Martin Luther on Romans 2:4, "He leadeth them to repentance"

“God has not so utterly forsaken the sons of men that He will not grant them some measure of comfort in this hope of the passing of evil and the coming of good things. Though they are uncertain of the future, yet they hope with certain hope, and hereby they are meanwhile buoyed up, lest falling into the further evil of despair, they should break down under their present evil, and do some worse thing. Hence, even this sort of hope is the gift of God; not that He would have them lean on it, but that He would turn their attention to that firm hope, which is in Him alone. For He is so long-suffering that He leadeth them to repentance, as it is said in Romans 2, and suffers none to be straightway deceived by this deceitful hope, if haply they may ‘turn to the heart [Isa. 46:8],’ and come to the true hope.”[1] 

Reference: 

[1] Martin Luther, Works of Martin Luther (Philadelphia: A. J. Holman Company, 1915), vol. 1, pp. 146-147.