the letter of the law 指对法律条文字面意义的严格理解。人们常用它与 the spirit of the law （法律的普遍精神）作对比。比如：
- Obey the spirit, not the letter of the law.
要依照法律的精神实质，而不是字面意思。 - They had stuck to the letter of the law and in my view they should be ashamed.
他们死抠法律字眼。依我看他们应该感到惭愧。
这一表达出自《钦定版圣经》中《哥林多后书》（2 Corinthians）第3章第5－6节：
Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
并不是我们凭自己能承担什么事，我们所能承担的，乃是出于神；他叫我们能承当这新约的执事。不是凭着字句，乃是凭着精意。因为那字句是叫人死，精意是叫人活。
