the Week of Proper 20 / Ordinary 25
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Romans 11:1
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So, do you think God has somehow double-crossed his own people? That's foolishness! I'm an Israelite, an ancestor of Abraham and part of the Benjamite Crew.
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.
I say then, has God rejected His people? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
So I say, Has God put his people on one side? Let there be no such thought. For I am of Israel, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Has God cast away his people? Far be the thought. For *I* also am an Israelite, of [the] seed of Abraham, of [the] tribe of Benjamin.
I ask, then, has God rejected His people? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask then, Did God reject his people? May it never be! For I also am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Hath God rejected his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask then, Has God cast off His People? No, indeed. Why, I myself am an Israelite, of the posterity of Abraham and of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbidde. For I also am an Israelite of the seede of Abraham, of the tribe of Beniamin.
I say then, Did not God thrust away His people? Let it not be! For I also am an Israelite, out of Abraham's seed, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I saye then: Hath God thrust out his people? God forbyd: for I also am an Israelite, of the sede of Abraham out of the trybe of Ben Iamin.
You will say then, hath God discarded his people? by no means. for I my self am an Israelite, of the posterity of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
Does this mean, then, that God is so fed up with Israel that he'll have nothing more to do with them? Hardly. Remember that I, the one writing these things, am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham out of the tribe of Benjamin. You can't get much more Semitic than that! So we're not talking about repudiation. God has been too long involved with Israel, has too much invested, to simply wash his hands of them. Do you remember that time Elijah was agonizing over this same Israel and cried out in prayer? God, they murdered your prophets, They trashed your altars; I'm the only one left and now they're after me! And do you remember God's answer? I still have seven thousand who haven't quit, Seven thousand who are loyal to the finish. It's the same today. There's a fiercely loyal minority still—not many, perhaps, but probably more than you think. They're holding on, not because of what they think they're going to get out of it, but because they're convinced of God's grace and purpose in choosing them. If they were only thinking of their own immediate self-interest, they would have left long ago. And then what happened? Well, when Israel tried to be right with God on her own, pursuing her own self-interest, she didn't succeed. The chosen ones of God were those who let God pursue his interest in them, and as a result received his stamp of legitimacy. The "self-interest Israel" became thick-skinned toward God. Moses and Isaiah both commented on this: Fed up with their quarrelsome, self-centered ways, God blurred their eyes and dulled their ears, Shut them in on themselves in a hall of mirrors, and they're there to this day. David was upset about the same thing: I hope they get sick eating self-serving meals, break a leg walking their self-serving ways. I hope they go blind staring in their mirrors, get ulcers from playing at god. The next question is, "Are they down for the count? Are they out of this for good?" And the answer is a clear-cut No. Ironically when they walked out, they left the door open and the outsiders walked in. But the next thing you know, the Jews were starting to wonder if perhaps they had walked out on a good thing. Now, if their leaving triggered this worldwide coming of non-Jewish outsiders to God's kingdom, just imagine the effect of their coming back! What a homecoming! But I don't want to go on about them. It's you, the outsiders, that I'm concerned with now. Because my personal assignment is focused on the so-called outsiders, I make as much of this as I can when I'm among my Israelite kin, the so-called insiders, hoping they'll realize what they're missing and want to get in on what God is doing. If their falling out initiated this worldwide coming together, their recovery is going to set off something even better: mass homecoming! If the first thing the Jews did, even though it was wrong for them, turned out for your good, just think what's going to happen when they get it right! Behind and underneath all this there is a holy, God-planted, God-tended root. If the primary root of the tree is holy, there's bound to be some holy fruit. Some of the tree's branches were pruned and you wild olive shoots were grafted in. Yet the fact that you are now fed by that rich and holy root gives you no cause to crow over the pruned branches. Remember, you aren't feeding the root; the root is feeding you. It's certainly possible to say, "Other branches were pruned so that I could be grafted in!" Well and good. But they were pruned because they were deadwood, no longer connected by belief and commitment to the root. The only reason you're on the tree is because your graft "took" when you believed, and because you're connected to that belief-nurturing root. So don't get cocky and strut your branch. Be humbly mindful of the root that keeps you lithe and green. If God didn't think twice about taking pruning shears to the natural branches, why would he hesitate over you? He wouldn't give it a second thought. Make sure you stay alert to these qualities of gentle kindness and ruthless severity that exist side by side in God—ruthless with the deadwood, gentle with the grafted shoot. But don't presume on this gentleness. The moment you become deadwood, you're out of there. And don't get to feeling superior to those pruned branches down on the ground. If they don't persist in remaining deadwood, they could very well get grafted back in. God can do that. He can perform miracle grafts. Why, if he could graft you—branches cut from a tree out in the wild—into an orchard tree, he certainly isn't going to have any trouble grafting branches back into the tree they grew from in the first place. Just be glad you're in the tree, and hope for the best for the others. I want to lay all this out on the table as clearly as I can, friends. This is complicated. It would be easy to misinterpret what's going on and arrogantly assume that you're royalty and they're just rabble, out on their ears for good. But that's not it at all. This hardness on the part of insider Israel toward God is temporary. Its effect is to open things up to all the outsiders so that we end up with a full house. Before it's all over, there will be a complete Israel. As it is written, A champion will stride down from the mountain of Zion; he'll clean house in Jacob. And this is my commitment to my people: removal of their sins. From your point of view as you hear and embrace the good news of the Message, it looks like the Jews are God's enemies. But looked at from the long-range perspective of God's overall purpose, they remain God's oldest friends. God's gifts and God's call are under full warranty—never canceled, never rescinded.
I say then, has God rejected and disowned His people? Certainly not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Did God cast off his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
I saye then: hath god cast awaye his people? God forbyd. For even I verely am an Israelite of the seed of Abraha and of ye tribe of Beniamin
I say then, Did God cast off his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Hath God cast away his people? By no means. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, [of] the tribe of Benjamin.
I say, then, Did God cast away His people? let it not be! for I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin:
So I ask: Did God throw out his people? No! I myself am an Israelite from the family of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
So I ask, God has not rejected his people, has he? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask then, did God reject His people? Certainly not! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
Am I saying that God has turned his back on his people? Certainly not! I am one of the people of Israel, and I myself am a descendant of Abraham from the tribe of Benjamin.
"In that case, I say, isn't it that God has repudiated his people?" Heaven forbid! For I myself am a son of Isra'el, from the seed of Avraham , of the tribe of Binyamin.
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
I Demaund then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid: for I also am an Israelite, of the seede of Abraham, of the tribe of Beniamin.
I SAY, then, has God rejected his people? Far be it. For I also am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask then, Did God reject his people? May it never be! For I also am an Yisra'elite, a descendant of Avraham, of the tribe of Binyamin.
So I ask, "God has not rejected his people, has he?" Of course not! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham from the tribe of Benjamin.1 Samuel 12:22; Jeremiah 31:37; 2 Corinthians 11:22; Philippians 3:5;">[xr]
BUT I say, Hath Aloha put away his people ? Not so. For I also am of Israel, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benyamen.
But I say: Hath God cast off his people? Far be it. For I also am of Israel, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask then, "Has God put His people, the Jews, aside?" No, not at all! I myself am a Jew. Abraham was my early father. I am from the family group of Benjamin.
I say then, Did God cast off his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say, then - Hath God cast off his people? Far be it! For, I also, am an Israelite, - of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin:
I say then: Hath God cast away his people? God forbid! For I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
Therefore I say, God has not rejected his people, has he? May it never be! For I also am an Israelite, from the descendants of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seede of Abraham, of the tribe of Beniamin,
So I ask, "Did God force his people to leave him?" Of course not. I myself am an Israelite. I am from the family of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? Far from it! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I ask, then: Did God reject his own people? Certainly not! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
Therfor Y seie, Whether God hath put awei his puple? God forbede. For Y am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the lynage of Beniamyn.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Hath God: 1 Samuel 12:22, 2 Kings 23:27, Psalms 77:7, Psalms 89:31-37, Psalms 94:14, Jeremiah 31:36, Jeremiah 31:37, Jeremiah 33:24-26, Hosea 9:17, Amos 9:8, Amos 9:9
God forbid: Romans 3:4
For I also: Romans 9:3, Acts 22:3, Acts 26:4, 2 Corinthians 11:22, Philippians 3:5
Reciprocal: 2 Kings 17:20 - rejected 1 Chronicles 17:22 - thy people 2 Chronicles 15:2 - if ye forsake Psalms 44:9 - General Psalms 60:1 - O God Psalms 74:1 - O God Isaiah 2:6 - Therefore Isaiah 6:12 - a great Isaiah 40:27 - sayest Isaiah 41:9 - I have chosen Isaiah 49:14 - The Lord Isaiah 63:8 - Surely Isaiah 66:19 - I will send Jeremiah 4:27 - yet Jeremiah 5:18 - I will not make Jeremiah 6:30 - the Lord Jeremiah 14:19 - utterly Jeremiah 51:5 - Israel Lamentations 3:31 - General Ezekiel 39:28 - and have Zechariah 13:8 - but Mark 12:9 - and will Luke 15:31 - General Acts 3:12 - Ye men Romans 3:2 - Much Romans 3:3 - if some Romans 9:6 - as though Romans 11:15 - the casting 1 Corinthians 15:10 - by
Cross-References
In that day five of Egypt's cities will follow the Lord of Heaven's Armies. They will even begin to speak Hebrew, the language of Canaan. One of these cities will be Heliopolis, the City of the Sun.
"Then I will purify the speech of all people, so that everyone can worship the Lord together.
When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
I say then, hath God cast away his people?.... The Alexandrian, copy adds here, "whom he foreknew", as in Romans 11:2: upon the citation of the above passages out of Moses and Isaiah, relating to the calling of the Gentiles, and the rejection of the Jews, the apostle saw an objection would arise, which he here takes up from the mouth of an adversary, and proposes it; in which is suggested, that God has cast away all his people the Jews, according to this count; and if so, where is his covenant with Abraham? what is become of his promises? and how is his faithfulness to be accounted for? and what hope can any Israelite have of ever obtaining salvation? than which, nothing can be thought more injurious to God, and absurd in itself. This was an old prejudice of the Jewish nation, and still continues, that God never would, nor has he cast them away, even in their present condition; it is one of the articles of their creed, received by the Karaites o, a sect among them, that
"the blessed God לא מאס לאנשי הגלות, "hath not cast away the men of the captivity", though they are under the chastisements of God; but it is fit that they should every day obtain salvation by the hands of Messiah, the Son of David.''
Now to this objection the apostle makes answer; "first", in his usual way,
God forbid, when anything was objected which was displeasing to him, abhorred by him, which was not agreeable to the perfections of God, to the truth of his word, and promises, and could by no means be admitted of; and next by observing his own case, which was a standing instance to the contrary; for God had chosen him unto eternal salvation, Christ had redeemed him by his blood, and he was effectually called by grace; and as to his eternal state, he had no doubt or scruple about it; and besides, the Lord had made him a minister of the Gospel, had greatly qualified him for that work, had raised him to the high office of an apostle, and had made him very useful to the souls of many, both Jews and Gentiles; and yet he was one of the nation of the Jews, and therefore God had not cast them all away, as the objection insinuates:
for I also am an Israelite; according to the flesh, by lineal descent from Jacob or Israel; see 2 Corinthians 11:22; as well as in a spiritual sense:
of the seed of Abraham; "the grandfather of Israel"; the head of the Jewish nation he was, both of his natural and of his spiritual seed, who is the father of us all:
of the tribe of Benjamin; a very little tribe, which in the time of the Judges was near being destroyed, and, upon the return from the captivity of Babylon, was very small, as it was at this time; and yet God had not cast away this, much less all the tribes of Israel.
o Apud Trigland. de Sect. Karaeorum, c. 10. p. 151.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
I say then - This expression is to be regarded as conveying the sense of an objection. Paul, in the previous chapters, had declared the doctrine that all the Jews were to be rejected. To this a Jew might naturally reply, Is it to be believed, that God would cast off his people whom he had once chosen; to whom pertained the adoption, and the promises, and the covenant, and the numerous blessings conferred on a favorite people? It was natural for a Jew to make such objections. And it was important for the apostle to show that his doctrine was consistent with all the promises which God had made to his people. The objection, as will be seen by the answer which Paul makes, is formed on the supposition that God had rejected “all his people,” or “cast them off entirely.” This objection he answers by showing,
- That God had saved him, a Jew, and therefore that he could not mean that God had east off all Jews Romans 11:1;
- That now, as in former times of great declension, God had reserved a remnant Romans 11:2-5;
- That it accorded with the Scriptures that a part should be hardened Romans 11:6-10;
- That the design of the rejection was not final, but was to admit the Gentiles to the privileges of Christianity Romans 11:11-24;
- That the Jews should yet return to God, and be reinstated in his favor: so that it could not be objected that God had finally and totally cast off his people, or that he had violated his promises.
At the same time, however, the doctrine which Paul had maintained was true, that God had taken away their exclusive and special privileges, and had rejected a large part of the nation.
Cast away - Rejected, or put off. Has God so renounced them that they cannot be any longer his people.
His people - Those who have been long in the covenant relation to him: that is, the Jews.
God forbid - Literally, it may not or cannot be. This is an expression strongly denying that this could take place; and means that Paul did not intend to advance such a doctrine; Luke 20:16; Romans 3:4, Romans 3:6,Romans 3:31; Romans 6:2, Romans 6:15; Romans 7:7, Romans 7:13.
For I am also an Israelite - To show them that he did not mean to affirm that all Jews must of necessity be cast off, he adduces his own case. He was a Jew; and yet he looked for the favor of God, and for eternal life. That favor he hoped now to obtain by being a Christian; and if he might obtain it, others might also. “If I should say that all Jews must be excluded from the favor of God, then I also must be without hope of salvation, for I am a Jew.”
Of the seed of Abraham - Descended from Abraham. The apostle mentions this to show that he was a Jew in every respect; that he had a title to all the privileges of a Jew, and must be exposed to all their liabilities and dangers. If the seed of Abraham must of necessity be cut off, he must be himself rejected. The Jews valued themselves much on having been descended from so illustrious an ancestor as Abraham Matthew 3:9; and Paul shows them that he was entitled to all the privileges of such a descent; compare Philippians 3:4-5.
Of the tribe of Benjamin - This tribe was one that was originally located near Jerusalem. The temple was built on the line that divided the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. It is not improbable that it was regarded as a special honor to have belonged to one of those tribes. Paul mentions it here in accordance with their custom; for they regarded it as of great importance to preserve their genealogy, and to be able to state not only that they were Jews, but to designate the tribe and family to which they belonged.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
CHAPTER XI.
God has not universally nor finally rejected Israel; nor are
they all at present rejecters of the Gospel, for there is a
remnant of true believers now, as there was in the days of the
Prophet Elijah, 1-5.
These have embraced the Gospel, and are saved by grace, and not
by the works of the law, 6.
The body of the Israelites, having rejected this, are blinded,
according to the prophetic declaration of David, 7-10.
But they have not stumbled, so as to be finally rejected; but
through their fall, salvation is come to the Gentiles, 11-14.
There is hope of their restoration, and that the nation shall
yet become a holy people, 15, 16.
The converted Gentiles must not exult over the fallen Jews; the
latter having fallen by unbelief, the former stand by faith,
17-20.
The Jews, the natural branches, were broken off from the true
olive, and the Gentiles having been grafted in, in their place,
must walk uprightly, else they also shall be cut off, 21, 22.
The Jews, if they abide not in unbelief, shall be again grafted
in; and when the fulness of the Gentiles is come in, the great
Deliverer shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob, according to
the covenant of God, 23-27.
For the sake of their forefathers God loves them, and will again
call them, and communicate His gifts to them, 28, 29.
The Gospel shall he again sent to them, as it has now been sent
to the Gentiles, 30-32.
This procedure is according to the immensity of the wisdom,
knowledge, and unsearchable judgments of God, who is the
Creator, Preserver, and Governor of all things, and to whom all
adoration is due, 33-36.
NOTES ON CHAP. XI.
This chapter is of the prophetic kind. It was by the spirit of prophecy that the apostle foresaw the rejection of the Jews, which he supposes in the two preceding chapters; for when he wrote the epistle they were not in fact, rejected, seeing their polity and Church were then standing. But the event has proved that he was a true prophet; for we know that in about ten or eleven years after the writing of this letter the temple was destroyed, the Jewish polity overthrown, and the Jews expelled out of the promised land, which they have never been able to recover to the present day.
This, 1. confirms the arguments which the apostle had advanced to establish the calling of the Gentiles. For the Jews are, in fact, rejected; consequently, our calling is, in fact, not invalidated by any thing they suggested, relative to the perpetuity of the Mosaic dispensation. But that dispensation being wholly subverted, our title to the privileges of God's Church and people stands clear and strong; the Jewish constitution only could furnish objections against our claim; and the event has silenced every objection from that quarter.
2. The actual rejection of the Jews proves Paul to be a true apostle of Jesus Christ, and that he spoke by the Spirit of God; otherwise, he could not have argued so fully upon a case which was yet to come, and of which there was no appearance in the state of things when he wrote this epistle. And this very circumstance should induce us to pay great attention to this chapter, in which he discourses concerning the extent and duration of the rejection of his countrymen, to prevent their being insulted and despised by the Gentile Christians.
(1) As to the extent of this rejection, it is not absolutely universal; some of the Jews have embraced the Gospel, and are incorporated into the Christian Church with the believing Gentiles. Upon the case of these believing Jews he comments, Romans 11:1-7.
(2) As to the duration of it, it is not final and perpetual, for all Israel, or the nation of the Jews, which is now blinded, shall one day be saved or brought again into the kingdom or covenant of God. Upon the state of these blinded Jews he comments, Romans 11:7 to the end of the chapter. His design, in discoursing upon this subject, was not only to make the thing itself known, but partly to engage the attention of the unbelieving Jew; to conciliate his favour, and, if possible, to induce him to come into the Gospel scheme; and partly to dispose the Gentile Christians not to treat the Jews with contempt; (considering that they derived all their present blessings from the patriarchs, the ancestors of the Jewish nation, and were engrafted into the good olive tree, whence the Jews had been broken;) and to admonish them to take warning by the fall of the Jews; to make a good improvement of their religious privileges, lest, through unbelief, any of them should relapse into heathenism, or perish finally at the last day.
The thread of his discourse leads him into a general survey and comparison of the several dispensations of God towards the Gentiles and Jews; and he concludes this survey with adoration of the depths of the Divine knowledge and wisdom exercised in the various constitutions erected in the world, Romans 11:30-36.
Verse Romans 11:1. I say then, hath God cast away his people? — Has he utterly and finally rejected them? for this is necessarily the apostle's meaning, and is the import of the Greek word απωσατο, which signifies to thrust or drive away, from απο, from, and ωθεω, to thrust or drive; has he thrust them off, and driven them eternally from him? God forbid-by no means. This rejection is neither universal nor final. For I also am an Israelite-I am a regular descendant from Abraham, through Israel or Jacob, and by his son Benjamin. And I stand in the Church of God, and in the peculiar covenant; for the rejection is only of the obstinate and disobedient; for those who believe on Christ, as I have done, are continued in the Church.
