Something remaining. In the Old Testament some passages refer to total destruction of a nation (e.g., the Babylonians in Jer. 50:26). When God brings judgment on the people, however, he does not destroy the faithful with the wicked, but leaves a remnant (Ezek. 6:8; Mic. 2:12). The concept of a remnant stood for that part of the nation who were faithful even though most people rejected the ways of God (Isa. 4:2-4). The fact of the existence of a remnant is said to be due to God himself (Isa. 1:9; Zeph. 3:12). The remnant, then, is the real people of God, a concept we also find in the New Testament, “a remnant chosen by grace” (Rom. 11:5).

The Shaw Pocket Bible Handbook, Walter A. Elwell, Editor, (Harold Shaw Publ., Wheaton , IL; 1984), p. 355