返回Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Rom. 9:1. I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie, my conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,
Rom. 9:2. Great sorrow is to me and unceasing torment to my heart.
In the following discourse he intends to prove that not all who descended from Abraham are his seed, and lest anyone think that he says this in strong agitation of spirit, he anticipates and, removing such a supposition, speaks favorably of the Jews, declaring that he loves them greatly. That you may believe me, he says, I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie. As proof of this he brings forward three witnesses: Christ, his own conscience, and the Holy Spirit, saying: I have great sorrow, consuming my heart at the thought of the Jews, that they are outside of grace; which is what he intends to speak about.
Rom. 9:3. I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh.
First learn what anathema is. It is separation, alienation. Just as no one dares to touch a gift dedicated to God, so too with the one who is anathematized, only with a different feeling. No one dares to approach the sacred gift out of reverence, as something consecrated to God, while with the anathematized person everyone severs ties, as with one who is defiled and estranged from God.
What then does Paul mean by what he says? He seems to be saying here the opposite of what was spoken of above. There he said that nothing shall separate us from the love of God, but here he says that he could wish to be separated from Christ. He seems to contradict what was said before; but in reality he does not. Here too he expresses his wish to be separated from Christ out of love for God. Everyone was accusing God of having cast out and dishonored the Jews, who had been deemed worthy of adoption, who had enjoyed special glory and were called the ancestors of Christ, and of having brought in their place people who had never known God — the Gentiles — and they were murmuring and blaspheming Providence, as though this were done unjustly and God had deceived the forefathers to whom He had promised gifts. For this reason Paul was in anguish, grieving for the glory of God, and wished himself to be separated, if only the Jews might be saved and their blasphemy against God might cease.
Do you see that out of fervent love for God he desires, if possible, to be separated from the company of those who live eternally with Christ — not from His love, but from His glory and the enjoyment of it? So too fathers often separate themselves from their sons so that the sons may be glorified, by no means estranging themselves from love for their sons, but desiring themselves to be in dishonor so that they may become glorious. Thus the apostle reasons: I, who have accomplished countless labors and who love God beyond measure, desire for the glory of God to be deprived of the glory of Christ. But this does not mean to lose, but rather to gain. With the words "for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh," he indicates his most tender and fervent love for the Jews.
Rom. 9:4. That is, the Israelites, to whom belong the adoption and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the worship, and the promises;
Rom. 9:5. Theirs are the fathers, and from them is Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever, amen.
Here he praises and exalts the Jews, so that no one, as I said, would think he speaks in great agitation of spirit. He subtly expresses that God desired their salvation as well. This is evident from the fact that He deemed them worthy of adoption and glory, gave promises to their fathers, furnished them with all other advantages, and willed that Christ be born from them. But they themselves rejected the benefaction. Therefore, marveling at the love of God, he sends up thanksgiving to the Only-Begotten and says: "God over all, blessed forever." Although others argue that the reception of the Gentiles was not well-founded, we, knowing the mysteries of Christ, know that He is worthy of glorification. At this, Arius should be put to shame, because Paul calls Christ God over all.
Rom. 9:6. But it is not as though the word of God has failed.
I, he says, am inflamed by the fact that God is blasphemed, and therefore expressed the desire that all be saved. But if not all are saved, it does not follow from this that God lied in the promises given to the fathers, and that His word did not come true. He fulfilled what was promised, even though the blasphemers say that He promised to some and gave to others. Listen to what follows.
Rom. 9:6-7. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children.
God, he says, fulfilled what was promised. He said: "To you I will give it, and to your offspring" (Gen. 13:15). So then, let us see what this offspring is. Not all who descended from Abraham are simply his offspring, and not all who descended from Israel are Israelites, but those born after the example of Isaac and distinguished by the virtue of Israel, through which he saw God. For he did not say: who are from Jacob, but: "from Israel," mentioning the more honorable name. Therefore, if you understand who is born after the example of Isaac, you will find that the promise is not false: for to such were the promises given. Therefore God by no means deserves reproach: what He said, He also fulfilled, even though some do not understand this.
Rom. 9:7. But it is said: In Isaac shall your seed be called.
Rom. 9:8. That is, it is not the children of the flesh that are children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as seed.
Rom. 9:9. And this is the word of promise: At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son.
Not I, he says, am explaining to you what the true seed of Abraham is, but the Old Testament, which says: "In Isaac shall thy seed be called" (Gen. 21:12). Therefore those who were born after the example of Isaac, that is, according to the promise, are truly children of Abraham, and especially of God. For everything was accomplished by the word of God. And Isaac was born not according to the law and power of nature, but by the power of the promise. "At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son" (cf. Gen. 18:10).
So then, Isaac was formed and born by the word of God. In the same way over us, the children of God, in the baptismal font, as if in a womb, the words of God are pronounced, which also form us; because we, being baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, are born. And just as there God promised the birth of Isaac and then fulfilled it, so also our birth He promised through the prophets and then brought it to fulfillment. Therefore the words "in Isaac shall thy seed be called" should be understood thus: the seed of Abraham are those who were born after the pattern of Isaac's birth, that is, by the word of God.
Therefore, the word of God was fulfilled, but God granted what was promised to the true seed, that is, to the believers from among the Gentiles, who became children of God just as Isaac, because they too were of the promise. But if the Jews say that the words "in Isaac shall thy seed be called" mean that those born of Isaac are reckoned as the seed of Abraham, then one must also honor the Idumeans and all who descended from him, because their forefather Esau was a son of Isaac. But the Idumeans are not only not called sons of Abraham, but are even quite foreign to the Israelites and are called aliens.
Rom. 9:10. And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived twins at one time by Isaac our father.
He has already proven that although Abraham had many different descendants, Isaac and those who are born like him were called his seed. Now he says: you can see this not only in Isaac, but, what is more important, in brothers born of the same father and the same mother, and moreover twins, that is, in Esau and Jacob. And they did not receive equal rights, but one was chosen and the other was hated. Therefore do not ask why God chose the Gentiles and made them the seed of Abraham, or rather of God, and rejected the Jews.
Rom. 9:11. For when they had not yet been born and had not done anything good or evil (so that God's purpose in election might proceed
Rom. 9:12. Not from works, but from Him who calls), it was said to her: the elder shall serve the younger,
Rom. 9:13. As it is also written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."
Here it is necessary for us to state in advance the meaning of what the apostle intends to discuss at length. Many were saying: why were the Gentiles preferred over the Jews? (For no one could say it was for virtue, because all had sinned.) The apostle gathers many difficulties that are incomprehensible to us but comprehensible to God alone. First he presents that between two twin brothers, the chosen one was chosen not for virtue, and the hated one was hated not for wickedness (for they had done neither good nor evil, since they were still in their mother's womb), but by election, by God's foreknowledge, one was chosen and loved, and the other hated, as the prophet also says: "I loved Jacob, but Esau I hated" (Mal. 1:2), so that everything might be the work of God and of His election and foreknowledge. But why do I speak of these persons? All the Israelites worshipped the calf, yet some were punished and others were not. And Pharaoh was indeed cruel, but many others were also cruel: why then did punishment befall him alone? Do you see that this is incomprehensible to men but comprehensible to God alone? So also the election of the Gentiles and the rejection of the Jews appears groundless to us, yet in the eyes of God both are perfectly just. Such is the meaning of this entire passage.
Rom. 9:14. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Therefore, God is just both in relation to us, the Gentiles, and in relation to the Jews.
Rom. 9:15. For He says to Moses: "I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I have compassion."
He adds, as was said above, another saying from the Old Testament as well, proving that God alone knows who is worthy of honor and who of punishment. Although all equally sinned when they cast the calf, God nonetheless had mercy on some, while others He handed over to the Levites for slaughter. And Moses, great before God, did not know the reason for this, yet you inquire into the reason why the Gentiles were preferred over the Jews, even though they were sinners? However, Paul could have stated this reason, as he did state it in another place, that the Israelites thought they were justified by works, while the Gentiles believed they were justified by faith and grace; yet he does not state it now, more than sufficiently shutting the mouths of the curious and persuading them not to scrutinize the judgments of God.
Rom. 9:16. Mercy depends not on the one who wills, nor on the one who strives, but on God who shows mercy.
Isaac wanted to bless Esau; but Jacob hurried to the field so that, having caught game, he might receive the blessing from his father, and God by righteous judgment brought it about that Jacob, as entirely worthy, received the blessing. Here the apostle would seem to destroy free will; but in reality, no. Of a house we say that it is entirely the work of the master builder; although the master builder needs both materials and helpers in the construction, nevertheless, since it depends on him, we say that he built the whole house. So also of God we say that everything is His work, although God has need of our contribution as well. He accomplishes. He also gives the crowns, He also condemns; therefore we say that everything is the work of God.
Rom. 9:17. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "For this very purpose I raised you up, that I might show My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth."
As from those who made the calf, he reasons, some were saved and others punished, when God alone knew who was worthy of salvation and who of punishment: so, although there were many others who were wicked, only Pharaoh was subjected to the wrath of God. For this very reason, He says, I "raised you up," that is, I brought you, Pharaoh, into view, so that through you My power might be made known and many might restrain themselves, hearing of My name as just and mighty, throughout all the earth.
Rom. 9:18. So then, He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
He draws a conclusion and proves that one should not demand an account from God. God has mercy on whom He wills, as He did with the Israelites who cast the calf, and hardens whom He wills, as happened with Pharaoh. What then does "hardens" mean? It would seem absurd. But it is said of God that He made the filthy heart of Pharaoh hard in the same way that the sun makes mud hard. In what manner? By longsuffering; for He made him hard by showing longsuffering toward him. Here something similar occurred to what happens when someone who has a wicked servant treats him with kindness. The more kindly he treats him, the worse he makes him — not because he himself teaches him vice, but because the servant uses his longsuffering to increase his own wickedness, because he despises that longsuffering.
Rom. 9:19. You will say to me: "Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?"
The Apostle, as I have repeatedly said, strives in every way to prove that the dispensations and judgments of God are known to God alone, and therefore everywhere gathers a multitude of difficulties and does not offer solutions, so that, having placed the listener in a difficult position, he might convince him that the dispensations and judgments of God are incomprehensible to man and surpass his understanding. The meaning of the present passage is as follows. The Apostle presents an objection and a perplexity. If God hardens whom He wills, then why does He still blame the sinner? For who can resist His will? He willed it and hardened, and the hardened one sinned justly: how then can He blame and punish him? The Apostle presented precisely such an objection in order to show that the perplexity about this can be resolved by God alone; which is why he does not resolve it himself, but stops the mouth of the one who is perplexed, saying:
Rom. 9:20. But who are you, O man, that you argue with God?
Do you see how he stops untimely curiosity, puts on a bridle, and teaches one to know the difference between God and man? "But who are you?" Do you share with God in governance? Are you a judge of what He ought to do or not do? To say that this should be done in one way and that in another means to argue with God and act contrary to Him. But this must by no means be done; rather, one must submissively accept what God has done, however it may have been done.
Rom. 9:20. The vessel will say to the one who made it: "Why have you made me thus?"
Rom. 9:21. Has not the potter power over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?
Paul used this example not in order to destroy our free will and present us as inactive and immovable, but in order to teach us how we ought to submit to God and show Him deep and silent obedience. As a potter, he reasons, makes whatever he pleases from one and the same clay, and not one of the vessels contradicts him, so you too should not ask God why He punishes some people and rewards others, even though they are of one and the same race; rather, revere Him and imitate the clay. As it is submissive to the hand of the potter, so you too be submissive to the decree of the Ruler of the universe.
Know then, reader, that just as with vessels it does not depend on the clay that one turns out for honorable use and another for common use (for the clay is one and the same), but on the use made by those who employ the vessel, so too with people it does not depend on nature that some are worthy of punishment and others of rewards (for nature is one and the same), but on free will.
Rom. 9:22. What then, if God, wishing to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with great longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction,
Rom. 9:23. that He might also make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared for glory,
Rom. 9:24. Called upon us, whom He called not only from among the Jews, but also from among the Gentiles?
Having shut the mouth of the curious, he now gives the solution. The meaning of what is said is as follows. Pharaoh was a vessel of wrath, that is, a man who by his hardheartedness kindles the wrath of God. God "endured" him, that is, bore with him, was patient; for He deemed him worthy of great longsuffering. But he used this longsuffering for hardening and became a vessel fitted to receive wrath, complete for destruction, that is, prepared for it by himself and of his own will, because he omitted nothing that served for his destruction, but did everything that drew him toward destruction. Otherwise: "endured," that is, set him forth publicly, so that, since he did not become better from the longsuffering, He might punish him and show His own power, so that from this others might become better. Just as by punishing him who had become a vessel of wrath by his own choice, God showed His power, so by having mercy on many who had sinned but had become worthy of mercy — the Gentiles — He manifested "the riches of His glory." He did not say: of His love for mankind, but: "of glory," for the perfect glory of God consists in showing mercy. Furthermore, "which He had prepared beforehand," that is, foreknew. And he did not say: He saved all the Gentiles, but: "from among the Gentiles," that is, some. Therefore do not be offended, O Jew. Behold, even among the Gentiles some receive mercy, and others do not.
Rom. 9:25. As He says also in Hosea: "I will call those who were not My people, My people, and her who was not beloved, beloved."
Rom. 9:26. And in the place where it was said to them: you are not My people, there they shall be called sons of the living God.
The Jews could say: you, Paul, are deceiving us by saying this. Therefore he brings forward Hosea, who cries out and says: "I will call those who were not My people, My people." Who then was "not His people"? The Gentiles. And who was "not beloved"? The Gentile Church. Yet the Gentiles became a people and beloved, and even, what is more important, sons of the living God. If someone should say that this was spoken about the Jews who had conducted themselves ungratefully but were afterwards received into grace, such an argument does not harm our explanation. For if this acceptance happened with them, what prevented it from happening with the Gentiles?
Rom. 9:27. Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant shall be saved."
He was not satisfied with pointing to Hosea, but brings Isaiah as a witness as well, who "proclaims," that is, boldly and fearlessly, that not all the Israelites will be saved, but those worthy of salvation (for this is what the remnant means, that is, the chosen), whom God left and set apart, that is, as worthy. By saying "as the sand of the sea," he reminds them of the Old Testament promise, of which they had made themselves unworthy. Therefore, do not be troubled, as though the promise has been broken. All the prophets foretell that not all are worthy of salvation.
Rom. 9:28. Completing and cutting short the word in righteousness, the Lord will make a decisive word upon the earth.
Now he shows how the remnant will be saved, and says that there is no need to labor, to go far, and to exhaust oneself with works of the law. God, he says, who brings to completion and accomplishes the word of faith in a short way throughout all the earth, will do this "in righteousness," that is, in order to justify those who have accepted it. "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Rom. 10:9). This is the shortened word, that is, the brief sayings of faith.
Rom. 9:29. And, as Isaiah foretold: if the Lord of Sabaoth had not left us a seed, we would have become like Sodom, and would have been made like Gomorrah.
Having said that the remnant will be saved, he now explains what this means, and says that God left us a chosen seed and bread, for the word "left" he used instead of "chose," so that if God had not preserved it, we would have been subjected to destruction, like the Sodomites and Gomorrahites, as those condemned for their sins.
Rom. 9:30. What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, the righteousness that is by faith.
Rom. 9:31. But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness.
Here he gives the clearest resolution, showing why the Gentiles were accepted and the Israelites were rejected. The Gentiles, he says, holding to the righteousness of faith, were indeed justified, while the Israelites, ceaselessly seeking the "law of righteousness," that is, the law of works, did not attain to righteousness; because the law, which consisted of works, was not able to justify.
Rom. 9:32. Why? Because they sought it not by faith, but by the works of the law.
You ask: why did the Israelites not attain righteousness, even though they earnestly pursued it? Know that they sought justification not in faith, but as if in the works of the law.
Rom. 9:33. For they stumbled at the stumbling stone, as it is written: Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense; but everyone who believes in Him shall not be put to shame.
He stumbles who gazes at something extraneous and does not pay attention to what is under his feet. So too the Jews, gazing at the law, stumbled over Christ, that is, they did not believe. And Christ is called a stumbling stone and a rock of offense in relation to the end and disposition of those who did not believe. For in Himself He is laid as a foundation and support; because it is said: "he who believes in Him shall not be put to shame" (Isa. 28:16), whether Gentile or Jew, so that faith, not works, accomplishes and justifies all things.
Rom. 9:1. I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie, my conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,
Rom. 9:2. Great sorrow is to me and unceasing torment to my heart.
In the following discourse he intends to prove that not all who descended from Abraham are his seed, and lest anyone think that he says this in strong agitation of spirit, he anticipates and, removing such a supposition, speaks favorably of the Jews, declaring that he loves them greatly. That you may believe me, he says, I speak the truth in Christ, I do not lie. As proof of this he brings forward three witnesses: Christ, his own conscience, and the Holy Spirit, saying: I have great sorrow, consuming my heart at the thought of the Jews, that they are outside of grace; which is what he intends to speak about.
Rom. 9:3. I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh.
First learn what anathema is. It is separation, alienation. Just as no one dares to touch a gift dedicated to God, so too with the one who is anathematized, only with a different feeling. No one dares to approach the sacred gift out of reverence, as something consecrated to God, while with the anathematized person everyone severs ties, as with one who is defiled and estranged from God.
What then does Paul mean by what he says? He seems to be saying here the opposite of what was spoken of above. There he said that nothing shall separate us from the love of God, but here he says that he could wish to be separated from Christ. He seems to contradict what was said before; but in reality he does not. Here too he expresses his wish to be separated from Christ out of love for God. Everyone was accusing God of having cast out and dishonored the Jews, who had been deemed worthy of adoption, who had enjoyed special glory and were called the ancestors of Christ, and of having brought in their place people who had never known God — the Gentiles — and they were murmuring and blaspheming Providence, as though this were done unjustly and God had deceived the forefathers to whom He had promised gifts. For this reason Paul was in anguish, grieving for the glory of God, and wished himself to be separated, if only the Jews might be saved and their blasphemy against God might cease.
Do you see that out of fervent love for God he desires, if possible, to be separated from the company of those who live eternally with Christ — not from His love, but from His glory and the enjoyment of it? So too fathers often separate themselves from their sons so that the sons may be glorified, by no means estranging themselves from love for their sons, but desiring themselves to be in dishonor so that they may become glorious. Thus the apostle reasons: I, who have accomplished countless labors and who love God beyond measure, desire for the glory of God to be deprived of the glory of Christ. But this does not mean to lose, but rather to gain. With the words "for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh," he indicates his most tender and fervent love for the Jews.
Rom. 9:4. That is, the Israelites, to whom belong the adoption and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the worship, and the promises;
Rom. 9:5. Theirs are the fathers, and from them is Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever, amen.
Here he praises and exalts the Jews, so that no one, as I said, would think he speaks in great agitation of spirit. He subtly expresses that God desired their salvation as well. This is evident from the fact that He deemed them worthy of adoption and glory, gave promises to their fathers, furnished them with all other advantages, and willed that Christ be born from them. But they themselves rejected the benefaction. Therefore, marveling at the love of God, he sends up thanksgiving to the Only-Begotten and says: "God over all, blessed forever." Although others argue that the reception of the Gentiles was not well-founded, we, knowing the mysteries of Christ, know that He is worthy of glorification. At this, Arius should be put to shame, because Paul calls Christ God over all.
Rom. 9:6. But it is not as though the word of God has failed.
I, he says, am inflamed by the fact that God is blasphemed, and therefore expressed the desire that all be saved. But if not all are saved, it does not follow from this that God lied in the promises given to the fathers, and that His word did not come true. He fulfilled what was promised, even though the blasphemers say that He promised to some and gave to others. Listen to what follows.
Rom. 9:6-7. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children.
God, he says, fulfilled what was promised. He said: "To you I will give it, and to your offspring" (Gen. 13:15). So then, let us see what this offspring is. Not all who descended from Abraham are simply his offspring, and not all who descended from Israel are Israelites, but those born after the example of Isaac and distinguished by the virtue of Israel, through which he saw God. For he did not say: who are from Jacob, but: "from Israel," mentioning the more honorable name. Therefore, if you understand who is born after the example of Isaac, you will find that the promise is not false: for to such were the promises given. Therefore God by no means deserves reproach: what He said, He also fulfilled, even though some do not understand this.
Rom. 9:7. But it is said: In Isaac shall your seed be called.
Rom. 9:8. That is, it is not the children of the flesh that are children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as seed.
Rom. 9:9. And this is the word of promise: At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son.
Not I, he says, am explaining to you what the true seed of Abraham is, but the Old Testament, which says: "In Isaac shall thy seed be called" (Gen. 21:12). Therefore those who were born after the example of Isaac, that is, according to the promise, are truly children of Abraham, and especially of God. For everything was accomplished by the word of God. And Isaac was born not according to the law and power of nature, but by the power of the promise. "At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son" (cf. Gen. 18:10).
So then, Isaac was formed and born by the word of God. In the same way over us, the children of God, in the baptismal font, as if in a womb, the words of God are pronounced, which also form us; because we, being baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, are born. And just as there God promised the birth of Isaac and then fulfilled it, so also our birth He promised through the prophets and then brought it to fulfillment. Therefore the words "in Isaac shall thy seed be called" should be understood thus: the seed of Abraham are those who were born after the pattern of Isaac's birth, that is, by the word of God.
Therefore, the word of God was fulfilled, but God granted what was promised to the true seed, that is, to the believers from among the Gentiles, who became children of God just as Isaac, because they too were of the promise. But if the Jews say that the words "in Isaac shall thy seed be called" mean that those born of Isaac are reckoned as the seed of Abraham, then one must also honor the Idumeans and all who descended from him, because their forefather Esau was a son of Isaac. But the Idumeans are not only not called sons of Abraham, but are even quite foreign to the Israelites and are called aliens.
Rom. 9:10. And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived twins at one time by Isaac our father.
He has already proven that although Abraham had many different descendants, Isaac and those who are born like him were called his seed. Now he says: you can see this not only in Isaac, but, what is more important, in brothers born of the same father and the same mother, and moreover twins, that is, in Esau and Jacob. And they did not receive equal rights, but one was chosen and the other was hated. Therefore do not ask why God chose the Gentiles and made them the seed of Abraham, or rather of God, and rejected the Jews.
Rom. 9:11. For when they had not yet been born and had not done anything good or evil (so that God's purpose in election might proceed
Rom. 9:12. Not from works, but from Him who calls), it was said to her: the elder shall serve the younger,
Rom. 9:13. As it is also written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."
Here it is necessary for us to state in advance the meaning of what the apostle intends to discuss at length. Many were saying: why were the Gentiles preferred over the Jews? (For no one could say it was for virtue, because all had sinned.) The apostle gathers many difficulties that are incomprehensible to us but comprehensible to God alone. First he presents that between two twin brothers, the chosen one was chosen not for virtue, and the hated one was hated not for wickedness (for they had done neither good nor evil, since they were still in their mother's womb), but by election, by God's foreknowledge, one was chosen and loved, and the other hated, as the prophet also says: "I loved Jacob, but Esau I hated" (Mal. 1:2), so that everything might be the work of God and of His election and foreknowledge. But why do I speak of these persons? All the Israelites worshipped the calf, yet some were punished and others were not. And Pharaoh was indeed cruel, but many others were also cruel: why then did punishment befall him alone? Do you see that this is incomprehensible to men but comprehensible to God alone? So also the election of the Gentiles and the rejection of the Jews appears groundless to us, yet in the eyes of God both are perfectly just. Such is the meaning of this entire passage.
Rom. 9:14. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Therefore, God is just both in relation to us, the Gentiles, and in relation to the Jews.
Rom. 9:15. For He says to Moses: "I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I have compassion."
He adds, as was said above, another saying from the Old Testament as well, proving that God alone knows who is worthy of honor and who of punishment. Although all equally sinned when they cast the calf, God nonetheless had mercy on some, while others He handed over to the Levites for slaughter. And Moses, great before God, did not know the reason for this, yet you inquire into the reason why the Gentiles were preferred over the Jews, even though they were sinners? However, Paul could have stated this reason, as he did state it in another place, that the Israelites thought they were justified by works, while the Gentiles believed they were justified by faith and grace; yet he does not state it now, more than sufficiently shutting the mouths of the curious and persuading them not to scrutinize the judgments of God.
Rom. 9:16. Mercy depends not on the one who wills, nor on the one who strives, but on God who shows mercy.
Isaac wanted to bless Esau; but Jacob hurried to the field so that, having caught game, he might receive the blessing from his father, and God by righteous judgment brought it about that Jacob, as entirely worthy, received the blessing. Here the apostle would seem to destroy free will; but in reality, no. Of a house we say that it is entirely the work of the master builder; although the master builder needs both materials and helpers in the construction, nevertheless, since it depends on him, we say that he built the whole house. So also of God we say that everything is His work, although God has need of our contribution as well. He accomplishes. He also gives the crowns, He also condemns; therefore we say that everything is the work of God.
Rom. 9:17. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "For this very purpose I raised you up, that I might show My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth."
As from those who made the calf, he reasons, some were saved and others punished, when God alone knew who was worthy of salvation and who of punishment: so, although there were many others who were wicked, only Pharaoh was subjected to the wrath of God. For this very reason, He says, I "raised you up," that is, I brought you, Pharaoh, into view, so that through you My power might be made known and many might restrain themselves, hearing of My name as just and mighty, throughout all the earth.
Rom. 9:18. So then, He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
He draws a conclusion and proves that one should not demand an account from God. God has mercy on whom He wills, as He did with the Israelites who cast the calf, and hardens whom He wills, as happened with Pharaoh. What then does "hardens" mean? It would seem absurd. But it is said of God that He made the filthy heart of Pharaoh hard in the same way that the sun makes mud hard. In what manner? By longsuffering; for He made him hard by showing longsuffering toward him. Here something similar occurred to what happens when someone who has a wicked servant treats him with kindness. The more kindly he treats him, the worse he makes him — not because he himself teaches him vice, but because the servant uses his longsuffering to increase his own wickedness, because he despises that longsuffering.
Rom. 9:19. You will say to me: "Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?"
The Apostle, as I have repeatedly said, strives in every way to prove that the dispensations and judgments of God are known to God alone, and therefore everywhere gathers a multitude of difficulties and does not offer solutions, so that, having placed the listener in a difficult position, he might convince him that the dispensations and judgments of God are incomprehensible to man and surpass his understanding. The meaning of the present passage is as follows. The Apostle presents an objection and a perplexity. If God hardens whom He wills, then why does He still blame the sinner? For who can resist His will? He willed it and hardened, and the hardened one sinned justly: how then can He blame and punish him? The Apostle presented precisely such an objection in order to show that the perplexity about this can be resolved by God alone; which is why he does not resolve it himself, but stops the mouth of the one who is perplexed, saying:
Rom. 9:20. But who are you, O man, that you argue with God?
Do you see how he stops untimely curiosity, puts on a bridle, and teaches one to know the difference between God and man? "But who are you?" Do you share with God in governance? Are you a judge of what He ought to do or not do? To say that this should be done in one way and that in another means to argue with God and act contrary to Him. But this must by no means be done; rather, one must submissively accept what God has done, however it may have been done.
Rom. 9:20. The vessel will say to the one who made it: "Why have you made me thus?"
Rom. 9:21. Has not the potter power over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?
Paul used this example not in order to destroy our free will and present us as inactive and immovable, but in order to teach us how we ought to submit to God and show Him deep and silent obedience. As a potter, he reasons, makes whatever he pleases from one and the same clay, and not one of the vessels contradicts him, so you too should not ask God why He punishes some people and rewards others, even though they are of one and the same race; rather, revere Him and imitate the clay. As it is submissive to the hand of the potter, so you too be submissive to the decree of the Ruler of the universe.
Know then, reader, that just as with vessels it does not depend on the clay that one turns out for honorable use and another for common use (for the clay is one and the same), but on the use made by those who employ the vessel, so too with people it does not depend on nature that some are worthy of punishment and others of rewards (for nature is one and the same), but on free will.
Rom. 9:22. What then, if God, wishing to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with great longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted for destruction,
Rom. 9:23. that He might also make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared for glory,
Rom. 9:24. Called upon us, whom He called not only from among the Jews, but also from among the Gentiles?
Having shut the mouth of the curious, he now gives the solution. The meaning of what is said is as follows. Pharaoh was a vessel of wrath, that is, a man who by his hardheartedness kindles the wrath of God. God "endured" him, that is, bore with him, was patient; for He deemed him worthy of great longsuffering. But he used this longsuffering for hardening and became a vessel fitted to receive wrath, complete for destruction, that is, prepared for it by himself and of his own will, because he omitted nothing that served for his destruction, but did everything that drew him toward destruction. Otherwise: "endured," that is, set him forth publicly, so that, since he did not become better from the longsuffering, He might punish him and show His own power, so that from this others might become better. Just as by punishing him who had become a vessel of wrath by his own choice, God showed His power, so by having mercy on many who had sinned but had become worthy of mercy — the Gentiles — He manifested "the riches of His glory." He did not say: of His love for mankind, but: "of glory," for the perfect glory of God consists in showing mercy. Furthermore, "which He had prepared beforehand," that is, foreknew. And he did not say: He saved all the Gentiles, but: "from among the Gentiles," that is, some. Therefore do not be offended, O Jew. Behold, even among the Gentiles some receive mercy, and others do not.
Rom. 9:25. As He says also in Hosea: "I will call those who were not My people, My people, and her who was not beloved, beloved."
Rom. 9:26. And in the place where it was said to them: you are not My people, there they shall be called sons of the living God.
The Jews could say: you, Paul, are deceiving us by saying this. Therefore he brings forward Hosea, who cries out and says: "I will call those who were not My people, My people." Who then was "not His people"? The Gentiles. And who was "not beloved"? The Gentile Church. Yet the Gentiles became a people and beloved, and even, what is more important, sons of the living God. If someone should say that this was spoken about the Jews who had conducted themselves ungratefully but were afterwards received into grace, such an argument does not harm our explanation. For if this acceptance happened with them, what prevented it from happening with the Gentiles?
Rom. 9:27. Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant shall be saved."
He was not satisfied with pointing to Hosea, but brings Isaiah as a witness as well, who "proclaims," that is, boldly and fearlessly, that not all the Israelites will be saved, but those worthy of salvation (for this is what the remnant means, that is, the chosen), whom God left and set apart, that is, as worthy. By saying "as the sand of the sea," he reminds them of the Old Testament promise, of which they had made themselves unworthy. Therefore, do not be troubled, as though the promise has been broken. All the prophets foretell that not all are worthy of salvation.
Rom. 9:28. Completing and cutting short the word in righteousness, the Lord will make a decisive word upon the earth.
Now he shows how the remnant will be saved, and says that there is no need to labor, to go far, and to exhaust oneself with works of the law. God, he says, who brings to completion and accomplishes the word of faith in a short way throughout all the earth, will do this "in righteousness," that is, in order to justify those who have accepted it. "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Rom. 10:9). This is the shortened word, that is, the brief sayings of faith.
Rom. 9:29. And, as Isaiah foretold: if the Lord of Sabaoth had not left us a seed, we would have become like Sodom, and would have been made like Gomorrah.
Having said that the remnant will be saved, he now explains what this means, and says that God left us a chosen seed and bread, for the word "left" he used instead of "chose," so that if God had not preserved it, we would have been subjected to destruction, like the Sodomites and Gomorrahites, as those condemned for their sins.
Rom. 9:30. What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, the righteousness that is by faith.
Rom. 9:31. But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness.
Here he gives the clearest resolution, showing why the Gentiles were accepted and the Israelites were rejected. The Gentiles, he says, holding to the righteousness of faith, were indeed justified, while the Israelites, ceaselessly seeking the "law of righteousness," that is, the law of works, did not attain to righteousness; because the law, which consisted of works, was not able to justify.
Rom. 9:32. Why? Because they sought it not by faith, but by the works of the law.
You ask: why did the Israelites not attain righteousness, even though they earnestly pursued it? Know that they sought justification not in faith, but as if in the works of the law.
Rom. 9:33. For they stumbled at the stumbling stone, as it is written: Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense; but everyone who believes in Him shall not be put to shame.
He stumbles who gazes at something extraneous and does not pay attention to what is under his feet. So too the Jews, gazing at the law, stumbled over Christ, that is, they did not believe. And Christ is called a stumbling stone and a rock of offense in relation to the end and disposition of those who did not believe. For in Himself He is laid as a foundation and support; because it is said: "he who believes in Him shall not be put to shame" (Isa. 28:16), whether Gentile or Jew, so that faith, not works, accomplishes and justifies all things.