We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. (Rom 8:22-27 NRSV)
In this pericope, the efficacy of the Holy Spirit interceding for us is explicated by the Apostle Paul. Tim Reddish offered the following insightful commentary on the theology of prayer and the Spirit’s intercession in this pericope:
The key point, however, is that the “very Spirit” (8:26)—not an angel—helps us in our weakness. The one who is active on the behalf of the Christian is the same Spirit who dwells in the believer (8:9-11)—the same Spirit that enables us to cry out “Abba father” (8:15). Moreover, the Greek word for “helps” is strong, as in “concrete aid,” or the one who actively takes the brunt of the load that we cannot carry alone. While the Spirit does not take over the Christian’s responsibility to pray, the Spirit is always ready to come to our assistance. This is comforting news, especially in the context of suffering. The Christian never prays alone.
The triple use of the words “sighs” and “groans” is curious. An obvious parallel is the groans of the Israelites in slavery in Egypt (Exod 2:24; 6:5) and Tob 3:1 expresses a sentiment that is in keeping with that of Paul: “Then with much grief and anguish of heart I wept, and with groaning began to pray.” Some might say that the Spirit assists and makes up for any lacking in our earnestness; but that can only be part of the story. Some scholars have taken the Spirit’s inexpressible groanings to mean “speaking in tongues.” However, this seems most unlikely as the Greek words Paul uses imply “speechless” or “voiceless.” Neither does this mean silent prayer or contemplation, since in Paul’s day most people would read—and pray—aloud even when alone. Instead, these prayers seem to be agnonizing laments that are too heartfelt to be articulated. The groans convey a sense of intensity and sincerity. They represent a profound yearning and a deep desire for the request to be heard and addressed . . . . You might ask, “How precisely does the Spirit intercede?” Does the Spirit cry out directly on our behalf, or indirectly by stirring up in our hearts those desires which are appropriate? . . . the Greek and the overall context imply directly . . . In 8:27 the Father is referred to as “the Heart Searcher.” Recall that in Hebraic thought the heart is the center of “being,” the source of will, emotion, and intentionality. Concerning God as the Heart Searcher. Origen states, “Paul shows here that God pays less attention to the words we use in prayer then he does to what is in our heart and mind.” However, the context here is in searching the heart of the Spirit, who is intimately dwelling within the saints (8:9-11, 14-16), as well as being an integral person within the Trinity. Whatever our own groanings may mean (8:23), the Spirit’s groaning (8:26) is not only comprehended by the Heart Searcher, but is inevitably in accordance with the will of God (8:27). For Christians who are waiting in patience and living hope (8:25), this is a bold affirmation as to the effectiveness of prayer. It is in this context, then, that Paul continues:
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God . . . What then are we to say about these things? I God is for us, who is against us? (Rom 8:28a, 31)
Wright suggests Paul’s rationale should be understood as:
God knows the mind of the Spirit; but we know that God works all things together for good for those who love God; therefore (implicit but vital) God works all things together for good for us, we in whom the Spirit is operating . . . “All things”—not just the groanings of the previous verses, but the entire range of experiences and events that may face God’s people—are taken care of by the creator God who is planning to renew the whole creation, and us along with it. (Wright, “Letter to the Romans,” 600)
The believer, then, has two intercessors: Jesus who intercedes in heaven at the right hand of the Father (8:34), and the Spirit who intercedes while resident within believers. These are not two rival intercessors, since the ultimate aim of both the Spirit and the Son is to bring the believer into the Father’s fellowship! However, though it might be tempting to simply equate the intercessory actions of Christ with those of the Spirit in this passage, their locations force us to maintain the differentiation. All this provides motivation to exercise the spiritual discipline of prayer, which Calvin describes as the perpetual (or chief) exercise of faith (Calvin, Institutes, bk. 3, ch. 20, 682). (Tim Reddish, Does God Always Get What God Wants? An Exploration of God’s Activity in a Suffering World [Eugene, Oreg.: Cascade Books, 2018], 124-27, emphasis in original)
Joseph Fitzmyer offered the following note on Rom 8:26 which is rather apropos:
the Spirit itself intercedes for us with ineffable sighs. Paul recognizes the assistance of the “indwelling Spirit” (8:11) as being that of intercession with the Father on behalf of weak Christians. It pleads their cause with the Father, but it also helps them to formulate their prayer. Paul thus recognizes the Spirit’s “ineffable sighs” as the source of all genuine Christian prayer. Such assistance is not limited to the prayer of petition, but would include all manner of communing with God, be it doxology in adoration, blessing, praise, thanksgiving, penitent confession, supplication, or, above all, acknowledgment of God as Father (8:15) and of Jesus as Lord (1 Cor 12:3b). For Paul, genuine Christian prayer is addressed to God the Father, through Christ his Son, in the holy Spirit. Cf. Jude 20, “praying in the holy Spirit”; Eph 6:18, “praying at every moment in the Spirit.” See Stendahl, “Paul at Prayer,” 156–57.
The idea of “intercession” attributed by Paul to the Spirit (only here in the NT) is based on OT ideas: intercession is ascribed to Abraham (Gen 18:23–33), Moses (Exod 8:8, 12, 28–30), priests (Lev 16:21–22; Num 6:23–27), kings (2 Sam 12:16); prophets (1 Kgs 18:22–40), angels (Tob 12:12; cf. T. Lev. 3:5, 6), upright persons in the afterlife (2 Macc 15:12–16; cf. As. Mos. 11:14–17). But nowhere in the OT or in pre-Christian Jewish writings does one find the idea of the holy Spirit as an intercessor. (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, Romans: A New Translation With Introduction and Commentary [AB 33; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008], 518)
