Romans 11:7

King James Version (KJV)

What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded

Adam Clarke
Bible Commentary

What then? - What is the real state of the case before us? Israel - the body of the Jewish people, have not obtained that which they so earnestly desire, i.e. to be continued, as they have been hitherto, the peculiar people of God; but the election hath obtained it - as many of them as have believed in Jesus Christ, and accepted salvation through him: this is the grand scheme of the election by grace; God chooses to make those his peculiar people who believe in his Son, and none other shall enjoy the blessings of his kingdom. Those who would not receive him are blinded; they have shut their eyes against the light, and are in the very circumstances of those mentioned by the Prophet Isaiah, Isaiah 29:10.

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Albert Barnes
Notes on the Whole Bible

What then? - What is the proper conclusion from this argument? “Israel hath not obtained.” That is, the Jews as a people have not obtained what they sought. They sought the favor of God by their own merit; and as it was impossible to obtain it in that manner, they have, as a people, failed of obtaining his favor at all, and will be rejected.

That which he seeketh for - To wit, salvation by their own obedience to the Law.

The election hath - The purpose of choosing on the part of God has obtained, or secured, what the seeking on the part of the Jews could not secure. Or the abstract here may be put for the concrete, and the word “election” may mean the same as the elect. The elect, the reserved, the chosen part of the people, have obtained the favor of God.

Hath obtained it - That is, the favor, or mercy, of God.

The rest - The great mass of the people who remained in unbelief, and had rejected the Messiah.

Were blinded - The word in the original means also were hardened ἐπωρώθησαν epōrōthēsanIt comes from a word which signifies properly to become hard, as bones do which are broken and are then united; or as the joints sometimes do when they become callous or stiff. It was probably applied also to the formation of a hard substance in the eye, a cataract; and then means the same as to be blinded. Hence, applied to the mind, it means what is “hard, obdurate, insensible, stupid.” Thus, it is applied to the Jews, and means that they were blind and obstinate; see Mark 6:52, “Their heart was hardened;” Mark 8:17; John 12:40. The word does not occur in any other place in the New Testament. This verse affirms simply that “the rest were hardened,” but it does not affirm anything about the mode by which it was done. In regard to “the election,” it is affirmed that it was of God; Romans 11:4. Of the remainder, the fact of their blindness is simply mentioned, without affirming anything of the cause; see Romans 11:8.

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Matthew Henry
Concise Bible Commentary

There was a chosen remnant of believing Jews, who had righteousness and life by faith in Jesus Christ. These were kept according to the election of grace. If then this election was of grace, it could not be of works, either performed or foreseen. Every truly good disposition in a fallen creature must be the effect, therefore it cannot be the cause, of the grace of God bestowed on him. Salvation from the first to the last must be either of grace or of debt. These things are so directly contrary to each other that they cannot be blended together. God glorifies his grace by changing the hearts and tempers of the rebellious. How then should they wonder and praise him! The Jewish nation were as in a deep sleep, without knowledge of their danger, or concern about it; having no sense of their need of the Saviour, or of their being upon the borders of eternal ruin. David, having by the Spirit foretold the sufferings of Christ from his own people, the Jews, foretells the dreadful judgments of God upon them for it, Ps 69. This teaches us how to understand other prayers of David against his enemies; they are prophecies of the judgments of God, not expressions of his own anger. Divine curses will work long; and we have our eyes darkened, if we are bowed down in worldly-mindedness.

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SDA Bible Commentary (limited)
Volume 1-7

7. What then? What conclusion is to be drawn from the truths just stated? Since God has not cast away His people Israel, what exactly is their position? Paul now shows that the statement of ch. 9:31 must be understood to mean that, while it is true that Israel as a nation has failed to reach its aim, nevertheless the failure is not total. A part of Israel, the elect, have succeeded.

Obtained. Gr. epitugchanÅÂ, “to hit the mark,” hence, “to attain to,” “to obtain.”

Seeketh for. The present tense indicates that the search is still in progress. Israel, as a people, have been and still are seeking after righteousness, the very thing they have failed to obtain. The object of Israel’s search, together with the fact that they were seeking for it in the wrong way, has already been explained in chs. 9:31, 32; 10:2, 3. The basic principle asserted in these passages has been emphatically repeated in ch. 11:6.

The election. That is, those who have been elected. Compare the expression, “the circumcision,” meaning those who have been circumcised (chs. 3:30; 4:9). Paul is stressing the fact that those who are saved owe their position entirely to God’s grace and election.

Were blinded. Gr. pÅÂroÅÂ, “to harden,” “to become callous,” “to become insensible” (cf. 2 Cor. 3:14). The OT quotation in Rom. 11:8 speaks of God as the One responsible for the hardening. In the nontechnical language of the Bible, God is often said to do that which He does not prevent (see on 2 Chron. 18:18).

It has thus been made clear that the believing Jews, like the believing Gentiles, are saved only by grace (Rom. 11:6; cf. Eph. 2:8). As for the rest of Israel, they have been hardened, not because God has cast them away, for He has not (Rom. 11:1, 2), but because they have sought to establish their own righteousness by their own works and have not submitted to the righteousness of God (ch. 10:3).

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Related Verses

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