τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἅγιοι [καὶ] ἠγαπημένοι, σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμοῦ,
ἅγιοι κ.τ.λ.] These are not to be taken as vocatives, but as predicates
further defining the meaning of ἐκλεκτοί. All the three terms ἐκλεκτοί,
ἅγιοι, ἠγαπημένοι, are transferred from the Old Covenant to the New,
from the Israel after the flesh to the Israel after the Spirit. For the
two former comp. 1 Pet. ii. 9 γένος ἐκλεκτόν ... ἔθνος ἅγιον; and for
the sense of ἅγιοι, ‘the consecrated people of God’, see the note on
Phil. i. 1. For the third word, ἠγαπημένοι, see Is. v. 1 Ἄσω δὴ τῷ
ἠγαπημένῳ κ.τ.λ., Hos. ii. 25 τὴν οὐκ ἠγαπημένην ἠγαπημένην (as quoted
in Rom. ix. 25). In the New Testament it seems to be used always of the
objects of _God’s_ love: e.g. 1 Thess. i. 4 εἰδοτές, ἀδελφοὶ ἠγαπημένοι
ὑπὸ Θεοῦ, τὴν ἐκλογὴν ὑμῶν, 2 Thess. ii. 13 ἀδελφοὶ ἠγαπημένοι ὑπὸ
Κυρίου (comp. Jude 1); and so probably Rev. xx. 9 τὴν πόλιν τὴν
ἠγαπημένην. For the connexion of God’s election and God’s love see Rom.
xi. 28 (quoted above), 1 Thess. _l.c._ The καὶ is omitted in one or two
excellent copies (though it has the great preponderance of authorities
in its favour), and it is impossible not to feel how much the sentence
gains in force by the omission, ἐκλεκτοὶ Θεοῦ, ἅγιοι, )ηγαπημένοι; comp.
1 Pet. ii. 6.
σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμοῦ] ‘_a heart of pity_’. For the meaning of σπλάγχνα see
the note on Phil. i. 8, and for the whole expression comp. σπλάγχνα
ἐλέους Luke i. 78, _Test. xii Patr._ Zab. 7, 8.
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