Michael's Abbey Bible Study - Romans Chapter 9

1 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, Romans chapters 9-11 are primarily about whether or not the majority of Jews rejecting the Messiah was a failure of the covenant with Abraham.
In this verse Paul gave the strongest assertion he was telling the truth of any of his letters. He invoked Christ in his first assertion. And he invoked the Holy Spirit in the last assertion about his conscience, which was probably the strongest. While a person's conscience is only as good as their character, the lies of Ananias and Sapphira to the Holy Spirit that resulted in their deaths made lying in the name of the Spirit very unwise in the early church. It's still colossally stupid today even if the consequences aren't as immediate.
2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. What Paul was so strongly asserting that he was telling the truth about was his sorrow and grief. Great sorrow could be over something like the loss of a close friend or relative, or even the loss of a job. However "unceasing" grief can only be for the greatest reasons. For something to cause such a level of grief that there is not a minute of the day they are not experiencing that grief means this is something that strikes at the heart of the person and strikes hard.
3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, Paul's overwhelming grief was about the rejection of Jesus by the vast majority of Israel. This was the promised Messiah and savior. He felt so strongly he wished he could trade places with them. This was not a trivial thing. He was saying he would trade his own salvation and be cursed to Hell, anathema in Greek, if it meant the rest of the Jews turning to Jesus. These were not idle words. Paul's actions backed them up. He was known as the apostle to the Gentiles. Yet in every city and town on his missionary journeys he would go to the synagogue first.
This is the grief and sorrow I feel for the "church" in America. I have tried to win over hundreds of people who call themselves Christians but really worship a fake Jesus that is leading them to destruction. I tried to influence a church that began Christian but had descended into the idolatry of a cult rejecting God and scripture. I have never been able to turn a single one of these to God. Instead, I found I was casting pearls before swine that trampled the scripture I was trying to share, then turned and attacked me for daring to share scripture that contradicted their false religion. I've only been able to reach atheists and those who have never been exposed to Jesus. It literally makes me weep that so many people will be surprised on Judgement Day when Jesus tells them, "I never knew you" because they chose not to build their house on the rock of hearing Jesus' words and acting on them. This is covered in detail in the articles of the Matthew 7 Series.
4 who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, Identifying his kinsmen as Israelites rather that use the term Jews emphasized their status under the covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Jacob was renamed Israel by God. Specifying that being adopted as sons of God belonged to them made it clear their attitude that they were natural born sons was a farce. And it also pointed out that Gentiles are on equal footing with Jews as both are adopted sons of God. Paul listed many of the early advantages and privileges the Jews had from being God's chosen people. Temple service could also be translated as worship of God. The items on this list meant they had every advantage for knowing God and recognizing the Messiah. Thus this list was a rebuke of the majority of Jews at the time.
It should be noted that Paul used the plural when listing covenants under the things that belong to the Jews. In chapters 1-7 Paul argued that the covenant with Abraham was also for Gentiles. The first covenant explicitly stated that all people on the earth would be blessed through Abraham, making the first covenant also for the Gentiles. Here Paul explicitly stated that the second covenant belongs to the Jews as well. Thus both covenants are for both Jew and Gentile. Trying to separate them is contrary to scripture.
5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. Here Paul listed the two greatest privileges the Israelites had. The first is that the fathers belong to them. This refers to the patriarchs of the nation, Abraham, Issac and Jacob. This means both that the fathers belong to them as a legacy and that they are descended from them as a people. The second great privilege is that that God incarnated, that is became human, from the Israelites. The creator of everything became a Jew and was born into the line of King David. Thus out of Israel came the Savior of the world.
6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; It was God's will that Israel would be His people, set apart from the vile evil of the surrounding nations. This included God's promise to Abraham in the first covenant. Yet when that covenant was fulfilled most of the Israelites rejected the Messiah. Paul's point in this verse was this did not mean God's word failed. In other words, the exercise of free will did not cancel out the sovereignty of God. God's promise and will were still fulfilled.
What failed was the fake version of Judaism the priests, Scribes, and Pharisees had invented that contradicted scripture. They failed to nomistically identify with real Judaism and God. Thus they put themselves outside Israel. Even though they were biologically descendants of Israel, they and their followers ceased to be actual descendants of Israel.
That the majority of Israel rejected the Messiah should not have been a surprise to anyone who knows scripture. The Old Testament is filled with the nation of Israel turning away from God to pagan idols, doing the most vile sins imaginable in worship of these false gods. When Moses met with God on Mount Sinai he could only have been gone for a few days when they turned away from God. Otherwise they wouldn't have had the time to melt down gold in the wilderness, fashion it into a golden idol, and worship it sinning their brains out before Moses returned. Even priests and the high priest failing to follow God was a common thread. It was only when God withdrew His protection and the neighboring pagan nations pounded on Israel for years did they turn back to Yahweh begging for deliverance.
7 nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: "through Isaac your descendants will be named." By rejecting God's word they ceased to be children of Israel. They invented a fake God and fake law that agreed with them. Paul quoted Genesis 21:12 that says Abraham had been promised that his descendants, (literally his seed,) would be named through Issac. While God was addressing that the covenant would be fulfilled through his son by Sarah rather than through his son Ishmael born to Sarah's maid, it does apply here as Paul argued. The question Paul was addressing was how could this promise be fulfilled if the majority of Abraham's descendants had cut themselves off from the covenant?
Abraham had eight sons. His first son was Ishmael by Sarah's maid Hagar. (Genesis 16:1-15) Three years after Sarah died Abraham married Keturah, and she gave birth to six sons. (Genesis 25:1-2) But the covenant was through his only son by Sarah, Issac.
8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. God fulfilled the covenant as He said he would, that all the families of the earth would be blessed by Abraham through his son Issac. The Israelites were God's chosen people. They were to hold the oracles of God and prepare a way for the Messiah. But this did not mean they could not turn away from God. Thus the children of the promise of the covenant were those who had faith in God, whether they were genetically descendants of Issac or not. Gentiles became children of Abraham through Jesus the Messiah and the second covenant. While those born to it genetically cut themselves off from God by following a false and anti-scriptural path instead of following the path of truth in scripture.
9 For this is the word of promise: "At this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son." This quote is from Genesis 18:10 where Yahweh spoke with Abraham and the three who were there were most likely angels appearing as men. One of these three gave this prophecy and promise of the birth of their son Issac. In the natural Abraham and Sarah were too old to have a child. But God makes his promises happen even when it doesn't make sense to us.
It would have made more sense to us for Abraham to have a son when they were young. God chose to do it His way. To limited minds the first covenant ought to be fulfilled by all Israel following Jesus. But that would have left out the part of the covenant where the whole world was to be blessed by Abraham. Thus God used adoption of the Gentiles into the first covenant through the second covenant. This was the true fulfillment of the first covenant.
John the Baptist made it clear that heredity didn't mean what the Pharisees and Sadducees thought it meant. He rebuked them in Luke 3:8 and Matthew 3:9.
Luke 3:8 Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.
Since God can make children of Abraham out of stones, it is nothing to make them out of Gentiles.
10 And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; Isaac and Rebekah had twins, Esau and Jacob. The traditions at that time were very different than now. Today in the west children typically inherit equal shares regardless of birth order or gender. A father could make provision for his other children as Abraham did for his sons born of Keturah. However the tradition was for the first born son to inherit everything, or at least the majority. That they were twins did not change the inheritance rules. The twin born first was the one who would inherit, which was referred to as his birthright. Thus a midwife would tie a cord around the hand of the first born.
A lot of people use the narrative of Isaac and Rebekah as a proof text for an unbiblical view of dating and marriage. If one is going to use this example, then you have to get your father to send his servant back to where your family is from to find one of your cousins. Then the servant will bring them back for you to marry without a word or look between you until after you're married. Scriptures that actually address how we should approach marriage talk about us finding a spouse for ourselves. In scripture the only direct instruction from God on who to marry was to the prophet Hosea. He was told to marry a prostitute and have kids with her. But it was up to Hosea which one to pick. What all this means for us is God expects us to use our wisdom and knowledge if we are looking for a mate, and we are not to marry an unbeliever.
11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, The word choice, eklogen in Greek is rendered as election in some translations. Forgive the pun, but choice is a better choice in modern English. This is not about predestination. It is about a calling by God.
By man's tradition Esau should have had the birthright, the inheritance, the blessing, everything Isaac didn't specifically set aside for Jacob. But God's will trumped human tradition. God chose to fulfill the covenant through Jacob. God knows our hearts. He knows our attitudes. He knows what we will do. Thus even though neither Jacob nor Esau had done anything right or wrong yet, God chose Jacob to fulfill the covenant with their grandfather, Abraham. This was not because of sin, but because Jacob was who God chose. We can speculate as to why God chose Jacob but we can't know. What is clear is that God made His plan happen this way.
12 it was said to her, "The older will serve the younger." This is part of a prophecy. When she was pregnant Rebekah asked the Lord why her children struggled inside her. God answered with the prophecy in Genesis 25:23. And it came about because Esau foolishly sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of lentil stew. Perhaps one of the reasons for God choosing Jacob was because He knew Esau would make foolish choices. It could also be because God knew Esau's heart before he was born. What is certain is that God chose to make His plan come to pass. It is certainly not because Jacob was a better man. Abraham favored Esau the hunter because he liked the taste of wild game. Rebekah favored Jacob, a quiet man of the tents. Jacob went along with his mother's deception pretending to be Esau to trick his father into giving him the blessing Isaac meant to give Esau. That is not a good character trait, especially in God's eyes. But he was still the one God chose. It is possible that some of Rebekah's motivation was the prophecy she was given before their birth and not only her personal preference for Jacob.
13 Just as it is written, "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated." Paul quoted from the beginning of Malachi. To understand this verse we need to consider three questions. Who was Malachi referring to? Who was Paul referring to by quoting Malachi? And did God really hate Esau/Edom?
Groups of people such as nations and tribes are frequently named after their founder. For example, the tribes of Israel are named according to which son of Jacob they are descended from. Jacob was renamed Israel, and his name also refers to the nation that descended from him. Genesis 25:30-34 tells of how Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of red lentil stew and bread. Because of this Esau was called Edom which means red. Thus the nation that descended from Esau was called Edom. Whether the writer is referring to the person or the nation is mostly derived from the context. The context provided in Malachi is that he began referring to the names of the patriarchs of the two nations, but immediately referred to the territory of Edom and referred to the actions of the nation of Edom as being wicked and rebellious against God.
Near the end of the nation of Israel's wandering in the wilderness, Numbers 20:14-21 details how the Edomites would not allow Israel to pass through their territory. This was because they were still holding onto a grudge against Israel for Esau/Edom having been tricked out of his blessing by Jacob/Israel. This failure to forgive was another sin they maintained. This was made even worse because Esau had forgiven Jacob. Their rebellion against God was so bad they were grabbing onto a settled quarrel. For context, Jacob and Esau were born around 2000 B.C. The incident where the Edomites denied entry to the Israelites was about 1407 B.C., almost 700 years later. And Malachi was written between 450-430 B.C.
Thus from his words and the historical perspective Malachi was almost certainly referring to the nations of Edom and Israel rather than Esau and Jacob. But that does not necessarily mean that in quoting from Malachi Paul was only talking about the nations and not the men themselves. Or he could have meant both the men and the nations their offspring became.
The most fundamental question is what does it mean when God said he loved Jacob but hated Esau. In Luke 14:26 Jesus said that no one can be His disciple unless they hate their father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and their own life. Whereas Ephesians 5 commands men to love their wives sacrificially like Jesus loves the church congregation. Since Jesus died for them, that's a very heavy burden of love. These verses are not in conflict. What is going on is Luke 14 was using a literary style of hyperbolic comparison that was commonly used in the first century, and still is today. Compared to our love for Jesus, we hate everyone and everything else including ourselves. Jesus must be first in how we live. We still love our family, but love Jesus so much that if a family member makes it a choice between them and Jesus there is no hesitation in choosing Jesus. In the same way God hated Esau/Edom in comparison to Jacob/Israel.
However, it is not because Jacob was a better man than Esau. As Moses told the nation of Israel in Deuteronomy 9:5, they were not going to possess the land because they were good. It was because the inhabitants were so disgustingly vile and evil, and it was to fulfill the first covenant. Jacob was chosen for favor because it was the way God chose to bring about the promises of the first covenant and the first coming of the Messiah. In other words, God showed what looks like favor to Jacob over Esau because that is how He chose to do things. And God's reasons for this are unknown to us. But we can be sure that scripture is true, and that God is loving, merciful and just. Thus we should trust that he did what was best.
14 What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! The word translated as injustice, adikia in Greek literally means unrighteousness. Injustice is certainly unrighteous. And that is the colossal level of foolishness of people who claim that God isn't fair in some way. They are accusing God of being unrighteous, which is more a reflection on how twisted their definition of righteousness has become. This is why Paul followed it with "May it never be!" That is another way of saying, certainly not!
15 For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." Here Paul was quoting from Exodus 33:19. This was part of Moses asking God to explain His nature and to show him His glory. God told Moses things like he couldn't see the face of God and live. The part Paul quoted in this verse means that God does what He does without explanation to humanity. God is under no obligation to explain His actions to us. And even if He did, we wouldn't be able to comprehend what it meant. God is the definition of good. We ought to have faith to trust He does what is best, even when it means we go through hardships in the short term.
16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. That a man wills or runs is addressing that it doesn't matter what we decide with our minds or the actions we take. God's will is going to happen, but with mercy. Paul often used running as a metaphor for living in this life prior to the second coming of Jesus.
17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth." Here Paul quoted from Exodus 9:16. This was another argument for God doing what He is going to do even when it doesn't make sense to us. The Egyptians were pagan pantheists who believed the Pharaoh would become a god after he died in this life. To use the Pharaoh to further God's plan makes as little sense as using Cyrus II of Persia to make it possible to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. But our understanding and even our ability to understand is limited while God is omniscient.
18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. The hardening referred to here is God hardening the heart of Pharaoh. During the plagues Pharaoh hardened his own heart at least three times. Then God hardened Pharaoh's heart followed by Pharaoh hardening his own heart again. God was not messing with Pharaoh or turning him evil. It was Pharaoh's nature to harden his own heart and to oppose the one true God. If Pharaoh was a peasant living in a remote cabin his sin against God would have been the same, just with very little effect on this world without the power of the throne behind his sin. It was God's will to use Pharaoh's sinful nature to show the world that He is the God who is going to do what He is going to do. As God had Moses tell Pharaoh in Exodus 9:15 He could have just wiped out the Egyptians entirely. But God chose to use their sin to further His plan.
Ironically, some atheists claim the ten plagues on Egypt are evidence that the God of the Old Testament was unjust and unrighteous. The reality is the ten plagues were evidence of God's mercy. The ten plagues were a judgment against Egypt for their sinful actions and how they had treated God's chosen people. But it was actually a merciful judgment as it was way less than they deserved. They were given mercy they didn't deserve because it served God's will.
While we can't know let alone understand everything God does, we can see in scripture that this business with the Pharaoh had a direct impact on the coming of the Messiah. Joshua 2:8-11 tells us that decades later Rahab the prostitute in Jericho was saved because she heard what God did for Israel in Egypt and during the exodus. Then the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:5-6 lists that Salmon married Rahab and they had a son, Boaz. Boaz married Ruth and they had a son, Obed. Obed was the father of Jesse who was the father of King David. Jesus the Messiah was a descendant of David both on his mother Mary's side and on his step-father Joseph's side. This fulfilled prophecy about the lineage of the Messiah.
19 You will say to me then, "Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?" Here Paul began drawing a parallel between the hardening of Pharaoh and the hardening of the Jews in the first century. The questions here are the objections of the Jews questioning the righteousness of God judging Israel. They ignorantly thought they weren't resisting the will of God when they were actively working against the will of God. This is what comes from listening to and following false teachers like the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the false preachers and leaders today.
Chapter 10 addresses what was behind the hardening and rebellion of the Jews against God. Paul prayed for Israel's hearts to be softened. That's what we do when we pray for an unbeliever to come to Jesus.
20 On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, "Why did you make me like this," will it? Here Paul exposed the insane self-destructive arrogance of people who try to judge God. People who do that are claiming greater morality and knowledge than God. Paul's analogy illustrates the absurdity of such an attitude. But it is way more reasonable that an inanimate object criticize its human creator than for a human to criticize God.
21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? Just like the potter in Paul's analogy has the right to make what he chooses, God is our creator and can make us for whatever purpose He chooses. It is foolishness beyond foolishness to question God on this. For a potter's creation to be used for honorable things would include holding food or water like a plate or storage jar. To be used for dishonorable purposes would be things with a similar function to a bed pan. (Toilets are a very modern invention.) In Jeremiah 18:1-10 God showed Jeremiah that the potter will start to make one thing, such as a vessel for honorable use, but when the clay is too low quality to be used for that purpose the potter will choose to make it into something else the clay's nature is capable of, like a dishonorable purpose. Thus if we are of low quality due to our rebellion and sin God cannot use us for higher purposes. We have allowed too many impurities in our lives. Ironically, the people complaining that God doesn't use them for a higher purpose are demonstrating by their complaints they are unsuitable for higher purposes.
22 What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? Paul posed a rhetorical question that is framed with statements of fact. One is that God is willing to demonstrate His wrath. That is inarguable unless one cuts out large sections of scripture. The other is that God is willing to make His power known. Again, this is inarguable. The rhetorical question is what if God deliberately withholds his wrath and demonstration of His power out of His patience.
One of the complaints by those who foolishly judge God is why doesn't He put a stop to evil.
Proverbs 16:4 The LORD has made everything for its own purpose, Even the wicked for the day of evil.
It is beyond all reason that people question and judge God. It is as if they will only accept a god they can understand. That is utter foolishness. A god we are capable of understanding would be a very puny god that couldn't do much, and certainly couldn't have created this amazing universe with its complexity beyond our wildest imagination. Since we have good reason to trust God's word, (see the Scripture series articles,) we ought to assume that God is good, knows better than us, and is doing the right thing for the right reasons. It is very likely that God created the universe in such a way that will bring about the maximum number of free will beings choosing Him and choosing to live with Him in paradise for eternity.
23 And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, Here is another reason God endured with so much patience the vessels of wrath. It is that some would turn away from bringing God's wrath on themselves and become those that receive His mercy. If God stomped them all when they rebelled they wouldn't have a chance to repent.
This could also be referring to Judgement Day when everyone gets what they chose. Those who rejected God and wanted nothing to do with the real God will get what they want, eternal separation from God in Hell. Those that chose to follow God will get their desire to be in paradise with Him for eternity, even though they also deserve Hell. In the stark contrast between these two groups the sacrifice of Jesus will be on full display for all to see. Thus the love of God will inarguably be shown and put an end to Lucifer's lie that God doesn't care about us.
24 even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. This verse connects the old and new covenants. Thus the second covenant was in the first covenant from the beginning. This is how God saved we vessels of mercy prepared for glory in everlasting life.
Genesis 22:18 "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice."
In both covenants there is no Jew or Gentile. It is only those who say to God, "Thy will be done", and those to who reject God to whom God will say, "Thy will be done".
25 As He says also in Hosea, "I will call those who were not My people, 'My people,' And her who was not beloved, 'beloved.'" This quote is a prophecy from Hosea 2:23. This illustrates that the Gentiles being included in the covenant was always God's plan. It's not just the second covenant but the first that promised the Gentiles would be included. But the false Judaism of the first century ignored these prophecies and the actual text of the first covenant.
26 "And it shall be that in the place where it was said to them, 'you are not My people,' There they shall be called sons of the living God." This quote is from Hosea 1:10. This was a prophecy about the Jews and a rebuke. For centuries God warned Israel that if they didn't stop prostituting themselves to the pagan idols He would allow them to be conquered and carried away. This part of Hosea was basically announcing that it was now too late and they had sealed their fate. They soon would no longer be called God's people but would be killed and carried off to Babylon. But this also prophesied that they would return there and be called the sons of the living God.
This illustrated that Israel was rejected. Then they were made right and were God's people again. And they returned to the land of Israel. Paul's point was that if Israel could be brought back into the covenant with God after repeated rebellion century after century, then it was certainly reasonable that the Gentiles could be brought in as well.
27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, "Though the number of the sons of Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is the remnant that will be saved; This quote is a prophecy from Isaiah 10:22. This prophecy is about Israel specifically at the time of the coming of the Messiah. God called Israel to be His chosen people, holding the scriptures and prophecies to make way for the first coming of Jesus the Messiah. But over and over the majority of Israel rejected and turned away from God. And when the promised Messiah came the majority rejected him. Isaiah referred to those that did recognize and follow the Messiah as a remnant that will be saved. And that is what came to pass.
28 for the Lord will execute His word on the earth, thoroughly and quickly." This is a quote of prophecy from Isaiah 10:23, continuing from the quote in verse 27. This part of the prophecy is less easy to understand clearly. It could possibly mean that the judgement of Israel will come quickly. By that view this refers to the destruction of the temple and the sacking of Jerusalem. However, in the context of the events immediately following the resurrection it is more likely to refer to how God's plan and timing resulted in the explosion of Christianity across the world in just a handful of years.
29 And just as Isaiah foretold, "Unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left to us a posterity, We would have become like Sodom, and would have resembled Gomorrah." This quote is a prophecy from Isaiah 1:9 about the rebellion of the people of Israel. Paul quotes it here because it foretold of the exact circumstances of the majority of Israel rejecting the Messiah.
God is referred to as the Lord of Sabaoth. This is just another wording for the Lord of Hosts, which is how the NASB words it in Isaiah 1:9 itself. Hosts and Sabaoth means armies of war. This name for God makes it clear that God is not passive, but commands armies that enforce His will. This is usually understood to refer to the heavenly hosts as in angelic armies. However, it is clear that they operate in the physical world and even against human rulers and nations, not just in the spiritual realm. Posterity is sperma in Greek, which is literally seed as in offspring. The Hebrew word in Isaiah is sarid which is survivors or literally escaped ones, implying those who are left after a military defeat. Thus this means that God left a small remnant that believed in the Messiah. The reference to Sodom and Gomorrah means that if not for the few believers Israel would have also been wiped out. Although this likely refers to the results of Judgement Day, it could also refer to a calamity in this life from God removing his protection.
At the time Paul wrote Romans there were some unbelieving Jewish critics that claimed the rejection by the majority of Jews was evidence that Jesus wasn't the Messiah. This prophecy of Isaiah makes it clear they were wrong. Their rejection was prophesied.
30 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; That the Gentiles didn't pursue righteousness refers to the fact that they were not trying to follow the Law of Moses. They didn't even have it. But they attained righteousness because they had faith in God. As Paul quoted Genesis 15:6 in Romans 4:3, Abraham attained righteousness because he had faith in God. Since that worked for Abraham outside the law then it works for the Gentiles too.
31 but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. This is a poetic way of saying that the people of Israel pursued righteousness by following the Law of Moses, but they fell short of the Law. Thus none of them attained righteousness this way.
32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, Pursuing the law without faith is failing the most basic tenant of Judaism. It is to turn away from God to a false doctrine that is a form of justification by works. To be clear, true Judaism was never a justification by works system. It always required faith in God and dependence on Him for grace. However, the Scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees operated so far away from faith in God that they even failed to actually follow the Law. In their sin and error they thought the Law of Moses wasn't sufficient and added many more rules to it as if God needed their help and scripture wasn't enough. This may have begun as an honest but misguided attempt to help people better follow the law. But by the time of Jesus' ministry their motivations were to use this in order to obtain money, influence and power over Israel that did not belong to them. And in the process of those sins they led much of Israel away from God.
Galatians 5:2-4 Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.
Paul concluded this verse with the pronouncement that this falling into legalism was the faithless stumbling over a stumbling stone. The context for this is in verse 33.
33 just as it is written, "Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed." This quotation is from Isaiah 8:13-14 and 28:16. The stumbling stone is God Himself and the nation of Israel the ones who are stumbling over Him. God deliberately placed it for Israel to stumble over. Isaiah 8:15-22 addresses specific people who stumble over the stone of God. They are those who chase after what other people have to say instead of consulting God, and those to try to listen to spirits while they ignore God's word. God is a rock to trip over and a stone to stumble over for those who choose something other than God. And in the end they are driven into the darkness which is a metaphor meaning Hell. Paul’s meaning was that the majority of Israel mislead by the false teachers of their day turned away from faith in God to a fraud that could not save them. We are just as bad today. The majority of those that claim to be Christians in the west have turned away from faith in the real God and His word for a fake.
But for the Israelites who had faith in the real God and real Christians today Isaiah wrote that the stone was made into a cornerstone, which is a prophecy about Jesus the Messiah. Those who believe in the stone will not be disturbed by the stumbling stone and will not face death.
Many wolves in sheep’s clothing twist and distort what Romans 14:13 and 14:21 say about stumbling blocks while they ignore Isaiah 8 and 28. Thus they trash the real meaning of Romans 14. Their goal is to drive people away from the real God into their fake religion with Christian sounding terms. These are also stumbled by the real God. People in the wrong are supposed to be stumbled by what is right.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB © The Lockman Foundation.

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