The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 213

c,reature(of. ch.,iii.39; Heb.iv. lS). Where Vera. 20, 21.-l!'or the oreature (or orea- there i8 nothing to limit its meaning, it must tion, 88 before) was anbjeoted to vaniiy, not be nnderstood of the whole visible crentiou at willingly, but by reason of him who aub- any mte in the world of man. Thus iu 111i:.rk jeoted it in hope, Beoause (or, that; i.e. fa x. 6 ; xiii. 19; 2 Pet. iii. 4. And so here, hope tJiat) the oreature (or, oreatian) also exN>pt ro far e.s the context limits it· for &hall be delivered from the bondage of f'C'e especially ,riiO'll 71 ,,.,.cu,s in ,er: 22. oorruption into the liberty of the glory It is, indeed, apparently l!O limited to the of the aona of God. The aorist 01rml:y,, part of e.reation of whioh we ha,e cognizance (" was su bjeoted ") seems to imply that tile at prerent; for see ol'5a,uev in ver. 22, which present "vo.nity" and "bondage of cor- denc-t~s a. known fact. But is there any ruption " were not inherent in the original further limitation, e.s many commentators creation, or of necessity to lo.et for ever. c?ntend? Putting aside as untenable, in Thus the assertions of Giin. i. 1 and SI, new of the whole context (see espeoially stand unshaken, viz. that in the beginning ,er. 23), the new of those who underste.nd God cree.ted e.11 things, and that all at first the new spiritual creation of the l'ee<>enere.te was "very good." The ideas, resorted to to be meant, we ma, remark 88 follows: in order to aocoun~ for existing evil, of (1) That 71 ,,.,.l,ns includes certainly all matter (31'.11) being essentiu.lly evil, and ma,n~'in'!:, ~ot, ~cepting the !'t'genere.te. of a li11µ.1oup-y&r, other than the Supreme K11,1 TJ/JoELS ,w.,-o, m ver. 23 mee.ns the.t "we God, having made the world, a.re alike who he.ve the firstfruits of the Spirit" are precluded. It might serve as an answer to included, not that we e.re a cle.ss a.pa.rt. the argument of Lucretius against a Divine (2) The tchole animal creation is included origin of things- too. So genera.I a term as 1riiu11 11 KTi<Tis could not surelv he.ve been used if me.n " Nequaqnam nobis divinius esse paratam only had been mee.nt. And it is obviously Natnram rerum, tanta stat prrodita culpa." true that the whole sentient creation, e.s well as man, has a she.re now in the Why the "creature" was thus "snbjected" general su1fering. To the objection the.t is not here explained. No solution of the old the irrational creatures cannot be conceived insoluble problem of ,ro6~v .,.1, 1e111eov is given. as she.ring in tlie "hope" and "earnest All that is, or could be, said is that it was expectation " spoken of, it may be replied 11,ct -rov lnro-r~"""'a., meaning God. It was the.t, so far as it seems to be implied the.t his will that it should be so ; this is all we they do, it may only be that tlie apostle, know ; except that we find the beginning of by a fine prOlllYpOpt!ia., conceives them as evil, so fu.r as it affects man, attributed in feeling even as the human mind feels con- Scripture to human sin. But he so subjected cerning them. Bnt, further, conscions hope his creation in hope. This expression may and expecbltion does not seem, if the refer to the prof.oevangelium of Gen. iii. 15, ls.ngnage of the pas.sage be examined, to or to the never-dying hope in ·the human be distinctly attributed to them. All heart; to either or to both. The latter idea that is of necessity implied is that they is expressed in the myth of Pandora's box. share in the groaning from which we crave Further, the creature is said to have been deliverance. (3) Inanimate natnre too may so subjected "not willingly" (o~x ,1eov<Ta). be included in the idea, it also seeming to No sentient beings acquiesce in suffering; she.re in the present mystery of evil, and they resent evil, and would fain flee from it. falling short of our ideal of a terrestrial Man especially unwillingly submits to his paradise. Tholnck appositel7 qnotes Philo present bondage, When in ver. 21 the as llllying that all nature dtr8evE111v lv3txe-r11, hope is expressed of the creature (or crea- ,,,.J dµ.,,u. It may be the.t St. Paul had in tiou) itself being eventually freed from the hiB mind what iB said in GenesiB of the present bondage of corruption, it mu.y be cnning of the ground for man's sake, and that tho human part of creation only is in of the thorns and thistles; and also the the writer's eye; but it may be also (there pictures found in the propliets of a renovated being still no expressed limitation of the t:arth, in which the deBeri should rejoice word ,c-rl<Tu) that he conceives a final aI1d bloBBOm as the rose. Calvin commenbl emancipation of the whole creation from on the whole pa.asage thUB: "Omissa ex- evil (cf. Eph. i. 10; 1 Cor. xv. 23-27; posiiioI1um varietate, hunc IOC11Ill sccipio, 2 Pet. iii. la). But if so, it is not so.Id that Iiullum esee t:lementum, nullamque mnndi the peculiar glory of the so¥ of God will paru:m, qwe non, veluti prresentill miserir.e extend to all creation, but only that all :..gnitione tact&, in spew resurrectioniB in- will be freed into the freedom of thoir tent& sit." Agaiu, "8pem creaturil qlllll glory· which may mean that the day of beDl!ll carent ideo tribuit, ut fidelea oculos the r~vel.ation of the sons of God in glory 11pt:rie.nt lid COI!Bpc:cium invisibiliB vitro, will bring with it a general omn.noipation quamvu edhnc BUb deformi habitu latcat." of all creation from its present bondo.go.  on. vm.1-89.J THE EPISTLt OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. 211