In Romans 8:23, who are 'they' and who are 'ourselves'?
In Romans 8:23, 'they' refers to the whole creation—the things of nature—groaning under the curse, while 'ourselves' refers to believers who have the firstfruits of the Spirit. Only believers can eagerly await the Lord's coming, unlike unbelievers who shrink from it.
Les explains that in Romans 8:23, 'they' are not believers but the things of nature—the whole creation that groans and travails in pain together until now. Creation is under constant duress, as illustrated by the cottontail searching for food and trying to avoid being food, which is not the way God intended it. By contrast, 'ourselves also' refers to believers, those who have the firstfruits of the Spirit. Les emphasizes that only believers can anxiously look forward to the Lord's coming, while the unbeliever shrinks from it and is not ready for it.
And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.