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having made no account of the justification that would come from faith, but hoping to be justified from the works of the law, which is impossible, they failed to obtain that one, and were in no way able to acquire this one for themselves; for they stumbled at the stumbling stone, which he most wondrously added, so as to show that he does not blame their former deeds, but their present ones. They were running, he says, before this the race of righteousness according to the law, and it was in no way possible to bring any blame against them for their former deeds, but as if striking against the Lord as a certain stone through unbelief and enduring a heavy fall, they rendered their whole previous race futile. And he brings forward a testimony not only suitable to what has been said, but also contributing to the whole meaning; as it is written: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame"; for "they stumbled at the stumbling stone" is suitable to "behold, I am laying a stumbling stone," but, as I said, the phrase "everyone who believes will not be put to shame" contributed to the whole meaning, as he wished to show that faith is something great and sufficient to make some his own and others strangers, if indeed it is also said by the prophets that faith is sufficient to fulfill every good thing whatsoever from God. And since he spoke not only of the rejection of the Jews but also of the cause of their rejection, he confirms again that he says nothing out of hostility toward them, and says what follows.

Rom 10:1-4 It is worth marveling how most wisely he concealed a thought full of much bitterness with irony, mitigating the harshness of the expression with the addition of "I bear witness." For on the surface he seems to bear witness to something good about them, but he is seen to say that their zeal for God is a pretense, and to reproach them for their ignorance of what is fitting. It is clear that he does not blame them for an involuntary ignorance, since such a thing is not worthy of accusations; for the Jews—it being possible for them with the rest to recognize what was necessary—with willful intent neglected his teaching. This, then, he says: that they disregarded the justification promised to us by God, and, thinking that by living according to the law 151 by their own works they could acquire this for themselves, they made no effort to believe in Christ and to receive the justification promised to us from him by grace. For what indeed do they say, that they have been zealous to live by the law, in order that justification might be theirs? But it is possible to obtain this very thing with all ease through faith in Christ, and what the law was eager to provide them but is unable to on account of our weakness, and because it is not easy for us to accomplish all things as it wishes, this Christ promises to provide for us who have believed in him by his own grace, apart from labors, so that the purpose of the law is fulfilled in us. Rom 10:14-15 In these words the apostle wishes to establish the usefulness of the law and the way of life according to it, and since he completed the preceding matters with "For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved," from there he made the beginning of the subsequent argument by saying, "How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed?" What he says is something like this: It is clear to us, he says, from the divine scriptures, that salvation comes to everyone who calls upon him, so that not even those from the nations are prevented from obtaining it, if they should wish. But how they might call upon him is worth investigating. It is necessary to believe first; for it is not possible to call upon someone without first believing. But faith, whence might it come? From hearing and learning. But if there is no one to teach, it is not possible to learn, and it is not possible for teachers to appear in any other way, unless divine grace puts them forward, whose alone it is to know how it is fitting to choose those

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πίστεως προσέσεσθαι δικαιώσεως οὐδένα ποιησάμενοι λόγον, ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν ἔργων τοῦ νόμου δικαιωθῆναι ἐλπίσαντες, ὅπερ ἀδύνατον, ἐκείνης τε οὐκ ἔτυχον καὶ ταύτην οὐδαμῶς περιποιῆσαι ἑαυτοῖς δεδύνηνται· προσ έκοψαν γὰρ τῷ λίθῳ τοῦ προσκόμματος, ὅπερ θαυ μασιώτατα ἐπήγαγεν, ὥστε δεῖξαι ὅτι οὐ τὰ πρότερα αὐτῶν, ἀλλὰ τὰ νῦν αἰτιᾶται. ἔτρεχον οὖν, φησί, πρὸ τούτου τῆς κατὰ νόμον δικαιοσύνης τὸν δρόμον, καὶ ἦν αὐτοῖς οὐδαμῶς μέμψιν τινὰ ἐπαγαγεῖν ὑπὲρ τῶν προτέρων, ἀλλ' ὥσπερ λίθῳ τινὶ τῷ κυρίῳ διὰ τῆς ἀπιστίας προσκρού σαντες καὶ βαρὺ τὸ κατάπτωμα ὑπομείναντες, μάταιον ἅπαντα τὸν ἐν τοῖς προειληφόσιν ἀπέφηναν δρόμον. καὶ μαρτυρίαν ἐπάγει οὐ τοῖς εἰρημένοις μόνον κατάλληλον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς ἅπαν ὁμοῦ τὸ νόημα συμβαλλομένην· καθὼς γέγραπται· ἰδοὺ τίθημι ἐν Σιὼν λίθον προσκόμματος καὶ πέτραν σκανδάλου, καὶ πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων ἐπ' αὐτῷ οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται· κατάλληλον μὲν γὰρ τὸ προσέκοψαν τῷ λίθῳ τοῦ προσκόμματος τῷ ἰδοὺ τίθημι λίθον προσκόμματος, πρὸς ἅπαν δὲ αὐτῷ συνεβάλλετο ὡς ἔφην τὸ νόημα, τὸ πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται, βουλομένῳ δεῖξαι μέγα τι τὴν πίστιν καὶ ἱκανὸν τοὺς μὲν οἰκείους τοὺς δὲ ἀλλοτρίους ἐργάσασθαι, εἴπερ δὴ καὶ παρὰ τοῖς προφήταις εἴρηται τὸ τὴν πίστιν ἱκανὴν εἶναι πάντα ὅντινα οὖν τῶν παρὰ θεοῦ πληρῶσαι καλῶν. καὶ ἐπειδήπερ οὐ τὴν ἀποβολὴν ἔφη τῶν Ἰουδαίων μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἀποβολῆς τὴν αἰτίαν, πιστοῦται πάλιν τὸ μηδὲν ἀπεχθείᾳ λέγειν τῇ πρὸς αὐτούς, καί φησι τὸ ἑξῆς.

Ro+m 10,1-4 Θαυμάσαι ἄξιον ὅσης πικρίας νόημα γέμον συνετώτατα τῇ εἰρωνείᾳ κατεκάλυψεν, τῇ τοῦ μαρτυρῶ προσθήκῃ τὸ βαρὺ κολάσας τοῦ ῥήματος· δοκεῖ μὲν γὰρ αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον καί τι καὶ μαρτυρεῖν ἀγαθόν, φαίνεται δὲ προσποίησιν μὲν εἶναι λέγων τοῦ θεοῦ τὸν ζῆλον, ἀγνωσίαν δὲ αὐτοῖς ὀνειδίζων τοῦ προσήκοντος. δῆλον δὲ ὅτι οὐκ ἀκούσιον αὐτοῖς ἀγνωσίαν ἐπιμέμφεται, ἐπείπερ οὐδὲ ἐγκλημάτων ἄξιον τὸ τοιοῦτον· Ἰουδαῖοι γάρἐξὸν αὐτοῖς μετὰ τῶν λοιπῶν ἐπιγνῶναι τὸ δέονἑκουσίᾳ τῇ γνώμῃ τὴν μάθησιν αὐτοῦ παρελίμπανον. τοῦτο γοῦν φησίν, ὅτι τὴν μὲν παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπαγγελθεῖσαν ἡμῖν δικαίωσιν παρεῖδον, οἰηθέντες δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν οἰκείων ἔργων ἀκολούθως τῷ νόμῳ 151 πολιτευόμενοι τοῦτο ἑαυτοῖς περιποιῆσαι δύνασθαι, οὐδεμίαν ἔθεντο σπουδὴν τοῦ πιστεῦσαι Χριστῷ καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν ἡμῖν κατὰ χάριν ἐπαγγελθεῖσαν δικαίωσιν δέξασθαι. Τί γὰρ δὴ καί φασιν, ὅτι νόμῳ πολιτεύεσθαι ἐσπουδάκασιν, ἵνα ἡ δικαίωσις αὐτοῖς προσγένηται; ἀλλ' αὐτὸ τοῦτο μετὰ πάσης εὐμαρείας διὰ τῆς ἐπὶ τὸν Χριστὸν πίστεως κομίσασθαι ἔξεστιν, καὶ ὅπερ αὐτοῖς παρασχεῖν μὲν ὁ νόμος ἐσπούδακεν, οὐκ ἰσχύει δὲ διὰ τὸ ἡμῶν ἀσθενές, καὶ ὅτι μὴ ῥᾴδιον ἡμῖν ἅπαντα κατορθοῦν ὡς βούλεται, τοῦτο ἡμῖν ὁ Χριστὸς πεπιστευκόσιν ἐπ' αὐτὸν ὑπισχνεῖ παρέξειν οἰκείᾳ τῇ χάριτι πόνων ἐκτός, ὥστε ὁ νόμου πληροῦται σκοπὸς ἐν ἡμῖν. Ro+m 10,14-15 Τοῦ νόμου καὶ τῆς κατ' αὐτὸν ἀγωγῆς τὸ χρήσιμον ἐν τούτοις βούλεται συστῆναι τοῖς ῥητοῖς ὁ ἀπόστολος, καὶ ἐπειδὴ τὰ ἀνωτέρω αὐτῷ προκείμενα συνεπλήρωσεν εἰς τὸ πᾶς γὰρ ὃς ἐὰν ἐπι καλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα κυρίου σωθήσεται, ἐντεῦθεν τοῦ ἑξῆς λόγου τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐποιήσατο τὸ πῶς οὖν ἐπικαλέσονται εἰς ὃν οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν; εἰρηκώς. ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· πρόδηλον ἡμῖν, φησίν, ἐκ τῶν θείων γραφῶν, ὅτι παντὶ τῷ ἐπικαλου μένῳ ἡ σωτηρία προσγίνεται, ὡς μηδὲ τοὺς ἀπ' ἐθνῶν κωλύεσθαι τοῦ τυχεῖν, εἰ δὴ βούλοιντο, ἀλλὰ πῶς ἂν αὐτὸν ἐπικαλέσοιντο, ζητεῖν ἄξιον. πιστεῦσαι προσήκει πρότερον· οὐ γὰρ οἷόν τε ἐπικαλεῖσθαι μὴ πιστεύοντα πρῶτον. ἡ δὲ πίστις, πόθεν ἂν ἐγγένοιτο; ἀπ' ἀκοῆς καὶ μαθήσεως. ἀλλὰ μὴ ὄντος τοῦ διδάξοντος, μαθεῖν οὐχ οἷόν τε, καὶ τοὺς διδάξοντας δὲ οὐχ ἑτέρως φανῆναι δυνατόν, ἀλλ' ἢ τῆς θείας χάριτος αὐτοὺς προ βαλούσης, ἧς δὴ μόνης ἐστὶν εἰδέναι ὅπως ἐκλέγειν προσήκει τοὺς