For I would not, brethren
The apostle in order to raise the attention of the Gentiles to
what he was about to deliver to them, not only styles them
"brethren", expressing his affection for them, and their relation
to him and other believing Jews, and to one another, being all
one in Christ Jesus, partakers of the same grace, and heirs of
the same glory; but also tells them, that what he had to acquaint
them with was a "mystery", a thing secret and hidden, which had
not been heard of and known, at least not so fully and clearly as
he was about to reveal it; and because of his great respect for
them, he was unwilling, as he says,
that ye should be ignorant of this mystery;
he was desirous that they should abound and improve in all
spiritual knowledge and judgment, and, among the rest, be better
informed of this particular article, the call of the Jews: and
his view in apprizing them of it is expressed in the following
clause,
lest ye should be wise in your own conceits:
lest they should imagine that they were the only wise and knowing
persons, and be elated in their minds with their knowledge and
understanding, and look with contempt upon the poor, blind,
ignorant Jews, as if they were always to remain in such a state
of darkness and infidelity. The thing he had to inform them of
is,
that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the
fulness of the
Gentiles be come in;
by Israel is meant the Jews, the descendants of Jacob, whose name
was Israel. Philo the Jew observes F2, that this name
signifies (orasin yeou) ,
"the vision of God"; indeed, Jacob had it given him when he
wrestled with the angel, and saw God face to face, though it does
not seem to be for that reason; however, blindness had now
befallen the Jews, who had been favoured with a divine
revelation, with the knowledge of God, his will and worship; and
none were more blind than those who were called the servants and
messengers of the Lord of hosts, as the Scribes and Pharisees,
the priests and princes of the Jewish world. This "blindness"
designs their unbelief, the hardness of their hearts, and
darkness of their understandings with respect to God himself,
whom they knew not in Christ; not as the Father of Christ; nor
even the perfections of his nature, particularly his
righteousness; which was the reason of their setting up their own
righteousness, and of their non-submission to the righteousness
of Christ: they were blind as to the Messiah; they knew him not,
when he came; they saw no beauty and comeliness in him; could not
discern the characters of him in Jesus, though they were so
manifest; and rejected him notwithstanding the clear evidence of
his ministry and miracles. They were in the dark about the sense
of the prophecies of the Old Testament; a vail was upon their
hearts when they read them, so that they understood them not, and
could not see their accomplishment in Christ; they were even
ignorant of the law, the spiritual nature, true use, and right
end and scope of it; and it is no wonder that the Gospel should
be hidden from them. This blindness "happened" to them not by
chance, but befell them by the decree, and according to the will
of God, who hardens whom he pleases; and according to various
predictions in the Old Testament, cited in ( Matthew
13:14 Matthew
13:15 ) ( John 12:39 John 12:40 ) ( Romans
11:8-10 ) ; and in righteous judgment, for since they liked
not to retain God and his Christ in their knowledge, it was but
just in God to give them up to reprobate minds, to judicial
blindness, and hardness of heart: but then this blindness only
happened to them "in part"; not that it was only in some measure
or some degree, for it was total, they were darkness itself, and
had no spiritual and evangelic light at all on whom it fell; but
that this blindness was not general with respect to persons,
there were some few, a seed, a remnant, that were delivered from
it, though the far greater part of the nation were involved in
it, and continue in it to this day; and will do, "until the
fulness of the Gentiles be come in": that is, till the whole
number of God's elect among them, be called and brought into the
Gospel church state, which in the latter day will be very great;
when the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as
the waters cover the sea; when the kingdoms of this world shall
become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ; and the abundance
of the sea shall be converted, and the forces of the Gentiles
shall come to the church, and multitudes of them shall flock
thither, as doves to their windows: and since the blindness of
the Jews is not yet removed, it seems plain that the full number
of God's chosen ones among the Gentiles is not yet completed in
regeneration; for as soon as ever they are all called and brought
in, the vail will be taken away from the Jews, and they will be
turned unto the Lord.