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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadBob Utley You Can Understand the Bible - Romans 9:14 - 9:18
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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Rom_9:14-18
14What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! 15For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." 16So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. 17For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth." 18So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.
Rom_9:14 "What shall we say then" Paul often used this diatribe form (cf. Rom_3:5; Rom_4:1; Rom_6:1; Rom_7:7; Rom_8:31; Rom_9:14; Rom_9:19; Rom_9:30).
▣ "There is no injustice with God, is there?" The grammar expects a "no" answer. How can God hold humans responsible if God's sovereignty is the deciding factor (cf. Rom_9:19)? This is the mystery of election. The key emphasis in this context is that God is free to do what He will with humanity (rebellious mankind), however, God's sovereignty is expressed in mercy (see note at Rom_9:15), not raw power.
It must also be stated that God's sovereign choices are not based on foreknowledge of human's future choices and actions. If this were true then ultimately individual's choices and actions and merits would be the basis of God's choices (cf. Rom_9:16; 1Pe_1:2). Behind this is the traditional Jewish view of prosperity to the righteous (cf. Deuteronomy 27-28; Job and Psalms 73). But, God chooses to bless the unworthy through faith (not performance, cf. Rom_5:8). God knows all things but He has chosen to limit His choices (1) in mercy and (2) in promise. There is a necessary human response, but it follows and ultimately confirms God's life changing elective choice.
▣ "May it never be" This is a rare optative form that was often used by Paul for an emphatic negation usually to his diatribe objector's questions (cf. Rom_3:4; Rom_3:6; Rom_3:31; Rom_6:2; Rom_6:15; Rom_7:7; Rom_7:13; Rom_11:1; Rom_11:11 also 1Co_6:15; Gal_2:17; Gal_3:21; Gal_6:14). It is possibly a Hebrew idiom.
Rom_9:15 This is a quote from Exo_33:19. God is free to act according to His own redemptive purposes. Even Moses did not merit God's blessing (cf. Exo_33:20). He was a murdered (cf. Exo_2:11-15). The key is that His choices are in mercy (cf. Rom_9:16; Rom_9:18-23; Rom_11:30-32).
Rom_9:15-16 "mercy" This Greek word (eleos, cf. Rom_9:15-16; Rom_9:18; Rom_9:23; Rom_11:30-32) is used in the Septuagint (LXX) to translate the special Hebrew term hesed (remember the writers of the NT were Hebrew thinkers writing in street Greek), which meant "steadfast, covenant loyalty." God's mercy and election are plural, corporate, (Jews [Isaac], not Arabs [Ishmael]; Israel [Jacob], not Edom [Esau], but believing Jews and believing Gentiles, cf. Rom_9:24) as well as individuals. This truth is one of the keys to unlocking the mystery of the doctrine of predestination (universal redemption). The other key in the context of Romans 9-11 is God's unchanging character-mercy (cf. Rom_9:15-16; Rom_9:18; Rom_9:23; Rom_11:30-32), and not human performance. Mercy through selection will eventually reach all who believe in Christ. The one opens the door of faith to all (cf. Rom_5:18-19).
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Rom_9:17-18 Rom_9:17 is a powerful universal quote from Exo_9:16; Rom_9:18 is the conclusion drawn from the quote. Pharaoh is said to have hardened his own heart in Exo_8:15; Exo_8:19; Exo_8:32; Exo_9:34. God is said to have hardened his heart in Exo_4:21; Exo_7:3; Exo_9:12; Exo_10:20; Exo_10:27; Exo_11:10. This example is used to show God's sovereignty (cf. Rom_9:18). Pharaoh is responsible for his choices. God uses Pharaoh's arrogant, stubborn personality to accomplish His will for Israel (cf. Rom_9:18).
Also notice the purpose of God's actions with Pharaoh were redemptive in purpose; and inclusive in scope. They were intended:
1. to show God's power (versus the Egyptian nature and animal gods, as Genesis 1 does to the Babylonian astral deities)
2. to reveal God to Egypt and, by implication, the whole earth (cf. Rom_9:17)
Western (American) thought magnifies the individual, but eastern thought focuses on the need of the corporate whole. God used Pharaoh to reveal Himself to a needy world. He will do the same with unbelieving Israel (cf. Romans 11). In this context the rights of the one diminishes in light of the needs of the whole. Remember, also the corporate OT examples of
1. Job's original children dying because of God's discussion with Satan (cf. Job 1-2)
2. the Israeli soldiers dying because of Achan's sin (cf. Joshua 7)
3. David's first child with Bathsheba dying because of David's sin (cf. 2Sa_12:15).
We are all affected by the choices of others. This corporality can be seen in the NT in Rom_5:12-21.
▣ "For the Scripture says. . ." The personification of Scripture is a way to show it is alive and relevant (cf. Rom_10:6-8). Paul personifies "sin" and "death" in Romans 6-7)!