Rom 8:24-25 | Clarke | e4.org | Verse 24. For we are saved by hope ] We are supported and are comfortable in the expectation we have of receiving from the hand of our God all the good we need in the troubles and adversities of this life, and of having our bodies raised from corruption and death at the general resurrection. Hope that is seen is not hope ] As hope signifies the expectation of future good , so it necessarily supposes that the object of it is not seen , i.e. not enjoyed ; for to see , in Scripture language, sometimes signifies to enjoy , as in : Mine eye shall no more SEE ( margin , ENJOY) good . : My days flee away, and SEE no good ; i.e. enjoy no prosperity. : I will SHOW the salvation of God : I will give that man to enjoy my salvation who walks uprightly. : Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall SEE God ; that is, they shall enjoy his favour and blessing. See also ; , and . The hope that is seen , that is, enjoyed , is no longer hope , it is fruition : and a man cannot hope for that which he has in his possession .

‏ Romans 8:24-25

Verse 24. For we are saved by hope] We are supported and are comfortable in the expectation we have of receiving from the hand of our God all the good we need in the troubles and adversities of this life, and of having our bodies raised from corruption and death at the general resurrection.

Hope that is seen is not hope] As hope signifies the expectation of future good, so it necessarily supposes that the object of it is not seen, i.e. not enjoyed; for to see, in Scripture language, sometimes signifies to enjoy, as in Job 7:7: Mine eye shall no more SEE (margin, ENJOY) good. Job 9:25: My days flee away, and SEE no good; i.e. enjoy no prosperity. Ps 50:23: I will SHOW the salvation of God: I will give that man to enjoy my salvation who walks uprightly. Mt 5:8: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall SEE God; that is, they shall enjoy his favour and blessing. See also Joh 3:36; Heb 12:14, and 1Jo 3:2. The hope that is seen, that is, enjoyed, is no longer hope, it is fruition: and a man cannot hope for that which he has in his possession.

Verse 25. But if we hope for that we see not] If we have a well-grounded expectation of our resurrection and final glorification, knowing that such things are necessarily future, and must for a certain time be delayed; then do we patiently wait for them, continue patiently to endure the common ills of life, and whatever tribulations we may be exposed to in consequence of our Christian profession; for we know, FAITHFUL is he who has promised. Hope is a sort of universal blessing, and one of the greatest which God has granted to man. To mankind, in general, life would be intolerable without it; and it is as necessary as faith is even to the followers of God.

The ancients have a very instructive and elegant fable concerning it. "Prometheus having made a human body, went up to heaven, and stole some celestial fire to animate it: Jupiter, incensed at the theft, sent down Pandora, with a box full of diseases and plagues of every kind, as an ensnaring present to Prometheus; but he refused to accept it. Epimetheus took and opened it, and instantly all those diseases, &c., by which mankind have been made miserable, flew out, and spread themselves over the whole earth; and only HOPE remained at the bottom of the box." This fable explains itself, as to its main design. Men find life, with its various and unavoidable ills, only supportable by the hope they have of not only getting safely through them, but of enjoying a state of blessedness in the end. Hope is still at the bottom; and therefore man is encouraged to bear up in all the pressures of life. Take away hope, and then black despair and indescribable wretchedness would be the instant result. Hope stands justly among the highest mercies of God.