Study Desk

And only some of Abraham's descendants are true children of Abraham. This is what God said to Abraham: "Your true descendants will be those who come through Isaac."

Here is what God said in that promise: "About this time next year I will come back, and Sarah will have a son."

But before the two sons were born, God told Rebecca, "The older son will serve the younger." This was before the boys had done anything good or bad. God said this before they were born so that the boy he wanted would be chosen because of God's own plan. He was chosen because he was the one God wanted to call, not because of anything the boys did.

So what does this mean? That God is not fair? We cannot say that.

God said to Moses, "I will show mercy to anyone I want to show mercy to. I will show pity to anyone I choose."

So God will choose anyone he decides to show mercy to, and his choice does not depend on what people want or try to do.

In the Scriptures God says to Pharaoh: "I made you king so that you could do this for me. I wanted to show my power through you. I wanted my name to be announced throughout the world."

So God shows mercy to those he wants to show mercy to and makes stubborn those he wants to make stubborn.

So one of you will ask me, "If God controls what we do, why does he blame us for our sins?"

Don't ask that. You are only human and have no right to question God. A clay jar does not question the one who made it. It does not say, "Why did you make me like this?"

It is the same way with what God has done. He wanted to show his anger and to let people see his power. But he patiently endured those he was angry with—people who were ready to be destroyed.

He waited with patience so that he could make known the riches of his glory to the people he has chosen to receive his mercy. God has already prepared them to share his glory.

We are those people, the ones God chose not only from the Jews but also from those who are not Jews.

And, "Where God said in the past, ‘You are not my people'— there they will be called children of the living God."

So what does all this mean? It means that people who are not Jews were made right with God because of their faith, even though they were not trying to make themselves right.

And the people of Israel, who tried to make themselves right with God by following the law, did not succeed.

They failed because they tried to make themselves right by the things they did. They did not trust in God to make them right. They fell over the stone that makes people fall.

Brothers and sisters, what I want most is for all the people of Israel to be saved. That is my prayer to God.

I can say this about them: They really try hard to follow God, but they don't know the right way.

They did not know the way that God makes people right with him. And they tried to make themselves right in their own way. So they did not accept God's way of making people right.