NT Doctrine — Romans 10-11

Paul has established the firm principle that God’s decrees are not frustrated. The lack of willing participation does not alter the final results. That’s the whole point of using the word “predestination” — it’s about the destination, not how things get there. Thus, the Jewish zeal for a particular path misses the point. The end of the Covenant of Moses was Christ, and if the Jews missed that, it doesn’t change Israel-the-mission.

Paul quotes directly from Moses to capture the whole point of Moses: God wants hearts (Deuteronomy 30:12-14). In the process, Paul makes clear that the revelation through Moses was summed up in Christ. It was right there in plain sight all along; there was nothing hidden out of their reach. Your heart is where you lock onto trusting Him. Then Paul reminds his readers how, in the Hebrew mind, a confessing mouth presumes a matching conduct. Thus, the promised salvation is by definition the privileged life of faith.

This is the same for the whole human race. The distinction between Jew and Gentile was gone in Christ, as Paul reveals on the basis of the Jews’ own prophets (Isaiah 28:16; Joel 2:32). And it’s not as if God didn’t keep trying to call the Jews. The good news was delivered to them first; it couldn’t be more timely (the meaning of “beautiful feet”, quoting Isaiah 52:7, echoed in Nahum 1:15). Yet, Jews as a whole rejected the message.

Yes, messengers aplenty were sent to the Jews. They were warned by the prophets that God would turn to redeem the Gentiles and bring them into His divine household in order to make the Jews jealous.

It’s not that God has completely rejected the Jews for all time. Paul reminded his readers that he was a Jew himself who received the message. And it wasn’t because Paul had a mind to listen; quite the opposite. God overwhelmed his fleshly resistance. Just so, when Elijah feared he stood alone, God responded that He had kept by His own grace some 7000 who were faithful.

Paul notes that God knew how things would turn out. There was a long-term plan at work in the case of Israel. They would not turn to faith except a tiny few. The rest would be blinded to the purpose of the Covenant. Did God intend to destroy His own nation? No, He used Israel as a means to reach the rest of the world. He intended to offer everyone the same deal all at once.

Paul mentions the practice in the Law of delivering to the priests a tithe from every batch of baked bread, rather like Firstfruits. His point is that, if that tithe is acceptable to God, He would surely be willing to accept the rest of the same batch, if it were offered. A tiny remnant of Jews coming to Christ should indicate that God has no problem with calling out even more of them, the same way He did Paul, if necessary.

Paul goes on to make a similar point with a parable about olive trees. The trees live quite long, but don’t bear fruit without pretty harsh purging of excess growth. After a decade or so, what does sprout will tend to be fruitless. Wild olives don’t bear much fruit, but if you graft in a carefully selected wild limb to a domesticated tree, you’ll get a fresh crop again. Paul warns his Gentile readers not to get arrogant with the Jews, as if God cut them off because He gets more fruit among Gentiles. Jews are not out of the picture. The root of the gospel message is still Israeli, and the Gentiles had better absorb the juice of Hebrew identity in order to bear fruit.

Then Paul writes something that most people miss in their English translations. Perhaps a better translation goes like this: “Israel was hardened against the gospel just until enough Gentiles are gathered” (into the covenant). In other words, it’s not about Israel-the-nation, but Israel-the-mission. Gentiles will become part of what Israel-the-nation was meant to be; the True Israel will be saved complete. The result will be a purged kingdom that bears fruit in righteousness.

Working through an obstreperous people, He managed to declare the promises of rich blessings to all nations. He still loves Israel, and there will come a day when He touches them one more time to harvest souls. But for a time, He has pushed them out of His camp so that everyone outside the camp could be received again on better terms. It’s all grace, and it’s all greater than any words can say.