- Sep 22, 2020
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While at work today I kept thinking about Romans 9:14-16, and thinking about what the underlying message of "I will have mercy on who I will have mercy" truly is, since it seems to me there are two options. Either a)it's a statement concerned primarily with God excluding some from His mercy and remaining just or b)it's a statement about God including more than He has stipulated in His mercy and remaining just. The context of the discussion seems like it could go either direction, since it may be talking about some Jews being excluded despite being born Jews, or it could be about the promises given to Israel no longer being the exclusive inheritance of the Jews. What makes the difference, it seems to me, is the question that we think Romans as a whole is answering. To my mind, there are two possibilities that seem to dominate discussions on Romans. The first being that Romans is largely about answering the question "How does a man find salvation?" While the second possibility is that Romans is answering the question "How can God remain just while justifying sinners?" with a special emphasis on God justifying the gentile nations rather than avenging Israel.
What would you say the overarching question of Romans is? Or at least the portion of Romans mentioned, that is to say Romans 8-9?
What would you say the overarching question of Romans is? Or at least the portion of Romans mentioned, that is to say Romans 8-9?