The question of why God chose Israel to be His chosen people is an important one in biblical theology. There are several key reasons that emerge from Scripture as to why God selected Israel for this special relationship and purpose:
1. God’s Sovereign Choice
Ultimately, God’s selection of Israel begins with His sovereign will and purposes. Deuteronomy 7:6-8 declares, “For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the LORD loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers, that the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”
Here God makes it clear that His choice of Israel was not based on their merits or numbers, but simply because of His electing love and grace. He had made promises to the patriarchs – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – and was now fulfilling those promises by constituting the descendants of the patriarchs as His special people (Genesis 12:2-3; 15:5; 26:24; 28:13-14). So while the choice has proximate causes and reasons, the ultimate origin is God’s sovereign will.
2. To Demonstrate His Grace and Power
A major reason highlighted for God choosing Israel is to put His gracious favor and covenant-keeping power on display for all to witness. In Ezekiel 36:22-23, God declares, “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes.”
By taking this weak, small, and undeserving people and making them His own, God demonstrated His grace, faithfulness, and covenant-keeping character. God highlights that His choice is not merit-based but grace-based, so that no one can boast (Deuteronomy 7:7; 9:4-6). The election of Israel puts God’s attributes on display.
3. To Bring Blessing to the World
God’s intention for Israel was not just to bless them, but to make them a conduit of blessing to the world. In Genesis 12:2-3, God promises Abram, “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Israel was chosen by God to be a light to the nations, that His salvation might reach to the ends of the earth (Isaiah 49:6). Through Israel, the Messiah would come and open the door of faith to all people (Galatians 3:8). So God’s plan was to use Israel to bless the world.
4. To Reveal Himself to the World
God’s revelation of Himself – His character, laws, purposes and works – was disclosed in a special way through Israel. God gave His covenant and the Law to make Himself known. In Psalm 147:19-20 we read, “He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and rules to Israel. He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his rules.”
The tabernacle and temple were means God specially dwelt among Israel and revealed Himself (Exodus 29:42-46). And through Israel came the Scriptures and the Messiah, the fullest revelation of God. A central purpose in choosing Israel was divine self-disclosure.
5. To Prepare the Way for the Messiah
God’s covenant with Israel set the stage for the coming of the Messiah. Jesus Christ was born into a Jewish context, “when the fullness of time had come” (Galatians 4:4). The covenants with Israel provided the framework for the Messiah’s arrival and ministry.
Jesus was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, types, and expectations. As Romans 9:4-5 explains about Israelites, “They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.” God’s plans through Israel led to Christ.
6. To Provide an Example of Holiness and Obedience
God intended that Israel would be a model nation of righteousness and justice flowing from faithfulness to God’s covenant. In Deuteronomy 4:6-8, Moses tells Israel, “Keep therefore and do them [God’s statutes and rules], for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today?”
Tragically, Israel failed in this calling much of the time, but God originally chose them to be a light to the nations in morality and faithfulness. They were intended as a case study in the blessings of obeying God.
7. To Establish a Holy Line for the Messiah
An additional purpose with Israel’s election was to establish a Nation through whom the Messiah could come. God preserved for Himself a holy remnant – a line of faithful people through whom the promise of Genesis 3:15 could be fulfilled in the Seed of the woman, the Messiah (Isaiah 1:9; Romans 9:29). Paul speaks of how Israel, Abraham’s descendants, were heirs to the promise regarding the Messiah (Galatians 3:16; Romans 9:4-5).
So one reason for choosing Israel was to establish the family line through whom the Deliverer would eventually come into the world, born of a woman (Galatians 4:4). The choosing of Israel helped make possible the incarnation.
8. To Establish a Nation to Uphold God’s Laws
Israel functioned as a nation under God’s rule in the Ancient Near East. God gave them His Law with detailed statutes and ordinances as part of their covenant obligations. Israel was to be governed directly by God through obedience to His Law (Exodus 19:5-6).
Though Israel failed and rejected God as King at crucial times, nonetheless, God set up a national and legal structure with Israel through which they were to uphold His righteous standards as a witness in the earth (Deuteronomy 4:5-8). The election of Israel made possible a theocracy to reflect God’s character.
9. To Provide an Example of Unfaithfulness and the Need for Grace
Tragically there is also a “negative” purpose exemplified in Israel’s election. God knew Israel would be largely characterized by disobedience, rebellion, and idolatry. Yet He still purposed to choose them as His people. Why? “What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory…” (Romans 9:22-23).
God patiently endured Israel’s great sin and rebellion to display His judgment and wrath against sin, yet also to magnify His mercy toward the remnant of faithful Israelites. Paul explains this further in Romans 11, saying Israel’s unbelief opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. So God even used Israel’s failure to glorify Himself and magnify His grace in redemption.
10. To Establish Israel as a Foreshadowing of the Church
The New Testament draws parallels between Israel of the Old Testament and the Church as the people of God in the New Testament age. There are discontinuities, but also typological connections. Israel was God’s chosen “congregation” in the OT (Acts 7:38); the Church is God’s chosen people now (1 Peter 2:9-10). Israel was called to be a holy nation (Exodus 19:6); likewise, the Church (1 Peter 1:15-16).
So the choosing of Israel not only had meaning for Israel, but also foreshadowed what God would do in redeeming and constituting the Church through Christ (Hebrews 8-10). Israel existed not only for itself but to point forward to the Messiah and the “Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16), the Church.
Conclusion
Why did God choose Israel to be His special people under the old covenant? In summary, God chose Israel to serve as the conduit of His grace and revelation to mankind, to bring blessing to the world, to establish a people who would uphold His Word and Law, to set the stage for the coming Messiah, to provide an example of faithfulness for the nations, and to demonstrate His power and glory in judgment and mercy. God in His wisdom determined to funnel His working through this people, yet designed them for the benefit of all nations. Though Israel failed in many respects, God brought redemption through the faithful remnant and the incarnation of the Messiah. And the choosing of Israel ultimately pointed forward typologically to the people of God under the new covenant, the Church.