OK, good.
1. NO. The Body of Christ and Israel are grafted into the Lord. Rom. 11: 9 - 11. That says their eyes have been darkened. The grafting in is in Rom. 11: 16 & 18. There we read of root that is holy, nourishing and supporting. Only the Lord does that.
`For if the first-fruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and is the root is holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, were grafted in among them, and with them become partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.` (Rom. 11: 16 - 18)
Of course Jesus sustains this tree. Of course He is the root. But what type of tree is it? Paul carefully describes the Jews who have been cut off as
“natural branches” and being of
“their own olive tree” (Romans 11:24). He is showing how we believing Gentiles have been brought into this elect Israeli tree on an equal standing to the believing Jews.
No one could surely dispute we are looking at an Israeli tree. Romans 11:24 explains, speaking about natural Israel:
“these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree?” This is an Israeli tree that holds Israeli citizens. But it was not merely a natural Israeli tree but a spiritual Israeli tree. After all, if it were simply natural there would be absolutely no reason to cut out natural Israelites simply on the grounds of their race. We are clearly looking at a spiritual tree that accommodates both the believing Jew and the believing Gentile from both Old and New Testament. It embodies all those who belong to the “household of faith” throughout time.
2. Ethnic Israel. God`s word says we `were aliens from the Commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenant of promise, having no hope and without God in the world....Now therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.` (Eph. 2: 12 & 19)
Yes, fellow citizens of God`s household but with different inheritances. (Heb. 11: 16 Rev. 3: 21)
Jews and Gentiles finish up sharing the same citizenship and enjoying the same blessings. Gentiles are described as being “fellowcitizens” with Jews through the sovereign work of the Lord. What is this citizenship? It is plainly and unambiguously identified in the reading as
“the citizenship of Israel.” God did not create a new Israel; the Gentiles were grafted into an existing organism.
Ephesians 2:19 shows that faithful Gentiles are “no more strangers and foreigners” (as in literal outsiders), but rather have become real active participating
“fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God.” Through Christ, they enjoy a common “citizenship of Israel.” They are no longer alienated. There is no distinction between them in Christ.
We should carefully note: to belong to “the citizenship of Israel” requires saving faith. This proves that we are looking at a spiritual organism. What is more, natural birthright means absolutely nothing in regards to participating in this spiritual entity. Significantly, the people of God of all races have been integrated into true Israel – spiritual Israel, not natural Christ-rejecting Israel. Those Jews that made up the membership of the early Church – faithful Israel, have been joined by faithful Gentiles throughout the nations under the select designation of
“the citizenship of Israel.”
3. God`s word does not say merged. God`s word delineates precisely - `as many as walk according to this rule. peace and mercy be upon them, AND.....AND upon the Israel of God.` (Gal. 6: 16)
Anything that sniffs of unity, oneness or merging of Jews and Gentiles you refute. Why is that? You are fixated with promoting an apartheid between the people of God. That is unbiblical. You turn Paul’s whole argument on its head and make it nonsensical by trying to maintain a distinction between Jewish believers and Gentile believers, when that was actually the opposite to Paul’s intent and totally opposite to what he was teaching in this passage. You put a division in Galatians 6:15-16 between Jewish and Gentile believers that actually contradicts everything that Paul was actually teaching and trying to repudiate in the text. He was actually demonstrating that one’s ethnic standing meant nothing when it comes to the blessing and favour of God, but rather it is only one’s spiritual standing that counts. He then adds a postscript: “And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.”
The reading declares,
“And as many as walk according to this rule” (what rule?) – the non-racial new birth experience, – then
“peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.” Paul places a blessing upon all who “walk according to this rule” – all who are conformed to this standard. As Christopher W. Cowan puts: “All who have experienced the new creation in Christ will have lives that manifest conformity to it” (Context Is Everything: “The Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16). Manifestly, Paul only had one company in mind: the redeemed Church of Jesus Christ.
kai epi
Galatians 6:15-16 states,
“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on [Gr.
epi]
them, and mercy, even on [Gr.
kai epi]
the Israel of God.”
First of all, the Greek language scholar will know:
kai has both a copulative and a cumulative force. The Greek word
kai can be translated “and” or “even.” Copulative refers to the joining together of coordinate words or word groups and expressing addition of their meanings. Cumulative refers to a snowballing effect. It means increasing by successive additions. It is formed by the addition of new material of the same kind. The best way to illustrate this is that the word can be equally translated as “and” or “even.”
For example, in Luke 9:23 Jesus said:
“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and [Gr. kai] take up his cross daily, and follow me.” According to plain and straightforward contextual reading of this verse, and an examination of the original Greek, Jesus is speaking about the same thing. We are looking at one behavior, not two. To argue otherwise is to totally negate the meaning of the text.
This Greek coupling of
kai epi in Galatians 6:16 is found together in a couple of other places in the New Testament. It is always helpful to compare similar or identical usages elsewhere in Scripture. This gives us a greater sense of meaning. Significantly, in these cases rather than suggesting a distinction in factions they actually show an enlargement of detail relating to the exact same subject matter. The coupling together of these words simply adds greater depth or more information to what has already been outlined. In each NT case, it is used in a cumulative sense. The second noun basically adds emphasis or further data to the first. It is therefore acceptable to interpret the same as
“even on.”
An example of this is found in Christ’s words in Matthew 21:5, which similarly reads,
“Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon [Gr. epi] an ass, and [Gr. kai epi] a colt the foal of an ass.”
The same idea is presented here (surrounded by the exact same key Greek words) as Galatians 6:16:
epi ... kai epi (“on ... even on”). No one would be as naïve as to argue that the “ass” and the “colt” mentioned above are two different beasts. No, it is obvious that this is speaking of the one same animal. It literally reads, “
on an ass,
even on a colt the foal of an ass.” The “even on” simply adds further detail upon the description already given on the matter. In this case, not only is it an ass, but it is “a colt the foal of an ass.” This verse assists us in our understanding of Galatians 6:16, and illustrates the real import of this much-debated text.
The same formation of Greek words is found in the same sequence, in order to present the same idea in Revelation 14:6, which reads,
“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto [Gr. epi] them that dwell on the earth, and [Gr. kai epi] to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.”
No sensible Bible student would suggest that that there are two different companies in view in this reading. Even though the word
kai is translated “and” (like Galatians 6:16) in the KJV, it doesn’t negate the fact that those that are said to “dwell on the earth” are in fact those of “every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.”
Galatians 6:16 therefore agrees with these other two passages. The construction of the passage in the original Greek leads us to the obvious conclusion that we are looking at one unitary people. There can be no doubt: the phrase “the Israel of God” is carefully and deliberately related to all those who have experienced the new birth (who are the focus of this passage).
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