It was then a monstrous thing, that they who derived their glory from God should have disgraced
his holy name; for it behoved them surely to requite him in a different manner.^84
Romans 2:25-29
- Nam circumcisio quidem prodest, si
Legem observes; quod si transgressor Legis
fueris, circumcisio tua in præputium versa est. - For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou
keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law,
thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. - Si ergo præputium justitias Legis
servaverit, nonne præputium ejus pro
circumcisione consebitur? - Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the
righteousness of the law, shall not his
uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? - Et judicabit quod ex natura est præputium
(si Legem servaverit) te qui per literam et
circumcisionem transgressor es Legis? - And shall not uncircumcision which is by
nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the
letter and circumcision dost transgress the law? - Non enim qui est in aperto Iudæus est; ne
quæ in aperto est circumcisio in carne, ea est
circumcisio: - For he is not a Jew which is one
outwardly; neither is that circumcision which is
outward in the flesh: - Sed qui est in occulto Iudæus; et
circumcisio cordis in spiritu non litera; cujus laus
non ex hominibus est sed ex Deo. - But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly;
and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit,
and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men,
but of God.
25.For circumcision indeed profits, etc. He dissipates by anticipation what the Jews might
have objected in opposition to him in the defense of their own cause: for since circumcision was a
symbol of the Lord’s covenant, by which he had chosen Abraham and his seed as his peculiar
people, they seemed not to have gloried in vain; but as they neglected what the sign signified, and
regarded only the outward form, he gives this answer — That they had no reason to lay claim to
any thing on account of the bare sign. The true character of circumcision was a spiritual promise,
which required faith: the Jews neglected both, the promise as well as faith. Then foolish was their
confidence. Hence it is, that he omits to state here the main use of circumcision, and proceeds to
(^84) On this remarkable passage Haldane has these very appropriate, just, and striking observations, —
“The Apostle, in these verses, exhibits the most lively image of hypocrisy. Was there ever a more beautiful veil than that
under which the Jew presents himself? He is a man of confession, of praise, of thanksgiving — a man, whose trust is in the Law,
whose boast is of God, who knows his will, who approves of things that are excellent, a man who calls himself a conductor of
the blind, a light of those who are in darkness, an instructor of the ignorant, a teacher of babes; a man who directs others, who
preaches against theft, against adultery, against idolatry, and to sum up the whole, a man who glories in the commandments of
the Lord. Who would not say that this is an angel arrayed in human form — a star detached from the firmament, and brought
nearer to enlighten the earth? But observe what is concealed under this mask. It is a man who is himself untaught; it is a thief,
an adulterer, a sacrilegious person; in one word, a wicked man, who continually dishonors God by the transgression of his law.
Is it possible to imagine a contrast more monstrous than between these fair appearances and this awful reality?”
No, certainly; but it is a contrast which still exists, with various modifications, in many instances. — It ought to be observed,
that when the author calls the Jew “a man of confession, of praise, of thanksgiving,” he alludes to the import of the word, Jew,
in Hebrew, which is derived from a verb, which includes these ideas: and it is supposed by some, that there is an allusion in the
last words of this chapter, “whose praise,” etc., to what the name signifies. — Ed.