"Until the fullness of the gentiles has come in" is not speaking about a number of gentiles. The NIV has a bad translation too, "the "full number of gentiles."
But this "fulness" is about QUALITY, and fulness of salvation/maturity in Christ. The infant church reaching maturity.
For example:
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-13 NASB
The word "until" here is the Greek word
mechri (meck-re), which means, "up
to a certain point" (as preposition of extent ([denoting the terminus). And the word "fullness" is the Greek
pleroma.The fullness of the Gentiles has to do with their perfection in Christ; it has nothing to do with numbers. It has to do with the maturity of the body and when it is matured.
who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, Romans 9:4 NASB
I would say that "Israelites" here and in 11:1 is used of the citizens of national Israel; those people who are members of the nation Israel.
But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; Romans 9:6 NASB
Are either of these "Israel's" used on national or geo-political Israel? One of these "Israel's" is ethnic Israel, those descended from Jacob's sons. But who is the other Israel? It is true or spiritual Israel. So we have physical Israel and true Israel.
Paul is saying that God's promises haven't failed, because God never promised covenant blessings unconditionally to each offspring of Abraham. God never intended that all of the nation Israel would be redeemed. Within national Israel is "true Israel" or "spiritual Israel." So one could be an Israelite without truly being an Israelite. The promises were to "true Israel," not national Israel. Understanding this verse is crucial to understanding these three chapters and "all Israel."
Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, "THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED; Romans 9:27 NASB
"Sons of Israel"--is again, as in 9:6, those descended from Jacob's sons, ethnic Israel. And out of ethnic Israel a remnant will be saved. Just as in 9:6 a remnant, true Israel, will be saved out of ethnic Israel.
Notice what is promised to the remnant here. It is not national restoration, nothing about a place of prominence, it is salvation that they are promised. The Greek verb
sozo--save, and the noun
soteria--salvation, have a wide range of possible meanings. They can be referring to physical healing, rescue from danger, spiritual deliverance of various kinds, and to preservation from the wrath of Yahweh. We must determine its meaning from its usage in the context. But none of its meaning is to restore to national prominence. In 10:1 Paul is praying for their salvation, not their national dominance. His prayer is not political, it is soteralogical.
but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Romans 9:31 NASB
This speaks of corporate Israel's failure to attain covenant membership.
But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says, "I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION, BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING WILL I ANGER YOU." Romans 10:19 NASB
This is not geo-political, but corporate Israel.
But as for Israel He says, "ALL THE DAY LONG I HAVE STRETCHED OUT MY HANDS TO A DISOBEDIENT AND OBSTINATE PEOPLE." Romans 10:21 NASB
Again, this is corporate Israel.
I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. Romans 11:1 NASB
Paul affirms that Yahweh is saving some from corporate Israel, he is proof of that.
God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? Romans 11:2 NASB
Elijah prayed against corporate Israel.
What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; Romans 11:7 NASB
Corporate Israel has not obtained what it was seeking, only a chosen remnant obtained it, and the rest, which would be most of corporate Israel, were hardened. It doesn't say they were nationally restored to a place of prominence or even that they were saved, they were hardened. They were not chosen, and they never will be.
For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery--so that you will not be wise in your own estimation--that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; Romans 11:25 NASB
This is telling us the same thing that we saw in 11:7. Israel, other than the remnant, were hardened, not chosen from the foundation of the world.
and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, "THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB." Romans 11:26 NASB
"All Israel" here is not all corporate Israel, most of them were hardened, not chosen. And the Israel talked about here is to be "saved," delivered from the wrath of Yahweh.
In 11:26 Dispensationalists want to make "all Israel" be all who descended from Israel, which Paul said were not Israel. How is "all Israel will be saved" national or political? Paul was praying for their salvation. And here Israel is saved. And in 10:13 whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Nothing political here.
Dispensationalists like to focus on geo-political Israel and the land of Palestine and the rebuilding of the temple. But none of that is in this text.
Those who weren't chosen and God had hardened from ethnic Israel faced their covenantal Curses for disobedience (Deuteronomy) in the Jewish/Roman war AD66-70.
God left that building (temple) made with hands forever!)