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Adoption in Romans 9:4
The word
adoption, uiJoqesiva, is found only in
Paul’s epistles. This would lead us to believe it would have the same
interpretation throughout, and I’ve thought that for years. But when we look
more closely at the works of Ramsay on Asia Minor, which is in modern Turkey,
we see that this word can have more than one meaning. In this case, one meaning
in Rome and another in Asia Minor. But that is too complicated to go into over
the air. Instead, let’s look at the two groups of people Paul is speaking about
– Israel and the body of Christ.
First let’s
look at what Paul says about Israel in Rom 9:3-9.
For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for
my brethren, my countrymen according to
the flesh, hujcovmhn gaVr aujtoV"
ejgwV ajnavqema ei\nai ajpoV tou' Cristou' uJpeVr tw'n ajdelfw'n mou tw'n
suggenw'n mou kataV savrka 4 who are Israelites, to of whom pertain
the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of
God, and the promises; oi{tinev"
eijsin jIsrahli'tai w|n hJ uiJoqesiva
kaiV hJ dovxa kaiV aiJ diaqh'kai kaiV hJ nomoqesiva kaiV hJ latreiva kaiV aiJ
ejpaggelivai 5 of whom are the fathers and from ejx whom, according to the
flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen. w|n oiJ patevre" kaiV ejx w|n oJ CristoV" toV kataV savrka oJ w]n ejpiV pavntwn
qeoV" eujloghtoV" eij" touV" aijw'na" ajmhvn 6
But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, Oujc oi|on deV o{ti ejkpevptwken oJ lovgo" tou' qeou'. ouj gaVr
pavnte" oiJ ejx jIsrahvl
ou|toi jIsrahvl 7 nor are they all children because they are
the seed of Abraham; but, “In Isaac your seed shall be called.” oujd= o{ti eijsiV spevrma jAbraavm, pavnte" tevkna, ajll= jEn jIsaaVk klhqhvsetaiv
soi spevrma 8 That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these
are not the children of God; but the
children of the promise are counted as the seed. tou't= e[stin ouj taV tevkna th'" sarkoV" tau'ta tevkna tou'
qeou' ajllaV taV tevkna th'" ejpaggeliva" logivzetai eij"
spevrma. 9 For this [is] the word of promise: “At this time I will come
and Sarah shall have a son.” ejpaggeliva"
gaVr oJ lovgo" ou|to" KataV toVn kairoVn tou'ton ejleuvsomai kaiV
e[stai th'/ Savrra/ uiJov"
Next, let’s
look at the most important passage on adoption concerning the body of Christ,
Eph 1:4-6. Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that
we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by
Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the
praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the
Beloved.
Corporate
Israel was God’s son by adoption according to Romans 9:4. We also see that the
nation will not be cast away. But the nation will be purged in the tribulation
according to
Zec 13:8,9 And it shall come to pass in all the land, says
the Lord, that two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one- third shall
be left in it: 9 I will bring the one-third through the fire, will refine them
as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My
name, and I will answer them. I will say, “This is My people”; And each one
will say, “The Lord is my God.”
This will be in fulfillment of Hos 1:6-11.
And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to
him: Call her name Lo-Ruhamah, For I will no longer have mercy on the house of
Israel, But I will utterly take them away. 7 Yet I will have mercy on the house
of Judah, will save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow,
nor by sword or battle, by horses or horsemen. 8 Now when she had weaned
Lo-Ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. 9 Then God said: Call his name Lo-Ammi, for
you are not My people, and I will
not be your God. 10 Yet the number of the children of Israel Shall be as
the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And it shall come to
pass in the place where it was said to them, You are not My people, There it shall be said to them, You are sons of the living God. 11 Then
the children of Judah and the children of Israel Shall be gathered together,
and appoint for themselves one head; and they shall come up out of the land,
for great will be the day of Jezreel!
But only believing Israel will be saved.
Rom 11:2,24,25 God
has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the
Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, 25 For I do not desire, brethren, that
you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own
opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of
the Gentiles has come in. 26 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.
Ever member of
the body of Christ has the adoption based on God’s predestination, because we
have all put our trust in Christ. We can’t lose our adoption. The body of
Christ was predestinated to receive this adoption. We became members of this
body and its blessings when we believed. That is clearly explained in these
verses:
Rom 4:13-16 For
the promise that he would be the
heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but
through the righteousness of faith.
14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, 15 because
the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no
transgression. 16 Therefore it is of
faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who
are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the
father of us all.
Rom 9:8,9 That is,
those who are the children of the flesh,
these are not the children of God;
but the children of the promise are
counted as the seed. 9 For this is the word of promise: “At this time I will
come and Sarah shall have a son.”
Gal 3:22 But the
Scripture has confined all under sin, that the
promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
Gal 3:29 And if you are Christ's, then you are
Abraham's seed, and heirs according to
the promise.
Gal 4:23,24 But he
who was of the bondwoman was born according
to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through
promise, 24 which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the
one from Mount Sinai which gives birth
to bondage, which is Hagar--
All the Adoption
Verses
Rom 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again
to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba,
Father.” ouj gaVr ejlavbete pneu'ma
douleiva" pavlin eij" fovbon ajllaV ejlavbete pneu'ma
uiJoqesiva" ejn w|/ kravzomen Abba oJ pathvr
Rom 8:23 Not only [that], but we also who have the
firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly
waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. ouj movnon dev ajllaV kaiV aujtoiV thVn ajparchVn tou' pneuvmato"
e[conte" kaiV hJmei'" kaiV aujtoiV ejn eJautoi'" stenavzomen
uiJoqesivan ajpekdecovmenoi thVn ajpoluvtrwsin tou' swvmato" hJmw'n
Rom 9:4 who are Israelites, to whom [pertain] the adoption,
the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service [of] [God], and
the promises; oiJtinev" eijsin jIsrahli'tai w|n hJ uiJoqesiva kaiV hJ dovxa
kaiV aiJ diaqh'kai kaiV hJ nomoqesiva kaiV hJ latreiva kaiV aiJ ejpaggelivai
Gal 4:5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might
receive the adoption as sons. i{na touV"
uJpoV novmon ejxagoravsh/ i{na thVn uiJoqesivan ajpolavbwmen
Eph 1:5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus
Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, proorivsa" hJma'" eij" uiJoqesivan
diaV jIhsou' Cristou' eij" aujtovn
kataV thVn eujdokivan tou' qelhvmato" aujtou'