God’s concept of predestination in the Bible primarily operates at a group level rather than an individual one. The Bible shows that predestination involves selecting entire communities, not specific persons. This is evident in both major periods of biblical history.
During Old Testament times, God selected the entire nation of Israel as His chosen people. As Moses declared to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 7:6, “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” (cf. Deuteronomy 14:2). This passage clearly shows that God’s selection applied to Israel as a whole nation.
This concept continued into New Testament times, where the chosen status shifted to encompass the entire church community. Peter explicitly made this connection when he told the church in 1 Peter 2:9-10, “You [referring to the church] are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession.” Peter’s words demonstrate that God’s selection applies to the entire body of believers collectively as the church in the New Testament era.
This consistent biblical pattern – from Israel in the Old Testament to the church in the New Testament – demonstrates that God’s predestination works at a corporate level, choosing entire communities of faith rather than selecting individuals.
