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In our verse by verse study of Roman we are in Rom 4:17; at the phrase that is referring to God "and calls into being what which does not exist" - the connective use of "kai" (and) is used to complete the relative clause. Then we have the present active participle of "kaleo" (to call).
We noted that in this case the word means more than simply calling because it means to designate or establish. God is designating or establishing or calling something that does not exist as existing. He is calling into existence something that is nonexistent. Net note 30
The present tense is a historical present that views God's past action with the clarity of the present situation. The active voice: God's justice provides the action of the verb because He restores the sexual ability of Abraham and Sarah.
Next we have the accusative neuter plural from the plural definite article "tous" (the) that is used here as a demonstrative pronoun emphasizing the sexual death and inability of Abraham and Sarah.
Then the negative particle "me" (not) that makes the first of two occurrences of the present active participle of "eimi" (to be) that means to exist here, but with the negative so it means not existing or non-existent. So "God calls the non existent...."
The present tense is a retroactive progressive present that describes Abraham's sexual death that had begun in the past and continued into the present time.
God had made the promise to Abram when He changed his name to Abraham in Gen 17:5,
The participle is circumstantial. Plus the comparative conjunction "hos" (as), and then once again the present active participle of "eimi" (to be).
This time the historical progressive present that views the event of Abraham and Sarah's sexual prosperity as a present reality is used.
The active voice: God's justice produces the action, and the circumstantial participle describes something "as existing"-"and designated (called). "God calls the non existent into existence"
Rom 4:17; Expanded Translation: "(As it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations"). He is our father in the presence of God whom he believed-the God who makes the dead alive and summons the non existent into existence."
Rom 4:18; "Who in hope against hope" begins with the nominative singular relative pronoun "hos" (who). With it is a prepositional phrase "para" (from) plus the accusative singular of the noun "elpis" (hope).
When there is para (from) plus the ablative it is the ablative of source. When it is para (from) plus the locative case it means by the side of, before, with, or in the presence of. But when it is para (from) plus the accusative, as it is here, it means "beyond."
The NASB translation "hope against hope" is a good literal word for word translation but a more accurate translation is "Who beyond hope." Abraham was sexually dead so there was no hope that he could father anything but God had promised that he would so there was hope.
Followed by the aorist active indicative of "pisteuo" (faith) that means to believe in the sense of the persistent consistent enduring faith of the function of the faith-rest drill. The aorist tense is a culminative aorist, that views Abraham's super-grace status in its entirety from the as a current reality.
Super-grace requires maximum metabolized doctrine in the soul that enables the believer to wait patiently with confident expectation for God to provide what He promised. In Abraham's case an heir. It corresponds to Abraham's total adjustment to God's justice resulting in a mature relationship with God's integrity from metabolized doctrine.
The active voice: Abraham as a mature believer produces the action of the verb. The power in life is in thought; everything else must be subordinated to what you think. Abraham's reality was confidence in God's promise of an heir.
The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal idea from the viewpoint of reality. Abraham's faith-rest application in spiritual maturity was dynamic, and while he was sexually dead he was very alive mentally and spiritually.
Maturity adjustment to God's justice establishes great spiritual power to one's thinking. Doctrine in the soul is the basis for that thinking. So the believer has the privilege and opportunity of facing hopeless situations with God's Word of truth.
Remember metabolized doctrine in the soul is the coin of the spiritual realm. God was waiting for Abraham to reach the doctrinal viewpoint that God would deliver on His promise regardless of Abraham's inability.
The challenge to Abraham was to believe God's promise and wait patiently with confident expectation for God to fulfill his promise at the right time. It is the same for us. Lam 3:21-25; Isa 40:31; Psa 23:5-6; Mark 10:27;
Rom 4:18; The phrase translated hope against hope" is elpis" (hope) plus the locative of "elpis" (hope). This is the second occurrence of "elpis" (hope).
The first "elpis' (hope) refers to the hopeless situation of Abraham's sexual death. The second "elpis" (hope) refers to God's promise of sexual prosperity that is the exact opposite of sexual death so we have the juxtaposition of what is impossible for man and what is possible for God.
With doctrine in the soul, occupation with Christ, capacity for life from spiritual maturity, the second "elpis" (hope) that refers to God's viewpoint is Abraham's reality.
Without doctrine there is hopelessness with doctrine there is complete and total confidence. Being a believer without doctrine intensifies the hopeless of a hopeless situation. This is hope as a principle, not the actual details. In other words, he had not given up and he was not discouraged.
Abraham's sexual death for years had created a hopeless situation for Abraham by age ninety-nine.
There was no way that sexually impotent Abraham could have an heir by Sarah or anyone else in fulfillment of God's promise.
Furthermore, ninety-year-old Sarah who was never able to have children has passed the menopause so she was totally incapable of pregnancy.
Abraham would have succumbed to despair and self-pity except for the fact that during those years of sexual death he had learned doctrine and had gone from the discouragement and self-pity of reversionism of to the absolute confident expectation of super-grace.
At 99 Abraham was an super-grace believer. That means maximum adjustment to God's justice and a mature relationship with God's integrity. As a result God's promise and God's ability were more real to Abraham than his completely hopeless situation.
Doctrine resident in the soul gave power to Abraham's faith-rest function while at the same time establishing God's omnipotence as the object for his faith-rest.
Metabolized doctrine resident in the soul made God's ability more real to him than his inability. Heb 10:38;
Rom 4:18; To Abraham God's promise of an heir through sexual prosperity was more real to him than his sexual inability.
Because of maximum metabolized doctrine Abraham considered the source of the promise that was the doctrine, was certain because it was based on God's integrity.
He also knew that God's integrity was perfect so God's timing is perfect so having the promise all he had to do was wait.
"that he might become a father of many nations " "eis (in): plus the accusative singular from the definite article "ho" (the) with the aorist active infinitive of "ginomai" (become).
In this phrase there has to be a definite article "ho" (the or that) with the infinitive to understand the meaning of the preposition "eis" (in). The subject is the accusative singular of general reference from the intensive pronoun "auto" (he) that is used to define and emphasize a specific person or a category, and often provides a double emphasis by being used as a personal pronoun.
"Ginomai" (to become) is in the constantive aorist tense that looks at the action of the verb in its entirety. It takes Abraham's sexual prosperity with both Sarah and Keturah, and gathers it together into a single event.
In this case the best way to translate "eis" (in) is "in order that." Then the accusative of general reference" autos" (he)(Abraham) might become." The constantive aorist gathers into one entirety the years and years of great sexual prosperity that resulted in children.
The active voice tells us that Abraham in spiritual maturity produces the action of the verb in the status of sexual prosperity, first with Sarah and then Keturah because a total of seven sons were born as the result of his sexual prosperity from God's justice. Gen 25:2;
Rom 4:18; "Ginomai" (to become) is a purpose infinitive that is used to express the objective of the action of the finite verb "in order or so that that he might become" is a good translation.
Plus the accusative singular direct object from "pater" (father) that means father, pattern, or ancestor. It means, "father" here but not just father in the sense of having children but also in the sense of blessing from God.
This blessing from God to Abraham will be a blessing to the entire human race throughout human history and for eternity because Abraham's seed through Isaac is the gene pool for the seed of the woman, Jesus Christ.
Next is the objective genitive plural from an adjective and a noun, "polus ethnos" (many nations). It doesn't only mean ancestor it means ancestor with blessing.
Abraham's super-grace prosperity became the source of many nations, including Israel through Isaac, and many of the Arab nations through Keturah.
Next comes the quotation from Gen 15:5; that verifies the existence of a promise that can be claimed through the function of faith-rest: "according to that which had been spoken" "kata" (according) plus the accusative neuter singular from the definite article "ho" (that), plus "elpon" the perfect passive participle of "lego" (spoken).
"elpon" the perfect tense of "lego" (spoken) is a dramatic perfect that places emphasis on an existing state that is described as being unusual. Abraham must understand that the promise that is being fulfilled is based exclusively on God's integrity.
That is where metabolized doctrine comes in. Abraham must use metabolized doctrine to perceive beyond his hopeless temporal circumstances to the fact that God's justice has never been unfair in any way because the promise was, is, and has always been there for him the entire time, all that was needed was for Abraham to receive the capacity to receive it from metabolizing doctrine.
This means that there was there never was a moment when there was a reason for him to be discouraged. This is the rhetorical use of the intensive perfect. The passive voice: Abraham received God's promise in Gen 15:5.
The participle is a complementary participle that is used to complete the action of the main verb "he believed according to that which had been spoken." The promise given in Genesis 12:2 before he left Ur was reconfirmed in Genesis 15:5 and reconfirmed again in Genesis 17:5.
Every time God restated the promise it was to encourage Abraham who was advancing toward spiritual maturity to keep on advancing, to never become self absorbed from discouragement and self pity, and to keep his focus on God's integrity because that is the only issue.
The issue is always God who the source of the blessing not the blessing itself.
The same is true for us in whatever adverse situation we may be in. Just like Abraham we are to focus on the source of the blessing not the blessing itself because the certainty of God's blessing is based exclusively on God's integrity and God never fails.