Read chapter 11
What is this mystery or secret Paul is talking about here? A secret is something that is not known by all. Therefore not something that was a prophesy in the Old Testament that Israel would've already known. This whole chapter is talking about gentiles being grafted in to Israel's promises by God but this was known from Old Testament passages. Yet what was not known is that there would be a partial hardening or a partial blindness of Israel. They were not complete hardened but almost like frozen in place as to their mindset of rejecting Christ. It was as if He was giving the Israelites a second chance or other opportunity after reconsidering what God was doing. Hardening actually appears to be a gracious thing so that later on he could soften them after having an opportunity to reconsider. Reconsider what? Reconsider what was drawing and winning gentile believers to follow God- Jesus Christ. These gentile believers that were inheriting promises to Israel was to provoke Israelites to jealousy so that they might match or surpass the gentiles rather than quitting all together.
Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!...if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them. For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? vv.12-15
Does seeing someone you never would have guessed come to know the Lord and live a life of joy and abundant blessing, cause you godly jealousy to seek the Lord more in your life or hardening of your heart because of God's grace that you don't like?
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