Romans 11:7-12 (NKJV)

What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. Just as it is written:

“God gave them a spirit of stupor,
 Eyes that should not see
And ears that they should not hear,
To this very day.”

And David says:

“Let their table become a snare and a trap,
A stumbling block and a recompense to them.
Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see,
And bow down their back always.”

I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!

This is a great example of the intricate way that God’s plans can work. He blinded Israel so that they do not see and thus stumble.

But their stumbling isn’t the endpoint. Have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not!

No, that’s not it. Through their stumbling, salvation has come to the Gentiles. So, is saving the gentiles the point?

No, that’s not it either. The salvation of the gentiles is to act as a wake-up call to Israel. The goal is still the salvation of Israel—their fullness!

So, we see a double-backflip way of bringing salvation to Israel, while also bringing salvation to the gentiles.

How glorious is that?

Remember this the next time it looks like God’s plans are going off the rails. God knows what He’s doing, even if we don’t. His plans include things that look like setbacks to us, but they aren’t setbacks to Him.

The shortest distance between two points may be a straight line, but the LORD often takes the scenic route.

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