'You are in the Spirit': Metaphor, morality, and the Spirit in Romans 8:1--17

The primary argument of the dissertation is that the conceptual metaphors Paul employs in Rom 8:1--17 portray the Spirit as the chief agent in the religious-ethical conduct of believers. While the Spirit plays the lead role in their religious-ethical existence, I also demonstrate that believers play an essential but supporting role. Furthermore, my analysis of the conceptual metaphors in the pericope illuminates the relative scope of the Spirit's and believers' roles.;At apposite points in the dissertation, I address relevant, thorny questions of interpretation. Are "Spirit" (pinuepsilonupsilonmualpha) and "flesh" (sigmaalpharhoxi) two conflicting entities within the believer, or are they conflicting religious-ethical ways of life? Are "in the Spirit" (epsilonnu pinuepsilonupsilonmualphatauiota) and "the Spirit dwells in you" (pinuepsilonupsilonmualpha &ogr;iotakappaepsiloniota epsilonnu upsilonmuiotanu) synonymous or disparate expressions? Does the language in Rom 8:14-17 allude to the exodus narrative, or does it express a Roman adoption metaphor?;My principal method of study is the application of selected aspects of cognitive linguistics, primarily Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Conceptual Integration Theory. Before using them, I survey key developments in metaphor theory and introduce Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Conceptual Integration Theory. My main method is supplemented and bolstered by lexical analysis and research into the historical and cultural contexts of the conceptual metaphors analyzed.;Other major findings of the dissertation include the following: metaphorical expressions regarding the Spirit in Rom 8:1-17 are interrelated by means of underlying conceptual metaphors; conceptual metaphors pervade and unite Rom 8:1-17; and Rom 8:1-17 is predominantly religious-ethical in thrust. Finally, the dissertation demonstrates the significance and value of deploying these theories of conceptual metaphor not only in the interpretation of Rom 8:1-17 as well as related Pauline texts but also in biblical interpretation more generally.