Why is Israel called “chosen” if not all of them are saved? Are they similar to Gentiles in this respect- i.e. some are saved and some are not?
Here is my answer:
This is surely a complex question, yet it is answerable. I’ll give you the basic explanation and then elaborate some.
THE SHORT ANSWER: A CHOSEN NATION
Israel is a chosen nation. God chose them to bring his promises of redemption (first seen in Genesis 3:15, cf. Heb. 2:14, Rev. 20:1-3) to the whole world. It was through them God revealed himself and set out to redeem a people for himself- a people that would reach far beyond just Israel to include people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. So, in this sense they are chosen in a way distinct from the Gentiles. However, within the nation of Israel, we see that not all of them were elect unto salvation. Many were not chosen for salvation even though they were part of the chosen nation.
Let me help illuminate some of this by digging a little deeper. First, let’s look to the Old Testament to get some historical perspective.
A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE: GOD’S PROMISE TO ISRAEL
The nation of Israel arises from God’s promise to one man, Abraham. In Genesis 12:1-3, we see the calling of Abraham (then called Abram):
1Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."
God promises to make Abraham a great nation and that “in [him] all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” This promise is reinforced throughout the rest of the Old Testament (even in Genesis- see Gen 13:14-17, 15:4-5, 17:1-14). It is through Abraham, and the nation of Israel, that Jesus comes blessing all nations (Matt. 1:1).
It is important to note that God did not choose the nation of Israel because they were better than other people (in fact, they didn’t even exist until he created them from Abraham). Deuteronomy 7:6-9 makes it clear that God chose them by his own sovereign love:
"For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. 7It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, 8but it is because the LORD loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”
This is God’s sovereign, electing grace. This passage speaks of God electing or choosing Israel as a nation; his own treasured nation. He keeps his promises to them because of his irrevocable love that he promised them when he made his covenant with Abraham and the forefathers (see Rom. 11:29). In a similar way, God chooses whom he will save in Christ so that no one gets the glory but God himself (see Ephesians 1:3-14 and 1 Corinthians 1:26-31). However, his choosing people in Christ for salvation is distinct from his national election of Israel in that it is on an individual basis (the same was true in Israel in the sense that not all Israelites who were part of the chosen nation were part of the true Israel).
That Israel was not inherently better than other nations is clear throughout the Old Testament. They continually sinned and were frequently under God’s just judgment as a nation (just read the prophets). Yet, God always kept a remnant of true Israelites. A group of Israelites that remained faithful to him, that were truly saved (see 1 Kings 19:18, Rom. 11:4).
At the same time, God never abandoned Israel as a nation, even the unbelieving ones. This doesn’t mean all of them were truly saved, but it does mean they remained his chosen people. Why? Because he is faithful to the covenant he made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (the forefathers). In other words, God’s character is such that he is unchanging in his promises.
The prophets, speaking to the unfaithful nation, foretold God’s judgments and discipline on the nation (Hosea 3:4). They also spoke of a future day when God would change the hearts of the entire living generation of Israelites to trust and obey him (Hosea 3:5). This is clear in the New Covenant promise given to Israel in Jeremiah 31:31-37. God will give them a new heart so that they will obey him. He also promises that the nation of Israel will never cease to be before him (v. 36). This is the same New Covenant that Gentiles are made to share in through Christ. Jesus’ blood sealed this New Covenant promise (Luke 22:20).
A FUTURE PERSPECTIVE: GOD KEEPS HIS PROMISES
In Romans 9-11, we see some of the clearest New Testament teaching on this subject. I will just focus on Romans 11 to show that God is going to keep his promise to the nation of Israel (i.e. they are still his chosen nation).
Paul begins chapter 11 by asking if God has rejected his people (i.e. Israel). He says “Absolutely Not!” (paraphrase v. 1). The first line of support he provides is his own salvation. Paul was an Israelite, and God saved him in Christ. God has always preserved a remnant of true Israelites to be saved (v. 2-5).
In verses 7-10 we see that Israel is presently under a divine blindness and hardness to the gospel. Paul then asks, Is this hardening so that “they might fall?” No. Instead it is so that God’s plan to bring salvation to the Gentiles could be fulfilled (v. 11).
Paul goes on, in verses 17-24, to remind Gentile believers that we should not be arrogant towards Israel. He uses the illustration of an olive tree. He says some of Israel has been broken off (unbelieving Israel). This was so that the Gentiles might be “grafted in.” In other words, so salvation could come to the Gentiles. But this should not make us proud towards Israel. It should remind us to humbly accept God’s grace and fear God’s severity in judgment (v. 22). We also are reminded that God will graft the natural branches back into the olive tree in the future (v. 24).
This hardening of Israel is upon the nation of Israel “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” (v. 25). At that point in history (future),
all Israel will be saved, as it is written, ‘The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob; and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins’” (v. 26-27).
This is the future hope for the nation. God is preserving a remnant of national Israel and saving some of them (spiritual Israel). It is from this remnant that he will restore the nation- thus vindicating his righteousness by keeping his promises to them. In the last days, God will lift the hardening from the nation so that that entire generation of national Israel will be saved. In this way, the Old Testament promises of the New Covenant for Israel will be fulfilled.
So, we could say that Israel, today, is God’s beloved enemy. In 11:28-29, Paul speaks of the current nation of Israel when he says,
As regards the gospel, they are enemies of God for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
He is speaking of the unbelieving remnant- national Israel. Currently, they are enemies in regards to the gospel for they reject Christ as Messiah. They are enemies for the sake of the Gentiles' salvation (cf. 11:11-12). But, God’s love is still set on them because of the irrevocable promise he made to them in the Old Testament.
Before I wrap this up, let me make one more point that does not come directly from Romans 11. The fact that there is a remnant of Israel in existence today is proof that God has not withdrawn his electing love from Israel and that he will demonstrate this love in restoring them. Think about it. You will never meet a Philistine or Cushite or Edomite (all nations around Israel in Old Testament times that no longer exist). Why is it that we still have Israelites living on the planet? This small people that dwelt in the midst of nations much greater than itself is still around. This is because they are still the chosen nation of God, and he is sustaining them. The fact that Israelites still exist reminds us that God isn’t through with them yet.
CONCLUSION
So, Israel is called chosen in a way that is similar to and distinct from the way we Gentiles are called chosen. God chose Israel to be the nation through which he would reveal himself and carry out his plan of redemption. It was through Israel that Christ came according to the flesh. Despite this, not all in this chosen nation are elect unto salvation.
The similarities between their election as a nation and our election is that both are by the sovereign choice of God and are not based on anything intrinsically good in those elected (it is of grace). The differences are that not all of national Israel is saved. However, within national Israel there is a spiritual remnant that is saved. So in this sense it is similar to our election
When it’s all said and done with, we see that the election of the nation Israel plays a role in God’s plan to save and elect a people from every tribe, tongue and nation of the world. This does not negate his original promises to the nation of Israel because one day “all Israel will be saved” and God’s faithfulness to his promises will be put on display.
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