Sadly, brother @Samuel_23 is no longer here @Edward429451.
J.
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I struggled to understand this also for many years. What God’s Word reveals is that there is a difference from being ‘chosen’ vs. being ‘called’ only. All believers are ‘called’, but not all are ‘chosen’, like Jesus said.
The word chosen in the Greek means an elect’, but is also associated with the idea of being ‘sent’ which is where the word apostle comes from. In John 17, Lord Jesus praying, He revealed 2 groups of His servants, the first being His chosen ones, His Apostles, and said they before belonged to The Father, and The Father gave them to Him. Jesus also prayed that by the word (preaching) of His chosen Apostles, those who hear that would also believe, that both would become One in Him and in The Father. So Lord Jesus actually did establish two different groups of elect, His chosen sent ones, because He even said His chosen ones were ‘sent’ into this world like He was, and then all those who might believe through their word (preaching).
This is why Scripture like Ephesians 1 about His chosen election is applied by Apostle Paul in the general sense to all… believers, because it automatically assumes those who believe will not fall away. However, one should easily see by the New Testament Scriptures, especially Apostles Paul and Peter’s Epistles, that not all believers are ‘chosen’, but ‘called’ only because those called only CAN… still fall away IF they so choose.
The difference with Christ’s ‘chosen’, is that He already OWNS them, even as The Father owned them previously, so He can intervene in their lives, just like Jesus did with Apostle Paul with converting him on the road to Damascus, and later said Paul was His “chosen vessel”. So the elect chosen can never… be deceived, nor fall away, once Jesus brings them into service.
In Matthew 24:24 Lord Jesus uses the idea of the coming pseudo-Christ being so powerful in deception that IF it were possible it would deceive even Christ’s “very elect”. That is a pointer to Christ’s chosen elect which can never be deceived. He was using that to show a comparison of how strong the deception is going to be. Likewise with the multitudes in Matthew 13 when His Apostles asked Him why He spoke to the people in parables, He said it was not given for the multitude to understand the kingdom of Heaven, but that for His chosen Apostles they were blessed that the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven were shown to them. That again shows a separation between those chosen compared with those called only.
“Chosen” (ἐκλεκτός) does NOT mean “sent” or “apostle”
The Greek word ἐκλεκτός (eklektos) simply means “chosen, elect, selected” - from the verb ἐκλέγομαι (eklegomai, to choose, select, pick out). It has no intrinsic connection to being “sent.” The word for “sent” is ἀπόστολος (apostolos, from ἀποστέλλω, to send), which is etymologically and semantically distinct.
To conflate these is a lexical error. The “elect” in Scripture are not defined by being “sent” apostles.
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John 17 does NOT establish “two groups of elect”
Jesus prays for “those whom you gave me” (17:6, 9, 24) - this refers to all believers, not merely apostles. He prays that all believers "may be one"strong text (17:21-23), not that apostles and other believers become one. The “them” in 17:20 (“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word”) refers to future believers, creating one unified group, one elect people, not two tiers of election. -
Matthew 24:24 does NOT teach that the elect “can never be deceived”
The phrase “if possible” (εἰ δυνατόν, ei dynaton) is a first-class conditional in Greek, it assumes the protasis (the “if” clause) for the sake of argument. Jesus is saying the deception will be so powerful that it would deceive the elect if it were possible - but it is not possible because the Father preserves them (John 10:28-29; Rom. 8:30-39). This is a statement of divine preservation, not a proof that the elect possess some innate immunity to deception.
The elect are preserved by God’s power, not by their own constitution. This passage actually supports monergistic perseverance (the elect cannot finally fall away because God keeps them), which contradicts the claim that “called only” believers can fall away while “chosen” ones cannot.
- Matthew 13 does NOT separate “chosen” from “called”
When Jesus says the mysteries of the kingdom are given to the disciples but not to the crowds (13:11), He explains why in the next verse: “because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand” - citing Isaiah 6:9-10.
The distinction is between those to whom God gives understanding and those from whom He withholds it, precisely the Reformed doctrine of sovereign election and reprobation.
It is not a distinction between two kinds of elect, but between elect and non-elect.
- Ephesians 1 is NOT “applied generally” with an assumption that believers won’t fall away
Paul addresses the Ephesian believers as “the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus” (1:1) and declares they were “chosen in him before the foundation of the world” (1:4).
This is not a general application, it is a specific declaration that all true believers are elect. The “us” and “we” throughout the chapter (1:3-14) refers to all believers, not a subset.
The Reformed understanding, following Augustine, Calvin, and the Puritans, is that election is unconditional and efficacious, all the elect will certainly come to faith and persevere. There is no category of “believers who are called but not chosen.”
- The distinction between “called” and “chosen” in Scripture
The biblical distinction is not between two groups of believers, but between the external call (which goes to all who hear the gospel, and which can be rejected - Matt. 22:14) and the effectual call (which inevitably brings the elect to salvation - Rom. 8:30).
The Puritan Thomas Boston, in Human Nature in Its Fourfold State, and John Owen in The Death of Death in the Death of Christ, carefully distinguish:
The general call: The outward proclamation of the gospel to all.
The effectual call: The inward, irresistible work of the Spirit in the elect.
All the effectually called are also chosen (Rom. 8:30: “those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified”). There is no class of “called but not chosen” believers who can fall away.
- The “chosen vessel” of Paul (Acts 9:15)
God’s declaration that Paul is a “chosen vessel” (σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς, skeuos eklogēs) uses ἐκλογή (eklogē, “choice, election”) the same root as the elect.
But this does not create a separate category of “super-elect.” Paul is chosen for the specific office of apostle, but his salvation-election is the same as all believers’. The Reformed distinction is between election unto salvation (common to all believers) and election unto office (particular to ministers, apostles, etc.).
Why I’m writing this to you…
The view you’ve summarized is essentially a form of hierarchical election or two-tiered Christianity, a “chosen” elite who cannot fall away, and ordinary “called” believers who can. This is…
Not found in Scripture: The Bible knows only one elect people (Eph. 1; 1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 17:14).
Contradictory to the Reformed confessions: The Westminster Confession of Faith (3.5-6; 10.1-2; 17.1-3) teaches that all who are effectually called are elect, and all the elect shall certainly persevere.
And is dangerously close to Gnosticism or elitism: Creating a spiritual aristocracy within the church.
The Reformed and Puritan position is that all true believers are both called and chosen, and none of them can finally fall away - not because they are a special “super-elect,” but because God preserves them through faith unto salvation (1 Pet. 1:5; Jude 1:24-25).
For further study, I would point you to John Owen’s The Doctrine of the Saints’ Perseverance, Thomas Boston’s The Crook in the Lot, and the Westminster Confession of Faith, chapters 3, 10, and 17 - all of which carefully guard the unity of God’s elect while distinguishing the external and effectual call.
Or send you the links brother.
J.
Right, “chosen” does not mean ‘sent’ (apostellos), and if you had read what I wrote I made that distinction. But the KJV word “sent” below is Greek apostellos where the word ‘apostle’ comes from, and that is what I said…
John 17:18
18 As Thou hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
KJV
Let’s see what Lord Jesus actually said in revealing 2 groups of His elect in His prayer to The Father in John 17. Men’s doctrines claim all sorts of things, but what Jesus said as written trumps all their false claims. The only real way to show this is by showing the actual written Scripture.
John 17:5-10
5 And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thine Own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou gavest Me out of the world: Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me; and they have kept Thy word.
Lord Jesus is speaking of His very elect which The Father already owned but gave to Jesus. He is speaking of His Apostles and disciples that were witnesses of His crucifixion and resurrection. It’s about ownership, which is why when He appeared to His Apostles and commanded them to follow, they got up and followed Him.
7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever Thou hast given Me are of Thee.
8 For I have given unto them the words which Thou gavest Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from Thee, and they have believed that Thou didst send Me.
9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine.
10 And all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I am glorified in them.
KJV
Jesus specifically speaking of His Apostles only…
John 17:11-18
11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep through Thine Qwn name those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as We are.
12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Thy name: those that Thou gavest Me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Lord Jesus was pointing to Judas Iscariot, one of the original Apostles that turned on Him to fulfill the Old Testament prophecy.
13 And now come I to Thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have My joy fulfilled in themselves.
14 I have given them Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15 I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth.
18 As thou hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
KJV
The meaning of “sent” (apostellos) above in the Greek is where the word Apostle comes from. Thus Lord Jesus is specifically speaking of His Apostles at this point.
This is where Jesus will start speaking of a 2nd group of believers different from His Apostles…
John 17:20-22
20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word;
That is about those who would believe on Jesus through the “word” (preaching) of His ‘sent’ Apostles. This 2nd group is ‘called’ only. His Apostles are ‘chosen’. The difference is that He already OWNS His Apostles, so they cannot get out of their duty in Christ, they must obey, and Jesus will intervene directly in their lives without their asking Him. Apostle Paul was a prime example of this. But those ‘called’ only, have to make their choice to believe, or not.
21 That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me.
22 And the glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that they may be one, even as We are One:
KJV
Lord Jesus then prayed that BOTH groups become One in Him and in The Father. That means both groups are considered His elect. But His ‘sent’ ones that The Father already owned before, they have no choice but must follow Christ. That is why Jesus compared His “very elect” in Matthew 24:24 with it not being possible that they can be deceived. They cannot be deceived because Jesus already owns them, and has shown them all things. Jesus will show us all things too by The Holy Spirit IF… we stay in our ‘called’ walk with Him.
And for this reason, that Christ’s Apostles represent a separate group that were owned before the foundation of the world by The Father, those 12 Apostles are promised to sit upon 12 thrones in Christ’s future Kingdom judging the 12 tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28).
What verses are you referring to, @DavyP, in your first paragraph, when you seem to be saying that many believers are called but not chosen (please tell us with each reference)? Is it the following?
Mat 22:13 Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen."
If so, it is in a parable, which has one point to make. Why do you think this fellow is a believer? The parable does not say that he is. Instead, he didn’t wear a wedding garment, an obvious reference to the church as the bride of Christ: Eph 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.
There are two kinds of calling in the Bible. The first is the external call that goes out to all the people in the world in the sharing of witness and preaching the gospel, for example, Matthew 28:19:
Mat 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Mat 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
The second is the internal call in which the Father calls us through Jesus by the Holy Spirit by giving us faith and a repentant heart. The external call to all people is what I believe is Jesus’ meaning about those who are called, just as all kinds of people were called to attend the banquet in the parable; and the chosen ones are those who have become true believers.
Rom 8:29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Rom 8:30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
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Well said brother @Bruce_Leiter and good to see you are still around!
J.
Strong language here @DavyP but brother @Bruce_Leiter answered you biblically.
Mat 7:12 "In all things, therefore, whatever you want that people should do to you, thus also you do to them. For this is the Law and the Prophets.
Mat 7:13 "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.
Mat 7:14 For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
A Tree and Its Fruit
Mat 7:15 "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
Mat 7:16 You will recognize them by their fruits. They do not gather grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles, do they?
Mat 7:17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
Mat 7:18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.
Mat 7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Mat 7:20 So then, you will recognize them by their fruits.
I Never Knew You
Mat 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of the heavens, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in the heavens.
Mat 7:22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
Mat 7:23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.’
Build Your House on the Rock
Mat 7:24 "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
Mat 7:25 And the rain fell, and the floodsN1 came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
Mat 7:26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
Mat 7:27 And the rain fell, and the floodsN2 came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was its fall."
(6) No moral or religious excellences will compensate for the absence of this wedding garment. If we have not put on the Lord Jesus, if we are not “in Christ Jesus,” our doom is sealed; and what a doom-to be cast indignantly and without the power of resistance into outer darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth! Oh! Do men really believe that this doom awaits those who, however exemplary in other respects, venture to present themselves before God out of Christ?
Mat_22:14. For many are called, but few are chosen.
All who hear the gospel are called, but the call does not come with equal power to every heart. And with some, the power with which it comes is not that which saves; it only convinces the intellect, so that an outward homage is paid to the Word, and the inward obedience of the soul is not rendered to the Lord. God grant that each of us may have on the wedding garment when the King comes in to see the guests!
Amen?
J.
Matt.22:14 is one of the references, yes, and it is about a contrast between the believer that is worthy of being there at the marriage that has a wedding garment, vs. the unbeliever who only tries to sneak in. It is a parable, but it is the same theme as what Jesus gave in Matthew 7 that not everyone who says to Him in that day, “Lord, lord…” shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
In Acts 9, Jesus said that Saul (later called Apostle Paul) was His “chosen vessel”. But relying just on that word “chosen” is not what I was showing at all. The John 17 Chapter I covered is where Lord Jesus emphatically revealed the two groups.
And by those examples, common sense tells us there is a difference between Christ’s chosen ‘sent’ ones like His Apostles and those of us who are called only that must believe by their preaching of The Gospel, like Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, all Apostles. Furtheremore, the fact that Jesus promised His 12 Apostles they would sit upon 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel is a specific reward that He gave to no one else but His 12 Apostles. Add to that the fact that Apostle Paul spent much of his Epistles admonishing and warning the brethren to not fall away, that reveals the called who can still fall away.
Try the parable of the ten virgins Jesus gave in Matthew 25. All ten virgins had the lamps with Oil in them, which represents that all… ten were believers on Christ Jesus.
Jesus shut the door upon the five virgins that were foolish that failed to carry a spare vessel of the Oil (Holy Spirit).
Isaiah 28 and Romans 11 about those whom God has spiritually blinded also is a factor in revealing the difference for this present world between some that have spiritual eyes to see and ears to hear, while others do not. It is not only about the unbelieving Jews which Paul mentioned in Romans 11. It is also about those in Christ that will be deceived by the coming false-Messiah who comes first. Lord Jesus warned about that falling away, Apostle Paul warned about that falling away, Apostle John warned about that falling away. And Lord Jesus even gave us a strong metaphor in His parable of those who travail with child spiritually, meaning when He returns He finds that some had fallen away to the false-Messiah, and are symbolically married and with child already in false worship.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins by Thomas Shepard is one of the most searching and spiritually exacting treatments of Christ’s warning in Matthew 25:1–13 ever produced in the Puritan tradition. Drawn from a sustained series of sermons preached between 1636 and 1640, this volume is not a speculative exposition of prophecy, but a penetrating pastoral examination of the state of the visible church, the nature of true grace, and the eternal danger of false assurance.
Shepard unfolds the parable as a divine diagnosis of gospel churches—churches that appear pure, orthodox, and awakened, yet contain within them a fatal division between the wise and the foolish. Both carry lamps. Both profess faith. Both wait for the Bridegroom. Yet only some possess oil. With relentless clarity, Shepard presses the distinction between outward profession and inward reality, exposing how security, hypocrisy, and self-deception may flourish even in the purest churches and under the most faithful preaching.
Across more than forty tightly reasoned chapters, Shepard traces the entire spiritual logic of the parable. He examines the nature of the visible church as the “kingdom of heaven upon earth,” the certainty and suddenness of Christ’s coming, the danger of spiritual slumber during seasons of delay, and the irreversible finality of the closed door. Particular attention is given to the difference between temporary religious affections and enduring grace, between counterfeit desires for Christ and a true espousal to Him, and between borrowed light and the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit.
A defining strength of this work is Shepard’s unparalleled ability to expose gospel hypocrisy without crushing the tender conscience. He carefully distinguishes sincere believers from the closest self-deceivers, showing how false grace fails under trial, lacks spiritual fullness, and cannot endure to the end. At the same time, he offers strong consolation to true believers, affirming the perseverance of saving grace and the blessed hope of Christ’s return as a Bridegroom to His own.
Written in a period of theological turbulence, the sermons also confront antinomian and legalistic errors, charting what Shepard calls the “true middle way of the gospel”—a life of watchful obedience flowing from union with Christ, not from self-righteous effort or careless presumption. Throughout, the emphasis remains intensely practical: this is theology meant to awaken the sleepy, unsettle the secure, humble the proud, and prepare souls for eternity.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TO THE READER.
PREFACE.
PART 1.
1. CHAPTER 1. The General Scope of the Parable.
2. CHAPTER 2. Of the Visible Church of God.
3. CHAPTER 3. Concerning the Coming of Christ and the Security of Professors.
4. CHAPTER 4. Showeth that the soul that will enjoy communion with Christ must be divorced from all other lords, particularly from Lusts and from the Law. The manner of its espousals unto Christ.
5. CHAPTER 5. Showeth the Marks and Signs whereby the Soul may know whether he be in League or Love with any Lust or Creature, or Married to the Law.
6. CHAPTER 6. Containing Motives and Arguments to Persuade us unto the love of Christ, and to be Espoused to Him.
7. CHAPTER 7. Showeth that a man hath no power in himself to do any Spiritual Work, but that he must receive all from Christ.
8. CHAPTER 8. A Christian’s Duty of being Constantly and Continually ready to meet Christ, and to enjoy Communion with Him.
9. CHAPTER 9. A Fourfold Exhortation to Believers.
10. CHAPTER 10. Concerning the Soul’s Immediate Closing with the Person of Christ, as the Proper Object of Saving Faith.
11. CHAPTER 11. Showing that True Believers do with Hope expect the Second Coming of Christ.
12. CHAPTER 12. That Believers do Long and Desire for the Appearance and Second Coming of Christ.
13. CHAPTER 13. Showing that there are Hypocrites in the Best and Purest Churches.
14. CHAPTER 14. Containing a Discovery of Gospel Hypocrites.
15. CHAPTER 15. Showing that there is a Vast Difference Betwixt a Sincere Christian and the Closest Hypocrite.
16. CHAPTER 16. Showing that the Hypocrisy of the Heart Proceeds from a Want of Saving Illumination in the Understanding.
17. CHAPTER 17. That Hypocrites Discover Themselves in an Ineffectual Use of the Means of Grace.
18. CHAPTER 18. That the Hearts and Souls of Believers are made as Vessels only for the Reception of Christ, his Spirit, and the Graces thereof.
19. CHAPTER 19. That the Holy Spirit is in Believers as the Principle of their Spiritual Life and Holiness.
20. CHAPTER 20. Showeth that there is such a Fullness or Measure of Grace in the Heart of Believers, which the most Refined Hypocrites never arise unto.
21. CHAPTER 21. Wherein is given a more Large and Full Account of that Fullness of Grace that is in Believers, as to the Several Parts thereof, and how the most Glorious Hypocrites come short in all.
22. CHAPTER 22. That True Saving Grace in the Hearts of Believers can Never Fail.
PART 2.
23. CHAPTER 1. Of Carnal Security in Virgin Churches.
24. CHAPTER 2. Carnal Security comes by Degrees.
25. CHAPTER 3. Security the Last Sin of Good and Bad.
26. CHAPTER 4. Christ’s Absence the Cause of Security in his Churches.
Can give you the link, just ask.
J.