Skip to main content

CSB Study Bible Notes on Romans 9 v 10-16: "God does not owe mercy to anyone."





9:10–11 The case is clearer with Rebekah because she had twins. God’s choice of the younger twin before their birth showed his gracious election and indicated again that God’s blessings are his to hand out and that they were not an automatic birthright of all ethnic Jews; see note at v. 6.

9:12–13 The divine purpose was revealed from the beginning of the Hebrew nation when God chose one twin over the other. The prophet Malachi traced God’s differing treatment of two nations to this divine choice (Mal 1:1–5). Both nations were punished for their sins, but only one received grace. I have loved Jacob means God chose or elected his descendants (the nation of Israel), whereas I have hated Esau means that God rejected the nation that stemmed from him (Edom).

9:14–15 Is there injustice with God? is a rhetorical question, inspired by the fact that it is difficult to grasp the fact that God does not need to treat all sinners the same in order to be just. Jesus taught the same truth in the parable of the vineyard workers (Mt 20:15: “Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what is mine?”). 

In his first sermon in Nazareth, Jesus pointed out that God gave grace to a widow in Sidon and healed only Naaman the Syrian when there were many needy people in Israel (Lk 4:24–27). His comments enraged the audience, but careful consideration reveals that a just God is perfectly free to make such choices. If you forgave one debtor but not another, would you be unjust? Of course not. You chose to be gracious to one when you could have justly chosen to be gracious to none. God does not owe mercy to anyone. Paul quoted Ex 33:19 to this effect.

9:16 Salvation does not depend on human will or effort. Salvation is based on God’s mercy. The situation is not that people want to be saved but cannot be (2Tm 2:25–26), or that they are running after God but cannot find him. Apart from God’s drawing them, none is seeking the one true God—not a single one (Rm 3:11–12).


See Edwin A. Blum in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1795–1796.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

John Stott on the "old man" and the "body ruled by sin" in Rom 6 v 6

  There are, in fact, two quite distinct ways in which the New Testament speaks of crucifixion in relation to holiness. The first is our death to sin through identification with Christ; the second is our death to self through imitation of Christ.  On the one hand, we have been crucified with Christ. But on the other we have crucified (decisively repudiated) our sinful nature with all its desires, so that every day we renew this attitude by taking up our cross and following Christ to crucifixion.  The first is a legal death, a death to the penalty of sin; the second is a moral death, a death to the power of sin.  The first belongs to the past, and is unique and unrepeatable; the second belongs to the present, and is repeatable, even continuous. I died to sin (in Christ) once; I die to self (like Christ) daily. It is with the first of these two deaths that Romans 6 is chiefly concerned, although the first is with a view to the second, and the second cannot take place w...

Boice: “... the federal way of dealing with us was actually the fairest and kindest of all the ways God could have operated. ”

  Adam had been appointed by God to be the representative of the race so that if he stood, we too would stand, and if he fell, we would fall with him. Adam did fall, as we know.  So death passed upon everyone. “But isn’t that terribly unfair?” someone protests. “Isn’t it cruel for God to act in this fashion?” ... the federal way of dealing with us was actually the fairest and kindest of all the ways God could have operated.  Besides, it was the only way it would later be possible for God to save us once we had sinned. In other words, federalism is actually a proof of God’s grace, which is the point the passage comes to (vv. 15 ff.). It was gracious to Adam first of all. Why? Because it was a deterrent to his sin. God must have explained to Adam that he was to represent his posterity. That might have restrained him from sinning. A father who might be tempted to steal his employer’s funds (and would if only he himself were involved), might well decide not to do it if he kne...

Repackaging the gospel? It's more like obscuring the gospel!

Preface : I recognize this post may make me unpopular with some, but I think it is an important issue to blog about here.  I’ve had time to reflect on this video and in my opinion, I think what is in this video raises some questions.  This gentleman featured below is slotted to speak at the SBC's 2020 Pastors' Conference and it prompted me to think more about this illustration.  I want to note that I don't know him and I have no personal issue with him.   I assume he is a brother in the LORD.  Having said that, I see some significant issues here that relate to this type of preaching being clear on the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, it appears to be obscuring it in my observation. Concern:  Should the SBC or churches, in general, be in the habit of holding this up as a  good and healthy example?  Let's think about it some together.  (Watch this clip below here first.) Context:  The clip was posted to stand on its own a...