NOTES for Rom 8:2

Death rules over the world, and no power is able to overcome it. All the more astonishing are these words of the apostle Paul, addressed to each of us: the expression "set me free" appears in later versions, while ancient manuscripts of this text contain the words "set you free." Then the apostle, in his characteristic manner, explains this thought, going deeper into theological reflections that are not so easy to understand.

But in practice what matters most for us is not the explanation: the apostle Paul knows what he is talking about, and he can be believed. The fact itself matters: the Spirit of God, the Spirit of life, grants me, grants you, freedom from doomedness, from death. Yes, death has not gone anywhere, and as people say, we will all end up there. But for me, for you, it can be not the sad and meaningless finale of life, after which there is nothing more for which it was worth living and dying. We are free from this law, and death can become for us the goal of a difficult road beyond which life continues, reaching its fullness. Is this not hope?