(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
In this passage, the apostle Paul is referring to Jacob and Esau, twin brothers born to Isaac and Rebekah in the Old Testament. Paul's point is that before either boy had lived a single day or made a single choice, God had already determined his purposes through them. The verse is part of a larger argument about how God's promises work — not based on human effort or achievement, but on God's sovereign will. The word "election" refers to God choosing or selecting someone for a specific role or purpose. This is one of the most debated verses in the Bible, sitting at the intersection of divine sovereignty and human freedom — and Paul raises it not to settle arguments but to humble us.
God, it's harder than I want to admit to stop performing for you. Remind me today that your purposes were set before I had anything to offer — before I succeeded or failed, before I impressed anyone or let them down. Teach me to rest in that, not just believe it. Amen.
We live in a world that rewards performance. From report cards to performance reviews, we're conditioned to believe that what we receive is what we've earned. So when Paul drops this verse — before either twin had done anything — it quietly dismantles the scoreboard we've all been keeping. God's purposes don't hinge on your track record, your spiritual résumé, or whether you had a good week. This verse won't resolve every theological debate, and that's okay. But it offers something worth sitting with: your standing before God isn't a ledger you're constantly managing. The story was already being written before you arrived. The question isn't whether God has purposes — it's whether you'll trust that those purposes are good, even when you can't trace them. Even when your life looks nothing like what you'd have chosen.
What does Paul mean by "God's purpose in election," and why does he use the example of Jacob and Esau — before they were born — to make his point?
In what areas of your life do you find yourself trying to earn God's favor rather than resting in what he has already determined?
Does the idea of God working through people before they've done anything feel comforting or troubling to you — and what does your gut reaction reveal about how you see God?
How does believing that God's purposes aren't based on performance change the way you treat people who seem to be failing by the world's standards?
What is one area of your life where you've been keeping score — and what would it actually look like to release it to God this week?
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
2 Timothy 2:19
Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Ephesians 2:9
Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began ,
2 Timothy 1:9
Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Ephesians 1:5
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Philippians 2:13
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28
But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
1 Peter 5:10
According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Ephesians 1:4
and though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything either good or bad, so that God's purpose [His choice, His election] would stand, not because of works [done by either child], but because of [the plan of] Him who calls them,
AMP
though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad — in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls —
ESV
for though [the twins] were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to [His] choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,
NASB
Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand:
NIV
(for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls),
NKJV
But before they were born, before they had done anything good or bad, she received a message from God. (This message shows that God chooses people according to his own purposes;
NLT
and her babies were still innocent in the womb—incapable of good or bad—she received a special assurance from God. What God did in this case made it perfectly plain that his purpose is not a hit-or-miss thing dependent on what we do or don't do, but a sure thing determined by his decision, flowing steadily from his initiative.
MSG