What is the old Adam really like when he appears in Romans 7?
In Romans 7, the old Adam is revealed as sin itself: rebellious, bent only to evil, ignoring the law, and working death through the good commandment. The law is good and perfect, yet it convicts and kills him, causing sin to become exceedingly sinful, as Romans 3:20 confirms.
Les explains that in Romans 7 the old Adam is sin, and the text makes a double emphasis to show what the old Adam really is. He is bent in rebellion, bent to do nothing but evil, and bent to ignore the law. The law itself is good and perfect, but it works death in the man by that which is good; it kills him and convicts him. Through the commandment, sin—old Adam—becomes exceedingly sinful. This connects to Romans 3:20, where no flesh is justified by deeds of the law, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.