Journey through the Book of Romans

Paul declares Israel’s Rejection is not Final Part 6

Romans 11:24-27 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? For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery--so that you will not be wise in your own estimation--that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” “This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.” NKJV

Paul now makes the contrast between the men and women born into the Jewish Nation by way of physical birth to every Gentile born in complete and total ignorance of God and to any of His Covenant Promises. Paul said it very clearly with these words earlier in this same epistle or letter after explaining that a Jew is not one only outwardly in the flesh, but one whose heart is circumcised by God the Holy Spirit, but right afterward Paul shows the advantage the Jew has over the Gentile when he said, Romans 3:1-2 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? Great in every respect. First of all, that they were entrusted with the oracles of God. NKJV The phrase “oracles of God” simply means the Word of God which no Gentile had ever heard or even knew existed. Paul wants these Gentiles to understand that if God the Father took them, even in their ignorance and alienation from the covenant promises of God by way of being far off from Him not knowing Him with no hope in this world and now He has brought them to Himself by way of Christ Precious Blood in spite of them being wild branches picked or plucked from a wild oleaster tree, how much more can He bring back the erring, wayward, and wandering Jew who were branches of the Natural and not wild Tree.

Paul is here showing that if God the Father can do the thing which to the human understanding seems hard and difficult (placing a foreign branch into a Natural Tree), then it is no big deal at all for Him to place the broken off natural branch back into its former home without striving or strong effort or sweat of brow from His Mighty Hand. Paul is saying here that He (God) who spoke and said “Let there be light” and light appeared out of nothing, surely it would not be a hard thing for Him to speak and say “Let the Light be no more” and instantly the entire Universe or Universes would be in complete darkness. Paul wants the Gentile believer to never boast over his position of believing in Christ over and against the majority of the Jews condition in unbelief, because God will not leave “the apple of His Eye” and “His Olive Tree” blind and in darkness forever. Paul is here showing them that their (Gentiles) standing with God was non-existent, for they were without God in the world and yet God the Father has drawn them to the foot of our Lord Jesus Christ Cross and by the Power of the Holy Spirit they were granted the gift of “repentance to life”, then it should be understandable to them that God (using the Gentile converts to make the Jews jealous) would draw them to believe in our Lord Jesus Christ for they already seek and desire to worship God the Father only in the wrong manner not coming through Christ to Him.

Paul goes on to say that he wants them (the Gentiles) to understand this great mystery of God that was kept secret by Him for the very purpose of saving and making many Gentiles sons of God and fellow heirs with the Jews of all of His Covenant Promises. Paul declares that the hardness of heart that the majority of Israel (especially all the religious leaders) has toward Christ being the Messiah and Son of God is all wrapped up in this mystery or hidden secret God the Father kept from the Jews until He would call out of darkness every Gentile He knew before the foundation of the world (Romans 16:25 & Colossians 1:26). It is never an occasion for any Gentile of any generation to take to task any Jew for not believing on our Lord Jesus Christ and seeing Him as the Messiah because God the Father has caused this blindness to darken their hearts to the truth of Christ. This is an act of mercy and loving-kindness shown to all the Gentile Nations opening up the gospel to them because of Israel’s rejection of the gospel of grace. The attitude of every born again Gentile believer is to lovingly show them who Jesus Christ is from the Scriptures in the Old Testament and the New Testament.

Paul now goes back to the Old Testament Prophet Isaiah and documents his words to the people of Israel at that time which proclaimed the coming deliverer that would bring complete restoration to Israel, but we must venture to understand what Paul truly means here by “all Israel will be saved” and it cannot account salvation to every Jew who ever lived and was born from the physical seed of Abraham because Paul has said earlier in this same epistle these words, Romans 9:6-8 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “through Isaac your descendants will be named.” That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. NKJV In other words, every Jew born from Abraham’s seed in the flesh who died without the faith of Abraham will not be blessed to partake of the first resurrection (Revelation 20:6), but instead will be called to the Great White Throne where our Lord Jesus Christ will seat as Judge (Revelation 20:11-15).

The “all Israel will be saved” that Paul is referring to is those Jews or branches that do not continue in unbelief as he has already stated above in Romans 11:23. Our Lord Jesus Christ never has nor will He force Himself upon a person’s will and make them turn from sin to Him when their hearts are still in love with sin no matter whether it be a Jew or Gentile. For the true Israel of God (Galatians 6:16) is now and will be at our Lord Jesus’ Second Coming only those Jews who have repented and believed the gospel of Christ for as Paul said there is no other way or Name by which men must be saved than by the Name of Jesus. Listen to what Peter says here, Acts 3:25-26 “It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.” NKJV The words spoken here by Peter were the fulfillment of what was Prophesied by Ezekiel 36:24-28 and this is the “all Israel that will be saved” only those Jews who have been born again by the Power of God.

Dr. Luke also documents for us Zacharias’s (the father of John the Baptist) Prophecy that also confirms what God the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirits Power would do for the people of Israel, Luke 1:67-79 And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people, And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of David His servant--As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old--Salvation from our enemies, And from the hand of all who hate us; To show mercy toward our fathers, And to remember His holy covenant, The oath which He swore to Abraham our father, To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways; To give to His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins, Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us, To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.” NKJV

“Christ took our sins and the sins of the whole world as well as the Father’s wrath on His shoulders, and He has drowned them both in Himself so that we are thereby reconciled to God and become completely righteous.” Martin Luther

“He had, when in health, wickedly refused Christ, yet in his death-agony, he had superstitiously sent for me. Too late, he sighed for the ministry of reconciliation, and sought to enter in at the closed door, but he was not able. There was no space left him then for repentance, for he had wasted the opportunities which God had long granted to him.” Charles Spurgeon

“God did not wait for a change of heart on our part. He made the first move. Indeed, He did more than that. He did all was necessary to secure our reconciliation, including our change of heart. Even though He is the One offended by our sin, He is the One who makes amends to Himself through the death of Christ.” Jerry Bridges

“God the Father has but One Way of reconciling sinful men and women back to Himself and that is through our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ no matter if Jew or Gentile (Ephesians 1:10).” Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...


Sincerely in Christ,


Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…