Gospel Light Christian Church Thru-The-Bible Series (10.2)

The Epistle to the Romans

Romans 9:17-33 - Read this Bible passage once through before referring to the notes below

v.17 Quote from EXO 9:16. The primary reason why God withheld His restraining grace from Pharaoh and allowed him to become worse and worse so that God's power could be revealed was not because Pharaoh was inherently worse than others but because God chose to withhold His grace from him. Similarly, the reason why God punished Pharaoh was not because Pharaoh was worse than others but that God's holiness might be glorified. The glory of God is always the primary reason for all of God's actions (and should be main reason for our actions too too).

v.18 This is the conclusion drawn from verses 14-17. God does not directly cause any man to harden his heart so that he would sin - this would be against His holy nature. However, God withholds His restraining grace from those who desire to sin and this restraint is, in a figure of speech, spoken of as if God had actually done the hardening (see 2SA 24:l and 1CH 21:1). God is not the author of evil, neither does He merely sit back and permit evil. Evil is from man himself and God orders and allows events for his punishment (including hardening of the heart) because God hates sin. In other words, if man determines to sin, God often grants him the desire of his heart!

v.19 The first objection to the doctrine of election is about God's sovereign right to choose. This is the second objection. The objector speaks as if man is innocent, and cruelly manipulated by God. But the truth is that it is man that sins first - and God then deals with him in response to his sin. Therefore, the result of the doctrine of election is that he who is pardoned cannot say it was because he was better, while he who is condemned must acknowledge that he receives what he deserves.

v.20 Paul rebukes those who dare to question God’s integrity. And he states God's right as Creator (ie, him that formed it). Objectors of the doctrine of election think that God is obliged to extend His grace to all – because they are His children. They forget that Adam chose to reject God’ mercy.

v.21 Paul uses the example of a potter who has rights to decide to make out of the same lump one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour. No one ever questions the potter's right to do this, but many question God's rights to do what He desires with His creatures. Why is it that man has the right to choose but God does not? Humanistic philosophy gives man more rights than God.

v.22 Supposing that God chose to allow the vessels of wrath (eg. Pharaoh) to continue in sin (without restraining them) so that He could make his power known (as He poured out His holy anger on them) – do we have a right to question God's right to do this with His creatures?       

v.23 In contrast to God's awesome demonstration of wrath on Pharaoh, His mercy to the Jews, that escaped from Egypt, was even more impressive. Therefore, God demonstrated His riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy.

v.24 God's blessings are reserved for the vessels of mercy, ie, those whom he hath called - Jews and Gentiles.

v.25 In the previous verse Paul had said that God had called the Gentiles. He now proves that he was not saying something ridiculous by referring to the Old Testament. This verse is quoted from Hosea 2:23. (Osee is the Greek way of calling Hosea.)

v.26 Quote from Hosea 1:10 – indicating that God will save the Gentiles too.

v.27 Paul goes on to show from ISA 10:22,23 that only a small proportion of Jews would be saved. (Esaias is the Greek way of calling Isaiah.)

v.28 "For He will execute the judgment and accomplish it speedily, for the judgment that God determined to do, will He do."

v.29 Quote from ISA 1:9. The wickedness of the Jews (in terms of pride and perversion of God's truth) was so great that God should have destroyed them as He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrha.

v.30 What is the inference from the previous discussion? Namely, the Gentiles are called and the Jews are rejected. The Gentiles who did not try to be righteous but lived a life of sin and idolatry (ie, "which followed not after righteousness") obtained the "righteousness which is of faith" (ie, which is attained by faith in Jesus Christ).

v.31 But the Jews which attended diligently to obtaining righteousness through performing the demands of the Mosaic Law (as they interpreted it) did not "attain to the law of righteousness" which is attained by faith.

v.32 Why? Because they did not submit to God’s method of obtaining righteousness (ie, by faith) but attempted to obtain it by their own efforts. Proud man believes that he can save himself and finds God's method of salvation too humbling for them, and they stumble on it (ie, reject it).

v.33 The simple carpenter’s son, the Lord Jesus Christ, was rejected by the proud Jews. He was an “offence” to their pride. However, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed on the Day of Judgment.