What does Romans 11:1 mean?
As Paul often does in Romans, he responds to his own statement with a question. In this case, Paul has just written that God has offered Himself to the non-Jewish nations through faith in Jesus, while Israel has rejected the gospel of faith in Christ.Now Paul asks if this means that God has rejected His previously chosen people Israel. It's a question that expects a negative answer, and Paul gives that familiar answer: "By no means!" This again uses the phrasing mē genoito in the original Greek, a strong, emphatic "may it never be!"
Paul points to himself as the first evidence that God has not rejected Israel. After all, Paul is an Israelite and descendant of Abraham. More specifically, Paul writes that he belongs to the tribe of Benjamin. Paul may have become one of the most vocal promoters of Christianity of his day, but he still held on to his status as an Israelite. He insists that God's relationship with Israel as a nation continues.