Romans 9:6-8

 

 

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9:6  But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel;
Greek: Ouch hoion de hoti ekpeptoken (3SRPI) o logos tou theou. ou gar pantes oi ex Israel, houtoi Israel; 
Amplified
: However, it is not as though God's Word had failed [coming to nothing]. For it is not everybody who is a descendant of Jacob (Israel) who belongs to [the true] Israel.
ESV:  But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel,
ICB:  I do not mean that God failed to keep his promise to them. But only some of the people of Israel are truly God's people.
NKJV:  But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel,
NIV:  It is not as though God's word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.
NLT:  Well then, has God failed to fulfill his promise to the Jews? No, for not everyone born into a Jewish family is truly a Jew!
Philips:  Now this does not mean that God's word to Israel has failed. For you cannot count all "Israelites" as the true Israel of God (see discussion of
Israel of God)
Wuest
: But the case is not such as this, that the word of God is fallen powerless; for not all who are out of Israel, these are Israel,
Young's Literal:  And it is not possible that the word of God hath failed; for not all who are of Israel are these Israel;
ROMANS ROAD to RIGHTEOUSNESS
Romans
1
:18-3:20
Romans
3:21-5:21
Romans
6:1-8:39
Romans
9:1-11:36
Romans
12:1-16:27
SIN SALVATION SANCTIFICATION SOVEREIGNTY SERVICE
NEED
FOR
SALVATION
WAY
OF
SALVATION
LIFE
OF
SALVATION
SCOPE
OF
SALVATION
WORK
OF
SALVATION

BUT IT IS NOT AS THOUGH THE WORD OF GOD HAS FAILED: Ouch hoion de hoti ekpeptoken (3SRPI) o logos tou theou
: (
3:3; 11:1,2; Numbers 23:19; Isaiah 55:11; Matthew 24:35; John 10:35; 2 Timothy 2:13; Hebrews 6:17,18)

Keep in mind that by the time of this letter to the Romans, the NT church was composed predominantly of Gentile believers and that Jews had begun to reject the Gospel in large numbers. In such a setting, it might look as if God's word had failed in regard to the Jew. What was the problem?

Failed (1601) (ekpipto from ek = from + pípto = to fall) literally means to fall from or out and figuratively (as in this verse) it means to fall away and to to fail, to be without effect or to be in vain.

Near the end of his life, Joshua addressed the issue of God's Word "failing" declaring to Israel...

"Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the LORD your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fulfilled for you, not one of them has failed. And it shall come about that just as all the good words which the LORD your God spoke to you have come upon you, so the LORD will bring upon you all the threats, until He has destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God has given you." (Joshua 23:14-15)

FOR THEY ARE NOT ALL ISRAEL WHO ARE DESCENDED FROM ISRAEL: ou gar pantes oi ex Israel houtoi Israel: (2:28,29; 4:12-16; John 1:47; Galatians 6:16)

"For it is not everybody who is a descendant of Jacob (Israel) who belongs to [the true] Israel" (Amplified)

Earlier in this letter Paul explained that...

he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God. (Romans 2:28-29)

Paul explains that God's Word has not failed because not all of physical Israel (Jew by birth) are "spiritual" Israel (Jew by new birth).

The natural "Israel" is the national, cultural, political Israel, all of whom were to be circumcised physically.

The "supernatural" Israel is represented by a "remnant" who God in great mercy and grace preserved.

The church is emphatically not the continuation of "political Israel" as is taught by a number of commentators. In fact, even scholars as highly esteemed as John Calvin arrived at this erroneous interpretation (see the Israel of God for why this is an erroneous interpretation). The point is that God is not finished with Israel or the Jew as explained later in Romans 9-11.

Now, if God made promises to Israel as His chosen earthly people, how can this be compatible with Israel’s present rejection and with the Gentiles being brought into the place of blessing? Paul explains that this does not indicate any breach of promise on God’s part. He goes on to show that God has always had a sovereign election process based upon promise and not just on natural descent. Just because a person was born into the nation of Israel does not mean that they are automatically an heir to the promises of God given through Abraham to Israel. Within the nation of Israel, God has always had a genuine believing remnant who have had heart circumcision (related topic Scriptures on Circumcision) and not just external physical circumcision. So Paul will show God sovereignly chose Isaac as the child of promise and the spiritual descendent of Abraham instead of the first born Ishmael. Then God sovereignly chose the twin Jacob over the firstborn Esau even before birth, even before they did anything good or bad to emphasize that it was God's choice who would be shown mercy and compassion. Remember that God is God and we are not!

Keep the following table in mind as you study Romans 9-11.

Summary of Romans 9-11
Romans 9 Romans 10 Romans 11
Past
Election
Present
Rejection
Future
Reception
God's Sovereignty
Israel's Election by God
Man's responsibility
Israel's Rejection of God
God's Ways Higher
God Not Rejecting Israel

Gentiles who believe are also of Abraham's spiritual seed ("And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise" Galatians 3:29) but in this passage in Romans 9, Paul is not considering the Gentiles but only the "two kinds of Israelites", the natural and the supernatural (spiritual) Jew.

Paul now offers to show in defense of God’s word that the inner reality does not correspond to the outer appearance, for “they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel” (v6-7), but there is a true Israel, an born again Israel within physical Israel, that is comprised, not of “the children of the flesh,” but of the children of the promise.

Jesus made a similar distinction when talking with the unbelieving Jews in Jn 8:33-39. They said to Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants ... ” (
John 8:33).

Jesus admitted this, saying, “I know you are Abraham’s descendants” (John 8:37).

But when they said,

“Abraham is our father” the Lord replied

“If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham” (John 8:39).

In other words, they were physically descended from Abraham, but they didn’t have Abraham’s faith and therefore they were not his spiritual children. In fact Jesus went on to explain to the spiritually unregenerate Jews...

"You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies. (John 8:44)
 

 

9:7  nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: "THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED."
Greek: oud' hoti eisin (3SPAI) sperma Abraam, pantes tekna, all', En Isaak klethesetai (3SFPI) soi sperma. 
Amplified: And they are not all the children of Abraham because they are by blood his descendants. No, [the promise was] Your descendants will be called and counted through the line of Isaac [though Abraham had an older son].(3)
ESV: and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named."
ICB:  And only some of Abraham's descendants are true children of Abraham. But God said to Abraham: "The descendants I promised you will be from Isaac."
NKJV: nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called."
NIV: Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."
NLT: Just the fact that they are descendants of Abraham doesn't make them truly Abraham's children. For the Scriptures say, "Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted," though Abraham had other children, too.
Philips:  Nor can all Abraham's descendants be considered truly children of Abraham. The promise was that 'in Isaac your seed shall be called'.
Wuest: nor because they are offspring of Abraham are all children, but: In Isaac an offspring shall be named for you.
Young's Literal:  nor because they are seed of Abraham are all children, but -- 'in Isaac shall a seed be called to thee;'
NEITHER ARE THEY ALL CHILDREN BECAUSE THEY ARE ABRAHAM'S DESCENDANTS (singular - seed): oud hoti eisin (3SPAI) sperma Abraam pantes tekna: (Luke 3:8; 16:24,25,30; John 8:37-39; Philippians 3:3)

Children (5043) (teknon from tíkto = bring forth, bear children, be born) means literally the child produced. Teknon is a child as viewed in relation to his parents or family. This word takes on special theological significance when the Bible calls believers the children of God and that is the primary idea in this verse.

Descendants (4690) (sperma from speíro = to sow) refers to seed sown as containing the germ of new fruit and here clearly represents the physical offspring of Abraham.

The Jews would say to Paul "We have Abraham as our father" but Paul would remind them that Abraham had two sons and only through one son was the true heir. Isaac appropriated the promise by faith just as Abram & just as every Jew or Gentile must do in order to be born from above a new creature.

BUT THRU ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS (singular - seed) WILL BE NAMED (called): all en Isaak klethesetai (3SFPI) soi sperma: (Genesis 21:12; Hebrews 11:18)

Here in Romans Paul quotes the Septuagint (LXX) of Genesis 21:12 verbatim.

Of all the biological children of Abraham, only Isaac was in the line of promise. Writing to the Galatians Paul stated that...

it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman. But the son (Ishmael) by the bondwoman (Hagar) was born according to the flesh, and the son (Isaac) by the free woman (Sarah) through the promise. (Gal 4:22-23)

Not through Ishmael but through Isaac. The thinking Jew might well agree and say of course this is true. Ishmael is an Arab and we don't want him. We are of Isaac's seed. But Paul will move to Isaac's twin sons, of whom Esau was the firstborn and should have received the birthright but did not. In that situation unlike Ishmael and Isaac who had separate mothers, these two had the same mother and the same father and yet the firstborn was not chosen by God.

 

9:8  That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants.
Greek: tout' estin, (3SPAI) ou ta tekna tes sarkos tauta tekna tou theou, alla ta tekna tes epaggelias logizetai (3SPPI) eis sperma
Amplified: That is to say, it is not the children of the body [of Abraham] who are made God's children, but it is the offspring to whom the promise applies that shall be counted [as Abraham's true] descendants.
ESV: This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.
ICB:  This means that not all of Abraham's descendants are God's true children. Abraham's true children are those who become God's children because of the promise God made to Abraham.
NKJV: That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.
NIV: In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring.
NLT: This means that Abraham's physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. It is the children of the promise who are considered to be Abraham's children.
Philips: That means that it is not the natural descendants who automatically inherit the promise, but, on the contrary, that the children of the promise (i.e. sons of God) are to be considered truly Abraham's children.
Wuest: That is, not the children of the flesh, these are children of God, but the children of the promise are counted for offspring;
Young's Literal:  that is, the children of the flesh -- these are not children of God; but the children of the promise are reckoned for seed;
THAT IS, IT IS NOT THE CHILDREN OF THE FLESH (natural children) WHO ARE CHILDREN OF GOD: tout estin (3SPAI) ou ta tekna tes sarkos tauta tekna tou theou: (4:11-16; Galatians 4:22-31)

As a practical application it is worth noting that many professors in churches think they are God's children because they were raised in a Christian home, been baptized in water, their father was the pastor, etc. As Jesus made clear...

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again (the single criterion by which lost men become "children of promise"), he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3)

BUT THE CHILDREN OF THE PROMISE ARE REGARDED AS DESCENDANTS (Abraham's offspring or seed): alla ta tekna tes epaggelias logizetai (3SPPI) eis sperma: (Genesis 31:15; Psalms 22:30; 87:6; John 1:13; Galatians 3:26-29; 4:28; 1 John 3:1,2)

Regarded (3049) (logizomai from lógos = reason, word, account) (Click in depth study on logizomai) means to think about something in a detailed and logical manner. The idea is to draw inferences or conclusions through the use of reason. Logizomai is a bookkeeping term which means to make an entry in the account book or to calculate as when figuring an entry in a ledger. The purpose of the entry is to make a permanent record that can be consulted whenever needed.

Even even Abraham Abraham said to God

"Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee!" (Genesis 17:18).

But Ishmael was not God's choice.

 

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Last updated: 07/20/08.

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