We now come to the capstone chapter of Paul’s argument in this letter. Within this chapter is his pinnacle statement regarding God’s plan from the beginning of time. All of chapters 1-10 conclude here in chapter 11.
Paul makes it very clear what is happening to the Jewish nation in current history,
“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.” (11:26)
This statement explains all of the apparent shameful situations in which the Jewish nation finds itself.
Paul explains that,
“as regards the gospel, the Jews are enemies for the Gentiles sake, but as regards election, the Jewish nation is beloved for the sake of their forefathers.”
We can easily make explicit the proper nouns in this verse for which the pronouns are merely referents because, beginning in verse 13, Paul specifically states that the subjects to whom he is speaking are his Gentile readers in Rome.
Pau says, “Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them."
He goes on and specifically states that,
“the rejection of the Jews means the reconciliation of the world” (11:15)
Paul is declaring that it has been God’s strategic plan to reject the Jews with a partial hardening (11:25) as a means of bringing reconciliation to the world. As Paul points out at the end of this chapter, God’s mind, His plans, His knowledge, His counsel is inscrutable and no one is able to search out the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God. Who would have thought of such a more excellent and glorious plan except God!
What both the Jews and Gentiles are witnessing in their own personal world history, in the de-elevation of the Jews, on one hand, and the elevation of the Gentiles, on the other, Paul describes in terms a of a branch of a cultivated olive tree being broken off from the root and a wild olive branch grafted in its place. (11:17-26).
Paul has already asked the question,
“What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory— even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles?” (9:22-24)
What if God prepared beforehand that He was going to break off the branch of the olive tree to make known the riches of his glory for the vessels of mercy that would grafted into the root. What if this scenario has been God’s plan all along. Is this what Paul refers to when he says there is no shame in this gospel?
And Paul has also already told us that,
“as regards the gospel, they (Jews) are enemies for your (Gentiles) sake. But as regards election, they (Jews) are beloved for the sake of their (Jewish) forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you (Gentiles) were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their (Jewish) disobedience, so they (Jews) too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you (Gentiles) they (Jews) also may now receive mercy."
There is no shame in this gospel because it has been Gods plan all along. "For in this gospel is the righteousness of God revealed, to the Jew first then to the Gentile."
According to Paul, what if Paul understands that in order for God to show mercy to all, God had to consign all to disobedience, so that he may have mercy on all? (11:30-32) Is Paul saying that showing mercy on all, both Jew and Gentile is Gods way of demonstrating the greatest degree of His glory?
It appears that is exactly what Paul understands, and it is at this point that he responds in jaw-dropping awe and worship, blurting out his final thoughts (11:33-36),
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”
In any case “consigning all to disobedience” is consistent with Paul’s statement that “all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory” and Paul’s thoughts that God “shows no partiality” and “makes no distinction between men”.
Consigning all men to disobedience provides the greatest opportunity for God’s grace to abound. And Paul reminds his readers, that because all (both Jews and Gentiles) are consigned to disobedience, they "should not think of themselves more highly than they ought to think," "for all have sinned and gall short of God’s glory."
Now that Paul has established that the Jews and Gentiles are both in need of salvation, and that God is working in history to reconcile the full number of Gentiles, as the Jews temporarily experience a hardening in part, he will now move onto encouraging them both to live according to the grace given them by God.
In contrast to living according to the dishonorable lust of their passions among all, Paul encourages them to live with honor among all.
Therefore his appeal to his readers then for the next three chapters (12-14) is to live according to the grace they have received and not according to the behavior that he mentions in chapter 1. Paul calls on his Roman readers to present their bodies, not to one another for shameless acts of passion, but to God as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to Him as acts of spiritual service and worship of Him.
In my next blog in the Romans series, we will explore Paul’s appeal to his readers to Live Honorably.
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