Church and Israel – Part 4

It is in Paul that the real hub of the debate on whether the church is the “new Israel” takes place. To begin with, it has to be acknowledged that most of Paul’s reference to “Israel” refer to his religious and ethnic compatriots who do not (yet) believe in Jesus the Messiah (e.g., 1 Cor 10:18; Eph 2:12; 3:6; Phil 3:5). Moreover, while several scholars try to take Rom 11:26, “And in this way, all Israel will be saved,” as referring to the consummated salvation of the church of Jews and Gentiles,[1] it seems fairly clear from the wider context of Romans 9–11 (Rom 9:4, 6, 27, 31; 10:19, 21; 11:2, 7, 11, 25), that Paul is looking ahead to the eschatological salvation of national Israel in the future.[2]

The central text in the debate is Paul’s benediction at the end of Galatians: “And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God (Gal 6:16 ESV). The issues are: (1) Who are the “all” and “Israel of God”? (2) Is there one blessing of peace for those who walk by this rule and another blessing of mercy for the Israel of God? (3) Is the “and” (kai) conjunctive, in the sense of a further addition, or explicative, in the sense of further description? A number of scholars argue that Paul’s blessing here is for Jewish Christians who follow the rule that he lays down in the epistle and he offers a separate blessing for Israel because they are Israel![3] I want to submit three arguments as to why Paul here must mean that the “Israel of God” is the church. First, it is incredibly difficult to imagine Paul arguing so passionately for the unity of Jews and Gentiles in one church, united in Christ, with everyone as equal sons of Abraham, and then at the very end of that letter pronouncing a benediction that would serve to separate groups within his churches according ethnic categories.[4] Second, Paul takes language ordinarily used to describe Israel, like “circumcision” (Phil 3:3), “Jew” (Rom 2:28-29), “God’s chosen people” (Col 3:12), to designate Christians. These are prestige terms that demonstrate the incorporation of the church into a heritage that was once thought to be the exclusive property of ethnic Judeans. Further, in Romans Paul says that “a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart” (Rom 2:29) which essentially redefines the identity of people of God around a new set of symbolic markers defined by Spirit, new creation, and obedience. Paul can also use Israel/Israelite in a fluid religious sense designating a priviledged religious identity that is no longer defined ethnically (Eph 2:13; 3:6) and even speak of an Israel within Israel (Rom 9:6). Paul knows of two covenantal people who are in effect “Israel of the flesh” and “Israel of the Spirit” (Gal 4:29). The “Israel of God” (Gal 6:16) as an honorific title for God’s people irrespective of ethnicity naturally contrasts with “Israel according to the flesh” (Rom 9:3) as a general designation for non-believing Jews. Third, we might compare the benediction of Gal 6:16 with the benediction in 1 Cor 16:22, “If anyone does not love the Lord, let that person be cursed! Come, Lord!” (1 Cor 16:22). For Paul, there is no blessing for people irrespective of their relationship to Christ. The grace, peace, and mercy of God are from Christ for the elect in Christ.[5] For this reason, I concur with Calvin: “In a word, he gives the appellation the Israel of God to those whom he formerly denominated the children of Abraham by faith, (Gal. iii. 29,) and thus includes all believers, whether Jews or Gentiles, who were united into one church.”[6]

[2] Cf. e.g., Moo, Romans, 722-23; Schreiner, Romans, 614-15.

[3] Cf. Susan Eastman, “Israel and Divine Mercy in Galatians and Romans,” in Between Gospel and Election: Explorations in the Interpretation of Romans 9–11, eds. F. Wilk and J.R. Wagner (Tübingen: Mohr/Siebeck, 2010), 147-170.

[4] Richard N. Longenecker, Galatians (WBC; Dallas, TX: Word, 1990), 298.

[5] Bird, Bird’s-Eye View of Paul, 50.

[6] John Calvin, Calvin’s Commentaries: Romans – Galatians (Wilmington: APA, n.d.), 1932.