Romans 11.34-Paul Cites The Two Rhetorical Question In Isaiah 40.13 To Support His Praise Of The Father In Romans 11.33
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Thursday September 10, 2009
Romans: Romans 11:34-Paul Cites The Two Rhetorical Questions In Isaiah 40:13 To Support His Praise Of The Father In Romans 11:33
Lesson # 391
Please turn in your Bibles to Romans 11:33.
Tuesday evening we noted Romans 11:33a in which Paul praises the Father for His infinite wealth, wisdom and knowledge.
Last evening we completed the verse by noting Paul praising the Father for His unsearchable decrees and incomprehensible ways.
This evening we will study Romans 11:34 and in this verse Paul cites the two rhetorical questions that demand a negative response that appear in Isaiah 40:13 to support his exclamation in Romans 11:33.
This quotation is related to Paul’s praise of the Father’s infinite wisdom and knowledge and unsearchable decrees and incomprehensible ways.
This rhetorical question brings out the implication of Paul’s doxology in Romans 11:33, which is that God is sovereign over His creatures and is transcendent of His creatures and self-sufficient unlike His creatures.
Sunday we will note Romans 11:35, in which Paul cites freely the rhetorical question that demands a negative response that appears in Job 41:11 to support his exclamation in Romans 11:33.
This quotation relates to Paul’s praise of the Father’s infinite wealth.
Romans 11:33, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!”
Romans 11:34-35, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN?’”
Romans 11:36, “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.”
Let’s now concentrate on verse 34.
Romans 11:34-35, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN?’”
The quotations from Isaiah 40:13 and Job 41:11 that appear in Romans 11:34-35 serve to “confirm” Paul’s doxology or praise of the Father in Romans 11:33.
The quotation from Isaiah 40:13 appears in Romans 11:34 whereas the quotation from Job appears in Romans 11:35.
Both quotations contain a rhetorical question that demands a negative response and serve to support Paul’s praise of the Father in Romans 11:33.
Romans 11:34, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR?”
In Romans 11:34, Paul is quoting almost exactly the Septuagint translation of Isaiah 40:13, which is also quoted by him in 1 Corinthians 2:16.
Isaiah 40:13, “Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or as His counselor has informed Him?”
Isaiah 55:8-9 and Jeremiah 23:18 express ideas that are similar to the one expressed in Isaiah 40:13.
Isaiah 55:8-9, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
Jeremiah 23:18, “But who has stood in the council of the LORD, that he should see and hear His word? Who has given heed to His word and listened?”
Isaiah 40:13 is taken from a paragraph that appears in Isaiah 40:12-26.
Romans 11:34, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR?”
“WHO” is the nominative masculine singular form of the interrogative pronoun tis (tiv$) (tis), which introduces a rhetorical question that demands a negative response.
This rhetorical question brings out the implication of Paul’s doxology in Romans 11:33, which is that God is indeed infinite and transcendent of His creatures.
“HAS KNOWN” is the third person singular aorist active indicative form of the verb ginosko (ginwvskw) (ghin-oce-ko), which means “to fully understand, comprehend” and is used in relation to the mind of the Lord, i.e. the Father.
With this verb in this rhetorical question, Paul is asking “who ‘fully understands or comprehends’ the mind of the Lord?
Of course, the answer demands a negative response.
No one fully understands the mind of the Lord since He is infinite and eternal thus transcendent of His finite creatures and His creation.
“MIND OF THE LORD” is composed of the accusative masculine singular form of the noun nous (nou$) (noose), “MIND” and the genitive masculine singular form of the noun kurios (kuvrio$), “LORD.”
In Romans 11:34, the noun nous means “mind” and refers to the Father’s particular manner or way of thinking and is directly related to the nouns sophia, “wisdom,” gnosis, “knowledge,” krima, “decrees” and hodos, “ways” that appear in Romans 11:33 since they are all speak of some aspect of His manner of thinking.
Therefore, in Romans 11:34, the noun nous means “mind” and refers to the Father’s particular manner or way of thinking involving His wisdom, knowledge, i.e. His omniscience, decrees and ways.
So Paul is saying that none of God’s creatures, whether angels or men, have fully comprehended God’s mind, His particular manner of thinking.
The noun kurios is a reference to the Father although the Son and the Spirit both have the same manner of thinking as the Father.
This is indicated in that in Romans 11:33, the noun theos, “God” is a reference to the Father because in Romans 11:32 the word was used with reference to the Father as indicated by the word’s articular construction in verse 32, which is commonly used in the Greek New Testament to signify the Father.
Romans 11:34, “For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR?”
“OR” is the “disjunctive” or “alternative” conjunction, that is also called a “particle of separation” e (h&) (ay), which introduces another quotation from Isaiah 40:13 that is related to the previous quotation that is also taken from Isaiah 40:13.
The word introduces the second rhetorical question that appears in Isaiah 40:13 that is related to the previous rhetorical question taken from the first rhetorical question that appears in Isaiah 40:13 and indicates that both rhetorical questions are related to each other.
The previous rhetorical question, “Indeed, who has fully comprehended the Lord’s mind?” is a quotation from Isaiah 40:13 that contrasts the finite, limited wisdom and knowledge of men with the infinite wisdom and omniscient knowledge of God emphasizing that God is transcendent.
The question being introduced by this particle “Who became His counselor?” is also a quotation from Isaiah 40:13 that emphasizes the self-sufficiency and superiority of God in relation to His creatures and His sovereignty over them.
“WHO” is the nominative masculine singular form of the interrogative pronoun tis (tiv$) (tis), which introduces a rhetorical question that demands a negative response.
This second rhetorical question from Isaiah 40:13 brings out another implication of Paul’s doxology in Romans 11:33, which is that God is sovereign over His creatures and superior to them and self-sufficient unlike His creatures.
“BECAME” is the third person singular aorist (deponent) middle indicative form of the verb ginomai (givnomai) (ghin-om-i), which means, “to possess a certain capacity or position, with the implication of their having been acquired,” and which position is identified by the noun sumboulos, “COUNSELOR.”
“HIS COUNSELOR” is composed of the nominative masculine singular form of the noun sumboulos (suvmboulo$) (soom-boo-los), “COUNSELOR” and the genitive third person masculine singular form of the intensive personal pronoun autos (au)tov$) (ow-tos), “HIS.”
The noun sumboulos is related to the verb sumbouleuo, “to advise, give advice.”
It refers to one who gives advice, an advisor or counselor and can refer to public officials.
In this rhetorical question that demands a negative response, Paul is teaching the absurdity of anyone trying to advise the omniscient, infinite and transcendent God.
Like the noun nous, “mind” in the first rhetorical question, sumboulos is also directly related to the nouns sophia, “wisdom,” gnosis, “knowledge,” krima, “decrees” and hodos, “ways” that appear in Romans 11:33 since they are all related to God’s sovereignty or in other words, God’s decisions and how and why He makes certain decisions.