Romans 9 – 11 and the Nation State of Israel
Historical
Background
Before I launch
into this discussion it is critical to say a word about the historical context
to the who Letter of Paul to the Romans.
You will see how important this is as I move through my argument. We
know from Acts 18:1-2 that the
church in Rome had existed for some time and was made up of both Jewish and
non-Jewish followers. The crisis for this church began when the Roman emperor
Claudius expelled all of the Jewish people from Rome. About five years later,
all those Jews, including many who followed Jesus, were allowed to return. When
they did, they found a church that had become non-Jewish in its customs and
practice. This culture clash created lots of tension, and by Paul’s day, the
Roman church was divided.
The Church in Rome had a racial
problem. Does God treat the Jew differently than the Greek? Those who have
studied the previous chapters in Romans see that Paul systematically shows
there is no difference between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians. Both face the same plight, and both have the
same Saviour. Behind Romans 9-11 exists an unspoken question, “Does God save Jews
in the same way?” Or stated more
succinctly: “Don’t the Jews have national promises that Gentiles don’t have?” “Is there a redemptive future for the nation
state of Israel?”
The Purpose
This
article is intended to show that Romans 9-11 does not support the
popular notion that at the end of time, God will show His faithfulness to the
nation state of Israel (Israel according to the flesh) and bring to pass a mass
revival thus showing that “all Israel will be saved.” In whatever way one may arrive at such a
conclusion, I contend that it cannot be supported by Romans 9-11. Here is an example of such an interpretation:
“He plans to remove the hardening of unbelief and
renew His covenant with Israel. This will occur as many Jewish people come to
faith in Christ at some future time. Israel remains deeply loved by God because
of His irrevocable promises and calling for the patriarchs.”
Supported mostly by a
system of theology known as Dispensationalism, this interpretation is
questionable. The statement is intended to summarize Paul’s words in Romans
11:26a (ESV): “And in this way all Israel will be saved.” But you will note in your reading that most conservative
scholars do not take that literally (A tenet of Dispensationalism!) but rather
qualify it as “many Jewish people”. It
must also be admitted by those who embrace a future salvation of all Israel
(and their various interpretations of such) that “all” does not mean to them as
“all”. In fact, by their own conclusions,
they are speaking of a massive redemptive work of God upon the nation state of
Israel that serves the salvic benefit of one generation of Jews. However, that is not my main argument in this
article.
My limited scope is
to simply show that the internal evidence of Romans 9-11 does not support the
notion of any end-time event analogous to a massive redemption of the nation
state of Israel. I wish to prove my thesis in 5 points.
#1. The foundation
of Romans 9-11 does not support such a notion.
This foundation is the
opening verses, Romans 9:6–11 (ESV):
“6 But
it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended
from Israel belong to Israel, 7 and not all are children of
Abraham because they are his offspring, . . . but the children of the promise
are counted as offspring. . .. —in order that God’s purpose of election might
continue, not because of works but because of him who calls.”
The
argument starts in Romans 8:39b, “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” But what about Israel? Has God’s word failed regarding Israel? No!
The Israel that Paul weeps for and wishes to be accursed for is not the Israel
of promise. “Not all Israel belong to Israel.”
The point that undergirds these important chapters is that God never
intended to “save all Israel”. The
promise was always for a remnant chosen (elected) by grace. This principle must
shape our thinking of Romans 11:26. Paul is clearly setting the parameters
here. If Romans 9:1-11 is affirming that
God’s eternal plan was to save a chosen remnant from within the nation state of
Israel, we must assume that to be true throughout the remaining two
chapters. God never foreknew, sovereignly
elected all of the nation state of ethnic Israel.
#2. The proof of God’s faithfulness to His plan for Israel is not an
end-time restoration.
Paul’s
answer to the question in Romans 9:6, “Has the Word of God failed” regarding
Israel is not, “No it is not failed, just wait until I tell you about the national
restoration that will occur before the end of time.” It is the saving of a remnant that responds
to the question of God’s faithfulness.
And Paul will make himself as a prime example. Note Romans 11:1–5 (ESV):
“11 I
ask, then, has God rejected his people?
By no means! For I myself am an Israelite . . . 5 So too
at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace.”
As
Paul is writing this Letter, he not only proves God’s fidelity through the
individual salvation of God’s elect Jews, but through that very means
refutes the idea of a national ethnic restoration. The nation is in fact,
not all going to be saved. Thus, Paul
writes in Romans 11:14 that it is his driving mission “in order somehow to make
my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them.” (Emphasis
mine).
#3. The internal evidence proves that “partial” means not “all”.
Proponents
of this end-time revival of the Jewish nation take the word partial and apply
it to time. Noting Romans 11:25 (ESV), we read:
“25 Lest
you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery,
brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the
fullness of the Gentiles has come in.”
The
common Dispensationalism view assumes that God has placed a judicial hardening
on the nation state of Israel and is lifted at some point in time. For example: “The time is coming, after the right amount of the Gentiles have
believed in Christ, when God will remove the hardening from the unbelieving
Jews. They will turn to faith in Christ and, as a people, be grafted back onto
God's symbolic olive tree.”
The problem with that is
that God never uses the idea of a partial hardening of Israel in terms of time.
The idea of hardening is juxtaposed with election. In describing God’s purpose for Pharaoh, God
inspires Paul to write: “So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he
hardens whomever he wills.” (Romans 9:18).
The partial hardening again supports Paul’s instruction: Some of Israel
has been hardened and some of Israel has been shown mercy (elected by grace);
or stated otherwise, not all Israel is Israel.
The phrase “all Israel”
is again compared with “the fullness of the Gentiles”. Other than Universalists, no conservative,
evangelical scholar would equate Gentile fullness to all of the Gentiles will
be saved. No, we would say that God has
determined by electing grace to save a certain number of Gentiles. Likewise,
the term “all Israel” corresponds by teaching us that God has determined to
save a certain number of elect Jews.
#4. Paul does reveal
a sequence of time that refutes an en-time Jewish revival.
Note Romans 11:11–15
(ESV):
“11 So I
ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather,
through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel
jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world,
and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their
full inclusion mean! 13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles.
Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in
order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. 15 For if their rejection
means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life
from the dead.”
Paul identifies a
sequence. Jewish trespass leads to salvation to the Gentiles. Stated otherwise:
Jewish trespass means riches for the Gentiles.
So, question: “How much more of a blessing will it be to the Gentiles when
all of the elect Jews are saved. Dispensationalists
anticipate that when “all Israel is saved” the end shall come, and all the elect
Gentiles are already saved. But the verse implies that when the “fullness of
the Jews is complete, there is yet to be a blessing (“how much more will their
full inclusion mean”).
Stated succinctly the
text anticipates increasing blessing to the Gentiles by the salvation of Jews,
but a Dispensational reading of this teaches that once the Jews are saved the
end will come.
#5. Paul is
describing a “way” not a “when”.
“And in this way all
Israel will be saved.” (Romans 11:26).
As stated above, Paul is showing the faithfulness of God and His Word to
Israel, not by promising an end-time revival before Christ’s return, but in
fact showing that God is faithful to His Word in that not all Israel is chosen
by grace through faith (Chapter 10) to be saved but that those Jews who are the
elect according to grace are being saved through the Gospel — and that is HOW
all Israel according to promise will be saved.
Summary
These chapters could be
bookended this way:
Romans 9:6–11 (ESV): 6 But
it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended
from Israel belong to Israel . . . —in order that God’s purpose of election
might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls . . ..”
Romans 11:26 (ESV): “26And
in this way all Israel will be saved . . ..”
All Israel, all Israel
according to promise, will be saved by God’s sovereign electing grace through
faith in Jesus Christ. That is the “way” all of Israel that God had fore
known in eternity will be saved. And in keeping with the historical
context of Romans, that is the exact same way the Gentiles will come into their
fullness.
Conclusion.
I have given 5 integral
arguments that exist within the text of Romans 9-11 that refute any notion that
God has a plan to save the nation state of Israel in a future and final display
of His redemptive plan. If someone is to
suggest the reality of such an event, they will find no support within the
pages of Romans 9-11. If they find it elsewhere,
they would need to deal with an apparent contradiction in Scripture that is
fatal if such existed.
