Romans 9:18

16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.

17 For ^athe Scripture says to the Pharaoh, ^b“For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”

18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He ^ahardens.

19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For ^awho has resisted His will?”

20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? ^aWill the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?”

21 Does not the ^apotter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make ^bone vessel for honor and another for dishonor?

22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering ^athe vessels of wrath ^bprepared for destruction,

23 and that He might make known ^athe riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had ^bprepared beforehand for glory,

24 even us whom He ^acalled, ^bnot of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?

25 As He says also in Hosea:
^a“I will call them My people, who were not My people,
And her beloved, who was not beloved.”

26 “And^a it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them,
‘You are not My people,’
There they shall be called sons of the living God.”

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does Romans 9:18 Mean?

Romans 9:14-25

Sometimes these concepts are tough mental nuts for us to crack and swallow because we emotionally recoil at thinking of God as doing the things Paul mentions. Nevertheless, the Bible's record is true. Clearly, the sovereign God, in working out His plan, purposely makes people for destruction, while at the same time giving abundant grace in His calling to others who are just as worthy of destruction as those destroyed! Were Pharaoh and the Egyptians any worse sinners than the Israelites? Hardly, but in God's purpose they died while the Israelites received grace.

As Paul says, there is no unrighteousness in God. He is free to exercise His powers as He wills. His actions are always done in love, and in the end, they will produce righteousness, love, and honor for Him. The Egyptians will be saved. When God gives them grace in the Great White Throne Judgment, they will come to know Him and glorify Him as their God too.

John W. Ritenbaugh
God's Sovereignty and the Church's Condition (Part Two)

Romans 9:18

God not only gives gifts to those He favors, but He also hardens and/or blinds (Romans 11:7) some so that they become enemies of those He favors. Witness what He did to and with Pharaoh when He redeemed Israel from Egypt. That God would actually harden someone's heart so that he would become an enemy of Himself or His people is sometimes even more difficult for us to comprehend than His bestowing of favor on one over another. Because God is invisible in exercising His sovereignty, people often put far too much weight on a person's works and far too little on God's grace toward us in the outworking of His plan.

John W. Ritenbaugh
Eating: How Good It Is! (Part Two)

Romans 9:18

Can we take what he says here by faith? We had better! We have no other choice. We must accept the fact that God is running His Creation, that He is holy, and that everything He does is in love, wisdom, and for the benefit of His purpose. He does everything so that the most will be produced in every person and His Kingdom will be the most greatly expanded.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Eleven)

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Romans 9:18:

Matthew 25:14-30

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What Does Romans 9:18 Mean?

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