Verse by Verse

¹¹ I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.

¹² Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!

See Romans 10:19 with the quote from Deuteronomy 32:21.

stumble — over Christ, their stumbling stone (the table in verse 9)

fall — without hope of recovery (first usage)

fall — moral trespass (second usage) as in Romans 5:15

If Israel’s fall brought the riches of the gospel to the world, how much more will the world benefit from Israel’s restoration (fullness)?

fullness — The entire nation will be saved and not just a remnant, as now — full and national prosperity. God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him (Psalm 67:7).

diminishing — national importance and spiritual and numerical loss. And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the LORD thy God (Deuteronomy 28:62).

While the Apostle’s chief purpose in Chapter 11 is to prove that God is not “through with Israel” as the spiritualizers teach, it is enlightening to consider what he says here regarding the blessing of the Gentiles during this present dispensation of the grace of God. Let us consider this in the light of its background.

According to all covenant and prophecy, the Gentiles were — and are — to be blessed through the rise of Israel. Note only the two following passages so Scripture:

That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice (Genesis 22:17-18).

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising (Isaiah 60:1-3).

This will take place at a future time, but surely it is not happening today …

Whereas Israel, according to the prophecy, is to be given supremacy over the nations (Isaiah 60:10-12; 61:6), this is clearly not so today. Israel as a nation has been cast out of God’s favor, as the Gentiles had been many centuries before, but both Jews and Gentiles as individuals are now offered reconciliation by grace through the shed blood of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:14-21).

According to covenant and prophecy, the Gentiles are to be blessed through Israel’s instrumentality (Genesis 22:17-18; Zechariah 8:13), but today they are being blessed through Israel’s obstinacy (Acts 13:44-46; Romans 11:28-32).

According to prophecy the Gentiles are to be bless through Israel’s rise (Isaiah 60:1-3; Zechariah 8:22-23). But today the Gentiles are being blessed through her fall (Romans 11:11).

Thus the salvation of Gentiles — and Jews — today is not based on any covenant but only on God’s grace; not on the fulfillment of any prophecy, but upon His eternal purpose, the mystery … kept secret since the world began, but made known in due time through the Apostle Paul (Romans 11:25; Ephesians 3:1-4). — Stam, pages 276-277.

⁹ And David says: “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a recompense to them.

¹⁰ Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see, and bow down their back always.”

The quote is from Psalm 69:22 — Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap.

table — symbolic of the special privileges given to the nation of Israel that pointed to Christ.

Verse 10 is quoted from the Septuagint — the Hebrew says “make their loins continually to shake.” Both translations paint a picture of weakness, fear and rejection.

God turned Israel’s privileges into curses as judgment for their self-righteousness.

⁷ What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded.

⁸ Just as it is written: “God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear, to this very day.”

not obtained — tense indicates a crisis

what it seeks — righteousness

election — the remnant from verse 5.

blinded = hardened, as Pharaoh (Romans 9:18) — God’s retribution

spirit of slumber (stupor) from Isaiah 29:10 — For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath He covered. The rest of the verse is from Deuteronomy 29:4 — Yet the LORD hath not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

Israel wasn’t blind. They knew they weren’t following God but were seeking their own righteousness. As a result, they were blinded.

First, we are told that Israel failed to obtain that for which it was seeking. We are told elsewhere that Israel was seeking after righteousness. We have already seen that they had a zeal for God but that it was not according to knowledge. They were ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God and, as they were trying to establish their own righteousness, they did not submit to the righteousness of God (10:2-3). We have seen that their own Scriptures showed the way of righteousness but that they were not willing to accept it. If they had called on the name of the Lord, they would have been saved, but they were so proud of their own efforts that they would not stoop to take things in God’s way. — Barnhouse, pages 115-116.

⁵ Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

⁶ And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.

There were still some Jews saved by grace. Paul offers this as further evidence that God hasn’t forsaken the nation of Israel.

Grace is not grace if mixed with works. The two principles are mutually exclusive (Romans 4:4-5). Thus in salvation there is no “your part” to perform; it is the gift of God’s love, to be received in simple faith (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9) — Stam, page 266

² God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying,

³ “Lord, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life”?

⁴ But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.

Answer 2 — God has foreknowledge and knew how Israel would respond, but He still made promises.

Answer 3 — God always preserves a remnant of believers (1 Kings 19:10, 14, 18).

“for Myself” — added to the original quote by Paul to emphasize God’s power and will in election.

cast away — Rejected, thrust from ones self.

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.

Paul was a Jew, so his salvation proves God has not cast off Israel

Seed of Abraham — the man God made promises to

Tribe of Benjamin — the tribe, with Judah, that was saved from destruction (Deuteronomy 21) and remained faithful after the captivity (Ezra 4:1, 10:9).

To the opening question, “Did God cast off His people?” there are three replies, which cover the ground of the whole chapter. Israel is not utterly given up, for (1) Paul himself is an Israelite, and therefore a spiritual remnant exists (vs.1-10); (2) one of the reasons why God is calling Gentiles into His favor is in order that He may show mercy to Israel; so He could not have rejected His people (vs. 11-24); (3) God will fulfill His promise to the nation on the coming of their Deliverer (vs. 25 to the end). — Vine, pages 161-162.

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We object to this whole system of interpretation [that Israel has lost her chance forever]. It is as illegitimate as if a man should promise to give his son a gold watch on his birthday but, grieved with his son before the birthday arrives, he “keeps his promise” by giving a grandfather clock to another person altogether! — Stam, page 260.

²⁰ But Isaiah is very bold and says: “I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me.”

²¹ But to Israel he says: “All day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”

Verse 20 — Isaiah 65:1 — I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.

Isaiah is very bold. He prophesied at the risk of his life.

“to Israel” — should be “with reference to Israel”

Verse 21 — Isaiah 65:2 — I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts.

disobedient — refuse to be persuaded

God was patient and entreated Israel, and they heard and understood, but responded with willful ignorance.

all day long — the dispensation of Law

The four “buts” (vs. 18, 19, 20, 21) are for answers to Israel’s possible objections

Isaiah 65:1-2 is referring to Israel, so Romans 10:20-21 must also be referring to Israel and to to Gentiles.

The last part of Isaiah 65:1 refers to Jewish leaders who crucified Christ.

¹⁸ But I say, have they not heard? Yes indeed: “Their sound has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.”

¹⁹ But I say, did Israel not know? First Moses says: “I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation, I will move you to anger by a foolish nation.”

Paul just said faith comes by hearing. He now anticipates the argument that some Jews haven’t heard. He counters with a quote from Psalm 19:4 about the evidence of God in creation that foreshadows God’s message, just as the Psalm itself begins with creation and ends with God’s Word.

Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun (Psalm 19:4).

Verse 19 quote from Deuteronomy 32:21 — They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.

It is a mistake to teach, as many do, that the Apostle refers here to the sending of the gospel to the Gentiles to provoke Israel to jealousy, as in Romans 11:11, for before sending the gospel to the Gentiles, God had provoked Israel to jealousy by the little flock of His Jewish followers …

The “nation” to which he referred is clearly mentioned in Luke 12:32, where He says to the little flock of His followers: Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

In this connection it must not be forgotten that our Lord had already appointed the twelve apostles as the chief rulers in this kingdom, next to Himself (Matthew 19:28).

Similarly here, in Romans 10:19, the Apostle refers not to the Gentiles, but to a nation, considered “a foolish nation,” “no people” by the recognized rulers. How the members of the Sanhedrin must have stormed as the “little flock” preached Christ and the resurrection right in their midst and led thousands to faith in Him! — Stam, page 256.

¹⁶ But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”

¹⁷ So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Quote in verse 16, about the coming Messiah, is from Isaiah 53:1 — Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?

Report (verse 16) and hearing (verse 17) come from the same Greek word. It indicates that the man giving the message heard it from somebody else — “a message heard.” Faith doesn’t come from hearing but from what is heard — the word of Christ.

The prophet Isaiah foretold the unbelief of the Jews, but God puts the responsibility on their shoulders.

word of God — should be “word of Christ”

¹⁴ How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?

¹⁵ And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!”

Verse 15 quote is from Isaiah 52:7 — How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!

Paul gives in the fourteenth and fifteenth verses a beautiful little discourse, to show the Jews the necessity for taking the gospel, which is intended for all, to all. If God provided a righteousness which is for all, if we know anything about it, then the obligation and responsibility for taking it to all lies upon us. In other words, world reconciliation demands world evangelization. He approaches this responsibility in reverse order, but nevertheless in a way that emphasizes the need. — McClain, page 191.