The holy spirit and god's love

THE HOLY SPIRIT AND GOD'S LOVE
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Romans 5:5 5And hope does not put us to shame,
because God's love has been poured out into our
hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to
us.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
BlessedFruit Off A Bitter Tree
Romans 5:3-5
C.H. Irwin
The letters of St. Paul abound in strange and striking paradoxes. In another
place he speaksofhimself "as sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing;as poor, yet
making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing allthings." Here he
speaks ofthe Christian as "glorying in tribulation." He has been speaking of
the effects ofjustification by faith, and ends by saying, "We rejoice in hope of
the glory of God" (ver. 2). Our joy, however, is not confined to the future.
True, there are cares and sorrows in this present life. But it does not therefore
follow that we are to postpone all joy until we reachthe spirit-land. "No!"
says the apostle, boldly; "we gloryeven in our tribulations." The sorrows are
there, 'tis true, but the light of the cross ofJesus transforms them with a glory
all its own, even as the sunshine makes a rainbow of the shower. "Now no

chastening for the present seemethto be joyous, but grievous;nevertheless
afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them that are
exercisedthereby." Tribulation is a bitter tree, but look at the fruits which it
is capable of yielding. "We glory in tribulations also:knowing that tribulation
workethpatience; and patience, experience;and experience, hope."
I. THE BITTER TREE.It is hardly necessaryto speak ofthe bitterness of
tribulation. "The heart knowethits own bitterness." We all know something
of what sorrow means, and how bitter it is.
1. There is the bitterness of bereavement. What agonyof spirit when one who
has been the light of your eyes, the joy and comfort of your home, is taken
from you! What bitterness of sorrow is to be compared with the grief of
parents for their children? How heart-rending is grief like David's, when he
went up to the chamber over the gate, and as he went his sorrow overcame
him, and he cried aloud, "O my sonAbsalom, my son, my sonAbsalom!
would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!" And so, when
the Bible wants to picture grief of the intensestkind, it speaks ofmourning as
one mourneth for his only son, and being in bitterness as one that is in
bitterness for his firstborn (Zechariah 12:10). Parents who want to avoid the
greatestofall grief, mourning over a child of whom they have no hope for
eternity, should lose no opportunity of leading their children to the Saviour.
2. There is the bitterness of bodily suffering. Sleeplessnights and weary days
of tossing on a bed of sickness -how they tend to take the sunshine out of life!
And then there are those trifling ailments, bodily infirmities, for which,
perhaps, you get little sympathy, but which keepyour body constantly feeble
and your mind constantly depressed. It needs a Divine powerto beara life of
constantpain. No human strength could stand it unaided without giving way
to irritation or despondency. Even the Saviour of the world tastedhow bitter
is the cup of bodily suffering.
3. There is the bitterness of disappointment. Some cherishedpossessionis
takenawayfrom you, some valuable property is lost, your earthly means of
support take to themselves wings and flee away, some objecton which you
had setyour heart is snatchedawayout of your reach, or some friend whom

you had implicitly trusted suddenly proves treacherous andunfaithful. The
feeling of disappointment which such circumstances produce was in Esau's
mind when he came in to receive his father's blessing, and found that Jacob
his brother had heartlesslysupplanted him. "When Esauheard the words of
his father, he cried with a greatand exceeding bitter cry." Life's
disappointments - how much we all know about this kind of bitterness! Yes;
tribulation is indeed a bitter tree.
II. ITS BLESSED FRUIT. Paulknew what he was talking about when he
came to the subject of tribulation. He knew what persecutionwas. He knew
what bodily suffering was. Five times he receivedthirty-nine stripes. Three
times he was beatenwith rods. Once he was stoned. Three times he suffered
shipwreck. He had been "in weariness andpainfulness, in watchings often, in
hunger and thirst, in cold and nakedness."He knew what danger was. He had
been "in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by his own
countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the
wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren." He knew what
disappointment was. Like his Master, he too was forsakenin his hour of need
by those who made professionof being his friends. He tells us that at his first
appearance before Caesarno man stoodwith him. But whateverhis trials had
been when he wrote this, or whatevertrials may yet be in store for him, he
looks upon them all with a calm and peaceful, nay, with an exultant mind.
"We glory in tribulations also." He knew what blessedfruit could be plucked
off that bitter tree.
1. First of all, there was patience. "Tribulation workethpatience." Patience
means really the capacityfor enduring. If we speak ofa patient man, we may
mean one who canendure delay, and we say that he can wait patiently; or we
may mean one who canendure suffering, and we speak of him as suffering
patiently. The connection, then, betweensuffering and patience it is easyto
see. It is by suffering that one learns how to suffer, that is, to be patient. And if
we go into practicalexperience, we are pretty certainto find that the most
patient Christian is the one who has suffered most. He was not always thus.
Perhaps at first he was like the rough unpolished block of marble which I
have seenin the Connemara marble works atGalway. He was disposedto
resistthe hand that was dealing with him in chastening. But the suffering

came. It was repeatedover and over again, like the incessantprocessof
rubbing to which that rough-looking block is subjected. But by-and-by he
came out of the suffering with the edges rubbed off his temper and the
rebelliousness takenout of his spirit, even as the marble comes smoothand
shining from the hard process throughwhich it has to pass. Suchis the use of
suffering, to purify, to brighten the character, and produce patience in the
soul. Indeed, the word "tribulation" conveys this same idea. It is derived from
the Latin word tribulum, the threshing-instrument whereby the Roman
husbandman separatedthe cornfrom the husks. That process was described
as tribulatio. So it is in the spiritual world. Suffering and sorrow cleanse away
the chaff - the pride, the selfishness,the disobedience - which is to be found
more or less in all our natures. Let us think more of the result of the suffering
than of the suffering itself, more of the patience it will developthan of the
chaff which it will take away, and then we too shall learn, with St. Paul, to
"glory in tribulations also, knowing that tribulation workethpatience.
2. The secondblessedfruit off this bitter tree is experience. Tribulation
workethpatience;and patience, experience." The word here translated
"experience" reallymeans in the original "proof," or "trial," or "testing." In
the RevisedVersionit is translated"probation." This does not, perhaps, quite
express the full meaning either; but the point is that the apostle had something
more in his mind than what we ordinarily mean by the word "experience."
His idea probably was that tribulation and our patience under it give proof or
confirmation of two things. They afford. us proof of the characterof God - his
faithfulness in fulfilling his promises, his love in sustaining us, and his power
in giving us the victory over trial and suffering. And they afford us proof of
our own characteralso - proof that we are the sons of God, proof that we have
been justified by faith. "Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth." And then
there is the precious promise, "Blessedis the man that endureth temptation
[or, 'trial']: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the
Lord hath promised to them that love him." In such ways does God confirm
us by suffering, and by our own patience under it. So he confirms our faith in
him, and confirms our own Christian character. This is another blessedfruit
off the bitter tree of tribulation.

3. The third blessedfruit off this bitter tree is hope. "And experience, hope."
The proof which we have receivedof God's goodnessunder past trials leads us
to hope for still greaterrevelations ofhis goodnessyet to come. The proof we
have had of his wise and gracious purpose in purifying us by trial and
suffering leads us to hope that "he who hath began a goodwork in us will
perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." So the Christian is ever looking
forward. When he bears the cross, he is looking forwardto the crown. When
he is suffering for his Master's sake, he is looking forward to the time when he
shall reign with him in glory. This subject of tribulation and its fruit might
fittingly he. closedwith some lines written by a young lady in Nova Scotia,
who was an invalid for many years-
"My life is a wearisome journey;
I am sick of the dust and the heat
The rays of the sun beat upon me;
The briars are wounding my feet;
But the city to which I am going
Will more than my trials repay;
All the toils of the road will seemnothing
When I get to the end of the way.
"There are so many hills to climb upward,
I often am longing for rest;
But he who appoints me my pathway
Knows just what is needful and best.
I know in his Word he has promised
That my strength shall be as my day;
And the toils of the road will seemnothing

"He loves me too well to forsake me,
Or give me one trial too much:
All his people have dearly been purchased,
And Satancan never claim such.
By-and-by I shall see him and praise him
In the city of unending day;
And the toils of the road will seemnothing
"Thoughnow I am footsore andweary,
I shall rest when I'm safelyat home;
I know I'll receive a glad welcome,
For the Saviour himself has said, 'Come:
So when I am weary in body,
And sinking in spirit, I say,
All the toils of the road will seemnothing
"Cooling fountains are there for the thirsty;
There are cordials for those who are faint;
There are robes that are whiter and purer
Than any that fancy can paint.
Then I'll try to press hopefully onward,
Thinking often through eachwearyday,

The toils of the read will seemnothing
When I get to the end of the way." We glory in tribulations also:knowing that
tribulation workethpatience;and patience, experience;and experience, hope.
- C.H.I.
Biblical Illustrator
And hope maketh not ashamed.
Romans 5:5
Christian, hope
Stephen Clarke.
There is no word more beautiful than "hope." It is alight with the radiance of
futurity; in it murmurs a prophetic music of goodtimes coming. Its influence
upon mankind it is impossible to over-estimate. As it has waxedor waned,
societyhas risen or declined. The sinfulness of the first pair threatened life
with a collapse;but in the first promise the day star of humanity arose. A
watery deluge rolled around the world; and in the solitary ark, among the
dearestobjects which survived was the hope of the race. At the time of Jesus,
upon the universal heart was settling the sickness ofhope deferred. The
virtues of force, courage, endurance, hadfailed. The intellectual hope of the
world likewise had suffered; philosophy had sunken into sophistry. Religious
hope, too, was dead; buried in the superstition and atheism of the times. It was
now that Christ appeared the dawn of the world — material, intellectual, and
spiritual. Among the many obligations the Divine Man imposed upon
mankind was the redemption of the hope of the race.
I. THE NATURE OF CHRISTIAN HOPE.
1. Hope is sometimes confounded with desire;but the yearning of the soul
after unrealised goodmay not only not be hope, but the keenestform of
despair. It is also confusedwith belief; but as the perceptive faculty, faith may
revealto us evils that will befall us. Takenseparatelythese conceptionsare

inadequate and untrue; in combination they yield the wishedresult. Hope is
made up of desire and faith — it is the confident expectationof coming good.
2. This world is the specialscene ofhope. Because ofthe perennial freshness of
the greatsource ofall things, every life has about it a vigour of unlimited
hope. To the young the disappointments of the past go for nothing. As if no
anticipations had perished, every heart comes into life like the recurring
spring crownedwith flowers of hope. Until the summit of life is reached,
earthly hope guides man onward; but the time must come when the summit of
earthly welfare is reachedand life becomes a subdued decline — when, from
the guardianship of Hope, man is handed over to the weird sisterMemory.
3. But to the Christian there is a higher hope, which knows no decay, which
can sustainthe spirit in an unending course of dignity. Christianity renews the
youth of men.
II. ITS GROUND. The best earthly expectations are basedupon innumerable
contingencies whichany moment may give way. The Christian hope is built
upon a rock — the being and providence of a gracious God. There are some to
whom the throne of the universe is vacantand man an orphan. Others have
filled the supreme seatwith a formless shadow of fate — without knowledge,
without love. In distinction from all such theories the ground of the Christian
hope is, first, the infinite perfections of God's character. In the grand unity
which pervades the whole material universe, which guides even those matters
disturbed by the perverse will of man towards a purpose of good, we gather
that the Divine nature is a unity. Then, again, from the works of nature we
gather suggestions ofa powerthat is omnipotent, a wisdom that is boundless,
a goodness thatis infinite. Here, then, we seem to touch the very granite of
mortal confidence — a personal, loving Godhead. Give us this, and the only
fatal sin among men is despair. According to his faith shall it be done unto
man. To illuminate and supplement the manifestation alreadygiven, the
Almighty spoke the truths containedin the Bible. Beyond all, in the personof
Christ, the very heart of the Fatherwas unfolded to men. And is there no
warrant for hope here? "He that withheld not His own Son but freely gave
Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things!"

III. ITS CHARACTERISTICS.
1. Solidity. It is "a goodhope.'' This fact arises from the nature of its
foundation and from the characterof its securities. Here, however, we prefer
to notice some of the testimonies of experience, In support of Christianity we
can show an array of witnessesunapproachedin the defence of any other
system. Surely, to follow the religious footsteps ofBacon, Milton, and Newton
is no slight comfort. Not only in the vigour of their life have greatmen attested
to the truth of Christianity, but likewise in the hour of their dissolution. "The
best of all," said the dying father of Methodism: "The Lord is with us." "Hast
thou hope?" said the attendants upon the death bed of John Knox. He
answerednot, but merely pointed his finger upward.
2. It is a purifying hope.(1) This is so from the nature of the objects which
excite it. The soul is tinged by the phenomena amid which it moves. He who
anticipates the impure becomes impure; he who aspires after the trivial only
becomes frivolous. Before the Christian, on the contrary, are placedobjects of
standard worth. In this world he is called to holiness;in the world to come he
is promised heaven.(2) It is purifying in itself. Give a man hope, and though
steepedto the lips in evil, he will, under the Divine grace, clarify himself. Give
a man hope, and you place his foot on the first stair of heaven. This is the
reasonof the successofthe gospeloverevery other religious system.
3. It is a living or lively hope. There is such a thing as a dead hope. Some have
made shipwreck of faith and have castawaytheir confidence. Then there are
some who have a kind of galvanisedhope — while operatedupon by outward
excitement it seems to move, but the moment this is taken awayit collapses.
The Divine principle which animates the Christian heart beats a pulse of
undying ardour. When the soul enters heavenit only begins a careerof
endless progress. Throughoutthat course hope will be the unfailing guide of
man.
IV. ITS PROPER OBJECTS. Thesecomprehendall that is good, i.e., all that
is in accordance withthe will of God. It only requires a moment's reflectionto
see the necessityof such a condition. The mind of man is necessarilydefective,
and confounds shows with realities. As a child perplexed in an intricate path

gladly resigns himself to the guidance of his father, so the Christian exclaims,
in the presence ofDivine love, "Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel."
Another reasonfor making hope contingent upon the Divine will is found in
God's infinite goodness.Assuredof this, man realises his highest blessedness.
Carry with you the thought of Divine rectitude, and you cannotanticipate too
much from infinite compassion. The factof God's willingness to bless man
being manifested in all the mercies received, should add zest to their
enjoyment. "No goodthing is withheld from them that walk uprightly." But,
in regard to religious benefits, the certainties of hope are still greater. They
have regard —
1. To man individually, and begin with human life. "Of such is the kingdom of
heaven." "Theirangels do always behold the face of My Fatherwhich is in
heaven," are passageswhichhang like a luminous cloud over the heads of
little children. In them is opened a boundless field of hope in regard to
incipient life. All who depart before the years of responsibility are safe in the
protection of Christ. In the case ofthose who survive it is made possible to
train them up in the way they should go. Still, so early does man become sinful
that the prophet said, "We go astray from the womb, speaking lies." Justas
the prodigal left the house of his father, men go astray from the Divine
rectitude, and then there is only a single voice which speaks ofhope, that is the
voice of the gospel. The promises of God suggestthat there is no room for
despondencyon the part of the vilest, but every reasonfor hope.
2. To Christian attainments. The real life of man is that of progress. The
objects which are held up to us in the Christian course are calculatedto stir
the pulse, to callforth the continued aspirationof the soul. Above all, there is
a standard of Christian characterplacedbefore us we can never transcend —
namely, that of Jesus Christ. "We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as
He is." Well was it added, "He that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself."
3. To heaven. The life above will be of —(1) An intenser character.(2)
Permanent blessedness.(3)Improved circumstances.There the religious life
instead of being hindered will be helped by the surroundings.(4) Better
society.

(Stephen Clarke.)
The glorious hope
C. H. Spurgeon.
Consider—
I. THE CONFIDENCEOR OUR HOPE. We are not ashamed —
1. Of our hope. Some persons have no hope, or only one of which they might
justly be ashamed. "I shall die like a dog," says one. "When I am dead there's
an end of me." The agnostic knows nothing, and therefore I suppose he hopes
nothing. The Romanist's best hope is that he may undergo the purging fires of
purgatory. There is no greatexcellence in these hopes. But we are not
ashamedof our hope who believe that those who are absent from the body are
present with the Lord.
2. Of the objectof our hope. We do not hope for gross carnaldelights as
making up our heaven, or we might very well be ashamedof it. Whatever
imagery we may use, we intend thereby pure, holy, spiritual, and refined
happiness. Our hope is that we shall shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of
the Father;that we shall be like our perfect Lord, and where He is that we
may behold His glory.
3. Of the ground of our hope. The solemn promises of God confirmed in the
person and work of Christ. Inasmuch as Jesus died and rose, we that are one
with Him are sure that we shall rise and live with Him.
4. Of our personalappropriation of this hope. Our expectationis not based
upon any proud claim of personaldeservings, but upon the promise of a
faithful God. He hath said, "He that believeth in Him hath everlasting life."
We do believe in Him, and therefore we know that we have eternallife. Our
hope is not basedon mere feeling, but on the fact that God hath promised
everlasting life to them that believe in His Son Jesus.

5. As to the absolute certainty that our hope will be realised. We do not expect
to be deserted, for "He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee."
"Who shall separate us from the love of Godwhich is in Christ Jesus our
Lord?"
II. THE REASON OF THIS CONFIDENCE.
1. Our hope has for one of its main supports the love of God. I trust not to my
love of God, but to God's love for me. We are sure that He will fulfil our hope
because He is too loving to fail us. If it were not for the Father's love, there
would have been no covenantof grace, no atoning sacrifice, no Holy Spirit to
renew us, and all that is goodin us would soonpass away.
2. This love has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost — like a
rain cloud, black with exceeding blessing, which pours forth a showerof silver
drops innumerable, fertilising every place whereonit falls, making the
drooping herbs to lift up their heads and rejoice in the heaven-sentrevival.
After a while, from that spot where fell the rain, there rises a gentle steam,
which ascends to heavenand forms fresh clouds. Thus is the love of God
poured upon our heart, and shed abroad in our nature till our spirit drinks it
in, and its new life is made to put forth its flowers of joy and fruits of holiness,
and by and by grateful praise ascends like the incense which in the temple
smokedupon Jehovah's altar. Love is shed abroadin us, and it works upon
our heart to love in return.(1) The Holy Ghostimparts an intense appreciation
and sense of that love. We have heard of it, believed in it, and meditated upon
it, and at lastwe are overpoweredby its greatnessI(2) Then there comes an
appropriation of it. We cry, "He loved me, and gave Himself for me."(3)Then
follows, as a matter of course, that return of love which the human heart must
feel — we love Him because He first loved us.
3. But notice the specialsweetness whichstruck our apostle as being so
amazingly noteworthy.(1)That God should give His Son for the ungodly. He
loved us when we hated Him. Marvellous fact!(2) That Christ died for us.
That Christ should love us in heavenwas a greatthing; that He should then
come down to earth was a greater;but that He should die, this is the climax of
love's sacrifice, the summit of the Alp of love.(3)That the Lord must ever us

now that we are reconciled.(4)That"we have now receivedthe atonement."
The hope of glory burns in the golden lamp of a heart reconciledto God by
Jesus Christ. Grace is glory in the bud. Agreement with God is the seedcorn
of perfect holiness and perfecthappiness.
4. Note the Divine Personby whom this has been done. Only by the Holy
Ghostcould this have been done. We canshed that love abroad by preaching,
but we cannot shed it abroad in the heart. If the Holy Ghostdwells in you, He
is the guarantee ofeverlasting joy. Where grace is given by His Divine
indwelling, glory must follow it.
III. THE RESULT OF THIS CONFIDENT HOPE.
1. Inward joy.
2. Holy boldness in the avowalof our hope.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The hope that maketh not ashamed
J. Lyth, D. D.
I.Its glorious OBJECT.
II.Its signalTRIUMPHS.
III.Its unfailing SUPPORT.
(J. Lyth, D. D.)
Hopes that make and the hope that maketh not ashamed
J. Lyth, D. D.
I. HOPES THAT MAKE ASHAMED.
1. By the insufficiency of the object — that of the worldling.

2. By the weaknessofthe foundation — that of the Pharisee.
3. By the falsity of the warrant — that of the antinomian.
II. THE HOPE THAT MAKETH NOT ASHAMED.
1. Its nature.
(1)Holy.
(2)Solid.
(3)Certain.
2. Its value. It can never disappoint and thus put to shame.
(J. Lyth, D. D.)
Believers not ashamed
M. Henry.
for they have —
1. A goodMaster.
2. A goodcause.
3. A goodhope.
(M. Henry.)
Becausethe love of God is shed abroadin our hearts.
The love of God shed abroad in the heart
C. Hodge, D. D.

I. THE LOVE OF GOD IS HIS LOVE TO US. The factthat we are the
objects of a love which embraces all the creatures of God would not be ground
of hope. But this love is —
1. Special. It stands opposedto wrath, and includes reconciliationand Divine
favour, and secures to us all the benefits of redemption.
2. Infinitely great. It led to the gift of God's Son.
3. Gratuitous. It is not founded on our character, but was exercisedtowards
us when sinners.
4. Immutable. If founded on anything in us it would continue no longerthan
our attractiveness continued:but flowing from the mysterious fulness of the
Divine nature it cannot change.
II. THIS LOVE IS SHED ABROAD IN OUR HEARTS: i.e., We have a full
conviction and assurance that we are its objects. There might be a conviction
that God is love, and that His love toward some men is infinitely great, and
that it is gratuitous and unchangeable, and yet we might remain in the
blackness ofdespair. It is only when we are assuredthat we are its objects
that we have a hope which sustains and renders blessed.
III. WE KNOW THAT WE ARE THE OBJECTS OF THIS LOVE.
1. Notsimply because Godloves all men.
2. Norbecause we see in ourselves effects ofregenerationand the evidences of
holiness;for —(1) This love was prior to regeneration.(2)Holiness is the fruit
of the assurance ofit.
3. But by the Holy Ghost. How we cannot tell, and it is unreasonable to ask.
We might as well ask how He produces faith, peace, joy, or any other grace. It
is enough to say negativelythat it is not —(1) By exciting our love to God,
whence we infer His love to us: the order is the reverse. Nor —(2) By simply
opening our eyes to see whata wonderful display of love is made in
redemption: for that we might see and yet suppose ourselves excluded.

IV. THE PROOF THAT WE ARE NOT DELUDED IS THIS MATTER IS
TO BE FOUND IN THE EFFECTSOF THIS CONVICTION.
1. The effects of such a conviction when unfounded are seenin the Jews,
Papists, and Antinomians, and are —
(1)Pride.
(2)Malignity.
(3)Immorality.
2. When produced by the Holy Ghostthe effects are —(1) Humility. Nothing
so bows down the soul as a sense of undeserved love.(2)The tenderestconcern
for those who are not thus favoured, and an earnestdesire that they may
share our blessedness.(3)Love to God. Love begets love: and our love to God
is mingled with admiration, wonder, gratitude, and zeal for His glory.(4)
Obedience.
(C. Hodge, D. D.)
C. H. Spurgeon.
I. THE LOVE OF GOD. If you would have this love shed abroadin your
hearts you must considercarefully —
1. Who it is that loves you, namely, the most high God. To be loved is a
sublime thought, but to be loved of Him is a right royal thing, A courtier will
often think it quite enoughif he hath the favour of his prince. It means riches,
pleasure, honour. And what means the love of the King of kings to you? All
that you evercan need.
2. What He is who so loves you. Very much of the value of affectiondepends
upon whom it comes from. It would be a very small thing to have the
complacencyof some of our fellow creatures whose praise might almostbe

consideredcensure. To have the love of the good, the excellent, this is truest
wealth; and so to enjoy the love of God is an utterly priceless thing!
3. The remarkable characteristics ofthat love,(1) It is heaven born; it sprang
from no source but itself, and is not causedby any excellencein the
creature.(2)It is self-sustaining. It borrows nothing from without. It lives, and
shall live as long as God lives.(3)Utterly unbounded and altogether
unequalled. You cannot say of God's love it has gone thereto, but it shall go no
further. There is no love that can any more be comparedwith God's than the
faint gleamof a candle with the blaze of the sun at noonday. He loves His
people so much that He gives them all that He hath.(4) It is unvarying and
unsleeping. He never loves us less, He cannot love us more. The multiplicity of
the saints doth not diminish the infinite love which eachone enjoys. Neverfor
a single moment does He forgetHis Church.(5) It is undying and unfailing.
II. THE LOVE OF GOD IS SHED ABROAD. Here is an alabasterbox of
very precious ointment, it holds within the costly frankincense ofthe love of
God; but we know nothing of it, it is closedup, a mystery, a secret. The Holy
Spirit opens the box, and now the fragrance fills the chamber; every spiritual
taste perceives it, heaven and earth are perfumed with it.
1. No one can shed abroadthe love of God in the heart but the Holy Ghost. It
is He that first puts it there.
2. Do you inquire in what way is the love of God shed abroad?(1)The Holy
Spirit enables the man to be assuredthat he is an objectof the Divine love in
the first place. The man comes to the Cross as a guilty sinner, looks up to the
Cross, trusts in the living Saviour, and then cries, "I am saved, for I have
God's promise to that effect. Now, since I am saved, I must have been the
objectof the Lord's love."(2)Nextthing, the Spirit makes the man understand
what kind of love this is, not all at once, but by degrees,until he apprehends
Jehovah's love in its length and breadth and height.(3) But then comes the
essenceofthe matter — the Holy Spirit enables the soul to meditate upon this
love, casts out the cares ofthe world, and then the man, while he meditates,
finds a fire begins to burn within his soul. Meditating yet more, he is lifted up
from the things of earth. Meditating still, he is astonished, and then, filled with

strong emotion, he cries, "Mysoul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath
rejoicedin God my Saviour." Then while gratitude is still within his soul a
Divine resignationto all the Master's willkeeps rule within him. Then follows
a rapturous leaping over this devout calm, a joy unutterable, next akin to
heaven, fills the heart.
III. THIS LOVE BECOMESTHE CONFIRMATION OF OUR HOPE. Hope
rests itself mainly upon that which is not seen;the promise of God whom eye
hath not beheld. Still it is exceedinglysweetto us if we receive some evidence
and tokenof Divine love which we canpositively enjoy even now. And there
are some of us who do not want Butler's "Analogy" or Paley's "Evidences" to
back our faith; we have our own analogyand our own evidences within, for
the love of God is shed abroadin our hearts, and we have tastedand seenthat
the Lord is gracious.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
Philippi.
It does not descendupon us as dew in drops, but as a stream which spreads
itself abroad through the whole soul, filling it with consciousness ofHis
presence and favour.
(Philippi.)
The love of God shed abroad by the Holy Ghost
C. H. Spurgeon.
Frequently at the greatRoman games the emperors, in order to gratify the
citizens of Rome, would cause sweetperfumes to be rained down upon them
through the awning which coveredthe amphitheatre. Behold the vases, the
huge vessels ofperfume! Yes; but there is nought here to delight you so long
as the jars are sealed;but let the vases be opened and the vessels be poured

out, and let the drops of perfumed rain begin to descend, and everyone is
refreshedand gratified thereby. Such is the love of God. There is a richness
and a fulness in it, but it is not perceivedtill the Spirit of God pours it out like
the rain of fragrance overthe heads and hearts of all the living children of
God. See, then, the need of having the love of Godshed abroad in the heart by
the Holy Ghost.
(C. H. Spurgeon.)
The love of God in the heart
U. R. Thomas.
This love —
I. IS NOT NATURALLY REVEALED TO MAN. It beams on all, like the sun
which shines whether the clouds hide his heat or not. So God's love always
exists, although the clouds of sin may dim and obscure its rays. It existed in
Paradise, in the fall, when man is most depraved and dark. It exists amid all
the sin of the earth, in the wretchedcorners where crime and vice exist. It
exists amid all the negligence with which God is treated.
II. IS NOT APPRECIATED OR RESPONDED TO. If it were, the lives of
men would be far different to what "they are. The reasonis that clouds of sin
and its effects intervene to prevent its influence. For the most part men keep
in the shade when they might live in the warmth and brightness of the
sunshine.
III. MUST BE FELT AND RESPONDEDTO. It is impossible to be a child of
God without. For to realise the love of Godis the only foundation on which we
can build any substantialhope for the future. Nothing but love could consider
guilty, fallen creatures, or have contrived a method of salvation. Nothing but
love can guide us safelythrough life and through death.
IV. CAN BE REALISED AND APPRECIATED.

1. The method — "shedabroad." God does nothing with a stingy hand. The
love of God is not sent in a puny dribble; it comes like the waters of an
incoming tide, mighty, resistless.His love fills the soul and surrounds it and
permeates our nature.
2. The place — "in our hearts." The heart is the spring of life, and
metaphorically is the centre of spiritual life. It is the heart that is said to feel
love. And so it is representedthat the heart receives the love of God. Our
hearts receive all the blood from the body, and then, after purifying it, sends it
back to all parts of the body. So we are to receive the love of God in the heart
to be distributed over all our life and actions.
3. The means — "by the Holy Ghostwhich is given unto us." The greatKing
always uses means. The Holy Spirit is the appointed channel through which
all the graces are sentfrom heaven to earth.(1)The value of the Holy Spirit is,
it is always a present means. It is not "should" be given, but "is" given.(2)The
certainty of the blessing. Like the Holy Spirit, it is always present.(3)The
value of the gift — the love of God. What will not love accomplish? Whatwill
it not attain? The love of God is infinite. And if we appreciate it, if we share it,
if we enjoy it, then is our lot the most blessed.
(U. R. Thomas.)
Personalpiety
F. W. Brown.
I. ITS SOURCE AND SEAT.
1. Its source:"the love of God." False religions spring from fear, but true
religion springs from love. God's love, as revealedin the gift of His Son, begets
love in us, and just as the sun is the author of life in the natural world, so God
is the Author of all life and light in the human soul.
2. Its seat:"in our hearts." All life and growthmust begin within, or they will
prove to be nothing but fruitless fungus. Morality in the life may be the
outcome of self-respect, orearly culture, or fear of shame and sorrow.

Personalpiety has to do not only with the conduct, but the character;and the
characteris decidedby the condition of the heart in the sight of God. Out of
the heart are the issues oflife, and if the love of God be there holiness will be
stamped upon thought, word, and deed. The love of God diffuses itself in the
heart like light, life, warmth, fragrance, and spreads through every avenue of
the soultill the possessorofit becomes a temple of the Holy Ghost.
II. ITS OPERATION AND OUTCOME. Hope is the natural and inevitable
outcome of love. We expect to derive joy and blessednessfrom the persons
upon whom our affections become fixed, and who take possessionof our
hearts, and we are "not ashamed" of those we love, but are ready at any time
to acknowledgethem and identify ourselves with them. Courageous and
confiding hope —
1. Sanctifies. If we love God, and hope one day to see Him and be with Him,
we shall seek to please Him and become like Him.
2. Sustains. While we look at the things which are unseen and eternal, the
sorrows and sufferings of the present seemvery light and small.
3. Stimulates. Hope, springing from love in the heart, will quicken all the
faculties of the mind and fire all the passions of the soul. Love will constrainto
consecration, and hope stimulate to action.
III. ITS GENERATORAND GUARDIAN. Whatever the means we use, or
the channels through which Divine blessings come to us, they all proceedfrom
the Holy Ghostwhich is given unto us; the rise, progress, and perfectionof
personalpiety must be attributed to that source. Let us, then, be careful that
we grieve not, quench not the Holy Spirit, nor dishonour God by trusting too
much to outward forms and worldly noise and show. If we lose the indwelling
of the Holy Ghost, if the love of God expire in our hearts, there will only
remain within us the white ashes of a former fire, and "Ichabod" will be
written upon our desolatedand darkenedbrows.
(F. W. Brown.)

By the Holy Ghostwhich is given unto us.
The gift of the Holy Ghost is
T. Robinson, D. D.
I. THE PLEDGE OF what is to come (Romans 8:23; 2 Corinthians 1:22; 2
Corinthians 5:5; Ephesians 1:14).
II. THE WITNESS OF OUR SONSHIP (Romans 8:16; Galatians 4:6).
III. THE AUTHOR OF ALL GRACIOUS FRUITS AND EXPERIENCES
(Galatians 5:22, 23).
IV. THE REVEALER OF ALL DIVINE TRUTH (John 16:13, 14;1
Corinthians 2:10-12;1 John 2:20, 27). THE SEAL AND BOND OF OUR
UNION WITH CHRIST AND GOD (Ephesians 4:20; Romans 8:9-11).
(T. Robinson, D. D.)
STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
Adam Clarke Commentary
And hope maketh not ashamed - A hope that is not rationally founded will
have its expectationcut off; and then shame and confusionwill be the portion
of its possessor. Butour hope is of a different kind; it is founded on the
goodness andtruth of God; and our religious experience shows us that we
have not misapplied it; nor exercisedit on wrong or improper objects.
Becausethe love of God is shed abroadin our hearts - We have the most solid
and convincing testimony of God's love to us, by that measure of it which he
has communicated to our hearts. There, εκκεχυται, it is poured out, and
diffused abroad; filling, quickening, and invigorating all our powers and

faculties. This love is the spring of all our actions;it is the motive of our
obedience;the principle through which we love God, we love him because he
first loved us; and we love him with a love worthy of himself, because it
springs from him: it is his own; and every flame that rises from this pure and
vigorous fire must be pleasing in his sight: it consumes what is unholy; refines
every passionand appetite; sublimes the whole, and assimilates allto itself.
And we know that this is the love of God; it differs widely from all that is
earthly and sensual. The Holy Ghostcomes with it; by his energyit is diffused
and pervades every part; and by his light we discover what it is, and know the
state of grace in which we stand. Thus we are furnished to every goodword
and work;have produced in us the mind that was in Christ; are enabled to
obey the pure law of our God in its spiritual sense, by loving him with all our
heart, soul, mind, and strength; and our neighbor, any and every soul of man,
as ourselves. This is, or ought to be, the common experience of every genuine
believer; but, in addition to this, the primitive Christians had, sometimes, the
miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit. These were then needful; and were they
needful now, they would be againcommunicated.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "The Adam Clarke
Commentary". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/acc/romans-
5.html. 1832.
return to 'Jump List'
Albert Barnes'Notes onthe Whole Bible
And hope maketh not ashamed - That is, this hope will not disappoint, or
deceive. When we hope for an object which we do not obtain, we are conscious
of disappointment; perhaps sometimes of a feeling of shame. But the apostle
says that the Christian hope is such that it will be fulfilled; it will not

disappoint; what we hope for we shall certainly obtain; see Philemon1:20.
The expressionused here is probably takenfrom Psalm 22:4-5;
Our fathers trusted in thee;
They trusted; and thou didst deliver them.
They cried unto thee,
And were delivered;
They trusted in thee,
And were not confounded (ashamed).
Becausethe love of God - Love toward God. There is produced an abundant,
an overflowing love to God.
Is shed abroad - Is diffused; is poured out; is abundantly produced ἐκκέχυται
ekkechutaiThiswordis properly applied to water, or to any other liquid that
is poured out, or diffused. It is used also to denote imparting, or
communicating freely or abundantly, and is thus expressive of the influence of
the Holy Spirit poured down, or abundantly imparted to people;Acts 10:45.
Here it means that love toward God is copiouslyor abundantly given to a
Christian; his heart is conscious ofhigh and abundant love to God, and by this
he is sustained in his afflictions.
By the Holy Ghost - It is produced by the influence of the Holy Spirit. All
Christian graces are tracedto his influence; Galatians 5:22, “But the fruit of
the Spirit is love, joy,” etc.
Which is given unto us - Which Spirit is given or imparted to us. The Holy
Spirit is thus representedas dwelling in the hearts of believers; 1 Corinthians
6:19; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 6:16. In all these places it is meant
that Christians are under his sanctifying influence; that he produces in their
hearts the Christian graces;and fills their minds with peace, and love, and
joy.

Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Barnes, Albert. "Commentaryon Romans 5:5". "Barnes'Notes onthe New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bnb/romans-
5.html. 1870.
The Biblical Illustrator
Romans 5:5
And hope maketh not ashamed.
Christian, hope
There is no word more beautiful than “hope.” It is alight with the radiance of
futurity; in it murmurs a prophetic music of goodtimes coming. Its influence
upon mankind it is impossible to over-estimate. As it has waxedor waned,
societyhas risen or declined. The sinfulness of the first pair threatened life
with a collapse;but in the first promise the day star of humanity arose. A
watery deluge rolled around the world; and in the solitary ark, among the
dearestobjects which survived was the hope of the race. At the time of Jesus,
upon the universal heart was settling the sickness ofhope deferred. The
virtues of force, courage, endurance, hadfailed. The intellectual hope of the
world likewise had suffered; philosophy had sunken into sophistry. Religious
hope, too, was dead; buried in the superstition and atheism of the times. It was
now that Christ appeared the dawn of the world--material, intellectual, and
spiritual. Among the many obligations the Divine Man imposed upon
mankind was the redemption of the hope of the race.
I. The nature of Christian hope.

1. Hope is sometimes confounded with desire;but the yearning of the soul
after unrealised goodmay not only not be hope, but the keenestform of
despair. It is also confusedwith belief; but as the perceptive faculty, faith may
revealto us evils that will befall us. Takenseparatelythese conceptionsare
inadequate and untrue; in combination they yield the wishedresult. Hope is
made up of desire and faith--it is the confident expectationof coming good.
2. This world is the specialscene ofhope. Because ofthe perennial freshness of
the greatsource ofall things, every life has about it a vigour of unlimited
hope. To the young the disappointments of the past go for nothing. As if no
anticipations had perished, every heart comes into life like the recurring
spring crownedwith flowers of hope. Until the summit of life is reached,
earthly hope guides man onward; but the time must come when the summit of
earthly welfare is reachedand life becomes a subdued decline--when, from the
guardianship of Hope, man is handed overto the weird sisterMemory.
3. But to the Christian there is a higher hope, which knows no decay, which
can sustainthe spirit in an unending course of dignity. Christianity renews the
youth of men.
II. Its ground. The bestearthly expectations are basedupon innumerable
contingencies whichany moment may give way. The Christian hope is built
upon a rock--the being and providence of a gracious God. There are some to
whom the throne of the universe is vacantand man an orphan. Others have
filled the supreme seatwith a formless shadow of fate--without knowledge,
without love. In distinction from all such theories the ground of the Christian
hope is, first, the infinite perfections of God’s character. In the grand unity
which pervades the whole material universe, which guides even those matters
disturbed by the perverse will of man towards a purpose of good, we gather
that the Divine nature is a unity. Then, again, from the works of nature we
gather suggestions ofa powerthat is omnipotent, a wisdom that is boundless,
a goodness thatis infinite. Here, then, we seem to touch the very granite of
mortal confidence--a personal, loving Godhead. Give us this, and the only
fatal sin among men is despair. According to his faith shall it be done unto

man. To illuminate and supplement the manifestation alreadygiven, the
Almighty spoke the truths containedin the Bible. Beyond all, in the personof
Christ, the very heart of the Fatherwas unfolded to men. And is there no
warrant for hope here? “He that withheld not His own Son but freely gave
Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things!”
III. Its characteristics.
1. Solidity. It is “a goodhope.’’ This fact arises from the nature of its
foundation and from the characterof its securities. Here, however, we prefer
to notice some of the testimonies of experience, In support of Christianity we
can show an array of witnessesunapproachedin the defence of any other
system. Surely, to follow the religious footsteps ofBacon, Milton, and Newton
is no slight comfort. Not only in the vigour of their life have greatmen attested
to the truth of Christianity, but likewise in the hour of their dissolution. “The
best of all,” said the dying father of Methodism: “The Lord is with us.” “Hast
thou hope?” said the attendants upon the death bed of John Knox. He
answerednot, but merely pointed his finger upward.
2. It is a purifying hope.
3. It is a living or lively hope. There is such a thing as a dead hope. Some have
made shipwreck of faith and have castawaytheir confidence. Then there are
some who have a kind of galvanisedhope--while operatedupon by outward
excitement it seems to move, but the moment this is taken awayit collapses.
The Divine principle which animates the Christian heart beats a pulse of
undying ardour. When the soul enters heavenit only begins a careerof
endless progress. Throughout that course hope will be the unfailing guide of
man.
IV. Its proper objects. These comprehendall that is good, i.e., all that is in
accordancewith the will of God. It only requires a moment’s reflectionto see
the necessityof such a condition. The mind of man is necessarilydefective,
and confounds shows with realities. As a child perplexed in an intricate path

gladly resigns himself to the guidance of his father, so the Christian exclaims,
in the presence ofDivine love, “Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel.”
Another reasonfor making hope contingent upon the Divine will is found in
God’s infinite goodness.Assuredof this, man realises his highest blessedness.
Carry with you the thought of Divine rectitude, and you cannotanticipate too
much from infinite compassion. The factof God’s willingness to bless man
being manifested in all the mercies received, should add zest to their
enjoyment. “No goodthing is withheld from them that walk uprightly.” But,
in regard to religious benefits, the certainties of hope are still greater. They
have regard--
1. To man individually, and begin with human life. “Of such is the kingdom of
heaven.” “Theirangels do always behold the face of My Fatherwhich is in
heaven,” are passageswhichhang like a luminous cloud over the heads of
little children. In them is opened a boundless field of hope in regard to
incipient life. All who depart before the years of responsibility are safe in the
protection of Christ. In the case ofthose who survive it is made possible to
train them up in the way they should go. Still, so early does man become sinful
that the prophet said, “We go astray from the womb, speaking lies.” Justas
the prodigal left the house of his father, men go astray from the Divine
rectitude, and then there is only a single voice which speaks ofhope, that is the
voice of the gospel. The promises of God suggestthat there is no room for
despondencyon the part of the vilest, but every reasonfor hope.
2. To Christian attainments. The real life of man is that of progress. The
objects which are held up to us in the Christian course are calculatedto stir
the pulse, to callforth the continued aspirationof the soul. Above all, there is
a standard of Christian characterplacedbefore us we can never transcend--
namely, that of Jesus Christ. “We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as
He is.” Well was it added, “He that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself.”
3. To heaven. The life above will be of--
The glorious hope

Consider--
I. The confidence or our hope. We are not ashamed--
1. Of our hope. Some persons have no hope, or only one of which they might
justly be ashamed. “I shall die like a dog,” says one. “When I am dead there’s
an end of me.” The agnostic knows nothing, and therefore I suppose he hopes
nothing. The Romanist’s best hope is that he may undergo the purging fires of
purgatory. There is no greatexcellence in these hopes. But we are not
ashamedof our hope who believe that those who are absent from the body are
present with the Lord.
2. Of the objectof our hope. We do not hope for gross carnaldelights as
making up our heaven, or we might very well be ashamedof it. Whatever
imagery we may use, we intend thereby pure, holy, spiritual, and refined
happiness. Our hope is that we shall shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of
the Father;that we shall be like our perfect Lord, and where He is that we
may behold His glory.
3. Of the ground of our hope. The solemn promises of God confirmed in the
person and work of Christ. Inasmuch as Jesus died and rose, we that are one
with Him are sure that we shall rise and live with Him.
4. Of our personalappropriation of this hope. Our expectationis not based
upon any proud claim of personaldeservings, but upon the promise of a
faithful God. He hath said, “He that believeth in Him hath everlasting life.”
We do believe in Him, and therefore we know that we have eternallife. Our
hope is not basedon mere feeling, but on the fact that God hath promised
everlasting life to them that believe in His Son Jesus.
5. As to the absolute certainty that our hope will be realised. We do not expect
to be deserted, for “He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.”
“Who shall separate us from the love of Godwhich is in Christ Jesus our
Lord?”

II. The reasonofthis confidence.
1. Our hope has for one of its main supports the love of God. I trust not to my
love of God, but to God’s love for me. We are sure that He will fulfil our hope
because He is too loving to fail us. If it were not for the Father’s love, there
would have been no covenantof grace, no atoning sacrifice, no Holy Spirit to
renew us, and all that is goodin us would soonpass away.
2. This love has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost--like a rain
cloud, black with exceeding blessing, which pours forth a showerof silver
drops innumerable, fertilising every place whereonit falls, making the
drooping herbs to lift up their heads and rejoice in the heaven-sentrevival.
After a while, from that spot where fell the rain, there rises a gentle steam,
which ascends to heavenand forms fresh clouds. Thus is the love of God
poured upon our heart, and shed abroad in our nature till our spirit drinks it
in, and its new life is made to put forth its flowers of joy and fruits of holiness,
and by and by grateful praise ascends like the incense which in the temple
smokedupon Jehovah’s altar. Love is shed abroadin us, and it works upon
our heart to love in return.
3. But notice the specialsweetness whichstruck our apostle as being so
amazingly noteworthy.
4. Note the Divine Personby whom this has been done. Only by the Holy
Ghostcould this have been done. We canshed that love abroad by preaching,
but we cannot shed it abroad in the heart. If the Holy Ghostdwells in you, He
is the guarantee ofeverlasting joy. Where grace is given by His Divine
indwelling, glory must follow it.
III. The result of this confident hope.
1. Inward joy.
2. Holy boldness in the avowalof our hope. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The hope that maketh not ashamed

I. Its glorious object.
II. Its signal triumphs.
III. Its unfailing support. (J. Lyth, D. D.)
Hopes that make and the hope that maketh not ashamed
I. Hopes that make ashamed.
1. By the insufficiency of the object--that of the worldling.
2. By the weaknessofthe foundation--that of the Pharisee.
3. By the falsity of the warrant--that of the antinomian.
II. The hope that makethnot ashamed.
1. Its nature.
2. Its value. It can never disappoint and thus put to shame. (J. Lyth, D. D.)
Believers not ashamed,
for they have--
1. A goodMaster.
2. A goodcause.
3. A goodhope. (M. Henry.)
Becausethe love of God is shed abroadin our hearts.

I. The love of God is His love to us. The fact that we are the objects of a love
which embraces all the creatures ofGod would not be ground of hope. But
this love is--
1. Special. It stands opposedto wrath, and includes reconciliationand Divine
favour, and secures to us all the benefits of redemption.
2. Infinitely great. It led to the gift of God’s Son.
3. Gratuitous. It is not founded on our character, but was exercisedtowards
us when sinners.
4. Immutable. If founded on anything in us it would continue no longerthan
our attractiveness continued:but flowing from the mysterious fulness of the
Divine nature it cannot change.
II. This love is shed abroad in our hearts: i.e., We have a full convictionand
assurance thatwe are its objects. There might be a conviction that God is love,
and that His love toward some men is infinitely great, and that it is gratuitous
and unchangeable, and yet we might remain in the blackness ofdespair. It is
only when we are assuredthat we are its objects that we have a hope which
sustains and renders blessed.
III. We know that we are the objects of this love.
1. Notsimply because Godloves all men.
2. Norbecause we see in ourselves effects ofregenerationand the evidences of
holiness;for--
3. But by the Holy Ghost. How we cannot tell, and it is unreasonable to ask.
We might as well ask how He produces faith, peace, joy, or any other grace. It
is enough to say negativelythat it is not--

IV. The proof that we are not deluded is this matter is to be found in the
effects of this conviction.
1. The effects of such a conviction when unfounded are seenin the Jews,
Papists, and Antinomians, and are--
2. When produced by the Holy Ghostthe effects are--
I. The love of God. If you would have this love shed abroad in your hearts you
must considercarefully--
1. Who it is that loves you, namely, the most high God. To be loved is a
sublime thought, but to be loved of Him is a right royal thing, A courtier will
often think it quite enoughif he hath the favour of his prince. It means riches,
pleasure, honour. And what means the love of the King of kings to you? All
that you evercan need.
2. What He is who so loves you. Very much of the value of affectiondepends
upon whom it comes from. It would be a very small thing to have the
complacencyof some of our fellow creatures whose praise might almostbe
consideredcensure. To have the love of the good, the excellent, this is truest
wealth; and so to enjoy the love of God is an utterly priceless thing!
3. The remarkable characteristics ofthat love,
II. The love of God is shed abroad. Here is an alabasterbox of very precious
ointment, it holds within the costly frankincense ofthe love of God; but we
know nothing of it, it is closedup, a mystery, a secret. The Holy Spirit opens
the box, and now the fragrance fills the chamber; every spiritual taste
perceives it, heaven and earth are perfumed with it.

1. No one can shed abroadthe love of God in the heart but the Holy Ghost. It
is He that first puts it there.
2. Do you inquire in what way is the love of God shed abroad?
III. This love becomes the confirmation of our hope. Hope rests itself mainly
upon that which is not seen;the promise of God whom eye hath not beheld.
Still it is exceedinglysweetto us if we receive some evidence and tokenof
Divine love which we can positively enjoy even now. And there are some of us
who do not want Butler’s “Analogy” or Paley’s “Evidences”to back our faith;
we have our own analogyand our own evidences within, for the love of God is
shed abroad in our hearts, and we have tastedand seenthat the Lord is
gracious. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
It does not descendupon us as dew in drops, but as a stream which spreads
itself abroad through the whole soul, filling it with consciousness ofHis
presence and favour. (Philippi.)
The love of God shed abroad by the Holy Ghost
Frequently at the greatRoman games the emperors, in order to gratify the
citizens of Rome, would cause sweetperfumes to be rained down upon them
through the awning which coveredthe amphitheatre. Behold the vases, the
huge vessels ofperfume! Yes; but there is nought here to delight you so long
as the jars are sealed;but let the vases be opened and the vessels be poured
out, and let the drops of perfumed rain begin to descend, and everyone is
refreshedand gratified thereby. Such is the love of God. There is a richness
and a fulness in it, but it is not perceivedtill the Spirit of God pours it out like
the rain of fragrance overthe heads and hearts of all the living children of
God. See, then, the need of having the love of Godshed abroad in the heart by
the Holy Ghost. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The love of God in the heart
This love--

I. Is not naturally revealedto man. It beams on all, like the sun which shines
whether the clouds hide his heator not. So God’s love always exists, although
the clouds of sin may dim and obscure its rays. It existed in Paradise, in the
fall, when man is most depraved and dark. It exists amid all the sin of the
earth, in the wretchedcorners where crime and vice exist. It exists amid all
the negligence withwhich Godis treated.
II. Is not appreciatedor responded to. If it were, the lives of men would be far
different to what “they are. The reasonis that clouds of sin and its effects
intervene to prevent its influence. Forthe most part men keepin the shade
when they might live in the warmth and brightness of the sunshine.
III. Must be felt and responded to. It is impossible to be a child of God
without. Forto realise the love of God is the only foundation on which we can
build any substantial hope for the future. Nothing but love could consider
guilty, fallen creatures, or have contrived a method of salvation. Nothing but
love can guide us safelythrough life and through death.
IV. Can be realisedand appreciated.
1. The method--“shed abroad.” God does nothing with a niggardly hand. The
love of God is not sent in a puny dribble; it comes like the waters of an
incoming tide, mighty, resistless.His love fills the soul and surrounds it and
permeates our nature.
2. The place--“in our hearts.” The heart is the spring of life, and
metaphorically is the centre of spiritual life. It is the heart that is said to feel
love. And so it is representedthat the heart receives the love of God. Our
hearts receive all the blood from the body, and then, after purifying it, sends it
back to all parts of the body. So we are to receive the love of God in the heart
to be distributed over all our life and actions.

3. The means--“by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” The great King
always uses means. The Holy Spirit is the appointed channel through which
all the graces are sentfrom heaven to earth.
Personalpiety
I. Its source and seat.
1. Its source:“the love of God.” False religions spring from fear, but true
religion springs from love. God’s love, as revealedin the gift of His Son, begets
love in us, and just as the sun is the author of life in the natural world, so God
is the Author of all life and light in the human soul.
2. Its seat:“in our hearts.” All life and growthmust begin within, or they will
prove to be nothing but fruitless fungus. Morality in the life may be the
outcome of self-respect, orearly culture, or fear of shame and sorrow.
Personalpiety has to do not only with the conduct, but the character;and the
characteris decidedby the condition of the heart in the sight of God. Out of
the heart are the issues oflife, and if the love of God be there holiness will be
stamped upon thought, word, and deed. The love of God diffuses itself in the
heart like light, life, warmth, fragrance, and spreads through every avenue of
the soultill the possessorofit becomes a temple of the Holy Ghost.
II. Its operation and outcome. Hope is the natural and inevitable outcome of
love. We expect to derive joy and blessednessfrom the persons upon whom
our affections become fixed, and who take possessionofour hearts, and we
are “not ashamed” ofthose we love, but are ready at any time to acknowledge
them and identify ourselves with them. Courageousand confiding hope--
1. Sanctifies. If we love God, and hope one day to see Him and be with Him,
we shall seek to please Him and become like Him.

2. Sustains. While we look at the things which are unseen and eternal, the
sorrows and sufferings of the present seemvery light and small.
3. Stimulates. Hope, springing from love in the heart, will quicken all the
faculties of the mind and fire all the passions of the soul. Love will constrainto
consecration, and hope stimulate to action.
III. Its generatorand guardian. Whateverthe means we use, or the channels
through which Divine blessings come to us, they all proceedfrom the Holy
Ghostwhich is given unto us; the rise, progress, andperfection of personal
piety must be attributed to that source. Let us, then, be careful that we grieve
not, quench not the Holy Spirit, nor dishonour God by trusting too much to
outward forms and worldly noise and show. If we lose the indwelling of the
Holy Ghost, if the love of God expire in our hearts, there will only remain
within us the white ashes ofa former fire, and “Ichabod” will be written upon
our desolatedand darkenedbrows. (F. W. Brown.)
By the Holy Ghostwhich is given unto us.--
The gift of the Holy Ghost is
I. The pledge of what is to come (Romans 8:23; 2 Corinthians 1:22; 2Co_5:5;
Ephesians 1:14).
II. The witness of our sonship (Romans 8:16; Galatians 4:6).
III. The Author of all gracious fruits and experiences (Galatians 5:22-23).
IV. The Revealerofall Divine truth (John 16:13-14;1 Corinthians 2:10-12;1
John 2:20; 1Jn_2:27). The sealand bond of our union with Christ and God
(Ephesians 4:20; Romans 8:9-11). (T. Robinson, D. D.)

Copyright Statement
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Exell, JosephS. "Commentary on "Romans 5:5". The Biblical Illustrator.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/tbi/romans-5.html. 1905-1909.
New York.
Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible
And hope putteth not to shame;because the love of God hath been shed
abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was givenunto us.
The reasonthat the Christian's hope does not put to shame is because ofthe
love of God in Christian hearts, shed abroad through the agencyof the Holy
Spirit which was (past tense)given to Christians upon the occasionoftheir
being baptized into Christ (Acts 2:38f), the true ground of that hope not being
the glorying of people through various tribulations, nor even their love of
God, but rather God's greatlove to them, the latter being proved by Paul's
description of that love in the following verses. Foradditional commentary on
the indwelling of the Holy Spirit within Christians, see under Romans 8:16. Of
distinct interest are the words, "shedabroad in our hearts," showing that
consciousnessofthe love of God is like an inflowing stream, permeating,
filling, and flooding the soul with a rapturous awareness ofthe loving favor of
God.
Copyright Statement

James Burton Coffman Commentaries reproduced by permission of Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. All other rights reserved.
Bibliography
Coffman, James Burton. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "Coffman
Commentaries on the Old and New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/romans-5.html. Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. 1983-1999.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
And hope maketh not ashamed,.... As a vain hope does, things not answering
to expectation, it deceives, andis lost;but the grace ofhope is of such a
nature, as that it never fails deceives, ordisappoints: it neither makes
ashamed, nor have persons that have any reasonto be ashamedof it; neither
of the grace itself, which is a goodone; nor of the ground and foundation of it,
the personand righteousness ofChrist; nor of the objectof it, eternal glory:
because the love of Godis shed abroadin our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which
is given unto us. By "the love of God" is meant, not that love by which we love
God, for hope does not depend upon, nor is it supported by our love and
obedience to God; but the love of God to us, of which some instances are given
in the following verses:us is said "to be shed abroad in our hearts";which
denotes the plenty and abundance of it, and the full and comfortable sensation
which believers have of it: "by the Holy Spirit": who leads into, and makes
application of it: "and is given to us": for that purpose, as the applier of all
grace, the Comforter, and the earnestof heaven. Now the love which the
Spirit sheds abroadin the heart, is the source and spring, both of justification
itself, which is owing to the free grace of God, and of all the effects of it, as
peace with God, access to the throne of grace, rejoicing in hope of the glory of
God, the usefulness of afflictions, and the stability of hope, and is here alleged
as the reasonof all.

Copyright Statement
The New John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible Modernisedand adapted
for the computer by Larry Pierce of Online Bible. All Rightes Reserved,
Larry Pierce, Winterbourne, Ontario.
A printed copy of this work can be ordered from: The Baptist Standard
Bearer, 1 Iron Oaks Dr, Paris, AR, 72855
Bibliography
Gill, John. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "The New John Gill Exposition of
the Entire Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/romans-5.html. 1999.
Geneva Study Bible
6 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the e love of God is shed abroad in
our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
(6) The foundation of hope is an assuredtestimony of the conscience, by the
gift of the Holy Spirit, that we are loved by God, and this is nothing else but
that which we callfaith, from which it follows that through faith our
consciencesare quieted.
(e) With which he loves us.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography

Beza, Theodore. "Commentaryon Romans 5:5". "The 1599 Geneva Study
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/gsb/romans-5.html.
1599-1645.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And hope maketh not ashamed — putteth not to shame, as empty hopes do.
because the love of God — that is, not “our love to God,” as the Romish and
some Protestantexpositors (following some of the Fathers)representit; but
clearly “God‘s love to us” - as most expositors agree.
is shed abroad — literally, “poured forth,” that is, copiouslydiffused
(compare John 7:38; Titus 3:6).
by the Holy Ghostwhich is — rather, “was.”
given unto us — that is, at the greatPentecostaleffusion, which is viewedas
the formal donation of the Spirit to the Church of God, for all time and for
eachbeliever. (The Holy Ghostis here first introduced in this Epistle.)It is as
if the apostle had said, “And how canthis hope of glory, which as believers we
cherish, put us to shame, when we feel God Himself, by His Spirit given to us,
drenching our hearts in sweet, all-subduing sensations ofHis wondrous love to
us in Christ Jesus?”This leads the apostle to expatiate on the amazing
characterof that love.
Copyright Statement
These files are a derivative of an electronic edition prepared from text
scannedby Woodside Bible Fellowship.
This expanded edition of the Jameison-Faussett-BrownCommentary is in the
public domain and may be freely used and distributed.
Bibliography

Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on
Romans 5:5". "CommentaryCritical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/romans-5.html. 1871-8.
Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament
Hath been shed abroad (εκκεχυται — ekkechutai). Perfectpassive indicative
of εκχεω — ekcheō to pour out. “Has been poured out” in our hearts.
Copyright Statement
The Robertson's WordPictures of the New Testament. Copyright �
Broadman Press 1932,33,Renewal1960. All rights reserved. Used by
permission of Broadman Press (Southern BaptistSunday SchoolBoard)
Bibliography
Robertson, A.T. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "Robertson's WordPictures
of the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/rwp/romans-5.html.
Broadman Press 1932,33.Renewal1960.
Preacher's Complete HomileticalCommentary
CRITICAL NOTES
Rom .—The love of God has been poured forth as in a stream (Wordsworth).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Rom
A hope without shame.—The Christian never finds this world to be his rest.
But he has a hope full of immortality. This enlightens his darkness and
alleviates his sorrow. Like a helmet, it guards in the day of battle; like an
anchor, it secures in the storms of adversity; like a pleasing companion, it
travels with him through all the tediousness ofthe world, and reminds him of

the restthat remains for the people of God. Let us considerthe excellencyand
the evidence of this hope. Let us I. Show how it preserves from shame;and II.
Ascertainits connectionwith the love of God.
I. We may take three views of this hope, and oppose it to the hope of the
worldling, of the Pharisee, andof the antinomian. Hope causes shame by the
insufficiency of its object—andthis is the hope of the worldling; by the
weakness ofits foundation—and this is the hope of the Pharisee;by the
falseness ofits warrant—and this is the hope of the antinomian. The hope of
the Christian has the noblest object, the surestfoundation, the clearest
warrant; and thus it maketh not ashamed.
1. Hope may cause shame by the insufficiency of its object. Ofttimes men of
the world never reachthe mark; and when they do, they are disappointed.
What they gain does not indemnify for the sacrifices they have made.
"In vain we seek a heaven below the sky:
The world has false but flattering charms;
Its distant joys show big in our esteem,
But lessenstill as they draw near the eye;
In our embrace the visions die;
And when we graspthe airy forms,
We lose the pleasing dream."
Look forward and ask, What does the worldling think as he lays down all his
honours, all his riches, on this side of the grave? What does Alexander now
think of his bloody trophies? What does Herod now think of killing James and
condemning Peterbecause "it pleasedthe people"? What does Judas think of
his thirty pieces ofsilver? The crownedvotaries of the world seemto be
happy, and are envied; but it is only by the foolish and ignorant who know
them not. Sometimes they say, We are not happy, and it is not in the powerof
these things to satisfyour desires. On this dark ground we bring forward the
Christian to advantage. The objectof his hope is the greatestgooda creature

can possess.When we propose this hope we exclude every evil we feel or fear.
Think of "the house not made with hands," etc., and the "innumerable
company of angels" as the objects of his hope—the blessedhope of being like
Christ and dwelling with Him evermore. The Christian need not shrink from
a comparisonwith philosophers, princes, heroes. He leads a sublime life, and
takes a grander aim. If shame could enter heaven, he would be ashamedto
think that the objects of this hope engrossedso little of his attention.
2. Hope may cause shame by the weaknessofits foundation. The Pharisee
places dependence on his own works or his ownworthiness. He derives his
encouragementfrom negative qualities, from comparisonof himself with
others, from the number of his performances. Parable of the Pharisee. If his
works were spiritual and holy, they need not afford a ground of dependence,
being only a part of the building, and not the foundation. They may furnish
evidence, but cannot give a title. The indulgence of such a hope is offensive to
God. The man who seeks salvationby the works ofthe law, and not by faith of
Jesus Christ, reflects upon God's wisdom as having been employed in a
needless trifle. The Pharisee frustrates the grace ofGod and makes Jesus
Christ to be dead in vain. Thus the Pharisee's hope will be found like a
spider's web, curiously wrought, but easilydestroyed. The basis being too
weak, the superstructure falls and crushes the offender. The humbled sinner
asks, How shall a man be just before God? The Bible answers, "The Sonof
man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." "He is the end of the law
of righteousness to every one that believeth." This attracts. He says, Christ is
the door, by Him I will enter; Christ is the foundation, on this I will build: I
desire no other. This hope is as firm as the truth of God and the all-sufficiency
of the Saviour canmake it. See the Christian advancing to the throne of God.
"Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died." The Christian is marked
with the blood of sprinkling.
3. Hope may cause shame by the falseness ofits warrant. Any hope which does
not purify is false. Every expectationof heaven which those entertain who are
leading immoral lives, whateverbe their knowledge ortheir creed, is a mere
fancy. A man, with all his ignorance, may as well persuade himself that he is
the greatestphilosopher;or, with all his indigence, may as rationally conclude
that he is possessedofall the wealthof the Indies, as a man may imagine that

he is on the way to heaven while he is a strangerto "newness oflife"; for
"without holiness no man shall see the Lord." Indeed, such a man, if he were
in heaven, would not be in a beatific state. What warrant have you that
heaven is your home? What reasonare you able to give of the hope that is in
you? The only satisfactoryone is that given by the apostle. Therefore
consider:—
II. "Because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost,
which is given unto us."—
1. This love is the proof of the divine regard, for the affectionis mutual. "We
love Him because He first loved us." And what canwe desire more than to
know that we are beloved of God?
2. This love marks the characters forwhom this happiness is reserved. Who
are authorisedto claim the promise of eternallife? Those who seek to please
and serve God. "We know that all things work togetherfor goodto them that
love God."
3. This love qualifies for the glory which shall be revealed. The happiness of
the future state is derived from the presence ofGod. What, then, can prepare
for it but the love of God? Love must make us delight in eachother's
company. By loving God we are prepared for a happiness which is found only
in Him.
4. This love is the foretaste of future happiness. We take the likeness ofthe
excellencywe contemplate, and are exalted into the perfection we adore. If
our love be fixed on God, we shall become divine and heavenly. Oh the
comforts of this love! They are heaven come down to earth. Heaven is the
sphere of love. The heaven of love must be in us before we are in heaven. We
attain the full assuranceofhope neither by dreams, nor visions, nor sudden
suggestions, norby an inexplicable consciousness, but by keeping ourselves in
the love of God, and abounding therein more and more.—W. Jay.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTSON Rom
"And hope maketh not ashamed."—Thehope which true believers entertain,
founded on the very nature of pious exercises, shallnever disappoint them

(Psa ). The ground of this assurance, however, is not the strength of our
purpose or confidence in our goodness,but the love of God. The latter clause
of the verse assigns the reasonwhy the Christian's hope shall not be found
delusive: it is because "the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the
Holy Ghostwhich is given unto us." The love of God is His love to us, and not
ours to Him, as appears from the following verses, in which the apostle
illustrates the greatness andfreeness ofthis love by a reference to the
unworthiness of its objects. To "shedabroad" is to communicate abundantly,
and hence to evince clearly(Act 2:17; Act 10:45;Tit 3:6). This manifestation
of divine love is not any external revelation of it in the works ofprovidence, or
even in redemption, but it is "in our hearts." And this inward persuasionthat
we are the objects ofthe love of God is not the mere result of the examination
of evidence, nor is it a vain illusion, but it is produced by the Holy Ghost:
"The Spirit itself bearethwitness with our spirit, that we are the children of
God" (Rom 8:16; 2Co 1:21-22;Eph 1:13-14). As, however, the Spirit never
contradicts Himself, He never bears witness that "the children of the devil"
are the children of God—that is, that the unholy, the disobedient, the proud,
or the malicious are the objects of the divine favour. Any reference, therefore,
by the immoral to the witness of the Spirit in their favour must be vain and
delusive.—Hodge.
God's love in the heart.—These words standat the end of a list of blessings
which come to the Christian simply by his faith. See context, Rom . "The love
of God" spokenofin the text is God's love to us, not our love to God. In Rom
8:39 it is called"the love of God in Jesus Christ." Similarly is it describedin
the context(Rom 5:6-8). This love the text declares is "shedabroad" in the
believer's heart "by the Holy Ghostwhich is given unto" him. Inquire how or
in what particulars this is so.
I. Becausethe Holy Ghost is given to believers on the exercise oftheir faith to
work this work within them.—ForChrist, by His atoning work, procured the
Holy Spirit for men.
II. It is the work of the Holy Ghostthus given to open to us the love of God.—
Nothing but the Holy Ghost candisclose to us the love of God at the first.
Nothing else does. Hence so many read and hear of the love of God, and yet do

not apprehend it. But the Holy Spirit coming to the believer as described,
"takes ofthe things of Christ," and therein shows to him the love of the
Father (see Joh). The Holy Spirit shows thus the wonderfulness, the extent,
heights, depths, lengths, breadths, of the love of God in Christ, and its
unchangeableness(see context, Rom5:6-8, and Rom 8:35-39).
III. The Holy Ghostthus given carries the love of God beyond our mere
intellect into our inmost nature.—We are more than intellect. In our best
nature we are "heart." To this the Holy Spirit can penetrate—no other power
like it—and canpervade and fill and possessthe whole with the wonderful
infinite love of God in Christ. Every faculty and powerof holy emotion in the
soul can thus be moved and stirred, and fresh faculty and powerof holy
emotion can thus be given. Thus the love of God is "shedabroad" or poureth
forth "in our hearts." So oil poured into a vessel, whateverthe characterof
the vessel, finds its way into every part, and even permeates through the vessel
itself. So incense shed forth in a room fills every part of it with its fragrance,
which often extends beyond. So the breath we breathe from the fresh morning
air penetrates in its effects to our very flesh and blood and bones, and is seen
in the glow of our health, in the lightness of our step, and in the flash and
brightness of the eye. Do we know the love of God? and is it "shedabroad in
our hearts"? If so, then to what extent do we know it?—JohnBennett.
Hope as a consoler.—Hope is the sweetestfriend that ever kept a distressed
soul company; it beguiles the tediousness ofthe way, all the miseries of our
pilgrimage.
"Jammala finissem letho; sedcredula vitam
Spes fovet, et melius cras fore semper ait."
Therefore, Dum spiro spero, said the heathen; but Dum exspiro spero, says
the Christian. The one, Whilst I live I hope; the other also, When I die I hope.
So Job, "I will hope in Thee, though Thou killestme." It tells the soul such
sweetstories ofthe succeeding joys;what comforts there be in heaven; what
peace, whatjoy, what triumphs, marriage songs, andhallelujahs there are in
that country whither she is travelling, that she goes merrily awaywith her
present burden.—Adams.

ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 5
Rom . Dying of weariness.—As life goes onmost people begin to feelthat the
word "happy" has no light meaning. Sick of herself through very selfishness,
the wife of the Grand Monarque, Louis XIV., thus spoke in her hour of death:
"Do you not see that I am dying of wearinessamidst a fortune that can
scarcelybe imagined? I have been young and pretty; I have tastedpleasure;I
have been everywhere loved. In an age more advanced I have passedsome
years in the commerce of the mind; and I protest to you that all conditions
leave a frightful void. I canendure no more; I wish only to die." Here surely is
an illustration of the words, "Whosoeverwill save his life shall lose it."
Rom . "Don't you find it dull?"—A little street waifwas once taken to the
house of a greatlady, and the childish eyes that had to look so sharply after
daily bread were dazzled by signs of splendour on every hand. "Canyou get
everything you want?" the child askedthe mistress of the mansion. "Yes, I
think so," was the reply. "Canyou buy anything you'd like to have?" The
lady answered, "Yes";and the child, who was of a meditative turn of mind,
lookedat her half pityingly, and said wonderingly, "Don'tyou find it dull?"
To the little keenmind, accustomedto live bird-like from day to day, and to
rejoice overa better supply with the delight born of rarity, the aspectof
continual plenty, and desires all gratified by possession, containedan idea of
monotony that seemedalmost wearisome.Manyan ownerof a well-filled
purse has found life "dull," and pronounced, in the midst of luxury, that all
things are vanity.
Copyright Statement

Bibliography
Exell, JosephS. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". Preacher's Complete
Homiletical Commentary.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/phc/romans-5.html. Funk &
Wagnalls Company, 1892.
Vincent's Word Studies
Makethnot ashamed( οὑ καταισχύνει )
Mostly in Paul; elsewhere onlyin Luke 13:17;1 Peter 2:6; 1 Peter3:16. Rev.,
putteth not to shame, thus giving better the strong sense ofthe word, to
disgrace ordishonor.
Is shed abroad ( ἐκκέχυται )
Rev. renders the perfect tense;hath been shed abroad. Lit., poured out.
Compare Titus 3:6; Acts 2:33; Acts 10:45. See on Judges 1:11.
Copyright Statement
The text of this work is public domain.
Bibliography
Vincent, Marvin R. DD. "Commentaryon Romans 5:5". "Vincent's Word
Studies in the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/vnt/romans-5.html. Charles
Schribner's Sons. New York, USA. 1887.
Wesley's ExplanatoryNotes
And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our
hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Hope shameth us not — That is, gives us the highest glorying. We glory in this
our hope, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts - The divine
conviction of God's love to us, and that love to God which is both the earnest
and the beginning of heaven.
By the Holy Ghost — The efficient cause ofall these presentblessings, and the
earnestof those to come.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition that
is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website.
Bibliography
Wesley, John. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "John Wesley's Explanatory
Notes on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/wen/romans-5.html. 1765.
Abbott's Illustrated New Testament
Makethnot ashamed;will not deceive and disappoint us.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Abbott, John S. C. & Abbott, Jacob. "Commentaryon Romans 5:5".
"Abbott's Illustrated New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ain/romans-5.html. 1878.
Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

5.Hope maketh not ashamed, etc.;(156)that is, it regards salvationas most
certain. It hence appears, that the Lord tries us by adversities for this end, —
that our salvationmay thereby be gradually advanced. Those evils then
cannot render us miserable, which do in a manner promote our happiness.
And thus is proved what he had said, that the godly have reasons forglorying
in the midst of their afflictions.
For the love of God, etc. I do not refer this only to the last sentence, but to the
whole of the preceding passage. Itherefore would say, — that by tribulations
we are stimulated to patience, and that patience finds an experiment of divine
help, by which we are more encouragedto entertain hope; for howeverwe
may be pressedand seemto be nearly consumed, we do not yet cease to feel
God’s favor towards us, which affords the richest consolation, andmuch more
abundant than when all things happen prosperously. Foras that happiness,
which is so in appearance, is misery itself, when God is adverse to and
displeasedwith us; so when he is propitious, even calamities themselves will
surely be turned to a prosperous and a joyful issue. Seeing allthings must
serve the will of the Creator, who, according to his paternal favor towards us,
(as Paul declares in the eighth chapter,) overrules all the trials of the cross for
our salvation, this knowledge ofdivine love towards us is instilled into our
hearts to the Spirit of God; for the goodthings which God has prepared for
his servants are hid from the ears and the eyes and the minds of men, and the
Spirit alone is he who can revealthem. And the worddiffused, is very
emphatical; for it means that the revelationof divine love towards us is so
abounding that it fills our hearts; and being thus spreadthrough every part of
them, it not only mitigates sorrow in adversities, but also, like a sweet
seasoning,it renders tribulations to be loved by us. (157)
He says further, that the Spirit is given, that is, bestowedthrough the
gratuitous goodnessofGod, and not conferred for our merits; according to
what [Augustine ] has well observed, who, though he is mistakenin his view of
the love of God, gives this explanation, — that we courageouslybear
adversities, and are thus confirmed in our hope, because we, having been
regeneratedby the Spirit, do love God. It is indeed a pious sentiment, but not

what Paul means: for love is not to be taken here in an active but a passive
sense. And certainit is, that no other thing is taught by Paul than that the true
fountain of all love is, when the faithful are convincedthat they are loved by
God, and that they are not slightly touched with this conviction, but have their
souls thoroughly imbued with it.
The first view, our love to God, has been adopted by [Augustine ], [Mede ],
[Doddridge ], [Scott], and [Stuart ] ; and the other, God’s love to us, by
[Chrysostom], [Beza ], [Pareus ], [Grotius ], [Hodge ], and [Chalmers ], and
also by [Schleusner] who gives this paraphrase, “Amor Dei abunde nobis
declaratus est — the love of God is abundantly declaredto us.” — Ed.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Calvin, John. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "Calvin's Commentary on the
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/romans-5.html.
1840-57.
Vv. 5. "Now hope maketh not ashamed;because the love of God is shed
abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which was given unto us."
This verse is the centralsaying of the entire passage. Onthe one hand, it is
directly connectedwith the two first verses:"We no longerfeel any fear; nay,
rather, we triumph in the hope of glory, a hope which is rendered brighter
even by sufferings." On the other hand, this verse contains all that follows.
This hope will not be falsified in the end by the event; this is what the second
part of the passageproceeds to prove (Romans 5:6-11).
The word make ashamedrefers to the non-realization of the hope when the
hour of glory has struck. The present maketh not ashamed is the present of

the idea. This falsification, inflicted on the hopes of faith by facts, and the
possibility of which is denied by the apostle, is not that with which the truth of
materialism would confound them. This idea is foreignto the mind of Paul.
The matter in question in the contextis the terrible position of the justified
man who in the day of judgment should find himself suddenly face to face
with unappeasedwrath. Paul declares sucha supposition impossible. Why?
Becausethe source ofhis hope is the revelationof God Himself which he has
received, of the love of which he is the object. The reawakening ofwrath
againsthim is therefore an inadmissible fact.
The love of God cannotdenote here our love for God, as Hofmann would have
it. It is true this critic thoroughly recognizes the imperfections always
attaching to our love. But he thinks that Paul is here looking at the believer"s
love to his Godonly as a mark of our renewalby the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless,
this meaning must be rejected;first, on accountof the choice of the verb
ἐκκέχυται, is shedabroad (see below); next, because the following verses
(Romans 5:6-8), joined by for to Romans 5:5 develop the idea of God"s love to
us, not that of our love to God; finally, because the syllogism finished in
Romans 5:9-10 would want its basis (its minor) if the fact of God"s love to us
had not been establishedin the preceding context. The love of God is therefore
the love with which God loves us. The verb translatedby is shed abroad,
literally signifies:to be poured out of. Paul means: out of the heart of God,
where this love has its source, into ours. The perfect used here signifies that
there was a time when this effusion took place, and that since then it has not
been withdrawn. It is this meaning of the perfect which explains the use of the
preposition of rest, ἐν (in, without the idea of motion), instead of εἰς (into, with
motion). This preposition refers to the whole state which has resulted from the
effusion. There was an act of revelationin the heart of believers, the fruit of
which is the permanent impression of the love which God has for them. The
medium of this transfusion of the divine love into their heart was the Holy
Spirit. We see, 1 Corinthians 2:10-12, that this Divine Being, after having
sounded the depths of God, reveals them to the man to whom he imparts
himself. Thereby we become privy to what is passing in God, in particular, to
the feeling which he cherishes towardus, just as we should be to a feeling
which we might ourselves cherishtoward another. In general, the work of the

Spirit consists in breaking down the barrier betweenbeings, and placing them
in a common luminous atmosphere, in which eachhears the heart of his
neighbor beat as if it were his own. And this is the relation which the Spirit
establishes notonly betweenman and man, but betweenman and God
Himself; comp. John 14:19-20. The aoristparticiple δοθέντος, which was
given to us, reminds us of two things: the time when this heaven was openedto
the believer, and the objective and perfectly realcharacterof this inward
revelation. It was not a case ofexalted feeling or excited imagination; it was
God who imparted himself; comp. John 14:21; John 14:23.
The transition from Romans 5:5-6 seems to me to be one of the points on
which exegesis has left most to be desired. Commentators confine themselves
in generalto saying that Romans 5:6 gives the external proof, the proof from
fact, of that divine love shed abroadin our hearts, and that the proof is the
sacrifice ofChrist, Romans 5:6-8. But this inorganic juxtaposition of the
internal proof, Romans 5:5, and the external proof, Romans 5:6, is not
satisfactory;and this explanation does not correspondto the use of the
particle for, which implies a much more intimate relation of ideas. The object
is to prove that this hope of glory, whose source is the inward revelationof the
love of God, will not be falsified by the event in the hour of judgment. Forthis
end, what does the apostle do? He does not merely allege an external fact
already past; he penetrates to the essenceofthat internal revelation of which
he has just been speaking in Romans 5:5. He analyzes, so to speak, its
contents, and transforming this ineffable feeling into a rigorous syllogism, he
deduces from it the following argument, which is that of the Spirit Himself in
the heart of the believer: God loved thee when thou wastyet a sinner, giving
thee a proof of love such as men do not give to one another, even when they
respectand admire one another the most, and when the devotion of love is
carried among them to its sublimest height (Romans 5:6-8). Such is the minor,
the divine love already manifestedin the fact of redemption. The understood
major is to this effect: Now the love which one has testified to his enemies does
not belie itself when these have become better than enemies, friends. The
conclusionis expresslystated, Romans 5:9-10 : If, then, God testified to thee,
to thee when yet an enemy, a love beyond all comparison, how shouldst thou,
once justified and reconciled, have to fear falling back againunder wrath? It

is obvious that to the end of the passage, from Romans 5:6, the whole forms
one consecutive reasoning, and this reasoning is joined by for to Romans 5:5,
because it serves only to expound in a logicalform the language which the
Holy Spirit holds to the heart of the believer, and by which He sustains his
hope, even through earthly tribulations.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Godet, Frédéric Louis. "Commentary on Romans 5:5". "Frédéric Louis
Godet- Commentary on SelectedBooks".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/gsc/romans-5.html.
James Nisbet's Church Pulpit Commentary
THE GIVER AND THE GIFT
‘Because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost
which is given unto us.’
Romans 5:5
All the various writers of the New Testamentare agreedupon this one point.
From whatever standpoint the writer approaches the mystery of the
Incarnation and its message to the world of men, his mind converges to a
centre common to all, that Love is the greatestof all Christian virtues.
I. Love is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost.—Itdoes not belong
naturally to fallen human nature. Whateverpower our first parents possessed
of knowing and loving God was sacrificedthrough their disobedience. Of
course, they still retained that natural instinctive love for eachother, which
we all possessin common with the lower animals. God has implanted even in

the wildestanimals an instinctive love for their ownoffspring. For their
young, up to a certainage, they will endure hardships, and suffer privations.
Still this instinctive love of men and animals is peculiarly selfish. It does not
restrain them from behaving brutally to one another. There is no love lost
betweenanimals when they are being fed. Eachone gets as much as it can
without troubling itself about others. And there is not much to choose between
them and human beings, possessedonly of this instinctive love, when any
situation arises which calls for restraint and self-sacrifice. Thenthe instinct of
self-preservationassertsitself—everyman for himself. Whenever we find men
and women rise superior to this selfish instinct, as happily we have many
instances in times of shipwreck, and fire, and disaster, it is because this love
has been shed abroadin their hearts by the Holy Ghost.
II. Whateverthere is of true religion in the Church, and in the hearts of her
children to-day, is due to the powerand presence of the Holy Ghost, the
Comforter and Instructor of the faithful. The Holy Ghost is the gift bestowed
in Holy Baptism. The renewalof the Holy Ghostis the blessing conferredin
Confirmation to all who humbly ask for it. Whatevervirtue there is in the
Holy Communion arises from the same Divine source. It is the Spirit of God
which broods over the BlessedSacrament, and makes it the channel of
communication betweenGod and ourselves. Throughthe Spirit’s power we
feed upon the Body and Bloodof Christ, and are thereby made once more
‘partakers of the Divine nature.’ When the Bishop and Presbytery lay their
hands upon a candidate for the priesthood they do it with the words,’Receive
the Holy Ghostfor the office and work of a priest in the Church of God,’
thereby acknowledging that only through the power of the Holy Ghostcan he
become ‘a faithful dispenserof the Word of God and of His holy sacraments.’
III. Wherever and whenever this life-giving power of the Spirit is consciously
felt, and it is consciouslyfelt when we respond to and co-operate with the
grace ofGod bestowedthrough the means of grace we have mentioned, two
results inevitably follow.
(a) There is a feeling of restand satisfactionwithin.
(b) There is a desire to be up and doing for the sake ofothers.

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