Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. – Romans 11:33-36 (ESV)
The apostle Paul often can’t contain himself. In the midst of something he has written, he sometimes explodes into praise. In these verses, he is praising God for his wisdom, his judgments, his ways. It is worthwhile to read Romans 11 in context and see exactly how he comes to his doxology here.
In many ways, Romans 11 ties into what we have been studying in Galatians. Salvation through the messiah Jesus is a free gift of grace that is not earned by keeping the law. This good news was for the Gentiles. But what about the Jews? Has God abandoned them? Paul says definitely not! While many Jews rejected Christ, the church began in Jerusalem amongst Jewish followers of Jesus. They too were not saved by works of the law, but by faith in Christ. What joined Jews and Gentiles together as one family and one church, as the book of Acts shows, is rooted in Jesus alone.
But still, there are Jews who resisted the Gospel and persecuted the church. Paul says that God’s work amongst the Gentiles would make many of the Jews jealous, so that they could be saved. Wait, what? God was using jealousy as a means by which to rescue Jewish sinners? That isn’t how we would imagine God doing this work. But it is glorious wisdom. This isn’t the worldly jealousy of desiring something someone else has, left on the outside looking in. It was jealousy leading to acceptance. The favor God extended to the Gentiles was freely offered to the Jews. “Dear Jewish brothers and sisters,” Paul might say, “if you want the favor of Yahweh that is offered by the grace of Jesus, you can have it! Neither you nor the Gentiles are deserving; this grace is not earned. Jesus is simply full of compassion and grace to all who come to him in humble repentance and belief.”
Paul’s conclusion to the matter is that God in his infinite wisdom has made one family in Christ and torn down any barriers to be included in it, whether gender, race, culture, or socio-economic status. Jews and Gentiles alike come together under the reign of the crucified and risen Jesus. This is not a plan that humans would come up with. Human history bears this out. Humans are naturally exclusive of others deemed lesser. God’s wisdom here is counter-intuitive, counter-culture, counter-normal way of being human.
And that is why Paul breaks out in this doxology. The depths of his wisdom in creating one unified family by the grace of Jesus is unsearchable. No human could counsel him in such a plan, and no gift could ever be given to him to earn this plan of grace. This incredible work of full salvation for people of every nation, tribe, and tongue is from him, through him, and to him, as all things are. So we along with Paul can sing “To God be the glory forever and ever. To God be the glory forever. Amen!”