Many current end-times theologies center around the notion that God has a separate and special plan for the Jews that is based in part on Paul's discourse in Romans 9-11 regarding why so many Jews have "stumbled" and not accepted Jesus as the Messiah.
However, the problems inherent in interpreting this passage in this way is that it totally negates the previous eight chapters, where Paul has been arguing that it is through "faith alone" that one is saved, not by heritage.
Paul spends a lot of time telling the Jews not to boast about being Jews, because they can be cut off just like the Gentiles had been cut off for so long. Then he admonishes the Gentiles, telling them not to think that just because many Jews have rejected Jesus that they are somehow "superior" to the Jews - because it was through the Jews that God's Messiah and plan for salvation came about to begin with.
Neither should boast, because they are all included by the same thing: faith. So why then a few chapters later does Paul make the statement, "So then, all Israel will be saved"?
Jews vs. Israel
While it would take too much space to go into all the different uses and meanings of "Jew," suffice it to say, the term "Jew" in both today's context and the Biblical context can refer to several different groups of people. Briefly, there are Rabbinic Jews, second temple Jews, ethnic Jews, secular Jews, and then John's "Jews" who represented the religious leadership that rejected Jesus.
To complicate matters further, the term Israel is a much broader term than just "Jew." While it was with "Israel" that God made his covenant, elsewhere in the bible "Israel" is referred to as the Northern Kingdom as opposed to "Judah," the Southern Kingdom (where the term "Jew" originates).
After the ninth chapter of Romans, Paul ceases to use the term "Jew" and uses only the term "Israel," and earlier makes the statement that while all Jews are Israelites (according to the flesh) not all Israelites are Jews (according to the flesh). Case in point, the Samaritans, considered "unclean" by the "Jews" were technically Israelites as they were the remaining remnant left over from the Northern Tribes that were defeated by the Assyrians.
Thus, when Paul shifts his language and refrains from saying "Jew" and talks about "Israel," this seems significant. Paul sets about redefining what he means by "Jew" by stating one is only a "true Jew" if they are a Jew inwardly (2:28-29), and states that to be a descendant of Abraham is far more encompassing than just "the Jews" - as Abraham was the father of many nations, including many "Gentile" nations through Hagar and his second wife, Keturah (4:16-18).
Additionally, Paul makes it clear in other letters (Galatians 3) that one is a descendant of Abraham's through faith, not heritage. To clarify further what is meant by "Israel," Paul states in Romans 9 that not all Israelites belong to Israel and not all of Abraham's children are his true descendants.
All Israel Will Be Saved
It seems odd that Paul would make the statement in chapter 9 that only a remnant of Israel will be saved, but then says "all Israel" will be saved two chapters later. So which is it?
First of all, the context is Paul admonishing the Gentiles not to think they are wiser than they are, because he believed that God rejoices when Jews come to faith in Christ. The Messiah is not the Messiah for only Gentiles, but for Jews first, then Gentiles.
Second, the real crux of the statement "so all Israel" will be saved winds up being a translational issue. In the Greek, the word "so" (kai outws) is usually translated as simply "so" in the NIV, NRSV and KJV versions of the Bible. Yet, this term also means "in this way."
Many interpret the "so" to be a temporal "when" all Israel will be saved--once all the Gentiles have been brought in. However, "in this way" denotes the manner through which God is saving "all Israel" - through a hardening on a part of the unbelieving Jews so that Gentiles may be brought in, and it is in this way that "all Israel" - both Jew and Gentile - will be saved, because both are heirs through faith.
As he quotes in Romans 10:12, "Everyone who calls on the Lord shall be saved." This makes his comment regarding "on account of the patriarchs" make more sense - God is not writing them off. He loves them and desires them to come to faith.
The Mystery of Apostle Paul's Statements
Paul states that he wants people to understand "this mystery." He talks about the "mystery" in Ephesians 3 and Colossians 2. In those instances, the great "mystery" is that Gentiles have become "fellow heirs" through faith in Christ. Indeed, God elected the Jews to be the line through which his Messiah would come, and in that regard, they are beloved by God, his holy people, and why God desires they turn to him in faith.
God therefore is saving Jew and Gentile not by two different tracks, but in the way that he promised throughout all of the Old Testament. The Messiah of the Gentiles was first, and foremost, the Messiah promised to "Israel." Any Jew can still be grafted back in as though they had never been cut off if they do not remain in unbelief. After all, Paul himself was a Jew, so there were definitely Jews among those who believed.
Yet, Paul is also points out "God will have mercy on whom he will have mercy." Thus it is not for society, but only for God, to determine the fate of everyone on this planet and thus worshipers should take a lesson from first century Gentile friends and take Paul's words to heart - don't boast about what one has received.
Sources:
- Michael A. Fishbane, Judaism: Revelation and Traditions, (Harper Collins: New York, 1987) 11-82.
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