What Does Romans 9:15 Mean in the King James?
For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Mercy is not a prize you win; the verse places its movement in God’s will.
THE MEANING
God’s mercy and compassion rest in God’s own choosing, not in your ability to make a claim. You stand before a compassion freely given: the verse names it as God’s action, not your achievement.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It dissolves the belief that compassion can be forced from God by merit, status, or perfect conduct.
THE ROOT
οἰκτιρήσω
oiktirēsō
GROWS FROM
οἰκτιρ
To show pity or compassion
The Greek verb οἰκτιρήσω (oiktirēsō, I will show compassion) and the repeated οἰκτίρω (oiktirō, I show compassion) share this root, which also names compassion as a quality. The quoted Hebrew line uses רָחַם (raḥam, show compassion), the root also found in רֶחֶם (reḥem, womb), giving compassion a bodily image of care held within.
ALSO GROWS
oiktirmos: compassion, mercies
οἰκτιρμός
This noun carries the same root into a name for compassion itself, extending the repeated verb into a continuing quality.
oiktirmōn: compassionate, merciful
οἰκτίρμων
This adjective describes one who embodies compassion, linking the act named in Romans to a compassionate nature.
THE PATTERN
Compassion moves from God’s own choosing toward the one who receives it, without being a wage that person can claim.
And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.THE THREAD
Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;The Greek word translated “mercies” comes from the same οἰκτιρ root as “compassion” in Romans. Romans names compassion as God’s chosen action; this verse names those mercies as belonging to God.
This reading is from Selah Verse.
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