John Calvin Commentary Romans 8:25

"But if we hope for that which we see not, [then] do we with patience wait for it." — Romans 8:25 (ASV)

If then what we see not, etc. This is an argument derived from what the antecedent implies; for patience necessarily follows hope. For when it is grievous to be without the good you may desire, unless you sustain and comfort yourselves with patience, you must inevitably faint from despair.

Hope then always draws patience with it. Thus it is a most apt conclusion — that whatever the gospel promises concerning the glory of the resurrection vanishes, unless we spend our present life patiently bearing the cross and tribulations. For if life is invisible, we must have death before our eyes: if glory is invisible, then our present state is that of degradation.

And therefore, if you wish to summarize the meaning of the whole passage in a few words, arrange Paul’s arguments in this way: “To all the godly, salvation is laid up in hope; it is the nature of hope to look forward to future and absent benefits; then the salvation of the faithful is not visible. Now hope is sustained in no other way than by patience; then the salvation of the faithful is not to be consummated except by patience.”

It may be added that we have here a remarkable passage, which shows that patience is an inseparable companion of faith; and the reason for this is evident, for when we console ourselves with the hope of a better condition, the feeling of our present miseries is softened and mitigated, so that they are borne with less difficulty.