Romans chapter 10 verses 17 through 21, the differing response of the Jews and Gentiles. Paul verse 17," So then faith comes through hearing and hearing through the Word of God, faith comes through hearing." Paul says," Faith comes through hearing, not through seeing." Many Jews actually saw Jesus, and they witnessed His miracles. Yet relatively few believed in Him, for they did not pay attention to His teaching. In contrast, few Gentiles personally saw Jesus or witnessed His miracles.
However, they came to faith from hearing the gospel. As Jesus told Thomas," Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." John chapter 20 verse 29," Through the Word of God." Paul next says that hearing comes through the Word of God. In other words, it is not ordinary words that bring people to faith in Christ.
Rather, as Theodoret comments," Whoever disbelieves disbelieves the divine oracles, and whoever believes, having received the divine words, brings forth faith as the fruit of His hearing." Chrysostom provides the following insight:" The Jews were forever seeking a sign and wanting to see the resurrection with their own eyes." They constantly yearned for such things. For that reason, Paul tells them," Yet the prophet promised no such thing.
Rather, he said that it was through hearing that we were to believe." Therefore, Paul says," So then faith comes through hearing." But since hearing may seem like an inconsequential thing, notice how Paul elevates it. For he suggests," I am not speaking about ordinary hearing." Instead, I mean a majestic sort of hearing. For this kind of hearing is through the Word of God. The apostles were not proclaiming their own message. Rather, they were preaching what they had learned from God.
And this is a higher thing than even miracles. Opponent verse 18a. But I say they have not heard. Although our English Bibles usually translate the opponent's words as a question, the early Christians understand the opponent to be making an assertion. He is once again complaining that the Jews have not heard. This is so blatantly false that Paul immediately contradicts him.
Paul verse 18b," Indeed they have, for their sound went throughout all the earth and their words to the ends of the world." Chrysostom comments, and Paul responds," What are you claiming that they have not heard? Why the whole world and the ends of the earth have heard? And have you Jews not heard? Why the evangelists lived for such a long time right among you? In fact, they were from your very land. So how can you say that you have not heard? Surely, if the ends of the world have heard, how much more so have you?
Ambrosiaster adds," Paul is testifying that God's preaching has been so widely heard by the Jews that he can even declare that the whole world is filled with the divine proclamation." Colossians 1:23:" If the apostolic preaching reached every place, then the Jews could not fail to hear it." So none of them is excused from the charge of unbelief. Because his fictional opponent is a Jew, Paul answers the opponent by quoting from the Psalms.
Paul shows him that it had been prophesied that the sound of the evangelists would go throughout all the earth. Psalm 19:3 Septuagint. The New Testament shows that the Jews were the first to hear. Jesus had told His apostles," Rather, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Matthew 10:6. For several years, the gospel went exclusively to the Jews, Samaritans, and Jewish proselytes.
Even Paul, who was sent to the Gentiles, would normally first preach the gospel in the local synagogues of the cities where he went. Acts chapter 13:14, chapter 14 verse 1, chapter 17 verse 1, verse 10, chapter 18 verse 4, chapter 19 verse 8. For example, he told the Jews in Antioch of Pisidia," It was necessary that God's Word should be spoken to you first. Since indeed you thrust it from yourselves and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles." Acts chapter 13:46.
Opponent, verse 19, but I say Israel did not know. The opponent keeps insisting that Israel should be excused because they did not know. He is saying that something must have gone wrong if the Gentiles are believing, but the Jews are not. Paul verse 19B. First, Moses says," I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation, and by a foolish nation, I will anger you." Moses' prophecy was being fulfilled in front of their very eyes. So the Jews were without excuse.
Chrysostom summarizes the opponent's list of excuses and Paul's responses. The opponent is saying," For what if they heard but did not understand what was being said? What if they did not realize that these were the heralds sent?
Are they not to be forgiven for their ignorance?" Paul replies," By no means, for Isaiah had described the character of the apostles with the words," How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace?" Chrysostom continues, and Paul says, first Moses says," I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you." Deuteronomy chapter 32:21. Therefore, even from Moses' words, they should have been able to recognize the preachers.
They should have understood it from the very fact that they were seeing their inferiors, that is, people from the Gentiles, being held in greater honor than themselves. First Moses says," The reason Paul writes first, Moses says, is that he follows up the quotation from Moses with a second quotation, one from Isaiah, by those who are not a nation. Why does Moses call the believing Gentiles not a nation? Origen answers, each nation is called this or that nation.
For example, they are called the Egyptians, the Syrians, or Moabites. Each nation is distinguished by its own borders, language, customs, manners, and institutions. The Syrians are never called the Egyptians, nor are the Moabites called the Idumeans, nor are the Scythians called Arabs. However, Christians are not one earthly nation. To be sure, they are one people, but they are called from all nations.
Therefore, Moses referred to them by the term" not a nation." He called them this as a term of honor, for they are not one nation. Rather, if I might use the expression, they are a nation composed of all nations. By a foolish nation, I will anger you. Moses calls the Gentiles a foolish nation for two reasons. First, the Gentiles once foolishly worshipped idols and other false gods. Second, the world sees all Christians as ignorant because the gospel is foolishness to unbelievers.
Origen comments," Moses foresaw in the Spirit that if a man wishes to be wise in this world, he must become foolish in order to be wise before God." Paul had told the Corinthians," It was God's good pleasure through the foolishness of the preaching to save those who believe." Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
1 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 21 and 25," I will anger you." And Ambrosiaster explains," The anger of the Jews arose when they saw that here were the Gentiles, who formerly were without God and were dull in their senses. Yet now the Gentiles were claiming as their own God, the one who had been the God of the Jews." Not only that, but they were receiving the gift promised to the Jews. The Jews always become angry when they hear that the law and the prophets belong to us who believe in Christ.
Paul verse 20," Next, Isaiah is very bold and says," I was found by those who did not seek. I was made manifest to those who did not ask concerning me." Paul now follows up the testimony of Moses with the prophecy of Isaiah about those who did not seek God. Isaiah chapter 65:1. Chrysostom comments," Who then are the ones who did not seek? Who are the ones who did not ask concerning him?" Clearly it was not the Jews; rather, it was the believers from among the Gentiles. For previously, they had not known Him.
Justin Martyr comments, Isaiah said that the Gentile nations who were not looking for Christ would worship Him. At the same time, the Jews who were always expecting Christ would not recognize Him when He came. Isaiah's words are spoken as if from the person of Christ. For the Jews had the prophecies and were always expecting Christ to come. Yet they did not recognize their Messiah when He did come. Not only that, but they even treated Him shamefully.
In contrast, the Gentiles had never heard anything about Christ until the apostles came from Jerusalem and preached about Him. The apostles revealed the prophecies to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles were filled with joy and faith. They cast away their idols and dedicated themselves to the unbegotten God through Christ. Isaiah is very bold. The reason Paul speaks of the boldness of Isaiah is that Isaiah fearlessly told the Jews that God would be found by those who did not seek Him, the Gentiles.
Origen comments, why does He say Isaiah was bold? Because despite being threatened with persecution and death, Isaiah was bold enough to announce the coming of the righteous one, and he was willing to die for the good one. In fact, Isaiah was eventually martyred for his boldness as a prophet. According to Jewish tradition, he was sawn in half by Manasseh, Hebrews 11:37." As Stephen told the Jews, which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?
They killed those who foretold the coming of the righteous One." Acts chapter 7: 52. Verse 21," But to Israel," he said," All day long I have stretched forth my hands to a disobedient and contentious people." Here Paul quotes Isaiah chapter 65:2 from the Septuagint. In its first application, this prophecy speaks of God's tender mercy towards the Israelites. God stretched forth His hands in a welcoming, compassionate fashion.
Chrysostom comments," Stretching out his hands means calling and drawing them to him and inviting them." But then to show that the fault was all their own, he adds to a disobedient and contentious people. In this first application, all day long meant the entire period of the law. At the same time, the early Christians saw a second, greater application of this verse. Isaiah's words are also a Messianic prophecy pointing to Christ on the cross.
Origen writes," This signifies when Christ was hanging on the cross." Cyprian writes," It is written in Isaiah that the Jews would fasten Christ to the cross. I have spread out my hands all day to a disobedient and contentious people who walk in ways that are not good, but after their own sins. And also in the 21st Psalm, they pierced my hands and my feet. They numbered all my bones.
Cyril of Jerusalem writes," All day long I have stretched forth my hands to a disobedient and contentious people." Christ stretched out His hands on the cross that He might embrace the ends of the world. Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Novatian, and Athanasius all testify similarly.
Concerning Christ, stretching out His hands on the cross, Theodoret writes," All day long means without ceasing." He points out that in the Greek translations of the Old Testament made by Symmachus and Aquila, they translated the phrase" all day long as every day." So until Christ returns, every day he continues to extend his arms wide in His offer of forgiveness to all men, both Jews and Gentiles.