The Twofold Meaning of Law: Letter and Spirit

For instance, when the Epistle to the Galatians declares that those who rely on works of the law stand under a curse, quoting Scripture: 'Cursed is everyone who fails to uphold every command written in the book of the law,' it becomes evident that the law as given by Moses comprises both prescriptive demands—what must be done—and prohibitive warnings—what must be avoided—by those subject to it. This dual character is reinforced elsewhere in the same letter, where we learn the law was added due to transgressions, serving as a temporary guardian until the promised offspring arrived, instituted through angelic mediation. Likewise, the law functioned as our custodian until Christ, so that justification might come through faith; but once faith emerged, we are no longer under such supervision, for all who believe in Christ Jesus are sons of God. The historical narrative authored by Moses is thus revealed as an expression of the law’s voice, as when the Galatian epistle challenges: 'Tell me, you who wish to be under the law, do you not hear what it says?' For it is recorded that Abraham had two sons—one by the slave woman, born according to the flesh, and one by the free woman, born through promise. I also recognize the Psalms as bearing the name 'law,' since their fulfillment is seen in the words: 'I ate them with gladness.' Furthermore, the prophecy of Isaiah is termed 'law' by the apostle, citing: 'It is written in the law: I will speak to this people with strangers’ tongues and foreign lips; yet even then they will not listen,' declares the Lord—a sentiment I find echoed in Aquila’s translation. Moreover, the law is understood not only in its external form but also in its deeper, spiritual dimension, as we affirm: 'The law is spiritual.' Beyond this, the law is described as that which is inwardly implanted by common notions and, as Scripture affirms, 'written on the heart'—a word that prescribes duty and forbids transgression. This is further confirmed when Gentiles, who lack the law by nature, nevertheless perform its requirements; they become a law to themselves, demonstrating the work of the law inscribed in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness, their thoughts either accusing or excusing them. For the law written in the hearts and practiced by Gentiles through nature is none other than that which is innately engraved in the rational faculty by common conception, now being more fully realized in our time. This understanding of the law was operative even before sin was imputed in the absence of law, or known only through law; for prior to the Mosaic law, sin was charged to Cain and to those in the flood, and still to the Sodomites and countless others, and many had knowledge of sin long before Moses. There is no need to be surprised when a single term like 'law' carries two meanings in the same context, for this pattern appears elsewhere—for example, when you do not say: 'Is it four-monthly, and does summer come?' Lift your eyes and behold the land: it is already white for harvest. Indeed, the harvest is named twice—first referring to the physical gathering, then to the spiritual ingathering. The same duality appears in the man born blind who was healed; when addressed in bodily terms, He declared: 'I have come into this world so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.' Thus, apart from the law of nature, God’s righteousness has been unveiled, attested by the law of Moses and the prophets. Yet to those still hesitant to accept the twofold sense of 'law,' we might say: if the same law is received both now and apart from it, and God’s righteousness is revealed in both cases, witnessed by law and prophets, then if it is revealed apart from the law, it is not witnessed by the law; if witnessed by the law, it is not separate from it. But concerning the righteousness of God revealed in Jesus Christ, the law of nature bears no testimony at all, for it is inferior to it; whereas the Mosaic law—not in its letter but in its spirit, along with those who embody its spirit—the prophets, and the indwelling spiritual word—do bear witness. Therefore, let the attentive reader of sacred Scripture observe that writings do not always employ identical terms for identical realities, yet they do so intentionally, sometimes…