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Romans 7:5
ESV For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death.
NIV For when we were in the realm of the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death.
NASB For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were brought to light by the Law, were at work in the parts of our body to bear fruit for death.
CSB For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions aroused through the law were working in us to bear fruit for death.
NLT When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death.
KJV For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
NKJV For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.

What does Romans 7:5 mean?

This verse echoes what Paul wrote at the end of Romans chapter 6. The final result of living as slaves to sin is death, meaning eternal death and separation from God (Romans 6:21). Here he describes slavery to sin as "living in the flesh." Paul is referring to non-Christians, those who do not have the Spirit of God. By "the flesh," he means our limited and sin-controlled bodies.

What stirred up our sinful passions to drive us toward sin? Paul says it was, in fact, the law. While this seems like a controversial claim, Paul will later show how the law both made us aware of sin and increased our appetite for it. Again, Paul insists, the result would be the same: death. The "fruit" or outcome of sin-controlled living under the law is always and ever death. This is true both in the sense of the natural consequences of sin, and the eternal penalty of rejecting a perfectly holy God.
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