The passage
      v1. Paul, using his own words, outlines a criticism raised by law-bound believers who felt that his teaching on justification (of an eternal right-standing before God which is by faith apart from the law) inevitably leads to libertarianism. They argued that his teaching devalued the sanctifying power of the law and thus promoted sin. In fact, they sought to show that Paul's teaching was illogical in that it implied that sin is good because God's grace in forgiveness is activated in proportion to the sin.
      v2. Paul goes to the heart of the issue, namely, that his teaching on justification promotes libertarianism - an anything-goes form of Christian living. Paul's answer is, "how can we who died to sin still live in it?" Paul goes on to explain how a believer has "died to sin" apart from the law.
      v3-4. Our justification identifies us with Christ's death and resurrection. In his death we die, we die to sin; in his resurrection we live, we live to God, we live a new moral life for God. Paul is using the word "baptism" in the sense of "immersed" to illustrate identification with Christ.
      v5. Paul again restates the point he is making, using the word "united with" - grafted together. Given that believers are united with Jesus in his sacrificial death on our behalf, there is a sense where we are also united with him in his resurrection.
      v6-7. The consequence of dying with Christ involves a death to sin, "freed from sin", that "we might no longer be enslaved to sin." A believer is, in Christ, freely released from the condemnation of sin, not so that we can go on sinning, or even be more sinful, but rather that we might no longer live a sinful life.
      v8-10. The consequence of rising with Christ involves a life lived to God. Christ is alive, never to die again, and "the life he lives, he lives to God"; sin is dead to him. Since we are identified with Christ in his resurrection, alive with him, we too will live to God. Paul will later explain that it is through the power of the indwelling Spirit of Christ that a believer possesses the potential to live for God rather than self.
      v11. Paul now refocuses on his readers, probably with an eye to his law-bound readers - "you must identify yourselves with Christ's death and resurrection." It is essential for a believer to rest in faith on: i] Christ's death with its legal consequences - we are free from condemnation; ii] Christ's resurrection with its moral consequences - the potential of a life "lived to God", rather than self, and this through the power of the indwelling Spirit of Christ.
      v12-13. This being the case, Paul calls on his readers to yield themselves to God as his obedient slaves, free from sin's dominion.
      v14. A believer is quite able to do this because we "are not under law, but under grace." Whereas the law prompts rebellion, the indwelling compelling of the Spirit of Christ prompts love.

Dead to sin
      In this passage Paul states that sin no longer has a claim on the Christian. We have "died to sin", v2, 7, 11. "Set free from sin", in v18 & 22, has a similar meaning. There are two ways of understanding in what sense sin is a dead thing in our lives.

i] Free from the guilt of sin.
      We are no longer under the legal claim of sin, ie. we no longer stand under condemnation. God doesn't see our sin anymore because it has been put to death with Christ on the cross. We are dead to its legal claims. This is the ground for our release into a life of holiness.
      The problem is that it is hard to explain why being freed from condemnation, in a legal sense, should result in a life free from sin. The Reformers handled the problem this way. "For someone who knows this doctrine and uses it properly, even evil will have to cooperate for good. For when his flesh impels him to sin, he is aroused and incited to seek forgiveness of sins through Christ and to embrace righteousness of faith, which we would otherwise not have regarded as so important or yearned for with such intensity. And so it is very beneficial if we sometimes become aware of the evil of our nature and our flesh, because in this way we are aroused and stirred up to have faith and to call upon Christ." Luther, "Lectures on Galatians", 1535.

ii] Free from the power of sin.
      A number of elements work together to free us from sins power.
        First, through our identification with Christ in his resurrection, his resurrection life (a life lived to God, pleasing to God) is imaged in us through the renewing power of the indwelling Spirit of Christ. "Christ in us" becomes life to our fleshly bodies, Gal.2:20, 3:14, 5:16. His indwelling-compelling-love shapes us.
        Second, because we are no longer under the law we are freed from its tendency to accentuate sinfulness, Rom.5:20, Gal.3:23-25.
      Of course, we must remember that free from the power of sin does not mean free from sin. "We acknowledge that regeneration is so effected in us that, until we slough off this mortal body, there remains always in us much imperfection and infirmity, so that we always remain poor and wretched sinners in the presence of God." The Geneva Confession. Always beware of the heresy of "perfectionism (the "victorious" or "higher life" movement).

      As noted in previous studies, Paul may have used a chiastic structure (a ring composition) for his argument in chapters 5-8. It is important to consider the possibility as it can improve our understanding of the flow of Paul's argument:
        A. Assurance of future glory, 5:1-11;
          B. Basis for assurance - the work of Christ, 5:12-21;
            C. The problem of sin, 6:1-23;
            C'. The problem of sin and the law, 7:1-25;
          B'. Basis of assurance - the work of Christ through the Spirit, 8:1-17;
        A'. Assurance of future glory, 8:18-39.

v1
      ti oun eroumen "what shall we say, then?" - what, therefore, will we say? "What inference are we to draw from all this?", Barclay.
      epimenwmen (epimenw) pres. subj. "shall we go on [sinning]" - shall we continue. Hortatory subjunctive. "Are we - the suggestion is yours - to keep on sinning so that there may be more and more grace?", Barclay.
      pleonash/ (pleonazw) aor. subj. "may increase" - may increase, abound. To "increase", in quantitative terms, is probably what Paul means. The false proposition is: more sin = more grace, therefore, sin is good because it prompts more grace from God. So runs the argument of the nomists in attempting to rubbish Paul's doctrine of justification by faith apart from the law ("my gospel").

v2
      mh genoito "By no means" - may it never be. Emphatic negative. "Certainly not", TEV.
      apeqanomen (apoqnhskw) aor. "died" - we died. Died, metaphorically speaking, with respect to / with reference to, sin. Sin's hold over us is put to death, is no more. i] In the legal sense, it no longer separates us from God in that Christ has taken our penalty himself. ii] In the moral sense, it no longer has a hold on us because we are free from the law which served to promote (expose?) sin. "We died, as far as our relation to sin is concerned", Bruce.
      zhsomen (zaw) fut. ind. act. "live" - we will live. Although a future tense and therefore, reasonable to suggest that the "live" refers to living in eternity perfectly free from sin, it is better to follow the NIV etc. and see the living as a present reality free from the curse (legal sense) and power (moral sense, although always imperfectly) of sin.

v3
      agnoite (agnoew) "don't you know" - are you ignorant. A positive statement works well; "you have been taught that", JB.
      ebaptisqhmen eiV aor. pas. "were baptized into (Christ)" - were immersed into. It is best to understand the use here figuratively rather than literally, therefore "immersed." Here taking the sense "identified with" // "united with", v5. The use here does not support a sacramental idea of water regeneration. "Were identified with Christ in his death and resurrection."

v4
      sunetafhmen (sunqaptw) aor. ind. pas. "we were [therefore] buried" - we were buried together with. Believers are buried together with Christ in that our old sinful self dies with Christ and is put away (legally and morally).
      dia + gen. "through [baptism]" - because of, on account of. "Our baptism (immersion = identification) in his death made us share his burial", Moffatt.
      iJna + subj. "in order that" - Possibly introducing a purpose clause, as NIV, but consecutive (consequence, result) is also possible, "and as a consequence ..... our life is altogether renewed."
      thV doxhV (a) gen. "the glory" - Following a second dia, "because of / on account of the Father's glory." We would assume that the Father's "power" raises Christ and so his "glorious power" is possibly what is intended. "He was raised from the dead by that splendid revelation of the Father's power", Phillips.
      kainothti (hV) "new" - fresh, newness / strange, different. "The connotation of something extraordinary", BAGD. "All things renewed."

v5
      ei + ind. "if" - Introducing a conditional clause, 1st class, where it is assumed that the condition is a reality. "If, as is the case, we ....."
      gegonamen (ginomai) perf. "we have been" - we have. The perfect tense underlining a past action with ongoing results; "have become.
      sunfutoi (oV) "united with" - grown together, grafted together. A restatement of the point already made, so, expressing identification with Christ. "If we have become identified with him in his death", REB; "if we have grown into him", Moffatt.
      tw/ oJmoiwmati "like this [in his death]" - in the likeness, image [of his death]. Our death is not the same as Christ's, but it "is similar to it", Calvin.
      alla kai "certainly also" - but also. Expressing a contrast. "In the same way", TEV.

v6
      touto ginwskonteV (ginomai) pres. part. "for we know" - this knowing. Paul appeals to mutual understanding in the point he is making. "For we are well aware", Barclay.
      oJti "that" - A hoti clause of apposition; "namely that."
      oJ palaioV adj. "our old self" - the old man [of us]. "in existence for a long time with the connotation of being antiquated or outworn", BAGD. Cranfield says that "the old man" is the whole of our fallen nature. This is the most widely accepted interpretation, yet it can be argued that it is "the law", for in fulfilling the law, Christ removes it and therefore, sin is "rendered powerless" in that there is now no law to stir it to life. In fact, both points are true; "our old self under the law."
      iJna + subj. "so that" - Possibly forming a purpose clasue, "in order", Moffatt, but consecutive (consequence, result) should not be ruled out; "with the consequence that the sin-possessed body is rendered powerless."
      to swma thV aJmartiaV "the body of sin" - The genitive is probably descriptive; "the sin possessed body", Moffatt.
      katarghqh/ (katargew) aor. subj. pas. "might be done away with" - may be made of no effect, inactive, impotent / destroyed. "Rendered powerless,"
      tou mhketi douleuein (douleuw) pres. inf. "that [we should] no longer be slaves" - no longer to serve. Articular infinitive forming a clause in apposition with the consecutive clause "so that the body of sin ...." This particular construction sometimes forms a final (purpose) clause, often a substantive clause, here possibly epexegetic, but again we should not discount the possibility of a consecutive (consequence) clause; and that "we are no longer in bondage to sin", Bruce.

v7
      gar "because" - for. Paul now explains why we are no longer enslaved to sin. Bracketed by Moffatt.
      oJ apoqanwn (apoqnhskw) aor. part. "anyone who has died" - the one having died. Not physically died, but died in Christ, ie. identified with Christ in his death.
      dedikaiwtai (dikaiow) perf. pas. "has been freed from" - has been justified, declared righteous. There is a tendency to understand Paul's words in the terms of being freed from "the power of sin", Phillips, or "the claims of sin", Moffatt, but we are best to think in the terms of a declaration that frees us from the guilt of sin; "absolved from sin", Williams, NAB.
      apo + gen. "from" - separation from. "Declared righteous from the curse of sin."

v8
      ei + ind. "[now] if" - Introducing a conditional sentence, 1st class, expressing an assumed reality. "We believe that as (since) we have died with Christ", Moffatt.
      sunzhsomen autw/ "we will [also] live with him" - we will live together with him. The future of the verb "live" followed by the dative of the personal pronoun "him", "to / for / by / with him." It seems best to take the dative as locative; "in union with Christ." As for the future tense, "we will live", it is generally felt that the life lived is now (the renewed life-style of a believer indwelt by the risen Christ), but that it comes with a future realization. Moo is inclined to an eschatological interpretation given that if this was Paul's intention he wouldn't have used the future tense following the word "believe". If the sense is "live now", in what way do we "live"? Paul may be referring to either or both of the two ways of speaking of our identification with Christ:
        i] A legal sense. Because we are identified in Christ's death and resurrection, God now views us the way Christ is - the sinless, perfected, glorified Son of God. cf. Col.3:1-4 = the indicative, what we are.
        ii] A moral sense. As Christ is risen so we have risen with him to the potential of a life lived freely in obedience to God = the imperative, what we must strive to be.
      Note the following key verses that touch on this subject.. 2Cor.13:4, 14:14, Gal.2:19, Eph.2:5, Col.2:13, 20, 4:1, 1Thess.4:14, 17, 5:10, 2Tim.2:11f.

v9
      "for" - Carries the argument forward, explaining the basis for our belief that those united to Christ are freed from sin, v8, but it is not in the Greek.
      egerqeiV (egeirw) aor. pas. part. "since [Christ] was raised" - having been raised. The participle may form a causal clause, as NIV; we can live eternally with Christ "because" "the resurrected Christ is never again to die", Barclay.
      ouket "no longer" - no more. Death did once strike at Jesus, but never again.
      kurieuei (kurieuw) "mastery over" - lord it over, rule over. "It is Jesus Christ who is Lord, not death", Morris.

v10
      gar "-" - for. Introducing the explanation as to why death has no mastery over Jesus. "For in the death he died, he died once and for all to sin; in the life he lives he lives continuously to God", Barclay.
      oJ (oJV) neut. rel. pro. "the death [he died]" - that, which. The totality of Christ's death; all that it involves. The problem with the supposed ellipsis here is that "death" is not a neuter noun, although often a neuter pronoun is used instead of a substantive, cf. BDF 154. Possibly, "whereas he died .... whereas he lives", Moule.
      th/ aJmartia/ (a) dat. "[he died] to sin" - to sin. Christ's relation to sin is undefined in this verse, although the context defines it in terms of dying for our sins, which act was a "once for all" act - a unique, singular, definitive act. Probably a dative of interest, or at least reference; "in relation to sin", Cranfield, "with respect to sin", Morris.
      tw/ qew/ (oV) "[he lives] to God" - The dative is again a dative of interest, or more particularly, advantage, "for God." Jesus lives a life "singularly devoted to God", Morris.

v11
      ouJtwV "in the same way" - thus, so, in this way. The exhortation should be underlined; "so you must regard yourselves too as dead to sin", Barclay.
      logizesqe (logizomai) pres. mid. imp. "count" - consider, reckon. The present tense is probably gnomic (expressing a principle), rather than expressing continued action, and the middle voice is redundant, given the support of "yourselves". "so you must recognize that you too are dead to sin"
      nekrouV men th/ aJmartia/ "dead to sin" - dead ones indeed to sin. Because of our relationship with Jesus Christ the curse of sin that infested us is dead and buried with Christ. Therefore, we should not let sin rule in our lives, rather we should serve God using all our natural capacities as weapons to do his will, "for sin will have no dominion over you." Sin's death, both legal and moral (see above) sets us free to live for God. This doesn't mean that a Christian will never again sin. By Jesus' death on the cross the legal claims of sin over us have been dealt with and so God is free to reestablish his rightful control over our lives in and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Thus, in the power of the indwelling Spirit of Christ, we begin to live as God would have us live. Again, a dative of interest, "dead with respect to sin."
      en Cristw/ "in Christ" - United to / identified with Christ. "In union with Christ Jesus", TEV.

v12
      oun "therefore" - "Having recognized this truth (v11), don't let ....."
      mh basileuetw (basileuw) imp. "do not let [sin] reign" - do not let rule over, have mastery over. "Don't let sin rule your body", CEV; "you must not be controlled by sin", TH.
      eiV to uJpakouein (uJpakouw) "so that you obey" - to listen to, take note of, obey. The articular infinitive following the preposition eis is usually read as a consecutive (result) clause, although it may be epexegetic, explaining the sense of the main verb "reign", "in making you give way to your lusts", Phillips.
      epiqumiaiV (a) "desires" - drives, strong desire. "Lusts / passions" is possible, given the reference to "the mortal body", but this is narrowly sexual translation. Assuming that the "sin" referred to here concerns ethical behavior, then it probably concerns Godly living in general

v13
      mhde paristanete (paristhmi) pres. imp. act. "do not offer" - do not present, put at the disposal of. Often used to describe a sacrifice, here the offering of obedience. Note the run of the argument so far: a stated indicative followed by an imperative - our old sinful self is dead in Christ; we should recognize this; we should live this reality, ie. be what we are. See v16 where the word is aor. ind. act. Here, the negated present tense expresses the cessation of an action. "You must no longer put any part of it (the body) to sin's disposal", REB.
      ta melh "parts (of your) body" - limbs, body parts, members. Here referring to the parts of the body in general, "bodily organs" (hands, mouth, mind ......); "the various parts of your body", Barclay.
      oJpla (on) "instruments" - weapons, tools, instruments. "As implements for doing wrong", NEB.
      adikiaV (a) gen. "of wickedness" - of unrighteousness [to sin]. Most likely an objective genitive; "weapons for the purpose of unrighteousness", Moo.
      parasthsate (paristhmi) aor. imp. "offer" - present. The change to an aorist tense may say something about the action, for example, a singular action, its commencement (ingressive), or better its totality, "wholehearted and total commitment", Morris, but often an aorist imperative serves to express the immediacy of the command without reference to the duration of the action commanded. Probably the action is similar to the present tense of "offer"; "you must no longer hand over your life to sinful impulses, but rather go on to hand it over to the divine will."
      tw/ qeq/ (oV) dat. "[offer yourselves] to God" - Probably a dative of advantage, "in God's service", Moo.
      dikaiosunhV (h) gen. "[instruments] of righteousness" - justice, righteousness. Here in the sense of "right-doing", Williams, and not in the sense of the righteousness which is a gift of God through faith. Probably an objective genitive; "for righteousness", NJB; "instruments which He may use to do righteous deeds", Bruce.