Romans chapter 15 verses 8 through 14. Prophecies about the Gentiles, even though Paul has finished his great argument before closing his letter, he once again wants to proclaim the salvation that has come to the Gentiles through grace. He also wants to remind them that the Jewish and Gentile believers are united as one people, verse 8. Now, I say that Jesus Christ was a minister to the circumcision for the truth of God to confirm the promises made to the fathers.
Jesus was born under the law to Jewish parents, circumcised on the eighth day, and was a fleshly descendant of both Abraham and David. He himself said," I was not sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel." So in every respect, he was a minister to the circumcision. That is, he was a minister to the Jews.
Chrysostom writes," When Paul calls Christ a minister to the circumcision, he means this, that having come and fulfilled the law and having been circumcised, and being born of the seed of Abraham, Christ undid the curse against the Jews and held back the anger of God against them. And for those Jews who were willing to receive the promises, he made them suitable for those promises. For he freed them from their alienation from God.
Verse 9," So that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written," For this cause, I will confess to you among the Gentiles and sing to your name." Even though Jesus was sent as a minister to the circumcision, it was prophesied in the Psalms that he would say," Therefore, I will give thanks to you among the Gentiles." As he told the Jews," I have other sheep, which are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice.
They will become one flock with one shepherd." So it had always been God's plan to bring salvation to the Gentiles. In addition, when the Gentiles would eventually come to faith, Jesus said they would comprise one church with the Jews. Indeed, the Gentiles would glorify God for His mercy, for God had shown such incredible mercy to them. Even though they had been worshiping idols and living in utmost wickedness, God saved them through His grace.
Chrysostom writes," As to the Gentiles, Paul says that it was by mercy alone that they were saved. As a result, they are the most ready to glorify God. And it brings glory to God for the Gentiles to be blended with the Jews, being united with them and praising God with one mind." Verses 10 through 12. And again, he said," Rejoice you Gentiles with His people.
And again, praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and laud him all you people." And again, Isaiah said," There will be a root of Jesse, and he who will rise to reign over the Gentiles. In Him will the Gentiles trust." Here, Paul quotes three different passages of Scripture. From them, he shows that from of old, it had been prophesied that salvation would come to the Gentiles, and they would be united with God's original people, the Jews.
Ambrosiaster calls attention to the words," Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and laud him, all you people." These words are taken from Psalm 117:1. The first part of the verse calls upon the Gentiles to praise God. Yet then it goes on to say," Laud him, all you people." When the psalmist says," All you people," he is now including the Jews as well.
Ambrosiaster comments," God long ago decreed in Psalm 117 that by the intervention of His mercy, the Jews and Gentiles would be united." Chrysostom writes," He has given us all these quotations to show that we ought to be united. And being united, we are to glorify God." Paul also quotes these passages to bring humility to the Jews. This is so they will not lift themselves up over the Gentiles. For all the prophets sent out a call to the Gentiles.
At the same time, Paul wants to persuade the Gentiles to be lowly, for he shows them that they have had a larger amount of grace for which to be thankful. Origen points out that in each instance, Paul quotes or paraphrases these prophecies from the Septuagint, not the Masoretic text. This, of course, was Paul's normal practice. The difference between the Septuagint and the Masoretic text is usually minimal. However, the distinction is more significant in Isaiah 11:10.
In the Masoretic text, it reads," And in that day, there shall be a root of Jesse who shall stand as a banner to the people, for the Gentiles shall seek him." As the prophecy reads in the Masoretic text, it still presents a marvelous prophecy about the Gentiles, saying," They shall seek Him." However, the Septuagint goes on to say that the root of Jesse will rise to reign over the Gentiles. Furthermore, the prophecy in the Septuagint does not merely say the Gentiles will seek Him.
Rather, it says they will put their trust in Him. Verse 13," Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit, the God of hope." Theodoret comments," Paul calls God the God of hope. For of old, God gave to the Gentiles the hope that the Abrahamic blessing would come to them." And now God has established that promise by His actions. All this is a pledge concerning the future blessings promised.
For He who promised those former things has fulfilled them. Therefore, He will altogether fulfill what He has promised us for the future. Fill you with all joy and peace. Paul wants the Jewish and Gentile Christians in Rome to be filled with joy and peace. Instead of quarreling about foods and looking down on each other, Chrysostom writes," In other words, that you may rid yourselves of any unkindness towards one another, and that you may never be cast down by temptations.
Rather, that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. The joy and peace that Paul desires will only come about through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus had promised the apostles," You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you." This was not just the power to perform miracles, but the power to live out the Christ life in joy and peace. Nevertheless, as we have said before, God requires our cooperation with His Spirit.
Chrysostom explains," This joy and peace is not simply from the Spirit alone. Rather, it is on the condition that we contribute our part also. In brief, if we have good works, we shall have the Spirit. And if we have the Spirit, we shall also have good works. On the other hand, if we have no works, the Spirit flies away. And if we are deserted by the Spirit, our works shall certainly come to a halt.
As we quoted earlier, Clement of Alexandria writes," A man by himself working and toiling at freedom from desires achieves nothing. But if he plainly shows himself to be very eager in earnest, he attains it by the addition of the power of God. For God conspires with willing souls. But if they abandon their eagerness, the Spirit who is bestowed by God is also restrained. For to save the unwilling is the part of one exercising compulsion. But to save the willing is that of one showing grace, Romans 15:14.
And I myself am also persuaded concerning you, my brothers, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and are able to admonish one another. Showing the marks of a good teacher, Paul skillfully mixes his admonishments with sincere praise. Chrysostom writes," Since he had often made his language somewhat harsh, he now heals the wound. Since he is reaching the end of his letter, he says things similar to what he said at the beginning of it.
For example, at the introduction of the letter, he said," I thank my God for you all that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world." Here he says," I am persuaded that you are full of goodness and are able to admonish others." This is actually greater praise than he gave it the first. For he does not say," I have heard, but I am persuaded." Theodoret adds," Paul says, in effect, I know that you do not need instruction, for you possess sufficiently ample knowledge and you abound in every kind of goodness.
Accordingly, you can extend to others every fitting type of admonition.