offence to them. Only a remnant believed, and that elect company was not exclusively

Jewish, but included those who walked in the steps of Abraham's faith. There was no

difference between the Jew and the Greek, for "the same Lord over all is rich unto all that

call upon Him".

Towards the close of Rom. 10: the Apostle quotes the statement of Moses, that the

Lord would provoke Israel to jealousy "by them that are no people". This he now

unfolds in connection with the great subject of the reconciling of the world, which is dealt

with in Rom. 11: 11-36. This, however, we must leave for the moment.

The subject-matter of Rom. 9:-11:, the peculiar style of the Apostle's argument, the

many quotations and analogies from O.T. Scriptures, make the study of these chapters

hard, and perhaps a weariness to the flesh. The extreme importance, however, of great

theme of justification by faith demands that it shall be considered in all its bearings,

whether in connection with the Law of Moses, the Call of Abraham, the Headship of

Adam, or, as in the passage before us, the Failure of Israel, and the Election of the

Gentiles. Principles are brought to the light in these passages that are of vital importance

to every believer who desires to understand the ways of God with men.

In the earlier verses of Rom. 11: the Apostle has shown that the failure of the bulk of

the nation of Israel in no way invalidates God's purpose or His faithfulness. We have

seen that the prophets foretold "a remnant according to the election of grace", and we

also learn that the defection of Israel had been overruled to bring about the reconciliation

of the Gentile world. Looking on to the close of the chapter, we find that "all Israel"

shall be saved, because "the gifts and calling of God are without repentance". The words

"all Israel", "Jacob", and "Zion", together with the prophecy alluded to, preclude our

making any deduction from these verses but one--namely, the national restoration and

blessing of Israel according to the terms of the New Covenant. Quite a number of

questions suggest themselves as we read this section, but it is evident that the Apostle,

when he wrote about the olive tree, had no intention of introducing a theological

argument at this point. He had one and only one purpose before him--to seek to show by

the figure of the olive tree how the Lord had used Gentile believers in order, if it were

possible, to "provoke" the nation of Israel "to emulation". This, and this only, is the

reason for introducing the figure, and the recognition of this will save us from almost

endless argument as to the ultimate destiny of the branches that remained.

Before attempting any exposition of these verses, it will be wise to see what particular

parts of the passage are emphasized by the structure, which we set out as follows: