Romans 11:26 – Our God, Our Deliverer
And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
Truth to Learn
Our God and Savior is deserving of all praise and glory.
Behind the Words
“Saved” is translated from sōdzō, meaning “to deliver from danger or harm” or “to save.” The word Savior is from soterios, which is derived from this verb sōdzō.
The word “Deliverer” is from rhuomai, which is from the verb rhuō, meaning “to draw or drag along the ground.” Thus we see the word rhuomai means “to draw or snatch from danger, to rescue, or to deliver.”
Meaning Explained
The opening part of this verse has been debated for centuries. There are some who claim that Paul is asserting that all Jews of all time will be saved. This is clearly as absurd as saying that all of mankind will be saved. What Paul is referring to is a point in time in the future when all who are Jews will recognize the Messiah and will accept Him as their savior.
Paul then quotes a passage from Isaiah 59:20 which says,
The Redeemer will come to Zion, And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” Says Jehovah.
As you can clearly see, Paul’s quotation and our translation of Isaiah 59:20 don’t agree. That’s because Paul is quoting from the Septuagint, with which it does agree. And it is also agreeable with the Chaldean paraphrase of the Hebrew Bible, called the Targum, which says,
the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and to turn the rebellious ones of the house of Jacob to the law.
It is this Targum which is commonly read by Jews in their Synagogues today. Since this agrees quite well with Paul’s quotation, we can assume that it is an accurate translation.
So the question is, “When will all of Israel be saved?” And the answer is, “When the Messiah returns.” This return will occur at the end of the seven year Tribulation (Daniel’s 70th week) described by the Apostle John in the book of The Revelation. This coming of the conquering Messiah at the final battle of the Tribulation, commonly referred to as Armageddon, is described in the 19th chapter of The Revelation. Immediately after this battle the sheep and goat judgment will take place in which unbelievers will be cast into Hades and the believers will be ushered into the thousand year reign of Christ upon this earth, commonly called The Millennium.
The first verse of this 19th chapter reads:
After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!
Application
If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you too will be among those in heaven proclaiming Halleluiahs to our God, giving Him all the glory and all the honor for what He has done. Let’s start practicing now by shouting Halleluiah and by giving Him all the credit and all the glory for what He is doing now in our lives. Then spread the word!
And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2010 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
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