The fullness of the Gentiles is the Body of Christ — the completed company of Gentile believers God is saving in this age.
In Romans 11:25, Paul says Israel's spiritual blindness lasts 'until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.' Les Feldick identifies that fullness with the Body of Christ, which is filled as Gentiles are saved and placed into it. When the last believer is added, the church will be removed and God will resume His dealings with Israel.
Romans 11:25 — Paul explicitly connects Israel's partial blindness to the coming in of the fullness of the Gentiles.
Acts 15:14 — James describes God visiting the Gentiles to take out a people for His name, which Les identifies with the filling of the Body of Christ.
Romans 11:12 — Paul speaks of Israel's own future fullness, showing that the present age of Gentile blessing is not the end of God's plan for Israel.
The phrase 'fulness of the Gentiles' appears in Paul's letter to the Romans. In Romans 11:25 Paul writes: 'For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.' The verse teaches that Israel's national blindness is only partial and that it lasts only until that coming fullness. Romans 11:26 then adds, 'And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:' showing that a future salvation for Israel follows this period. Romans 11:12 also speaks of Israel's future 'fulness': 'Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?' Here the Bible contrasts the temporary riches that came to the Gentiles because of Israel's fall with the greater fullness still in store for Israel. In Acts 15:14 James says, 'Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name,' describing the present-age work among the Gentiles.
Les Feldick teaches that the fullness of the Gentiles is the Body of Christ. He states plainly, 'What's the fullness of the Gentiles? The body of Christ. As Gentiles are being saved, they're being placed into the body of Christ' (Clip 1). He also describes it as 'that calling out a people for His name back there in Acts chapter 15. The body of Christ' (Clip 3). Israel's present spiritual blindness is part of the same mystery. It is not a permanent condition; it is 'in part' and lasts only until the fullness of the Gentiles is brought in. That filling is the completion of the Body of Christ. When the last person is saved and the church is removed at the rapture, God will again take up His covenant people Israel (Clips 2, 3, 5). Les also points out that this is not the only filling taking place: the cup of Gentile iniquity is being filled at the same time, so the present age is a period of two concurrent fillings (Clip 3).
Les's definition is unambiguous. 'Now what's the fullness of the Gentiles? The body of Christ,' he says (Clip 1). He repeats it in Clip 2 and explains it further in Clip 3: 'The fullness of the Gentiles is that calling out a people for His name back there in Acts chapter 15. The body of Christ.' For Les, the fullness is reached as Gentiles are saved and placed into the Body. It is not merely an event on a calendar but a company of people growing until it is complete.
Paul calls this a mystery: Israel is spiritually blind 'in part' — not all Israel, and not forever — 'until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in' (Romans 11:25; Clip 1). Les notes this blindness has continued for roughly 1,900 years, even though many Jewish people are religious (Clip 4). It is a blindness to the spiritual truth of the Messiah, and it continues until God has finished His present work with the Gentiles (Clip 5).
Les teaches that when the Body of Christ is full, God removes the body of believers — the rapture — and picks up where He left off with Israel (Clips 2, 3). Israel's spiritual blindness will come to an end, and they will again have a spiritual relationship with God (Clip 2). Paul says in Romans 11:26, 'And so all Israel shall be saved' — a promise Les places after the fullness of the Gentiles (Clip 5).
No. Les calls the 'times of the Gentiles' the period when Gentile powers are overlording Israel, filling the cup of Gentile iniquity (Clip 7). The fullness of the Gentiles, in contrast, is the filling up of the Body of Christ with saved Gentiles (Clip 1). These two processes run concurrently, side by side — God filling the Body at the same time the world is filling its cup of judgment (Clip 3).
The fullness of the Gentiles is the calling out of a people for God’s name, identified as the body of Christ. It refers to the completion or filling up of that body. Israel’s spiritual blindness is described as partial and temporary, lasting for a specific period in God’s program rather than for a set number of days, months, or years. That blindness remains until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. When the body of Christ is full, that particular period will end. God will remove the body and then resume His dealings with His covenant people, Israel, where He had left off. Alongside this filling up of the body of Christ, there is another filling taking place: the filling up of the cup of the iniquity of the Gentiles, meaning the world in general. These two fillings are described as running concurrently, or side by side. Thus, the fullness of the Gentiles concerns the completion of the body of Christ during the time Israel is spiritually blinded in part.
The fullness of the Gentiles is the completion of the body of Christ. During Israel’s present period of spiritual blindness, Gentiles who are saved are being placed into that body. This blindness is only partial and lasts until a specific point in time: the bringing in of the fullness of the Gentiles. Romans 11:25 presents this as a previously unrevealed secret. Israel has experienced spiritual blindness for a time, but that condition is not permanent. The fullness is reached when the last Gentile who is to be saved has been saved, making the body of Christ complete. At that point, the completed body of Christ will be taken out. Then God will resume dealing with Israel as His children, picking up where He had left off with them. This differs from the “times of the Gentiles.” Those times describe the period in which Gentile powers exercise control over Israel and Jerusalem. The fullness of the Gentiles, by contrast, concerns saved Gentiles being added to the body of Christ until that body is full.
The fullness of the Gentiles is the completion of the Body of Christ. God is bringing Gentile believers into that Body, adding to it until the final person needed to complete it has been saved. This completion marks the end of the period described by the word “until.” Israel’s spiritual blindness is presented as partial and temporary, not permanent or absolute. The nation opposed the Gospel’s going to Gentiles, and God placed this blindness upon Israel for a time. Yet it will not continue forever. When the fullness of the Gentiles has been brought in—that is, when the Body of Christ is complete—Israel’s blindness will end, and God will again take up His dealings with Israel. This also identifies when the church will be raptured: when the last person is saved who completes the Body. The exact day, month, and year are not known, and no dates are to be set. The timing is instead connected to God’s completing the number of Gentiles He is bringing into the Body of Christ.
Israel's Failure to Recognize Messiah
Les explains that Israel should have known from the Old Testament that Jesus was their Messiah, but they did not search the Scriptures — a choice that helps explain their national blindness.
Fullness Defined as the Body of Christ
Les explicitly defines the fullness of the Gentiles as the Body of Christ, into which saved Gentiles are placed.
The End of Israel's Blindness
When the Body of Christ is full and the last believer is saved, the church will be removed and Israel's spiritual blindness will end.
Calling Out a People for God's Name
Les ties the fullness of the Gentiles to Acts 15:14 — God visiting the Gentiles to take out a people for His name — and says God will then return to Israel.
Israel's 1900+ Years of Spiritual Blindness
Les describes the present age as a unique outpouring of grace on the Gentiles, while Israel remains spiritually blind to their Messiah.
God's Time Frame in Romans 11
Romans 11:25 gives the time frame: blindness on Israel lasts until God finishes His work with the Gentiles; then the blindness is lifted and all Israel shall be saved.
Israel's Fullness Still Future
Les uses Romans 11:12 to show that Israel's own fullness is still future — how much more their fullness — so the Jew is not finished in God's plan.
Fullness of Gentiles vs. Times of Gentiles
Les contrasts the times of the Gentiles — when Gentiles rule over Israel and fill the cup of iniquity — with the fullness of the Gentiles, the filling of the Body of Christ.
Romans 11:25: For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
This is the central verse answering the question: Israel's partial blindness lasts until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in.
Romans 11:26: And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Immediately after the fullness of the Gentiles, Paul declares the future salvation of Israel.
Romans 11:12: Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?
Paul contrasts the present Gentile blessing with Israel's coming fullness, showing Israel still has a future fullness.
Acts 15:14: Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.
James describes God's present-age purpose of taking out a people from among the Gentiles — the work Les identifies with filling the Body of Christ.
According to Les Feldick, it is the Body of Christ. As Gentiles are saved, they are placed into the Body, and when the Body is full — the last person saved — the church is removed and God turns back to Israel.
No. Romans 11:25 says blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. Les says the blindness is temporary and will end when God finishes His work with the Gentiles.
Les teaches that the church is removed at the rapture, and God picks up where He left off with Israel as a nation. Israel's spiritual blindness will be lifted.
Les teaches that Israel's fullness is still future. The verse says if their diminishing brought riches to the Gentiles, how much more will their fullness bring. God's future blessing for Israel is yet to come.
Watch the Teaching: Why Is Israel Blind? The Mystery of Romans 11 Explained