Section 10
can find grace for timely help. Oh, how much we need His mercy! We must treasure God's mercy as much as we appreciate His grace. It is always God's mercy that qualifies us to participate in His grace.
"So then, it is not of the one who wills, nor of the one who runs, but of God, the One Who shows mercy" (9:16). Our concept is that the one who wills will get what he wills to get and that the one who runs will gain what he runs after. If this were the case, then God's selection would be according to our effort and labor. But it is not so. It is altogether of God who shows mercy. We do not need to will or to run, for God has mercy on us. If we do know God's mercy, we will not put our trust in our effort; neither will we be disappointed by our failure. The hope for our wretched condition is God's mercy.
"For the scripture says to Pharaoh, For this very thing I have raised you up, that I might show forth My power in you, and that My name should be proclaimed in all the earth" (v. 17). In Pharaoh God showed forth His power, not His mercy, that His name might be proclaimed in all the earth. This shows that even God's enemies are useful to Him in fulfilling His purpose. "So then," verse 18 says, "He has mercy on whom He