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being eager to fulfill desires beyond what is proper; for this is what he means by "it worked in me all manner of desire," instead of "every sin is born from some desire." From here the beginning came for us, since we received from here the starting points for discernment. So too in the preceding verses, the phrase "I would not have known desire except that the law said, 'You shall not desire'," is instead of "I would not have known that one must not do any of the things that lie in desire, if there were not a law defining this for us;" for when he says "in me," he speaks of what is common to mankind and he uses the things of Adam as a proof of the common things. Whence, speaking in his own person, he says that also, wishing to show through all things that we are necessarily governed by laws in the present life, by which our innate discernment is stirred up, being taught both what we must abstain from and what we ought to do, so that the rational faculty in us is also active. But there is need for our future state, in which, when we have come to be, we will also be able to do easily those things which seem good to us. Whence, holding to his own train of thought and showing that there would not be in us any discernment of the good and the worse, nor a knowledge of sin, if these things were not defined for us by law, but like irrational beings we were about to do whatever came to hand, he adds: "For apart from the law sin is dead." Not even, he says, could a sin be committed that was not defined by law. Why? Because the act is not simply a sin, but to know what one ought to abstain from, and to do something contrary to what is known to be good.128. Ro+m 7,9-11 Again he moves to the example for the confirmation of what has been proposed, and says: "But I was alive once without the law," speaking about Adam, as when he immediately came to be, existing outside of law, before receiving from God the command to abstain from the plant; for it is clear that he came into being first, and then received the commandment later. Whence he adds: "But when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died, and the commandment, which was to life, was found to be death for me." Since, he says, God gave the law concerning the plant, and a discernment of two things came to be, sin found an entrance, and I, having done the opposite of what was decreed by God, was condemned to death, and so the law laid down by God for us to live by obeying it became productive of death. For the blessed Paul has come to these words from the law, wishing to show that he does not consider it to be worthless; but for the rest he discusses in common about the nature of the law, teaching its necessity and usefulness, whence he also mentions the commandment to Adam, since that was the beginning of law for human beings. And weaving both together well, he adds: "So then the law is holy, and the commandment is holy," and what follows. Ro+m 7,12 He mentions the commandment to Adam, since that was the beginning of law for human beings. And weaving both together he says: "So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good," in order to say that both, therefore, are very beneficial. And he well used more praises for the commandment, since its giving did not seem to be given readily for necessary things and it became productive of death for all. And he called it holy as providing the starting points for the discernment of both the good and the evil and distinguishing the better from the worse, and just as necessarily bringing punishment upon the transgressor after showing what is good, but also good as productive of good things, both providing the diagnosis and promising greater good things to those who obey.129.Ro+m 7,13 He poses against himself what could fittingly be said by others and says: "Did that which is good, then, become death to me?" And is this good, he says, which became the cause of death only, and of no good? By no means, instead of "it is not so;" it did not become a cause of death, but it provided no good. And what good did we enjoy from it? But sin, he says, that it might be shown to be sin, working death in me through what is good. If Adam, having become

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ἐπιθυμίας παρὰ τὸ δέον πληροῦν ἐπειγόμενοι· τοῦτο γὰρ λέγει τὸ κατειργάσατο ἐν ἐμοὶ πᾶσαν ἐπιθυμίαν ἀντὶ τοῦ παντὸς ἁμαρτήματος ἀπό τινος ἐπιθυμίας τικτομένου. ἐντεῦθεν ἡ ἀρχὴ γέγονεν ἡμῖν, ἅ τε δὴ τῆς διακρίσεως τὰς ἀφορμὰς δεξαμένοις ἐντεῦθεν. οὕτω καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀνωτέροις τὸ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν οὐκ ᾔδειν εἰ μὴ ὁ νόμος ἔλεγεν· οὐκ ἐπιθυμήσεις, ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐκ ἂν ᾔδειν ὡς οὐ δεῖ τι ποιεῖν τῶν ἐν ἐπιθυμίᾳ κειμένων, εἰ μὴ νόμος ἦν ὁ τοῦτο διορίζων ἡμῖν· καὶ γὰρ τὸ ἐν ἐμοὶ ὅτε λέγει, τὸ κοινὸν λέγει τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ τοῖς τοῦ Ἀδὰμ εἰς ἀπόδειξιν κέχρηται τῶν κοινῶν. ὅθεν ἐπὶ τοῦ οἰκείου κἀκεῖνο λέγει προσώπου, διὰ πάντων δεῖξαι βουλόμενος, ὅτι ἀναγκαίως μὲν κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον νόμοις πολιτευόμεθα, ὑφ' ὧν ἡ ἔμφυτος ἀνακινεῖται διάκρισις, παιδευομένων ὧν τε ἀπέχεσθαι καὶ ἃ ποιεῖν προσήκει, ὥστε καὶ τὸ λογικὸν ἐν ἡμῖν ἐνεργὸν εἶναι. χρεία δὲ τῆς μελλούσης ἡμῖν καταστάσεως ἐν ᾗ γεγονότες τὰ φαινόμενα ἡμῖν καλά, ταῦτα καὶ ποιῆσαι δυνησόμεθα ῥᾳδίως. ὅθεν τῆς οἰκείας ἐχόμενος ἀκολουθίας καὶ τοῦ δεικνύναι, ὡς οὐδ' ἄν τις ἦν ἐν ἡμῖν διάκρισις τοῦ τε καλοῦ καὶ τοῦ χείρονος, οὐδὲ ἁμαρτίας ἐπίγνωσις, εἰ μὴ νόμῳ ταῦτα διώριστο παρ' ἡμῖν, ἀλόγων δὲ δίκην τὸ προστυχὸν ποιεῖν ἅπαν ἐμέλλο μεν, ἐπάγει· χωρὶς γὰρ νόμου ἁμαρτία νεκρά. οὐδ' ἂν ἐνεργηθείη, φησίν, ἁμάρτημα μὴ νόμῳ διωρισμένον. διὰ τί; ὅτι οὐχ ἡ πρᾶξις ἁμάρτημα ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ τὸ εἰδότα ὧν ἀπέχεσθαι προσήκει, ποιεῖν τι παρὰ τὰ ἐγνωσμένα καλῶς ἔχειν128. Ro+m 7,9-11 Πάλιν ἐπὶ τὸ παράδειγμα χωρεῖ εἰς τὴν τοῦ προκειμένου πίστωσιν, καί φησιν· ἐγὼ δὲ ἔζων χωρὶς νόμου ποτέ, περὶ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ λέγων, ὡς ἂν ὅτε εὐθὺς ἐγένετο ἔξω νόμου τυγχάνοντος, πρὶν ἢ δέξασθαι παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῆς ἀποχῆς τοῦ φυτοῦ τὸ ἐπίταγμα· δῆλον γὰρ ὡς ἐγένετο πρότερον, εἶτα τὴν ἐντολὴν ἐδέξατο ὕστερον. ὅθεν ἐπάγει· ἐλθούσης δὲ τῆς ἐντολῆς ἡ ἁμαρτία ἀνέζησεν, ἐγὼ δὲ ἀπέθανον, καὶ εὑρέθη μοι ἡ ἐντολὴ ἡ εἰς ζωήν, αὕτη εἰς θάνατον. ἐπειδὴ δέ, φησίν, ὁ θεὸς τὸν περὶ τοῦ φυτοῦ δέδωκε νόμον, καὶ διάκρισις ἐγένετο δύο πραγμάτων, ἡ μὲν ἁμαρτία παρείσδυσιν ἔσχεν, ἐγὼ δὲ τἀναντία ποιήσας τοῖς τῷ θεῷ δεδογμένοις, θανάτῳ κατεκρίθην, γέγονέ τε ἡμῖν λοιπὸν θανάτου παρεκτικὸς ὁ παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τεθεὶς νόμος ἐπὶ τῷ ζῆσαι πεισθέντας αὐτῷ. ὁ γάρ τοι μακάριος Παῦλος ἐλήλυθε μὲν ἐπὶ τούτους ἀπὸ τοῦ νόμου τοὺς λόγους, δεῖξαι βουλόμενος ὡς οὐ φαῦλον αὐτὸν ἡγεῖται· κοινῶς δὲ λοιπὸν περὶ τῆς τοῦ νόμου φύσεως διαλέγεται , τὸ χρειῶδες αὐτοῦ καὶ ὠφέλιμον διδάσκων, ὅθεν καὶ τῆς πρὸς τὸν Ἀδὰμ μέμνηται ἐντολῆς, ἐπειδὴ ἀρχὴ νόμου τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐκεῖνος ἐγένετο. καὶ συμπλέκων ἀμφότερα καλῶς ἐπάγει· ὥστε μὲν ὁ νόμος ἅγιος, καὶ ἡ ἐντολὴ ἁγία καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Ro+m 7,12 Τῆς πρὸς τὸν Ἀδὰμ μέμνηται ἐντολῆς, ἐπειδὴ ἀρχὴ νόμου τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐκεῖνος ἐγένετο. καὶ συμπλέκων ἀμφότερα λέγει· ὥστε ὁ μὲν νόμος ἅγιος, καὶ ἡ ἐντολὴ ἁγία καὶ δικαία καὶ ἀγαθή, ἵνα εἴπῃ ὅτι ἀμφότερα τοίνυν ἄγαν ὠφέλιμα. καλῶς δὲ ἐπὶ τῆς ἐντολῆς πλείοσιν ἐχρήσατο τοῖς ἐπαίνοις, ἅτε δὴ καὶ τῆς δόσεως οὐκ ἐπ' ἀναγκαίοις κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον δοξάσης δεδόσθαι καὶ θανάτου παρεκτικῆς ἅπασι γενομένης. ἐκάλεσε δὲ αὐτὴν ἁγίαν μὲν ὡς τὰς ἀφορμὰς παρέχουσαν τῆς τε τοῦ καλοῦ καὶ τοῦ κακοῦ διακρίσεως καὶ τὸ κρεῖττον ἀπὸ τοῦ χείρονος ἀφορίζουσαν , δικαίαν δὲ ὡς ἀναγκαίως μετὰ τὸ δεῖξαι τὸ καλὸν ἐπάγουσαν τῷ παραβάτῃ τὴν τιμωρίαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀγαθὴν ὡς καλῶν παρεκτικήν, τό τε παρέχειν τὴν διάγνωσιν καὶ τὸ μείζονα πειθομένοις ὑπισχνεῖσθαι καλά129.Ro+m 7,13 Ἀντιτίθησιν ἑαυτῷ τὸ παρ' ἑτέρων καιρίως λέγεσθαι δυνάμενον καί φησιν· τὸ οὖν ἀγαθὸν ἐμοὶ γέγονε θάνατος; καὶ τοῦτο ἀγαθόν, φησίν, ὃ θανάτου κατέστη μόνον αἴτιον, ἀγαθοῦ δὲ οὐδενός; μὴ γένοιτο, ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐχ οὕτως ἔχει· οὐ θανάτου μὲν αἴτιον ἐγένετο, ἀγαθὸν δὲ παρέσχεν οὐδέν. καὶ τίνος ἐξ αὐτῆς ἀπελαύσαμεν ἀγαθοῦ; ἀλλ' ἡ ἁμαρτία, φησίν, ἵνα φανῇ ἁμαρτία, διὰ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ μοι κατεργαζομένη θάνατον. εἰ γεγονὼς ὁ Ἀδὰμ