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2. 0/'da,tt£i/) we know ; without thy teaching, O man, that judgest [we know]. — to zpt[ia tou OeoZ, the judgment of God); not thine, thou that exceptest thyself. — %ard akrjktav) according to the truth of the highest kind, without distinction ; just as His judgment is called bizouov, righteous , at ver. 5, 6, 11 ; not merely having respect to external acts, but also to internal thoughts ver. 16 [the secrets of men],
3. <tv , thou) as distinguished from the Gentile ; every one, even without a cause, makes his own self an exception [as regards condemnation] ; and flatters himself, although he knows not himself, on what grounds. — szpsugij, shalt thou escape ?) through the loopholes, which thou seekest. Every one, that is arraigned, <psuyei, tries to escape [6 (pzvyw is the technical term for a defendant; 6 dtuzuv, the accuser ] ; he who is acquitted, ez<psvysi, escapes.
4. *'h, or). Men easily become despisers of goodness, vrhile they are not sensible of the judgment of God. The particle rj, or, properly acts as a disjunctive between the vain thought [on their part] of escape, and the palpable treasuring up of wrath in consequence of their abuse of goodness itself. — yjY^Tor^Tog, avoyfg, fjjazpo6\)[i'iag, goodness, forbearance , long-suffering) since thou hast both sinned, and art now sinning, and wilt sin. \_By goodness, God restrains His wrath, ver. 5 : by forbearance , He as it were, keeps Himself unknown, until He is revealed, ver. 5 : by long-suffering He delays His righteous judgment, ibid.— V. g.] Presently after, ro ypy\<srbv, the goodness of God, implies all these three. Even those, who shall be condemned hereafter, had the powder, and it was their duty, to have repented. — ayvouv, ignorant). Paul wonders at this ignorance. — dysi) leads pleasantly ; does not compel by necessity.
5. As, but) The antithesis is between the despising of the riches of His goodness, and the treasuring up of wrath. — <s%\rr poTYjTcc, hardness) Its antithesis is ypqffTov. — d/ASTuvoYjTov za pdt'av) The antithesis is {Asravo/av. He meant to say u/Aeravoqai'av : to which word, later w7riters show no aversion ; but Paul avoided an unusual term. — Qr^avpiZzig, thou treasurest up), although thou, O man, thinkest, that thou art treasuring up all kinds of blessed- ness. O what a treasure may a man lay up, during so many hours of his life, on either side ! [either for heaven, or else hell],
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