SNT 1089 Difficult Verses Clarified
Difficult Verses Clarified:
Romans 9 / Matthew 10
A corrected translation of Romans 9:2-5, clarifying the difficult sentence structure, and Matthew 10:34 and 35 regarding the effect of Christ’s ministry.
SNT – 1089
September 27, 1981
Format: audio
Publication Date: 09-27-1981
Pages: 6
Victor Paul Wierwille was a Bible scholar and teacher for over four decades.
By means of Dr. Wierwille's dynamic teaching of the accuracy and integrity of God's Word, foundational class and advanced class graduates of Power for Abundant Living have learned that the one great requirement for every student of the Bible is to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Thus, his presentation of the Word of God was designed for students who desire the in-depth-accuracy of God’s Word.
In his many years of research, Dr. Wierwille studied with such men as Karl Barth, E. Stanley Jones, Glenn Clark, Bishop K.C. Pillai, and George M. Lamsa. His formal training included Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Theology degrees from Mission House (Lakeland) College and Seminary. He studied at the University of Chicago and at Princeton Theological Seminary from which he received a Master of Theology degree in Practical Theology. Later he completed his work for the Doctor of Theology degree.
Dr. Wierwille taught the first class on Power for Abundant Living in 1953.
Books by Dr. Wierwille include: Are the Dead Alive Now? published in 1971; Receiving the Holy Spirit Today published in 1972; five volumes of Studies in Abundant Living— The Bible Tells Me So (1971), The New, Dynamic Church (1971), The Word's Way (1971), God's Magnified Word (1977), Order My Steps in Thy Word (1985); Jesus Christ Is Not God (1975); Jesus Christ Our Passover (1980); and Jesus Christ Our Promised Seed (1982).
Dr. Wierwille researched God's Word, taught, wrote, and traveled worldwide, holding forth the accuracy of God's "wonderful, matchless" Word.
Opening, Prayer
Many Roads - Ted Ferrell
Unclouded Days - The Victors
Building a Bridge - The Victors
Suppertime
Changed - Claudette Royal
The Ninety and Nine - Rhoda Wierwille
When They Ring The Golden Bells For You And Me - Rhoda Wierwille
Rom 15:8; 9:2-5
Rom 15:4, 5
Rom 15:2-5; Mat 10:34, 35; (Mar 3:31-35)
Mat 10:34,35
________________________
Difficult Verses Clarified Romans 9 & Matthew 10
Dr. Victor Paul Wierwille
SNT 1089 Manuscript (Teaching Only)
I’d like for you to take your Bibles tonight, turn to Romans chapter 15.
There's been so much research and teaching from this platform for all of these years, that I thought tonight you'd be blessed, on this the last night that we will officially utilize this place as our teaching center, if I shared with you another piece of research that I think will handle some of the Word of God and show you exactly what God’s Word means, and what it says and why it says it.
There's a record in Romans 15. There are other records in the Word, but this one I wanted to open with tonight. Verse 8. The word ‘now’ of 15:8 is the word ‘for’.
Romans 15:8:
[For] … I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God,…
A minister of, a minister to the circumcision.
Jesus Christ never came to found the church of the mystery of the body to which you and I belong. He came as the Messiah, as the minister to Israel. He was God's only begotten Son, and God, in all of His love and justice had to be honest, as He always is. And He sent Jesus Christ to Israel. His whole mission was to Israel.
And what a tremendous truth that is when you gain that understanding. He was a minister of the circumcision, or the truth of God. The truth that God had shared with Israel for years and years and years. But because Jesus Christ… Because God is God and Jesus Christ His Son, not God – had Jesus Christ been God, he’d have known all this, but he didn’t. But God knew it. And God, in His foreknowledge and forewisdom, understood what Israel would do to His only begotten Son.
And that is why in Romans 9 there’s a very difficult section of God’s Word that I'd like to share with you tonight. If you have pencil and paper you ought to use it. Because we have a number of verses here that have been very difficult for people to understand and put together, so they’ve been mostly guessing.
Verse 2 of chapter 9 of Romans is where I'd like to begin.
Romans 9:2-5:
That I [Paul] have great [what?] heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart.
[verse 3] For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
[verse 4] Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;
[verse 5] Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.
Those verses 2, 3, 4 and 5 have caused people no end of confusion and difficulty, and I would like to show them to you in the light of what I believe to be the great integrity and accuracy of God’s Word.
Verse 2.
Romans 9:2:
[For] … I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart.
The reason Paul had this is because he loved people. He loved his fellow men, so to speak, Israel. And he had a great heaviness, and he had a great… which means a burden in his heart. He had a great heaviness, people, and he had continual sorrow. Sorrow again is, he just felt badly. He felt badly in his heart, people.
Verse 3.
Romans 9:3:
For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ…
The text reads, “For I used to wish.” I used to wish that myself were separated from Christ. Why did he wish this, people? The next part of the verse tells you.
Romans 9:3:
… for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
And the first three words of verse 4,
Romans 9:3-4:
… my kinsmen according to the flesh:
Who are [what?] Israelites;
Paul was saying, I'd be glad. I’d give my life, I would be blessed to be separated from Christ if my fellow brothers and sisters, the Israelites, would accept Christ and who would turn to their Messiah. If Israel, the brothers and sisters of his, would have turned to Christ, Paul said, I would have been glad. I could wish that myself would have been separate. I would have been glad to have been separated from Christ if the rest of them would have believed.
Then comes verse 4. And the question is asked,
Romans 9:4:
… to whom…the adoption, [to whom the adoption]
He had said, for my brethren. See that? For my brethren. That’s number one, they're his brethren. Number two, they're his kinsman according to the flesh. And then number four is the third point, who are what? Israelites. They were his brethren, they were kinsman, they were what? Israelite.
The Israelites. Then to whom the adoption, to the adoption. The Israelites to whom the Israelites, the adoption. And, people, the word adoption is a stronger word than Sonship. Those of you in the Corps that have worked Romans and Ephesians with me know the historical usage of the word adoption in the Roman Empire.
If Mrs. Wierwille and I had lived in the Roman Empire, and we had a son – we had a son, we could have deleted that son from his heirship rights. But, if Mrs. Wierwille and I had adopted a son during the Roman Empire period, there was no condition under which you could ever get rid of that son as far as not being a part of your inheritance. That was Roman law.
This Book of Romans utilizes that great truth. The Israelites, the Israelites to whom the what? the adoption.
See, God had made a promise. He had made a promise back to Aaron that was carried on in Isaac, Jacob all the way down the line, of Israel being His sons and His daughters. He had adopted them, and therefore he could not break that law of adoption.
It still has not come into fruition but, ladies and gentlemen, Christ is coming back and God will see to it that that adoption is carried out. That's what Romans here is talking about; to whom the adoption, stronger than Sonship, God will keep it. God will keep it to Israel in the future.
Now, look at what he says about these people, the adoption. And the what? Glory? The glory is the shekinah glory of God. The glory is God's glory. When the shekinah glory of God was over the Tabernacle, other times when the shekinah glory, God's presence, was revealed to them. The covenants – and the covenants refers to Abraham. He made the original covenant with Abraham, then Isaac, then Jacob. And the giving of the law refers to Moses. And the service, the service refers to the priests who serve. The service is the priests who serve, who date back to Aaron. And the promises. The promises that came by way of the prophets, both written and spoken.
Then comes verse 5.
Romans 9:5:
Whose are the fathers,…
Whose the fathers. Doesn't make much sense unless you really understand it. And those words mean ‘who are the fathers’. Who are the fathers. Well, who are the fathers? Abraham, Isaac, Jacob. All those, they're the fathers.
Romans 9:5:
… and of whom as concerning the flesh…
The word ‘concerning’ is regarding the flesh – and of whom is concerning or regarding the flesh, literally is: and of whom is redemption. And of whom is redemption. The Messiah. For Israel regarding the flesh.
The answer is the next word, Christ. Whom is redemption? The Messiah for Israel regarding the flesh? The answer is Christ. He came as a minister to whom? The circumcision; Israel.
Then in verse 5,
Romans 9:5:
… who is over all,…
(I don't know what your punctuation is. I can see it in my Bible because I re-punctuated it. Is it a comma? Good. Okay.) Who is over all? Really? Who set this all up? Who is over all this stuff? Who set this all up? Who arranged all this? The answer is what? God.
And that's why the word ‘blessed’ is the word eulogy[1]. We get our English word eulogy, eulogized is the Greek word. “Eulogized”. Glory. Who is blessed forever.
Romans 9:5:
…God [who is] blessed for ever. Amen.
So when you work the accuracy of the greatness of these verses, you see that, once again, to whom the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service, the priests, the promises that came by the fathers. And who are the fathers? Abraham, Moses, Isaac, Jacob and so forth. And of whom is this redemption? The Messiah for Israel regarding the flesh. It wasn’t via Abraham, it wasn’t via Isaac, it wasn’t via Jacob, wasn't via David. It is by way of Christ.
Then who is over all this? Who set all this up? Who made all the arrangements for this? One: God, who is blessed forever.
When you put those things together like that, you have the greatness of the Word of God in verses 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Perhaps you'd like to punctuate it properly in King James. Are you ready?
Romans 9:2:
…I have great heaviness … continual sorrow in my heart.
Verse 3, parenthesis. First starts with a parenthesis:
Romans 9:3:
(For I used to wish that myself were separated or accursed from Christ)…
End of parenthesis. Because the thought content and concept of verse 2. Later part, “… sorrow in my heart…for my brethren.” See it carries right on. The parentheses is that figure of speech in between it.
Romans 9:2-4:
…[continues] sorrow in my heart… [Then you go on:]
… for my brethren [my brethren], my kinsmen according to the flesh:
[Then:] Who are Israelites;…
Then, “… to whom the adoption…” is where I would begin verse 4: “… to whom the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service and the promises?” – Question. To whom the adoption?
Verse 5. Who are the fathers? “Who are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh?…” And of whom is redemption, I said, the Messiah for Israel regarding or concerning the flesh. Question after the word ‘flesh’.
Then the next word, “Christ [period].” “…came,” scratch it. You see, by 1611, they wanted you to know that Christ was God. That’s why they said, “Christ came who is over all God.” Bunch of baloney. “Christ [period].” “Who is over all? [question]” Who is over all? – question. Next word, “God [period].” And then what? “…blessed for ever. Amen.”[2]
So you see, when you rightly work this word again, you get an understanding of the greatness of it. And there is no contradiction between this and any other portion of God’s Word. And if it's God’s Word, people, it'll have to fit like a hand in a glove. God cannot say one thing one place and then contradict himself at another place when He's talking about an identical situation.
There’s also a very difficult section in Matthew that I thought I'd like a handle on this closing night here in this particular research center, and that's in Matthew 10.
Two verses in here that the critics against God and His Word have just lambasted through centuries. And again, it's because they do not understand the Word, or they do not care to understand it. But those two verses in chapter 10, are verse 34 and 35 where Jesus Christ said,
Matthew 10:34:
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a [what?] sword.
And yet at the very birth of Christ, the declaration of the angels was regarding peace on what? Earth. See, how the critics have taken that peace on earth, and here Jesus himself said he didn't come to bring peace. Therefore, they have just lambasted Christianity and taken a crack at it.
Matthew 10:34-35:
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
[and then verse 35 is the other verse] For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
Remember the record in God’s Word when his mother and brothers and sisters came to him, and the disciples and the apostles said they're waiting outside the door? And Jesus Christ said, who is my mother, my brother, my sisters, they that do the what? Will of God. He couldn't say, who is my father, because God was his what? Father. Very uniquely accurate.
Now, here, the reason they've had a problem with this is because they did not understand figures of speech. This verse 34 and verse 35 are a figure of speech. And the figure of speech is metonymy. M-E-T-O-N-Y-M-Y.
Figures of speech are legitimate grammatical usages of languages according to a mathematical exactness and a scientific procedure. And God marked, had marked – God had it marked everything that's important in His Word. And the way He did it, He marked it by figures of speech.
I used to ask myself the question, what is important in the Bible? And then I listened to men. And one man would say this is important, another man would say that's important. And finally in my head, I said, well, if that man says one thing and that man says another and they contradict each other, they just don't gel, then literally there has to be nothing important in the Bible or everything is important and everybody can screw it up whichever way they want.
And I thought, oh my God, if there is a God and if there is a Word of God, then God ought to be smart enough to mark His Word as to what's important. That God doesn't have to rely upon V.P. Wierwille to decide what's important and what isn’t. Well, let's just keep it honest. Nor rely upon you to decide what's important. Okay? Both of us. How’s that.
Or of your denomination or mine or anybody else's. And one day I learned, by God's mercy and grace, that God had marked everything in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation as to that which was important by figures of speech. Whenever He wanted to emphasize something, put the oomph in it, the power, the bigness of it, he put it in a figure. And this is one of the greats among 213 others – with as high as 50 variations under one.
This is called metonymy. And this particular… And the word metonymy, better explain this to you, is when a noun – a noun or a name – is used instead of or in place of another to which it holds a specific relationship. That's metonymy. When a noun or a name, name is noun, okay? Is used in place of or instead of another to which it holds a specific relationship.
This one here in Matthew 10 is a metonymy of cause – C-A-U-S-E. A metonymy of the cause. Where the cause – the noun or the name – the cause is put for the effect caused by that noun or that name. The cause is put for the effect. Or where the person doing it, the person doing it, is put for the thing that occurs because of what he did. It’s a metonymy of cause.
Thirdly, it's where the action is put for the effect produced. The action is put for the effect produced. Now, watch it.
Matthew 10:34:
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a [what?] sword.
Where the action is put for the effect produced. A person doing it for the thing that happens. The cause is put for the effect.
Matthew 10:35:
For [verse 35] I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her [what?] mother in law.
The object of Jesus Christ coming was peace. But the effect it produced was war; conflict, separation.
I once wrote a piece of work entitled ‘Why Division?’ Why is it that a father and mother, or a sister and brother, are set at variance with others who love God and the Lord Jesus Christ? Because, when you stand for God and His Word, you are the person doing it. You're standing for God and His Word. You're taking the action. The effects produced depend upon their believing. And it will cause them a lot of heartaches, a lot of problems, because they will not believe God’s Word.
Jesus Christ came as the Prince of Peace. All he wanted to do is redeem Israel. All he wanted to do is bless people. He laid down his life. He bleed it out, son. You know, he healed the sick, he loved them, he took care of them. And yet that very ministry of his caused nothing but dissension among thousands and thousands of Israelites, till finally they crucified him.
That's the greatness of this verse. It's that tremendous figure of speech called metonymy of the cause – for what happens when people hear the truth of God’s Word but refuse to believe it. Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, came to bless people. He did everything he could, but instead of it being peace, it caused what? War. Conflict. And the same is true today, people.
But that puts together for you tonight Romans 9 and Matthew 10, two of the very difficult portions of scripture which have been so misunderstood, and the critics have taken such a crack at to ridicule God’s Word. People, there's nothing wrong with God’s Word, it's the critic of it. They just did not work the Word in the minute accuracy that's available. They did not understand it, or refuse to understand it, but there is no reason why you and I cannot understand it and walk with the power of God.
[1] The Greek word for ‘blessed’ in verse 5: eulogētos.
[2] Romans 9:2-5 (punctuation changes): That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart (for I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ) for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh who are Israelites; to whom the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service and the promises? Who are the fathers? and of whom [is redemption, the Messiah for Israel regarding or] as concerning the flesh? Christ. Who is over all? God. Blessed for ever. Amen.