Fullness: A Survey of Romans 11:11-36
Author’s note: This blog post is part of an ongoing series about the book of Romans. To see other Romans resources, click here.
Paul has now vindicated God from the charge of unfaithfulness to his covenant people. God has not forsaken his people because he has preserved a remnant. Most Jews, however, are guilty of rejecting God’s gift of righteousness and therefore suffer the consequence of judicial hardening. But is this “stumbling”—the unbelief of the majority—for the purpose of the ultimate rejection of the Israelite nation? Not at all. Paul now goes on to show that God has sovereignly ordered salvation history in such a way that, through the ultimate salvation of ethnic Israel, he would conclude history and bring maximum glory to himself.
Effects of Israel’s Rejection and Acceptance (11:11-16)
As a whole, the Israelite nation has rejected God’s Messiah, but God has used this rejection for his good purposes. Paul points out that Israel’s rejection has led to the inclusion of Gentile people: “through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles” (v. 11). Several times he shows that there are beneficial results associated with this Hebrew unbelief: “their trespass means riches for the world,” “their failure means riches for the Gentiles,” “their rejection means the reconciliation of the world.” Paul refers to this again in verse 30 when speaking to Gentiles: “[you] now have received mercy because of their disobedience.”
This may seem strange. How does Jewish disobedience result in Gentile salvation? The practical answer is seen in the book of Acts: “When they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, ‘Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.’” (Acts 18:6). In other words, by rejecting the message of the Messiah, the Jewish people were directly responsible for that message having a broader dissemination to the Gentile world. Their rejection has led to the salvation of the Gentiles.
There is a subtle allusion to chapter 9 and to Pharaoh, who opposed God’s plan. Because of his unbelief and hardened heart, God was exalted in a way that would not have happened otherwise. So too the Jews, by rejecting the message of Jesus, are actually furthering the glory of God as the Gentiles flock into the kingdom and God’s grace is magnified.
But this is not the end of the story. In stage one, the Jews reject Jesus and the Gentiles accept him. In stage two, the Jews see that Gentiles are entering the kingdom, and this leads to jealousy: We want to have what the Gentiles have! This, Paul suggests, is what will happen to Israel. As they see Gentiles enter the kingdom, they long to have the same spiritual blessings, which leads to Jews receiving Jesus as Messiah. In fact, Paul says that his ministry to the Gentiles is actually intended, in part, to save Jews,because he wants to “make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them.” Practically, this looks like Acts 28:23-28, where Paul tried to stir up jealousy among the Jews by pointing out that Gentiles are receiving what they were promised.
Paul never claims that his ministry will be the determining factor in changing Jewish sentiment on a wide scale. He certainly desires this, but he never assumes that he will be the one to cause that to happen. Nonetheless, it could happen through him.
In stage three, Jewish people flock into the kingdom, triggering a remarkable result: “How much more will their full inclusion mean?” “What will their acceptance mean but life from the dead?” Paul argues from the lesser to the greater. If the rejection of God’s covenant people brings glorious results, imagine the results that would stem from their obedience!
These results are defined as “life from the dead”—in other words, resurrection. What Paul is saying is that the revival of Israel will be the final event in salvation history which triggers the return of Christ and the resurrection—a glorious finale to global redemptive history.
In verse 16, he gives an argument for why Israel, as an ethnic group, will experience ultimate salvation—broader than just a minor remnant. If the firstfruits offered to God are holy, that sanctifies the rest of the lump of dough. And if the root is holy, then, by definition, so is the rest of the plant, since it all constitutes one entity. While there is debate about the meaning of these illustrations, they are probably a reference to the patriarchs, the founding members of the Jewish nation, who received promises from God (confirmed by verse 28). Paul is saying that these promises will come to fruition in an obvious way.
A Warning against Gentile Arrogance (11:17-24)
The reference to the “root” and “branches” leads naturally into an illustration about an olive tree. Paul is still speaking to Gentiles (see v. 13), and he now warns them against being proud about their position.
Gentiles have been granted full inclusion into the tree. The tree should best be understood as the covenant people of God—those who receive the covenant blessings and are the spiritual descendants of the patriarchs. They are the ones who enjoy the benefits promised to the patriarchs. In the first eight chapters of the book, Paul has already shown that the Gentiles receive all the spiritual blessings that believing ethnic Jews receive: adoption, justification, sanctification, glorification, etc.
The temptation for Gentiles is to assume that something about them is the reason God has made room for them. While the statement in verse 19 is true (“branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in”), it misses the heart of the matter: the branches were unbelieving, and any branch that remains connected is in that position only because of faith. In Romans, faith is the constant opposite of merit. As soon as Gentiles start to discuss their own merit, they are straying from faith and hence are in danger of being broken off themselves!
The solution is to continue in God’s kindness (v. 22). This means to continue believing, and to remain humble, since pride is focused on merit, which fights against the concepts of faith and grace. Indeed, regardless of what the Gentiles do, Israel itself still has the ability to return to its position within the covenant through the simple exercise of faith.
The Promise of Israel’s Salvation (11:25-32)
What Paul has been hinting at and implying throughout is now stated very clearly. We are let in on a “mystery” (a “secret element of God’s plan that has been hidden from human beings but has now been revealed,” – Schreiner). This mystery is that Jews were partially hardened (all except the remnant) for the purpose of God bringing Gentiles into the church, but this will not last forever. Eventually, all of ethnic Israel will be saved (i.e., the great majority will accept Jesus). This is in line with the Old Testament prophecies, quoted from Isaiah 59:20, Isaiah 27:9, and allusions from Jeremiah 31:33 and Psalm 14:7—all of which point to an ultimate salvation of the Jewish people.
In this way, the juxtaposition of verse 28 is true: the Jewish people are both “enemies for your sake,” because they have rejected God and persecuted the church; and they are “beloved for the sake of their forefathers,” since they will ultimately be saved in accordance with the ancient promises. This is because God never reverses course on his promises (v. 29).
Verses 30-32 summarize what had been said earlier in the chapter, pointing out that (1) Jewish rejection led to Gentile salvation, (2) Gentile belief will lead to Jewish jealousy, and (3) Jewish jealousy will result in salvation and the conclusion of history. All of this has the practical purpose of pointing out the similarity of all mankind—the same theme that Paul argued all throughout the first eight chapters, especially the first three. In this way, Paul is still promoting unity among the Jews and Gentiles in the church.
God Glorified through His Unsearchable Plans in Salvation History (11:33-36)
The apostle concludes this three-chapter section with a paean of praise to God, who has so ordered history that all the glory comes back to him. Even his enemies play into his hands. There is a depth to the riches of God’s wisdom and knowledge which is astonishing. While mankind sees the judgments of God—his determinative actions in history—and the ways of God—his providential direction of events—these things are “unsearchable” and “inscrutable”; we have no conception of all that God is up to. While Paul has given us a small taste of what God is doing, we are still, for the most part, in the dark. Yet what we have is so wide-ranging and glorious that it surely must bring us to our knees.
Paul reflects this worshipful attitude by reciting three questions from the Old Testament. The first two come from Isaiah 40:13, and the third comes from Job 41:11. Together, they reinforce that humans are very ignorant of God and fail to see the big picture of all that he is up to.
What then? God is inflecting all of history so that he is the end point; from him and through him and to him are all things. He is the great author, he directs all things, and they ultimately serve to point back to him and his glory. Well may we say with Paul, “To him be glory forever. Amen.”
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