WE return to these verses in which Paul is speaking about the mystery on which God has given him understanding, and of which he wants the Gentile Christians, to whom he is writing, to be clear upon. We have learned that this mystery is concerning the way God has gone about calling in his elect, chosen by God before the foundation of the world to have an interest in the work of salvation wrought by Christ in his life and death. We have seen that the hardening of the nation of Israel, the Jews, as a body was for the purpose of causing the Gospel to be spread amongst the Gentiles, so that the blessings of the Gospel might be known and received by Gentiles. We have learned that this hardening was in part only. It was not so complete that no Jew was saved after the hardening, and not so complete as to mean that all Jews were outside the grace of God from that time forward. We learned that the hardening was a work of God. God does move in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform.

We now continue to see Paul working out this theme. As we go on, we need to realize that Paul is using the term 'Israel' in two different ways in this passage. It is the lack of understanding of this fact that has led to extravagant teaching concerning the future of the Jews. However when we understand this point concerning the use of the term 'Israel', the whole passage falls into a coherent whole, and makes real sense which is in accord with the teaching concerning salvation throughout the whole Bible. Teaching that seems to conflict with the teaching of the Bible as a whole must always be suspect.

THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE USE OF 'ISRAEL'.

There can be no doubt that the use of the word 'Israel' in verse 25 refers to the whole body of the Jews, expressed in their national life as it was at the time of writing the letter to the Romans. We have seen that this hardening effected the people of the Jews in our previous consideration of these verses.

Because the word 'Israel' is used to identify the people of the Jews as a whole in verse 25 it can be a logical argument to say that it must mean exactly the same in verse 26 where Paul says "And so all Israel will be saved" continuing with a quotation from the Old Testament. But to argue in this way makes no logical conclusion from Paul's words in verse 25. In verse 25 Paul is explaining that the hardening of the Jews was for the purpose of bringing in the full number of the Gentiles, and has nothing to say about the salvation of the Jews, but rather speaks of exclusion of the Jews as a nation. To take the meaning of 'Israel' in verse 26 as referring to the nation or people of the Jews has no connection with the previous verse. Together with this observation to take the meaning of 'Israel' in verse 26 as referring to the whole people of the Jews assumes something that is not upheld in the rest of the Bible, and to which the rest of the Bible gives no support. Further to this history, both in the Old as well as the New Testament, gives no evidence of all Jews without distinction being saved. All Jews, that is all Israel, were never saved in the past, they are not saved in the present, and there is no evidence in the rest of the Bible that it will happen in the future.

The way the words in verse 26 are written gives us a sense of completion and whole. The word 'All' must mean all in the completest sense, and mean that all Israel, every one of this Israel, will be saved. Even if we try to claim that there will be such an overwhelming work amongst the Jews sometime in the future so that the whole nation at that time will become Christian and embrace their Messiah, this is not all Israel, because of all the Jews that are unsaved in the past. The meaning of verse 26 must carry the meaning that all Israel from the very beginning with Adam and Eve will be saved, and this can only be in effect with the meaning of Israel which Paul has used in chapters 9 to 11, and elsewhere in the New Testament, as that of the total number of God's elect.

This Israel, the true Israel of God, those who embrace the faith of Abraham, must all be saved if God is true to his word and promise. Jesus makes this plain in John 17 where he says of those that God has given to him, that he has not lost any of them. Paul makes plain this teaching of the Bible in Romans 8 where he speaks of those God foreknew, being predestined to life, and being justified and brought to glory. There can be no doubt that the Israel in verse 26 refers to the whole of the elect, God's redeemed people through Christ. This understanding makes total sense in the context. In verse 25 Paul has spoken of the hardening of the people of the Jews for a time, in order that the Gospel may be spread throughout the Gentile world. In this way God's elect amongst the Gentiles would be brought in, and so 'All Israel', that is all God's chosen, both Jew and Gentile, would be brought in to the family of God and saved. None would be lost. The hardening of the Jews was for the purpose that the elect amongst the Gentile would be saved, and so the whole body, both of Jew and Gentile, chosen by God before the foundation of the world, may be saved.

It is plain from this understanding of these verses that the Jews as individuals are not excluded from salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. This has always been so even in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament is was always only the remnant called out from amongst the whole nation for salvation that were saved, and there is nothing in this hardening which tells us God has ceased that this should be so in the future. The hardening was in part and temporary in order that the Gospel may be spread amongst the Gentiles.

APPLICATION OF PROPHECY.

With this understanding in mind we can come to a right and assuring interpretation of the passage of Scripture Paul uses in verses 26 and 27. It is a quotation Isaiah 59:20,21; 27:9. When we turn to these verses in Isaiah we find that the quotation in Romans 11:26,27 is not an exact quotation but brings together the substance of these two quotations from Isaiah. We also see that it is not a promise that embraces the whole nation of Israel indiscriminately but a promise which is for all who truly repent and are covered by the redeeming grace of God.

From this we can see Isaiah was prophesying salvation in Christ, the deliverer coming from Zion, who would turn godlessness away, and is speaking of the covenant of grace founded on the work of the Christ, through whom we obtain forgiveness of all our sins.

The prophecy plainly speaks of the salvation God provided in Christ so that all his elect may be gathered in, and so all the true Israel of God will be saved.

CLOSING OF THE ARGUMENT.

From verses 28 to 32 Paul closes his argument concerning the mystery of God's ways and workings. In these verses he tells us (v.28) that the Jews were made enemies of the Gospel, and so of all Christians, so that the Gospel may be brought to the Gentiles. Paul then goes on to declare that as far as election is concerned, Jews have a very special place in God's purposes because they descend from the patriarchs, the first calling out of God's elect. Paul applies this special place teaching by saying that in accordance with God's election, God's gifts and his call to salvation is irrevocable. This means that those amongst the Jews, all down the ages, who have been foreknown by God before the world was, must be saved, because God always keeps his promises. From this we see that this election of God amongst the Jews must go on throughout the Gospel age together with the calling into salvation of the elect Gentiles. Paul implies throughout this argument he has been making that the calling of the Jews in the Old Testament would not cease in the New Testament, regardless of the fact of the hardening of the nation of Jews in order that the Gospel might be thrust out to the Gentiles.

The next two verses, verses 30 and 31, are simply saying, in the wisdom and purpose of God, that the Gentiles were left in disobedience for a time, while the Gospel was specially brought to the Jews, and so the Jews became disobedient so that in time they may again receive mercy, when the purpose of their hardening was realized.

Paul then finishes in verse 32 making it plain that God has bound all people under disobedience, so that salvation will be by mercy alone. This verse simply affirms the fact that if any are saved, then it is by God's mercy, for all are disobedient, and deserving of eternal damnation. In this way we see an affirmation of the Gospel, that is that all people are sinners before God, and God in his mercy has stepped into the world scene to provide a Saviour through whose work God can be merciful justly on those he determines to have mercy (Romans 9:18).

CONCLUSION.