Romans 9 and the Doctrine of Hardening of Hearts
The Doctrine of Hardening of Hearts in Romans 9
Romans 9:18 states, "So then, he has mercy on whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires" [1]. This verse is part of a larger discussion by Paul about God's sovereignty and the fate of Israel. The passage is characterized by Paul's anguish over the rejection of the gospel by many of his fellow Jews, as expressed in Romans 9:2-3, where he writes of having "great heaviness and continual sorrow in mine heart" [2].
The literary context of Romans 9:18 is crucial. Paul is grappling with the theological implications of Israel's rejection of Jesus Christ. He is arguing that God's word has not failed, despite the fact that many Israelites have not believed. Paul's discussion revolves around God's sovereignty in salvation, using the examples of Jacob and Esau, and Pharaoh, to illustrate God's freedom to have mercy on whom he wills and to harden whom he wills [1, 3].
The historical setting of Romans 9 is the early Christian church, likely in Rome, where Paul is addressing a predominantly Gentile audience. The letter is dated to around 57-58 AD [1]. Paul's discussion is informed by the Hebrew scriptures and the history of Israel, drawing on examples from the Old Testament to make his theological points.
A key term in Romans 9:18 is "harden," which translates the Greek word σκληρύνω (sklērynō). This term is used in the context of Pharaoh's heart being hardened, both by God and by Pharaoh himself, as seen in Exodus [4]. The concept of hardening is complex, involving both divine sovereignty and human agency.
The major exegetical decision in interpreting Romans 9:18 revolves around the understanding of God's role in hardening hearts. Some traditions interpret this as an active, causal role of God in hardening, while others see it as a permissive or consequent hardening, where God allows or responds to human hardness [3, 4].
The range of interpretations on Romans 9:18 is broad. Reformed traditions, such as those represented by John Calvin and Charles Hodge, emphasize God's sovereignty in hardening hearts, seeing it as part of God's mysterious and just will [5, 7]. In contrast, Catholic Scholastic theology, as represented by Aquinas, distinguishes between God's direct causation of sin or hardening and God's permissive will, arguing that God is not the direct cause of spiritual blindness or hardness of heart [10].
The patristic tradition also grapples with the concept of hardening. Hermas, among others, is cited as discussing the hardening of hearts in the context of God's calling and human response [8]. The concept is also related to the idea of God's mercy and the human condition of being "past feeling" and giving oneself over to sin [8].
In tradition, Romans 9 has been used in various theological debates, particularly around the doctrine of predestination and the nature of God's sovereignty. The passage has been cited in discussions on the perseverance of the saints and the nature of divine election [5, 9].
The concept of hardening of hearts has also been related to the warning against hardening one's own heart, as seen in Hebrews 3:8, where believers are exhorted not to harden their hearts as in the provocation [6]. This connects the discussion in Romans 9 to the broader New Testament theme of the dangers of hardening one's heart against God.
The interpretation of Romans 9:18 continues to be a subject of theological debate, reflecting different understandings of God's sovereignty, human responsibility, and the nature of salvation. The passage remains a cornerstone in discussions about the doctrine of hardening of hearts, with its implications for understanding God's relationship with humanity.
The complexities of this doctrine are reflected in the various interpretations across Christian traditions, highlighting the ongoing relevance and challenge of interpreting Romans 9 in the context of Christian theology.
Sources
- Romans “So then, he has mercy on whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires. -- Romans 9:18”
- Romans “Romans 9:2 (Geneva1599) — That I haue great heauinesse, and continuall sorow in mine heart.”
- Romans (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Romans 9:17: Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will,.... These are the express words of the former testimony: it follows, and whom he will he hardeneth; which is the just and natural consequence of what is contained in the latter; for if God could, or he did, without any injustice, raise up Pharaoh, and harden his heart against him and his people, that he might rise up against him and destroy him by his power for his own glory, then he may harden any other person, and even whom he will: now this hardening of men's hearts may be understood in perfect agreement with the justice a”
- Romans (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Romans 9:18: 9:18 he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen: Pharaoh refused to let Israel go because his heart was hardened. God hardened Pharaoh’s heart (Exod 9:12), and Pharaoh hardened his own heart (Exod 8:15).”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 78: he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,” ( Rom. 9:22, 23 ). Let my readers observe that Paul, to cut off all handle for murmuring and detraction, attributes supreme sovereignty to the wrath and power of God; for it were unjust that those profound judgments, which transcend all our powers of discernment, should be subjected to our calculation. It is frivolous in our opponents to reply, that God does not altogether reject those whom in levity he tolerates, but remai”
- Hebrews (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Hebrews 3:8: Harden not your hearts--This phrase here only is used of man's own act; usually of God's act (Rom 9:18). When man is spoken of as the agent in hardening, the phrase usually is, "harden his neck," or "back" (Neh 9:17). provocation . . . temptation--"Massah-meribah," translated in Margin "tentation . . . chiding," or "strife" (Exo 17:1-7). Both names seem to refer to that one event, the murmuring of the people against the Lord at Rephidim for want of water. The first offense especially ought to be guarded against, and is the most severely reproved, as ”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 41: exhort, and rebuke them. Why then do they not expostulate with God for making sport with men, by demanding of them things which he alone can give, and chastising them for faults committed through want of his grace? Why do they not admonish Paul to spare those who have it not in their power to will or to run, unless the mercy of God, which has forsaken them, precede? As if the doctrine were not founded on the strongest reason—reason which no serious inquirer can fail to perceive. The extent to which doctrine, and exhortation, and re”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 2: Hermas, Tatian, Theophilus, Athenagoras, Clement of Alexandria — CHAP. IX.--"THAT THOSE GRIEVOUSLY SIN WHO DESPISE OR NEGLECT GOD'S GRACIOUS CALLING." (part 2): prefer the fire which the Lord "has prepared for the devil and his angels."(13) Wherefore the blessed apostle says: "I testify in the Lord, that ye walk no longer as the Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind; having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart: who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lasciv”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 79: its members, in this life, that it has control of the souls of men in the life to come? Yet Romanists reason from the one to the other. 3. Another decisive argument against the doctrine of purgatory is drawn from the abuses to which it has led, and which are its inevitable, being its natural consequences. It is à priori evident that a power committed to weak and sinful men which is safe in no other hands but those of God Himself, must lead to the most dreadful abuses. The doctrine, as we have seen, is, (1.) That the priest has power to re”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, First Part of the Second Part (Prima Secundae), Of the External Causes of Sin, Art. 3: Article: Whether God is the cause of spiritual blindness and hardness of heart? I answer that, Spiritual blindness and hardness of heart imply two things. One is the movement of the human mind in cleaving to evil, and turning away from the Divine light; and as regards this, God is not the cause of spiritual blindness and hardness of heart, just as He is not the cause of sin. The other thing is the withdrawal of grace, the result of which is that the mind is not enlightened by God ”