rsv Romans:11:1-10 SEEK
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I ask ,
then ,
has God rejected his people ?
By no means !
I myself am an Israelite ,
a descendant of Abraham ,
a member of the tribe of Benjamin .
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God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew .
Do you not know what the scripture says of Eli '
jah ,
how he pleads with God against Israel ?
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Lord ,
they have killed thy prophets ,
they have demolished thy altars ,
and I alone am left ,
and they seek my life ."
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But what is God '
s reply to him ? "
I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Ba '
al ."
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So too at the present time there is a remnant ,
chosen by grace .
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But if it is by grace ,
it is no longer on the basis of works ;
otherwise grace would no longer be grace .
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What then ?
Israel failed to obtain what it sought .
The elect obtained it ,
but the rest were hardened ,
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as it is written , "
God gave them a spirit of stupor ,
eyes that should not see and ears that should not hear ,
down to this very day ."
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And David says , "
Let their table become a snare and a trap ,
a pitfall and a retribution for them ;
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let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see ,
and bend their backs for ever ."