Evangelical Cosmopolitanism

Paul’s lament at the beginning of Romans 9 is a shock: "I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart . . . for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh." It seems to undo the resounding confidence Paul expressed just a few verses earlier. Romans 8 concludes that "nothing can separate us from the love of God." Romans 9 begins with mourning that the Jews have been separated from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.