Chapter 10

Theophylact of Ohrid, Exposition of the Epistle of St Paul to the Romans — Chapter Ten

¹ Chapter Ten. Brethren, the good pleasure of my heart, and my prayer to God for Israel, is unto salvation. Since he is about to lay hold of them, he smooths the way beforehand, that they may not suppose that he speaks the things he is about to say out of enmity; and he says that The good pleasure, that is, my will, and my vehement desire—and not only this, but also my prayer—is on your behalf; not that you may only be delivered from chastisement, but that you may also be saved. How, then, could I be hostilely disposed toward you, for whose salvation I pray?

² For I bear them witness that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God. He seems indeed to show them favor from the outset, softening them. For in saying, They have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge, he shows them worthy rather of mercy, not of chastisement. For they are zealous, he says, on behalf of the law that was given by God; only their zeal is not according to knowledge, since they will not know that this law has been brought to an end and abolished. Going on lower down, however, he shows their contentiousness and their love of rule. For seeking to establish their own righteousness, that is, the one which is of the law, the one wrought out of their own works and toils—which also has fallen, and cannot stand—they neither established this, nor submitted themselves to the righteousness of God. Which is a sign of arrogance, and of a mind that loves rule, or rather is senseless: to seek ever to set up what cannot be set up, and in this to wear oneself out in vain. But the righteousness of God is the one which is of faith; for it has no toils of ours, but the whole is a free gift of God.

³ For Christ is the end of the law unto righteousness to everyone that believes. Since he had altogether named righteousness that which is in the law, lest those of the Hebrews who had believed should say, We have therefore transgressed, in forsaking this righteousness; and again, lest those still disbelieving should be able to say, Since righteousness is altogether in the law, even if we have not now fulfilled it, yet assuredly at some time we shall fulfill it—he says, doing away with both these things, that Christ is the end of the law. For what the law indeed willed, but did not bring to completion, this Christ brought to completion, namely, the justifying of man. So that say not, you who have believed of the Hebrews, that you have transgressed, but rather you have seen the will of the law fulfilled in you through the faith in Christ. Neither again, you Jew who have not yet believed, hope that righteousness shall be brought to completion for you through the law; for Christ is the perfecter of this. So that if you mean to have righteousness, receive Christ through faith, and you shall have the whole.

⁴ For Moses writes of the righteousness which is of the law, That the man who does those things shall live by them. He gives assurance of what he said, that what the law did not bring to completion, this Christ fulfilled; and he says that Moses says man is justified through the works; but the works no one was found to have fulfilled. So that by the law it is not possible to be justified.

⁵ But the righteousness which is of faith speaks thus: Say not in your heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down) or, Who shall descend into the abyss? (that is, to bring Christ up again from the dead). But what does it say? The word is near you, in your heart, and in your mouth; that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you shall be saved. Since you have heard that the works of the law cannot justify a man, learn how in Christ we are justified without toil and easily; for he seeks faith from the heart, and confession from the mouth. But it is necessary to make clear the saying more broadly, the words, Who shall ascend into heaven? and, Who shall descend into the abyss? They were taken by the Apostle from Moses, understood according to his great wisdom. For Moses indeed, so far as the letter goes, says this: The commandment of God lies before your eyes, O Jew; and you need neither to ascend into heaven, that you may find it, nor to descend into the abyss, that you may receive it, nor to cross to the regions beyond the sea; but it is near you, in your mouth, and in your understanding. For God showed you all things through the law. Moses, then, according to the letter, seems to say these things thus; but the Apostle took them unto Christ; that is, Doubt not, neither say in your understanding, How did Christ come down from the heavens, and become incarnate? or, How, having died, did he rise from the abyss, that is, from the lowest regions? But believe that he came down, being made flesh, and again, having been buried, ascended, being risen; for God raised him. So that even from the dignity of him that raised him, you can easily believe. What, then, is easier than this, when you have salvation in your mouth? But lest, on account of its being easy, the matter of faith should seem worthy of contempt, he shows that against faith too are set the reasonings of unbelief, and that one must stand nobly against these. For say not, he says, in your heart this and that; that is, Conceive not at all any thought of doubt.

⁶ For with the heart it is believed unto righteousness; but with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. The heart too has need of the mouth. For what profit is it to believe in the soul, but not to confess before men? For the faith which is according to the understanding justifies; but the complete salvation lies in the confession. For then faith shines forth, and the more are profited. The mouth, however, has need also of the heart. For many indeed confess Christ with the mouth in hypocrisy; but their heart is far off from him.

⁷ For the Scripture says, Whosoever believes on him shall not be put to shame. For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord of all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. He said that With the heart it is believed, and with the mouth confession is made; and he brings forward from the Scripture testimonies both of faith and of confession, and of the calling upon. For by saying, Whosoever believes, he made plain the faith, through which being justified one shall not be put to shame; and by, If he shall call upon, the confession, which works salvation. Everyone, then, whether Jew or Greek, is acceptable with God. For the same Lord of all is rich unto all that call upon him; that is, having his riches in these, in those that call upon him; as if one should say, The king is rich in gold and silver. So that, since he has for riches those who believe, despair not, as having sinned things past pardon; for he will receive you, that he may make you a part of his own riches.

⁸ 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? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, of them that bring glad tidings of good things! He said above, Whosoever shall call upon him shall be saved; and now at length he accuses the Jews, as not having called upon him. But why did they not call upon him? Because they did not believe. And why did they not believe? Was it not because they did not hear? And yet they did hear. Then an objection: And how could they hear without a preacher? Then again a solution: And yet men preached, and many were sent to them. And whence is it plain that these are the very ones sent? At this point, then, he brings in the prophet, saying, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, of them that bring glad tidings of good things! For the apostles preached nothing else in their words, save the unspeakable good things, and the peace that came to pass between God and men. So that the not-believing is the charge of those men, who did not receive the preachers.

⁹ But they have not all obeyed the Gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our report? Since he said that those who preached the gospel were attested by the prophet as being from God, lest anyone should say, And yet, if they were from God, all ought to have obeyed them, he says that truly not all obeyed the Gospel; but nothing from this touches the truth; for this very thing Isaiah says many years before: Who has believed our report? For the word, Who? stands here for, Few; that is, Few believed our report.

¹⁰ So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. This indeed holds to the sequence of what went before, and he brings it in as a kind of conclusion to the things that were said; but he also hints at yet another thing. For since the Jews at every season sought signs, and the very sight of the resurrection, he says that Faith comes by hearing. And more than hearing one ought not to seek anything else. For it is not a hearing of words simply spoken, but of words of God. So that if you seek words, as being from God, believe also the words, as spoken from God.

¹¹ But I say, Have they not heard? Yea verily, their sound went out into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. As though someone had said, And what is this to these men, if those who preached the gospel were sent, but these heard not at all? he says that The whole world heard, and did these not hear, among whom the apostles spent so long a time, and from among whom they were? And how could that be reasonable?

¹² But I say, Did not Israel know? Again another objection: If the apostles preached, but these did not understand, are they then not worthy of pardon? Then he brings in also the solution of this.

¹³ First Moses says, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no nation; by a nation without understanding will I anger you. Even if from nowhere else, he says, yet at least from the honor with which those of the nations were honored, they ought to have understood. For when they saw the idolaters suddenly counted worthy of so many good things, they ought, being provoked to jealousy, to have considered that, This is the nation concerning which Moses spoke. For not only the greatness of the honor was sufficient to cast them into jealousy, but also that those who were honored were so worthless as not even to be reckoned a nation. For by them that are no nation, he says, I will provoke you to jealousy, by a nation without understanding. For what was more without understanding than the Greeks, who gaped after wood and stones?

¹⁴ But Isaiah is very bold, and says, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. Having said that First Moses says, he tells also of another prophet, saying the same things both more plainly and more clearly. For Isaiah, he says, is very bold, and says; that is, he dared to speak the truth naked, and to be in peril, rather than to be silent. I was found, he says, of those of the nations, of them that sought me not, nor asked after me; for whom Moses named a nation without understanding, these Isaiah names men not seeking, nor asking after him, as plainly unlearned and haters of the word. From all these things, then, the Jews ought to have understood, how they themselves were thrust away, but others received.

¹⁵ But to Israel he says, All the day long have I stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. Lest they should be able to say, To the nations you were found, but with us you would not deign to speak, he says, All the day long, that is, all the time, have I stretched forth my hands, so as to draw you to myself; but you showed yourselves a disobedient and gainsaying people. Yours, then, is the charge, not mine. For I stretched forth my hands, and besought; but you did not obey. So that it is plain that those of Israel both heard and knew; but they would not obey.