An Example From Marriage
1Brothers and sisters, I am speaking to you who know the law. Don’t you know that the law has authority over someone only as long as they live? 2For example, by law a married woman remains married as long as her husband lives. But suppose her husband dies. Then the law that joins her to him no longer applies. 3But suppose that married woman sleeps with another man while her husband is still alive. Then she is called a woman who commits adultery. But suppose her husband dies. Then she is free from that law. She is not guilty of adultery if she marries another man.
4My brothers and sisters, when Christ died you also died as far as the law is concerned. Then it became possible for you to belong to him. He was raised from the dead. Now our lives can be useful to God. 5The power of sin used to control us. The law stirred up sinful desires in us. So the things we did resulted in death. 6But now we have died to what used to control us. We have been set free from the law. Now we serve in the new way of the Holy Spirit. We no longer serve in the old way of the written law.
The Law and Sin
7What should we say then? That the law is sinful? Not at all! Yet I wouldn’t have known what sin was unless the law had told me. The law says, “Do not want what belongs to other people.” (Exodus 20:17; Deuteronomy 5:21) If the law hadn’t said that, I would not have known what it was like to want what belongs to others. 8But the commandment gave sin an opportunity. Sin caused me to want all kinds of things that belong to others. A person can’t sin by breaking a law if that law doesn’t exist. 9Before I knew about the law, I was alive. But then the commandment came. Sin came to life, and I died. 10I found that the commandment that was supposed to bring life actually brought death. 11When the commandment gave sin the opportunity, sin tricked me. It used the commandment to put me to death. 12So the law is holy. The commandment also is holy and right and good.
13Did what is good cause me to die? Not at all! Sin had to be recognized for what it really is. So it used what is good to bring about my death. Because of the commandment, sin became totally sinful.
14We know that the law is holy. But I am not. I have been sold to be a slave of sin. 15I don’t understand what I do. I don’t do what I want to do. Instead, I do what I hate to do. 16I do what I don’t want to do. So I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, I am no longer the one who does these things. It is sin living in me that does them. 18I know there is nothing good in my desires controlled by sin. I want to do what is good, but I can’t. 19I don’t do the good things I want to do. I keep on doing the evil things I don’t want to do. 20I do what I don’t want to do. But I am not really the one who is doing it. It is sin living in me that does it.
21Here is the law I find working in me. When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22Deep inside me I find joy in God’s law. 23But I see another law working in me. It fights against the law of my mind. It makes me a prisoner of the law of sin. That law controls me. 24What a terrible failure I am! Who will save me from this sin that brings death to my body? 25I give thanks to God who saves me. He saves me through Jesus Christ our Lord.
So in my mind I am a slave to God’s law. But sin controls my desires. So I am a slave to the law of sin.
Ekyokulabirako ekiva mu Bufumbo
17:1 Bar 1:13Temumanyi abooluganda, kubanga njogera eri abamanyi amateeka, ng’amateeka gafuga oyo yekka akyali omulamu? 27:2 1Ko 7:39Ka mbawe ekyokulabirako: mu mateeka omukazi omufumbo, asigala nga wa bba, bba bw’aba ng’akyali mulamu. Naye bba bw’afa, omukazi oyo ng’asumuluddwa mu tteeka eribagatta. 3Noolwekyo omukazi oyo bwe yeegatta n’omusajja omulala, bba ng’akyali mulamu, omukazi oyo anaayitibwanga mwenzi. Naye bba bw’afanga, olwo omukazi omufumbo anaabanga asumuluddwa mu tteeka, era taabenga mwenzi bw’anaafumbirwanga omusajja omulala.
47:4 a Bar 8:2; Bag 2:19 b Bak 1:22Nammwe baganda bange mwafa eri amateeka, muli ba mubiri gwa Kristo. Mwegatta ku Kristo eyazuukizibwa okuva mu bafu, tulyoke tubale ebibala ebisanyusa Katonda. 57:5 a nny 7-11 b Bar 6:13Kubanga bwe twali tukyafugibwa omubiri, okwegomba kw’ebibi kwakoleranga mu bitundu byaffe eby’omubiri olw’amateeka, era enkomerero kwali kufa. 67:6 Bar 2:29; 2Ko 3:6Naye kaakano tetukyafugibwa mateeka. Tuli bafu eri ebyo ebyali bitusibye, era tebitulinaako buyinza. Noolwekyo tuyinza okuweereza Katonda mu ngeri empya eya Mwoyo Mutukuvu, so si mu nkola enkadde ey’amateeka.
Okulwanagana n’Ekibi
77:7 a Bar 3:20; 4:15 b Kuv 20:17; Ma 5:21Kale tunaayogera ki? Amateeka kye kibi? Kikafuuwe. Singa tewaali mateeka, sanditegedde kibi. N’okwegomba kw’omubiri sandikutegeeredde ddala singa amateeka tegaagamba nti, “Teweegombanga.” 87:8 a nny 11 b Bar 4:15; 1Ko 15:56Ekibi kyeyambisa etteeka lino, ne kindeetera okwegomba okwa buli ngeri. Noolwekyo awatali mateeka, ekibi kiba kifu. 9Edda nali mulamu awatali mateeka, naye etteeka bwe lyajja, ekibi ne kiramuka, n’okufa ne nfa. 107:10 Lv 18:5; Bar 10:5Era ne nkizuula ng’etteeka eryali liteekwa okumpa obulamu, lye lyandetera okufa. 117:11 Lub 3:13Ekibi kyeyambisa ekiragiro ekyo ne kinnimba, era ne kinzita. 127:12 1Ti 1:8Noolwekyo amateeka matukuvu, era n’ekiragiro kitukuvu, kiruŋŋamya era kirungi.
13Kale ekirungi gye ndi, ate kye kyafuuka okufa? Nedda. Ekibi kye kyakozesa ekiragiro ekirungi kiryoke kinzite. Noolwekyo tulaba ekibi bwe kiri, ekibi ddala.
147:14 a 1Ko 3:1 b 1Bk 21:20, 25Tumanyi ng’amateeka mwoyo, naye nze omuntu obuntu, natundibwa ng’omuddu nfugibwe ekibi. 157:15 nny 19; Bag 5:17Kubanga kye nkola sikimanyi. Kye njagala si kye nkola, naye kye nkyawa kye nkola. 167:16 nny 12Newaakubadde nga nkola kye mmanyi nga kikyamu, nzikiriza ng’amateeka malungi. 177:17 nny 20Noolwekyo si nze nkola ebintu ebyo ebibi, wabula ekibi ekiri mu nze. 187:18 nny 25Mmanyi nga mu nze, temuli kalungi n’akamu. Ne bwe njagala okukola ekirungi, tewali kirungi kye nkola. 197:19 nny 15Ekirungi kye njagala okukola si kye nkola, naye ekibi kye saagala kye nkola. 207:20 nny 17Naye obanga kye saagala kye nkola, si nze mba nkikola, wabula ekibi ekibeera mu nze.
217:21 nny 23, 25Noolwekyo nzudde mu mateeka nga bwe njagala okukola ebirungi, ekibi kimbeera kumpi. 227:22 a Bef 3:16 b Zab 1:2Mu nze mu muntu ow’omunda njagala nnyo okugondera amateeka ga Katonda. 237:23 Bag 5:17; Yak 4:1Naye mu mubiri gwange gwonna, ndaba amateeka ag’enjawulo nga gawakana n’etteeka lya Katonda amagezi gange ge limanyi. Ekyo kinfuula omusibe w’amateeka ag’ekibi, ekikolera mu mubiri gwange. 247:24 Bar 6:6; 8:2Nga ndi muntu munaku! Ani alindokola mu mubiri guno ogugenda okufa? 25Kyokka Katonda yeebazibwe mu Yesu Kristo Mukama waffe.
Nze kennyini mu birowoozo byange, ndi muddu w’amateeka ga Katonda era gwe mpeereza, newaakubadde ng’okwegomba kwange okw’omubiri, mpeereza etteeka ly’ekibi.
