Bible Strands
Romans 7:20
And if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Paul addresses the Roman believers while tracing the internal conflict of a person operating under the law. He speaks from the immediate moment of recognizing a repeated pattern: desiring good but executing unwanted evil.
The words — The Greek ἐγὼ (egō) translates literally as "I myself," isolating the speaker's personal identity in the act. It is positioned directly against the clause "sin living in me" to mark a distinction between the agent and the indwelling power.
The thread — The same pattern appears in Romans 7:17, where the identical phrase "no longer I who do it" is applied to the same situation. Romans 7:19 and 7:21 restate the observation that the desire for good is consistently accompanied by the presence and performance of evil.
Why it lands — The text states that the actor of unwanted deeds is sin residing within, not the conscious self. It requires the reader to stop attributing moral failure to external pressure alone and to recognize an internal compulsion that defeats personal will.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Cross-references
- Romans 7:17 In that case, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.