condemnation, but are now under grace. This means our relationship to God is no longer based on our ability to perfectly keep the Law, but on Christ's perfect obedience and sacrifice. Our freedom from the Law's condemning power allows us to fulfill its righteous requirements through the power of the Holy Spirit, as described in [Romans 8:4](/romans/8-4 "Romans 8:4 - The Righteous Requirement of the Law").

### CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Romans 7:2, with its analogy of a woman freed from her marital bond by her husband's death, finds its profound Christ-centered fulfillment in the believer's union with Christ. The "death" that releases us from the "law of the husband" (representing the Mosaic Law's dominion) is our spiritual identification with Christ's death on the cross. When Christ died, He died to the Law's demands and its curse ([Galatians 3:13](/galatians/3-13 "Galatians 3:13 - Christ Redeemed Us from the Curse of the Law")). Because believers are "in Christ," His death becomes our death. As Paul declares in [Romans 7:4](/romans/7-4 "Romans 7:4 - Married to Christ"), "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God." This means our old identity, bound by the Law's condemnation and the power of sin, has been crucified with Him ([Galatians 2:20](/galatians/2-20 "Galatians 2:20 - I have been crucified with Christ")). The death of Christ, therefore, is the ultimate act that "loosed" us from the Law's power, not so that we might live lawlessly, but so that we might be united to the resurrected Christ and live a new life, empowered by the Spirit, bearing the fruit of righteousness for God's glory ([Romans 6:22](/romans/6-22 "Romans 6:22 - Fruit Unto Holiness")).

Note: Commentary is generated by AI with a directive for Biblical fidelity. Always rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

Cross-References

Genesis 2:23

And Adam said, This [is] now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

Genesis 2:24

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

1 Corinthians 7:39

¶ The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord.

1 Corinthians 7:4

The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.

Numbers 30:7

And her husband heard [it], and held his peace at her in the day that he heard [it]: then her vows shall stand, and her bonds wherewith she bound her soul shall stand.

Numbers 30:8

But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard [it]; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith she bound her soul, of none effect: and the LORD shall forgive her.