Verwachtingsvol uitzien
Summary
This paper deals with the relations between the exodus tradition and Rom. 8:18-30 and between the expecting parties and that what is expected and the role which the Spirit takes in Rom. 8:18-30.
In chapter 2 I give background information concerning Paul’s letter to the Romans.
In the letter, which he dictated to Tertius, Paul wants to encourage the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians in the Roman church in their entanglements with each other and in the suffering which they experienced. The scientific translation of Rom. 8:18-30 and the discussion of the critical apparatus is found in chapter 3.
In Rom. 8:18 Paul shows that the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing to the glory that will come. Thereby he shows that the suffering is much broader than for example sicknesses or physical inconveniences and that this suffering does not remain limited to the believers. Beside the sighing in this suffering of the believers, this is also done by the creation (chapter 6) and the spirit (chapter 6). Meanwhile these three parties wait for that what will come, promised life.
Rom. 8:19 - 30 falls within the context of Rom. 5-8 (chapter 2 and 4) and from this context seen, we could conclude that Paul uses the exodus tradition. Keesmaat with her book Paul and his story, (Re)Interpreting the exodustradition (1999) and Wright with his books New Interpreters Bible, A commentary in twelve volumes, Acts, Introduction to the epistolary literature, Romans, 1 Corinthians (2002) and Paul for Everyone, Romans part 1: Chapters 1-8 (2004) inspired me for writing chapter 5. They show in their work that Paul uses the exodus tradition in Rom. 5-8 and specifically in Rom. 8:18-30. In chapter 5 I have gone out on research and I have shown that Paul was certainly familiar with the exodus tradition and that he also applied this in his letters to the Corinthians and to the Romans, but particularly in his letter to the Romans in a summary manner. In spite of his use of this exodus tradition, this does not mean that Paul, besides his ideas concerning the exodus tradition, has not been thinking about other traditions during dictating this letter.
For example we can think about Jes. 24:1-13 where sin is described in cosmic terms and the analogy which is there with Rom. 8:18 - 25.
Moreover I have also shown in chapter 5 for example by the exegeses of the word h9 ui(oqesia that Paul is a man of his time and that he used the Roman law.
In waiting for the promised life the believer is assisted by the Spirit. This Spirit is a multicoloured Spirit, which is in one time indicated by Paul as the Spirit of God, the other time as the Spirit of Christ and finally also Paul considers the Spirit as an independent entity (chapter 6). The spirit can’t be caught under one denominator.
The Spirit shoots the believer at aid in his frailty, because the Spirit which comes from the lusciousness, knows what the future is for the believer.