Wednesday, 11 March 2026

Romans part 153 - One in Messiah 42

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Romans 11:11 I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their false step salvation has come to the Gentiles, to provoke Israel to jealousy.

This is a very significant verse of Scripture. It explains so much. Who are the "they," who "did not stumble so as to fall?" The descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who took Jacob's new name from him, being called the children of Israel. "They" are the Jewish people of today.

None of this makes Jewish people special, but all of this (stumbling but not falling) makes God very special. God keeps His promises, all of them, first to the children of Israel and then to the rest of the world.

Psalm 89:35-38 I will not violate My covenant, nor alter what My lips have uttered. Once for all I have sworn by My holiness - surely I will not lie to David - his descendants will endure forever, and his throne as the sun before Me, and as the moon, established forever, and a trustworthy witness in the sky. Selah

All of God's covenant promises include land, and not just any land. Jeremiah (chapter 16 and again in chapter 30), Ezekiel (both chapters 36 and 37) and notably the last verse of Amos. Amos 9:15 Yes, I will plant them on their land, and they will never again be plucked up out of their land that I have given to them." Adonai, your God, has said it.

Rabbi Trail: The rabbis seem to have a phobia about falling (and rightfully so). The Hebrew word for "fall" is nafel, which could be related etymologically. The 14th verse of Psalm 145 was removed by the rabbis because it started with the word nafel. Psalm 145 now has 21 verses instead of the original 22. End RT.

Paul writes in two ways about a similar concept. First a "stumble," which then becomes a "false step." The sin (or transgression) of Israel has brought about the salvation of the Gentiles. But that's not the end of the story. The purpose (according to Paul) is to make Israel jealous. In what way? To make Israel want what Gentiles have in Messiah Yeshua.

That's how I got saved. I wanted the relationship with God that my Gentile friends had with Him. And that was only available through the Son of God, Yeshua HaMashiach. At one point I said, "Good for them. I'm glad they have their Savior and Lord." The very next thought was, "Why not me too?" It was that moment (November 1982) that I accepted Yeshua and began my walk as His follower.

More on this next time. Shalom shalom.