Romans 11

The following material is adopted from John MacArthur’s commentary on Romans and his Study guide. Additional material taken from sources listed at the end

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God has not canceled His promises to Israel — Part 1: His Setting Aside of Israel is Partial ( 11:1-10 )

( Romans 11:1–10 ) “I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? “Lord, they have killed Your prophets, they have torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.” But what is the divine response to him? “I have kept for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God’s gracious choice. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; just as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, Eyes to see not and ears to hear not, Down to this ve…”

R.C. Sproul

How we understand eschatology is, to a large degree, connected to how we understand Romans 11. This chapter is Paul’s most complete teaching on the future of the nation Israel. Much of the dispute about eschatology in our time focuses on what, if anything, is still to happen with ethnic Israel, the Jews who exist today.

John MacArthur

— No message in scripture is clearer or repeated more often than the unqualified declaration that God can be trusted, the He is the very source and measure of truth

— Titus 1:2 “in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,”

— Hebrews 10:23 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;”

— Joshua 23:14 “Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the Lord your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fulfilled for you, not one of them has failed.”

— 1 Kings 8:56 “Blessed be the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised; not one word has failed of all His good promise, which He promised through Moses His servant.”

— Psalm 31:5 “You have ransomed me, O Lord, God of truth.”

— No passage of Scripture articulates God’s truthfulness and trustworthiness more eloquently than chapters 9-11 of Romans

— God made clear and specific promises to His chosen people, some of which were conditional

— But His greatest promises were unconditional and therefore were grounded solely in God’s righteous integrity

— God cannot fail in those promises; He would be what God cannot be

— Contrary to what some sincere Christians maintain, God cannot be finished with the nation Israel - for the obvious reason that all of His promises to her have not been fulfilled

Israel's very existence as a nation is tied to the promises of God without question.  In fact, they were elected by God as His chosen nation and by His own sovereignty, unconditionally, He promised to bless them.  The blessing that came to them in the Abrahamic covenant was not even conditioned upon them.  In other words, God determined to do it no matter what they did.  God would bring about the right circumstances to fulfill His promises.  So God chose a people, God made promises to a people, God confirmed those promises by an oath in the fifteenth chapter of Genesis. He made the promises in chapter 12, chapter 13, and then in chapter 15 He confirmed it by an oath.

— God’s first covenant with Israel was through Abraham

— God promised: “And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” ( Gen 12:2-3 )

— And after Abraham entered Canaan He told him that he would be given land and that his descendants would be as numerous as the dust of the earth that cannot be numbered ( Gen 13:14-16 )

— And then God instructed Abraham to cut certain animals in half and God passed between the animals and God affirmed the oath with Himself ( Gen 15:8-21 )

And you can go back into the Old Testament as we did when we looked at Romans chapter 9 and see promise after promise after promise. There is what is called the Abrahamic covenant in which God promises to bless the people that come out of the loins of Abraham.  There is what is called the Davidic covenant in which God promises to give them a King from the seed of David who will be a greater King than any king who ever reigned, the Messiah.  There is the Palestinian covenant, Deuteronomy chapter 30, which is the promise of God that they shall possess the land.  There is, in fact, a Mosaic covenant which is a promise of blessing upon obedience.  And then there is Jeremiah 31 in which God promises to them a new covenant in which He will plant His law within their hearts, in which He will redeem them.  All of these promises given by God must be fulfilled to the Jewish people.  And the fact that through Israel multiplied millions of Gentiles have been blessed does not cancel the promise to Israel.

— The Jews of the OT understood that those promises would be fulfilled literally

— When the Messiah came spiritual blindness prevented them from recognizing Him ( Jn 1:11 )

— Pilate mockingly asked the Jewish crowd, “Shall I crucify your King?”

— The chief priests, speaking for all of apostate Israel sad, “We have no king but Caesar” ( Jn 19:15 )

— Isreal stumbled ( 9:32-33 ), they tried to establish their own righteousness ( 10:3 ) and were continually disobedient ( 10:21 )

— If they did all these things, then hasn’t God just wiped off all of the promises? That must be answered.

— But Paul makes it clear that Israel’s rejection did not catch God by surprise

— In fact, it was a part of His eternal plan of redemption

— Once again we see the remarkable and seemingly irreconcilable association of God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility

And I hope that when we're done you'll have a tremendous affirming sense of the trustworthiness of God who is a covenant-keeping God.  You see, Paul must defend the fact that God has not cancelled His promises to Israel, because how are you going to get any Gentile to accept the gospel from a God who cancels out His promises?  I mean, no Jew would want to hear a gospel in which it was inherent that God had cancelled His former promises to them.  And no Gentile would want to sign up to belong to a God who couldn't be trusted.  So this whole matter of, does God keep His Word, and have the promises of Israel been cancelled, is essential to the further proclamation of the gospel.  And again I say what I've said all along in 9, 10 and 11, this portion of the book is not incidental, it is the very heartbeat of this epistle because the doctrine of justification by faith must deal somehow with Israel.  Why have the people of God refused it?  Doesn't that mess up the plan?  No, God had that in the plan.  Why are they set aside? Because the gospel is untrue?  No, because they were unbelieving and they sought righteousness the wrong way.  Does God then cancel all His promises to them?  And the enemy would love to have the answer be "yes He does" because then he couldn't sell the gospel to anybody.  Nobody wants to trust a God who can't be trusted. And so, Paul must deal with the issue.  And that's exactly what he does.  And he deals with it in such a wonderful way, by the time you get to the end of the chapter it's time for praise and hallelujah.  And the chapter ends with a glorious praise, a glorious benediction, "O the depths of the riches of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out," and so forth and so forth.  So it ends on a note of praise, a note of joy.

( 11:1 ) May it never be!

— This phrase, mḕ génoito, is the strongest negative in the Greek language

— Jesus used this expression once in one of His parables ( Lk 20:16 )

— With this one exception, it is only used by Paul — 14 times in the NT and 10 times here in Romans

— Despite Israel’s being “disobedient and obstinate” ( Rom 10:21 ) Scripture assures us that God will never forsake His promises to Israel ( 1 Sam 12:22; Ps 89:31-37, 94:14 )

First of all, Israel's setting aside because of their unbelief, because of God's sovereign plan, Israel's setting aside — mark it now — is only, first of all, partial. It's only partial.  Not all Jews are set aside, it's only partial.  Secondly, it's only passing, it's only passing. It's only temporary.  Thirdly, it is purposeful and that is the most marvelous part of the chapter.  It is partial. It is passing. It is purposeful.  It is partial, goes from verse 1 to 10.  It is passing, from verse 11 to 25.  It is purposeful, from 26 to 36.  So the theme of the chapter is very clear, Israel will be restored, Israel will receive fully the promises and that's why the chapter ends with praise in verses 33 to 36.   Their setting aside is only partial, not all of them; only passing, not permanent; and purposeful, in other words, it has purpose, it has a goal, it has an object, it has a reason.  And it's just thrilling as we go through these things.

The setting aside of Israel is only partial

(a) The writer ( 1-10 )

(b) The Remnant ( 11-25 )

(c) The Revelation ( 26-36 )

The Truth about the Writer ( 11:1b )

( Rom 11:1b ) “I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

— His people refers to the “disobedient and obstinate” nation of Israel, whom he referred to earlier ( 10:21 )

— Why would the Lord make you his people and then cast them away?

— 1 Samuel 12:22 “For the Lord will not abandon His people on account of His great name, because the Lord has been pleased to make you a people for Himself.”

— Psalm 94:14 “For the Lord will not abandon His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance.” (c.f. Ps 89:30-37 )

— In Psalm 106, which is a history of Israel’s defection and apostasy, constant sinning, nevertheless (v.45) He remembered His covenant

— Nehemiah 9:31–32“Nevertheless, in Your great compassion You did not make an end of them or forsake them, For You are a gracious and compassionate God. “Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness...”

R.C. Sproul

Paul begins, as he has done so often throughout this epistle, with a rhetorical question: I say then, has God cast away His people? (v. 1a). In Old Testament times Israel was called out of paganism and set apart as a theocratic nation with God as its ultimate king. Israel was given a mandate and a destiny. It has been said by some historians, “How odd of God to choose the Jews.” I believe it was George Bernard Shaw who once asked a theologian for certain proof of the existence of God, and the theologian replied to Shaw, “I can prove the existence of God with one or two words — the Jews.” The history of Israel all the way back to Abraham up to the present day is a striking testimony of God’s providential government of human history, especially redemptive history.

— The first proof that God has not rejected His chosen people was that Paul was himself an Israelite

— Paul does not mention it here but the vast majority of early Christians were Jews

— Paul’s conversion made it obvious that God could not possibly have rejected all Israel

— Paul is not referring to individual Jews but to the nation

He is living proof that as the promises didn't include all Jews in salvation, chapter 9 said, nor does the punishment exclude all Jews from salvation, chapter 11. Paul wouldn't teach his own damnation.  Paul wouldn't spend his entire life preaching a gospel that he was shut out from, would he?  It would be kind of a stupid way to waste your life and he certainly wouldn't rejoice in it.  No, he is the first living proof that the setting aside of Israel in judgment is only partial, partial.

The Truth about the Remnant ( 11:2-7a )

( Rom 11:2-7a ) God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? “Lord, they have killed Your prophets, they have torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.” But what is the divine response to him? “I have kept for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God’s gracious choice. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained

— The second proof that God’s setting aside of Israel is only partial is that the Lord has always preserved a remnant for Himself

— In this context foreknew does not simply mean to be aware of something beforehand

— Basically means a predetermination to love, a predetermination to love

— To foreknow, we think of it as knowing something before it happens.  That's not the idea of the term proginsko

— In Scripture, “to know” often carries the idea of intimacy, such as between a husband and a wife ( Amos 3:2 )

— God’s foreknowledge is frequently used of His intimate, loving relationship with all those He called to Himself “before the foundation of the earth” ( Eph 1:4 )

— Speaking of Christ, Peter declared at Pentecost:

— This Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. ( Acts 2:23 )

— Now foreknowledge in that context can only mean preordination, predetermination. 

— “Determinate counsel” and “foreknowledge of God” are equal. They're equivalent statements.

— And Peter speaks of believers as those “who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father” ( 1 Peter 1:1-2 )

— God’s foreknowing those who will be saved is the same as predestining those who will be saved ( Rom 8:29 - 30 )

— Isreal is the only nation God has foreknown and predetermined to be His people and the recipients of His love and grace (Deut 7:6-8 )

— So foreknowing is setting love on someone as an act of sovereign choice on the part of God.  It's a great thought but that is exactly what God has done.

— If God’s salvation is is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace

— The additional phrase in the KJV (“otherwise work is no more work”) may have been a copier’s marginal note that found its way into the text

R.C. Sproul

Throughout the Old Testament God speaks of preserving a remnant. If you go to a carpet store because they happen to be having a remnant sale, you are not going there to purchase whole rugs. You are buying what is left over after the rugs have been trimmed. Seed left after the field has been plowed, dregs found at the bottom of a cup, loose ends fit only for the trash barrel, and the stump left from the felled tree are all metaphors for the people of God. That is what we are — the dregs reserved by God in election. He has preserved His remnant, which he determined to redeem from the foundation of the world. That is why I know the church of Jesus Christ will be never be erased from the face of the earth. Parishes may fall and denominations may crumble, but God will preserve His elect in every generation. You will never be asked to stand alone in a dying world, because God has a people who cannot fail.

The church belongs to Christ. It is His bride, and the bride has been given to the Son by the Father. Before going to the cross Jesus prayed in the upper room: “I don not pray fro the world but for those whom You have given me, for they are Yours…Those whom You gave me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition [Judas], that the Scripture might be fulfilled” (John 17:9, 12 ).

The Truth about the Revelation ( 11:7b-10 )

( Romans 11:7–10 ) “and the rest were hardened; just as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, Eyes to see not and ears to hear not, Down to this very day.” And David says, “Let their table become a snare and a trap, And a stumbling block and a retribution to them. “Let their eyes be darkened to see not, And bend their backs forever.”

— The third proof that God’s setting aside of Israel is only partial is that the Lord has hardened the hearts of those Jews who refuse to believe

— were hardened is passive, indicating that the hardening was caused by an outside power

— That outside power was none other than God

— But God hardens only those hearts who, in rejecting His gracious offer of righteousness, harden themselves to His grace

— This passage from Isaiah, God gave them a spirit of stupor, Eyes to see not and ears to hear not, is the most quoted OT passage in the NT

— (see, e.g, Matt 13:14-15; Mark 4:12; Lk 8:10; Jn 12:40, Acts 28:26 )

— It is used repeatedly to emphasize the truth that God has judicially blinded those of His chosen people who willfully blind themselves to Him

When Israel’s Messiah, Jesus Christ, came to earth, the apostate nation rejected and crucified Him. But there was a Godly remnant in Israel before Jesus was born — including Zacharias and Elizabeth, Mary and Joseph. There was a godly remnant — including Simeon, Anna, and the shepherds near Bethlehem — who received and worshipped Jesus when He was but an infant. During His ministry, a growing number of Jews turned to Him as Lord and Savior. Some 3,000 believers, mostly Jewish, were added at Pentecost ( Acts 2:41 ), and another 5,000 a short while later ( 4:4 ). By the time of the events mentioned at the end of Acts 4, it is probable that there were at 20,000 Jewish Christians in Jerusalem alone.

— A person’s table is generally thought of as a place of safety, feasting, and sustenance

— But the table of the ungodly will become a snare and a trap

— The Jews considered God’s Word, in particular the Torah, to be their spiritual sustenance — which indeed it was

— But because of their rebellious unbelief, that Word became a judgment on them, a stumbling block and a retribution

One of the saddest commentaries of history is that so many people place their trust in a the very thing that damns them. All false religions - pagan, cultic, unbiblical Christianity, and every other kind — present counterfeit means of salvation. The more their adherents feed on the falsehoods, the more immune they become to the true gospel of Jesus Christ, the living bread of life.

God has not canceled His Promises to Israel — Part 2: His Setting Israel Aside is Passing ( 11:11-24 )

( Romans 11:11–24 ) “I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root…”

At all times their borders are patrolled by jet aircraft.  And it fascinated me that the jet aircraft, those fast jets that fly about 500 feet above the Dead Sea going north to south and east to west can't fly more than three and a half minutes in any direction without being out of the land of Israel.  It's very small.  And it's surrounded by historically hostile neighbors.

This threat is ever present.  And basically the threat that Israel has from its Arab neighbors goes way, way back in history to Abraham.  Because Abraham also fathered the Arab nations, and when God brought into the land of Canaan, during the life of Abraham, a great food shortage, a great famine, it presented a very tragic situation.  Abraham, who was promised by God that he would have a great nation out of his loins, Abraham who was promised by God that his needs would be met, that he would give to Abraham the fulfillment of His promise, entered into this time of food shortage and I believe rather than trusting God decided to escape to Egypt and to go into Egypt to find the food that was unavailable in the land of Canaan.  Even though God had said to him, "Unto thy seed will I give this land."  He abandoned that land and went into Egypt.  And when he got into Egypt because I believe he was in a back-slidden condition spiritually and had stepped out of the plan and purpose and will of God, he then had to lie, at least he thought he had to lie, which compounded his sin.  You remember?  He lied about the fact that his wife, Sarah, was his sister.  He was afraid to tell the truth because he thought Pharaoh was attracted to her.  And so now he's not only in a wrong place but he's in a wrong position, having lied about his own wife. It's a good thing to keep in mind that when you step out of the place of God's will, you compound your problems.  And that's exactly what happened to Abraham.

Well, when Pharaoh found that out, found out that Abraham was indeed the husband of Sarah, he was upset at Abraham doing that and threw Abraham out of Egypt.  Abraham had gone there to be able to provide for his family ostensibly, and now he was thrown out of Egypt.  When he left Egypt he did not leave alone.  He had triply compounded his problem because while he was in Egypt he had taken on a servant by the name of Hagar, who was an Egyptian, an Egyptian woman.  So when he went back into the land of Canaan he took this handmaid, Hagar, and you all know the story from there.

And so, Paul picks up that same thing, only he's using it there for a spiritual analogy we'll not get into.  But the point I want to make is this, it was due to the sin of Abraham initially in going into the land of Egypt and bringing out an Egyptian handmaid that the Arab people were born, who claim a right to Abrahamic inheritance to this day and are still after the Jews, not all of the Arabs, of course, feeling the same strength of animosity toward them, but they still desire or at least many of them, the elimination of the Jewish people that they may possess what they believe to be rightfully their own land.

It is also very interesting that later on in the patriarchal line there were two sons born by the name of Jacob and Esau.  Jacob was the son of promise, Esau was not.  Out of Esau's loins came the Edomites, again a people that we know today as an Arab people.  And it fascinates me that in Genesis 36:3 it says, when it lists Esau's wives, it lists a Bashemath, the daughter of Ishmael.  So the line of Ishmael, not the children of promise but from the loins of Abraham, and the line of Esau, not the children of promise but also from the loins of Abraham, united to produce these people.  And so they become the antagonists of the people of promise, the people of God, the nation Israel.  And Ishmael's children and Esau's children join together to persecute the seed of Isaac. And that has been true century after century after century.  And it's still going on. They live in an imminent threat of Arab invasion and it doesn't matter what kind of treaties exist or what kind of promises are made.  As they told me many times when I was over there, those mean nothing.  If they decide that it's a holy war for the taking of what they believe is theirs, all treaties are null and void, and so we live in the constant awareness that there might be an attack against us.

— Ps 83 says that there are people who surround Isreal that wants to wipe them out

— Many countries want to have the country of Israel

— And so, all throughout history they have lived with this incessant conflict with their neighbors.

— Will any nation ever eliminate Israel?

— Jeremiah 31:37 No more hope of doing that than they do of measuring the infinite heaven, or of pursuing into the foundations of the earth.  It is not possible.

— They have been set aside because of God's sovereignty and because of their sin

— The second major truth that Paul presents in Romans 11 is that God’s act of setting aside is not permanent, it is passing

— it’s definite purpose

— It’s definite premonition

— It’s definite promise

It has a Definite Purpose ( 11:11-15 )

( Romans 11:11–15 ) “I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?”

— Paul introduces his next point with a rhetorical question: I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they?

— God has not allowed His chosen Israel to fall into such unbelief and disobedience that that they are unsalvageable

— Stumble, that verb is interesting, ptai

— That verb means fall in a situation where you could never get back up again

— Paul says May it never be!

— They did not stumble in order to fall permanently but rather to fulfill a marvelous purpose

— The first purpose is Gentile salvation

Gentile Salvation ( 11:11b )

( Romans 11:11 ) “salvation has come to the Gentiles”

— Through the stumbling of Israel, God’s far-reaching salvation was extended to the Gentiles

— Jesus warned unbelieving Israel through a parable “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it.” ( Matt 21:43 )

— Salvation for the Gentiles was not an afterthought

— The Lord told Abraham, “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” ( Gen 12:3 )

In fact, in Matthew chapter 8 we read this in verse 11 and 12, "I say unto you that many shall come from the east and west and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven."  In other words, it's going to populated by Gentiles.  "But the sons of the kingdom (that is Jews) shall be cast into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."  The very people for whom the kingdom was intended and to whom it was offered are going to be shut out of it and people are going to be gathered from the east and the west and brought into the kingdom.  So the falling away leads to the introduction of Gentiles to salvation. (c.f. Matt 21:43; 22:3 )

— The first purpose was Gentile salvation

— The second purpose was Jewish Jealousy

Jewish Salvation ( 11:11c-15 )

( Rom 11:11c-15 ) to make them jealous. Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?”

—God’s second objective in setting Israel aside was to make her jealous of Gentiles

— But Jews have long disdained Gentiles, whom they considered to be outside of the boundaries of God’s grace

— To be told, by Paul, that they lost their special relationship to God was distressing enough, but to be told that God offered that forfeited relationship to Gentiles was a bitter pill indeed

— God’s ultimate purpose in setting aside Isreal was to bring them back to Himself

— He wanted them to face their own sin and its consequences

— To sense their alienation and recognize their need for salvation that He now offered the Gentiles

— Way, back in Rom 10:19 where Paul quotes Deut 32, God says that He will provoke them to jealousy with a Gentile people

— What a wonderful plan and no wonder Paul completes this chapter (11:33) with a hymn of praise

— God is humbling Israel by making them jealous of the Gentiles

Unfortunately, the Christianity that Jews see in many professed, and even some genuine, Christians reflects little of the love and righteousness of Christ and the salvation that He brings. When they see Gentile Christians who are dishonest and immoral, and especially those who are anti-Semitic in the name of Christ (who was the supremely perfect Jew), they are deeply and understandably offended and repulsed. They are anything but jealous of such Gentiles, and they distance themselves still further from the Lord instead of drawing closer to Him.

— And then there's a third element

— There's a third element in this great and definite purpose

— First was Gentile salvation and then Jewish jealousy

— And thirdly is world blessing

( Rom 11:12 ) Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be!

— Paul says, if their rejection can lead to the reconciliation of the world, he goes to say, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?

— The tragedy of their rejection will be surpassed by the glory of their acceptance

— Negatively, if their sin accomplished that, can you imagine what their righteousness will accomplish?  That's his argument.

The "how much more" is what's going to happen when Israel finally believes.  And you can read about the "how much more" in all through the Scripture.  The kingdom coming is a time of the glory of the renewed heaven and earth.  It is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. The redeemed nation of Israel will reign and bring people from all around the world to see Christ.  Satan will be bound.  Justice will rule.  There will be one law and one King.  There will be universal peace.  There will be universal joy, worldwide righteousness, worship, wisdom will dominate all dealings and prosperity will reign everywhere, the tremendous description of the kingdom from beginning to end really of prophetic literature.  That's the "much more."  If in their unbelief the world was brought salvation, what will happen when they finally believe?  The world will receive the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

R.C. Sproul

— If God brings a good thing out of the failure of Israel, how much more blessedness will he bring through their restoration?

Years ago I ministered with the founder of Jews for Jesus, Moshe Rosen. I do not know of any organization that has been more effective in leading people of Jewish ancestry to Christ. At the same time, I do not know of any missionary organization that has provoked more controversy or hostility than this one. It has particularly provoked the religious establishment of American Judaism, which is deeply resentful of Christian evangelism to its people. I tell my Jewish friends that I am puzzled by that. I ask them, “Do you believe that Judaism is true and Christianity is false?

“Yes,” they reply.

“Do you believe that Jesus is the Messiah?”

“No,” they reply.

They believe our religion is false, that we are the ones stumbling in darkness. They think we are guilty of idolatry because we worship a man and deny the monotheistic foundation of their Jewish faith, yet they have antipathy toward evangelism. They not not evangelize Christians. If they believe that Judaism is the truth of God, why don’t they crawl over glass to bring us into the true religion of Abraham? When I ask, they nothing to say. They mumble, “It is not for you; it is just for us.”

It was a Definite Premonition (warning) ( 11:16-22 )

( Romans 11:16–22 ) “If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off.”

—Second, God’s temporarily setting Israel aside was a definite premonition

— It did not take long for early Gentile Christians to be tempted to scorn the Jews because they had scorned Christ

— Because many Gentile believers in the early church had been raised in the midst of pagan anti-Semitism, they were an easy target for Satan

— Branches broken off

— Here the apostle makes his point by referring to the familiar practice of grafting

— Olive trees can live for hundreds of years, but as they age, they can become less productive

— When a branch ceased to produce olives, a younger one was grafted in its place

— This is the illustration that Paul uses: the old, unproductive branches of Isreal were broken off ( Jer 11:16-17 )

— do not be arrogant toward the branches

— A warning against anti-Semitism and pride

— The Gentiles were not the source of blessing any more than believing Jews had been

— Remember, he continues that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you

— The blessing of both Jewish and Gentile believers comes through the root of God’s covenant promises and power

— If God cut off an apostate Israel because of her unbelief, how much more surely will He cut off an apostate church because of unbelief ( Eph 2:11-12 )

— Paul then warns those in the present that they must continue in His kindness or they, too, will be judged severely like those in the past who were near the blessing and fell

— That is a familiar NT idea, which affirms the reality of true, saving faith by continuity

— This is the perseverance of the saints that evidences their genuine conversion ( John 8:31; 15:5-6; Col 1:22-23; Heb 3:12-14; 4:11; 1 John 2:19 )

R.C. Sproul

The mount of Olives separates the village of Bethany from the city of Jerusalem. When Jesus went to Gethsemane, when He agonized in prayer the night before He was executed, the slope of the mountain between Bethany and Jerusalem was covered with olive trees. One of the tragedies of Jewish history is the felling of those trees. During the Roman siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 the Romans encamped on the Mount of Olives and waited for resources of food and water to dry up within the city. They kept warm by cutting down those olive trees, using the tree branches to build fires. The Mount of Olives was completely denuded of olive trees by the Roman Soldiers. Nevertheless, the symbol of strength and durability to the Jew was the olive tree.

Other olive trees grew wild; they were not cultivated so they bore no fruit. They were worthless, giant weeds, which is how Paul describes us: “Some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them.” God cut off the branches of the precious, durable, valuable olive tree and made a graft. The graft He put on the tree was taken from wild, worthless olive trees that could not be commended to God. “You… became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree.” These spindly, worthless, wild olive branches were plugged into the root from which they get the sap, nutrients. The grafted branches draw everything valuable from the root of the cultivated olive tree. Salvation is of the Jews, and we must never forget that.

It has a Definite Promise ( 11:23-24 )

( Romans 11:23–24 ) “And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?”

—Third, God’s temporarily setting Israel aside has a marvelous and definite promise

— Isreal will at last see Jesus as her Messiah and will repent of her unbelief ( Zech 12:10 )

— The promise is conditional — if they do not continue in their unbelief

— But God along beforehand assured His people that the condition will be met

— God is able to graft them in and He will

— One of the most interesting texts that promises the future restoration of Israel is found in Revelation 11:1-4

Revelation 11:1–4 NASB95

Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, “Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. “Leave out the court which is outside the temple and do not measure it, for it has been given to the nations; and they will tread under foot the holy city for forty-two months. “And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.

— John is given a measuring rod and he measures the temple, the altar and the worshipers

— During the Great Tribulation, the Jews will be converted ( cf. Zech 12:8-14; 13:1-2 ) and marked off by God

— The Revelation scene is similar to that depicted in Zech 2:1-5, in which Jerusalem is measured for protection

— The city is measured to mark it out as God’s possession

— So the temple is measured to affirm that salvation is coming to Israel

— The Gentiles at this time are left out ( Rev 11:2 ); most appear to oppose all that God represents

— The two witnesses also speaks of Israel’s coming salvation

— They are called “the two olive trees and the two lampstands” ( Rev 11:4 )

— Zechariah lives between Ezra and Nehemiah

— The rebuilding of the temple had been approved during Ezra but had not yet begun

— God used Zechariah to encourage two men to lead in the restoration - the high priest Joshua, and the governor of Jerusalem Zerubbabel

— Zechariah’s vision graciously promised restoration ( Zech 3 )

— The Holy Spirit alone has the power to restore Israel

— But that power will flow through “two olive trees” ( Zech 4:7-10 )

— Zerubbabel, along with Joshua is one of two olive trees God will use

— Together, one a priest and one a ruler, they were the human tools that the Holy Spirit used to restore the nation

— The destiny of Israel can and will be reversed

— Her return to the Lord not only is possible but certain

God has not canceled His Promises to Israel — Part 3: His Setting Israel Aside is Purposeful: To Glorify God ( 11:25-36 )

( Romans 11:25–36 ) “For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” “This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.” From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all. Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are H…”

—The supreme benefit of God’s redemptive plan, both for Jews and Gentiles, is to bring salvation and eternal life

— But the supreme purpose of that plan is to glorify Himself

— Even His preparation of heaven for the saved and of hell for the unsaved is to display His glory

— The purpose of everything is to glorify God ( cf Ps 19:1; Isa 43:20; 1 Cor 10:31 )

— In the words of the Westminister Shorter Catechism, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”

To Glorify God’s Sovereignty ( 11:25-26a )

( Rom 11:25-26a ) “For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved;

—God is not finished with His ancient chosen people, and even during this time when Jews, as a nation are severed from God’s special blessing because of unbelief, anti-Semitism in any form is anathema to the Lord

— Whoever harms God’s chosen people “touches the apple [pupil] of His eye” ( Zech 2:8 )

— The first component of this mystery is that a partial spiritual hardening has happened to Israel.

— The second component of this mystery is that the hardening will remain until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in

— Until the complete number of Gentiles chosen by God have come to salvation

— Maybe putting off talking to my neighbor is the only thing preventing the Lord from saving Israel

— Before all Israel is saved, its unbelieving, ungodly members will be separated out by God’s hand of judgment ( Ezek 20:33-38, cf. Dan 12:10; Zech 13:8-9 )

— Those who hear the preaching of the 144,000 (Rev 7:1-8; 14:1-5 )

— And of other converts ( Rev 7:9 )

— And of the two witnesses ( Rev 11:3-13 )

— And of the angel of the Lord ( Rev 14:6 )

— And thus pass safely under God’s rod of judgment will then comprise all Israel — will be completely a nation of believers who are ready for the kindgom of the Messiah

— It is helpful to note an additional truth that Paul does not mention at this point — namely, that, just as the fulness of the Gentiles will initiate the salvation of Israel, so the salvation of Isreal will initiate the millennial kindgom of Jesus Christ

To Glorify God’s Integrity ( 11:26b-29 )

( Rom 11:26b - 29 ) just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” “This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.” From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

—Because of Israel’s transgression in rejecting the Messiah, sh was set aside - becoming God’s enemies, as it were

— That was her temporary situation from the standpoint of the gospel

— But from the eternal standpoint of God’s sovereign choice, Israel is and forever will be beloved for the sake of the fathers - Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

R.C. Sproul

One of my favorite stories in the Old Testament is that of the lame son of Jonathan, Mephibosheth. When Saul and Jonathan were killed, a messenger came to David with that news, and David tore his garments because of his great love for Jonathan. Then he asked, “Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” ( 2 Sam 9:1: ). All Saul’s kin had fled for their lives. They assumed David wanted to get rid of them to prevent another uprising against the monarchy. Among Saul’s relative was a boy named Mephibosheth. He had been dropped by his nursemaid when he was a baby, and he became lame in both feet. He was whisked away into hiding. David sent his soldiers into the countryside to search for Saul’s survivors, and they discovered Mephibosheth and brought him back to David. Mephibosheth was terrified, sure that he would be executed, but David brought him into his house and treated him as a son. David honored Mephibosheth, not because he had affection for the boy but for the sake of his love for Jonathan.

That story illustrates the history of redemption. The only reason we are included in the kingdom of God is God’s love for His Son. Our election, our adoption, is always in Christ Jesus. God will visit His mercy upon the seed of Abraham through the line of Isaac because of His promises to the fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We have seen this theme woven throughout this epistle.

To Glorify God’s Generosity ( 11:30-32 )

( Romans 11:30–32 ) “For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all.”

—Paul’s explanation has gone full circle

— Because of Israel’s unbelief, the nation was temporarily set aside and the gospel extended to the Gentiles

— And if God extended His grace to pagan Gentiles even while they were in unbelief, how much more surely will He extend His grace again to His chosen people while they are in unbelief?

To Glorify God’s Incomprehensibility ( 11:33-36 )

( Romans 11:33–36 ) “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.”

—Paul bursts out with a marvelous doxology, in which he rejoices that God’s temporary setting Israel aside glorifies His incomprehensibility

— The full wonder of God’s omnipotence is beyond human understanding

— Unable to further explain an infinite and holy God to finite and sinful men, he can only acknowledge that God’s judgments are unsearchable and His ways are unfathomable!

Additional Resources

MacArthur, Romans. Romans 1-8. Moody Press, 1987.

MacArthur, Romans. Romans 9-16. Moody Press, 1991.

MacArthur, John. New Testament Commentary. Moody, 1985.

MacArthur, John. Has God Cancelled His Promises to Israel? Part 1. gty.org. https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/45-82/has-god-cancelled-his-promises-to-israel--part-1

MacArthur, John. Has God Cancelled His Promises to Israel? Part 2. gty.org. https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/45-83/has-god-cancelled-his-promises-to-israel--part-2

MacArthur, John. Has God Cancelled His Promises to Israel? Part 3. gty.org. https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/45-84/has-god-cancelled-his-promises-to-israel--part-3

MacArthur, John. Has God Cancelled His Promises to Israel? Part 4. gty.org. https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/45-85/has-god-cancelled-his-promises-to-israel--part-4

William Hendriksen. Exposition of Paul's Epistle to the Romans. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1995.

Sproul, R.C. Romans: The Righteous Shall Live by Faith. Romans an expositional commentary. Ligonier Ministries. 2019.