4 Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; 5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen. (Romans 9:4-5 KJV)
William Burkitt’s Commentary
Our apostle, to vindicate himself for bearing such a passionate affection to the Jews and for being so highly concerned for their eternal welfare, does in these two verses recount and sum up the high privileges and prerogatives belonging to the Jews above any other nation under heaven: namely these, They were Israelites, that is, the seed and posterity of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
To whom pertaineth the adoption; that is, national adoption, not personal; God adopting the nation of the Jews to be a holy people to himself, and Jews to be a holy people to himself, and calling them his sons and his firstborn.
And the glory; that is, the covenant made with Abraham and Moses, the old and new covenant, And the giving of the law Jer 31:32: it was the prerogative of this people, that all their laws, ceremonial, judicial, and moral were composed and delivered to them by God himself.
And the service of God: that is, they only had the true worship of God amongst them, and no other nation could have the like, but by being a debtor to them for it.
And the promise; that is, in general, all the blessings promised to them in the land of Canaan; and in particular, the promise of the Messiah, or God’s gracious purpose and intention to send his Son into the world to accomplish its redemption.
Whose are the fathers; that is, the beloved fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were their ancestors, and they were their offspring.
Of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came, that is, of which Israelites Christ came; the promised Messias, according to the flesh or human nature, was their offspring even he who, according to his divine nature, was over all, God blessed for evermore.
Note here, 1. How the apostle reserves the greatest privilege for the last: Christ’s being born one of their nation, and according to the flesh descended from the Jewish stock, this was the topping privilege.
Note, 2. That this restrictive clause, according to the flesh, plainly supposes another nature in Christ, according to which he came not from the Israelites, which can be no other but the Divine Nature of Godhead, which in the following words is attributed to him: Who is over all, God blessed for evermore.
Which glorious title given to Christ as it highly exalts the prerogative of the Jews as being a people of whom so blessed and great a Person descended, so on the other hand it aggravates their sin and condemnation, in rejecting a person of such infinite worth and dignity, notwithstanding he descended from them.
Now from the whole, learn, 1. That a fullness or richness of instituted means of grace, for the true knowledge and worship of God, is a matter of high dignation and gracious condescension from God to man: here the glory, the covenants, the service of God, &c. are numbered amongst the great and gracious respects vouchsafed by God to the Jews.
Learn, 2. That the highest privileges and vouchsafements from God may be conferred upon a people who are neither pleasing to God, nor accepted with him. Such were the Jews, to whom the aforementioned privileges did belong: a people rejected by God for their obduracy and unbelief.
Learn, 3. That it is no small honour to be of the race of kindred of such as have been holy saints and faithful servants of the Most High and holy God. The Jews here were very honourable, as they were the seed of Abraham; but much more so, had they trod in the steps, and done the works of their father Abraham.
Learn, 4. That Jesus Christ, who was the seed of Abraham according to the flesh, was yet, according to his divine nature, Lord over all, God blessed for evermore; he is over all, that is, over all things, and over all persons; and he is blessed for evermore, which is the constant title given to him that is God, and to none but him.
The Socinians, to avoid the force of this text, which fully proves the divinity of Christ, turn the words into a thanksgiving for Christ, and read them thus: Of whom Christ was according to the flesh; God, who is over all, be blessed forever.
A manifest perversion of the sense of the apostle’s words, which was to show that according to the flesh he descended from Abraham: but that he had another nature, which was not derived from Abraham, even a Divine nature, according to which he was over all, God blessed for evermore.