35 The human ancestry of Christ who is God over all

Last updated 08/29/15 this study is seven pages long

Some say that in the NIV because the ancestry of Christ is God over all, then Christ is God. Some say that other
variations of Romans 9:5 also signify that Jesus is God.
On the face of it this might seem like a valid argument, however I will show that this interpretation is an incorrect
conclusion and that Romans 9:5 does NOT show Jesus to be God.
Whether you agree or disagree, in part or in whole, big or small, please email me any feedback to help improve this
study. I would also appreciate any help with its logic, grammar, typos, editing etc.
Before analyzing the passage in question in Romans 9:5, and the relationship of Christ with God, I am going to
provide some evidence that has to be taken into account when interpreting our passage.
Part 1C Text Comparisons
Part 1B Bible Scholars Throughout History
Part 1C A Poetic Comparison
Part 2 The Original Greek
Part 3 Romans 1:3-4
Part 4 Romans 9:1-12
Part 6 Opposing Viewpoints Dilemma

Part 1A Text Comparisons

It is significant that the translators of Romans 9:5 have three or more very different explanations and interpretations. I
realize that I could have divided these groups further, but found it rather pointless.
The Fathers and Christ Are Blessed by God
Ro 9:5 whose are the fathers; and of whom, as according to flesh, is the Christ, who is over all, God
blessed for ever. Amen.
101 ASV Ro 9:5 whose are the fathers, and of whom is Christ as concerning the flesh, who is over all, God blessed
for ever. Amen.
AV 1873 Ro 9:5 whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God
blessed for ever. Amen.
D-R Ro 9:5 Whose are the fathers and of whom is Christ, according to the flesh, who is over all things, God blessed
for ever. Amen.
KJV 1900 Ro 9:5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God
blessed for ever. Amen.
NASB95 Ro 9:5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God
blessed forever. Amen.
NRSV Ro 9:5 to them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, comes the Messiah, who is over
all, God blessed forever. Amen.
RSV Ro 9:5 to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ. God who is over all
be blessed for ever. Amen.
YLT Ro 9:5 whose are the fathers, and of whom is the Christ, according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed to
the ages. Amen.

These nine translations say that the Fathers/patriarchs are grouped together with Jesus who is over all, meaning the
head of the Church (Eph 1:22, 5:23, Col 1:18). God blessed them all.
Or they could be read that the Fathers/Patriarchs and the Christ according to his flesh is linked to the prior statement
regarding the Israelites. God is over all and blessed forever (Eph 4:6.)

The Christ who is God over all.

ESV Ro 9:5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God
over all, blessed forever. Amen
GW Ro 9:5 The Messiah is descended from their ancestors according to his human nature. The Messiah is God over
everything, forever blessed. Amen.
HCSB Ro 9:5 The ancestors are theirs, and from them, by physical descent, came the Messiah, who is God over all,
praised forever. Amen.
ISV Ro 9:5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, Christ descended, who is God
over all, blessed forever. Amen.
LEB Ro 9:5 to whom belong the patriarchs, and from whom is the Christ according to human descent, who is God
over all, blessed forever! Amen.
NET Ro 9:5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from them, by human descent, came the Christ, who is God over all,
blessed forever! Amen.
NCV Ro 9:5 They are the descendants of our great ancestors, and they are the earthly family into which Christ was
born, who is God over all. Praise him forever! Amen.
NIrV Ro 9:5 The founders of our nation belong to them. Christ comes from their family line. He is God over all.
May he always be praised! Amen.
NKJV Ro 9:5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the
eternally blessed God. Amen.
NLT Ro 9:5 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human
nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.
These ten passages say "the Christ, who is God over all" or something very similar. The NIRV and the NLT are
extremely to the point.
The Ancestry is God Over All.
NIV84 Ro 9:5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all,
forever praised! Amen.
TNIV Ro 9:5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over
all, forever praised! Amen.
Depending on how you read this verse in the NIV, the following can be true
"Christ who is God over all" signifies that Jesus is God, or
The human ancestry of Christ who is God over all" signifies that Jesus' ancestry originates fully with God.

Summary:
Based on twenty one different translations the bible is divided on the meaning of Romans 9:5.
The first group of nine translations say that the Fathers/patriarchs are grouped together with Jesus who is over all, or
the head of the Church (Eph 1:22, 5:23, Col 1:18). And that God blessed them all.

The second group of ten translations say "the Christ, who is God over all" or something very similar. The NIRV and
the NLT are extremely to the point that Jesus is God.
The third group of two can be read in two ways, the first that Jesus' ancestry is God, and the other that Jesus is God.
Because of the very different ways the different translators have interpreted and presented the passage, we really have
to find our understanding in the context or look elsewhere for our doctrine on this subject.

Part 1B Bible Scholars Through the Ages

A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature says in regard to Romans
9:5,which goes to show how much this verse has been under dispute:
"In Ro.9:5 the interpretation depends on the punctuation.
If a period is placed before[ho on ]ktl., the doxology refers to God (so EAbbot,...; RALipsius...; HHoltzmann,...;
EGunther,...; FCBurkitt,...; Julicher; PFeine,..; AMBrouwer;...)
If a comma is used in the same place, the refernce is to Christ (so BWeiss; EBrose,...; ASchlatter; ThZahn; EKuhl;
PAlthaus; M.JLagrange; JSickenberger; -Undecided: ThHaering.-The conjecture of the Socinian scholar
JSchlichting[died 1661] on ho='to whom belongs' is revived by JWeiss,.; WWrede,.; CStromman."
Summary
The Bible theologians throughout history were unable to come to an agreement on the required punctuation for
Romans 9:5

Part 1C A Poetic Comparison

An interesting comparison is a poem that shows that depending where you put the punctuation, we either have twenty
five or twenty fingers and toes combined.
All the ladies in this land
Have twenty fingers in each hand;
Five and twenty on hands and feet;
And this is true, without conceit
This version shows that each lady has twenty five fingers and toes combined.
All the ladies in this land have twenty fingers,
in each hand five,
and twenty on hands and feet;
And this is true, without conceit
This version with a little change in punctuation show the true meaning that each lady has twenty in total.
Summary:
In this short poem we can clearly see that the woman in the poem can have twenty or twenty five fingers on her hands
and feet depending how we punctuate the sentence. It is not to difficult for the translators to sometimes read into a
sentence what they want to express rather than what the writer wanted to express.
The same can be said of Romans 9:5, and obviously the theologians will always argue that their punctuation is correct
for the reasons they provide. The way to understand what is implied by the Paul in Romans is to go to the context.

Part 2 The Original Greek.

From the Nestle Aland Greek New Testament
Romans 9:5
,
hos hoi pateres kai ek hos ho christos ho kata
sarx
whose the fathers and from
the Christ according flesh
,
ho eimi epi pas
theos eulogetos eis ho aion
amen
is over all
God blessed
to
forever amen
Summary:
When looking at the original Greek text the "fathers" and the "Christ" are being written about together.
Firstly because the word "and" is between them.
Secondly if "fathers" and "Christ" are not being written about together then "fathers" have no other purpose being in
the sentence. Therefore there are two options.
1/ The Fathers and the Christ, in their physical bodies, are all directly descended from God.
Paul is identifying them as being of the same ancestry and heritage.
2/ The Fathers are tied together with Christ because he is over all as their head, or leader, the head of the Church. God
blessed them.
I prefer the second option because Jesus was given all authority and is head of the Church. In the context, explained
in Part 3, it is more in flow with Paul's points, however either works well.
Greek "epi pas" or "over all" is written once more in the NT in reference to God in Ephesians 4:6.

Part 3 Romans 1:3-4

It is important to remember that Jesus, in his flesh, was a descendant of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and David etc.
Romans 1:3-4 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures,
3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh
4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection
from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
Vs1 A letter from Paul to the Roman church for the gospel of God
Vs2 The gospel was predicted in the OT
Vs3 Jesus was predicted as coming from the ancestral line of David
Vs4 Jesus was shown to be very different because of his resurrection from the dead
Romans 4:1 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?
2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
3 For what does the Scripture say? braham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.
Vs1 Abraham was their forefather according to the flesh
Summary:
Romans 1:3 Tells us that Jesus, in the flesh or his ancestry, had descended from the line of David. This meant his
other ancestors included Abraham and Isaac and therefore Adam and God.
Romans 4:1 Abraham was, according to the flesh, Paul's ancestor
This is supporting evidence for Romans 9:5 showing that although Jesus' did not have a human father, his mother and
Joseph were descended from the line of the patriarchs.

In the book of Romans alone, Paul uses the term sarx/flesh on twenty six occasions in his efforts to tell the people of
the difficulties in pleasing God because of their fleshly desires being in opposition to their spiritual desires. Thirteen
of those times are in chapter eight and three in chapter nine. He is also reminding them of their heritage to the
Patriarchs and their brother Paul who is talking to them and their brother Jesus Christ who has an even higher
standing than they do.

Part 4 Romans 9:1-16 In Context.

Here is the passage in context from the NIV which I chose because it can be read either showing Jesus as God or the
line of ancestry is God if we look at vs5 alone. The context helps us understand it better, it is Paul's attempt to win the
Jews over to the gospel of Christ.
Romans 9:1-11 I speak the truth in ChristI am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit
2
I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.
3
For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my
own race,
4
the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of
the law, the temple worship and the promises.
5
Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all,
forever praised! Amen.
6
It is not as though Gods word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.
7
Nor because they are his descendants are they all brahams children. On the contrary, It is through Isaac
that your offspring will be reckoned.
8
In other words, it is not the natural children who are Gods children, but it is the children of the promise
who are regarded as brahams offspring.
9
For this was how the promise was stated: t the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a
son.
10
Not only that, but ebekahs children had one and the same father, our father Isaac.
11
Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or badin order that Gods purpose in
election might stand:
12
not by works but by him who callsshe was told, The older will serve the younger.
13
Just as it is written: Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.
14
What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all!
15
For he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I
have compassion.
16
It does not, therefore, depend on mans desire or effort, but on Gods mercy
The first part of the chapter, vs1-5, Paul is explaining his anguish and sorrow regarding the Jews rejection of Christ
along with listing the special privileges promised to the Jews as God's holy people. Paul expresses his love for his
kindred, his fellows, his people.
From vs6 onwards Paul changes his direction and explains the gospel for the Gentiles.
Vs1-2 Paul tells of the anguish in his heart
Vs3 The anguish is for his brothers, his Jewish kinsmen according to their ancestry and heritage.
Vs4 Paul's anguish is for the Israelites for who he lists seven spiritual privileges as God's chosen nation.
Vs5 Additionally the Fathers, specifically Abraham and Isaac mentioned in following verses, and the Christ, are all
descended directly from God and blessed forever. Jesus is the promised covenant seed of Abraham and David, and
Paul is about to discuss the promised seed in the verses which follow. In Galatians he explicitly states that seed was
Christ.
Paul has explained the privileges and ends it with an Amen to God.
Christ and what he offers to the Gentiles is the problem for the Jews, and here is why.
Vs6 Paul explains that being an Israelite descendant does not necessarily mean they are true Israelites.
Vs7 Being a direct descendant from Abraham does not confirm a person's place in the family of God.
Vs7 It is not family lineage, but through Isaac that people become children of God.
Vs8 It is not ancestry, family lineage, that makes a person God's family but to those receiving the promise.

Vs9 Paul begins to explain, with three Old Testament illustrations, the part of the promise he is referring to. This time
referring to Sarah giving birth in her old age.
Vs10-14 Explains God's decision for the yet unborn children of Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Esau.
Vs15-18 Further explanation, including Pharoah, on why God can chose who He wants to chose
Summary:
As is often the case, it is the context that gives us the answer to our dilemma. The entire point of this passage is to
explain to the Jews why Jesus who had descended directly from Abraham, therefore all the way to Adam and to God,
was not here only for the Jews but for the Gentiles. Paul's anguish was because the Jews had rejected the gospel of
Christ, even though Christ was a direct descendent of Abraham.
If we try to understand vs5 to say that Jesus is God, it is completely out of context and has nothing to do with the
flow of the passage. It would disrupt what Paul is relaying to his readers. And for Paul to call Christ "God blessed
forever" makes no sense.

Part 5 Opposing Viewpoints Dilemma.

There is extremely strong reasoning why this passage does not say Jesus is God.
Paul is talking about "Christ according to the flesh." So just what exactly does someone who says "Jesus is God"
think this passage means? Are they actually claiming that "Christ according to the flesh" is "God"? Throughout
history one can read in Trinitarian apologetic literature that Christ "according to the flesh" is not God. According to
them, only Christ "according to his divine nature" is God. This is made clear when they respond to the question, "If
Jesus is God how is it that Jesus had a God?" Trinitarians respond by claiming that Jesus according to the flesh has a
God but not Jesus according to his divine nature. In other words, the reason that Jesus according to the flesh can have
a God is because Trinitarian doctrine says that Jesus is not God according to the flesh. Jesus has a God according to
the flesh because he is not God according to the flesh. And Paul here is specifically referring to Christ according to
the flesh.
Summary:
If you believe that Romans 9:5 says Jesus is God according to the flesh, then it is in direct contradiction to those that
say Jesus is God only in his divine nature.

Summaries and Final Conclusion:

Part 1ABecause of the very different ways the different translators have interpreted and presented the passage, we
really have to look elsewhere to find our understanding if we cannot find it in the context.
Part 1B The Bible theologians throughout history were unable to come to an agreement on the required punctuation
for Romans 9:5
Part 1C In this short poem we can clearly see that the woman in the poem can have twenty or twenty five fingers
on her hands and feet depending how we punctuate the sentence. It is not to difficult for the translators to
sometimes read into a sentence what they want to express rather than what the writer wanted to express.
The same can be said of Romans 9:5, and obviously the theologians will always argue that their punctuation
is correct for the reasons they provide. The way to understand what is implied by the Paul in
Romans is to go to
the context.
Part 2 When looking at the original Greek text the "fathers" and the "Christ" are being written about together.
Firstly because the word "and" is between them and
secondly if they were not, the "fathers" have no other purpose being in the sentence.
Therefore there are two options.
1/ The Fathers and the Christ, in their physical bodies, are all directly descended from God.
Paul is identifying them as being of the same ancestry and heritage.

2/ The Fathers are tied together with Christ because he is over all as their head, or leader, the head of the
Church.
Part 3 Romans 1:3 Tells us that Jesus, in the flesh or his ancestry, had descended from the line of David. This
meant his other ancestors included Abraham and Isaac and therefore Adam and God.
Romans 4:1 Abraham was, according to the flesh, Paul's ancestor
This is supporting evidence for Romans 9:5 showing that although Jesus' did not have a human father, his
mother and Joseph were descended from the line of the patriarchs.
In the book of Romans alone, Paul uses the term sarx/flesh on twenty six occasions in his efforts to tell the
people of the difficulties in pleasing God because of their fleshly desires being in opposition to their
spiritual desires. Thirteen of those times are in chapter eight and three in chapter nine. He is also reminding
them of their heritage to the Patriarchs and their brother Paul who is talking to them and their
brother Jesus Christ
who has an even higher standing than they do.
Part 4 It is the context that gives us the answer to our dilemma. The entire point of this passage is to explain to the
Jews why Jesus who had descended directly from Abraham, therefore all the way to Adam and to God, was not
here only for the Jews but for the Gentiles. Paul's anguish was because the Jews had
rejected the gospel of
Christ, even though Christ was a direct descendent of Abraham.
If we try to understand vs5 to say that Jesus is God, it is completely out of context and has nothing to do with
the flow of the passage. It would disrupt what Paul is relaying to his readers. And for Paul to call Christ "God blessed
forever" makes no sense.
Part 5 If you believe that Romans 9:5 says Jesus is God according to the flesh, then it is in direct contradiction to
those that say Jesus is God only in his divine nature.

Final Conclusion:
Despite the fact that the translators were/are very divided on how they interpret vs5, we can see from looking at the
Greek text that the words "fathers" and "Christ" are directly linked together and whatever the rest of the verse means
it is in reference to both the "fathers" and the "Christ."
In addition to the Greek text, we know from the context and the flow of Paul's writings that he was discussing those
directly descended from God through lineage, and this included Christ. After just saying that Christ came from the
line of the Patriarchs, something about which the Jews were suspicious, a eulogy to the Father would assure the Jews
that there was no idolatry or false elevation of Christ intended, but that he was part of the great blessing of God.
Christian doctrine should not depend on ambiguous points of language about which many could not reasonably be
asked to make a judgment and experts disagree.
Because of these points, and at the least this verse is ambiguous, nothing in Romans 9:5 says that Christ is God