“For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.”
King James Version (KJV)
7:14 I am carnal - St. Paul, having compared together the past and present state of believers, that in the flesh, #Rom 7:5|, and that in the spirit, #Rom 7:6|, in answering two objections, (Is then the law sin? #Rom 7:7|, and, Is the law death? #Rom 7:13|,) interweaves the whole process of a man reasoning, groaning, striving, and escaping from the legal to the evangelical state. This he does from #Rom 7:7|, to the end of this chapter. Sold under sin - Totally enslaved; slaves bought with money were absolutely at their master's disposal.
Ro 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual. The apostle continues still further to show that, not the law, but sin is the source of death. The law is "spiritual", that is, is divine and adapted to our spiritual nature. While there were "carnal ordinances", its essential principles were spiritual. But I am carnal. Paul describes his condition while under the law. It was spiritual; but he was carnal, and hence, there was a conflict. Sold under sin. Hence, in a state of slavery. Though Paul uses the present tense, in order to make the description more vivid, he describes his condition before he became a Christian.