Mercy on ALL
Why Did God Consign All to Disobedience? So That He Might Have Mercy On All!
“For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.” — Romans 11:32
This single verse shatters the foundations of both Eternal Conscious Torment (ECT) and Annihilationism. Both systems teach that God either tortures people forever or erases them from existence. Yet Paul tells us that the divine strategy in shutting all humanity up in disobedience is for mercy. Not some mercy. Not potential mercy. But mercy for all.
Those who defend ECT or Annihilationism have no room for this verse. So they twist it, soften it, or ignore it altogether. But the original Greek removes all doubt. Let’s break it down.
What Does “Consigned” Mean?
The Greek word translated “consigned” is συνέκλεισεν (synekleisen), from the verb συγκλείω (synkleió). It means to:
- shut in
- imprison
- enclose together
- trap with no way of escape
It is used elsewhere in Galatians 3:22:
“But the Scripture has imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.”
In both cases, the meaning is clear. God deliberately enclosed humanity in disobedience. Not as a mistake. Not as a passive consequence. But as a purposeful action with a clear outcome: mercy.
Trapped… For Mercy?
Romans 11:32 is a theological nuclear bomb. God consigned all to disobedience. Why? “That he may have mercy on all.” That is a causal clause. It doesn’t say “so he can offer mercy,” or “so he can have mercy on some,” or “so he can punish the rest.” It says he did this so that he may have mercy on all.
This is not hypothetical. It is the declared intention of God.
If the goal of enclosing us in sin is mercy, then any theology that ends in endless torture or permanent death blasphemes the motive and plan of God.
ECT and Annihilationism Accuse God of Failure
Let’s be honest. The doctrines of Eternal Conscious Torment and Annihilationism accuse God of orchestrating failure. They claim:
- God created all, knowing most would be damned
- God consigned all to disobedience, but won’t have mercy on all
- God gives grace, but only to a few
- God’s plan to rescue humanity ends in mass eternal destruction
That is not the gospel. That is religious propaganda designed to keep people in line through fear. And worse, it paints the Father of Jesus Christ as a sadistic monarch who stages mass executions and calls it justice.
Yet Paul rejoices at the end of Romans 11:
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!” – Romans 11:33
Would Paul burst into doxology if the point was that billions will be forever damned? No. Paul marvels because the mercy is total.
The Trap Was Never Permanent
God “trapped” us in disobedience. That much is clear. But the trap was never the end. It was the setup. The same word is used in Luke 5:6 when the disciples caught a great number of fish and the net was enclosing them. It was a haul. A gathering. Not a doom.
In the same way, God has shut up all humanity in sin so he can catch us all in mercy. That’s the gospel.
To argue otherwise is to say God started something he cannot finish. Or worse, that he finished it with blood on his hands and screams echoing in eternity.
This Mercy Is Not Just a Chance
Some false teachers suggest that God’s mercy on all is merely an opportunity, not a guarantee. But the structure of the verse crushes that thought.
The first half of Romans 11:32 states that “God has consigned all to disobedience.” No one contests that “all” here means the entire human race. Every tradition agrees: all have sinned, all are under the curse, all are trapped. That’s the whole point of the gospel. So if “all” in the first half means everyone, then there is no textual or theological justification to redefine “all” in the second half when Paul says, “that he may have mercy on all.” The structure demands consistency. If all were consigned, then all are destined for mercy. You cannot split the verse without corrupting its meaning.
God did the consigning.
God set the stage.
God determined the outcome.
And the outcome is mercy.
To say this mercy depends on man’s cooperation is to reverse the entire logic of the verse. If our disobedience was already under God’s control, then so is the timing and release of mercy.
This is a declaration, not an offer. It is a prophecy, not a plea.
The Fear-Bound Heart Cannot See It
Those who cling to ECT or Annihilationism are not monsters. They are afraid. They were taught to be afraid. They fear that letting go of hell means letting go of justice.
But Romans 11 shows a different justice. A justice that goes deeper. One that imprisons the world in sin only to redeem it. One that lets disobedience run its course only to overcome it with mercy.
That is justice fulfilled, not abandoned.
Final Word: The Gospel Is Not a Threat
This one verse, Romans 11:32, is the gospel in miniature. It says what religious tradition cannot say. It says that all were shut up in sin. It says that mercy is the goal. And it dares to say that mercy wins.
Any gospel that ends with eternal torment is not good news.
Any gospel that ends in annihilation is not a rescue.
But a gospel that ends with mercy on all — that is the power of God.
And it’s not a stretch. It’s written in plain sight.
