Romans 9-11
New Catholic Bible
The Lot of the Jewish People[a]
Chapter 9
Paul’s Love for Israel. 1 I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying, as my conscience bears witness for me through the Holy Spirit 2 that I have great sorrow and unending anguish in my heart. 3 I would even be willing to be accursed, cut off from Christ for the sake of my brethren who are my kinsmen according to the flesh. 4 They are Israelites[b] who have the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the Law, the worship, and the promises. 5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, came the Christ, God forever, who is over all.[c] Amen.
The Word of God Has Not Proved False. 6 It is not as though the word of God has proved false. For not all who were Israelites truly belong to Israel, 7 and not all of Abraham’s children are his true descendants. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that descendants will bear your name.”
8 In other words, it is not through physical descent that people are regarded as children of God. Rather, the children of the promise are those who are counted as descendants. 9 For this is how the promise was worded: “About this time next year I shall return, and Sarah will have a son.”
10 And not only that, but Rebekah became pregnant by one man, her husband Isaac. 11 Yet even before her children had been born or done anything good or bad, in order that God’s purpose of election might prevail, 12 dependent not on human works but on his call, she was told, “The older shall serve the younger.” 13 As it is written,
“I loved Jacob,
but Esau I hated.”[d]
14 Has God Been Unjust?[e]What then are we to say to that? Has God been unjust? Of course not! 15 For he says to Moses,
“I will have mercy
on whomever I will have mercy,
and I will have pity
on whomever I will have pity.”
16 Therefore, it does not depend on anyone’s will or exertion but on God’s mercy. 17 For Scripture says to Pharaoh, “I have raised you up so that I may display my power in you and that my name may be proclaimed throughout the earth.” 18 Consequently, he shows mercy to whomever he wills, and he hardens the hearts of whomever he wills.
19 In response, you will say to me, “Why then does he still find fault? Who can resist his will?” 20 But who indeed are you, a human being, to argue with God? Can something that is made say to its maker, “Why did you make me like this?” 21 Surely, the potter can mold the clay as he wishes. Does he not have the right to make out of the same lump of clay one vessel for a noble purpose and another for ordinary use?
22 What if God, although wishing to show his wrath and to make known his power, nevertheless with great patience endured the objects of his wrath[f] destined for destruction? 23 He did so in order to make known the riches of his glory to the recipients of his mercy whom he prepared long ago for glory. 24 We are the ones whom he has called not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles.
25 Witness of the Old Testament. As indeed he says in Hosea,
“Those who were not my people
I will call ‘my people,’
and her who was not beloved
I will call ‘beloved.’
26 And in the very place
where it was said to them,
‘You are not my people,’
there they shall be called
children of the living God.”
27 And Isaiah cries out in regard to Israel:
“Though the number of the Israelites
will be like the sand of the sea,
only a remnant of them will be saved.
28 For the sentence of the Lord on the earth
will be executed quickly and with finality.”
29 Isaiah had foretold previously:
“If the Lord of hosts
had not left us any descendants,
we would have become like Sodom
and been made like Gomorrah.”
30 A Misguided Zeal. What then shall we say? That the Gentiles who did not strive for righteousness have achieved it, that is, righteousness based on faith, 31 but that Israel, who did strive for righteousness based on the Law, did not succeed in attaining it? 32 Why did this happen? Because they did not pursue it by faith but on the basis of works. They tripped over the stone that causes one to stumble, 33 as it is written:
“Behold, I am laying in Zion
a stone that will make people stumble
and a rock that will cause them to fall.
But the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”[g]
Chapter 10
1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. 2 I can testify to the zeal that they have for God, but it is not based on knowledge. 3 For, being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God, and thereby seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted themselves to God’s righteousness. 4 For Christ is the fulfillment of the Law for the justification of all who believe.
The Word Is Near You.[h] 5 Concerning the righteousness that comes from the Law, Moses writes, “The person who does these things will attain life by them.” 6 However, the righteousness that comes from faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”[i] 8 But what does it say?
“The word is near you,
on your lips and in your heart”
(that is, the word of faith that we proclaim).
9 If you confess with your lips, “Jesus is Lord,”[j] and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For one believes in the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. 11 As Scripture asserts, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile. The same Lord is Lord of all, and his generosity is manifested to all who call upon him. 13 Indeed, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14 Not All Have Responded to the Good News. But how can they call on him if they have not come to believe in him? And how can they believe in someone about whom they have never heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach to them? 15 And how will there be people to preach if they are not sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim the good news!”
16 However, not all have accepted the good news. As Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” 17 So then, faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
18 And so I ask: Have they not heard? Indeed, they have:
“Their voice has gone out all over the world,
and their words to the ends of the earth.”
19 Well then, I ask: Is it possible that Israel failed to understand? First Moses says:
“I will make you envious
of those who are not a nation.
I will rouse your anger
against a foolish nation.”
20 And Isaiah boldly states:
“I was found by those
who were not looking for me.
I have revealed myself to those
who never asked for me.”
21 But regarding Israel, he says:
“All day long I have stretched forth my hands
to a disobedient and rebellious people.”
Chapter 11
The Remnant of Israel.[k] 1 I ask, then: Has God rejected his people? Of course not! I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. You surely must know what Scripture asserts in the passage about Elijah where he pleads with God against Israel: 3 “Lord, they have killed your Prophets, they have torn down your altars. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.”
4 What was God’s response to him? “I have spared for myself seven thousand men who have not knelt before Baal.” 5 So too, at the present time, there is a remnant, chosen by grace. 6 But if it is by grace, then it is no longer by works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
7 What follows, then? Israel was unable to attain what it was seeking. The elect attained it, but the rest were hardened, 8 as it is written:
“God gave them a spirit of lethargy:
eyes that could not see
and ears that could not hear,
down to this very day.”
9 And David says:
“Let their table become a snare and a trap,
a stumbling block and a retribution for them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see,
and their backs be bent forever.”
11 A Providential Misstep.[l] And so I ask: Have they stumbled so that they might fall? By no means! However, through their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, and this has stirred them to envy. 12 Now if their transgression results in riches for the world, and their loss results in riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full participation bring!
13 Now I am addressing you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I glory in my ministry 14 in the hope that it will arouse the jealousy of those who are of my flesh so that some might be saved. 15 For if their rejection leads to the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
16 The Gentiles’ Salvation.[m] If the firstfruits are holy, then so is the whole lump of dough. And if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in their place to share in the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not boast over against the branches! If you start to boast, remember that it is not you who support the root but the root that supports you.
19 You will assert, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you hold your place only because of your faith. Therefore, do not rise up in pride but be filled with awe. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, he might not spare you either.
22 Therefore, keep in mind the kindness and the severity of God: his severity toward those who fell, but his kindness to you provided that you remain deserving of that kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off, 23 while those who do not persist in their unbelief will be grafted in, since God has the power to do so again. 24 For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated one, how much more easily will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree.
25 All Israel Will Be Saved.[n] I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brethren, lest you think yourselves too wise: this hardening that has afflicted Israel will continue only until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. 26 This is how all Israel will be saved, as it is written,
“The Deliverer will come out of Zion;
he will banish godlessness from Jacob
27 And this will be my covenant with them
when I take away their sins.”
28 As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake. However, as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of the patriarchs. 29 For the gifts of God and his calling are irrevocable.
30 Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now become disobedient in order that, through the mercy shown to you, they too may receive mercy. 32 For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may show mercy to all.
33 The Judgments of God Are Unfathomable.[o] Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unfathomable his ways!
34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?[p]
35 Or who has given him anything
in order to receive something in return?”[q]
36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
Footnotes
- Romans 9:1 Paul was born a Jew. In his eyes, Christianity was the historical fulfillment of the destiny and hope of Israel, the authentic conclusion of the Old Covenant, which was destined to shine out brightly in the New Covenant that was inaugurated by the Passover of Christ. But reality confronts him with agonizing problems. It had been necessary to make Jewish Christians understand that the salvation given by Jesus Christ caused a break from the Jewish religious system (see 2 Cor 3; Gal 3; Rom 7). An even more serious problem: Israel had officially rejected Jesus and now rejected the Gospel and the young Church. Paul’s reflections are organized in three stages: first, he stresses the fidelity of God (Rom 9:6-29); he then points out Israel’s responsibility (Rom 9:31—10:21); finally, with the entire plan of God in view, he insists that the infidelity of Israel is only provisional and partial (Rom 11:1-32). A hymn to the wisdom of God (Rom 11:33-36) ends these difficult pages.
- Romans 9:4 Israelites: descendants of Jacob, who was named Israel by God (see Gen 32:28). The name originally designated the whole nation of Israel (see Jdg 5:7), but after the division into two kingdoms it was given to the northern kingdom alone. In New Testament times, Palestinian Jews used the term “Israelites” to indicate that they were God’s chosen people.
Paul shows that God’s promises to them are still in effect: adoption, i.e., as God’s children (see Ex 4:22f; Jer 31:9; Hos 1:1); glory, i.e., God’s presence among them (see Ex 16:7, 10; Lev 9:6, 23; Num 16:19); covenants, e.g., the Abrahamic (see Gen 15:17-21; 17:1-8), the Mosaic (see Ex 19:5; 24:1-10); the Levitical (Num 25:12f; Jer 33:21; Mal 2:4f), the Davidic (see 2 Sam 7; 23:5; Pss 89:4f, 29f; 132:11f), and the New Covenant (prophesied in Jer 31:31-40); and the promises, especially those made to Abraham (see Gen 12:7; 13:14-17; 17:4-8; 22:16-18) and the Messianic promises (e.g., 2 Sam 7:12, 16; Isa 9:6f; Jer 23:5; 31:31-34; Ezek 34:23f; 37:24-28). - Romans 9:5 Came the Christ, God forever, who is over all: another possible translation is: “came the Christ. God who is over all be praised.”
- Romans 9:13 Hated: in the Biblical sense of the word, that is, “I preferred Jacob.”
- Romans 9:14 Paul thinks with astonishment of the unforeseeable calls of God, who chooses individuals and people from the midst of a sinful world. The image of the potter signifies in the Bible the sovereign freedom of God that defies all expectations. The texts from Hosea (2:25 and 11:10) spoke of the conversion of Israel; Paul interprets them as proclamations of an unprecedented initiative of God: the call of the Gentiles.
- Romans 9:22 Objects of his wrath: human beings who by sinning incur God’s anger.
- Romans 9:33 This verse uses a combination of two texts from Isaiah that was apparently in common use by the early Christians to defend Christ’s Messiahship (see 1 Pet 2:4, 6-8; see also Ps 118:22; Lk 20:17f).
- Romans 10:5 In Jesus God has placed himself at our disposal; we need only acknowledge the risen Christ. This is one of the earliest formulas with which candidates for Baptism professed their faith.
- Romans 10:7 Paul here combines Deut 30:13 and Ps 107:26.
- Romans 10:9 Jesus is Lord: the word “Lord” occurs some 6,000 times in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) for “Yahweh,” the name of the God of Israel. Here it is applied to Jesus by an early baptismal profession of faith to indicate Christ’s divinity.
- Romans 11:1 The threat to “harden” human beings (Isa 29:10) is often cited in the New Testament in censuring seemingly irremediable human blindness (see Mt 13:14; Jn 12:40; Acts 28:26). God is not indifferent to human rejection.
- Romans 11:11 Everything works together to carry out God’s plan, which is to save all human beings. The Gospel, poorly accepted by a large part of Israel, has now been announced to the Gentile world. This fact should stir up the envy of the Israelites and make them take more careful notice of Christ. Paul hopes for their conversion and already foresees it as a passage from death to life, like the great resurrection of the people about which Ezekiel speaks in ch. 37.
- Romans 11:16 As for the Gentile converts who may be tempted to look down on their Jewish brothers, the Apostle recalls their own spiritual origins: the Church was born from the Jewish people; she is the fulfillment of the Remnant of Israel. The Gentiles were grafted like a wild olive shoot onto this olive tree. Each one of them must remember that God has called them out of love and mercy. Even in their rejection of Jesus, the Jews do not lose their quality of belonging to the chosen people.
The lesson is always valid: no one can boast about being saved. Anti-Semitism can be nothing but a scandal in the Christian world: “We are spiritual Semites” (Pope Pius XI). The originality of the Church of Jesus consists in bringing about the unity of humankind, and first of all of the two opposed groups that are the Jews and the Gentiles (Eph 2:14-16). - Romans 11:25 Prolonging the vision of the Prophets, Paul declares that the chosen people have not been definitively rejected; God does not go back on his choice. The coming of salvation remains open to the People of the Promise. The fate of Israel is not closed off from the salvation that it contributes to bring about for the profit of the Gentiles. In spite of detours of an often tragic history, the Lord continues to guide his people toward a glorious destiny in order to show that he saves his people because he loves them. The entry of the Gentiles cannot signify the exclusion of Israel; God’s mercy is for all.
- Romans 11:33 Having arrived at this summit where all humankind is reunited in the salvation of God, Paul cannot refrain from crying out in adoration and admiration.
- Romans 11:34 This citation is from the Septuagint of Isa 40:13.
- Romans 11:35 This citation is from an old Greek version of Job 41:3a and does not coincide with the Hebrew text of Job 41:11a.
