Gospel Conversations Week 16

God's Sovereign Choice

9 ^aI am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witnessin the Holy Spirit— 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.3 For ^bI could wish that I myself were ^caccursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of mybrothers,¹ my kinsmen ^daccording to the flesh. 4 They are ^eIsraelites, and to them belong^fthe adoption, ^gthe glory, ^hthe covenants, ⁱthe giving of the law, ^jthe worship, and ^kthepromises. 5 To them belong ^lthe patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, isthe Christ, ^mwho is God over all, ⁿblessed forever. Amen.

6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended fromIsrael belong to Israel, 7 and not all are children of Abraham ^obecause they are hisoffspring, but ^p“Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 8 This means that it is notthe children of the flesh who are the children of God, but ^qthe children of the promise arecounted as offspring. 9 For this is what the promise said: ^r“About this time next year I willreturn, and Sarah shall have a son.” 10 And not only so, but ^salso when Rebekah hadconceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 though they were not yet born andhad done nothing either good or bad—in order that God's purpose of election mightcontinue, not because of works but because of ^thim who calls— 12 she was told, ^u“Theolder will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, ^v“Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

14 What shall we say then? ^wIs there injustice on God's part? By no means! 15 For hesays to Moses, ^x“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion onwhom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion,² but onGod, who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, ^y“For this very purpose I haveraised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimedin all the earth.” 18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomeverhe wills.