The Weak Fool

I wanted to exegete Romans 9 because it is a nice, simple passage of Scripture that is easy to understand and accept.

Just kidding.

I wanted to carefully study Romans 9 because it is a hard passage of Scripture, and one that has often left me with many questions. I know I am not alone because the meaning and implications of Romans 9 are often discussed and debated among Christians.

I have sought out much content to help me make sense of this chapter, both in the form of writings and talks. A lot of that has been helpful, but I also think that there is no substitute to diving into the word yourself and coming to your own conclusions.

I am no scholar, and so I doubt that I will have anything new or profound to add to this discussion. Really, I just wanted to look at the text and see if I could figure out what God’s saying in it, so that I can know what I believe.

I doubt even if I did a good job of that. After studying the text thoroughly, there are still unanswered questions and mysteries, some of which I am becoming convinced that we will never answer.

The study has been fun though. I have been humbled by the ways of God, and I hope that I have grown in my understanding of His ways, even if just slightly.

I realize that I know basically nothing, and have basically nothing to offer. So with that being said, here are my observations about Romans 9…

As this chapter begins, Paul wants his audience to know that he is truly grieved over the current state of his fellow Israelites. By his insistence that he is telling the truth, he does not want this point to be overlooked or doubted. It’s important that we know this is how he feels, and this feeling is deep, painful and unceasing.

Paul says that he could wish that he himself was accursed, separated from Christ, for the sake of his kinsmen according to the flesh. This is quite the statement! Obviously Paul was deeply troubled that the Israelites were supposed to be God’s chosen people, yet they were rejecting the new, amazing thing that God was doing, and in a sense, they were being rejected.

The Israelites had all these special privileges from God that were supposed to give them access to a relationship with Him and the ability to worship Him properly. They had the adoption as sons, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple service, the promises, and genetically speaking, they came from the patriarchs and the Messiah Himself came from them.

Everything about the way that God set them up and interacted with them pointed to this idea that they were God’s special people. How is it that this group could reject God’s ultimate plan of salvation and not receive the Christ who was offered for them and who even came from their own family?

Paul’s love for them is real, and his familial attachment to them is real, and his willingness to self-sacrifice for them is real. We see that all to be very evident from these first three verse. He strongly desires that they would receive from God what it seems natural that they would receive as God’s chosen nation.

In verse 6, Paul says that it’s not as though the word of God has failed. This verse seems to indicate that maybe he, along with others, was looking at the current situation and comparing that to what God had previously said, and it didn’t seem like it was adding up. The current situation with Israel did not seem to align with what God had said or promised to Israel. They were supposed to be chosen, special, included and blessed. But it was looking like they might be rejected, forgotten, excluded and even cursed.

A quick backtrack to something in verse 5 that I don’t want to overlook or miss. Paul unequivocally stated that the Christ is “God over all.” As far as clear, undeniable statements of Jesus’ divinity and His identity as God, this is an amazing example. Paul clearly identifies Jesus here as God, and also as having supreme authority in that He is God “over all.” I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to mention this as it is very cool and very important.

Back to verse 6, Paul says that it’s not as though the word of God has failed. He might be wondering, and other people might be wondering, “what about what God has said in the past?” Paul is assuring us that God’s word hasn’t failed. The reason for this is that not all who are descended from Israel are really Israel.

I think what he means by this statement is that physical descent from Jacob does not guarantee access to the promises that God has made.

in verse 7 Paul says “nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s seed, but; ‘Through Isaac your seed will be named.’”

Paul starts by making the statement that not all who are from Israel are really Israel. This is maybe a hard statement to understand. But, then he backs up to a time before Jacob, and speaks about Abraham. This would not be as hard of a statement because it is clear from the story of Abraham that Isaac was the only son chosen to receive the promises of God. Abraham had Ishmael first, but God decided to make His covenant with Isaac and not Ishmael.

God did still promise to bless Ishmael and to multiply him, but His covenant was to be established with Isaac, who had not yet been born at the time of this declaration.

Paul uses this to say that the children of God aren’t the children of the flesh, but rather the children of the promise. (Verse 8) God made a promise that Isaac would be born to Sarah. Just because Ishmael was Abraham’s son, even his firstborn, doesn’t mean he received the promise, though God did promise to bless him in some way for the sake of Abraham. Abraham also ended up having six more sons through another wife, Keturah, but they also did not receive the covenant and promises from God.

Paul uses this example to say that although Abraham was chosen by God, only one of his sons carried the promise. This was clearly taught and should have been understood. The line of Ishmael was obviously not the same as the line of Israel.

One of the promises in this example was just the birth of Isaac itself. In order for Isaac to be born, God had to perform a miracle. Sarah could not physically bear children. God had promised to multiply Abraham, and the reason Ishmael came about was because it didn’t look like God was going to fulfill that promise through Sarah. So they did what was humanly possible and let Abraham have Hagar, who evidently was child bearing age. (Gen 16:2)

As it turns out, this plan was not what God had in mind for the working out of His promise to Abraham. He was going to do something humanly impossible and the result of God’s work was going to carry the promise.

This situation with Abraham is not the only example that Paul gives. There is also the example of Isaac and Rebekah’s twins, Jacob and Esau.

This example is different in that the two sons came from the same two parents, and were even twins. One interesting similarity is that God’s declaration of His promise to Isaac, and God’s declaration about Jacob and Esau both came before any of them were born. Paul emphasizes this about Jacob and Esau in verse 11, explaining that the decision was made by God before they had done anything good or bad.

This was “so that the purpose of God according to His choice would stand.” (Verse 11) God made a choice, and He had some purpose in mind with that choice, and it was going to prevail. This purpose and choice was not conditional upon works and did not come about from works, but rather it was from God, and was attributed completely to God, who is the One who calls.

With all of this in mind, Rebekah was told before they were born that “the older shall serve the younger.” (Verse 12) This fact in and of itself would have been abnormal, considering the normal role and privilege of being the firstborn.

Paul also cites another passage which adds to the intensity of his argument, and perhaps even the offensiveness of it. He quotes God from the book of Malachi where He says, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” (Verse 13)

It may be helpful to unpack the story of Jacob and Esau a little bit. Perhaps this will be helpful in the consideration of this passage.

In Genesis chapter 25 we find that Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, is barren. Isaac pleaded with the Lord for her, and the Lord was moved, and so Rebekah conceived. (Gen. 25:21)

While she was pregnant, the children struggled together within her. She wanted to know what this was about, so she asked Yahweh about it. He explained that the boys were two different nations, two peoples who would be separated, one of which was going to be stronger, and that “the older shall serve the younger.” (Gen 25:23)

The time came for them to be born, and Esau came first, with Jacob coming after him holding onto his heel. They grew up, and Esau became a hunter while Jacob was a peaceful man. One day when Esau was very hungry, he traded his birthright to Jacob for some stew.

Later, through deception that was orchestrated by his mom, Jacob tricked his father Isaac and also stole Esau’s blessing. Esau was so angry that he intended to kill Jacob, so Jacob fled to Rebekah’s brother, Laban, where he got married, increased in possessions and had children.

The time eventually came for Jacob to return and he was afraid of Esau, so he sent ahead of himself some gifts, so that Esau might receive him well. When Jacob did finally meet Esau face to face, he did receive him well. Jacob convinced him to take his gift of livestock, and Jacob also was very humble before him.

It seems that they lived nearby one another for some time in Canaan, until Esau left the area because there wasn’t enough room for all of their possessions together. Esau went to the hill country of Seir. Esau had sons, and grandsons and so on, and these went on to become chiefs and eventually even kings. This took place before Israel had any kings.

If we fast forward to the book of Numbers, we see Israel traveling through the wilderness after leaving Egypt. They desired to peacefully pass through the land of Edom (where the descendants of Esau lived), but the king denied their request and threatened them with force. They did not pass through then, but went around instead.

Later in Numbers, Balaam the son of Beor gives an oracle, where he declared that Israel would take Edom as a possession and would have victory over it. This does occur later, but before we visit that I want to look at a commentary that Moses gives on the situation where they attempted to pass through Edom after leaving Egypt.

In Deuteronomy chapter 2, Moses explained that Yahweh had given him instructions about passing through and dealing with Edom. God told them to act respectfully towards them because He was not going to give Israel any of their land. Not even a “footstep” of it, because God had given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. So they were not to strive with them, and anything they used from them was to be purchased with money. Edom ended up not letting them pass through, and Israel submitted to this peacefully.

Later, King Saul fought against Edom, and King David even made them to be servants. During the reign of Solomon, an adversary from Edom named Hadad was risen up against king Solomon. Israel and Edom had some more various dealings with each other. At one point the Kings of Israel, Judah and Edom all came together to fight against Moab. In the days of Jehoram, king of Judah, Edom revolted and set up their own king. Later still, Amaziah, king of Judah, had a victorious win against the Edomites in battle.

All this to say, Israel and Edom had a long, somewhat complicated, but very interesting relationship. The blessing of Isaac on Jacob stood and was fulfilled, and what God said about Esau also came to pass.

In the prophets Jeremiah, Obadiah and Malachi, Esau is mentioned and God declares judgment and calamity for the descendants of Esau. Obadiah is pretty much exclusively about Edom and God’s judgement on it. Because of their violence towards Jacob, and because of their rejoicing at Jacob’s tragedy, God vows that they will be destroyed. God is not happy with how they have dealt with Judah.

It seems that the mention of Edom in Jeremiah is similar to that of Obadiah.

Lastly, we have the mention of Esau in Malachi, which is what’s quoted by Paul in Romans. This is where the Lord says “I have loved Jacob; but I have hated Esau.” (Malachi 1:2-3) The book of Malachi opens by Yahweh addressing Israel, and He says, “I have loved you.” (verse 2) In order to explain and exemplify His love for Israel, God contrasts Israel with Edom. Though Jacob and Esau were brothers, the way that God had dealt with the two nations was quite different.

Israel had been unfaithful to God. Time and time again they sinned, and rebelled, and turned away from Yahweh. Even though this was the case, God chose to continually forgive them and allow them to continue as a nation. Keep in mind that this is not what they deserved. God did it because of His promises, and for His glory, and because Israel had a special place with Him.

Edom on the other hand would receive what they deserved. They were sinful, and God, in response, was going to destroy them. More than this, part of their sin was how they dealt poorly with Israel, and so this further illustrates God’s favoritism of Jacob’s descendants. God not only punished them for sin in general, but His judgment was against them for striving against His chosen nation Israel. With all this in mind, it’s easy to see the difference in how God interacted with these two nations. With Jacob, God was merciful. With Esau, God was just. God loved Jacob, but He hated Esau.

At this point, we must ask, “did God hate Esau the individual man?” It’s clear that Esau did not receive the promises that Jacob did, and God declared this to be so before the two men left Rebekah’s womb. This eventually led to Israel finding mercy and Edom incurring judgment and wrath. But does this choice of nations equate God’s feelings for the individual people that the nations came from?

I think if we look at the story of Jacob and Esau, we don’t necessarily get a clear indication of what God thinks of Esau. God sovereignly gives the birthright and the blessing that were supposed to be Esau’s to Jacob. Certainly this had to be God’s doing as it is stated in Romans 9:11 to be for God’s purpose. So this is an act of God against Esau. But later in the story we see Esau with possessions, and even to have been given land by the hand of God. These don’t seem to be actions of hate, though they don’t prove love necessarily either.

One interesting mention of Esau in the the New Testament is in Hebrews 12:16-17. The author seems to state that Esau was godless, and casts judgment on his decision to sell his birthright for a single meal. It seems to say that this decision is why he also could not inherit the blessing and was instead rejected. It also said that “he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.” (Hebrews 12:17) This passage, I think, does not paint a good picture of Esau and might get us closer to the conclusion that perhaps God did hate the individual man Esau.

At the end of the day, as far as whether or not God really hated the man Esau, I really don’t know. God did not choose him and his offspring for the special blessing. God did give to him and his descendants a land, and even at one point protected that land for them. But in the final outcome, Israel received mercy because they were chosen, and so were preserved, but Edom was not chosen and received justice and was removed. God did for one what He did not do for the other, though both nations came from Isaac.

Considering all of this, we see Paul continue on by asking, “What shall we say then? Is there any unrighteousness with God?” (verse 14)

Whether the Jacob and Esau statement was about individuals or nations, we still cannot deny that God made a choice to give mercy and love to one, and He did not choose to do that to the other. Both deserved wrath. The house of Jacob was obstinate, rebellious and wicked. Yet God, for His purpose did not remove them completely. So does this make God unrighteous? “May it never be!” (verse 14)

Paul then quotes God’s statement to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” (verse 15) This comes from Exodus 33. Before this statement was made, let’s consider the context. Leading up to this, there was the situation where the Israelites made the golden calf to worship while Moses was up on the mountain with God. God said He was going to destroy them all and make a nation from Moses, but Moses pleaded with God and He relented.

After this, God told Moses to keep leading the people to the promised land, but that His presence would not go with them, lest He destroy them along the way. Moses pleaded with God again, saying that God’s presence was what made Israel distinct from all the other nations, and Moses also brought up the fact that he had found favor in God’s sight. So God declared that His presence would go with them. This was because Moses had God’s favor, and God knew him by name.

Moses then requested to see God’s glory. God responded that He would make all His goodness pass by Moses, and that He would proclaim the name of Yahweh, and then said “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.” (Exodus 33:19)

God would not show Moses His face though, because no man can see Him and live. So God said He would pass by and put Moses in the cleft of a rock, and cover him with His hand while He passed, and then allow him to see His back. This is the surrounding context of this quote that was given to Moses.

Back in Romans, after this quotation, Paul explains, “So then it does not depend on the one who wills or the one who runs, but on God who has mercy.” (verse 16) Ultimately, the giving of mercy depends completely upon God, and it is up to Him who may receive it. Even in the Exodus passage, not all of Israel received mercy. After the golden calf incident, many were killed by the Levites. Later, God declared that on the day He punishes, He would punish them for their sin, and He even smote the people, (though it’s not exactly clear in the text what that meant).

Yet Moses found favor with God and had a special place with Him. God did not have to have this relationship with Moses, and He was under no obligation to listen to Moses, but He did.

After mentioning this about Moses, Paul moves to the flip side of the equation. Moses was a man who received mercy from God, but Pharaoh on the other hand, was a man whom God hardened. In verse 17, Paul quotes from Exodus 9:16. God told Pharaoh that He had a purpose for raising him up, and that purpose was to demonstrate His power in Pharaoh and so that His name would be proclaimed in all the earth.

Paul uses this contrast between Moses and Pharaoh to illustrate that God has mercy on whomever He wants and He hardens whomever He wants.

Up to this point, Paul has talked about people and their descendants being chosen by God to receive His promises and covenants. Although these choices have felt somewhat personal, It could be argued that the implications were more general and national. As Paul moves the argument to Moses and Pharaoh, the effects of God’s choice are seen to be, perhaps, a little more individualistic, as well as what we might call a little more invasive. God actively hardening a person’s heart raises some questions.

At this point, it may be helpful to revisit the story of Pharaoh to see if there’s anything in it that we can glean and perhaps benefit from.

The story begins in Exodus chapter 2. Moses was a Hebrew who was raised by the Pharaoh’s daughter. (This is a different Pharaoh than the one mentioned in Romans). One day Moses murdered an Egyptian who had mistreated some Hebrews. He fled to Midian to escape judgment and death. In Midian, he became part of a family and started his own family. During this time, that current Pharaoh died and Israel cried out to God because of their slavery. God heard them, remembered His covenant, and it says He saw them and “knew them.” (Exodus 2:25)

This led to the burning bush where God appeared to Moses and explained that He had seen the Israelites suffering, and heard their cry and He was going to bring them out of Egypt and into a good land. He explained that he was going to send Moses to Pharaoh to tell him to let the Israelites go and worship their God, but the Lord already knew Pharaoh wouldn’t let them go and that it would take a heavy hand, and God was going to bring about miraculous deeds upon Pharaoh and Egypt through all of this. God was telling Moses to go demand something from Pharaoh that He knew Pharaoh would not allow.

Moses, for his part, was not exactly wanting to go. He said he wasn’t a good talker and tried to convince God that he wasn’t the man for the job. God got angry at Moses for trying to get out of it, but said He would provide him with his brother, Aaron, to help with the talking.

In Exodus 4:21, God instructed Moses to go and perform all the signs God gave him, but God said that He would “harden [Pharaoh’s] heart with strength so that he [would] not let the people go.” God also declared that this would lead to the death of Pharaoh’s firstborn.

Moses and Aaron made their first appearance before Pharaoh and requested him to let the people of Israel travel a three day’s journey to worship the Lord. Pharaoh refused and increased the difficulty of their slave labor.

In Exodus chapter 7, God declared again how He would harden Pharaoh’s heart so that He could perform all His signs and wonders in Egypt, and so He could bring out Israel with great judgments upon Egypt so that they would know that God is Yahweh. God clearly said that He was going to have an active role in Pharaoh’s unwillingness to let Israel go, and this was going to accomplish God’s purpose, which was to do great and terrible things in Egypt, and so that His name, Yahweh, would be known in Egypt and in all the world.

Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh again with the sign of the staff becoming a serpent. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened and he did not listen to them, just as Yahweh had spoken.

Then, Moses and Aaron met Pharaoh at the Nile, where they turned the water into blood. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened again and he didn’t listen.

After this, God caused frogs to overtake the land. Pharaoh told Moses that if God got rid of the frogs then he would let the Israelites go and worship. So Moses asked God and He made all the frogs to die. This time it says Pharaoh hardened his own heart when he saw there was relief and he did not let them go.

Next, God sent a plague of gnats over the land. Up to this point, Pharaoh’s magicians had been able to recreate every sign that Moses and Aaron had done. This was the first sign that the magicians could not also recreate and so they told Pharaoh that it must have been the hand of God doing this. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened again.

Next was the swarms of flies. Pharaoh told Moses that they could sacrifice to God but they had to stay in the land. Moses refused, so Pharaoh told them they could go sacrifice but not travel too far. At this, Moses asked God to remove the flies and He did. This time, it says Pharaoh hardened his own heart again.

After this, God struck the livestock of Egypt, but Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. Then God struck them with boils and sores. This time the Scripture explicitly says Yahweh hardened Pharaoh’s heart.

The next plague to come would be hail. God told Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him that God was going to send all His plagues upon him and his people, so that he “may know there is no one like [God] in all the earth.” (Exodus 9:14) God told Pharaoh that He could’ve wiped him and his people out from the earth with pestilence, but instead He made Pharaoh to stand for a purpose. This is actually the statement quoted by Paul in Romans.

God said, “for this reason I have caused you to stand, in order to show you My power and in order to recount My name through all the earth.” (Exodus 9:16) God said Pharaoh was still exalting himself against Israel by not letting them go. Then He declared that he was going to send the hail, and that anything in the field would be destroyed. Those who feared the word of the Lord listened to Him and brought in their livestock and their servants from the field, but some people didn’t take it to heart and did not do what the Lord had warned them to do.

God sent the rain, thunder and hail and all that was in the field was destroyed. Pharaoh sent for Moses and pleaded that it would stop and said he would let them go. When Moses had it stopped though, Pharaoh changed his mind. It says here that he “sinned again and hardened his heart with firmness.” (Exodus 9:34)

The next plague was the locusts. God told Moses to go to Pharaoh, and that He had hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that He could perform these signs among them. God also said it was so that the Israelites could recount for generations how He dealt severely with the Egyptians and that they would know that God is Yahweh.

So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and on behalf of Yahweh they said, “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me?… If you refuse to let my people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your territory…” (Exodus 10:3-4)

This seems like an odd statement, considering that God was purposely hardening Pharaoh’s heart so that he would not let the Israelites go. God was doing this so that He could bring about these magnificent plagues, and so that He could be known as the Lord in Egypt and throughout the world. How is it that God can be actively working this out, and yet find fault in Pharaoh for his participation in this overall plan?

Apart from Romans, one could read this story and perhaps overlook the significance of what’s happening here, but Paul really brings it front and center. There’s a tension here that is not easily dealt with by logic. I won’t dive too deep here as we will look at this further when we get back to Romans. I just wanted to point out some of the language used here that seems to justify Paul in bringing up this example for his specific argument.

Back to the story, Moses and Aaron threatened Pharaoh with the locusts and then left. Pharaoh’s servants actually pleaded with Pharaoh to let the men go, as they rightly saw that Egypt was decimated. So Pharaoh brought them back and tried to strike a deal where only the men went to go worship Yahweh. This didn’t work though and so God caused the locusts to come.

When the locusts came, they ate everything that had survived the hail. Pharaoh saw this and quickly called Moses and Aaron, asking for their forgiveness and for relief from the plague. God removed all the locusts, but then it says “Yahweh hardened Pharaoh’s heart with strength, and he did not let the sons of Israel go.” (Exodus 10:20)

After this, God sent darkness on Egypt. Pharaoh offered for all of Israel to go if they only left their animals behind. Moses refused and then Yahweh hardened Pharaoh’s heart again. Pharaoh sent them away for the last time.

God then announced His last sign, His last terrible plague that He knew would force the Egyptians to send Israel out. God was going to kill all the firstborn in Egypt. From Pharaoh, to the servants, to the cattle. All the firstborn would be killed on that night. Only Israel would be spared to illustrate the distinction God made between Israel and Egypt. Moses and Aaron told this to Pharaoh, but he did not listen. God even told Moses, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that My miraculous wonders will be multiplied in the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 11:9) And it says once again that Yahweh hardened Pharaoh’s heart.

So on the Passover night, all the firstborn in all of Egypt died, and there was a great cry. There was not a house where someone had not died. God only passed over the Israelites because they had put the blood of the lambs on their door posts as God had instructed.

Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron in the night and told them to go. All of Israel along with all they had.

After the Israelites left, they came up to the Red Sea. Yahweh then hardened Pharaoh’s heart again so that he gathered his chariots and pursued them. God split the sea so Israel passed through on dry ground, and then He yet again hardened Pharaoh’s heart so that the Egyptians followed them into the sea. God then sent the Egyptians into a confusion and troubled their chariots, and as they were fleeing, He brought the waters back down on them so that they all died. This was so that Yahweh would be glorified through Pharaoh and all his army.

In this account, the Scriptures mention Pharaoh hardening his own heart I think three times. It says that his heart “was hardened” without an explicit mention of the cause, I believe four times. And the Scriptures mention God hardening Pharaoh’s heart, or how He is going to harden Pharaoh’s heart at least nine times. The majority of occurrences where Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, or where it talks about how it’s going to be hardened, are attributed directly to the Lord. Yahweh was the One who was planning on hardening Pharaoh. From the beginning of the story, God made it known that this was His plan.

Pharaoh, for his part, did harden his own heart, and even in one occurrence it said that by doing so he had “sinned.” He was blameworthy for this. But at the same time, it’s hard to imagine that he really had any other choice. God from the outset had determined that Pharaoh would have a hardened heart, and that he wouldn’t let the people go. This was all to fulfill a specific purpose, so that God could show His mighty and awesome power through His plagues, and to make His name known in all the earth.

Furthermore, we see God command Pharaoh to do something that He knows Pharaoh won’t do, and really can’t even do. So this is interesting also.

I will say at this point that we don’t really know what kind of guy Pharaoh was before his entrance into this story. He was the king of Egypt, and had obviously kept the people of Israel under harsh slavery. We don’t know, but he probably was a pretty bad guy by our standards. But on the other hand, how do we know that Moses, God’s chosen servant, was any better?

Moses was a murderer. And when God wanted to send him back to Egypt, he didn’t want to go. You could say that Pharaoh deserved the harsh treatment that he received, but did Moses deserve the mercy? Was there any predisposition in these two men that made them more desirable for mercy or hardening? Was there any part of who they were, or their character, that would give God a justifiable reason for using them the way He did? And if so, could these traits be attributed to anything other than God Himself in the first place? These are big questions.

Now that we’ve looked at the story of Pharaoh, maybe we can understand the context of what Paul is saying better. Let’s jump back to Romans now.

In Romans 9:16, Paul says “it does not depend on the one who wills or the one who runs, but on God who has mercy.” Then Paul quotes the passage where God tells Pharaoh the purpose He had in raising him up, which was to demonstrate His power and to make His name known. Paul then concludes, “so then He has mercy on whom He desires, and he hardens whom he desires.” (Verse 18)

We have looked pretty thoroughly at the hardening of Pharaoh, and the outcome of that. We also know of the mercy of God towards Moses and the people of Israel. Paul says in a matter of fact way, that when it comes to God’s mercy and His hardening, God does what he desires to whom he desires.

In verse 19, Paul then anticipates the question that some might be asking at this point. If God wills certain things to happen, like for example, Pharaoh having a hard heart and not letting Israel go, then how is it that he finds fault in people for those things? Looking at the story of Pharaoh, I feel like this could be a fair question to ask. And I think the implications of this question are broader than just the isolated event with Pharaoh. Pharaoh was a specific example used to illustrate what is really a broader principle, that God chooses on whom to have mercy, and whom to harden, and He does it for His purposes.

At this point in the argument, Paul had the perfect opportunity to set things straight for us. After he poses this hard question, he could’ve explained how people do what they want to do. He could have exonerated God from any perceived responsibility in the matter. He could have said that people do resist God’s will and do bad things, according to, and only in their own volition and free will.

The fact is though, Paul doesn’t answer this question for us. Paul does not attempt to create an argument that seems logical and palatable. Paul really doesn’t try to explain this mystery, and in his silence, we are left with a sense of mystery about how this all works.

Instead of appealing to man’s libertarian freedom to do evil, Paul asks the question, “who are you, O man, who answers back to God?” (Verse 20) Basically he’s saying, who do you think you are? What right or ability do you, a mere man, have in questioning God? And then he goes further to ask if the thing that’s molded will question the molder why he made it the way He did. Also, doesn’t the potter have authority over the clay to make different things for different purposes, as he chooses to do so?

The implication of these statements, it seems, is that we are not in any place to question how or why God does what He does. It reminds me of a child who asks their parent “why?” and gets the answer, “because I said so.” In parenting, this may or may not always be the most effective explanation, but it does illustrate an appeal to authority, and perhaps even a higher wisdom and understanding of the parent over the child. How much more is the authority, the wisdom and the understanding of God over and above us, not even to be compared with the gap between a parent and child.

We also see in the picture of the potter and the clay that God just simply has the authority to do what he wants with what He’s created. This may seem callous, cruel and impersonal because it could possibly lead us to imagine a God who doesn’t value the people that He has created. It is vitally important at this point to consider all of Scripture, and to remember what we know about God.

In John 3:16 it says that “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” This is a God of love, who sacrifices Himself out of love to offer eternal life to those who only deserve death.

Romans 5:8 says “God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Again we see not a malevolent, cruel deity, but One who is sacrificial towards those whom He loves, even though at the time of His sacrifice they were all unworthy sinners.

In 1 John 4:8 we see that “God is love.” He is love Himself. What love truly is, is who God is. We don’t know what love would even be without Him. This might sound somewhat esoteric, but He is the epitome of what love actually is, and His love is perhaps best tangibly displayed by His sacrifice of His Son Jesus for people who did not love Him and were sinners deserving of wrath.

In Exodus 34:6-7 we get to see what God declares about Himself and His character to Moses. “Yahweh, Yahweh God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generation.” In this passage we do see God’s justice and His righteous punishment against those who do evil, but that’s not all that we get here. What we see first is a God who is “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin.”

What God teaches us in Romans 9 is true, because all of Scripture is true, but we must not lose sight of the whole picture. This idea that God has the right to do what He wants with people, for His purposes, may seem hard to accept, but we want to concurrently hold onto what we know about God and His goodness from the rest of Scripture. We must hold onto both truths together. We must admit that God is sovereign and that we, as mere humans cannot judge how God operates in His sovereignty. We must also remember that God is a God of love and self-sacrifice, a God of compassion and lovingkindness. One who offers forgiveness and everlasting life to undeserving sinners. We may be tempted to see God as bad or mean because of the teaching of Romans 9. A dictator whose answer to our questioning of His sovereignty is “because I said so.” But our God is a good God and we must always remember that this is true, and so trust that God is ultimately using His sovereignty in a way that is good.

This leads us to verses 22 and 23 in Romans 9, perhaps some of the hardest verses that there are. Paul continues making his points through the use of rhetorical questions. These rhetorical questions seem to be asserting not just a hypothetical possibility, but the reality of how things are.

Romans 9:22-23 says, “And what if God, wanting to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath having been prepared for destruction, and in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory…”

In verse 22, we see that there are vessels of wrath. God wants to use these vessels of wrath to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known. Think of the example of Pharaoh. Through Pharaoh, God’s wrath and His power were seen and made known to the world. Pharaoh is not the only vessel of wrath though, there are more, and God will use them to display His wrath and power.

God will demonstrate His wrath and make His power known through these vessels, but before He does, He will endure them with much patience. This is an interesting statement. It also says that these vessels have been “prepared for destruction,” or rather, “having been prepared for destruction.”

I’ll start with what I know here, and then follow with what I don’t know. This verse is a little complicated and I don’t know if I’m competent enough to discern everything that is in it.

I do know that God wants to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known. It seems like these vessels of wrath serve that purpose. I know that God endures them with much patience, presumably up to the point where they receive the wrath. I also know they have been, or are being prepared for destruction. The word used here for “having been prepared” can also mean to complete, complete thoroughly, repair, adjust, fit or mend. To me, it seems to give this idea of being made ready for something.

Now the things I don’t know. I don’t know exactly what it means that God endures them with much patience. I suppose this probably means that He allows these people to live and act for some time before the final day comes when He displays His wrath and power through them.

I also don’t know what it means that they have been prepared for destruction. Does this mean that from the day God created them they were prepared for destruction? Did God create them specifically for destruction? Although it’s easy to read this verse and get some sense of that, the verb here seems to mean “prepare” in the sense that you have an object, and then you get that object ready for some purpose. Not necessarily that the object was initially created for that purpose. Though the initial creation for that purpose could be the case as well.

This is where you get into the question of double predestination and whether some were initially created for hell. We have to ask, does this verse teach that doctrine? I don’t know if it goes as far as to explicitly teach that, although it’s hard to deny the possibility that it may hint at it. We do know that something gets them ready for the role of being destroyed. This act of preparation though, in the way it’s worded, is not directly attributed to God. We also don’t know when this process begins. Does God decide before a person is born to create them so that He can destroy them, and so before their existence they are being prepared for destruction? Or does it come later? These are deep, weighty questions of which I really don’t have perfect answers for.

Let’s move onto verse 23. In verse 22 we see that God endures with much patience the vessels of wrath, and that they are being prepared for destruction. We see that God’s purpose in enduring these vessels who are prepared for destruction is, in part, because He wants to demonstrate His wrath and make known His power. In verse 23, we get another reason why He deals with these vessels of wrath the way He does. He does it “in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory.”

So another purpose God has in regards to the vessels of wrath is to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy. The way that He deals with those of wrath actually brings to light the extent and the value of His glory for those that receive mercy from Him. It is when we see God’s power and wrath against those to be destroyed that we might even begin to understand the depths of His mercy and goodness towards those whom He decides to grant forgiveness and eternal life.

The amazing thing is that both groups deserve God’s righteous punishment. It is amazing that anybody would receive mercy. Those vessels of mercy are blessed beyond comprehensibility, and part of the way that God makes these riches known, and is glorified by it, is through the display of His wrath and power. As hard as it may be to accept, part of God’s glory is His wrath and power. Both on its own, and as a tool of comparison for His great mercy.

Another interesting observation is this. Whereas the preparation of the vessels of wrath for destruction is not directly attributed to God in the wording, the preparation of the vessels of mercy for glory is directly attributed to God, and it says He did it beforehand. God has in the past prepared for glory these vessels of mercy.

What does it mean that He has prepared them for glory? I get the sense that this preparation for glory, just like the preparation for destruction, finds its fulfillment on the last day. There will be a day where the fate of every man is on display, and this age as we know it will end. Some will be destroyed as objects of wrath and suffer eternal condemnation, but some will experience glory with Christ forever. The use of this verb that denotes preparation beforehand gives us assurance that God knows who are His people, and He does what is needed to secure their ultimate salvation before that final day arrives.

Who are these vessels of mercy? Well, praise be to to God that this is us, if we are called! If we trust in Christ, then we are vessels of mercy, which is a wonderful and astonishing truth. And must we be of Jewish descent to be called? No! God has called vessels of mercy even from among the Gentiles.

Here we see a return to one of Paul’s main points, the Jew and Gentile question. Romans 9 has a strong focus on answering the question of why so many of Israel are not receiving God’s promise. Paul spends a good amount of time expounding on that sentiment, and now he’s going to include a new facet to the discussion, which is the inclusion of Gentiles into God’s promise. On the one hand, Jews are rejecting the promise and plan of God, and in so doing, are being excluded. On the other hand, as we are about to see, Gentiles are being included and called into the plan of God. What is going on here?

After declaring that the Gentiles would also be among the called, Paul quotes Hosea. He first quotes Hosea 2:23. In this passage, God is talking about a future hope for the restoration of Israel. Although Israel had gone after other gods and been horribly unfaithful to the Lord, He was going to bring them back. Their unfaithfulness was so great that God said they were not even His people anymore. But His plan was to restore, and so He says in Hosea 2:23, “I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion, and I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people.’ And they will say, ‘You are my God!’”

In Hosea 2:14, we see that although Israel had gone “after her lovers, so that she forgot [Yahweh],” (verse 13) The Lord would “allure her.” (Verse 14) The Lord would do a work to bring them back. The fact that it is the Lord who “allures” Israel shows that it is His work and His initiation that will bring this about.

The second Hosea quote from Paul is from Hosea 1:10. The book of Hosea opens with Yahweh telling Hosea to go marry a harlot and have children with her, because Israel had committed harlotry against God and God was going to use Hosea and this harlot and their children as an illustration for Israel.

God goes on to say that He’s going to make the kingdom of the house of Israel to cease. He would no longer have compassion on Israel or forgive them, but He would have compassion on Judah. God even goes as far as to say that “you are not My people, and I am not your God.” (Hosea 1:9)

In a sudden turn though, God says that the sons of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which can’t be measured, and “in the place where it is said to them, ‘you are not My people,’ it will be said to them, ‘you are the sons of the living God.’” (Hosea 1:10)

In Romans, Paul uses these passages right after he says that Gentiles will be included in those who are vessels of mercy. One really interesting thing about this though, is that these passages in Hosea were originally referring to, at least it seems, to Israel and the Jews. So, in making his argument that Gentiles are now included, he uses Scripture that would’ve originally been thought of to be talking about God’s restoration of sinful Israel. I can only speculate why he does this, or how everything fits together in God’s divine wisdom and foreknowledge, but one thing I know for sure is that this is a beautiful picture of God’s grace.

If the passages in Hosea were only about Israel, they are so gracious and good that even an outsider could rejoice at the thought of a God who would lovingly take back such a horrible, rebellious people. It is a clear and wonderful picture of mercy. But to know now that God also intends to broaden His inclusion by calling those that were never His people in the first place, to be His people, His beloved and His children… This is amazing and cannot be appreciated enough.

He then goes on to quote Isaiah 10:22 and 23 in regards to Israel. In this passage, Isaiah is talking about what will come after the attack of the Assyrians and their exile of Israel. God says that a remnant will return to Him after this. Though there be many Israelites in number, only a remnant will return. God had decreed a complete destruction in the whole land, but after God’s anger is complete against Israel He will turn His anger towards the Asyyrians.

These two verses in Isaiah are really in the middle of a whole discourse about God’s plan to use Assyria to punish Israel and then His plan to crush Assyria because of their pride. Right in the middle of that we have this statement about a remnant of Israel being left.

When you read this passage in Romans, it seems like a sort of threat, or dismal truth, and in one sense it is. Out of a great multitude, only a remnant will actually turn back to God. Only a remnant will even escape the Assyrians and be left. This is not a very uplifting thought. But if you consider the punishment that Israel actually deserved, then there is a sense in which it can be encouraging to consider that a remnant remains. This may be why Paul uses his next quote from Isaiah.

In verse 29, Paul quotes Isaiah 1:9. “Unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left to us a seed, we would have become like Sodom, and would have resembled Gomorrah.”

Isaiah begins his book by talking about the sins of Judah. They have sinned against God, they are corrupt and estranged. They are sick, and this has all led to the devastation of them and their land. Unless Yahweh had left them some survivors, they would have been like Sodom and Gomorrah.

What was the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah? Complete and total destruction. Judah could have had that same fate. Was it the goodness of a few people that allowed some remnant to remain? Probably not. It was God’s decision to leave a few survivors.

This ties back to the last point, that only a remnant will be saved, and if it weren’t for the Lord’s decision to leave a few, nobody would be saved at all. If it weren’t for the Lord’s grace, Israel would have actually just been completely destroyed.

Paul goes back to the Gentiles in verse 30, and says that even though the Gentiles didn’t pursue righteousness, they’ve laid hold of the righteousness that is by faith. Israel on the other hand, “pursued a law of righteousness” but “did not attain that law.” (verse 31) The Gentiles didn’t really have a law to strive for. They weren’t seeking righteousness in the way that the Israelites were. Yet by faith they received what the Israelites did not.

Why did the Israelites not attain the righteousness that they pursued? “Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works.” (Verse 32) The Israelites thought that through the law, they could achieve righteousness. There was some notion that they could actually work their way into a right standing with God. This is simply not true though.

In Romans 3:20 it says “by the works of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight.” So Paul gives this singular reason why Israel did not attain righteosness. It’s because they thought they could work for it and did not have faith. Through this means, many Gentiles were then included and many Israelites were excluded. All because of what they thought would make them righteous. They were wrong about what would make them right.

It’s funny, because at this point I want to say so much more about this astounding truth, but it’s really just that simple. Righteousness is through faith, and you can never work your way there. If you try to work your way there, you will certainly miss it and be left in your sins. If you stop, and put your faith in God through Jesus Christ, you will attain righteousness. Gloriously, a righteousness you never earned and did not deserve. A righteousness that is not even your own, but given to you by a merciful and loving God who desires to make a people for Himself from those who were estranged, rebellious, and far off.

Nobody, truly nobody, deserves this right standing with God. We have seen throughout this chapter that God chooses unworthy people to carry His promises and covenants. Some are not chosen. Some are even used to display God’s power and wrath. God is not unjust in doing this, as this should truly be the fate of us all. Yet God’s mercy and glory are seen in that He does save some. He keeps an undeserving remnant, and they exhibit the riches of His glory.

Finally we come to the end of the chapter with verse 33. What happened to the Israelites that they did not attain righteousness? “They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and the one who believes upon Him will not be put to shame.’” (verses 32-33)

Paul seems to be quoting from two places in Isaiah here. The first is Isaiah 28:16, where God addresses the rulers in Jerusalem who scoff at death and hide behind falsehood and lying. God says He will lay a stone in Zion, “a tested stone, a costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.” Then He talks about how a time of reckoning was going to come, and it was not going to be pleasant.

The second quote is from Isaiah 8:14. In this section, Isaiah is talking about how the Assyrians are just about to come invade Israel and destroy their land. And then God instructs Isaiah not to fear what the people fear, but to fear Yahweh. If Isaiah did this, then God would become a sanctuary to him. “But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, and a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 8:14)

What does this mean? What is this stone that is causing the people of Israel to stumble? This stone of stumbling and rock of offense? The people of Israel stumbled over Jesus. Jesus is this stone.

When Jesus came, the Jews did not understand. Not only did they not understand, but they were offended by Him. They rejected Him, and so were rejected, missing the promises of God that found their fulfillment in the Messiah.

The Gentiles on the other hand gained access to the family of God by what He did through Christ. They were not even seeking God, and God came down and offered them relationship and salvation. The Jews thought they were seeking God, and God came down, and it caused them to stumble. As we see in this chapter, only a remnant of the sons of Israel will turn back to God.

As long as they, or anyone else, believes that they can work to be counted righteous, they will stumble over the stone and miss out on mercy. But if they lay hold of the righteousness that is only by faith, then those who were not God’s can become His children, whether Jew or Gentile. The word of God has not failed, as from the beginning of the story, some have been chosen and some have not. The unbelievable thing is not that some are lost. The unbelievable thing is that any are saved at all. Whenever there are those selected by God for wrath and those selected for mercy, both parties are actually deserving of wrath. Some think that they can do something to be worthily counted as righteous, but then they have stumbled over the cornerstone that God has set in place, which is Jesus.

Nobody can do anything to be chosen by God. He alone offers us the only way to righteousness, and that is by faith alone. But any attempt to get there with any effort of our own is just a stumbling towards destruction.

At this point, now that I have reached the end of the chapter, I would like to take just a little time to summarize some of what I have learned and observed from Romans 9.

The first thing I’ve learned, is that it is alright to grieve for those who are lost. Some people may never accept Christ, and therefore never receive the mercy of God. Paul was aware that not all of his Israelite brothers and sisters would turn to God. In fact, only a remnant would. But he did not become callous because of this. Rather, he was sorrowful. I don’t think we should become emotionless or cold towards those who are rejecting God. Rather, we should desire that they be found by the Lord, and allow ourselves to be sad that they are currently without Christ.

Secondly, the fact that many Israelites have not accepted Christ does not mean the word of God has failed. Throughout history, God has chosen some for His purposes and left others out. Though Jacob was chosen to be the father of God’s special nation, physical descent from him does not guarantee access to the promises of God.

Furthermore, God’s choice of who He wants to use does not depend on those people and what they do. God chooses people so that His purpose and plans can be fulfilled, and they most certainly are fulfilled. It’s not about human effort, it is about God and what He wants to do.

This principle extends beyond general plans, and also includes the giving of mercy. God gives mercy to whom He desires. More than this, God even hardens whom He desires. God may harden, and yet people are still culpable for their sin. Some aspects of this are obvious, because Scripture seems to affirm that people are capable of making meaningful choices and carry with that the responsibility of those choices. There are some aspects of how this works though, that seem to be somewhat of a mystery. Paul does not offer us detailed explanations. Rather, he shows us how humble and lowly we ought to be before the Lord God. It is not our place to question how, or why He does certain things.

Another observation is that God has the ability and the right to do with His creation as He pleases. We are part of His creation, and He can, and does, use us for His purposes. Who are we to make an argument against Him? There are some who will be counted as vessels of wrath. These will serve the purpose of displaying God’s wrath and power. But that is not all. Through these vessels of wrath, the riches of God’s glory will be shown upon vessels of mercy. These vessels of mercy will be prepared beforehand by God Himself for glory.

Another thing that I have seen in this chapter, is how God is making for Himself a people out of Jews and Gentiles. A remnant of the Jews will turn back to their God, and God also will call to Himself people who are not Israelites, those who were never before His people. Praise be to God for this thing that He has done!

There are so many more things I could talk about, but the last thing I’ll mention is the stumbling stone. Really, the whole discussion rightly ends with Jesus. Jesus is the reason that Gentiles can be included into the family of God. Jesus is also the reason that many Israelites have stumbled. The good news is that by faith we can be counted righteous by God. Faith in God through Jesus is the only way to be righteous. Many though, strive to achieve righteousness through what they do. Those who try to work for a right standing with God will miss His grace, they will reject His mercy, they will stumble, and they will ultimately be lost. Those who put their trust in the cornerstone that God has laid, they will never be put to shame.

What shall we say then? All things, at all times, for all people, depend wholly on God who calls and gives mercy. He offers us righteousness through faith. Have faith in Christ, and reject your own ability to do anything at all to be made right. Rather, humbly come to the Father who longs to make a people for Himself, that His glory might be seen in all the world, and that His unfailing purposes might be revealed as He works out all things.

Simply put, the two proper responses I see to Romans 9, are humility and faith…

*“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”