What does "they are not all Israel, which are of Israel" mean (Romans 9:6)?

Whosoever Will, The Grammar of Romans: The first hard verse is 9:6: “they are not all Israel, which are of Israel.” The other side reads this as God secretly picking some Israelites and not others. Read two verses further. Paul defines his own terms: “they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.” (9:8) Two Israels. One by blood. One by promise. The true Israel was never the bloodline. It was always the people of promise, and everywhere else Paul writes, the people of promise are the people of faith. That is not God sorting individuals inside Israel. That is God telling you what Israel always was. Scripture, King James Version: Romans 9:6, "Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel:"; Romans 9:8, "That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.".

Verified. Every scripture quotation on this page has been checked word-for-word against the King James text. Last reviewed 2026-10-18.