"20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?
22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?" (Rom. 9: 20-24 nkjv)
One of the questions debated by theologians concerns whether God is active in any sense in his making vessels of wrath (or unto dishonor) versus making vessels of mercy (or unto honor). Some say God is not active at all in people becoming vessels of wrath. Some others say that God is the sole creator of those vessels, and that the vessels themselves are totally passive in becoming such.
That there is some difference between how God makes the vessels for dishonor and vessels for honor is seen in how Paul speaks of each. The latter clearly has God as the one who is credited with making the vessels of mercy for the wording is - "which he had prepared beforehand for glory." The former is worded differently, having these words - "endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared ("fitted" KJV) for destruction." In the latter case we do not have Paul saying "vessels of wrath which he prepared." Does that mean that God was not the Potter who made the vessels for dishonor? Some want to say so based upon how Paul changed the wording in both instances.
"Prepared For"
Further, what does Paul mean when he says that the vessels God "made unto dishonor," styled "vessels of wrath," were "prepared for destruction"? On the other hand, what does he mean when he says that the vessels God made for honor were "prepared beforehand for glory"? Did God do the preparing in both instances, or only in regard to the vessels of mercy? If God is the Potter who makes both kinds of vessels then why interpret "prepared for destruction" as excluding God from being active in that preparation?
Barnes commentary on "prepared for (fitted) to destruction":
"Fitted - κατηρτισμένα katērtismena. This word properly means to "restore; to place in order; to render complete; to supply a defect; to fit to, or adapt to, or prepare for;" see Matthew 4:21, "Were mending their nets." Galatians 6:1, "restore such an one, etc." In this place it is a participle, and means those who are suited for or "adapted to" destruction; those whose characters are such as to deserve destruction, or as to make destruction proper."
It is a good translation to translate as "the vessels of wrath suited for destruction." In that case Paul would simply be saying that it is "fitting" or appropriate for these vessels to be destroyed. We may therefore say that people make themselves sinful and evil and by doing this they are ever fitting themselves for their ordained destruction, or perhaps that something in their environment or life's circumstances is fitting them, but we may also say that God in some sense is also fitting or preparing them for destruction.
As stated, interesting is the fact that Paul did not use the same language in describing the vessels for dishonor as when he spoke of the vessels of mercy and honor. Paul did not say of the vessels for dishonor - "which he had prepared beforehand," as he said of the vessels of mercy. In league with this observation, Barnes added these words:
"In this place there is not the semblance of a declaration that "God had prepared them, or fitted them for destruction." It is a simple declaration that they were in fact suited for it, without making an affirmation about the manner in which they became so."
I think that is true except we must not go too far and totally leave God's willing and working out of the equation, for the text also says that it is the same potter who "makes" one vessel for honor also makes another vessel for dishonor. If God as Potter makes the vessels for dishonor, how is that nullified by Paul's implied statement that says he is not the one who fitted them? Can we say that the vessels made themselves what they were, thus making themselves their own potters?
So, we must say that in both cases it is not an either/or case where it must be all of God or all of the creature, for it is true that making vessels to dishonor has both God and the vessels themselves involved in making them so, fitting or preparing them, "for destruction"; And, it is likewise true that making vessels to honor has both God and the vessels themselves involved in making them, or preparing them, "for glory." We have already shown this to be true from II Tim. 2: 20-21. But, more on that shortly.
Barnes also wrote:
"A reader of the English Bible may, perhaps, sometimes draw the impression that God had suited them for this. But this is not affirmed; and there is an evident design in not affirming it, and a distinction made between them and the vessels of mercy which ought to be regarded. In relation to the latter it is expressly affirmed that God suited or prepared them for glory; see Romans 9:23, "Which he had afore prepared unto glory." The same distinction is remarkably striking in the account of the last judgment in Matthew 25:34, Matthew 25:41. To the righteous, Christ will say, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you, etc." To the wicked, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels;" not said to have been originally prepared "for them." It is clear, therefore, that God intends to keep the great truth in view, that he prepares his people "by direct agency" for heaven; but that he exerts "no such agency" in preparing the wicked for destruction."
Again, though we agree for the most part with what the learned theologian says, yet he seems to have forgotten that the text states that God does in fact "make" both the vessels of wrath and the vessels of mercy. If God did not in any sense make dishonorable vessels of wrath out of the clay, then why do the vessels for dishonor say to the divine Potter "why have you made us like this?"
The fact is, being made a vessel for honor and glory is the work of God, and yet, we also know that in a secondary sense the vessels of mercy make themselves such. It is the same way in the new testament where salvation is said to be God's work and yet is also said to be the work of the creature. In a preceding chapter we cited the words of Paul to Timothy to prove this fact, who wrote:
"If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work." (II Tim. 2: 21 nkjv)
So, both God and saved believers are active in making them into vessels unto honor. Consider also that many texts say that "God has saved us" (II Tim. 1:9) and many that say "save yourselves" (Acts 2: 40). Such seeming contradictions have lead some Hyper Calvinists (and Hardshell Baptists) to say that the verses speaking of salvation being the work of God is an eternal salvation from sin, hell and death, but those verses speaking of salvation as being the result of the sinner's action, is a time salvation from temporal ills, having nothing to do with eternal salvation. Other Hyper Calvinists will say that putting any creature conditions on salvation is a teaching of salvation by works or by law keeping. But, that is a case of jumping to extremes.
The answer to this seeming contradiction is to see that a believer's willing and doing as a secondary cause of his salvation and his being made into a vessel of mercy for honor and glory, but God is the first or primary cause. Many scriptures show this to be the case. Recall Isaiah's testimony - "you Lord have wrought all our works in us." (26: 12) So, if God has chosen to make a person a vessel of mercy for honor and glory, then that making process will include God causing that person to strive to make himself such a vessel. A person who does not "purge himself" from the things Paul mentions to Timothy will not become a vessel for honor.
The same is true with the unbeliever being made into a vessel of wrath and for dishonor. The unbeliever is very much making himself, or preparing himself, for destruction by his sinful rebellious course of life. But, does that mean that God is not at all a cause in the sinners' making himself a vessel to dishonor? Obviously not, as we have seen. The text plainly says that God is the one who as the Potter makes BOTH kinds of vessels. So, to totally exclude God from making or preparing vessels for wrath and dishonor is going to an extreme, probably as a way to deal with the cognitive dissonance that the idea of God's involvement in that ignoble product of the Potter.
So, we cannot agree with Dr. Barnes when he says "he prepares his people "by direct agency" for heaven; but that he exerts "no such agency" in preparing the wicked for destruction." Does he mean God has no agency at all, or no "direct" agency? Does he have an indirect agency? The fact is, both kinds of vessels were the result of the Potter's mind and workmanship. You cannot claim that God only makes vessels for honor and does not make vessels for dishonor. The text plainly says that God makes "one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor." So, why do so many Christian bible students shrink back from agreeing with God when he says that he makes vessels for dishonor and wrath? They don't have much reluctance for saying that God makes vessels of mercy and prepares them for honor and glory, but they have strong resistance to believing that God makes the vessels of wrath and that he, in any sense, "fits" or "prepares" them for destruction.
Yes, there is a distinction in how Paul speaks of the making and preparing of the vessels of honor and the making and preparing of the vessels of dishonor. Paul positively says that it is God who "afore prepared for glory" the vessels of mercy, but he did not use the same language with regard to the preparation of the vessels of wrath for destruction. As already emphasized, he used language where it is not clear who is doing the "fitting" or "preparing" of the vessels of wrath. Paul does not say "who God fitted for destruction." That is not to say that God cannot in any sense be active in fitting the vessels of wrath, for again, the text says that God makes of the same lump both kinds of vessels. Therefore, we cannot say that God cannot be in any sense the one who does the fitting for destruction. The fact is, God and the non elect vessels for dishonor are both causes in this fitting and we cannot exclude either one without diminishing our understanding of things and denying what is clearly stated in scripture.
"Fitted" (or "prepared") is either passive or middle voice in "vessels of wrath prepared for destruction." We cannot know for sure which it is because the passive and middle voice in Greek are written the same way. So, we must rely on context and syntax to discern which it is. Among commentators it is generally understood as a passive voice construction, meaning the vessels of wrath are being prepared for destruction by an external force (God) rather than preparing themselves. Some interpretations however suggest the middle voice, meaning the vessels are preparing themselves for destruction. The context of Romans 9 emphasizes God's sovereignty and his right to choose who will be saved or not, which supports the idea that God is the one who prepares the vessels for their respective purposes. Some commentators suggest that the participle is to be construed adjectivally as "fit for destruction" with no implication intended about who did the fitting. That is quite plausible. But, it does not negate what is clear in the text which says God is the one who fashions the clay into vessels of wrath.
The case of Pharaoh illustrates what Paul means by the Potter making, fitting, or preparing the vessels for dishonor. Pharaoh's heart being hardened is an example where he was being fitted or prepared for destruction; And, as we have observed before, the texts in Exodus say that God hardened his heart but also says that Pharaoh hardened his heart. This being true, my sub thesis is proven to be true which says that both God and Pharaoh were active in Pharaoh being made a vessel of wrath or vessel for dishonor and being "fitted" or "prepared" for destruction.
Consider also the fact that saying that God made, fitted, fashioned, or prepared for wrath and for dishonor is what is stated elsewhere in scripture. Solomon said: "The LORD has made all for Himself, Yes, even the wicked for the day of doom." (Prov. 16: 4 nkjv) That is precisely what we see happening in Romans chapter nine in God making vessels of wrath from the same lump of clay from which he also made vessels of mercy. It is also what the apostle Peter said when he spoke of some as being "like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed" (II Peter 2: 12).
Dr. John Piper writes the following (See here - emphasis mine):
"There are at least four views: 1) God is the one who fits (or creates) the vessels of wrath for destruction; 2) the voice is middle not passive and thus means that the vessels of wrath have fitted themselves for destruction (Bengel, Gnomon, II, 86; Beyschlag, Theodicee 65); 3) the participle is to be construed adjectivally as "fit for destruction" with no implication intended about who did the fitting (Lagrange, Romains, 240; Cranfield, Romans, II, 495f; Sanday and Headlam, Romans, 261; Schlier, Roemerbrief, 301); 4) the passive is intended to express a mystery no human can break through."
Personally, I think there is truth in each of these views. Piper continued:
"I cannot escape the implication that anti-Calvinistic apologetic is in control when in the next verse we are forbidden to suggest that the divine Potter is at work in the phrase "vessels of wrath fitted for destruction." Moreover, in view of the parallels between Romans 9:22 and 9:17 (see Section 2), a most natural suggestion is that Pharaoh serves as an example of a "vessel of wrath fitted for destruction." And since Paul's inference from the Pharaoh story is that "God hardens whom he wills" (9:18), the most natural suggestion from the context is that "fitted for destruction" (9:22) refers precisely to this divine hardening."
I think that is evidently true and not only from the statement that God hardens whom he wills, but also from the fact that the text says that the same Potter, from the same lump of clay, makes vessels for dishonor. Further, as we will see even more, the hardening of the heart, with all that is involved in that, is one of the ways that the vessels of wrath are "fitted" or "prepared" for destruction. That being so, both God and Pharaoh were involved in this fitting.
Piper wrote further:
"I conclude, therefore, primarily from the context of Romans 9 (but also with some corroboration from Paul's Jewish milieu; cf also Apocalypse of Abraham 22) that it accords best with Paul's intention to see the divine agency behind the passive κατηρτισμένα in Romans 9:22."
Again, that is clearly evident from the fact that the vessels of wrath are said to be of the Potter's making. The questions then become 1) whether the Potter who makes the vessels of wrath is the same one who fits and prepares those same vessels, and 2) whether it is right and just for God to do this.
Piper wrote further:
"We can only guess why Paul used this passive verb in reference to vessels of wrath and an active verb (προητοίμασεν) in reference to vessels of mercy."
But, it is not certain that the verb in question is indeed a passive verb for it could be middle voice, as we have previously observed. However, I do agree that the context favors the passive view. However, some things may be viewed as both active and passive and we have numerous examples of this in scripture. That is because we see things from different perspectives. Viewed from one perspective the fitting and preparing is passive, but viewed from another perspective, the fitting is active. When Pharaoh's heart was hardened by God we see where God was active and Pharaoh was passive. When Pharaoh's heart is hardened by Pharaoh we see where Pharaoh is active.
Piper wrote further:
"Both kinds of vessels were made by the Potter because he had use for both kinds. Through the one kind he uses it to reveal his mercy and grace and through the other he reveals his wrath against sin. Through both of them he also manifests his omnipotence and sovereignty."
This statement must be ever kept in mind in studying Romans chapter nine. In the next chapter we will speak further on what the bible says about people's hearts being hardened by God. We will also address whether God's unconditional choice of sinners makes God to be partial or a "respecter of persons."
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