Romans 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
‘Ignorant of this mystery’ six things Paul did not want people to be ignorant of (1:13; 11:25; 1Cor. 10:1; 12:1; 2Cor. 1:8; 1Thess. 4:13).
‘Mystery’ [Greek: musterion] something previously hidden, but now fully revealed. In the New Testament it always means any doctrine that has not, in former times, been made fully known to people. It is found 27 times in the New Testament and not once in the Old Testament. Eighteen mysteries of are noted in Scripture: The kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God (Matt. 13:11; Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10); Israel’s blindness (Rom. 11:25); salvation in Christ (Rom. 16:25); the wisdom of God (1Cor. 2:7); the doctrines of God (1Cor. 4:1; Col. 2:2; 1Tim. 3:16); the gospel (Eph. 6:19); gift of knowledge (1Cor. 13:2); speaking in tongues (1Cor. 14:2); the rapture of Christians (1Cor. 15:23, 51-58; John 14:1-3; 1Thess. 4:13-16); God’s will (Eph. 1:9); the body of Christ (Eph. 3:1-9; 5:32); Christ in people (Col. 1:26-27); doctrines of Christ (Col. 4:3); the spirit of lawlessness (2Thess. 2:7); faith of the gospel (1Tim. 3:9); the seven candlesticks (Rev. 1:20); God’s delay in casting out of satan (Rev. 10:7; 12:7-17) and mystery Babylon (Rev. 17:5, 7).
‘Blindness in part is happened to Israel’ this is the 2nd New Testament prophecy in Romans (11:25-27) that is unfulfilled. The revealed secret here is of the blindness of Israel until Christ comes when she will be restored (11:25-29; Isa. 66:7-8; Zech. 12:10-13:1; 14:1-21).
‘The fullness of the Gentiles be come in’ – the same as the times of the Gentiles. Jerusalem, still partly in Gentile hands, will be liberated from them and will become the Jewish capital for a short time, until the middle of Daniel’s 70th week. Then the Antichrist will break his 7-year covenant with Israel and enter Palestine. He will take over Jerusalem and the future Jewish temple as his capital building and start the beast worship (Dan. 9:27; 11:4-45; 12:7; Matt. 24:15-21; 2Thess. 2:1-12; Rev. 13:1-18; 14:9-11; 15:2-4; 20:4-6). Jerusalem will then be in Gentile hands for 42 months, finally being liberated at the second coming of Christ (Rev. 11:1-3; 12:6, 14; 13:5; 19:11-21; Zech. 14:1-21; 2Thess. 2:8-12). The times of the Gentiles will then end. These times refer to Israel’s history from being a nation in Egypt to the second coming of Christ when she will be oppressed, more or less, by the Gentiles. It began with the Egyptian bondage, not with the overthrow of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. This is clear from the fact that the Jews were oppressed under Egypt and Assyria more than 1,500 years, off and on, before Nebuchadnezzar. What would these oppressions be but “the times of the Gentiles?” Revelation 17:8-17 also proves that there have been and will be 8 great world empires oppressing Israel in the times of the Gentiles.
From this verse, we can see that this could not mean that Gentiles will no longer be saved, because God will continue to save Jews and Gentiles even through the tribulation period (Acts 2:16-21; Rev. 7:1-17; 15:2-4; 20:4-6). The fullness of the Gentiles will end at the second coming and the national conversion of Israel (11:25-29; Isa. 66:7-8; Zech. 12:10-13:1; 14:1-21). The times of the Gentiles end then also (Zech. 14:1-21; Matt. 25:31-46; Luke 21:24; Rev. 11:1-2).
Living the Word 