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Romans 11 General Notes
Structure and formatting
Some translations indent each line of poetry to make it easier to read. The ULB does this with the poetry in 11:9-10, 26-27, 34-35. All of these lines are quoted from the OT.
Special concepts in this chapter
Engrafting
Paul uses the image of "engrafting" to refer to the place of the Gentiles and Jews in the plans of God. Grafting is the process whereby one plant is permanently made to be a part of another plant. While the Gentiles are grafted into the plans of God as a wild branch and partake of some blessings, the Jews remain the major focus of God's plans in the history of the world.
Other possible translation difficulties in this chapter
"Did God reject his people? May it never be"
Whether Israel (the physical descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) has a future in the plans of God, or if they have been replaced in the plans of God by the church, is a major theological issue in chapters 9-11. This phrase is an important part of this section of Romans. It seems to indicate that Israel remains distinct from the church. Not all scholars arrive at this conclusion. Despite their current rejection of Jesus as their Messiah, Israel has not exhausted the grace and mercy of God. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/christ, rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/grace and rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/mercy)