For much of Romans 7, Paul speaks in the first person when describing the tension of wanting to do what is right but finding that he cannot. This has led to much discussion. Is Paul describing his own testimony? If so, is he describing his life before conversion or after? Or alternatively, is Paul using the “first person, singular” to describe the typical person, again whether pre or post conversion. It has also been suggested that Paul is not speaking individualistically but speaking for his people, Israel. He is describing their history in the first person and how the Law affected them.
There are challenges with all accounts. It is difficult to work out how Paul, born into a Jewish household, circumcised at 8 days old and raised to observe the Law could describe a time when he did not know the Law and so did not know about sin. If Paul is describing his own, or the typical person’s experience as an unbeliever, then the description seems to aptly describe their inability to keep the Law. However, at the same time, the language of desiring to do what is right and delighting in God’s Word seems better to describe a believer within our understanding of Pauline theology. Meanwhile, it seems unlikely that Paul would describe himself, as a believer as “wretched”. The idea of Israel being described seems attractive at one level but is also novel and we would want more direct indicators in the text and context before accepting that theory as the most plausible.
I am inclined to suggest that perhaps all options are possible without any of them being the primary explanation for how the text functions. This is because I do not think that Paul intends us to spend much time trying to work out who “I” is. The aim of the text is not to supply autobiographical detail, help us understand our own testimonies or tell us Israel’s story. He is simply seeking to emphasise the powerlessness of the Law in dealing with sin. This is so that he can answer the question of how to deal with sin in the next chapter.
Reading Romans 7 and 8 together, with chapter 8’s emphasis on putting sin to death and Romans 7 insistence on distinguishing “sin living in me” from my own desires means though that we can say two things.
First, that Paul does recognise that whilst the believer is completely forgiven, justified, free from condemnation, there is still the ongoing challenge of indwelling sin. Secondly, Paul distinguishes that ongoing sin from our new identity. This also relates to the debate over concupiscence. The imagery is of indwelling sin as “an alien interloper”. It is striking that Paul talks of the believer’s desire in positive terms in Romans 7. The believer is pictured as desiring to do good and delighting in God’s Word.
Finally, the beauty of not focusing immediately on who “I” is and not assuming that this was the intended exegetical question from Paul enables us to treat the text as something that speaks to all of us, whatever our context. Romans 7 helps us to understand Israel’s history, and our corporate identity as God’s people, grafted into Israel. It speaks to the unbeliever about why they need the Gospel and it also reminds the believer that they still need the Gospel.
