Paul’s Anguish Over Israel
1I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit— 2I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised!9:5 Or Messiah, who is over all. God be forever praised! Or Messiah. God who is over all be forever praised! Amen.
God’s Sovereign Choice
6It is not as though God’s word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham’s children. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”9:7 Gen. 21:12 8In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham’s offspring. 9For this was how the promise was stated: “At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.”9:9 Gen. 18:10,14
10Not only that, but Rebekah’s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. 11Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: 12not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.”9:12 Gen. 25:23 13Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”9:13 Mal. 1:2,3
14What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15For he says to Moses,
“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”9:15 Exodus 33:19
16It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. 17For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.”9:17 Exodus 9:16 18Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?” 20But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’ ”9:20 Isaiah 29:16; 45:9 21Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?
22What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25As he says in Hosea:
“I will call them ‘my people’ who are not my people;
and I will call her ‘my loved one’ who is not my loved one,”9:25 Hosea 2:23
26and,
“In the very place where it was said to them,
‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called ‘children of the living God.’ ”9:26 Hosea 1:10
27Isaiah cries out concerning Israel:
“Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea,
only the remnant will be saved.
28For the Lord will carry out
his sentence on earth with speed and finality.”9:28 Isaiah 10:22,23 (see Septuagint)
29It is just as Isaiah said previously:
“Unless the Lord Almighty
had left us descendants,
we would have become like Sodom,
we would have been like Gomorrah.”9:29 Isaiah 1:9
Israel’s Unbelief
30What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. 33As it is written:
“See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall,
and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame.”9:33 Isaiah 8:14; 28:16
Onyankopɔn Ne Ne Manfo
1Mereka nokware sɛ Okristoni, na mʼahonim a Honhom Kronkron di no adanse kyerɛ me sɛ minni atoro. 2Midi awerɛhow na mete daa yaw wɔ me koma mu ma me nkurɔfo. 3Wɔn nti anka mepɛ sɛ Onyankopɔn nnome ba me so na ɔtew me fi Kristo ho. 4Wɔyɛ Onyankopɔn manfo a wɔayi wɔn de wɔn ayɛ ne mma de wɔn asan atena nʼanuonyam mu. Ɔne wɔn yɛɛ apam no na ɔde mmara no maa wɔn; ɔkyerɛɛ ɔkwan pa a wɔfa so som maa wɔn nsa kaa bɔhyɛ no. 5Wɔyɛ tete agyanom asefo, na esiane sɛ Kristo baa onipasu mu nti ɔyɛ wɔn aseni. Ayeyi nka Onyankopɔn a ɔyɛ ade nyinaa so tumfo no daadaa. Amen.
6Menka sɛ Onyankopɔn bɔhyɛ no amma mu, efisɛ ɛnyɛ Israelfo nyinaa na Onyankopɔn ayi wɔn sɛ ne manfo. 7Saa ara nso na ɛnyɛ Abraham asefo nyinaa na wɔyɛ Onyankopɔn mma. Onyankopɔn ka kyerɛɛ Abraham se, “Ɛnam Isak so na wʼase bɛtrɛw.” 8Eyi kyerɛ sɛ ɛnyɛ wɔn a wɔyɛ Abraham mma, na mmom wɔn a wɔnam Onyankopɔn bɔhyɛ so woo wɔn no na wɔyɛ Abraham asefo turodoo. 9Onyankopɔn nam saa bɔhyɛ nsɛm a ɛka se, “Ampa ara, mɛsan aba wo nkyɛn bio bere a ɛsɛ mu no, na wo yere Sara awo ɔba” no so na ɛhyɛɛ saa bɔ no.
10Ɛnyɛ eyi nko. Rebeka mma baanu no nyinaa fii agya koro a ɔne yɛn agya Isak. 11Na sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a Onyankopɔn nam ɔba baako so bɛma ne pɛ ada adi no nti, 12ɔka kyerɛɛ Rebeka sɛ, “Ɔpanyin no bɛsom akumaa no.” Ɔkaa eyi ansa na ɔrewo wɔn ama wɔayɛ papa anaa bɔne. Enti na Onyankopɔn pɛ no gyina ne frɛ a ɔfrɛɛ wɔn no so, na ɛnyɛ wɔn nneyɛe so, 13sɛnea Kyerɛwsɛm no ka se, “Medɔɔ Yakob na metan Esau” no.
14Afei asɛm bɛn na yɛbɛka? Sɛ Onyankopɔn nyɛ ɔnokwafo ana? Dabi da! 15Efisɛ, ɔka kyerɛɛ Mose sɛ,
“Nea mepɛ sɛ mihu no mmɔbɔ no, mehu no mmɔbɔ,
na nea mepɛ sɛ meyɛ no adɔe nso, mɛyɛ no adɔe.”
16Eyi kyerɛ sɛ, ennyina nea obi pɛ so anaa ne nnwuma so, na mmom egyina Onyankopɔn ahummɔbɔ so. 17Kyerɛwsɛm no mu, Onyankopɔn ka kyerɛɛ Farao se, “Eyi ara nti na misii wo hene nam so daa me tumi adi, sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a, me tumi bɛda adi wɔ mmaa nyinaa.” 18Ɛno de, Onyankopɔn hu nea ɔpɛ sɛ ohu no mmɔbɔ biara no mmɔbɔ, na nea ɔpɛ sɛ ɔma no yɛ asoɔden nso ɔma no yɛ saa.
19Afei obi bebisa se, “Sɛ yentumi nsiw Onyankopɔn pɛ ho kwan a, adɛn nti na ɔbɔ yɛn sobo?” 20Onua, wone hena a wubetumi akasa akyerɛ Onyankopɔn? Kuku mmisa ne nwemfo se, “Adɛn nti na wonwen me sɛɛ?” 21Ɔnwemfo no wɔ ho kwan sɛ ɔde dɔte no nwen nea ɔpɛ biara. Otumi nwen nkuku abien fi dɔte mu, na ɔde mu baako adi dwuma titiriw bi, na ɔde baako no nso ayɛ nea ɔpɛ biara.
22Saa ara na ade biara a Onyankopɔn ayɛ no te. Ɔpɛɛ sɛ ɔda nʼabufuw adi na ɔma wohu ne tumi. Nanso ɔtɔɔ ne bo ase maa wɔn a anka ofi nʼabufuwhyew mu rebɛsɛe wɔn no. 23Ɔyɛɛ eyi de kyerɛɛ sɛnea nʼanuonyam no te, bere a onyaa ayamhyehye maa wɔn a wayi wɔn dedaw sɛ wɔmmɛyɛ nʼanuonyam no fafafo. 24Ɛnyɛ wɔn a wɔfrɛɛ wɔn fii Yudafo mu nko ara, na mmom amanamanmufo nso. 25Wɔka wɔ Hosea nhoma mu se,
“Mɛfrɛ wɔn a wɔnyɛ me nkurɔfo no ‘me nkurɔfo,’
na nea ɔnyɛ me dɔfo no mɛfrɛ no ‘me dɔfo,’ ”
26na
“Beae koro no ara a wɔka kyerɛɛ wɔn se,
‘Monnyɛ me nkurɔfo’ no,
ɛhɔ ara na wɔbɛfrɛ wɔn se ‘Onyankopɔn teasefo no mma.’ ”
27Na Yesaia dii Israelfo ho yaw sɛ,
“Sɛ Israelfo dɔɔso sɛ mpoano nwea mpo a,
wɔn mu kakraa bi na wobegye wɔn nkwa.
28Efisɛ Awurade bɛyɛ ntɛm, na sɛnea ɛte biara no,
ɔbɛyɛ nea wabɔ ho kɔkɔ sɛ ɔbɛyɛ wɔ asase so no.”
29Yesaia nso kae se,
“Sɛ Asafo Awurade
annyaw yɛn asefo a,
anka yɛayɛ sɛ Sodom,
na yɛadan ayɛ sɛ Gomora.”
Israel Nnye Nni
30Afei asɛm bɛn na yɛbɛka bio? Yɛbɛka sɛ amanamanmufo a wɔanhwehwɛ trenee akyi kwan no nam gyidi so yɛɛ atreneefo; 31Nanso Israelfo a wɔpɛɛ sɛ wɔnam mmara so di so no bɛsɔ Onyankopɔn ani mpo, Onyankopɔn annye wɔn anto mu. 32Adɛn nti na ɛbaa saa? Efisɛ wɔpɛɛ sɛ wɔnam mmara so di so sɔ Onyankopɔn ani, nanso anka ɛsɛ sɛ wonya gyidi wɔ Onyankopɔn mu mmom. Wohintiw “hintibo” no. 33Sɛnea wɔakyerɛw se,
“Hwɛ, Mede ɔbo a ɛma nnipa hintiw ato Sion
ne ɔbotan a ɛma wɔhwe ase,
na nea ɔde ne ho to no so no anim rengu ase da.”
