Israel's Story Part 3

Today's Reading

Read Romans 11:1-36: Has God rejected His people? "By no means!" Paul uses the image of the olive tree — natural branches broken off, wild branches grafted in — and declares that "all Israel will be saved." The chapter ends in doxology: "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!"

Then read Jeremiah 31:31-34: "Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel."

Reflection

Romans 11 brings Paul's three-chapter wrestling with Israel to its climax — and it ends not with a neat theological resolution but with worship.

Paul begins by asking directly: "Has God rejected his people?" His answer is immediate and emphatic: "By no means!" Paul himself is evidence: he is an Israelite, of the tribe of Benjamin, and God has not rejected him. There is a remnant — chosen by grace, just as there was a remnant in Elijah's day.

Then comes the olive tree. Israel is the original tree. Some natural branches (unbelieving Israelites) have been broken off. Wild olive branches (Gentile believers) have been grafted in. This is Paul's way of insisting on the continuity of God's story: Gentiles have not replaced Israel. They have been incorporated into Israel's story.

N.T. Wright explains:

"The olive tree image is Paul's way of saying: the story of God's people is one continuous story. Gentile believers have been grafted into Israel's tree, not planted in a different garden. If you are in Christ, you are part of Israel's story."

But Paul warns the Gentile branches: "Do not be arrogant toward the branches." If God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare the grafted ones who become presumptuous. And if the natural branches are not rejected permanently, God is able to graft them back in.

Then the mystery: "A partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved." What exactly this means has been debated for centuries. But Paul's confidence is clear: God has not given up on Israel. His gifts and calling are irrevocable (v. 29). "For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all."

And with that, Paul erupts into worship:

"O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!"

Calvin recognizes that worship is the only fitting response:

"O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! Paul ends his exploration of Israel's destiny not with a tidy answer but with worship. When the mind reaches its limit, the heart takes over."

Going Deeper

Romans 9-11 does not resolve every question about God's sovereignty, human responsibility, and the future of Israel. It does something better: it points to a God whose wisdom is beyond tracing, whose mercy is beyond predicting, and whose purposes are beyond derailing. The proper response is not a systematic theology diagram. It is the response Paul models: "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen."