11 I say then, did they stumble so as to fall? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. 12 Now if their transgression is riches for the world and their failure is riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness be! 13 But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, 14 if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them. 15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16 And if the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too.
17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became a partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast against them, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 Quite right! They were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be haughty, but fear, 21 for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. 22 Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? Romans 11: 11-24 LSB
Romans 11: 11-24 To make them Jealous
Vs. 11-14 Did they stumble so as to fall - This is to say, without recovery. We already learned that not all are Israel who call themselves this, who are descendants of Abraham only physically, but rather those who are circumcised of heart, the remnant. Paul answers the question immediately and strongly, "May it never be!" It's like saying, shut your mouth, don't even think such a thought. Through their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, why? Not just to save the Gentiles, but also to make Israel jealous. All this was part of God's eternal decree, not a reaction to Israel's disobedience that He didn't see coming.
10Now as for you, son of man, tell the house of Israel that this is what they have said: ‘Our transgressions and our sins are heavy upon us, and we are wasting away because of them! How can we live?’ 11Say to them: ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’ 12Therefore, son of man, say to your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked man cause him to stumble on the day he turns from his wickedness. Nor will the righteous man be able to survive by his righteousness on the day he sins.’… Ezekiel 33: 10-12
MacArthur - God’s temporarily setting Israel aside was not an afterthought or an outburst of emotional anger but had a definite purpose. Again (Ro 11:1) Paul introduces his point by asking a rhetorical question and then giving the strongest negative answer possible. God has not allowed His Chosen People Israel to fall into such unbelief and disobedience that they are unsalvageable. He has indeed given them “a spirit of stupor,” and He “let their eyes be darkened to see not” (Ro 11:8, 10). For a divinely appointed time, He has let them wander about in spiritual blindness and darkness. Yet their blindness is not irreversible, and their darkness was never to be permanent. (Romans Commentary) - J Mac via PA
God’s purpose for this hardening is to use it as a means of converting many Gentiles, which in turn will be a means of converting many of the hardened Jews themselves. Thus paradoxically the ultimate goal and result of the hardening is the salvation of those who are hardened! The sequence of events is as follows: the bulk of the Jews reject the gospel; they are hardened; as a consequence Gentiles are saved; as a consequence of this, many of the hardened Jews are made jealous and are saved; and as a consequence of this, even more Gentiles are saved!
Although jealousy is essentially a negative term, God’s intention was for Israel’s jealousy of Gentiles to be a positive stimulus to draw His people back to Himself. But Jews had long disdained Gentiles ("dogs"), whom they considered to be outside the boundaries of God’s grace. To be told they had lost their special relationship to God was distressing enough, but to be told that God offered that forfeited relationship to Gentiles was a bitter pill indeed.
But God’s ultimate purpose in setting Israel aside was not to drive His people further away but to bring them back to Himself. He wanted to make them face their own sin and its consequences, to sense their alienation from Jehovah and to recognize their need for the salvation that He now offered the Gentiles. As Jews see the Lord pour out the kind of blessings on the Gentile church that once were reserved for Israel, some of them desire that blessing for themselves and come to Jesus Christ, their spurned Messiah, in repentance and faith. That happens with individual Jews throughout this age, and at the end of the Great Tribulation will happen to the whole nation (i.e., to the one third who are refined and purified and turn to their Messiah for salvation by faith)
One of the great ironies of history is the relationship of God’s "chosen people" (the Jews) to the rest of humanity (the Gentiles). Anti–Semitism by Gentiles has often been paralleled by, and sometimes precipitated by, the anti-Gentile sentiments of Jews. It therefore was-and no doubt still is for many Jews-an enormous leap from a negative contempt of Gentiles to a positive jealousy of them. Yet that is precisely the leap the Lord intends for them to make as a first step in bringing them back to Him.
What is the practical application of this truth to our lives today? It should be the desire of every Christian to manifest the spiritual realities of a transformed life that would draw unbelieving Jews to belief in our Lord and their Messiah, a witness that would tap their divinely inspired jealousy of Gentiles and be used to turn it to a divinely desired faith in His Son.
Unfortunately, the Christianity that Jews see in many professed, and even some genuine, Christians reflects little of the love and righteousness of Christ and of the salvation He brings. When they see Gentile Christians who are dishonest and immoral, and especially those who are anti-Semitic (yes, there is anti-Semitism in the church!) in the name of Christ (who was the supremely perfect Jew), they are deeply and understandably offended and repulsed. They are anything but jealous of such Gentiles, and they distance themselves still further from the Lord instead of drawing closer to Him. - PA
Vs. 15-21 Life from the dead - For Jew and Gentile it is the same, salvation is the calling forth of Lazarus, but to a still born spirit, dead in it's trespasses and sin. It should cause excitement amongst Christians to see that the Abrahamic promises related to Israel and the land will one day be fulfilled by the Messiah. It is then that they will look on Him Whom they pierced and mourn for Him. Those ancient covenants were not based upon the willingness of men, but rather the integrity and ability of God. The covenant is also restated with Jacob, whose name becomes Israel, so there can be no mistake. The time of the Gentiles will come to an end. We are the wild olive that has been grafted into Abraham, and though many of the natural branches were removed, God can graft them back in, just as we who were once far off were brought near. All false systems, all apostasy is based upon works rather than faith, but don't boast against the old branches because that same root is what now supports you, not the other way around. Everyone needs the same Christ Who was promised since the fall in Genesis.+
…3Then He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” “O Lord GOD,” I replied, “only You know.” 4And He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and tell them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! 5This is what the Lord GOD says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will come to life.… Ezekiel 37: 3-5
…13For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that their bodies are clean, 14how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, purify our consciences from works of death, so that we may serve the living God! 15Therefore Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, now that He has died to redeem them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.… Hebrews 9: 13-15
…5I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing. 6If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.… John 15: 5-7
Vs. 22-24 Otherwise you will also be cut off - A truly good tree will bear fruit and remain. The Bible does not shy away from telling us to question ourselves to see if we be in the faith. Given the context it should bring humility when considering the Jews, who had a close and special relationship to God's word, and even visible displays of His presence in times past. What did you actually believe, Who did you believe in, God or your works, Christ life or your emotional experience? True saving faith will always produce good works, works will never produce salvation. I believe on day that there will be a remnant of the nation left, at the time of the end of the Gentiles, the end of the tribulation, that will be once again grafted in as a nation and receive the covenant promises made to their fathers long ago. God is able to graft them in again.
MacArthur believes this should be interpreted as follows: The previous phrase ("those that fell") looks at the past. Paul then warns those in the present who have identified with the saving gospel that they must continue in His kindness or they, too, will be judged severely like those in the past who were near the blessing and fell. That is a familiar NT idea, which affirms the reality of true, saving faith by its continuity. That is the perseverance of the saints that evidences their genuine conversion (Jn 8:31 15:5-6; Col 1:22-23 Heb 3:12-14, 4:11, 1Jn 2:19). - J Mac via PA
…14The seeds that fell among the thorns are those who hear, but as they go on their way, they are choked by the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life, and their fruit does not mature. 15But the seeds on good soil are those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, cling to it, and by persevering produce a crop. 16No one lights a lamp and covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, he sets it on a stand, so those who enter can see the light.… Luke 8: 14-16
10Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son. 11On that day the wailing in Jerusalem will be as great as the wailing of Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.… Zechariah 12: 10-11
