Related resources...

Summary on the Attributes of God
Spurgeon on the Attributes of God

Israel of God - Is God "Finished" with Israel in His prophetic plan?

Off Site - Table Comparing/contrasting Israel & Church
Off Site - Does the Church Fulfill Israel's Program? - John Walvoord
The Jewish People, Jesus Christ and World History - S Lewis Johnson

Are you confused about God's plan for Israel? Then I highly recommend Tony Garland's 12 Hour Course on Romans 9-11 in which he addresses in depth the question of  What Will Happen to Israel?  (click) or see the individual lectures below)

Romans 9:1-5 Paul's Sorrow Concerning Israel
Romans 9:6-13 Children of the Promise
Romans 9:14-24 The Potter and the Clay
Romans 9:25-33 A Remnant Will be Saved
Romans 10:1-13 The Righteousness of God
Romans 10:14-21 Has Israel Not Heard?
Romans 11:1-6  God Has Not Cast Away The Jews
Romans 11:7-15 Life from the Dead
Romans 11:16-24 Two Olive Trees
Romans 11:25-36 The Salvation of Israel

Note that when you click the preceding links, each link will in turn give you several choices including an Mp3 message and brief transcript notes. The Mp3's are long (avg 70+ min) but are in depth and thoroughly Scriptural with many quotations from the Old Testament, which is often much less well understood than the NT by many in the church today. Garland takes a literal approach to Scripture, and his love for the Jews and passion to see them saved comes through very clearly in these 12 hours of teaching! Take your home Bible Study group through this series if you dare. Take notes on the tapes as the transcripts are a very abbreviated version of the audio messages. This course is highly recommended for all who love Israel! I think you will agree that Tony Garland, despite coming to faith after age 30 as an engineer, clearly has been given a special anointing by God to promulgate the truth concerning Israel and God's glorious future plan for the Jews. Garland has also produced more than 20 hours of superb audio teaching in his verse by verse commentary on the Revelation (in depth transcripts also available) which will unravel (in a way you did not think was possible considering the plethora of divergent interpretations) God's final message of the triumph and return of the our Lord Jesus Christ as the King of kings and Lord of lords! Maranatha!

BUT WHAT DOES IT SAY THE WORD IS NEAR YOU IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART: alla ti legei (3SPAI) eggus sou to rhema estin (3SPAI) en to stomati sou kai en te kardia sou:

Listen to Dr J Vernon McGee: Romans 10:9-11 Mp3

What does it say - This question refers to the personification of "Righteousness based on faith" which "speaks" in Ro 10:6-note.

Paul take a passage from the OT...

But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it. (Deut 30:14)

Word (4487)(rhema [word study] from verb rheo = to speak - to say, speak or utter definite words) refers to the spoken word, especially a word as uttered by a living voice uttering a definite intelligible word, which has a definite meaning and which focuses upon the content of the communication. By using rhema Paul is referring to the Word as actually uttered when preached.

Near (1451) (eggus) can have a spatial (position close to another - Jn 3:23) or temporal (point of time relatively close to another - Jn 2:13) meaning. Here the idea seems to be that the Word of Faith is near or close at hand and ready to help.

Tony Garland explains it this way...

Emphasis is placed on the nearness (accessibility) of God's commandments. There is an intimate connection between the heart and mouth. The mouth speaks forth that which is in the heart ( Mt 12:34; 15:17, 18, 19; Lk 6:44, 45). Our problem is not one of access to God's will, but obedience! (Romans 10:1-13 - The Righteousness of God) (Watch his web show or listen to his Mp3 audio which is much more in depth - Romans 10:1-13)

To keep the Word near one's self was exactly the command given to Joshua

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.  (Josh 1:8-note)

Morris has an interesting observation...

Paul in this passage is quoting (or better, paraphrasing and applying) Dt 30:14. It is noteworthy that he refers to its authority, not as that of the Scripture, Moses, or God, as he usually does when quoting from the Old Testament, but rather as "the righteousness which is of faith" speaking (Ro 10:6), in effect personifying that righteousness (1Cor 1:30). (Morris, Henry: Defenders Study Bible. World Publishing)

Instead of having to go to great lengths to achieve righteousness by the impossible task of trying to obey the Law (cp Jas 2:10), we can immediately receive righteousness by faith, by trusting in the word of the Gospel. In other words, men do not have to ascend or descend to find it, because God’s way of salvation has been clearly revealed in the Gospel. His chosen people Israel in fact had been surrounded by the word of faith (the message that righteousness comes by faith) which Paul was now preaching. Even under the Old Covenant men could claim God’s grace simply by receiving it in faith (Ge 15:6, Ps 106:30-note, Ps 106:31-note [Phinehas faith brought forth works] Hab 2:4, Gal 3:8).

Much of our modern world today is like the Israel of Paul’s day, for they (like Israel) have a general idea of the claims of the Gospel and have access to Bibles, churches, and believers through which they could (or should be able to) easily see the gospel if they so desired. As a believer, it is difficult on this side of the veil, so to speak, to understand why men who have such open access to the truth which would set them free (Jn 8:31,32, 36) still foolishly, willfully choose to pursue righteousness by works (or conversely to actively pursue unrighteousness, Ro 9:30-note cp Jn 3:19, 20) and to “suppress (katecho  = actively hold truth down and present tense = do so continually) the truth in unrighteousness” (Ro 1:18-note, see the resultant downward "moral spiral" in Ro 1:19-28-note).

The word is near you - Paul uses an OT passage from Dt 30:14 to demonstrate to his readers that the word of faith (the message that righteousness comes by faith) was near and was accessible, intelligible, and easily obtained. As Constable says "Faith (Ed: believing the gospel) is easy, compared to a lifetime of slavish obedience to the Law (Ed: Which is futile in regard to obtaining righteousness acceptable to God)."

McGee phrases it this way...

It (the Word of Faith) is available right where you are sitting. A great many folk think they have to go to an altar in some sort of meeting to be saved. But salvation is available to you right where you are now. (Listen to Dr McGee's Mp3's = Ro 10:4-8; Ro 10:9-11)

In your mouth - That is to say the word of faith (the message that righteousness comes by faith) can be expressed with normal human speech. For example, every time a Jewish priest would have spoken the words from Genesis 15:6, the "bells" should have gone off in the minds of the hearers!

In your heart - That is to say that the word of faith can be readily understood in the mind ("heart" was often used as a metonym [figure of speech using name of one thing {heart} for that of another {mind} of which it is associated]) and thus easily accepted (or received, cp the predominate response of the Jews to the Truth = Jn 1:11). And if one considers the Jewish phylacteries which were common in Jesus' and Paul's day (and are worn today by Orthodox Jews), the literal Word of God was near them for they would bind these boxes of Scripture on the left arm [nearer the heart!] and on their forehead [between their eyes - cp Ex 13:9YLT!]

The psalmist writes...

The law of his God is in his heart; His steps do not slip. (Ps 37:31-See Spurgeon's note)

KJV Bible Commentary has an interesting and very plausibe interpretation of this section noting that Paul...

even goes so far as to say that it is in their mouths and in their hearts. How can this be? The answer is that when entering a town to preach, Paul immediately proceeded to the synagogue. Whether the Jews believed his message or not, when he left, they remained behind to discuss what Paul had taught. The very message of the gospel of Christ had been in their mouths and in their hearts, but they did not believe. The truth of righteousness was as close to them as it could possibly be, but they failed in their responsibility to receive that truth. (Dobson, E G, Charles Feinberg, E Hindson, Woodrow Kroll, H L. Wilmington: KJV Bible Commentary: Nelson or Logos)

Moses' charge to remember the Feast of the Passover forever (Ex 12:14) is another OT passage that should have "made the lights flash" in the hearts and minds of the Jewish celebrants (and should do so in our day when even many non-Orthodox Jews choose to celebrate the Passover!)...

And it (the annual celebration of the Passover feast) shall serve as a sign (points to something = a visible mark or object intended to convey a clear message!) to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead (between your eyes - What God figuratively meant to stir their hearts, they perverted into a literal, albeit empty ritual known as the wearing of phylacteries - cp Ex 13:16, Dt 6:4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11:18, Mt 23:5) that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the Lord brought you out of Egypt (Ex 13:9)

Comment: How "near" this Word was to the Jews who for the most part were blind to these great OT "picture book stories" of the Messiah and His work of salvation for sinful mankind! (2Co 3:14, 15, 16) Compare Ex 12:3, 4, 5, 6, 7 [note even the application to the doorposts and lintel would replicate the arrangement of the Cross!], Ex 12:13, 14 = Redeemed from Egyptian slavery by the blood of an unblemished lamb [cp Jn 1:29, 2Co 5:7-8, 1Pe 1:18, 19-notes] The word of faith has always been near to those who have eyes to see it and ears to hear it! What an awesome God we serve Who demonstrates such incredible patience and lovingkindness to men and women who are hostile toward Him (cp Col 1:21-note, Ro 5:10-note)!

Lenski says that...

At one time the Jews from very childhood onward learned the law by the Word uttered and taught to them; it was put into the “mouth” of each one. In this way it was by the Word also to enter the “heart” of each, the center of his being. Not, indeed, so as to attain righteousness by the law. Theirs were to be believing hearts, and they were to use the law rightly for daily contrition and repentance and for their hearts’ guide to serve God aright. Just so the gospel Word, when it is uttered and preached, brings God’s righteousness, has ever brought it where it sounded forth, has placed it right into the “mouths” of the hearers to talk about it, discuss it, make it their own, confess it; right into their “hearts” to hold it there by faith.

The Word, the Word uttered, is the great medium; and being gospel-Word and not command, faith is its reception, and unbelief, sad to say, its rejection.

Since the medium, the uttered Word, was the same, it should have been as easy for the Jews to receive the gospel as to receive the law. Easier, in fact, because the gospel is a pure gift. But they received even the law only outwardly and not in the heart and closed their hearts obdurately against the gospel-word with its gift of righteousness. (Lenski, R. C. H. The Interpretation of St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans page 654. Columbus, Ohio: Lutheran Book Concern. Published 1936)

Charles Hodge writes that...

The meaning in this passage is: “The Gospel, instead of directing us to climb up into heaven (Ro 10:6-note) or to go down to the depths (Ro 10:7-note), tells us the thing required is simple and easy. Believe with your heart and you will be saved. (Romans Commentary Online)

William Kelly said it well...

Christ is given and preached. It is for man to name Him with his mouth and to believe with his heart

Middletown Bible...

The glorious proclamation about Christ is near. It’s not far away. It is accessible to all and available for all! The good news of salvation is within reach of all. How near is it? It is in your mouth and in your heart! But you must do something with it! With your heart believe it! With your mouth confess it! (It is near and close to people in America today, so near that it is in their mouths--they use the Lord’s Name all the time, but in the wrong way, not to confess but to curse!)

Ro 10:8,9 can be illustrated by the robber on the cross (Mk 15:32, Lk 23:39, 40, 41, 42, 43). The crucified Christ was very near him! The word was in the robber's mouth but in the wrong way (he reviled Him at first). But this man repented and he believed in his heart that God would raise Him from the dead (Lk 23:42) and with his mouth he confessed Him as Lord and King (Lk 23:42). May we believe and confess as this man did! (Ed: And not be like the other thief who refused to repent and believe!)

THAT IS, THE WORD OF (THE) FAITH WHICH WE ARE PREACHING: tout estin (3SPAI) to rhema tes pisteos o kerussomen (1PPAI): (Ro 10:17; 1:16,17; Isaiah 57:19; Mark 16:15,16; Acts 10:43; 13:38,39; 16:31; Gal 3:2,5; 1Ti 4:6; 1Pe 1:23,25)

Word (4487)(rhema [word study] from verb rheo = to speak - to say, speak or utter definite words) refers to the spoken word, especially a word as uttered by a living voice. Laleo is another word translated speak but it refers only to uttering a sound whereas rheo refers to uttering a definite intelligible word. Rhema refers to any sound produced by the voice which has a definite meaning. It focuses upon the content of the communication. For example in Luke we read...

The word of faith - Literally this reads "word of the faith" or "saying of the faith". What word was Paul preaching? In context "the Word of the faith" Paul was preaching was the message that righteousness comes by faith. In other words, this would be another way of referring to the good news of the gospel. In the OT passage the "word" is God's word as found in the law. Paul takes the OT passage and applies it to the gospel, "the word of faith", which is something we confess as well as believe. Note that in the following verse (Ro 10:9), Paul reverses the normally expected chronological order, placing confess before believe, the expected pattern being that found in 2Co 4:13, 14.

Hodge agrees writing that...

The expression word of faith may mean “the word or doctrine concerning faith,” or “the word to which faith is due,” which should be believed. In either case, it is the Gospel, or doctrine of justification, which is intended here.  (Romans Commentary Online)

Paul's main point is the ready availability of Good News. Righteousness can be gained by sinful  men, but it can only be secured by faith and not by deeds. This Good News is readily available to anyone who will receive it freely from God through Christ.

Preaching (2784) (kerusso or kerysso from kerux/keryx = a herald - one who acts as the medium of the authority of one who proclamation he makes; kerugma = the thing preached or the message) means to proclaim (publicly) or to herald or act as a public crier - the town official who would make a proclamation in a public gathering.

The Greco-Roman rulers had special heralds who made announcements to the people. They were commissioned by the ruler and were to proclaim their announcements in a loud, clear voice so that everyone could hear. In the ancient world not to heed the ruler’s messenger was a serious error and to abuse the messenger was even worse. So just as kerusso was used of the official whose duty was to proclaim loudly the coming of an earthly king, even our gospel is to clearly announce the coming of the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev 19:16-note)!

ONLY ONE
CONFESSION
"COUNTS"!

And if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord - This is a fascinating statement but one which is as it were "time sensitive". This confession must be made during life before we die physically. Indeed, there is coming a glorious day when the great God and Lord of all, Christ Jesus, will be acknowledged for Who He truly is by every man and woman ever born! The tragedy of tragedies is that this future confession in the life to come does not gain salvation for those who have denied His Lordship in this present evil age (Gal 1:4)!

Paul affirms the reality of this future confession twice noting first that...

it is written (grapho in the perfect tense = it stands written in the OT prophecy  Isaiah 45:23 and is a permanent binding irrevocable record!), “As I live, says the Lord, every (pas = all with no exception!) knee shall bow to Me, and every (pas = all with no exception!) tongue shall give praise (exomologeo = conveys the thought of an open, frank, and full confession. The middle voice = reflects each person's definite personal involvement in this confession) to God.”  (Ro 14:11-note)

Therefore (because of Php 2:5, 6, 7-notes, Php 2:8-note) also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus EVERY (pas = all without exception!) KNEE SHOULD BOW, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every (pas = every tongue without exception!) tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Amen and Amen!) (Php 2:9, 10, 11-note)

Confess (3670) (homologeo from homoú = together with + légo = say) means to say the same and so to agree in one's statement. Homologeo means to express openly one's allegiance to a proposition or a person, in this context the person of Christ.  It is a statement of identification, faith, confidence, and trust.

Outward confession stems from a profound inward conviction.

Homologeo has strong legal connotations. As a judicial term, the word indicates the binding and public declaration which settles a relationship with legal force. A person can confess to a charge in court and thus openly acknowledge guilt. Or one may agree with a court order and thus make a legally binding commitment to abide by it. This last sense is implied in passages like this one in Romans 10 that call on us to acknowledge Jesus. We are to express our binding commitment to Jesus publicly thus acknowledging our relationship to Him as our Lord and Savior.

Middletown Bible...

To confess that Jesus is the Christ means that a person agrees that Jesus is indeed the Messiah (Jn 1:41; 4:25, 26,42). According to the Old Testament Scriptures, the Messiah was portrayed as

(1) the God-man (Isa.7:14)

(2) the mighty God (Isa 9:6)

(3) the sinner’s Substitute and Saviour (Isaiah 53:5, 6ff)

(4) the eternal King (Micah5:2) and

(5) THE LORD (JEHOVAH) OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS (Jer 23:5, 6)

There is a cost involved in confessing that Jesus is the Messiah (Jn 9:22) and because of this cost many fail to confess Him (Jn 12:42). But those who do confess Him before men have Christ's own promise that He will confess them before the angels and before His heavenly Father (Mt10:32; Lk 12:8).

Jesus as Lord - Cranfield writes that...

The confession that Jesus is Lord meant the acknowledgment that Jesus shares the name and the nature, the holiness, the authority, power, majesty, and eternity of the one and only true God.

Is there a "cost" to confessing Christ as Lord? John alludes to the cost in his story of the blind man who was given sight by our Lord noting that...

His parents said this (Jn 9:20, 21) because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed Him to be Christ (the long expected Messiah), he was to be put out of the synagogue (aposunagogos = literally "separated from the synagogue" = excommunicated). (Jn 9:22, see also Jn 12:42, 43)

Comment: "Excommunication" from the Jewish synagogue was a very serious matter for any Jew and the healed man's parents were not willing to pay the "price" of confession for it could mean the loss livelihood, as well as a loss of privileges of the Jewish religion. In short, we need to count the cost when we confess Him as Lord. I remember some 20 years ago when I was first saved and so excited that I could not "shut up" about Jesus. One of my dearest relatives told me that if I did not cease talking about Him, I need not come back to their home! It was very painful, and dear reader I'm sure this anecdotal story congers up a similar memory in your past!

Dr Luke records Jesus' own words on this topic...

And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man shall confess him also before the angels of God, but he who denies Me before men shall be denied before the angels of God. (Luke 12:9, 10, cp Mt 10:32, 33)

In His Revelation, the Risen Glorified Lord Jesus affirms the church at Pergamum...

I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. (Rev 2:13-note, cp Re 3:5-note)

Middletown Bible...

The word that means the opposite of "confess" is the word "deny" (Jn 1:20; 1John 2:22, 23). To confess is to say "YES"; to deny is to say "NO." In Lk 22:57, 58, 59, 60 Peter should have said, "Yes, I know Him (Lk 22:57)!" "Yes, I am one of them (Lk 22:58)!" "Yes, I was with Him (Lk 22:59, 60)!" But Peter denied Christ (although his denial was only temporary because later, on the day of Pentecost, he boldly confessed Christ and preached Christ before thousands--Acts 2:14, 23, 24, 36, 37, 38). Thus, when asked this question, "Do you own Jesus as your Saviour and Lord? Do you claim Him as your own?" the believer can respond: "Yes I do! I acknowledge that He is mine! I belong to the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me!" During the great Christian persecutions of the second and third centuries, those believers who would not deny the Lord even at the risk of great suffering were known as CONFESSORS. May we never be ashamed of the God who was unashamed to die for us (2Ti 1:8-note; Ro1:16-note; 1Pe 4:16-note)!

The apostle John succinctly states the importance of the confession of Jesus writing that...

Whoever (Pas = all without exception!) denies (arneomai in the present tense = they persist in their denial)  the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses (homologeo in the present tense = they persist in their confession) the Son has the Father also. (1Jn 2:23)

Comment: To deny the Son is to deny the Father, a message that should be noted by all religions that say they "worship God" but deny the Son! The Son will one day deny them (Mt 7:21-note, Mt 7:22, 23-note)!

J Vernon McGee: When you say that you believe in God and deny the deity of Christ, you really do not believe in God, certainly not the God of the Bible. The God of the Bible is the one who sent His Son into the world to die for our sins. And since the Son is God, He alone is the one who could make a satisfactory sacrifice to God for our sins. Had he been anyone else other than God, He Himself would have been a sinner. In the great Riverside Church in New York City when Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick was the pastor, the cover page of a bulletin at that time said,

Whoever you are that worship here, in whatever household of faith you were born, whatever creed you profess, if you come to this sanctuary to seek the God in whom you believe or to rededicate yourself to the God in whom you do believe, you are welcome.

It goes on to say a lot about peace and the Fatherhood of God, but I’m nauseated reading that far so I will not quote any more of it. It sounds sweet and flowery; it appeals to the natural man, but John’s whole point is that we need to beware of this, for this is antichrist. We need to emphasize this very important verse. (You will enjoy listening to Dr McGee's fuller explanation on the Mp3 of 1Jn 2:23-24).

Paul writes that...

If we endure, we will also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. (2Ti 2:12-note)

We see the same principle uttered even by the psalmist who declares...

I will also speak of Your testimonies before kings and shall not be ashamed (Psalm 119:46-note)

Spurgeon: This is part of his liberty; he is free from fear of the greatest, proudest, and most tyrannical of men. David (Ed: Not everyone agrees that David wrote Ps 119 but it is certainly possible) was called to stand before kings when he was an exile; and afterwards, when he was himself a monarch, he knew the tendency of men to sacrifice their religion to pomp and statecraft; but it was his resolve to do nothing of the kind. He would sanctify politics, and make cabinets know that the Lord alone is governor among the nations. As a king he would speak to kings concerning the King of kings. He says, "I will speak": prudence might have suggested that his life and conduct would be enough, and that it would be better not to touch upon religion in the presence of royal personages who worshipped other gods, and claimed to be right in so doing. He had already most fittingly preceded this resolve by the declaration, "I will walk," but he does not make his personal conduct an excuse for sinful silence, for he adds, "I will speak." David claimed religious liberty, and took care to use it, for he spoke out what he believed, even when he was in the highest company. In what he said he took care to keep to God's own word, for he says, "I will speak of thy testimonies." No theme is like this, and there is no way of handling that theme like keeping close to the book, and using its thought and language. The great hindrance to our speaking upon holy topics in all companies is shame, but the Psalmist will "not be ashamed"; there is nothing to be ashamed of, and there is no excuse for being ashamed, and yet many are as quiet as the dead for fear some creature like themselves should be offended.

When God gives grace, cowardice soon vanishes. (GLORY!) He who speaks for God in God's power, will not be ashamed when beginning to speak, nor while speaking, nor after speaking; for his theme is one which is fit for kings, needful to kings, and beneficial to kings. If kings object, we may well be ashamed of them, but never of our Master Who sent us, or of His message, or of His design in sending it.

D. H. Mollerus - I will not be ashamed. That is, I shall not be cast down from my position or my hope; I shall not be afraid; nor will I, from fear of danger or reproach, shun or renounce the confession; nor shall I be overcome by terrors or threats.

William Cowper - A good conscience renders always great consolation; and an honest life makes great boldness to speak without fear or shame, as ye see in David towards Saul, in Elias to Ahab, in Paul to Agrippa, to Festus, and to Felix.

When we confess sin this confession is more than a mere acknowledgment of sin in the life. It is an agreeing with God as to all the implications that enter into the fact that one has sinned. It is looking at sin from God’s point of view, and acting accordingly. It means the putting away of that sin. It means the determination to be done with that sin.

To reiterate, the idea of confess is not just to say with one's lips, but to validate the lip's confession with the life's direction (conduct, behavior)! Do not be deceived, beloved brethren. One must confess Christ with his mouth, but he must also "confess" Him through his righteous behavior.

Lips and Life
Must Match

In Titus 1:16 we see a confession with the lips which is denied by the life lived in those who are defiled and unbelieving (Titus 1:15-note)...

profess (present tense - their habitual practice) to know God, but by their deeds they deny (say with their behavior and lifestyle that they do not know Jesus or are in any way related to Him) Him, being  (present tense - continually) detestable (root word means to "stink"!) and disobedient, and worthless (their deeds are rejected after examination = their works do not stand God's test of deeds wrought by abiding in the Vine, Christ Jesus) for any good deed . (Titus 1:16-note)

We are to confess Christ “before men” which emphasizes the public character of the confession. When we confess Jesus as Lord, we are agreeing with what God the Father says about Jesus His Son, and with what Jesus says about Himself. It means we recognize that Jesus is God, that He is the Messiah in the OT, and that His finished work on the Cross (Jn 19:30) secured the only way of salvation for mankind (Acts 4:12, Jn 14:6). If the heart truly believes, the mouth will be eager to confess. Confession (much like repentance, e.g., Mk 1:15) is characteristic of true faith and is not an separate or additional condition of salvation.

Haldane adds that...

The confession of Christ is salvation. But that confession which is salvation, is a confession which implies that the truth confessed with the mouth is known and received in the heart. The belief of the heart is therefore joined with the confession of the lips. Neither is genuine without the other, though it may be said that either the one or the other is salvation, because they who believe with the heart will confess with the tongue. If a man says, “I believe in Christ,” yet denies Him when put to trial, or confesses Him with the lips, yet denies Him in His proper character, he neither confesses nor believes Christ (cp Luke 12:8, 9). It should always be remembered, that if he believes anything different from the testimony of God relating to the person and work of the Savior, he does not believe the Gospel, but something, whatever it may be, which can neither sanctify nor save. The Gospel alone is the power of God unto salvation to every one who believes it. (Romans 10 Commentary)

Frederic Godet explains that...

The two terms: confessing with the mouth and believing with the heart, reproduce the ideas in thy mouth and in thy heart, of Ro 10:8 ("in your mouth and in your heart". These are the two conditions of salvation; for while faith suffices to take hold of the finished expiation, when this faith is living, it inevitably produces profession...Profession is put first here, in keeping with the words of Moses (Ro 10:8: in thy mouth); the order is that which from the external ascends to the internal; it reminds us that profession would be nothing without faith.—The object of the profession is the title Lord given to Christ, as is done in the invocation by which we publicly declare ourselves subjects; cp. 1Co 12:3... Here again we find the idea of Ro 10:6, that of the glorified Christ. The same relation between the sovereignty of Christ and the Christian profession appears in Php 2:9, 10, 11:

“Wherefore God hath supremely exalted Him...that every tongue should confess that He is Lord.”

This allusion to Ro 10:6-note proves clearly that the reference there was not to the incarnation; for Jesus is called by the title of Lord, as the glorified, and not as the pre-existent Christ.—On the other hand, the special object of faith is Christ risen. The reason is clear: it is in the external fact of the resurrection that faith apprehends its essential object, the moral fact of justification; cp. Ro 4:25-note.—Paul concludes this long sentence with a brief summary word: thou shalt be saved, as if he would say: After that all is done Ro 10:10 demonstrates in fact that these conditions once complied with, salvation was sure. (Romans Commentary Online)

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C H Spurgeon - Mouth Confession, Heart Belief: THERE must be confession with the mouth. Have I made it? Have I openly avowed my faith in Jesus as the Savior whom God has raised from the dead, and have I done it in God’s way? Let me honestly answer this question.

There must also be belief with the heart. Do I sincerely believe in the risen Lord Jesus? Do I trust in Him as my sole hope of salvation? Is this trust from my heart? Let me answer as before God.

If I can truly claim that I have both confessed Christ and believed in him, then I am saved. The text does not say it may be so, but it is plain as a pikestaff and clear as the sun in the heavens: “Thou shalt be saved.” As a believer and a confessor, I may lay my hand on this promise and plead it before the Lord God at this moment, and throughout life, and in the hour of death, and at the day of judgment.

I must be saved from the guilt of sin, the power of sin, the punishment of sin, and ultimately from the very being of sin. God hath said it: “Thou shalt be saved.” I believe it. I shall be saved: I am saved. Glory be to God for ever and ever! (Faith's Checkbook)

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In view of the fact that "Lord" (kurios) is used over 8,600x in the Septuagint to translate the name of Israel's God (Yahweh), it is clear that Paul, when using this word of Jesus, is ascribing Deity to Him.

We can never forget all that it meant to say that Jesus Christ is Lord. "If a man called Jesus kurios he was ranking him with the Emperor and with God; he was giving him the supreme place in his life; he was pledging him implicit obedience and reverent worship." (Barclay)

A T Robertson commenting on Jesus Christ is Lord writes that

No Jew would do this who had not really trusted Christ, for Kurios in the Septuagint (LXX) is used of God. No Gentile would do it who had not ceased worshipping the emperor as Kurios. The word Kurios was and is the touchstone of faith.

Lord is from kurios, which signifies sovereign power and authority. In the book of Acts, Jesus is twice referred to as Savior but ninety-two times as Lord. In the entire New Testament, He is referred to some ten times as Savior and some seven hundred times as Lord. When the two titles are mentioned together, Lord always precedes Savior. And even if, as some erroneously contend, Lord were simply a synonym for God, the very term God by definition includes the idea of sovereign authority, that is, of lordship.

Regarding belief, it is important to emphasize that mere intellectual agreement with the facts of the Cross and the Resurrection is not necessarily faith that saves. Faith alone saves but the faith that saves results in a changed heart obedience.

Robert Haldane explains genuine faith writing that...

A person becomes righteous by believing God’s record concerning His Son. But the evidence that this faith is genuine is found in the open confession of the Lord with the mouth. Confession of Christ is as necessary as faith in Him, but necessary for a different purpose. Faith is necessary to obtain the gift of righteousness. Confession is necessary to prove that this gift is received. In saying, then, that confession is made unto salvation, the apostle does not mean that it is the cause of salvation, or that without it the title to salvation is incomplete. When a person believes in his heart, he is justified. But confession of Christ is in effect of faith, and will be evidence of it at the last day. Faith which interests the sinner in the righteousness of Christ is manifested by the confession of His name in the face of danger.

Middletown Bible...

If Jesus Christ is really MY Lord, then He demands and deserves my glad submission and wholehearted obedience. I humbly bow before His authority and I gladly do those things that please Him. How can I do anything less? Jesus said, "And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Lk 6:45).

The following penetrating words were written on a tombstone in Germany...

Thus Speaketh Christ Our Lord to us:

You call me Master, and obey me not;
You call me Light, and see me not;
You call me Way, and walk me not;
You call me Wise, and follow me not;
You call me Fair, and love me not;
You call me Rich, and ask me not;
You call me Eternal, and seek me not;
You call me Gracious, and trust me not;
You call me Noble, and serve me not;
You call me Mighty, and honor me not;
You call me Just, and fear me not;

IF I CONDEMN YOU,
BLAME ME NOT!!!

THAT GOD HAS RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD YOU SHALL BE SAVED: hoti o theos auton egeiren (3SAAI) ek nekron  sothese (2SFPI):

God has raised Him from the dead - The resurrection of Christ is the bedrock truth of Christian doctrine (1Co 15:4, 14, 17) and the central thrust of apostolic preaching (Acts 2:31, 32, 3:15, 4:10, 10:40). Christians believe not only that Jesus really lived, but that He really died on a Cross and really rose from the grave and that He still really lives.

Robert Haldane puts it this way...

Why is so much stress laid on the resurrection? Was not the work of Christ in this world finished by His death? Most certainly it was. But His resurrection was the evidence that it was finished (cp Jn 2:18, 19, 20, 21); and therefore the belief of His resurrection is put for that of the whole of His work. (Romans Commentary)

To raise (1453) (egeiro) means literally to waken, rouse from sleep, and so to raise up from death.

Scripture never approves, much less commends, a faith without content, a “faith in faith” as it is often described. Paul specifies two bedrock truths that must be believed in order to be saved. The first is that Jesus is Lord, the second that God raised Him from the dead.

John MacArthur adds that...

Christ’s resurrection was the supreme validation of His ministry (cf. John 2:18, 19, 20, 21). Belief in it is necessary for salvation because it proved that Christ is who He claimed to be and that the Father had accepted His sacrifice in the place of sinners (Ro 4:24-note; cf. Acts 13:32, 33; 1Pe 1:3, 4-note). Without the resurrection, there is no salvation (1Co 15:14, 15, 16, 17).

Following the order of Ro 10:8, which quotes Dt 30:14 (where confession is also first), Paul speaks first of confession, which is with the mouth, and then of faith, which is in the heart. In Ro 10:10, however, he mentions them in reverse order, which as noted earlier is the chronological order of redemption.

Shall be saved - A promise

Shall be saved (4982) (sozo [word study]) has the basic meaning of rescuing one from great peril. Additional nuances include to protect, keep alive, preserve life, deliver, heal, be made whole. 

Sozo is sometimes used of physical deliverance from danger of perishing (see Mt 8:25; Mt 14:30; Lk 23:35; Acts 27:20, 27:31), physical healing from sickness (Mt 9:21, 22; Mk 5:23, Acts 4:9), and deliverance from demonic possession (Lk 8:36).

Read the following devotional by F B Meyer entitled The Assurance of Salvation...

SALVATION IS a great word. It is conjugated in three tenses: The Past Tense. We saved at the moment when we first trusted Christ.

This salvation is a distinct and definite matter, which is ours at the moment we exercise simple faith in Jesus. "Being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him" (Ro 5:9-note).

The Present Tense. "To us who are being saved, Christ is the power of God," such is the accurate rendering of 1Co 1:18. We are being saved perpetually from the love and power of sin. The disinfectant of Christ's Presence is ever warding off the germs of deadly temptation. The mighty arm of the Divine Keeper is always holding the door against the attempts of the adversary. The water is always flowing over the eye to remove the tiny grit or mote that may alight. "We are being saved by His life" (Ro 5:10-note).

The Future Tense. We are being kept by the power of God unto a salvation which waits to be revealed in the last time (1Pe 1:5-note). Salvation is a great word. It includes the forgiveness that remembers our sin no more; deliverance from the curse and penalty of our evil ways; emancipation from the thrall of evil habit; the growing conformity of the soul to the image of Christ, and the final resurrection of the body in spiritual beauty and energy, to be for ever the companion and vehicle of the redeemed spirit.

PRAYER Oh blessed Spirit of God, we pray Thee to give us the assurance of being the children of God, the sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty; and so prepare us for the glory to be revealed to us, and for that great hour when the whole creation, which now groans and travails in pain, shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. AMEN.

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The King's Message (Read 10:9-15) - On January 21, 1930, the name of Harold Vidian became synonymous with heroism. On that day, England's King George V was scheduled to give the opening address at the London Arms Conference. The king's message was to be sent by radio all around the world.

Donald McCullough, in his book The Trivialization of God (NavPress, 1995), tells us that a few minutes before the king was to speak, a member of the CBS staff tripped over an electrical wire and broke it, cutting off the whole American audience. With no hesitation, chief control operator Harold Vidian grasped one end of the broken wire in his right hand and the other in his left, thus restoring the circuit. Electricity surged through his body. Ignoring the pain, Vidian held on until the king had finished his address.

I see in this a challenge for Christians. The message of the King of kings must go to the whole world. But only as we allow God's power to pass through us can the Lord's saving gospel be transmitted. Paul wrote, "How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?" (Ro 10:14). If we are willing to serve as conduits, regardless of the cost to us, the good news will be proclaimed around the world.

Will you be a conduit for the King's message? — Vernon C. Grounds

When I gave my life to Jesus,
He became my Lord and Friend;
Now His power is flowing through me,
As His message I extend. --Hess

The good news of Christ is the best news in the world.

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If I Tell The World - At the close of an evangelistic meeting held by D. L. Moody, a Norwegian youth stood up to testify of his faith in the Lord. He wanted the congregation to know that he had been saved, but he had difficulty speaking English. Haltingly he managed to say, "I'm up here because Jesus wants me to be a witness. He promised that if I tell the world about Him, He'll tell the Father about me!"

Moody later remarked, "That boy's testimony went straight to the heart of everyone present. 'If I tell the world'--yes, that's exactly what the Bible means when it says we must confess Christ!"

Our Lord does not want us to be silent disciples. He encourages us to witness boldly to others about His grace. Scripture provides eloquent proof that we are to be vocal about our standing in Christ. Romans 10:9 states, "Confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus." And Ro 10:14 asks, "How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?"

If you love the Lord, it's your duty to witness to others. Maybe all you need to say to someone is: "Jesus means so much to me. I wish you knew Him too!" You will be surprised what such a simple, straightforward testimony can accomplish. Determine today to "tell the world." --H G Bosch (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

I'll tell the world that I'm a Christian--
I'm not ashamed His name to bear;
I'll tell the world that I'm a Christian--
I'll take Him with me anywhere. --Fox

If your faith in Christ is worth having,
it's worth sharing

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The Highway To Heaven- Under the headline Car Lover Buried In Corvette, the newspaper column opened with: "If there is a highway to heaven, George Swanson may get to the Pearly Gates in style. He was buried in his white Corvette." His wife Carolyn said, "A lot of people say they want to take it with them. Well, he took it with him."

Yes, there's a highway to heaven, but you can't travel it in a Corvette after you die. You must get on this highway while you are alive, and you get on it by placing your trust in Jesus Christ.

In Romans 10:1-13, Paul declared that the road to heaven is not difficult to find nor to access. It is right in front of us in the Word of God. Jesus Christ said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (Jn. 14:6). He died for our sins, broke the power of death by His resurrection, lives in heaven as our Advocate and Intercessor, and places on the highway to heaven all who trust Him as their Savior and Lord.

Whether or not you're buried in a Corvette makes no difference. The highway to heaven starts on this side of death, and the entrance is easy to find. The Bible says, "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Ro 10:13). Are you on the right road? (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

There aren't many ways into heaven;
God's Word says there is only one:
Confessing Christ Jesus as Savior,
Believing in God's only Son. --Sper

To get to heaven,
you must go by the way of the Cross.

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In his book Our Daily Homily, F B Meyer concludes that in Romans 10:9...

Salvation is evidently to be taken in its most extended meaning. It stands even more for the deliverance of the soul from the love and dominion of sin than for the removal of its justly incurred penalty. That we should be pure in heart, holy in thought, consecrated in life, with all the range of our nature controlled by his indwelling Spirit — such is the Divine intention with respect to us, as suggested by this deep, great word Salvation. But there are two conditions, on our compliance with which this saving power is realized.

We must confess Jesus as Lord. — Throughout Scripture there is a close connection between Christ’s Royalty and his Saviorship. “Behold, thy King cometh to thee, ... having salvation;” “Him hath God set forth to be a Prince and a Savior.” “Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, ... made like unto the Son of God, abideth a priest continually.” We shall never know Christ as a Savior from inbred sin until we have definitely and absolutely enthroned Him in our hearts. A physician is not content with healing outbreaks of disease and fever when they occur; but claims leave to examine all the arrangements of the house, so as to deal with the sources of the mischief.

We must also steadfastly believe in the Resurrection. — The risen Lord, sitting at the right hand of God, in all the vigour of an indissoluble life: still working in the world, and energizing the hearts of his own entering to indwell, to fill, to unite with his own eternal life — such is the vision offered to our faith. Let us look away to Him with a persistent, unwavering gaze, until sin ceases to attract us, and Satan finds a Stronger in possession.

IF THOU SHALT CONFESS
by  John R. Clements

O lost one in the wilds of sin,
So long from God away;
Before thee lies an open path,
Where thou canst walk today.

For if thou shalt confess the Lord,
And in thine heart believe;
His Word is sure, it stands secure,
“Thou shalt be saved,”
“Thou shalt be saved.”

So many roads across the marsh
But lead to vales of night;
This one, “the true and living way,”
Ends in the fadeless light. Refrain

For - Introduces the explanation of the preceding verse and gives the proper order or sequence of events: first belief and then confession.

Heart  (2588) (kardia [word study]) does not refer to the physical organ but is always used figuratively in Scripture to refer to the seat and center of human life. The heart is the center of the personality, and it controls the intellect, emotions, and will.  No outward obedience is of the slightest value unless the heart turns to God.

Jesus describes the importance of a "right" heart explaining that...

the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance. (Lk 8:15, contrast an "evil and unbelieving heart" Heb 3:12-note)

 Calvin remarks that...

The seat of faith, it deserves to be observed, is not in the brain, but the heart; not that I wish to enter into any dispute concerning the part of the body which is the seat of faith, but since the word heart generally means a serious, sincere, ardent affection, I am desirous to show the confidence of faith to be a firm, efficacious, and operative principle in all the emotions and feelings of the soul, not a mere naked notion of the head.

Believes (4100) (pisteuo [word study] from pistis; pistos; related studies the faith, the obedience of faith) means  to consider something to be true and therefore worthy of one’s trust.  To accept as true, genuine, or real. To have a firm conviction as to the goodness, efficacy, or ability of something or someone. To consider to be true. To accept the word or evidence of.

Note that the Greek verb pisteuo in the context of the NT uses does not signify mere intellectual assent but  a genuine acceptance with one’s whole inward being. When a person does that, he is instantly justified or declared righteous (forever positionally righteous before God).

Righteousness (1343) (dikaiosune [word study] from dikaios [word study] = being proper or right in the sense of being fully justified being or in accordance with what God requires) is the quality of being upright. In its simplest sense dikaiosune conveys the idea of conformity to a standard or norm. In this sense righteousness is the opposite of hamartia (sin), which is defined as missing of the mark set by God. In this sense righteousness is the opposite of hamartia (sin), which is defined as missing of the mark set by God.

Dikaiosune is rightness of character before God and rightness of actions before men.  Righteousness of God could be succinctly stated as all that God is, all that He commands, all that He demands, all that He approves, all that He provides through faith in Christ (Click here to read Pastor Ray Pritchard's interesting analysis of righteousness in the Gospel of Matthew).

Righteousness in this passage refers to the righteousness of God which is judicially reckoned to all who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Justification = Declaration of righteousness [Christ's righteousness "credited" to the believer's account, once and for all time!] = past tense salvation = completed one time event in the past [when we believed on Christ] = positional righteousness)

MacArthur writes

Righteousness has to do with what we become, and salvation has to do with what we escape. The first has to do with the eternal life we receive but do not deserve, the second with the eternal punishment we deserve but do not receive. The first relates to entering into blessedness, the second relates to escaping cursedness.

Believes...righteousness...confesses...salvation - Paul's words have produced some degree of disagreement on what he meant and of what importance is belief and confession.

William MacDonald comments that...

Confession is not a condition of salvation but the inevitable outward expression of what has happened:

If on Jesus Christ you trust,
Speak for Him you surely must

When a person really believes something, he wants to share it with others. So when a person is genuinely born again, it is too good to keep secret. He confesses Christ.

The Scriptures assume that when a person is saved he will make a public confession of that salvation. The two go together. Thus Kelly said,

“If there be no confession of Christ the Lord with the mouth, we cannot speak of salvation; as our Lord said, ‘He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.’”

And Denney comments,

A heart believing unto righteousness, and a mouth making confession unto salvation, are not really two things, but two sides of the same thing. (MacDonald, W & Farstad, A. Believer's Bible Commentary: Thomas Nelson or Logos)

Robert Haldane offers a balanced view...

A man becomes righteous, perfectly righteous, through believing God’s record concerning His Son. But the evidence that this faith is genuine is found in the open confession of the Lord with the mouth in everything in which His will is known.

Confession of Christ is as necessary as faith in Him, but necessary for a different purpose. Faith is necessary to obtain the gift of righteousness. Confession is necessary to prove that this gift is received.

If a man does not confess Christ at the hazard of life, character, property, liberty, and everything dear to him, he has not the faith of Christ.

In saying, then, that confession is made unto salvation, the Apostle does not mean that it is the cause of salvation, or that without it the title to salvation is incomplete. When a man believes in his heart, he is justified. But confession of Christ is the effect of faith, and will be evidence of it at the last day. Faith which interests the sinner in the righteousness of Christ is manifested by the confession of His name in the midst of enemies, or in the face of danger.

Middletown Bible agrees adding that...

Believing is inward; confession is outward (just as the heart and the mouth—the heart is inward and not visible; the mouth is outward and visible).

CONFESSION IS FAITH MADE AUDIBLE! (just as good works are faith made visible--see Jas 2:14-26-see notes).

How can I know whether you really are saved until you confess?

"Confession is made unto salvation." This does not mean that confession is a condition of salvation (you must confess Christ in order to be saved) but it means that confession is a result or evidence of salvation (you confess Christ to show that you are saved). Confession is not something that a person does to be saved; confession is something that a saved person does!

Faith must be expressed OUTWARDLY and PUBLICLY. Believing is the root; confession is the fruit. Everyone who truly believes will confess Christ (Matthew 10:32; Rom.10:9 and cf. Rev. 3:5). However not everyone who confesses Christ is a true believer (see Mt 7:23; Titus 1:16 and 2Ti 2:19). In God’s army there is no place for "secret believers."

May we never be ashamed of our Commander-in-Chief (2Ti 2:3, 4)!

Just as a label on a can proclaims its contents, so it is that by confession the believer proclaims who lives within (2Co 13:5 "Jesus Christ is in you").

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Highway to heaven - Under the headline Car Lover Buried In Corvette, the newspaper column opened with: "If there is a highway to heaven, George Swanson may get to the Pearly Gates in style. He was buried in his white Corvette." His wife Carolyn said, "A lot of people say they want to take it with them. Well, he took it with him."

Yes, there's a highway to heaven, but you can't travel it in a Corvette after you die. You must get on this highway while you are alive, and you get on it by placing your trust in Jesus Christ.

In Romans 10:1-13, Paul declared that the road to heaven is not difficult to find nor to access. It is right in front of us in the Word of God. Jesus Christ said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (Jn. 14:6). He died for our sins, broke the power of death by His resurrection, lives in heaven as our Advocate and Intercessor, and places on the highway to heaven all who trust Him as their Savior and Lord.

Whether or not you're buried in a Corvette makes no difference. The highway to heaven starts on this side of death, and the entrance is easy to find. The Bible says, "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom. 10:13). Are you on the right road? --H V Lugt  (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)

There aren't many ways into heaven;
God's Word says there is only one:
Confessing Christ Jesus as Savior,
Believing in God's only Son. --Sper

To get to heaven,
you must go by the way of the Cross.

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O BE SAVED
by Fanny Crosby

Sinner, how thy heart is troubled,
God is coming very near;
Do not hide thy deep emotion,
Do not check that falling tear.

Refrain
O be saved, His grace is free;
O be saved, He died for thee;
O be saved, He died for thee.

The Scripture says - This phrase is a NT parallel of the repeated OT introduction "Thus saith the LORD".  Here God's Word of truth is personified and makes a bedrock promise that cannot and will not be broken by the Omnipotent, Faithful God Who is not a man that He should lie. That assurance is why we must constantly seek to trust His Word, not our feelings which are often deceiving.

Haldane commenting on the Scripture says writes that

Here Paul shows that the Scriptures of the Prophets taught the same doctrine that he was teaching. This was not necessary in order to add authority to his own doctrine,—for he was equally inspired with the Prophets,—but in order to prove the perfect agreement of the Old and the New Testament, and to show that the Jews who denied that the Gentiles were to be fellow–heirs with them, were in error, even on their own principles.

By this reference to the Scriptures, too, the Apostle in the first place confirms the truth he had been so forcibly declaring concerning the language of the righteousness by faith, namely, that it was not necessary to make some impracticable attempts— such as to ascend into heaven, or to descend into the deep—to come to Christ, since He was brought nigh to all in the preaching of the Gospel, which proclaimed that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

And, in the next place, it afforded him an opportunity of recurring to the important truth, brought into view in the preceding chapter, of the Gentiles being fellow–heirs of that righteousness (cp Ro 9:30), such of them as believed the promises being part of the spiritual seed of Abraham (Ro 4:16, 17, 18-note, Gal 3:29), and equally interested in those promises with the believing remnant of the Jews. (Romans 10 Commentary Online)

Scriptures (1124)(graphe [word study] from grapho = to write; English = graphite - the lead in a pencil!) means first  a writing or thing written, a document.

The majority of the NT uses refer to the Old Testament writings, in a general sense of the whole collection when the plural (= Scriptures - Mt. 21:42; 22:29; 26:54; Mk. 12:24; 14:49; Lk. 24:27, 32, 45; Jn. 5:39; Acts 17:2, 11; 18:24, 28; Rom. 15:4; 2Pe 3:16) is used and other times of a particular passage when the singular is used (= the Scripture - Mk. 12:10; 15:28; Lk. 4:21; Jn. 13:18; 19:24, 36f; Acts 1:16; 8:35; Ro 11:2; Jas. 2:8, 23) and is used in such a way that quoting Scripture is understood to be the same as quoting God!

It is worth noting that the majority of the OT passages quoted in the NT Scriptures are not from the original Hebrew but are from the Greek translation of the Hebrew, the Septuagint (LXX). The full title, “the Holy Scriptures,” is found only in Ro 1:2 (see note).

Whoever - This all inclusive term extends the merciful invitation of the Gospel to the Gentiles...if they truly believed.

Believes (4100) (pisteuo [word study] from pistis = faith) means to trust or have faith in. Pisteuo denotes more than intellectual assent to a fact. The word conveys the idea of adherence to, committal to, reliance upon, trust in a person or an object, and this involves not only the consent of the mind, but an act of the heart and will of the subject. Notice that in this verse pisteuo is in the present tense.

Not (ou) signifies absolute negation. One could paraphrase Paul's promise that this person "will absolutely never be disappointed".

MacDonald comments that...

The thought of public confession of Christ might arouse fears of shame, but the opposite is true. Our confession of Him on earth leads to His confession of us in heaven. Ours is a hope that will never be disappointed.  The word whoever forms a link with what is to follow—namely, that God’s glorious salvation is for all, Gentiles as well as Jews. (Ibid)

Haldane has an interesting discussion....

Here it may be remarked, that the least degree of faith embraces Christ, and unites the soul to Him. Faith does not save us by being strong or weak. It is Jesus Christ by whom we are saved and not by our faith, which is only the instrument or hand by which we receive Him. It may be further remarked, that here, as in so many other parts of Scripture, we see a full warrant for every one of the human race to believe in Jesus Christ, with the certainty that in doing so he shall be saved. (Romans 10 Commentary Online)

Disappointed (2617) (Kataischuno [word study] from kata = down but here intensifies meaning of verb aischuno = to shame) means primarily to put to shame, to humiliate, to disgrace (1Cor 11:4, 5) and (as used in the present verse) to disappoint or to frustrate one's hope (Ro 9:33-note, Ro 10:11-note, 1Pe 2:6-note). In the passive voice it can mean to blush with shame at one's predicament.

Paul personifies the Living Word again (Scripture says) quoting the Old Testament prophet Isaiah who records

Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed (not make haste, not be in a hurry). (Isaiah 28:16)

You may be asking how Paul got "not be disappointed" out of "not be disturbed" (or more literally not be in a hurry). The answer is that Paul does not quote the Hebrew but the Septuagint (LXX)  which translates the Hebrew verb hasten with the Greek verb kataischuno. Most of the New Testament quotations from the Old Testament are taken from the Septuagint (LXX) which helps one understand why sometimes the Old Testament passage does not seem to "match" the New Testament quote.

McGee explains that...

Paul is quoting Isaiah to enforce his previous statement that the “by faith righteousness” is taught in other passages of the Old Testament. This passage also shows the universal character of salvation in the word whosoever. (Mp3 -Romans 10:9-11)

Salvation has always been by faith in the Stone, in Isaiah's "the tested Stone" representing a prophecy of the coming Messiah, Whom they should have recognized.

MacArthur...

No one who believes in Him will ever be disappointed by the salvation that He so graciously and universally offers.

Wuest writes that...

Paul quotes Isaiah 28:16 in substantiation of what he has just asserted. “Shall not be ashamed” should be “shall not be put to shame.” The verb is kataischuno. The word here is used by Paul in a Hebrew usage where a person is put to shame who suffers a repulse. Paul uses it in Romans 5:5-note, “Hope does not put to shame in the sense of disappoint.”

The idea of being ashamed of the Lord Jesus is not in the apostle’s mind. Rather, he says that the sinner who places his faith in the Lord Jesus will not be defeated, disappointed, suffer a repulse in his life. Paul, writing to the Romans says that when he brings the gospel to Rome he will not be ashamed. By that he means that he is not afraid that it will not work. He believes in its power to save. (Wuest, K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans or Logos)

Peter also quotes the Septuagint (LXX)  of Isaiah 28:16 writing...

For this is contained in Scripture: "BEHOLD I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER stone, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM SHALL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED." (1Pe 2:6-note)

In Isaiah 49:23 Jehovah repeats that

Those who hopefully wait for (look for) Me (Messiah) will not be put to shame.

Jesus, and Shall It Ever Be
(Play hymn) 

Jesus, and shall it ever be,

A mortal man ashamed of Thee?
Ashamed of Thee, whom angels praise,

Whose glories shine through endless days?

Ashamed of Jesus! That dear Friend

On whom my hopes of heaven depend!
No, when I blush, be this my shame,

That I no more revere His Name!

Ashamed of Jesus! Yes, I may,

When I’ve no guilt to wash away;
No tear to wipe, no good to crave,

No fears to quell, no soul to save.

Till then, nor is my boasting vain,

Till then I boast a Saviour slain;
And O, may this my glory be,