Misunderstanding God's Judgment - Psalms 74-76 and Romans 9:16-33
The psalmists had a hard time understanding why God allowed the Temple to be destroyed and the people of God to be oppressed by their enemies. They knew that God had the power to defeat the Gentiles. They thought that the people had turned from their sins, and they saw them offering their sacrifices. They called on God to keep His end of the covenant and deliver His people. That is a strong statement, to accuse God of not keeping the covenant. The problem was that they misunderstood God's judgment. God was not using human judgment, and He was not judging on the basis of religious works. God was judging on the basis of faith. He had determined to keep His people in bondage until their hearts responded in faith. Their punishment was severe, because their unbelief had been very blatant. God is the Judge, who sees all and knows all, so He will end the punishment at the right time, based on the hearts of the people. This was so hard for the Jews to understand, since they were God's people. They did not understand that God was looking for personal faith from each and every person.
The same judgment applies to the end of Romans 9. Some people get hung up on the hardening of Pharaoh and the statement about the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction. Please, do not take those things out of context. Read the end of the chapter. Paul clearly tells us that God made His decisions on the basis of the righteousness of faith and not by the righteousness of works. This applies to Gentiles and Jews. When God knows a person will not have faith in Him, He can harden his heart if it will serve His purpose. He is not causing them not to believe. They have the same chance to believe as everyone else. However, God can see the end and the beginning. He can choose based on their faith, whether it is a Gentile or a Jew. That is what made the Jews mad, and that is what they did not understand. Why would God reject a Jew and accept a Gentile. He clearly tells us that His choice is always on the basis of faith and not because of works. God even used the word whoever to make His point in verse 33.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 77-78 and Romans 10.
The same judgment applies to the end of Romans 9. Some people get hung up on the hardening of Pharaoh and the statement about the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction. Please, do not take those things out of context. Read the end of the chapter. Paul clearly tells us that God made His decisions on the basis of the righteousness of faith and not by the righteousness of works. This applies to Gentiles and Jews. When God knows a person will not have faith in Him, He can harden his heart if it will serve His purpose. He is not causing them not to believe. They have the same chance to believe as everyone else. However, God can see the end and the beginning. He can choose based on their faith, whether it is a Gentile or a Jew. That is what made the Jews mad, and that is what they did not understand. Why would God reject a Jew and accept a Gentile. He clearly tells us that His choice is always on the basis of faith and not because of works. God even used the word whoever to make His point in verse 33.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 77-78 and Romans 10.