To speak of “God’s purpose of election” (Rom 9:11) involves speaking of those who are not the elect—those whose fate should bring great sadness to our hearts. We should also remember that, as mysterious and incomprehensible as it is to us and our finite minds, God justly holds unbelievers accountable not on the basis of His promises and election but on the basis of their rejection of Him (cf. Rom 1:18–20; 2:8–9).

Romans 9–11 is a difficult and debated section of Scripture in terms of God’s role in salvation and ethnic Israel’s role in the redemptive plan of God. Over the next few weeks, I hope to crystallize my own thoughts about these chapters into a few posts, passage by passage, as we work through this section of Scripture as a church, making devotional comments along the way.

Reminding ourselves of the context, Paul has just focused on the glory that will certainly come to us who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:18–39). As for Israel, however, Paul’s prose turns to pain for his “kinsmen according to the flesh” (Romans 9:3). He has “great sorrow and unceasing anguish” for Israelites who do not believe even though God’s many blessings belong to them (Rom 9:1–5).

These first five verses set the tenor for Romans 9–11 and should guide our discussions about these matters as well. To speak of “God’s purpose of election” (Rom 9:11) involves speaking of those who are not the elect—those whose fate should bring great sadness to our hearts.

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