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For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n We were once imprisoned by sin, but God has set us free.<\/p>\n The word translated \u201chas committed them all<\/span>\u201d is the Greek word sugklei\u014d<\/em><\/span>. This word is made up of sun<\/em><\/span>, meaning \u201ctogether\u201d and klei\u014d<\/em><\/span>, which means \u201cto enclose.\u201d The notion is of a group of people who have all been incarcerated or put in prison together.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s look carefully at this verse so that we get the true meaning. First of all, this verse does NOT say that God has caused all people to be in a state of unbelief and it does NOT say that God will show mercy to all people. Let\u2019s see why.<\/p>\n God has put people in prison. In this case the prison is unbelief and the \u201cwho\u201d is all of mankind. God has not caused this unbelief but, rather, having found all to be in unbelief, He has left them there where they cannot get out by themselves.<\/p>\n One of the best ways to understand what is meant by any passage of Scripture is to find a parallel passage and see exactly what it says. A parallel passage to the current verse is found in Galatians 3:22<\/span>:<\/strong><\/p>\n But the Scripture has confined<\/span> [put in prison] all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ<\/span> [freedom from the prison of sin] might be given to those who believe. <\/span> <\/em><\/p>\n Also, you may recall what Paul said back in the third chapter of this letter?<\/p>\n As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.”<\/span> (Romans 3:10-12<\/strong><\/span>)<\/p>\n As we take these all together we see that all of mankind, Jews and Gentiles, are sinners and are bound in unbelief because of sin. But why would God do such a thing? The second half of today\u2019s verse tells us why, \u201cthat He might have mercy on all.<\/span>\u201d As we compare this with our parallel passage we see that this mercy is not referring to \u201call people\u201d but to \u201call who believe.\u201d If you look at the context of the verse in Galatians (read it with the previous verse), you will see that \u201call<\/span>\u201d refers to \u201cJews and Gentiles.\u201d<\/p>\n Finally, you may ask, \u201cBut if all are imprisoned in unbelief, how can they believe so that God\u2019s mercy can be shown?\u201d Only God can release a sinner from the prison of unbelief, and it is strictly by His grace and not from any action on our part. In Ephesians 2:7, 8<\/strong><\/span> Paul tells us:<\/p>\n that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;<\/span> it is<\/em><\/span> the gift of God.<\/span><\/p>\n Application<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n If you are a born-again Christian, then God has shown His mercy on you by giving you the faith to believe in the Gospel message. You were bound in prison by sin, but God has set you free. Think about that, and show your gratitude to Him!<\/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
Meaning Explained<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
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