Romans 8:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.

NIV: For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.

NASB: For the eagerly awaiting creation waits for the revealing of the sons and daughters of God.

CSB: For the creation eagerly waits with anticipation for God’s sons to be revealed.

NLT: For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are.

KJV: For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

NKJV: For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.

Paul has written that for Christians, our present sufferings on this earth, on this side of eternity, are not worth comparing to God's glory that will be revealed. Given that life is full of such enormous suffering, God's glory must be incomprehensibly wonderful. This in no way minimizes our pain and suffering—on the contrary, it acknowledges it, while keeping an eternal perspective.

Now Paul writes that saved Christians (Romans 3:26) are not the only ones who long for the moment when suffering will be replaced by glory. In fact, "the creation" eagerly longs for it, as well. More specifically, the creation waits for the revealing of the sons of God.

This statement is startling in two ways. First, Paul describes creation as experiencing an awareness that something better is coming. By "creation," Paul seems to refer to all God has made, from plants and animals, to other people to the air, water, and sky. And all of it, all of us, are waiting for a moment when everything will finally be made right.

The other startling idea is that the moment Paul has in mind is when the children of God are "revealed." Of course, Paul has made clear that those in Christ are already the children of God. We accept this about ourselves and each other by faith, although we continue to appear on the surface the same as everyone else.

A moment is coming, though, when those in Christ will be glorified and it will become impossible to deny that we are God's children. God's righteousness, and our faith in Him, will be vindicated to the world. Paul is describing a future time when God will make all things right. Paul writes that all of nature is eagerly looking forward to that day. The following verses will explain why that is.

Romans 8:18–30 talks about the participation of Christians in the everyday suffering experienced by all of creation. We all groan together as a woman in labor while we wait for God to reveal His children. As His children, we are waiting for the Father to complete our adoption by redeeming our bodies so that we can be with Him. God's Spirit helps us in the season of waiting by taking our unformed prayers to God. We trust that God uses every circumstance in our lives for His purposes and that He has chosen us long ago to be His children.

Romans 8 begins and ends with declarations of the Christian's absolute security before God. There is no condemnation for those in Christ, and nothing will ever be able to separate us from His love. Having believed the gospel, we now live in the Spirit of God. That allows us to call God Abba Father. We suffer with Christ, and we suffer along with all creation while we wait for God to reveal us as His sons. With the help of the Spirit, we are confident that God is for us and loves us in Christ.

In Romans 7, Paul revealed his frustration of trying to do good only to be thwarted by his sin. He begins Romans 8, though, with the triumphant statement that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. We live in the Spirit, and we relate to God as a child does to a father. The Spirit helps us in this season of suffering along with all of creation while we wait for our adoption to be complete with the redemption of our bodies. We are confident, though, that God is for us and nothing can separate us from His love.

The book of Romans is the New Testament's longest, most structured, and most detailed description of Christian theology. Paul lays out the core of the gospel message: salvation by grace alone through faith alone. His intent is to explain the good news of Jesus Christ in accurate and clear terms. As part of this effort, Paul addresses the conflicts between law and grace, between Jews and Gentiles, and between sin and righteousness. As is common in his writing, Paul closes out his letter with a series of practical applications.