Sin’s Advantage in the Law

⁷ What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, ^(A)I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, ^(B)“You shall not covet.”

⁹ For the commandments, ^(A)“You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” ^[a]“You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, ^(B)“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”