Romans 4:20

20 He didn't tiptoe around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God,

Romans 4:20 Meaning and Commentary

Romans 4:20

He staggered not at the promise of God
There is no reason to stagger at, or hesitate about any of the promises of God, since they are made by him that cannot lie; his faithfulness is engaged to perform them; with him all things are possible; every promise is in Christ, yea and amen, and never did any fail; and yet so it is, that some of God's children,

through unbelief,
do stagger at the promises of God; thinking either that they are too great for them, or demur upon them through difficulties which attend them:

but
so did not Abraham, he

was strong in faith;
nothing moved him, no difficulties discouraged him, he made no demur upon the promise, nor had the least hesitation in his mind about the accomplishment of it; but was fully assured that so it would be, as God had said; and thus he was

giving glory to God;
ascribing to him the glory of his veracity, faithfulness, power, grace, and goodness, as all such who are strong in faith do; such persons bring the most glory to God, and are the most comfortable in their own souls. This phrase, (atwnmyhmb apqttal) , "to be strong" or strengthened, or strengthen themselves "in faith", is to be met with in Jewish writings F21, and is particularly used of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; all the tribes of Israel are not said to be (Mtnwmab Myqzx) , "strong in their faith"; only the tribe of Levi, when Moses stood in the gate and said, "who is on the Lord's side, let him come unto me", ( Exodus 32:26 ) : whoever is (wtnwmab qzx) , "strong in his faith" F23; and there were none in all Israel but the tribe of Levi, who were "strong in their faith".


FOOTNOTES:

F21 Zohar in Gen. fol. 83. 4.
F23 Tzeror Hammor, fol. 87. 4.

Romans 4:20 In-Context

18 When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn't do but on what God said he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peoples. God himself said to him, "You're going to have a big family, Abraham!"
19 Abraham didn't focus on his own impotence and say, "It's hopeless. This hundred-year-old body could never father a child." Nor did he survey Sarah's decades of infertility and give up.
20 He didn't tiptoe around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God,
21 sure that God would make good on what he had said.
22 That's why it is said, "Abraham was declared fit before God by trusting God to set him right."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.