Ignorance & Arrogance

In Romans chapter 11, Paul issued two warnings to Gentile Christians: Do not be uninformed or ignorant of God’s future salvation plan for Israel, and do not be arrogant toward Jewish people.  He wrote:

I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. . . . But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. (Romans 11:13–18)

For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion. He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” (Romans 11:25–26)

The apostle Paul paused his extended discussion of Israel and the Gentiles, as found within chapters 9–11, to issue a pastoral warning to Gentile believers in Jesus. He wanted Gentile Christians to understand the “mystery” of the future salvation awaiting the people of Israel to prevent them from becoming arrogant toward Jewish people (Romans 11:18, 25).

Tragically, what Paul warned against—Gentile Christians being uninformed and arrogant toward Israel—is precisely what has so often characterized the predominantly Gentile church throughout history and even today.

The Context: Romans 9–11 and God’s Faithfulness to Israel

In Romans 9–11, Paul addressed the question raised by Israel’s widespread unbelief: Has God failed to keep His promises to His chosen people? In chapter 9, Paul expressed his desire for Israel to be saved and discussed God’s sovereignty in softening and hardening hearts. In chapters 10–11, he explained Israel’s present condition in terms of unbelief and responsibility, using the familiar biblical image of an olive tree (Jeremiah 11:16; Hosea 14:1–7). Jewish people who did not accept Jesus as Messiah are “cut off” from the olive tree but will be grafted in again upon belief. Believing Gentiles have been grafted in but should not be arrogant toward Jewish people for their current unbelief. In chapter 11, Paul returned to the central question: “God has not rejected His people, has He?” The apostle’s answer is emphatic: “May it never be!” (Romans 11:1).

Paul then explained that Israel’s rejection is partial, not total, and temporary, not permanent. Individually, Jewish people can and do come to faith now, as illustrated by Paul himself, the apostles, and by the preserved remnant. Corporately, however, Israel as a nation remains largely hardened—yet this condition will not last forever.

Paul’s discussion of Israel’s unbelief, the grafting in of Gentiles, and the purpose of provoking Israel to jealousy all culminate in his climactic declaration: “And so all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26). Paul cares so much for his Jewish community that he magnifies, or intensifies, his ministry to the Gentiles so they “might move his fellow countrymen to jealousy and save some of them” (Romans 11:13–14).

The Meaning of the “Mystery”

The Greek word agnoeō (ἀγνοέω) can be translated as “to be ignorant, not know,” or “not to understand,” or “to err or sin through mistake, to be wrong.”[1] Paul said he did not want Gentile Christians to be ignorant of, uninformed about, or err in their understanding of Israel’s temporary partial hardening and future national salvation. He called this truth a “mystery” (Greek, mystērion, μυστήριον).

Paul’s use of this word differed sharply from its usage in Greco-Roman mystery religions. It does not refer to secret knowledge reserved for the elite, but to a divine purpose once hidden and now revealed by God for all to understand.[2] In Romans 11, the mystery concerns God’s redemptive activity toward Israel.

Specifically, the mystery consists of three interrelated truths. First, Israel has experienced a hardening, but it is partial—currently, a believing remnant remains. Second, this hardening is temporary—it lasts only “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” Third, following this period, Israel as a nation will experience salvation.

Warnings against Arrogance

Paul revealed this mystery not merely to inform the Gentile church’s theology of Israel but to confront sinful attitudes. “I do not want you to be uninformed,” he wrote, “so that you will not be wise in your own estimation” (Romans 11:25). Earlier he had issued an even sharper warning: “Do not be arrogant toward the branches” (Romans 11:18).

The olive tree metaphor in chapter 10 illustrates the danger. Gentiles do not replace Israel but are grafted into Israel’s covenantal root—the Abrahamic promises.[3] This imagery is meant to humble Gentile believers. If God did not spare the natural branches when some fell into unbelief, neither will He spare Gentiles if they persist in pride and presumption.

Theologian Colin Kruse explains the following:

[Paul’s] exhortation reflects Paul’s belief that there existed some negative attitudes on the part of Gentile believers in Rome towards unbelieving Jews. It has been suggested that this arose when, due to the edict of Claudius (A.D. 49), Jews were expelled from Rome and so for a few years Gentile believers had little contact with either believing or unbelieving Jews. As a result, they were tempted to think that God had rejected his people in favor of them (emphasis added). This is the very issue raised by the apostle in 11:1–2 and is the essential subject of Romans 11. To those who might be tempted to adopt such an attitude, Paul warns: If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you.[4]

Paul warned Gentile Christians not to adopt an attitude of arrogance and superiority, thinking that they had replaced Jewish people and assumed all of God’s promises.

Israel’s Unbelief: Limited and Temporary

Paul emphasized that Israel’s unbelief, the “partial hardening” of Israel, would last “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” (Romans 11:25). Linguistically and contextually, it demands a temporal limit. Israel’s hardening does not describe a permanent divine rejection but a stage within God’s redemptive plan. There is no legitimate way to interpret “until” without expecting a change in Israel’s predicament afterward.[5]

The “fullness of the Gentiles,” as theologian Charles Ryrie noted, refers to the completion of the full number of Gentiles that God intends to save in the present age.[6] During this period, the church is predominantly Gentile, even as individual Jewish people continue to come to faith and remain beloved by God. When this fullness is reached, God will focus on His redemption plan for Israel.

“All Israel Will Be Saved”

After this period of the Gentiles, Paul wrote, “All Israel will be saved.” Some interpreters understand “Israel” here to mean the church or “spiritual Israel.” But such an interpretation is contextually unfounded. Throughout Romans 9–11, Paul consistently distinguished between Jewish people and Gentiles as distinct ethnic groups. To collapse that distinction at the climax of his argument would undermine the logic of the entire section.

Instead, “all Israel” refers to Israel as a corporate entity—not every Jewish person who has ever lived, but the whole nation at a future point in redemptive history.^[7] Paul grounds this hope in the prophetic promises found in the Jewish Scriptures. As Christians, we should anticipate Israel’s corporate salvation, both spiritually and physically, at the return of Jesus.[8]

Exhortation for Today

Paul’s warnings to Gentile Christians against arrogance and ignorance are just as relevant to the church today as they were in the first century. Unfortunately, many Gentile Christians remain deeply uninformed about what Scripture teaches concerning Israel. Even worse, Christian history bears painful witness to the arrogance Paul warned against—hubris that has too often manifested as supersessionism, or replacement theology, and even to the point of hostility and violence toward Jewish people.

That is why our mission at the Alliance is to share with the church the truth of this “mystery” concerning God’s unfolding plan for Israel so that Gentile Christians will not be uninformed or haughty toward Jewish people. We continue to boldly proclaim this truth and pray for the peace of Jerusalem until the Prince of Peace returns to His rightful throne in Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6; Zechariah 14:4).

Jennifer Miles is the director of communications for the Alliance for the Peace of Jerusalem and a staff apologist for Chosen People Ministries. She earned her master’s degree in Christian Apologetics from Biola University and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Stockton University. She is passionate about sharing biblical truth about Israel and the Jewish people and reaching God’s chosen people with the good news of their Messiah.

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[1] “ἀγνοέω,” Blue Letter Bible, accessed January 21, 2026, https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g50/kjv/tr/0-1/.

[2] Robert H. Mounce, Romans, vol. 27, The New American Commentary (Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 223–26.

[3] Charles C. Ryrie, Biblical Theology of the New Testament (ECS Ministries, 2005), 197–99.

[4] Colin G. Kruse, ‘Paul’s Letter to the Romans,’ ed. D. A. Carson, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos, 2012), 435–36.

[5] Ryrie, Biblical Theology of the New Testament, 197–99.

[6] Ryrie, 197–99.

^[7] Mounce, Romans, The New American Commentary, 225.

[8] Zechariah 12:9–10; Zechariah 14:1–21; Isaiah 59:20; Ezekiel 37:1–14; Matthew 23:39; Luke 21:24.