As we continue our study of these powerful chapters, Romans 9–11, especially as we consider Romans 10, something deeply personal emerges. We hear the heart of Paul. Behind his arguments, repeated questions, insistence, and even repetition, we can almost hear the cry of a wounded heart, a Jewish man grieving for his own people.
It is as if a shadow hangs over Romans 9–11: the long history of hostility toward Israel. From their time in Egypt, when Pharaoh sought to destroy Israel, to the days immediately preceding the Second Coming, when the prophets tell us that all the nations will gather against Jerusalem, the Jewish people have repeatedly been surrounded by hostility.
And surely Paul knew these prophecies. In Romans 9-11, there are 17 distinct prophetic quotations, and he repeatedly appeals to the prophets to support his argument. He surely knew what Jeremiah had spoken concerning “the time of Jacob’s trouble.” Paul knew Israel’s past.
He knew her suffering. And through the prophets, he knew what still lay ahead.
These things must have been deeply ingrained in Paul’s world, which, as we mentioned in our first study, resembles the world we live in. Fierce anti-Jewish sentiments were present then in Rome, Egypt, Syria, Asia Minor, and among Greek and Roman intellectuals. Many of the stereotypes they used are strikingly recognizable today.
Paul knew about and experienced antisemitism, and this is what truly comes through in his writings. This is why these three chapters feel so contemporary to us today, for we too see the same things rising around us. Perhaps it is these very things that compelled Paul to urge, even beg, believers to proclaim the Word to all people and Israel.
Have you noticed how, in Romans 10, he places so much emphasis on evangelism? He opens up with these words: “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their Salvation.” Immediately, Paul explains the way of salvation. In verse 8, quoting Moses, he says: “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart.” Then in verse 9, he tells us how to commit our lives to Yeshua, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Paul then turns to Isaiah 28 and, in verse 11, declares, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Quoting Joel, he declares in verse 13, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
So now, we must ask some questions: What does this emphasis on evangelism have to do with Israel? Could the growing hostility toward Jewish people have discouraged some Gentile believers from bringing the Good News of Yeshua to them? And why, in the middle of a chapter that begins with Paul’s longing for Israel’s salvation, does he emphasize in verse 12, “For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentiles; for the same Lord is Lord of all…”?
Why does Paul need to say this here, at this point?
Could Paul already have been concerned that, as the believing community became increasingly Gentile, Israel might be neglected in the proclamation of the gospel to them? After all, “There is no distinction between Jew and Gentiles,” so all need to hear the same gospel of truth. The same Lord is Lord of all. The same Messiah saves all. The same gospel is offered to all. Therefore, both Jew and Gentile alike need salvation.
Have you ever wondered why, in the Book of Acts, wherever Paul went, he would first approach the synagogue in that city, proclaiming the Messiah to the Jewish people? We see this in Damascus, Salamis, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth, and Ephesus. Again and again, Paul went to the synagogue first, perhaps reminding these Gentile believers to follow his evangelistic approach and not neglect the people of Israel.
That perhaps helps us feel the tremendous force of Paul’s questions in Romans 10:14, “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?” How will they hear?
But see that the question has not disappeared after two thousand years. The word “preacher” here does not refer to a professional pastor or evangelist, but simply to someone proclaiming the message. Someone must bring them the Word of the Messiah. It speaks to all believers.
But if that is true, then Paul’s question still confronts the Church today: How will they hear if no one goes to them? In the context of Romans 10, the “they” are the Jewish people.
As we listen to Paul’s heart throughout this chapter, his burden becomes a call to action. He urges us to go, to proclaim, and to make the Word of God heard. Once again, he turns to the prophets. In Romans 10:15, he quotes Isaiah 52:7, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!” What a beautiful encouragement to go and share the Good News!
But when we return to Isaiah 52, Paul’s quotation becomes even more powerful. First, notice to whom these words are addressed. Isaiah addresses Zion and Jerusalem, portrayed as captive and oppressed. This is how Isaiah 52 begins in v. 2, “Shake yourself from the dust, rise up, O captive Jerusalem; loose yourself from the chains around your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.”
Here we see Israel suffering under the nations in the Diaspora, much as the Jewish people were scattered among the nations in Paul’s day and remain scattered throughout the world today.
But then something extraordinary happens. God announces that He is coming! He says in vs.6, “Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the one who is speaking, “Here I am.” Immediately after comes the verse Paul quotes, “How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace and brings good news of happiness, who announces salvation…”
Do you see the beauty and strength of Paul’s quotation? The Good News ultimately begins with God Himself coming to save His people. Notice how the Isaiah passage continues in 52:13 with the great Servant passage. “Behold, My Servant the Messiah will prosper…” as the Targum of Isaiah has it. From there, we enter Isaiah 53, where the identity and mission of this Servant unfold before us. He was despised and rejected. He was pierced for our transgressions. The Lord caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.
Go to the video – Romans 9-11- Part 5 –The Forgotten People God Never Forgot