Is the modern Israel "God's chosen people"?

This question requires distinguishing between theological claims and political realities—a distinction we emphasize as crucial.

Israel as the chosen people of God stands beyond doubt[1], rooted in God’s call to Abraham, the emancipation from Egypt, and the covenant at Sinai establishing Israel as a “priestly kingdom” among nations[1]. However, this claim is complex and difficult on multiple counts, introducing the “scandal of particularity”—the conviction that God takes sides in concrete ways, leaving many peoples “not chosen”[1].

The critical complication emerges here: the theological claim of Israel as God’s chosen people becomes more complex when the contemporary state of Israel both makes theological claims and operates by the force of Realpolitik[1]. These are fundamentally different categories. The biblical concept involves God’s chosen people achieving their destiny when living in the land while observing Torah’s laws, with their ability to possess the land ultimately tied to creating a society upholding ritual and ethical concerns[2]. Chosenness was always conditional on covenant faithfulness, not unconditional political sovereignty.

Additionally, at the very edge of the Old Testament there are hints that God may select other chosen peoples as well[1], complicating any exclusive claim. Paul affirms that God did not reject his people whom he foreknew (Rom 11:1–2), yet Israel has experienced hardening in part, with God’s gifts and call remaining irrevocable (Rom 11:16–29).

The answer is nuanced: Israel remains theologically chosen according to Scripture, but modern political claims require scrutiny separate from theological election. More-or-less settled judgments about this matter must be rethought in careful and disciplined ways[1].

[1] Walter Brueggemann, An Unsettling God: The Heart of the Hebrew Bible (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2009), xiii.
[2] Joel S. Kaminsky, “‘Israel My Servant, Jacob Whom I Have Chosen’: Election Theology in the Hebrew Bible,” in T&T Clark Handbook of Election, ed. Edwin Chr. van Driel, T&T Clark Handbooks (London; New York; Oxford; New Delhi; Sydney: T&T Clark, 2024), 28.