A Brighter Day Begins with His Word.

Bengel, Johann Albrecht, 1687-1752 • SECTION 43

Romans Iii. 9, 10.

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that we ought to do evil, in order that good may come. — to zpt/xa) the judgment , which these unprincipled men endeavour to escape by a subterfuge, as unjust [unrighteous], will peculiarly [in an especial degree] overtake them — hdncov, just) Thus Paul re- moves to as great a distance as possible that conclusion, and abruptly repels such disputers.

9. T/ ovv ; what then ?) He resumes the question with which he began at ver. 1. — ^potyo^ eda ;) have we any advantage as com- pared with the Gentiles f — ob vuvrug x) the Jew would say vruvrug : but Paul contradicts him. In the beginning of this passage, he speaks gently (for, in other places, where ^rihufiojg is used, ob ‘ruvrojg cannot be substituted for it ; and in this passage the expression, by no means [yrihapug, had it been used], would take away the concession which he made to them at ver. 2) ; but he afterwards speaks with greater severity. — <rpoririaed^t&a) we have proved , be- fore that I had mentioned the peculiar privilege of the Jews. Paul deals, in Chapters i. and ii., as a stern Administrator [Pro- curator] of divine justice ; but yet he was unwilling to use the singular number. By the plural number, he expresses the as- sent of his believing readers : vuvrag, all the Jews [as well as] all the Greeks. — b<p cc/xaprlav) W denotes subjection, as if under the tyranny of sin.

10. Kadug, as) That all men are under sin, is very clearly proved from the vices which always, and everywhere, have been prevalent [have stalked abroad] among mankind ; just as, also, the internal holiness of Christ is displayed in [pourtrayed by means of] the innocency of His words and actions. Paul there- fore quotes, with propriety, David and Isaiah, although it is con- cerning the people of their own times that they complain, and that accompanied with an exception in favour of the godly [some of whom are always to be found], Ps. xiv. 4, etc. For that com- plaint describes men such as God looking down from heaven finds them to be, not such as He makes them by His grace.

10. "Or/ otto ten dixaiog obd's tig xrX.) Ps. xiv. 2, etc. The LXX., ovx ten <ro/wv %pijer6r7jra, obz senv sojg hog. — it ten evvtuv 5) sxtyruv r'ov ©s ov. — ivog, The general phrase is, there is none

1 Beng. seems to translate “ not altogether quite different from “ in no wise.” — Ed.

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Public domain historical edition (1859); scan/OCR from Internet Archive.

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