Romans 4:18

18 who against hope believed in hope, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was said, "so will your descendants be."

Romans 4:18 Meaning and Commentary

Romans 4:18

Who against hope believed in hope
Abraham believed the promise of God,

that he might become the father of many nations,
being assisted by a supernatural aid: "in hope"; of the fulfilment of it by the grace and power of God: "against hope": against all visible, rational grounds of hope; Sarah's womb and his own body being dead, but inasmuch as God had said it, he believed:

according to that which is spoken, so shall thy seed be;
his faith rested upon the word of God, which showed the nature of it, and that it was of the right kind.

Romans 4:18 In-Context

16 Because of this, [it is] by faith, in order that [it may be] according to grace, so that the promise may be secure to all the descendants, not only to those of the law, but also to those of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all

17 (just as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations") before God, in whom he believed, the one who makes the dead alive and who calls the things that are not as [though] they are,

18 who against hope believed in hope, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was said, "so will your descendants be."

19 And not being weak in faith, he considered his own body as good as dead, [because he] was approximately a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb.

20 And he did not waver in unbelief at the promise of God, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God

Footnotes

• [a]. A quotation from Gen 15:5