Romans 8:33
Who shall accuse against the elect of God? God that justifieth.
Open Romans 8:33 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Quis accusabit adversus electos Dei ? Deus qui justificat,
- Greek New Testament (SBLGNT)
- τίς ἐγκαλέσει κατὰ ἐκλεκτῶν θεοῦ; θεὸς ὁ δικαιῶν·
Haydock's commentary
On verses 33 to 34
Who shall lay any thing to the charge of the elect of God? God who justifieth. Others read without an interrogation, it is God who justified us: the sense will scarce be different; for it is the same as to say, we need not fear that God will accuse us, since by his mercy he hath been pleased to die, and to rise again from death for us. (Witham)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine On Christian Doctrine, How Pronunciation Serves to Remove Ambiguity. Different Kinds of Interrogation
6. And all the directions that I have given about ambiguous punctuations are to be observed likewise in the case of doubtful pronunciations. For these too, unless the fault lies in the carelessness of the reader, are corrected either by the rule of faith, or by a reference to the preceding or succeeding context; or if neither of these methods is applied with success, they will remain doubtful, but so that the reader will not be in fault in whatever way he may pronounce them. …
St Augustine On Christian Doctrine, Examples of the Various Styles Drawn from Scripture
43. And in the same way, writing to the Romans, he urges that the persecutions of this world should be overcome by charity, in assured reliance on the help of God. And he treats this subject with both power and beauty: “We know,” he says, “that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called; and whom He called, them He also justified; and whom He justified, them He also glorified. …
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm V
17. “For Thou wilt bless the just man” ( ver. 12 ). This is blessing, to glory in God, and to be inhabited by God. Such sanctification is given to the just. But that they may be justified, a calling goes before: which is not of merit, but of the grace of God. “For all have sinned, and want the glory of God.” “For whom He called, them He also justified; and whom He justified, them He also glorified.” Since then calling is not of our merit, but of the goodness and mercy of God, he went on to say, “O Lord, as with the shield of Thy good will Thou hast crowned us.” For God’s good will goes before our good will, to call sinners to repentance. …
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm CXVIII
2. “Let Israel now confess that He is good, and that His mercy endureth for ever” ( ver. 2 ). “Let the house of Aaron now confess that His mercy endureth for ever” ( ver. 3 ). “Yea, let all now that fear the Lord confess that His mercy endureth for ever” ( ver. 4 ). Ye remember, I suppose, most beloved, what is the house of Israel, what is the house of Aaron, and that both are those that fear the Lord. For they are “the little and the great,” who have already in another Psalm been happily introduced into your hearts: in the number of whom all of us should rejoice that we are joined together, in His grace who is good, and whose mercy endureth for ever; since they were listened to who said, “May the Lord increase you more and more, you and your children;” that the host of the Gentiles might be added to the Israelites who believed in Christ, of the number of whom are the Apostles our father …
St John Chrysostom The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on Paul's Epistle to the Romans, Homily XV on Rom. viii. 28
Ver. 33 . “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” Here he is against those who say, that faith is no profit, and will not believe the complete change. (i.e. in baptism see p. 349.) And see how swiftly he stops their mouths, by the worthiness of Him that elected. He does not say, “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s” servants? or of God’s faithful ones? but “of God’s elect?” And election is a sign of virtue. For if when a horse-breaker has selected colts fit for the race, no one can find fault with them, but he would get laughed at who should find fault; much more when God selecteth souls are they that “lay any charge against” them deserving of laughter. “It is God that justifieth.”
St John Chrysostom The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on the Gospel of St. John, John 8.31,32
Seest thou the consubstantiality of the Son with the Father, and how He declareth that He hath the same power as the Father? “If the Son make you free, no man afterwards gain-sayeth, but ye have firm freedom.” For “it is God that justifieth, who is He that condemneth?” ( Rom. viii. 33, 34 .) Here He showeth that He Himself is pure from sin, and alludeth to that freedom which reached only to a name; this even men give, but that God alone. And so he persuaded them not to be ashamed at this slavery, but at that of sin. And desiring to show that they were not slaves, except by repudiating that liberty, He the more showeth them to be slaves by saying,
St Hilary of Poitiers De Trinitate or On the Trinity, Book X
65. The Apostle knew nothing else, and he determined to know nothing else: we men of feebler wit, and feebler faith, split up, divide and double Jesus Christ, constituting ourselves judges of the unknown, and blaspheming the hidden mystery. For us Christ crucified is one, Christ the wisdom of God another: Christ Who was buried different from Christ Who descended from Heaven: the Son of Man not at the same time also Son of God. We teach that which we do not understand: we seek to refute that which we cannot grasp. We men improve upon the revelation of God: we are not content to say with the Apostle, Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth? It is Christ Jesus, that died, yea, rather, that was raised from the dead, Who is at the right hand of God, Who also maketh intercession for us . …
St Ambrose Concerning Repentance, Chapter III. To the argument of the Novatians, that they only deny forgiveness in the case of greater sins, St. Ambrose replies, that this is also an offence against God, Who gave the power to forgive all sins, but that of course a more severe penance must follow in case of graver sins. He points out likewise that this distinction as to the gravity of sins assigns, as it were, severity to God, Whose mercy in the Incarnation is overlooked by the Novatians
14. What, then, shall we say to this, except that which the Apostle said: “If God is for us, who is against us? He who spared not His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how has He not with Him also given us all things? Who shall lay a charge against the elect? It is God Who justifieth, who is he that shall condemn? It is Christ Who died, yea, Who also rose again, Who is at the right hand of God, Who also maketh intercession for us.” Novatian then brings charges against those for whom Christ intercedes. Those whom Christ has redeemed unto salvation Novatian condemns to death. Those to whom Christ says: “Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am gentle,” Novatian says, I am not gentle. On those to whom Christ says: “Ye shall find rest for your souls, for My yoke is pleasant and My burden is light,” Novatian lays a heavy burden and a hard yoke.
St John Cassian The Seven Books of John Cassian on the Incarnation of the Lord, Against Nestorius, Chapter VII. He shows once more by other passages of the Apostle that Christ is God
I want you to tell me, you heretic, whether in this passage He who, as the Apostle tells us, speaks in him, is man or God. If He is man, how can another’s body speak in his heart? If God, then Christ is not a man but God; for since Christ spoke in the Apostle, and only God could speak in him, therefore a Divine Christ spoke in him. And so you see that there is nothing to be said here, that no division or separation can be made between Christ and God: because complete Divinity was in Christ, and Christ was completely in God. No division or severing of the two can here be admitted. There is only one simple, pious, and sound confession to be made; viz., to adore, love, and worship Christ as God. …