रोमिणः 7
1 हे भ्रातृगण व्यवस्थाविदः प्रति ममेदं निवेदनं। विधिः केवलं यावज्जीवं मानवोपर्य्यधिपतित्वं करोतीति यूयं किं न जानीथ?
Surely, friends, you know (for I am speaking to people who know what Law means) that Law has power over a person only as long as they lives.
2 यावत्कालं पति र्जीवति तावत्कालम् ऊढा भार्य्या व्यवस्थया तस्मिन् बद्धा तिष्ठति किन्तु यदि पति र्म्रियते तर्हि सा नारी पत्यु र्व्यवस्थातो मुच्यते।
For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband while he is living; but, if her husband dies, she is set free from the law that bound her to him.
3 एतत्कारणात् पत्युर्जीवनकाले नारी यद्यन्यं पुरुषं विवहति तर्हि सा व्यभिचारिणी भवति किन्तु यदि स पति र्म्रियते तर्हि सा तस्या व्यवस्थाया मुक्ता सती पुरुषान्तरेण व्यूढापि व्यभिचारिणी न भवति।
If, then, during her husband’s lifetime, she unites herself to another man, she will be called an adulteress; but, if her husband dies, the law has no further hold on her, nor, if she unites herself to another man, is she an adulteress.
4 हे मम भ्रातृगण, ईश्वरनिमित्तं यदस्माकं फलं जायते तदर्थं श्मशानाद् उत्थापितेन पुरुषेण सह युष्माकं विवाहो यद् भवेत् तदर्थं ख्रीष्टस्य शरीरेण यूयं व्यवस्थां प्रति मृतवन्तः।
And so with you, my friends; as far as the Law was concerned, you underwent death in the crucified body of the Christ, so that you might be united to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that our lives might bear fruit for God.
5 यतोऽस्माकं शारीरिकाचरणसमये मरणनिमित्तं फलम् उत्पादयितुं व्यवस्थया दूषितः पापाभिलाषोऽस्माकम् अङ्गेषु जीवन् आसीत्।
When we were living merely earthly lives, our sinful passions, aroused by the Law, were active in every part of our bodies, with the result that our lives bore fruit for death.
6 किन्तु तदा यस्या व्यवस्थाया वशे आस्महि साम्प्रतं तां प्रति मृतत्वाद् वयं तस्या अधीनत्वात् मुक्ता इति हेतोरीश्वरोऽस्माभिः पुरातनलिखितानुसारात् न सेवितव्यः किन्तु नवीनस्वभावेनैव सेवितव्यः
But now we are set free from the Law, because we are dead to that which once kept us under restraint; and so we serve under new, spiritual conditions, and not under old, written regulations.
7 तर्हि वयं किं ब्रूमः? व्यवस्था किं पापजनिका भवति? नेत्थं भवतु। व्यवस्थाम् अविद्यमानायां पापं किम् इत्यहं नावेदं; किञ्च लोभं मा कार्षीरिति चेद् व्यवस्थाग्रन्थे लिखितं नाभविष्यत् तर्हि लोभः किम्भूतस्तदहं नाज्ञास्यं।
What are we to say, then? That Law and sin are the same thing? Heaven forbid! On the contrary, I should not have learned what sin is, had not it been for Law. If the Law did not say ‘You must not covet,’ I should not know what it is to covet.
8 किन्तु व्यवस्थया पापं छिद्रं प्राप्यास्माकम् अन्तः सर्व्वविधं कुत्सिताभिलाषम् अजनयत्; यतो व्यवस्थायाम् अविद्यमानायां पापं मृतं।
But sin took advantage of the commandment to arouse in me every form of covetousness, for where there is no consciousness of Law sin shows no sign of life.
9 अपरं पूर्व्वं व्यवस्थायाम् अविद्यमानायाम् अहम् अजीवं ततः परम् आज्ञायाम् उपस्थितायाम् पापम् अजीवत् तदाहम् अम्रिये।
There was a time when I myself, unconscious of Law, was alive; but when the commandment was brought home to me, sin sprang into life, while I died!
10 इत्थं सति जीवननिमित्ता याज्ञा सा मम मृत्युजनिकाभवत्।
The commandment that should have meant life I found to result in death!
11 यतः पापं छिद्रं प्राप्य व्यवस्थितादेशेन मां वञ्चयित्वा तेन माम् अहन्।
Sin took advantage of the commandment to deceive me, and used it to bring about my death.
12 अतएव व्यवस्था पवित्रा, आदेशश्च पवित्रो न्याय्यो हितकारी च भवति।
And so the Law is holy, and each commandment is also holy, and just, and good.
13 तर्हि यत् स्वयं हितकृत् तत् किं मम मृत्युजनकम् अभवत्? नेत्थं भवतु; किन्तु पापं यत् पातकमिव प्रकाशते तथा निदेशेन पापं यदतीव पातकमिव प्रकाशते तदर्थं हितोपायेन मम मरणम् अजनयत्।
Did, then, a thing, which in itself was good, involve death in my case? Heaven forbid! It was sin that involved death; so that, by its use of what I regarded as good to bring about my death, its true nature might appear; and in this way the commandment showed how intensely sinful sin is.
14 व्यवस्थात्मबोधिकेति वयं जानीमः किन्त्वहं शारीरताचारी पापस्य क्रीतकिङ्करो विद्ये।
We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am earthly – sold into slavery to sin.
15 यतो यत् कर्म्म करोमि तत् मम मनोऽभिमतं नहि; अपरं यन् मम मनोऽभिमतं तन्न करोमि किन्तु यद् ऋतीये तत् करोमि।
I do not understand my own actions. For I am so far from habitually doing what I want to do, that I find myself doing the thing that I hate.
16 तथात्वे यन् ममानभिमतं तद् यदि करोमि तर्हि व्यवस्था सूत्तमेति स्वीकरोमि।
But when I do what I want not to do, I am admitting that the Law is right.
17 अतएव सम्प्रति तत् कर्म्म मया क्रियत इति नहि किन्तु मम शरीरस्थेन पापेनैव क्रियते।
This being so, the action is no longer my own, but is done by the sin which is within me.
18 यतो मयि, अर्थतो मम शरीरे, किमप्युत्तमं न वसति, एतद् अहं जानामि; ममेच्छुकतायां तिष्ठन्त्यामप्यहम् उत्तमकर्म्मसाधने समर्थो न भवामि।
I know that there is nothing good in me – I mean in my earthly nature. For, although it is easy for me to want to do right, to act rightly is not easy.
19 यतो यामुत्तमां क्रियां कर्त्तुमहं वाञ्छामि तां न करोमि किन्तु यत् कुत्सितं कर्म्म कर्त्तुम् अनिच्छुकोऽस्मि तदेव करोमि।
I fail to do the good thing that I want to do, but the bad thing that I want not to do – that I habitually do.
20 अतएव यद्यत् कर्म्म कर्त्तुं ममेच्छा न भवति तद् यदि करोमि तर्हि तत् मया न क्रियते, ममान्तर्वर्त्तिना पापेनैव क्रियते।
But, when I do the thing that I want not to do, the action is no longer my own, but is done by the sin which is within me.
21 भद्रं कर्त्तुम् इच्छुकं मां यो ऽभद्रं कर्त्तुं प्रवर्त्तयति तादृशं स्वभावमेकं मयि पश्यामि।
This, then, is the law that I find – when I want to do right, wrong presents itself!
22 अहम् आन्तरिकपुरुषेणेश्वरव्यवस्थायां सन्तुष्ट आसे;
At heart I delight in the Law of God;
23 किन्तु तद्विपरीतं युध्यन्तं तदन्यमेकं स्वभावं मदीयाङ्गस्थितं प्रपश्यामि, स मदीयाङ्गस्थितपापस्वभावस्यायत्तं मां कर्त्तुं चेष्टते।
but throughout my body I see a different law, one which is in conflict with the law accepted by my reason, and which endeavors to make me a prisoner to that law of sin which exists throughout my body.
24 हा हा योऽहं दुर्भाग्यो मनुजस्तं माम् एतस्मान् मृताच्छरीरात् को निस्तारयिष्यति?
Miserable man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body that is bringing me to this death?
25 अस्माकं प्रभुणा यीशुख्रीष्टेन निस्तारयितारम् ईश्वरं धन्यं वदामि। अतएव शरीरेण पापव्यवस्थाया मनसा तु ईश्वरव्यवस्थायाः सेवनं करोमि।
Thank God, there is deliverance through Jesus Christ, our Lord! Well then, for myself, with my reason I serve the Law of God, but with my earthly nature the Law of sin.
