Romans 3:1 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Romans 3:1.— The Apostle, in the latter end of the foregoing chapter, has carried his argument to the utmost length. What remains is, to keep the Jew in temper, to fix his convictions, and to draw the general conclusion. He has shewn that the Jews were rather more wicked than the Gentiles, and stood condemned by such of them as sincerelydid their duty through the secret influences of divine grace; that a possession of the law, circumcision, and an outward profession of relation to God, gave them no character, and signified nothing, as to their acceptance with him. This was in effect to say, that the Jews were as unworthy to be continued in the church, as the Gentiles to be taken into it; and consequently, that in order to their enjoying the privileges of the church, under the Messiah, they stood in need of a fresh display of grace; which if they rejected, God would cast them out of the vineyard. And the Apostle was sensible that the Jew would understand what he had said in this sense. To set aside his law, his circumcision, his external advantages, as insufficient to gain him any interest in the favour of God, was to strip him of his peculiar honours, and quite ruin him as a Jew. This must be very disgusting: and the Apostle, who had often debated the point with his countrymen, knew very well what a Jew would be ready to say upon this occasion. Here, therefore, he seasonably introduces a dialogue between himself and the Jew, indulging, as it were, his disgust, by giving him leave to speak for himself; Romans 3:1-8 and what he is supposed to speak, we have reason to think was what the Jews had actually replied and objected against the Apostle. This would amuse, and at the same time instruct him, and possibly cool his resentment; especially as the Apostle's answer to the first question is much in his favour. There seems no room to doubt, that this dialogue relates to the rejection of the Jews; a subject which would have come in here naturally enough. But then it would have broken in too much upon the Apostle's argument: for which reason he but just touches upon it here, reserving the full consideration of it to the 9th, 10th, and 11th Chapter s; particularly ch. Romans 9:4-23; where we have the same questions more distinctly put, answered, and largely discussed; only we may observe, that here they relate solely to the rejection of the Jews, but there they take in also the calling of the Gentiles. After the dialogue, St. Paul resumes his argument, Romans 3:9 proves farther by Scripture quotations, that the Jews were guilty before God as well as other men, Romans 3:10-19 and concludes that no part of mankind could have a right to the blessings of God's kingdom and covenant upon the footing of any works of obedience which they had done, Romans 3:20 but only by the favour of God in the Gospel; which he explains, Romans 3:21, &c. The sum and force of the Apostle's argument is this: "All sorts of men, Jews as well as Gentiles, have sinned: therefore no part of mankind can lay claim to the blessings of God's kingdom and covenant upon the score of obedience; and therefore the Jew stands as much in need of grace or favour, to give him a title to those blessings under the kingdom of the Messiah, as the Gentile. Consequently the Gentile has as good a title as the Jew; for those blessings are given only by grace; and grace, or mere favour, is alike free to all mankind: and when all are in equal circumstances, it is perfectly absurd for any to pretend to engross it to themselves, exclusively of others, who are as good, or but as bad, as they." And thus the Apostle very solidly, and to our great comfort, proves, that we Gentiles, through faith alone, have a good and firm title to all the blessings of the Gospel covenant; pardon, privileges, ordinances, the Spirit of God, and the rich hope of everlasting life.