The Pulpit Commentary — Romans — Section 334

of CbrM, and its ext-ension, to wb.ioh tbe apostle looks, and to which he would have them l<x,k. They, his readers, were now, in place, 111! it were, of the unbelieving brnelit<'S, entrui:-t<'d with the living power; it WM for them, in oonjuuctlon with the belienng Jews, to make known Mh-at.ion t-0 the world. We have here-their position in the kingdom of God, their danger, 11nd the ultimate aspect of the kingdom, I. Firi:t, the posit.ion of these Gentiles in the kine;dom of God, "Grafted in among them." They bad been "without God in the world;" but now, what a glory wa.s theiri: ! m11de "partakers of the Divine nature" I And, being saved, charged as the heralds of Goo. t.o carry this sah-ation to the ends of the earth I Truly, they had become" partaker of the fatness of the olive tree." And so they seemed to be in the place of the broken-off branches ; they were " built upon the foundation of the 11postles and prophets." Out of the very ruin of the Israelites had come their salva- tion ; in the very room of the rejected Israelites they stood. Here was a transfer of blessing. II. But this very position was fraught with danger. "Glory not ; " " Thou standest by thy faith." The danger of false pride was not an imaginary one; Gentiles probably did glory over the Jews.. Nay, do they not glory still over these" unbelievers"? Do they not sometimes persecute them even to death? But how false was the pride I They were only grafted branches, borne by the ancient root of Israel. And yet they deported themselves with such consequence, and affected to despise their neighbour branches, as well as those that had been broken off. Another danger was involved in this: false, uncharit.able pride was perilously near to a damnable unbelief; it was indeed that unbelief begun. Why had these branches been broken from the ancient tree? "Because of their unbelief." Was not the same excision impending over unbelief still? Instead, then, of pride, let them cherish a holy fear, e.nd walk humbly with their God. For most surely, if God spared not the natw-a.1 branches, neither would he spare them. IIL Once ~"1Un, if faith was the condition of a pa.rt in the kingdom of God, and unbelief alone incurred exclusion from its benefits and work, then these very Jews, unbelieving as they now were, might, in the time to come, by faith become again partakers : " God is able to graft them in age.in." God is severe indeed, and all wilfully wicked ones incur his wrath ; he cuts off his very chosen ones if they cherish an evil heart of unbelief. But God is good, and none shall ever seek his face in vain. And seeking him, and finding him, they shall surely be restored to their forfeited place. Think of the history of the Gentiles-their long abandonment because of unbelief. But God receives them freely as instruments for his work. "Much more shall the natnral branches be grafted into their own olive tree." Let us learn. how terribly we may fall. and therefo.re be not high-minded. But let us al..Bo learn how gracious and forgiving is the God of love, and how he will heal our backelid.i.n.,"11, and will not remember our sins.-T. F. L. Vers.. 25---32.-The Dirnne phuosophy of history. The apostle has cautioned them not to be high-minded because of any seeming preference shown to them; he now guards against their groBB specnlations as !'° the nature ?f Israef's rejection by setti~g forth emphatically its true character and tntent. And m so domg he takes also a bl.I'd's-eye view of the religioUB history and destinies of the world, especially as regards the mutnal relations of Jews and Gentiles. We have here the religious dualism and universalism of the natural history of mankind. I. Tm: DUALIBlL As Godet very strikingly saye, "The enti~e course of the religious hi.story of the world is determined by the antagonism created among mankind by the calling of Abraham, betwoon a people specially destined by God to receive his revela.- ~ . and the other nations given over to themselves. From that moment (Gen. xii.) there begin t.o be described those two ~mense ~urves which traverse the ages of antiquity in opposite directioilB, and w~ich 1 c~ossmg o~e a~other a.t the adve~t of Cbri.stiauity are prolonged from that penod m mverse directions, 11nd shall terminate by uniting ~nd losing themselves in one another at the goal of hiijtory.'' 1. 'l'he eany period of the history of the world, afte~ t~e call ~f Abraham, con~isted of the ~ntr:ast betw1:er, believing l8rael and the unbelievmg nations. The Gentiles, as the begmnmg af th1: Epil!tle reminded 111!1 were~ ven over to their ignorance and siu, Why ? Beca.uso au, XI, 1-86.] THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS. 333