Mercy On Whom He Wills

January 14th, 2025
by Dr. D. Lance Waldie

Romans 9:14-18 What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.” 18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

Romans 9:6-13 says that God chose Abraham to be the recipient of His promises, rejected his first son Ishmael, and chose Isaac as the son of promise. Then He gave Isaac two sons, Jacob and Esau. But gave His blessings to Jacob before either was born (Gen. 26). The argument Paul anticipated was, “God is unfair!” Therefore, Paul asks a rhetorical question on whether there is any injustice with God. His immediate answer is, “May it never be!” In saying this he used the strongest negation in the Greek language, akin to, “Absolutely never ever!” Abraham himself affirmed his view of God’s justice rhetorically in Genesis 18:25 by saying, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” Truly, there can be no injustice with God, for God is the measure of righteousness and justice with no ability to be unrighteous or unjust (cf. Jer. 9:23-24).

Now in order to prove that God is not unjust or unfair, Paul refers back to the days of Moses when he led Israel out of Egyptian slavery into the Promised Land. Quoting from Exodus 33:19, God said, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” Though Israel rebelled against God, in spite of God’s grace poured out on Israel in Egypt, and they deserved to die after making a golden calf to worship (Exod. 32:2-6), God felt compassion for them and acted mercifully, putting only 3,000 of them to death. Then God showed Moses a glimpse of His glory. All of this in spite of Israel’s blatant rebellion in the face of His mercy! This is evidence that God’s grace does not depend “on the man who wills or the man who runs” but upon the mercies of God. It is not man’s pursuit of God that brings about salvation; it is God’s mercy. Salvation therefore has nothing to do with man’s works.

Another example Paul used was Pharaoh of the exodus who ultimately permitted Israel to depart Egypt, though only after God sent ten devastating plagues on their land (Exod. 7-12). During those days, God revealed to both Israel and the Pharaoh that it was Him who was truly in charge. Having previously met with Moses at the burning bush, God revealed to him that He would harden Pharaoh’s already hardened heart (Exod. 3-4:21). God was thus raising up Pharaoh for His own purposes so that Israel might testify to God’s greatness and ability to deliver them.

Now in the context of God having mercy on whom He wills, it is clear that God had no mercy on Pharaoh. God used Pharaoh’s already stubborn heart for His glory and Israel’s benefit. Though it is written that God actually hardened Pharaoh’s heart (Exod. 4:21; 7:3, 13), it is also said that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (8:32; 9:34). Though such cannot be said of Esau, who was rejected before he was born, it is clear that the heart of every human is hardened by sin. So, God is not unjust to use man’s already hardened heart to judge him! This is perfectly fair. On the other hand, one wonders how fair it is that anyone would be a recipient of God’s grace.

Food for Thought

Why does God do what He does in predestining some to salvation but not all? It would certainly be fair for all humanity to die in our sins and be tormented for eternity. God would be glorified for His justice. But with mercy and compassion, God desires also to be glorified for His grace! Therefore, God has chosen some, having mercy and compassion on whom He wills.