The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 190

lMUy. ""ith regsrd to the whole question of they may not attain all at once to the Ideal the iut<>ntion of thi■ oho.pt.er, thnt ils refcr- of their regenerate condition. E'n<'<' ta the unregenerate precludes the Similarly, in St. John's Epistles the wresting of ~ome pa.rte of it to !npport kingdoms of dll.l'kneee and of light are s11t antinoruianism. Calvin, though applying forth as totally distinct, and the regenemte it, 11S so.id abo~e, to the regenerate, thus nre regarded as having passed entirely from nlludei; to and gua.rds age.inst any snob the one into the other, so as to have the abn.oe of ver. 17: "Non est deprccalio se perfect love which oneteth out fear; and it ex<'nsantis, e.c si. culpa ,aroret; quomodo is of importance that the essential distinc- multi nugatores justam defensionem habere tion between the two kingdoms should be se pntant, qua tegant sua flagitia dum in kept in view. But still in actual life, as we caruem ea rejicinnt." cannot but feel, the majority of believing It \\"&II observed in the note at the head Christians have not so passed entirely; of <'h. iL that, though the thesis to be then clouds from the old kingdom of darkness proved was the sinfulness of all men without still partially overshadow most of those who, e:i.:ception before God, this did not seem to in the main, have passed int.o the light, be in that chapter rigorously proved with and it mny be difficult for us to determine regnrd to those-and such it was allowed to which kingdom some belong. Such there were-who sincerely sought after would be the case even with those whom the righteousness, and refrained from judging apostle addressed-persons who had con- othLrs; and it was said that this apparent sciously, in adult life, risen to a new life in deficiency in the proof wonld be supplied baptism; and still more will it be so with in eh. vii. And so it is in this analysis of us, who were baptized in infancy, and mny the inward consciousness of even the best have grown up more or less, but few en- in tLeir natmal state ; recognizable by all tirely, under the inft uence of the regenerating w; a true one in proportion to their own Spirit. Further, it is to be observed tho.t, moml enlightenment and moral earnestness. though the peace and confidenoe of ob. viii. This consideration is an additional reason be the growing result and reward of a true for regarding eh. vii. ae referring to the conversion, yet the practical te.iil.i; uf one are m=genemt.e ; since otherwise a link in the ever said by both St. Paul and St. John not argument on which the whole treatise rests to be feelings only, bnt the fruif;s of the would seem to be wanting. Spirit in character and life. We may remark also, before proceeding with om exposition, that, though we hold Ver. 7.-What shall we say then t (St. Paul's usual phrase, with µ~ -ylvo,,,-o follow- eh. vii. to refer to the unregenerate, and eh. ing, for meeting and rejecting a possible 'riii. to the regenerate state, between which misunderstanding of his meaning ; cf. eh. vi. a sharp line is here drawn, yet it need not 1.) IBtheLawsint Oodforbid. Nay,Ihacl follow that either the sense of having pa.seed not known sin, but through law. 'AA~a. at a definite time from one to the other 11,11 translated "nay," being thus taken, a.a in represented in this ideal pictme, or the con- the Authorized Version, adversatively to the supposition of the Law being sin, and so aciousue• of entire blessedness as portrayed a continuation of what is expressed by µ~ in eh. viii., will be reslized by e.11. who may -ylvo,,,-o. So far from the Law being sin, Btill be regenerate and have undergone a true it exposes sin. Or it may be in the 8enso ol convenrion. Owing to the weakneBB of the "howbeit," as in the Revised Version, mean• human will, which has to work with grace, ing-still, law has to do with sin so far as thi.e, that it brings it out. For I had not and to the infection of natme that rem.sine known Iuat, noept the Law had Hid, Thou in the regenera.tc, the triumph of the grace lhalt not covet; or rather, thou ,halt not lmt, of the new birth i.e seldom, in fact, complete: l!O as to retain the correspondence of the verb and l!O even 1111,ints may often be atill painfully with the preceding substantive. Observe, coD.11Cioos of the conflict de11cribed in eh. vii. here as elsewhere, the significance of 11dµor with and without the article. lo the preced- TLey will, iu.deed, have the peace and IMI· ing section it was the Mosaic Law th11t was BUra.noo of eh. viiL in proportion u "the Hpcciully in view, and it is the ldeo. of it law uf the Spirit of life in CbriBt J eBUB" is being sin that is so indignantly repudiated po1,t:ut r.nd pa.ra.lDODilt in them; but atill at the begiu.nlng of this v,em. So a.llO.  <'tt, vrr. 1-26.J THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. 187