The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 59

very P"'lllhl of his thus setting him~elf up t.o ver. 6) evil, of the J"ew ftr1t, and also of the jud~,, while being himself guilt~•, Ofhim it Gentile (litomlly, <keek). •rho o:rpresYion, is inq•li,,1, not only that. he shar<~ the guilt .-o,s l( lp,9.Cas, is rondorcd in tho Authorized of mankind, l1ut aleo thRt he cspeoialb will Version "thom whioh are oontontious," n0t el'<'n1"' the fine.I judgrucnt. Of others ip,9~a being translated "oontontion" also who. <'0,•scious of their own failings, seek in 2 Oor. xii. 20; Gal. v. 20; Phil. i. 16: sin<'t'IT'iy after good, this is not mid, however ii. 8; J11,B, iii. 14, 16. So, too, the Vulgate, liable t(l C'Ondemnlltion on their own mere qui sunt ez oonrentio11e ; and similarly merits thc>y may be. Indeed, the contrary Origen, Ohrysostom, <Eoumenius, •rheo- is t>mphatically ftl'l!('rle<l. in the verses thRt phylaot, Erasmus, Luther, Boza, Oalvinf follo\11"; nay, even ett,rnal life is assured to eto. Th is, however, is not the olassioe. 1mch, wh<>ever thev mRv be, and under what- souse of the word, whioh is not oonneoted e,w dispensatioU: though it docs not fall with lpis ("strife"), but with lp,9as, whioh ";thin the soope of the argument to &plain means originally a day le.bourer, or a worker in this plare v.hy or how. It is important for hire, being so used in Homer. Hence for us to see this clearlv for an undcrst.'Uld• lp,9•la meant (1) le.hour for wages, and oe.me ing of the drift of the· cha.pt.er, and of St. to mee.n (2) oanve.ssing or intriguing for Paul's v.hole doctrine v.ith respect to hnme.n office, and (8) fe.otion, or party-spirit (cf. sin and its co:isequences. A.rist., 'Pol.,' 5. 2, 6; 3, 9). Notwithstand- Ver. 6.-Who will render to every man ing the weight of ancient authority for its aooording to his works. This assertion is bearing the sense of "contention" in the New no contni.d.iction of the main portion of the Testament, that of "faction" seems more Epistle as it proceeds, as to justification likely and suitable in the passages where it being not of works ; the phrase here being, occurs; and certainly so here, the idea seem- not o,; acccurd of his works, bnt according ing to be that the persons spoken of/actiomly tv them. •· Xequaqn.e.m tamen quid ve.leant, renounced their allegiance to "the truth," sed quid illis debe&tur pretii pronuncie.t" obeying a.li,1<la inst.ead. We observe how (Cain:.). The ground of jUBti.fication is not expressions are here heaped up, significant here in.olved. .All that is asserted is whe.t of the Divine indignation against high- ie esssuti.a.l to any trne conception of God's handed sin, unrepented and unatoned for, justice, nz. that he has regard to u,hat men of which the apostle, in very virtue of his are in assigning reward or punishment; it view of the eternal li,1<a101T61111, had an awful is what is ci,cn in Heh. :ri. 6 RB a firat sense (see above on oh. i. 18; and cf. 1 principle of ·faith about God, "that he is a Thess. i B, etc. ; and also Heh. x:. 27; xii. Reward.er of them that diligently seek him." 29). Still, neither this verse nor ver. 5 It is forther endent from erc&.rrq,, and still is of necessity inconsistent with other more from all that follows, that &ll 1mch will well-known passages, where St. Paul seems be so rewarded, whether before Christ or to contemplate God's reconciliation in the aft.er his coming, whether knowing him or end of all things to himself in Christ not knowing him. Nor is the inclusion of (see eh. v. 15, et seq.; 1 Cor. xv. 24--29; the latter inconsist.ent with the doctrine Eph. i 9, 10, 22, :!3: Col. i 20). The that saivation iB through Christ a.lone. For "indignation and wrath" spoken of in the the cffoct of his atonement is represented as passages before us (being, as was said retrospective as well e.s prospective, and as under eh. i 18, inseparable from a. full con- availing v:irtnally for all mankind (cf. eh. ception of the eternal righteousness) may iii 25 ; v. 15, 18, 20). Hence the narrow still be conceived as having a corrective 11,8 doctrine of some divines, who would confine well as a punitive purpose. Nor is the the pol!ilibility of salvation to those who doctrine which has been called that of be.vr, !.lad in some way during life a con- "et.ernal hope" of necessity precluded by l!ciom faith in the atonement, is evidently statements which imply no more than that not the doctrine of St. Paul sin, unrepented and unatoned for, must in- Ver.. 7-9.-To them who by patient evitably undergo its doom in the unknown eontinuance in well-doing (literally, good regions of eternity. The thought, at the f/lXW"k, lnou i'qabou, with reference to lna end of ver. 9, for the first time passes preced.in~) aeei: for glory a.nd honour and distinctly to : the Jew's assumed exemp- 1mm.Drt&Wy (literally, inoornJ,ptwn, lz4,9a.p- tion from the condemnation of the rest ,,-ia,,), eternal life. llut unto them which of mankind; and to this exoluslvely the are contelltiou (110 Authorized Version; in remainder of the chapter is devoted. The Beviaed Version, fadu.nu. .AB to true mean- "indignation,'' etc., it is said, will be upon ing, 11ee below), and do J10t ober the truth, the Jew flrrt (of. eh. i 16), which may mean bm obey unrighteoune11, ind1gmR:ion and either in the ftrrt in,tanoe, or principally. wrath, tribul&tiaD and anguwi, upon n~ His priority in Divine favour involve■ lnl of man that doeth (rather, t.00rketh, priority in retribution, while his pre-omlnonce 4f,ra.(0Jd11'1', with reference asain M) ,,,,,. llJ in privile~e c&rrlea witll it oorresvondlDIJ o1t. u.1-20.] TilE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. 53