14What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15For he says to Moses,
"I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
16It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy. 17For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." 18Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?" 20But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?' " 21Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?
22What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25As he says in Hosea:
"I will call them 'my people' who are not my people;
and I will call her 'my loved one' who is not my loved one," 26and,
"It will happen that in the very place where it was said to them,
'You are not my people,'
they will be called 'sons of the living God.' "
27Isaiah cries out concerning Israel:
"Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea,
only the remnant will be saved.
28For the Lord will carry out
his sentence on earth with speed and finality."
29It is just as Isaiah said previously:
"Unless the Lord Almighty
had left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom,
we would have been like Gomorrah."
Main Points and Discussion Questions
1. God does everything for His own glory; therefore, He cannot be accused of injustice (vv. 14-18).
- Paul asked, “Is God unjust?” in anticipation of objections to his teaching that God chose Jacob and rejected Esau on no other basis but His own will (vv. 10-13)
- God is just when he acts according to His own character and plan – and what is his plan? To make his glory (i.e. the manifestation of His rule, majesty, and supremacy) known. (v. 17; Isa 6:3)
a) He glorifies Himself in mercy (v. 15, Isa 43:6-7; Eph 1:4-6)
b) But He also glorifies Himself in justice and judgment (v. 17; Ex 9:13-18; Ex. 14:18; Isa 5:16; Eze 28:21-22; Rom 3:21-26)
c) In short, He is free to glorify Himself in whatever way He wishes (v. 15, v.18).
Discussion Question 1: Some might object that God’s ultimate plan is to do everything for His own glory, because they think this would make God out to be “selfish”, which is precisely not what He wants His own people to be. How would you reply to that?
2. God is free to use His creatures however He wishes (vv. 19-23).
- Paul anticipates another objection – one that is commonly made by many professing Christians today who deny God’s sovereignty in election: “How can God hold us responsible for unbelief if He is the one who determines everything?” (v.19)
-In response, Paul makes no attempt to logically explain how God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility can co-exist. Not only is he content to accept the reality as it is, but he rebukes the questioner (v. 20)!
-The only response Paul makes is to affirm God’s right, as Creator and Ruler of the universe, to do as He wants with everything – and everyone – He creates (v. 21, Jer 18:5-10). Either way, He makes His glory known (vv. 22-23).
Discussion Question 2: What are the proper ways for us to respond to this doctrine of God’s freedom to do as He wishes? At the same time, however, what are some ideas we should not conclude from this?
3. The only basis for inclusion in the true people of God is God’s call (vv. 24-29).
-“Since God’s grace is what matters, then he is free to call Gentiles into His kingdom as well as Jews” (Moo, NIV Application Commentary: Romans, p. 321)
The structure of this section is something like this (ABBA pattern):
A God calls (some) Jews (v. 24a)
B God calls Gentiles (v. 24b)
B Old Testament confirms God’s call of Gentiles (vv. 25-26)
A Old Testament confirms God’s call of (some) Jews (vv. 27-29)
Contemporary application: Both the Old and New Testaments form a singular story about God’s plan to redeem a people through a Saviour-King. The New Testament should not be thought of as God’s “Plan B”, as if God had intended to save the whole nation of Israel in the Old Testament, but then “changed His mind” when He discovered that some of them wouldn’t believe.
