Commentary on Romans 10.1–10.21

“Brothers, the desire of my heart and my prayer to God is for them, for their salvation; for I bear them witness that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.” Since he wishes to take them away from the law, believing that it is a veil for the Jews, lest he seem to do this out of hatred of Judaism, he shows his affection toward them and gives much to the law; but he teaches that it is no longer the time for keeping the law; and therefore he testifies that he wishes to provide for them, if only they will listen to him and recognize that he is not their enemy; since he also bears them witness to their nobility and the tradition of their fathers.

“For, not knowing the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” He says that through ignorance they did not believe in Christ; having zeal for God indeed, but not knowing his will and counsel, they acted against God, whom they declared they were defending. He speaks of those who did not receive Christ not from malice and envy but from error. To them the apostle Peter too says: “I know, brothers, that you did this evil through ignorance, as did your rulers” (Acts 3:17); for not knowing that this was the Christ whom God had promised, they said another was to be awaited. To him, who is the righteousness of God in faith, they preferred their own righteousnesses, which they had from the law. For he is righteousness, because in him God fulfilled what he had promised.

“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” He says this because one who believes in Christ has the perfection of the law. For since no one was justified by the law, because no one fulfilled the law except one who hoped in the promised Christ, faith was established, which would stand for the perfection of the law; so that, all else being set aside, faith would satisfy for the whole law and the prophets.

“For Moses writes of the righteousness that is from the law, that the man who does these things will live in them” (Lev 18:5). He says this because the righteousness of the law of Moses, if kept, did not make them guilty for the time being; that is, they lived by doing the law, for they were debtors. This is said in Numbers and in Leviticus.

“But the righteousness that is from faith speaks thus: Do not say in your heart: Who has ascended into heaven?” (Deut 30:12). This is said in Deuteronomy, which the apostle here interprets of Christ, saying: “That is, to bring Christ down.” “Or who has descended into the abyss? That is, to bring Christ back from the dead.” This is the apostle’s own. So he says that this is the righteousness of faith, if there is no doubt about the hope of God which is in Christ; lest one who distrusts should say: Who could ascend into heaven? For he suffered for this, that, the underworld having been despoiled by the power of the Father, rising after death was conquered, he might ascend into heaven with the souls he had rescued. For every one who, on seeing the Saviour in the underworld, hoped for salvation from him was freed, as the apostle Peter testifies; for he says that the gospel was preached to the dead too (1 Pet 4:6). One, then, who does not doubt these things in his heart has been justified by faith. But fear makes one justified by the law; for one fears the law because he sees that it inflicts punishment on sinners. Therefore the righteousness of the law is not great, nor does it lay up merit with God, except for the present; but faith, because it is foolishness to unbelievers, has a reward with God, from whom what is not seen is hoped for.

“But what does Scripture say? The word is near, in your mouth and in your heart” (Deut 30:14). This is written in Deuteronomy: that what we are told to believe is not far from our mind or mouth; for though it is not seen with the eyes, what we believe does not disagree with the nature of souls and the reason of speech. For in nature itself there are planted, as it were, seeds which, cultivated by hearing and will, bear fruit, the testimony of the Creator.

“This is the word of faith which we preach.” He says that no work of the law, but faith alone, is to be given in the matter of Christ. “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God raised him, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Whatever he said above, here he has made it plain that this is the rule of faith: to believe that Jesus is Lord, and not to be ashamed to profess that God, bringing him back from the dead, led him into heaven with the body, from where he had come to be incarnate; lest one incur the sentence of the Gospel which says: “Many of the rulers believed in Jesus, but did not profess it openly because of the Jews. For they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God” (John 12:42–43).

“For Scripture says through Isaiah: Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame” (Isa 28:16). For when the examination of all things begins on the day of judgment, and all false inventions and doctrines are brought to confusion, then those who believe in Christ will exult, seeing it made plain to all that what they believed is true, and wise what was thought foolish. For they will see themselves alone glorious and wise among the rest, who had been thought contemptible and foolish. For there is the true approval, where there is reward and condemnation.

“For there is no distinction of Jew and Greek.” He says that in general all are either put to shame because of distrust or exalted because of belief; for without Christ there is no salvation with God, but rather punishment or death. For neither the prerogative of the fathers nor the giving of the law can commend the Jews, who did not receive the merit and promise of the fathers. And the gentiles have no testimony by which they may be commended even according to the flesh, unless they believe in Christ. “For the same Lord of all is rich toward all who call on him.” It is plain that this pertains to all, whether Jews or Greeks; because without calling on the Lord Christ no one lives before God. Since, then, he is Lord of all, as the apostle Peter agrees, saying, “He is Lord of all,” yet he is rich only in those who call on him, because they will receive the reward. But to the faithless he is not rich, because they are not partakers of his goods; for they will not receive what they did not believe he would give. And yet he did not say that God is rich to those who believe, but to those who call on him; so that after one has believed, the mind may not cease to ask for what it has been taught by God always to ask; as it is held written in the Gospel according to Luke, that because of the adversary, since he is subtle and cunning, one must always pray. For to those who believe only the remission of sins is given; but it follows that one devoted to prayer is freed from evil and can obtain what God has promised to those who keep watch with their whole heart (Luke 18:1ff.).

“For everyone, whoever calls on the name of the Lord, will be saved.” This was said in Micah. For God himself, who appeared to Moses, says: “My name is the Lord” (Exod 6:3). This is the Son of God, who is called both Angel and God for this reason: so that he might not be thought to be the one from whom are all things, but the one through whom are all things; so that his being called God pertains to this, that the Father and the Son are one; and Angel to this, that he was sent by the Father as messenger of the promised salvation. And he is said to be sent for this reason, that he may not be believed to be the Father himself, but begotten by him. And therefore whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. In this sense Moses too spoke: “Whoever,” he says, “will not listen to that prophet will be destroyed from the people” (Deut 18:18–19). If he is Lord of all, he is called on by his servants. And because this is true, he added: (Verse 14.) “How, then, will they call on one in whom they have not believed?” The Jews certainly do not believe Christ, whom he called Lord. This follows what I said above, that one must first believe in order to have confidence to ask. “Or how will they believe him whom they have not heard?” It is clear that one cannot believe him to whom obedience is refused. “And how will they hear without one preaching?” Nor is this obscure; for one who resists the preacher does not receive his author.

“Or how will they preach unless they are sent?” Nor does this admit of question; for they will not be true apostles unless they are sent by Christ, nor will they be able to preach without an author; for no signs of mighty works bear witness to them. “As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce peace, who announce good things!” The prophet Nahum says this.

By saying “feet” he signifies the coming of the apostles going round the world and preaching that the kingdom of God is coming; for their coming enlightened people, showing the way by which one goes in peace to God, which John the Baptist had first come to prepare. This is the peace to which those who believe in Christ hasten. Indeed holy Simeon, because there is discord in the world, rejoicing at the Saviour’s birth, says: “Now, Lord, dismiss your servant in peace” (Luke 2:29); for the kingdom of God is peace. For when all discord is cut away, all will bend the knee to the one God. Indeed the heavenly city, Jerusalem, is interpreted “vision of peace,” which is our mother.

“But not all obey the gospel.” It is true; for though the world is illuminated by the splendour of the Lord’s teaching, there are nevertheless those who resist, who call light darkness. For the sharpness of their mind is so blunted by error that they do not receive the splendour of the true light. These the Gospel accuses, saying: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it” (John 1:5). “For Isaiah says: Lord, who has believed our report?” (Isa 53:1). That is, who has believed what we have heard from you and speak? He has confirmed by the prophetic example that the Jews are opponents of the truth of the gospel. For the law rebukes the Jews; because as it was among the ancients, so it is now. For one who does not receive faith does not touch this number.

“So faith is from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” It is plain that unless something is said, it can neither be heard nor believed. “But I say: Have they not heard?” That is, they heard, and would not believe. For though faith is from hearing, yet there are those who hear and do not believe. For they hear and do not understand, because their heart is blinded by malice. “And indeed their sound has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.” He testifies that the preaching of God was heard by the Jews to such an extent that he declares the world filled with the divine message; for the very structure of the world proclaims the Creator. What the Psalmist said of the creation (Ps 19:4), the apostle says of the evangelists, that the preaching of the name of Christ was heard everywhere and reached every place. For where the presence of a preaching person was lacking, yet the sound and report arrived, as the report of the mighty works done in Egypt had reached all nations, as Rahab the prostitute testifies. For if it reached every place, the Jews could not fail to hear the apostolic preaching; so that none of them is excused from the crime of distrust.

“But I say: Did Israel not know?” That is, did it know? For through the testimonies above he convicts the race of Israel because of unbelief, since he seemed to complain with grief about all Israelites. He does not deny that Israel knew and obtained what had been promised to it in the law; but the Israel which is so in spirit rather than flesh, whom God had also foreknown would believe. For all heard, and not all believed; therefore: “First Moses says,” in the song of Deuteronomy: “I will provoke you to jealousy by a no-nation; by a foolish nation I will send you into anger” (Deut 32:21). These are the words of one indignant, because the Jews were always found distrustful; and he assigns one generation and cause to all evils; while he rebukes those present, in the same place he touches rather those to come, to whom this pertains. For there is one condemnation for all of these if they remain in distrust. Jealousy, then, was born in them from envy, when they see the nation which, being formerly without God, was brutish in sense, call their God its own, who had been the God of the Jews, and obtain the gift promised to them; by which, suffering jealousy, they would be racked with anger, so as to pay the wages of their malice and unbelief. For nothing so consumes a person as jealousy, which God therefore made the avenger of unbelief, because it is a grave sin. For they are always sent into anger and tormented when they hear that the law and the prophets pertain to us who believe in Christ.

“Isaiah is bold and says: I was made manifest to those who did not seek me, and I was found among those who did not ask for me” (Isa 65:1). Since above he used the words of Moses concerning the exclusion of the Jews, to this he also added the example of the prophet Isaiah, so as to teach more openly from his continuation that God, the Jews being expelled, offered grace freely to the gentiles, to the reproach and ruin of the Jews. For the prophet Isaiah testifies to these things in the person of Christ.

“But to Israel he says: All day long I have stretched out my hands to a people that does not believe and contradicts” (Isa 65:2). This Israel is the carnal one, that is, sons of Abraham, but not according to faith; for the true and spiritual Israel is the one who by believing sees God. “All day long” signifies always; for they were always rebuked. Therefore those who will not believe are rebuked, so that they may know that they are the cause of their own perdition. This can also be taken of the Saviour, who with hands stretched out on the cross rebukes the sin of those who killed him. For that cause cries out the wicked deed of the Jews. Above, he showed that what Isaiah dared to say of those who had been God’s enemies, that they would be friends, and that those who were called Israelites, because they were disobedient, were to be cast off as enemies.