SEV Biblia, Chapter 11:16
Y si el primer fruto es santo, tambin lo ser el todo, y si la raíz es santa, tambin lo sern las ramas.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Romans 11:16
Verse 16. For if the first fruit be holy] As the consecrating the first fruits to God was the means of drawing down his blessing upon the rest, so the conversion of Abraham to the true faith, and the several Jews who have now embraced Christianity, are pledges that God will, in process of time, admit the whole Jewish nation into his favour again, so that they shall constitute a part of the visible Church of Christ. If the root be holy, so are the branches.] The word holy in this verse is to be taken in that sense which it has so frequently in the Old and New Testaments, viz. consecrated, set apart to sacred uses. It must not be forgotten that the first converts to Christ were from among the Jews; these formed the root of the Christian Church: these were holy, agioi, consecrated to God, and those who among the Gentiles were converted by their means were also agioi, consecrated; but the chief reference is to the ancestors of the Jewish people, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and, as these were devoted to God and received into his covenant, all their posterity, the branches which proceeded from this root, became entitled to the same privileges: and as the root still remains, and the branches also, the descendants from that root still remain: they still have a certain title to the blessings of the covenant; though, because of their obstinate unbelief, these blessings are suspended, as they cannot, even on the ground of the old covenant, enjoy these blessings but through faith: for it was when Abraham believed God that it was accounted to him for righteousness; and thus he became an heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 16. For if the firstfruit be holy , etc..] Some by the firstfruit and root understand Christ, who is sometimes called, the firstfruits of them that slept, ( 1 Corinthians 15:20), and the root of Jesse and David, ( Isaiah 11:10 Romans 15:12 Revelation 5:5), and indeed of all the righteous; and certain it is, that since he is holy, has all the holiness of his people in him, and is sanctification unto them, they shall be holy likewise; have it imparted to them in this life, and perfected in them in another: but this does not seem to agree with the apostle's argument.
Others think that by them are meant the Jewish ancestors, and particularly Abraham, and dream of a holiness derived from him to his natural seed; but if no such holiness was derived from him to his immediate offspring, Ishmael, it can hardly be thought any should be communicated by him to his remote posterity; and to these here designed, at the distance of four or five thousand years from him: but by them are intended the first converts among the Jews, under the Gospel dispensation; it being usual with the apostle to call those persons, that were first converted in any place, the firstfruits of it; (see Romans 16:5 1 Corinthians 16:15); These were they who received the firstfruits of the Spirit in Judea, and who first among the Jews hoped and believed in Christ; these were but few in number, as the firstfruit is but small in comparison of the lump, and mean, abject, and despicable, as the root under, and in a dry ground is; but yet were pledges and presages of a larger number of souls among that people, to be converted in the latter day: now the apostle's argument is, if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy, and if the root be holy, so are the branches ; that is, that whereas those persons who were converted among the Jews, however few in number, and despicable in appearance they might be, yet were truly sanctified by the Spirit of God; and as they were, so should the whole body of that people be in the last days, when holiness [shall] be upon the horses' bells, [and] every pot in Judah and Jerusalem shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts, ( Zechariah 14:20,21), by which metaphorical expressions is meant, that holiness should be common to the whole nation, and all the inhabitants of it, of which the call of some few among them was a pledge and presage. The allusion in the former clause is to the holy offerings of firstfruits to the Lord, the two wave loaves, ( Leviticus 23:14,17), whereby the whole lump was sanctified, for after use throughout the year following; and that in the latter clause, to the holiness of trees; that is, to trees devoted to sacred use or that were planted in a field appropriated thereunto: hence we read f211 , that the men of Jericho permitted, or as other exemplars read it, cut down dqh l twyzmg , branches of holiness, or holy branches; and eat fallen fruit on the sabbath day. Bartenora explains these branches, of such that grow upon a tree devoted to holy uses; and Maimonides f213 , observes, that they thought it lawful to eat what grew in a holy field.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 11-21 - The gospel is the greatest riches of every place where it is. A therefore the righteous rejection of the unbelieving Jews, was the occasion of so large a multitude of the Gentiles being reconciled to God, and at peace with him; the future receiving of the Jews into the church would be such a change, as would resemble a general resurrectio of the dead in sin to a life of righteousness. Abraham was as the roo of the church. The Jews continued branches of this tree till, as nation, they rejected the Messiah; after that, their relation to Abraham and to God was, as it were, cut off. The Gentiles were grafte into this tree in their room; being admitted into the church of God Multitudes were made heirs of Abraham's faith, holiness an blessedness. It is the natural state of every one of us, to be wild by nature. Conversion is as the grafting in of wild branches into the goo olive. The wild olive was often ingrafted into the fruitful one when it began to decay, and this not only brought forth fruit, but caused the decaying olive to revive and flourish. The Gentiles, of free grace, ha been grafted in to share advantages. They ought therefore to beware of self-confidence, and every kind of pride or ambition; lest, having onl a dead faith, and an empty profession, they should turn from God, an forfeit their privileges. If we stand at all, it is by faith; we ar guilty and helpless in ourselves, and are to be humble, watchful afraid of self-deception, or of being overcome by temptation. Not onl are we at first justified by faith, but kept to the end in tha justified state by faith only; yet, by a faith which is not alone, but which worketh by love to God and man.
Greek Textus Receptus
ει 1487 COND δε 1161 CONJ η 3588 T-NSF απαρχη 536 N-NSF αγια 40 A-NSF και 2532 CONJ το 3588 T-NSN φυραμα 5445 N-NSN και 2532 CONJ ει 1487 COND η 3588 T-NSF ριζα 4491 N-NSF αγια 40 A-NSF και 2532 CONJ οι 3588 T-NPM κλαδοι 2798 N-NPM
Vincent's NT Word Studies
16. For (de). Better but, or now. A new paragraph begins.The first-fruit - holy. See on Jas. i. 18, Acts xxvi. 10. Referring to the patriarchs.
Lump. See on ch. ix. 21. The whole body of the people. The apparent confusion of metaphor, first-fruit, lump, is resolved by the fact that first-fruit does not apply exclusively to harvest, but is the general term for the first portion of every thing which was offered to God. The reference here is to Num. xv. 18-21; according to which the Israelites were to set apart a portion of the dough of each baking of bread for a cake for the priests. This was called ajparch, first-fruits.
Root - branches. The same thought under another figure. The second figure is more comprehensive, since it admits an application to the conversion of the Gentiles. 58 The thought of both figures centres in holy. Both the first-fruits and the root represent the patriarchs (or Abraham singly, compare ver. 28). The holiness by call and destination of the nation as represented by its fathers (first-fruits, root) implies their future restoration, the holiness of the lump and branches.
Robertson's NT Word Studies
11:16 {First fruit} (aparce). See on 1Co 15:20,23. The metaphor is from #Nu 15:19f. The LXX has aparcen phuramatos, first of the dough as a heave offering. {The lump} (to phurama). From which the first fruit came. See on 9:21. Apparently the patriarchs are the first fruit. {The root} (he riza). Perhaps Abraham singly here. The metaphor is changed, but the idea is the same. Israel is looked on as a tree. But one must recall and keep in mind the double sense of Israel in #9:6f. (the natural and the spiritual).
