¹⁸ But I say, surely they have never heard, have they? Indeed they have; “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, And their words to the ends of the world.” ¹⁹ But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says, “I will make you jealous by that which is not a nation, By a nation without understanding will I anger you.” ²⁰ And Isaiah is very bold and says, “I was found by those who did not seek Me, I became manifest to those who did not ask for Me.” ²¹ But as for Israel He says, “All the day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”

Well then, if faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ (vs. 17), then what about the Jews who have never heard? Or even today, those around the world who have never heard the Word of the Gospel? How will they be saved? This is a common objection intended to undermine the idea of God being fair. How shall we answer that?

Paul addressed the idea of fairness in chapter 9: how can the clay pot complain about the work of the potter? And how can God, if He choses to pass over those who are lost and deserving of nothing more than judgment because of their sin, be rejected for being unfair? It is only gracious of Him and merciful to extend forgiveness to some, when in fact, He could have fairly consigned all to eternal damnation. So at one level, if there are those who have not heard the Word of the Gospel, that does not mean God is unfair. If some respond, “But we humans are not like lifeless, mindless, soul-less lumps of clay—that is not a fair comparison.” We respond, “Does not the Scripture say, ‘The Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being’” (Gen 2:7)?. Yes, we are more than clay because God did take a handful of dirt and infused it with His life. But He is the potter who made all this happen, and we can never forget that we are fashioned by Him. So, yes, the clay and potter illustration is fitting.

As for the Jews, they have already heard the message through the Old Testament: the Writings (Rom 10:18, cp. Ps 19:4), the Law (Rom 10:19, cp. Deut 32:21) and the Prophets (Rom 10:20-21, cp. Is 65:1-2). Is that not what Jesus talked about to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus when He said, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25)? “Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures” (Luke 24:27). It was the Old Testament, in particular Isaiah 53, that Philip used to preach Christ to the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:35). So yes, the Jews have heard the Word of Christ—through their own Scriptures! But they were unbelieving.

Lord, Your message continues to go out. Help me make that message clear.