Book of Common Prayer

Israel’s failure—yet remember the faithful few

11 This leads naturally to the question, “Has God then totally repudiated his people?” Certainly not! I myself, for one, am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham and of the tribe of Benjamin.

^2-3 It is unthinkable that God should have repudiated his own people, the people whose destiny he himself appointed. Don’t you remember what the scripture says in the story of Elijah? How he pleaded with God on Israel’s behalf: ‘Lord, they have killed your prophets, and torn down your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life’.

⁴ And do you remember God’s reply? ‘I have reserved for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal’.

^5-6 In just the same way, there is at the present time a minority chosen by the grace of God. And if it is a matter of the grace of God, it cannot be a question of their actions especially deserving God’s favour, for that would make grace meaningless.

^7-8 What conclusion do we reach now? That Israel did not, on the whole, obtain the object of his striving, but a chosen few “got there”, while the remainder became more and more insensitive to the righteousness of God. This is borne out by the scripture: ‘God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear, to this very day’.

^9-10 And David says of them: ‘Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a recompense to them; let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back always’.

In the providence of God disaster has been turned to good account

^11-12 Now I ask myself, “Was this fall of theirs an utter disaster? It was not! For through their failure the benefit of salvation has passed to the Gentiles with the result that Israel is made to see and feel what is has missed. For if their failure has so enriched the world, and their defection proved such a benefit to the Gentiles, think what tremendous advantage their fulfilling of God’s plan could mean.

25 ^1-13 “In those days the kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were sensible and five were foolish. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. But the sensible ones brought their lamps and oil in their flasks as well. Then, as the bridegroom was a very long time, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep. But in the middle of the night there came a shout, ‘Wake up, here comes the bridegroom! Out you go to meet him!” Then up got the bridesmaids and attended to their lamps. The foolish ones said to the sensible ones, ‘Please give us some of your oil—our lamps are going out!’ ‘Oh no,’ returned the sensible ones, ‘there might not be enough for all of us. Better go to the oil-shop and buy some for yourselves.’ But while they had gone off to buy the oil the bridegroom arrived, and those bridesmaids who were ready went in with him for the festivities and the door was shut behind them. Later on the rest of the bridesmaids came and said, ‘Oh, please, sir, open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘I tell you I don’t know you!’ So be on the alert—for you do not know the day or the time.