What does foreknowledge mean in Romans 9?
Foreknowledge in Romans 9 means God's advance knowledge of who would become believers. It is connected to election, yet it does not shut anyone out. The unsaved need not worry that they have no chance, because the door to salvation is open to whosoever will.
Les explains that in Romans 9 the foreknowledge of God refers to His prior knowledge of who would become believers, and it is tied to the concept of election. He emphasizes that the unsaved person does not have to fret over this or think, 'I don't have a chance unless God elects me.' Using the shepherd and sheepfold analogy from John 10, Les points out that the door is at ground level, not on a cliff or across a river, so it stands before every person. All anyone must do is choose to go through it. If they refuse, that is not God's fault. The whosoever will invitation remains open.
What is Paul referring to in Romans 9 about the children of Israel?
Paul refers to a division within the covenant people: although God's word went out to the whole nation, only a believing remnant responded. Not all the children of Israel would be spiritual; many remained natural and destitute of faith, while a few became believers.
What is God's foreknowledge in Romans 9?
In Romans 9, God's foreknowledge is His prior knowledge of who would become believers, linked to the concept of election. It does not make God unfair or leave the unsaved without a chance, because the door to the sheepfold is open at ground level to whosoever will choose to enter.