| Back to Home Page | Back to
Book Index |
Romans Chapter
Ten
I.
Content of the Chapter
The Reason Why the Israel Lost the Salvation
A. They are not according to knowledge ---- seek to establish their own
righteousness, have not submitted to the
righteousness of God (v.1-3);
B. God has ordained that he who believes will obtain righteousness:
1. Christ is the end of the
law (v.4-7).
2. The way of being justified is confessing with one’s mouth and believing in one’s heart (v.8-11).
3. God treats those who call upon Him justly (v.12-15).
C. The
II.
Verse by Verse commentary
Rom. 10:1 “Brethren, my heart's desire
and prayer to God for
YLT:
“Brethren, the pleasure indeed of my heart, and my supplication that to God for
Meaning
of Words: “desire”:
want, admire, please;
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Some believer prays what he does not mean,
for he does not really desire in his heart.
2) We should earnestly pray for men’s being
saved, especially our kinsmen, according to flesh.
3) We gentile believers should also pray to God
for the
Rom. 10:2 “For I bear them witness
that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.”
YLT: “for
I bear them testimony that they have a zeal of God, but not according to
knowledge,”
Meaning
of Words: “knowledge”:
perfect knowledge, right knowledge;
Literal
Meaning: “I bear them witness that
they have a zeal for God”, the Jews thought that God gave them the law, so
they held that being zealous for the law (Acts. 21:20) and for the traditions
of their fathers (Gal. 1:14) were having a zeal for God.
“But not according to knowledge”, they did not know the Lord according to the
right way of justification so that their religious zeal became blind zeal.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) The zeal that is not according to the
knowledge is not blind zeal and can not save men. Such zeal contrarily leads men
to perdition.
2) Zeal without knowledge is craze. The
religious zeal is most terrible one in the world. It tends to persecute those
who are really of God.
3) Though the
4) It is still insufficient to seek God though
zeal and sincerity, for there is no any other man or group that is more zealous
or sincerely in seeking God.
5) Today, the lack of zeal with knowledge
mostly hinders the eternal will of God among the children of God. May God show
mercy to us so that we may gain “the excellency of the knowledge of Christ
Jesus my Lord” (Phil. 3:8) and take the perfect knowledge of Christ as the
foundation.
6) True knowledge is not devised by man, nor
approved by man, but established by God.
7) Christ is the true knowledge. Without
Christ, even the holiest thing will become false knowledge. This is the
greatest principle of God toward man, and is also a changeless law.
Rom. 10:3 “For they being ignorant
of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have
not submitted to the righteousness of God.”
YLT: “for not knowing the righteousness of
God, and their own righteousness seeking to establish, to the righteousness of
God they did not submit.”
Meaning of
Words: “knowledge”: perfect knowledge, right
knowledge;
Literal Meaning: “for they being ignorant of
God's righteousness”, “God's
righteousness”, it refers to the
position of obtaining righteousness by faith (see Rom. 1:17). It is a gift from
God, not gained by man’s works.
“And
seeking to establish their own righteousness”, “their own righteousness”, it refers to the position of obtaining
righteousness by man’s labor.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1)
Many faults are
caused by “ignorance”. If we desire to please God, we should seek to know God
Himself and the principles of His doings by reading more the Scriptures and
praying to Him more.
2)
Man’s own
righteousness is opposite to God’s righteousness. He who exalts his own
righteousness has not submitted
to the righteousness of God. In other words, if
we really submit to the
righteousness of God, we should give up
our own righteousness.
3)
Man’s self rebels
against God. The more man relies on himself, the more will he be alienated from
God and be enemies of God.
4)
The righteousness of
man is from man himself. But the righteousness of God is that God gives Himself
to man. The principles of them are totally different.
5)
The disobedience to the righteousness of God is an insult to God. Such attitude deprives
man of the way of receiving God’s salvation.
6)
There are two
reasons for the failures of Christians before God: 1) “being ignorant of” the
word of God, or “being unfamiliar with” the word of God; 2) “not submitting” to
the word of God. They are unwilling to keep the word of God after hearing it
(Matt. 7:26-27).
7)
If we believers
desire to show off ourselves in the assembly, we are seeking to establish our own righteousness. If we do everything for the purpose of
manifesting the glory of God, we are establishing the righteousness of God.
Rom. 10:4 “For Christ is the end of
the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
YLT: “For Christ is an end of law for
righteousness to every one who is believing,”
Meaning of
Words: “end”: goal, the point aimed at as a limit,
termination, conclusion, reaching the summit;
Literal Meaning: “Christ is the end of the
law”, there are three layers of meanings:
1)
The goal of the law is pointing to
Christ. The law has been our tutor up to Christ, that we might be justified on
the principle of faith (Gal. 3:24).
2)
Christ
has fulfilled the requirement of the law. The Lord Jesus said, “think not that I am come to make void the law or the
prophets; I am not come to make void, but to fulfill (Matt. 5:17).”
3)
The
function of the law has not ended until Christ comes. Since Christ has set us
free, we shall stand fast and be not held again in the yoke of the law of
bondage (Gal. 5:1).
“For righteousness to everyone who
believes”, here it points
that “believing” is the way of obtaining “righteousness”. The object of
believing is Christ Himself.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) It is because Christ has fulfilled the law
through completely keeping the requirements of the law and perfecting the types
and prophecies of the law.
2) We Christians are no longer “under the law”
(Rom. 6:15), for Christ has delivered us from the curse of the law.
3) Barret said, “Christ has ended the law by
fulfilling it, not annulling the purpose of the law”.
4) If we refuse the righteousness of Christ, we
shall not only be unable to obtain the righteousness before God but also have
to take the responsibility of unrighteousness.
5) All that is of God is unto Christ. Our
relationship with Christ decides our relationship with God. And it is also the
ground that God shows His mercy to us.
6) Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God.
The righteousness of God dwells in Jesus Christ bodily.
7) Today, many Christians have not seen “Christ
is the end of the law”. Therefore, after they are saved, they have set many
regulations (laws) for them to keep so as to please God. Finally, they are just
like the Jews, perfecting nothing. What is most important is that one can live
the righteous life through the life of Christ.
Rom. 10:5 “For Moses writes about
the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things
shall live by them." ”
YLT: “for Moses doth describe the
righteousness that of the law, that, `The man who did them shall live in
them,'”
Literal
Meaning: “Moses writes”, the following words are quoted from the Book of Leviticus (18:5).
“The man who does those
things shall live by them.” ---- “Live”, it
means living in this age, not in that to come. The whole verse shows that if
one wants to live outside of the curse of the law, he shall completely keep the
requirements of the law so as to gain the righteousness of the law. However, it
is impossible, for man cannot keep the whole. Whoever shall keep the whole law
and shall offend in one, he has come under the guilt of all (James 2:10).
Therefore, no one can be justified by law (Gal. 2:16).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Man can at most do the righteousness of the
law of letter or a small part of the righteousness, but cannot do the spirit of
the law.
2) To live by the law is different from living
by faith. Even though one can perfectly keep the regulations of the law, he is
still “living” under the bondage of the law merely. He cannot live in freedom
like those who live by faith (see Gal. 5:1).
3) The principle of “doing” and the principle
of “believing” (v.4) are opposite. The principle of “doing” is that man does by
himself, not by God. The principle of “faith” is that man does not do by
himself, but by God.
Rom. 10:6 “But the righteousness of
faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, "Who will ascend
into heaven?"' (that is, to bring Christ down from above) ”
YLT: “and the righteousness of faith doth
thus speak: `Thou mayest not say in thine heart, Who shall go up to the
heaven,' that is, Christ to bring down?”
Literal
Meaning: “but the righteousness of faith speaks in this way”, verse six to eight
are quoted from the Book of Deuteronomy
(30:11-14). According to the context there, it refers to the law, but here Paul
uses the principle of it in the way of believing the Lord.
“The
righteousness of faith”, that is the
righteousness obtained by faith, the righteousness of Christ, namely,
justification by faith. Faith is accounted as righteousness.
“To bring
Christ down from above”, “bring Christ down from
above”, it refers to the
incarnation of Christ.
Note that the apostle Paul does not quote the Old Testament
mechanically, but has slight changes. There are two reasons:
1) He often directly quotes from the Septuagint
(the Greek translation), not the Hebrew the original.
2) He sometimes quotes merely the general
meaning of a certain paragraph or verse and gives additional explanation.
Nevertheless, it does not have any conflict with or run counter to the
original.
Rom. 10:7 “or, ""Who will
descend into the abyss?"' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). ”
YLT: “or, `Who shall go down to the
abyss,' that is, Christ out of the dead to bring up.”
Literal
Meaning: “who will descend into the
abyss?” “Abyss”: the bottomless pit (see Rev. 11:7; 17:8). Here, it referred to
the place where Christ had been to after death before resurrection. After
Christ died, He had ever fallen unto the lower part of the earth ---- to preach
and boast in “prison” (1Pet. 3:19; see Rev. 20:7) and had overcome the power of
death. And then He ascended to the heavens (Eph. 4:8-9).
“To bring Christ up from the dead”, that is the resurrection of Christ from death.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) In order to be saved, one does not need to
ascent to the heavens nor seek under the earth. It is unnecessary for one to be
so strenuous to be saved.
2) Even though men exert themselves, there is
still no one who can climb up to the heaven by himself, nor overcome the death
and hell.
3) Christ exists everywhere. He is near us and
is in us. How ??(John 14:18-20).
4) Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call
upon Him while He is near (Is. 55:6).
Rom. 10:8 “But what does it say?
"The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the
word of faith which we preach):”
YLT: “But what doth it say? `Nigh thee is
the saying -- in thy mouth, and in thy heart:' that is, the saying of the
faith, that we preach;”
Meaning of
Words: word: rhema;
Literal Meaning: “the word is near you”, “the word”, it
referred to the word of God appeared in the law. Paul here uses it in the
gospel ---- “the way of believing the Lord”, emphasizing that the gospel is
easily available.
“In
your mouth and in your heart”, we need not
obtain the word by ascending to the heavens nor descending
into the hell (v.6-7), for the word is near and available.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) The alternate use of “word” and “Christ” in
verse six and seven, showing that the word is Christ Himself. Christ has been
raised and become the living word so that we can speak Him in our mouth and
consider Him in heart. How kind and how easy to approach Him!
2) The word of Christ is spirit and life (John
6:63) and fills in our mouth and heart (
3) God never gives man the burden that man
cannot bear nor asks man to do what he cannot do. The way that God has prepared
for man is the easiest one.
4) The word that we preach is the word of
“believing”, not word of “works”. Men need not ascend to the heavens to bring Christ down from
above nor descend into the abyss to bring Christ up from the dead (v.6-7), for God has done these. There is nothing
that leaves for us to do.
YLT: “that if thou mayest confess with thy
mouth the Lord Jesus, and mayest believe in thy heart that God did raise him
out of the dead, thou shalt be saved,”
Literal
Meaning: “that if you confess with
your mouth the Lord Jesus”, the Jews used the
“Lord” to refer to the name of “Jehovah” (since the name of God “Jehovah” was
hallowed among the Jews, they dared not call or translate the name directly.
Therefore, they used “the Lord” to represent the name of God.) Therefore, “confess … the Lord Jesus”,
it means to confess the deity of Jesus Christ.
“And believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the
dead”, there are two
important points of believing the Lord Jesus: 1) to believe that He had died
for our sins; 2) to believe that He has been raised for our justification (Rom.
4:25). “Believe that God has raised Him from the dead”, it means to believe that His death has
met the righteous requirements of God and that God has made him both Lord and
Christ through raising Him (Acts. 2:32, 36).
“You will be saved”, “be saved”, be
delivered from perdition.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) One’s being saved includes inside believing
---- heart, and outside confession ---- mouth. The requirement of the word for
man is confessing with one’s mouth and believing in one’s heart.
2) Faith and testimony are supplementary and
exist simultaneously. We should not focus on one side, but ignore the other.
3) We should have the faith that we are bold to
confess before men. That is real faith.
4) Christ can save us only in His risen life.
Therefore, if Christ be not raised, our faith is vain, and we are yet in our
sins (1Cor. 15:17).
5) Resurrection is the focus of the faith of
Christians. Christians believes not only that Christ has risen from the dead
but also that Christ still lives and is living to the ages of ages (Rev. 1:18).
Rom. 10:10 “For with the heart one
believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.”
YLT: “for with the heart doth believe to
righteousness, and with the mouth is confession made to salvation;”
Literal
Meaning: believing in one’s
heart is toward God. And confession with one’s mouth is toward men. Believing
in one’s heart is to believe that God has made Jesus Christ and Savior through
raising Him up from the dead. Confession with one’s mouth means that one
confesses before men that Jesus who is despised and rejected by all is the Lord
of all (see v.9). Both of the them are the conditions of our being justified
and saved.
“Righteousness” is the position of and reason for
salvation. “Salvation” is the result of righteousness.
Rom. 10:11 “For the Scripture says,
"Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame." ”
YLT: “for the Writing saith, `Every one
who is believing on him shall not be ashamed,'”
Literal
Meaning: “the Scripture says”, the following word is quoted from the
Book of Isaiah (28:16). It has already been quoted in chapter nine of the Book of Romans, verse 33.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) All the faith that is shameful to be
testified to others is not the faith of Christ. He who has really believed the
Lord will definitely not feel that believing the Lord is shameful.
2) Someone who has already believed the Lord
fears that he can not be a good Christian, thus humiliating the Lord. Actually,
if we really commit our whole life unto the Lord, he will surely take the
responsibility and let us not be
put to shame.
Rom. 10:12 “For there is no
distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all
who call upon Him.”
YLT: “for there is no difference between
Jew and Greek, for the same Lord of all rich to all those calling upon Him,”
Meaning of
Words: “call upon”: call, cry;
Literal Meaning: “there is no distinction
between Jew and Greek”, concerning salvation, both Jew and Greek stand on
the same position.
“For
the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him”, “rich to all”, it indicates that God saves us to
deliver us from sins so as to make us enjoy the unsearchable fullness in Christ
ultimately (Eph. 3:8). “Call for”, the mystery of enjoying the riches of Christ
is to call upon Him.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Today, no matter the Jews or the nations,
everyone can be saved as long as he confesses Christ.
2) All men in the world enjoy the gracious
things through calling upon Him ---- there is no distinction.
3) Our God is not a God of anyone or any group,
but a God of all.
4) The Lord is rich and full to those who call
upon Him, which does not depend on our condition, but the object that we call
on.
5) Calling upon the name of the Lord not only
saves us (v.13), but also makes us rich. He is rich, and became poor for us
(2Cor. 8:9) so that He can bestow all His fullness to those who call upon Him.
6) One who does not call upon the Lord is the
most miserable and poorest one, for he has the spiritual word of becoming rich
in vain and does not use the word.
Rom. 10:13 “For "whoever calls
on the name of the LORD shall be saved." ”
YLT: “for every one -- whoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord, he shall be saved.'”
Literal
Meaning: the words in this
verse are quoted from the Book of Joel (2:32). Peter has also quoted this
paragraph on the day of Pentecost (Acts. 2:21). Calling on the name of the LORD
is the mystery of our salvation. This was a promise that God had early given to
us in the days of the Old Testament. The Scriptures had also recorded many
cases of calling on the name of the LORD (see Gen. 4:26; Ps. 116:17; Zeph. 3:9;
Zech. 13:9).
“For
"whoever calls on the name of the LORD”,
“calls on” means calling in a loud voice;
“name” refers to what one is and what has. “Calls on the name of the LORD”: call on the Lord Himself ---- the Lord
Jesus is the object of our faith and reliance.
“Shall be saved”,
it points that we call the name of the Lord Jesus in a loud voice on account of
believing and relying on Him so that we shall obtain salvation.
“Be saved”, in the Scriptures, it not only
mentions eternal salvation, but also salvation of souls (1Pet. 1:9), redemption
of our body (Rom. 8:23), being saved from danger (Acts. 27:31), being saved
from tribulations (2Cor. 1:6, 10), being saved from temptations in life (Matt.
6:13) and etc.
Controversial Clarification:
if Christians call on the Lord earnestly on
account of inside inspiration and need, it is quite natural. Unfortunately,
some people take “calling on the name of the Lord” as a form and call on the
name of the Lord repeatedly in public. And they are therefore criticized by
others, who think that they do not respect the name of the Lord and then call
them “Lee’s sect”. Therefore, though we Christians can and should “call on the
name of the Lord”, we have to avoid extremity and formalism.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) Though man cannot see the Lord, they can
call on the name of the Lord. The name of the Lord is the Lord Himself.
Therefore, he who calls on the Lord’s name is calling the Lord Himself.
2) He is the Savior of all men, especially of
those that believe (1Tim. 4:10). He has delivered us from so great a death, and
does deliver; in whom we confide that he will also yet deliver (2Cor. 1:10).
Therefore, we shall not only call on the name of the Lord before we are saved,
but also still often call on the name of the Lord after we are saved.
3) The Lord can and is willing to deliver us
from various difficulties. Therefore, when we find we need to rely on His help,
we shall open our mouth to call on the name of the Lord with boldness.
4) Christ has fully perfected His salvation.
There is no need any other addition (v.6-7). We need only to confess His
absolute authority ---- “confess
with your mouth the Lord Jesus”, and receive the
glorious fact of His resurrection ---- “believe in your heart that God has raised
Him from the dead” (v.9), and call
upon Him according to the fullness of His name ---- “call on the name of the
LORD”, thus taking part in His wonderful salvation ---- “shall be saved”.
Rom. 10:14 “How then shall they call
on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of
whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? ”
YLT: “How then shall they call upon in
whom they did not believe? and how shall they believe of whom they did not
hear? and how shall they hear apart from one preaching?”
The Background: after Paul had stated that believing the word of
the Lord (the gospel) is the only condition for man to be saved, he thought the
Jews who upheld the law might argue that they had never had the right chance to
hear the gospel so they did not understand the gospel, let alone receiving the
gospel. Therefore, God should not ask the Jews to take the responsibility for
not believing the gospel. Paul then pointed out the way of believing the word
of the Lord by a string of rhetoric questions: 1) God sent the preacher; 2)
preach the word; 3) hear the word; 4) believe the word. His conclusion was that
the Jews not only had the chance to hear the gospel but also understood the
meaning the gospel (see v.18-19).
Literal
Meaning: “how then shall they call on
Him in whom they have not believed?”
---- Man should first believe the Lord and then he can call on the name of the
Lord. In other words, that man calls on the name of the Lord shows that he
believes the Lord and shall be saved (v.9, 13).
“And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not
heard?” ---- It suggests a
truth: faith comes by hearing the word of Christ. Hearing the word of Christ is
the origin of our faith (see Heb. 12:2; John 2:22).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) If you do not believe Him, you cannot pray
to Him or call on Him. Believing Him is the condition for our prayers’ being
accepted and heard by God (Heb. 11:6).
2) “Believing God” and “calling on God” are
inseparable. Before, we pray to God, we must have faith and surely believe that
what we ask shall be granted. Moreover, only true faith shall make man call on
God. One who has tasted the grace of the Lord will not stop calling on God.
3) The faith of Christians is the faith from
hearing and understanding the Lord’s word (Matt. 13:23). It is not vague, nor
impulsive.
4) If there is no preacher, man cannot hear nor
believe. And thus the flow of the gospel is blocked. Concerning the matter of
the preachment of the gospel, we shall be the channel instead of the dam.
Rom. 10:15 “And how shall they preach
unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of
those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good
things!" ”
YLT: “and how shall they preach, if they
may not be sent? according as it hath been written, `How beautiful the feet of
those proclaiming good tidings of peace, of those proclaiming good tidings of
the good things!'”
Literal Meaning: “as it is written”, the following words are quoted from the Book of Isaiah (52:7) according to
the meaning.
“How
beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” ---- It originally indicated that they
brought the good news to the captives and told them that they would soon be delivered
from
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) There should be the separation and sending
of the Holy Spirit at first, and then the sending of the assembly (Acts
13:2-4). God is the Lord of sending, not the assembly.
2) One should regard only those pastors or
ministers as those who are sent by God. If a Christian takes courage to preach
the gospel to others, he is sent by God.
3) How beautiful are the feet
of those who preach the gospel! It is because
there are both God who sends men as well as men who obey God. Their feet
testify the works of God.
4) As long as we are men who preach the gospel
and let God be satisfied, we are the most beautiful before God.
5) Christians should shod our feet with
preparation of the glad tidings of peace (Eph. 6:15). The more we preach the
gospel, the less we will be stained by the sin of the world.
6) Life is the world is rough. But the gospel
can transfer ruggedness to smoothness. The life of the believers who are filled
with the burden of the gospel must be beautiful.
7) This verse shows us that how pleasant it is
to God that we preach the gospel to others. The feet of us before we are saved
are just like what Paul has mentioned in the
Book of Romans (Rom. 3:15-17) ---- “"Their feet are swift to shed
blood. Destruction and misery are
in their ways. And the way of peace they
have not known”. How ugly it is!
Now, we have been saved and bear witness to the Lord everywhere and preach the
gospel to others. How beautiful our feet have become!
Rom. 10:16 “But they have not all
obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "LORD, who has believed our
report?" ”
YLT: “But they were not all obedient to
the good tidings, for Isaiah saith, `Lord, who did give credence to our
report?'”
Literal Meaning: “but they have not all obeyed
the gospel”, it is the
reaction of the world to the gospel ---- most of them do not believe the
gospel. Hearing and obedience to the gospel is the origin of believing the
gospel.
“For Isaiah says”, the following words are quoted from the Book of Isaiah (53:1), and Paul
adds, “LORD”.
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1)
Proclaim
the word in season out of season (2Tim. 4:2). Even though man may refuse to hear, we still have to preach.
2)
He
who has heard the glad tidings but refuses to obey the glad tidings
shall take responsibility for him before God in the future. Since God has
entrusted the grace and privilege of preaching of the glad tidings to us, if we
do not go to preach, we shall also take responsibility for us before God in the
future.
3)
It
is insufficient to hear the word of God by ears only. One shall also have an
open spirit and mind and willingness of receiving the truth of God.
Rom. 10:17 “So then faith comes by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
YLT: “so
then the faith by a report, and the report through a saying of God,”
Literal
Meaning: “hearing by the word of God”, “the word of God”
has two meanings: 1) one refers to the glad tidings of Christ; (2) the other is
the message that Christ preaches by His servants;
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) The more we read the Scriptures, the more
will we know God, and the firmer our faith shall be. And the more we practice
the word in the Scriptures, the more blessings will we receive from God.
2) Many believers choose what he likes when
they hear the word of God. Only those who love God hear the word of God.
3) Here, it shows that faith comes from hearing
and hearing comes from the word of God. Without word, there is no faith. If one
has not caught any word of God, he has no faith. Without the word of God, your
faith has no proof and is only a kind of imagination. Imagination comes from
man’s thought instead of God’s word. But faith comes from God’s word. One can
not believe without God’s word. Faith is to believe God’s word.
4) “Faith comes by preaching and preaching by the word of God” (another translation). The knowledge of
Christ ---- “faith”, comes from the testimony of Christ ---- “preaching”. The
true testimony of Christ comes from the revelation of Christ by God ----
“word”. May we on one hand be willing to receive the testimony of Christ by
revelation and know more about Christ. And may we on the other hand look on Him
to speak more to us and to reveal His Son so that we will preach Him and
testify Him more thus more people will believe and know Him.
Rom. 10:18 “But I say, have they not
heard? Yes indeed: "Their sound has gone out to all the earth, And their
words to the ends of the world."”
YLT: “but
I say, Did they not hear? yes, indeed -- `to all the earth their voice went
forth, and to the ends of the habitable world their sayings.'”
Meaning of Words: “ends of the world”: the ends of the habitable world;
Literal
Meaning: “their sound has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world”. It is quoted from the Book of Psalm (19:4), in which the heavens testify the glory of
God. Here, it refers to the voices and words of the preachers of the glad
tidings. Those who do not believe the glad tidings can not make an excuse that
they have no chance to hear the glad tidings, for there are preachers of the
glad tidings everywhere. This verse proves that the Gentiles also have chance
to hear the glad tidings, let alone the Jews, for the gospel was firstly
preached among the Jews.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Christians should learn to hear the
voiceless words ---- learn to hear the words of God in various circumstances.
2) The mission that the Lord gives to the
assembly is, “Go and make disciples of all the nations” (Matt. 28:19); “be my
witnesses…to the end of the earth” (Acts. 1:8).
Rom. 10:19 “But I say, did
YLT: “But
I say, Did not
Literal
Meaning: “first Moses says”, the following verses are quoted
from the Book of Deuteronomy (32:21)
---- “the Song of Moses”.
“I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a
nation”, “those
who are not a nation” refer to the
Gentiles, who were not the people of God (se
“I will move you to anger by a foolish nation.” ---- “A
foolish nation”, the Gentiles were unenlightened in spirit in
the eyes of the Jews ---- they were blind in things of God and were in darkness, foolish and were babies (see Rom. 2:19-20).
Here, it means that even the Gentiles who
are despised by the Jews can understand the messages of the glad tidings, how
much rather shall the Jews know the glad tidings?
Rom. 10:20 “But Isaiah is very bold
and says: "I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest
to those who did not ask for Me."”
YLT: “and
Isaiah is very bold, and saith, `I was found by those not seeking Me; I became
manifest to those not inquiring after Me;'”
Literal
Meaning:
“But Isaiah is very bold and says”,
the following words are quoted from the
Book of Isaiah (65:1).
Enlightenment
in the Word:
1) It is not we seek God, but God comes to seek
us (Gen. 3:9; Luke 15:3-10; 19:10).
2) We did not know God in the past and were
afar off God (Eph. 2:13). But God makes us meek Him and find Him.
Rom. 10:21 “But to
YLT: “and
unto
Literal
Meaning: “he says”, the following
words are quoted from the Book of Isaiah
(65:2).
“All
day long I have stretched out My hands To a disobedient and contrary people.” ---- “Have stretched out My hands”, it is a gesture of a mother who calls to
embrace his child. It indicates that the
Enlightenment
in the Word: He
bestows grace to those who are foolish ---- “I was found by those who did not seek
Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me” (v.20). God calls those who are disobedient and contrary in love ---- “All day long I have stretched out My
hands To a disobedient and contrary people.” It speaks of the heart of the Father as well as
the Spirit of Christ.
III.
Outlines of the Spiritual Lessons
God Treats Man According to His Relationship
With Christ
A.
Everything is unto
Christ (v.1-5).
B.
The faith of the
Lord is the only way that man shall be saved (v.6-17).
C.
God calls everyone
to receive Christ:
1.
God calls the
Gentiles to receive Christ (v.18).
2.
God calls the
How Do Christians Give Spiritual Help to
Others?
A. To pray for them to God earnestly (v.1);
B. To confess the strong points of them and
figure out the weak points of them (v.2-3);
C. The most important is to point to them that
Christ is the answer of every question (v.4).
D. To show the way of receiving Christ to them
(v.6-8);
E. To show them that the way of enjoying the
fullness of Christ is believing and calling on His name (v.9-13);
F. To preach the word of Christ to them, no
matter what reactions they have (v.14-17);
G. To commit them
to God and ask God to reveal to them (v.19-21);
The Righteousness of God
A. To seek by faith, not by works (Rom.
9:30-33);
B. The righteousness of God is opposite to that
of man (v.3);
C. All that believe Christ shall obtain the
righteousness of God (v.4);
D. The righteousness of the law is opposite to
the righteousness of faith (v.5-6);
E. The righteousness of faith is near in your
mouth and in your heart (v.6-8);
F. The assurance of the righteousness of faith
---- whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame (v.11);
G. The origin of the righteousness of faith
---- God ---- the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him
(v.12-13);
The Righteousness of God
A. The righteousness of God
is Jesus Christ (v.4).
B. The righteousness of God
is opposite to the
righteousness of man (v.5).
C. The righteousness of God
does not need man to find Christ (v.6-7).
D. The righteousness and
salvation of God are near (v.8-10).
E. The righteousness and
salvation of God shall not put men to shame (v.11).
The Difficulty of the Jews Does not Lie in
“Ignorance”, but “Disobedience”
A. The way of believing the word is too simple
(v.5-10).
B. God has given everyone the chance of hearing
the faith of the Lord (v.11-15).
C. The Jews have indeed heard, but they still
disobey (v.16-21).
The Process of Man’s Faith
A. He has to call on the name of the Lord if he
wants to be saved (v.9-10; see Acts
2:21; 9:14).
B. He has to believe if he calls on the name
(v.14; see Heb. 11:6).
C. He has to hear if he wants to believe (v.14;
see Mark 16:15-16; Ps. 122:1).
D. There should be preacher of the word if the
word should be heard (v.14; see Titus 1:3; Acts 2:37; 4:4; 8:12, 35, 38;
11:30-21; 14:1; 17:34; 18:8; 28:24).
E. There should be sending of God if there
should be preachers of the word of God (v.15; see Luke 24:46-47; Acts 26:17-18;
13:1-4; 1Cor. 9:16-17; Matt. 9:38; 2Cor. 5:18).
The Glad Tidings are Universal
A.
There is no
distinction between Jew and Greek (v.12).
B.
All men are saved
according to the same promise of God (v.38).
C.
The whole world will
not be saved if there is no one who preaches the gospel to the world (v.14-15).
D.
The Scripture proves
that the gospel is universal (v.16-17).
E.
The rebellion of the
──
Caleb Huang《Christian Digest Bible
Commentary Series》
Translated by Mary Zhou