Just as it is written: "God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes to not see and ears to not hear, until this very day."
Truth to Learn
God is the one who enlightens or stupefies.
Behind the Words
The word translated “stupor” is katanuxis, which is the noun form of katanussō, made up of kata (used as an intensifier) and nussō, meaning “to pierce” or “to stab.” Hence, katanuxis refers to a condition of having been deeply penetrated. Figuratively, it refers to a condition of deep sleep, or of intellectual stupor following a penetrating wound or a heavy blow. In today’s vernacular we might say that it is “a spirit of stupidity.”
“This very day” is translated from the Greek words sēmeron hēmeras. Sēmeron is from an earlier form, tē hēmera, meaning “the day” or “now.” Hēmeras is also a form of hēmera, which means “day.” In Greek, repetition indicates emphasis, so we see that this could be translated as “the now day” or “this very day” as we have in our translation here.
Meaning Explained
In the previous verse Paul introduced the idea that those Israelites who were not chosen were hardened (or blinded). In the current verse he paraphrases Isaiah, where he says,
For the LORD has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; and He has covered your heads, namely, the seers. (Isaiah 29:10)
This could also be a reference to:
Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to know and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day. (Deuteronomy 29:4)
Or to Isaiah, where he says:
And He said, "Go, and say to this people: ‘Hearing, you hear but do not understand; and seeing you see, but do not know.” Make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and close their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn back and be healed." (Isaiah 6:9,10)
Paul’s reference is likely to one of these Old Testament passages. Clearly his declaration is that God has made them stupid, unable to see the facts presented to them and unable to hear the truth even as it is being proclaimed to them. His point is that God is the one who has caused the unbelieving Israelites to not understand the true message about the Messiah from days of old even to the present day (in Paul’s time, and in our time).
In the following verse Paul will quote from King David to show that he expressed a similar sentiment.
Application
We have a commission to spread the Gospel truth to all people throughout the world. We do not know whom God has chosen and whom He has stupefied. That’s not up to us. We are simply to continue proclaiming the message of salvation and leave it up to God to give understanding or blindness. We may be called fools by the very people we witness to, but God sees us as a beautiful flower every time we proclaim the truth of Christ, the Lamb of God. Given the choice of being admired by the world or being called a fool by the world and admired by God, which would you choose? Which do you choose?
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2018 Will Krause. All rights reserved