Romans 5:5

hope Lit. the hope; not any hope, but the hope thus produced.

maketh not ashamed Same word as Romans 9:33; 2Co 7:14; 2 Corinthians 9:4; nearly the same as Philippians 1:20; 2 Timothy 1:12. In all these passages the idea of disappointmentis in the verb. So here: "the shame of disappointment never follows this hope."

because The connexion of thought is illustrated by e.g. Ephesians 1:13-14. See too Romans 8:11; Romans 8:16-17. Our certainty that the hope will end in fruition is deepened, if not begun, by the fact that the Holy Spirit is already given to us, and so given as to assure us of the love of God.

the love of God i.e. His love to us. So Romans 5:8; Romans 8:35; Romans 8:39. The following context decides against the meaning "our love to Him."

is shed abroad Lit. has been poured out, as rain from a cloud. The tense indicates the lasting result of that past act by which the Holy Spirit first revealed the Divine Love to the soul.

by the Holy Ghost which is given Better, which was given; a past bestowal, whether viewed ideally as to the Church, or actually as to each justified person. The Divine personal Spirit is here seen working as in Romans 8:15-16; and in such work He is recognized as the "earnest" of heaven, where the Love of God will be fully realized for ever.