It says "Therefore, He has mercy on whom He wills,and whom He wills He hardens." I'm not taking this out of context, I've read the whole chapter, but I'm trying to understand what this verse means.
2006-10-19 06:25:31 · 21 answers · asked by lilmama 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The Bible says God granted man free will. So you can choose to be angelic or naughty. But sometimes, a naughty boy like Pharoah when faced with something really bad, he might start to give in and do what God wants. This verse says that just because God gave man free will, it doesn't mean he can't load the dice and make the naughty boy stay naughty if he wants. So in the case of Pharaoh, after have a ton of chance to be good, God took away the right of Pharaoh to do what God wanted (so God made Pharaoh's heart hard so he wouldn't do what God wanted, which is actually what God wanted, because he wanted to make an example of Pharaoh and Verse 18 says that if God wants, he can take away your right to repent, to do what God wants, he can harden your heart so you'd better be good or else.
I'm pretty sure that is what the verse means anyway.
2006-10-19 06:35:21 · answer #1 · answered by Twoflowers 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Dear lilmama,
This may be difficult for you to receive due to all the "other gospels" (Galatian 1) that are spoken of here on Y/A. God's salvation program is that of election ie., the Lord has chosen certain individuals to salvation. Now God is no respector of persons so He chose these "elect" ones on no merit of their own. The Lord (Jesus) is Sovereign--that is He rules and reigns over everything! The Lord chose those whom He was going to save before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:3-5). I am sure you have read Ephesians 2:8,9 and Titus 3:5 which tells us that the Lord does the whole work of salvation. That is what your verse (Romans 9:18) is stating. He (God) will have mercy on whom He determines, and the rest will not be saved. You have to remember, that man is in rebellion against God because our hearts are wicked (Jeremiah 19:9). No person will seek the True God (Romans 3:11) because we love darkness rather than light. Man is spiritually DEAD in sins and trespasses (Ephesians 2:1-3). If the Lord has not saved us, we are servants of satan and sin. However, if the Lord has opened our spiritual ears and eyes, we love the Lord and desire to keep His commandments (1 John 2:3,4). Please do this: read Hebrews 11 and everywhere you find the word "faith" put in "Christ" or "Jesus". If you are not saved or do not know if you are saved, keep reading the Bible and praying for the Lord to have mercy on you. This will not guarantee your salvation but if you are elect, you will be in the correct environment for salvation-under the hearing of God's word. We read in Romans 10:17, "So then, faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God."
2006-10-19 07:11:41 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you read several of the scriptures before that it is referring to Pharaoh. When God sent Moses to free the Israelites from Egyptian slavery, Pharaoh was obstinate. He denied God's existence and claimed that he himself had the highest authority over the earth. He said "why should I listen to this God you speak of, I've never heard of him." Pharaoh had a "hard heart". He didn't want to believe that there could be anything greater than himself. Romans chapter 9 is saying that God could have destroyed Pharaoh from the beginning, but he let him live on to be an example and to actually spread how powerful and real God is/was. That's why the 10 plagues were brought down upon Egypt. God could have stopped at plague number 1, if Pharaoh had let his people go, but Pharaoh held out (had a hard heart) until the 10th plague until he finally believed in God's existence and let the Israelites go. Therefor, since the whole of Egypt was around witnessing all of this occurring, they were able to see as well that the Pharaoh wasn't God and that there really was somebody greater than their Egyptian leader. God allowed Pharaoh to live to prove to many that he existed.
2006-10-19 06:42:49 · answer #3 · answered by CHRISTINA 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Get a hold of a Amplified Bible. It explains things in Scripture very clearly from the original greek for the new testament and hebrew for the Tanak(Old Testament). You can also go to a nearby library to view aAmplified bible.
This is the best that I can advice. I am not bible scholar. And anyone else trying to answer this for you is not as well.
You may also want to look into a few commentaries and lexicons at berean christian bookstore.
Hope this helps a little.
2006-10-19 06:33:13 · answer #4 · answered by Thomas 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Listen go back and read the first chapter of Romans and in it there is a passage that reads for when they knew God they glorified him not as God so God gave them up to a reprobate mind.......,the ones that God hardens are the ones he knows that will not glorify him,that is why he hardened the heart of Pharaoh during Moses time.
2006-10-19 07:28:19 · answer #5 · answered by jackiedj8952 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A little farther on in verse 22, it says "what if God choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the objects of His wrath -prepared for destruction" It goes on a little farther but it seems to be saying that Phraraoh was alreadyon his way to hell and God used him to show His power to the Jews. It is not our goodness it is always His mercy that saves us. Sometimes God uses a hell bound person to do His work also. He is God, the Creator after all.
2006-10-19 06:47:09 · answer #6 · answered by Grandma Susie 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
this is a bit easier to understand with the old testament.
In the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt there is a part of the story during the plagues that Pharoh's heart starts to soften and he is ready to just let the Israelites go. God is not done showing his awesome power and glory to the Israelites yet, so he hardens pharohs heart in order to finish what he has set in motion.
It was not that Pharoh was suddenly going to become a believer, it was just that he was ready to admit defeat.
God states that he wills all of us to come to him and surrender our hearts and bodies. So, he will not harden the heart of someone who truely believes, but he will harden the hearts of those who have truely decided not to believe, and he will give them over to their own thoughts and desires.
2006-10-19 06:42:26 · answer #7 · answered by cindy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some people just progressively get worse as far as sin goes until they actually hate God as witnessed on this site. What it means is they will not be given the chance to repent before their death and destruction. It also means some will receive mercy and their own heart through the mercy of God (The Holy Spirit) will convict them of their sin before they die so they can repent and be saved.
2006-10-19 08:02:19 · answer #8 · answered by Midge 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God uses us for His glory and His purposes. I believe that this text looks back at pharoah and Moses. How God built that great nation and hardened pharoah's heart so that His power can be displayed and a taste of His wrath revealed. I think the text also continues: A potter has the right to make a cup for noble purposes and common purposes. So, who are we to questions God's purposes for what he does.
Don't be discouraged when speaking to someone who has a hard heart. God made him/her for a purpose. So, be faithful by giving the gospel, being gentle, and living His word.
2006-10-19 06:33:11 · answer #9 · answered by ScottyJae 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It might help to know that "harden" actually means to "leave to stubborness" according to the original greek words of this verse.
2006-10-19 06:37:29 · answer #10 · answered by Shanna J 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋