Romans 11:7 What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded
Israel is blinded:
The majority of Israel today is spiritually blinded to the facts of their Messiah. This blindness has come from three main sources. First they refuse to believe Scripture and undeniable facts -- their Scriptures declare that the scepter will not depart from Judah until Shiloh comes (Gen 49:10), and truly the scepter has departed from Judah at the present. Ancient Jewish commentators agree that Shiloh refers to the Messiah, but the fact that the scepter (symbol of leadership) has departed from Judah (and shortly after the crucifixion) should be evidence to them that their Messiah has come.
David was the first from the tribe of Judah to attain the scepter of leadership among Israel’s tribes. God’s promises were clear that Messiah would be in David’s lineage. The record of Joseph and Mary’s lineage in Matthew and Luke show that Jesus was the Messiah. Even the Pharisees did not question the records of His family stored in the temple when they accused Jesus of blasphemy. In 70 A.D. however, the temple was destroyed and all records destroyed. They still hold unto the past rejection of Jesus and are kept in darkness until today.
Second the Jews have been blinded by the enemy. The Jews are God’s chosen people (Zec 2:8) and the devil has been making war on God’s people since the beginning of his rebellion. Jesus told the Pharisees they were associated with the devil (Jn 8:44). If God had not been watching over the Jewish people they would have been wiped off the face of the earth a long time ago. The devil tried to destroy God’s plan of salvation from the beginning and this meant to eliminate the nation from which the Messiah would come (Jn 4:22).
Third, the Jews have been blinded by God because of their heart’s condition (Matt 13:12-15; Eze 12:2; Zech 7:12). In the text verse when it says that they were blinded, the word for blinded means “to petrify, i.e. (figurative) to indurate (render stupid or callous) :- blind, harden.” Just as God hardened the heart of Pharaoh when he refused to hear God’s command to let the people go, God hardened his heart, so when Israel rebelled and refused God’s commands, He then hardened them. Paul tells us that this blindness is temporary until God begins dealing directly with Israel again (Ro 11:25; 2 Cor 3:14-16).
Blindness in people:
Blindness occurs in individuals as well as nations. Paul tells us that the gospel is hidden by the enemy by blinding them (2 Cor 4:3-4; Acts 26:18). The enemy confuses people by darkening their minds and understanding (1 Cor 1:18; Eph 4:18). This blindness comes from numerous sources today – false preachers, apostate churches, compromised translations of the Scriptures, the liberal news media and the rebellion within that refuses to believe the truth when it is obvious. These blinded people fight to rid the world of Christianity and force upon it the false gods and immorality of the day. Jesus said, “If the light in you become darkness, how great is that darkness.” Truly we live in a dark world, but Jesus is still the Light and He will lighten anyone who desires to know the truth and seeks it.