PSALM SIXTY-NINE

26. Him whom Thou hast smitten. Here the reason is given for so great a punishment. It is not precisely that they crucified Christ, because He did pray for them, and they could have been forgiven if they had been willing [according to Zech. 1:15: “I was angry a little, but they furthered the disaster”], but that they did not stop persecuting Him even when He was dead and rising again in His members. For He was smitten by the Father, according to Is. 53:4. But if they had stopped when the Father stopped smiting Him, and if they had glorified Him when the Father glorified Him, all would have been well with them. But now, while the Father is glorifying Him, they refuse to do so and keep on persecuting Him nonetheless. Hence He said to one who was one of the most distinguished among them (Acts 9:4): “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” Therefore the fact that punishment was upon them is due entirely to their own will, for God desired to save them. But since they are unwilling, God cannot save them contrary to their own will. Hence the punishment necessarily follows, because they do not change their will. From this it is clear that this punishment upon them is not definitive and absolute, but as long as their will remains what it is. So the apostle says, Rom. 11:23: “They also will be grafted in, if they do not persist in their unbelief. –Martin Luther