Texts in Conversation
Paul in Romans and Rabbinic teaching both describe two inner impulses called “yetzers.” Some Rabbinic views say the Torah strengthens the good impulse, but Romans is similar to traditions that think the Torah ironically tempts the evil inclination.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Romans 7:5
New Testament
4 So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you could be joined to another, to the one who was raised from the dead, to bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful desires, aroused by the law, were active in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. 6 But now we have been released from the law, because we have died to what controlled us, so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code. 7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! Certainly, I would not have known sin except through the law. For indeed I would not have known what it means to desire something belonging to someone else if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” 8 But sin, seizing the opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of wrong desires. For apart from the law, sin is dead.
Ruth Rabbah 3:1
Aggadah
Rabbinic
“Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried; so may the Lord do to me, and so may He continue, as death will separate between you and me” (Ruth 1:17). That is what the verse said: “Small and great are there; and a servant is free from his master” (Job 3:19) – Rabbi Simon said: This is one of four verses that are similar to one another. “Small and great are there” – in this world, one who is small can become great, and one who is great can become small. But in the future, one who is small cannot become great and one who is great cannot become small. “And a servant is free of his master” – that is, he does the will of his Maker [yotzero], angers his [evil] inclination [yitzro]; when he dies, he goes free, as it is stated: “And a servant is free of his master.”
Date: 700-950 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... The apostle desires obedience to God and a dedication to righteousness. Piety characterizes Paul's own life. The Holy Spirit enables the apostle to live a life of service to God. In Romans 7:1-6, he employs an analogy based upon Jewish law. It stands to reason that Jewish sources can throw additional light upon Paul's message and the conclusion he desires to draw from the evidence he cites. The rabbis also discussed the problem of fleshly desires, which they commonly referred to as the evil inclination." They were aware that the power of the evil inclination can place a person into bondage. Each person, however, should seek to serve the true Master who created him or her rather than the inclination to disobey God. In his teachings, the sage Rabbi Simeon ben Pazzi uses many of the same images as are found in Paul's writings. Here Rabbi Simeon ben Pazzi teaches about being "a slave to sin or God" ..."
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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