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But to Israel he says: “All day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n God continues to reach out to even the most stubborn and rebellious sinner.<\/p>\n The words \u201cstretched out<\/span>\u201d are translated from ekpetannumi<\/em><\/span>, which is made up of ek<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201cfrom\u201d or \u201cout\u201d and a form of petomai<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201cto fly.\u201d So literally it means \u201cto fly out from.\u201d By analogy it means \u201cto stretch out\u201d or \u201cto stretch forth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDisobedient<\/span>\u201d is from the Greek word apeith\u0113s<\/em><\/span>, which is made up of a<\/em><\/span>, a negative particle and a form of peith\u014d<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201cto persuade, to convince, or to make someone believe.\u201d Thus we see that apeith\u0113s<\/em> <\/span>means \u201cunwilling to be persuaded, unbelieving, or disobedient.\u201d<\/p>\n The word \u201ccontrary<\/span>\u201d is translated from antileg\u014d<\/em><\/span>, which is composed of anti<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201cagainst\u201d and leg\u014d<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201cto speak.\u201d Hence, antileg\u014d<\/em> <\/span>means \u201cto speak against\u201d or \u201cto be argumentative.\u201d<\/p>\n Meaning Explained<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n In the previous verse Paul quoted Isaiah 65:1<\/strong><\/span> to establish the doctrine that God would, in fact, call the Gentiles to salvation. In the current verse Paul now quotes from Isaiah 65:2<\/strong><\/span> in order to establish clearly that not only is God going to call the Gentiles, He is also going to reject the Jews, but only after extreme patience with them.<\/p>\n The most important things that we can learn from this verse, however, are not just that He rejected the Jews and received the Gentiles; rather, they are a couple of things for us to know about our God. In Paul\u2019s quotation Isaiah is speaking for God when he says, \u201cI have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, Who walk in a way<\/span> that is<\/em><\/span> not good, According to their own thoughts.<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\n The first thing we can learn about God from this is that He is long suffering. In this verse he says \u201call day long<\/span>\u201d which implies that not just for a single day but for an extended length of time God was, and is, willing to put up with our sinfulness and lack of interest in Him. The second thing we can learn about God is that He has an attitude of entreaty and a willingness and desire to receive rebellious sinners into His favor. This is indicated by the notion of His stretching forth His hands.<\/p>\n This does not mean that God doesn\u2019t care about our attitude toward Him. Clearly, He wants us to submit ourselves to His authority and rule, and He wants us to commit to a way of life that pleases Him. But it does mean that when we fail in our attempts to be who and what He wants us to be, He is patient and understanding of us, waiting for us to confess our sinfulness so as to restore our fellowship with Him. This is all the more reason why we should be grateful to Him for his grace and His mercy.<\/p>\n Just remember what our ultimate destination would be if He wasn\u2019t patient and merciful and He gave us what we truly deserve! Thank you, God, for Your patience, Your mercy, and Your grace!<\/p>\n In God\u2019s service, for His glory,<\/strong><\/p>\nTruth to Learn<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Behind the Words<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Application<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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