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Romans 11:26–27
And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom. 11:26).
God used Paul to reveal in verse 25 that Israel’s divinely ordained spiritual blindness is a partial and temporary thing that will end when “the fullness of the gentiles has come in.” Now his words reveal to us an even more stunning truth: “All Israel will be saved.” This is divine revelation, but these words have caused such confusion and disagreement that they seem almost to obscure truth rather than make it known. What are we to make of this statement?
Perhaps the best way to start is to consider what “all Israel” does not mean. It cannot mean every Jew, any more than “world” in John 3:16 means every person on the earth. Some of the physical descendants of Abraham are not spiritual children of the patriarch, for they do not have faith like his and hence are not saved. Paul may be referring to spiritual Israelites when he speaks of “all Israel,” meaning elect Jews and gentiles who constitute the church through all time. Another possibility is that he is thinking of all elect Jews throughout history. But he also may be telling us that there will be a future mass conversion of elect Jews. This is what Paul seemed to be hinting at in verses 12, 15, and 24. Also, it is the interpretation that seems to fit best with verse 25, which speaks of an end to Israel’s partial blindness. And finally, Paul has been speaking about natural Israel, showing that the Jews were “set apart” by God’s choice of Abraham, so it would be odd for him to begin addressing spiritual Israel at this point.
Once again in this passage, Paul uses Scripture to support his point, and the verses he selects also add weight to the third interpretation. He quotes Isaiah 59:20–21, which speaks of “the Deliverer” coming to “turn away ungodliness” from Israel. Then he quotes Isaiah 27:9, which refers to God’s covenant, His promises to Abraham and his descendants. Some scholars see these verses as pointing to the first advent of Christ, when He came to make atonement for His elect people. But as Dr. James M. Boice points out, if that work is what Paul has in mind, he need not refer to this teaching on it as “mystery,” for he has been unveiling its significance throughout Romans. Boice and other scholars believe Paul is speaking here of a future day when God will shift the focus of His saving call from gentiles to Jews once more, bringing a great number of them to faith in Christ.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
The idea of a future ingathering of Jews seems strange to us—just as Jews in the early church struggled to accept the salvation of gentiles. Despite this strangeness, we must let Scripture inform our hearts and minds as to the ways of God among men. Ask God for His help to understand this difficult passage.
For Further Study
- Jeremiah 31:9
- Jeremiah 50:4
- Ezekiel 39:29
- Zechariah 12:10
- 1 Timothy 2:5