Romanos 9
Ambrosiaster · Comentário Patrístico (catena)
Romanos 9:2
Since it appears that earlier he was speaking against the Jews, who thought that they were justified by the law, Paul now shows his desire and love for them and says that his conscience bears witness in Christ Jesus and in the Holy Spirit. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:5
Paul lists so many indications of the nobility and dignity of the Jewish people and of the promises they received in order to deepen his grief for all these things, because by not accepting the Savior they lost the privilege of their fathers and the merit of the promises, and they became worse than the Gentiles, whom they had previously detested when they were without God. For it is a worse evil to lose a dignity than never to have had it.As there is no mention of the Father's name in this verse and Paul is talking about Christ, it cannot be disputed that he is called God here. For if Scripture is speaking about God the Father and adds the Son, it often calls the Father God and the Son Lord. If someone does not think that it is said here about Christ that he is God, then let him name the person about whom he thinks it is said, for there is no mention of God the Father in this verse. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:7
What Paul wants us to understand is that not all are worthy because they are children of Abraham, but only those who are children of the promise, that is, whom God foreknew would receive his promise, whether they are Jews or Gentiles.… Abraham believed and received Isaac on account of his faith, because he believed in God. By this the mystery of the future faith was indicated, that they would be brothers of Isaac who had the same faith by which Isaac was born, because Isaac was born as a type of the Savior by the promise. Thus whoever believes that Christ Jesus was promised to Abraham is a child of Abraham and a brother of Isaac. Abraham was told that all the nations would be blessed in his offspring. This happened not in Isaac, but in him who was promised to Abraham in Isaac, that is, Christ, in whom all the nations are blessed when they believe. Therefore the other Jews are children of the flesh, because they are deprived of the promise and cannot claim Abraham's merit, because they do not follow the faith by which Abraham is counted worthy. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:9
This prefigures Christ, because Christ was promised to Abraham as a future son, in whom the word of the promise would be fulfilled. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:10
Paul says that Sarah was not the only one to give birth in a typological manner. Rebecca, the wife of Isaac, did the same, though in a different way. Isaac was born as a type of the Savior, but Jacob and Esau were born as types of two peoples, believers and unbelievers, who come from the same source but are nevertheless very different.… One person represents the entire race, not because he is their physical ancestor but because he shares their relationship to God. There are children of Esau who are children of Jacob, and vice versa. It is not because Jacob is praised that all those descended from him are worthy to be called his children. Nor is it because Esau was rejected that all those descended from him are condemned, for we see that Jacob the deceiver had unbelieving children, and Esau had children who were faithful and dear to God. There is no doubt that there are many unbelieving children of Jacob, for all the Jews, whether they are believers or unbelievers, have their origin in him. And that there are good and faithful children of Esau is proved by the example of Job, who was a descendent of Esau, five generations away from Abraham and therefore Esau's grandson. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:11
Paul proclaims God's foreknowledge by citing these events, because nothing can happen in the future other than what God already knows. Therefore, knowing what each of them would become, God said: "The younger will be worthy and the elder unworthy." In his foreknowledge he chose the one and rejected the other. And in the one whom God chose his purpose remained, because nothing other than what God knew and purposed in him to make him worthy of salvation could happen. Likewise, the purpose of God remained in the one whom he rejected. However, although God knew what would happen, he is not a respecter of persons and condemns nobody before he sins, nor does he reward anyone until he conquers. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:13
These things are said of the Jews … for not all who are called children of Abraham deserve to be so called, as I have already pointed out. Therefore Paul restricts his grief to the fact that he discovered that it was long ago predicted that not all would believe, and he grieves for them only because they refused to believe out of jealousy. They had the opportunity, however, as Paul demonstrates. At the same time, there was no point in grieving over those who were not predestined to eternal life, for God's foreknowledge had long ago decreed that they would not be saved. For who would cry over someone who is long dead? But when the Gentiles appeared and accepted the salvation which the Jews had lost, Paul's grief was stirred, but this was mainly because they were the cause of their own damnation.God knew those who would turn out to be people of ill will and he did not number them among the good, although the Savior said to the seventy-two disciples whom he chose as a second class and who later abandoned him: "Your names are written in heaven." But this was because of justice, since it is just that each person should receive his reward. For because they were good they were chosen for this service, and their names were written in heaven for the sake of justice, as I have said. But according to foreknowledge they were among the number of the wicked. For God judges according to his justice, not according to his foreknowledge. Thus he said to Moses: "If someone sins against me, I shall delete him from my book." The person who sins is deleted according to the justice of the Judge, but according to his foreknowledge his name was never in the book of life. The apostle John described these people as follows: "They went out from us but they were never of us, for if they had been of us they would have remained with us." There is no respect of persons in God's foreknowledge. For God's foreknowledge is that by which it is defined what the future will of each person will be, in which he will remain, by which he will either be condemned or rewarded. Some of those who will remain among the good were once evil, and some of those who will remain among the evil were once good. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:15
This means that God will have mercy on those whom he knows will be converted and remain with him.… He will show mercy to those who, after they have sinned, return to him with a right heart. It is God's to give or to not give. He calls the ones whom he knows will obey and does not call those whom he knows will not obey. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:16
When Saul asked forgiveness for his sin he did not receive it, but David, when he confessed his sin, did receive forgiveness. However, it cannot be said on this basis that God judged unjustly by granting forgiveness to the one and withholding it from the other. For the one who looks on the heart knows in what spirit the penitent is making his request and whether it deserves to be heard. And although it is dangerous to try to figure out God's judgment, yet in the case of unbelievers, who reap the reward of their own minds, it cannot be said that God's judgment is unjust.Look at the stories of Saul and David and ask yourself what happened to them after God's judgment. Did Saul do what was right after he was refused mercy? Did he prove that God's judgment was unjust? Did David after receiving mercy turn his back on God? Or did he remain in him from whom he received mercy? — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:17
This Pharaoh (this was a royal title among the Egyptians and not a personal name, just as the rulers of Rome are called Caesars), was guilty of a great many crimes and unfit to live. He would never repent or in any way earn the right to live with God. But if anyone thought that God had made a mistake or that he was unable to take revenge on Pharaoh, let him listen to what God says.… Pharaoh was used by God in order that many signs and plagues might be revealed through him. Even though he was really dead, he appeared to be alive for a short while so that all those who were without God might be frightened by the punishment and the torments which they saw being inflicted on him and confess the one true God, by whom this revenge was being wreaked. In the same way the ancient physicians used to open up the bodies of people who deserved to die, while they were still alive, in order to find out what the causes of their disease might be and thus by punishing the dying bring saving health to the living. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:18
Here Paul assumes the role of an objector who makes these assumptions. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:19
Paul teaches us first that nobody can resist God's will because he is more powerful than anyone else. Next he teaches us that God is the Father of all and therefore does not want anyone to suffer evil. What God has made he wants to remain unharmed. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:20
It is a great indignity and presumption for a man to answer back to God—the unjust to the just, the evil to the good, the imperfect to the perfect, the weak to the strong, the corruptible to the incorrupt, the mortal to the immortal, the servant to the Lord, the creature to the Creator! — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:21
The substance of the clay is the same, but the will of the potter is different. Likewise God made us all of the same substance and we all became sinners, but he had mercy on one and rejected another, not without justice. The potter has only a will, but God has a will and justice to go with it. For he knows who ought to be shown mercy, as I have already said. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:22
This means that unbelievers are made ready for punishment by the will and longsuffering of God, which is his patience. For although he has waited a long time for them, they have not repented. He has waited a long time so that they should be without excuse, for God knew all along that they would not believe. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:23
It is God's patience and long-suffering that, just as he prepares the wicked for destruction, so also he prepares the good for their reward. For the good are those who have the hope of faith. God preserves everyone knowing what the destiny of each will be. Therefore, it is a sign of his patience that those who have been rescued from evil or who persevere in good works he prepares for glory. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:24
God has called those whom he has prepared for glory, who he knew would persevere in faith, whether they are near at hand or far away. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:25
It is clear that this was said about the Gentiles, who once were not God's people, but afterward, to the chagrin of the Jews, received mercy and are called God's people. Once they were not loved, but when the Jews fell away they were adopted as children and are now loved, so that where once they were not called God's people, now they are called children of the living God. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:27
Paul says this because Isaiah was crying out for those who would believe in Christ. It is these who are the true Israel…. The others have gone away from the law because they have not believed in him whom the law promised would alone be sufficient for salvation. Therefore they became apostate, because by not accepting Christ they became lawbreakers. Therefore, of that great number only those who God foreknew would believe have been saved. Commentary on Paul's Epistles.
Romanos 9:28
This has been done in Christ, who said: "Moses wrote about me." — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:29
This seed, which alone remains reserved for the conversion of the human race is Christ and his teaching, as he himself said: "The seed is the Word of God." Therefore what was long ago promised to us who have been delivered from the burden of the law remains for our redemption, so that by receiving the forgiveness of sins we might not be punished by the law and perish as Sodom did. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:30
God is the true and lasting righteousness, if he is acknowledged. For what is more righteous that to know God the Father, from whom all things come, and Christ his Son, through whom all things come? Therefore the first part of righteousness is to acknowledge the Creator, and the next part is to keep what he commands. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:31
Faith is the fulfilling of the law. It is because the Gentiles have faith that they appear to fulfill the whole law. But the Jews, who out of envy did not believe in the Savior, because they claimed the righteousness which is commanded in the law, i.e., the sabbath, circumcision, etc., did not come to the law. In other words, they did not fulfill the law, and those who do not fulfill the law are guilty of it. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:32
The Jews rejected faith, which as I have said is the fulfillment of the law, and instead claimed that they were justified by works, that is, by the sabbath, the new moons, circumcision and so on. They forgot that Scripture says that "the just shall live by faith." — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES
Romanos 9:33
There are many passages of Scripture where Christ is portrayed as a rock or a stone. The prophet Daniel calls him a stone which detaches itself without hands from the mountain, hitting and threatening all the kingdoms and filling the whole earth. This clearly refers to Christ. And in the law the rock from which the waters flowed is called Christ, as the apostle Paul himself testifies. And the apostle Peter says to the Jews: "This is the stone which the builders rejected."The Jews did not want to compare Christ's words with his deeds lest perhaps they might recognize that it was not absurd for him to say that he had come down from heaven.… This was the rock of offense as far as the Jews were concerned. The rock was undoubtedly the human flesh of the Savior. It detached itself without hands, because it was made of a virgin by the Holy Spirit without the participation of a male. — COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES