0094 - DOES THE CREATOR REPENT?

DOES THE CREATOR REPENT?

INTRODUCTION

There have been many discussions around this subject. One of the great problems is that the Hebraic word which is translated to Portuguese and English as “to repent” can assume several meanings and, unfortunately, the translation is deficient.

 

In order to clarify this subject, let’s analyze the chief excerpts where the word “to repent” or “to relent” appear and the real meaning of this word.

REPENT MEANING “TO CONSOLE”

Repent, here, signifies “to console”.

 

1 - Here the Creator didn’t wish to destroy Israel and, for this, He aroused Moses so that His grace could find room in his heart and, thus, He could enjoy in evincing His mercy (Micah 7:18):

First the Creator expressed His feelings and thoughts:

 

·       Exo 32:9,10 -> “And the LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.”

 

Next, Moses is arisen and is taken of compassion for Israel and sadness for what would happen to the name of the Creator if nothing was done:

 

·       Exodus 32.12 -> “Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people.”.

 

The Creator finally found a way to work the heart of the Israelites so that they didn’t need to perish. This is a solace to the Creator (He comforted Himself through the possibility of using Moses to work the heart of His people).

 

·       Exodus 32.14 -> “And the LORD relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.”

 

2 – Here the Creator didn’t wish to destroy Israel through a terrible starvation or by fire. So, He aroused Amos showing how grievous was what the Israelites was doing against Him and what was necessary to be done so that His justice could be satisfied. As Amos was touched by the compassion of the Creator for Israel, He could relish in providing forgiveness for the Israelites through Amos’ life.

First the Creator shew what the sin of the Israelites was inciting Him to do:

 

·       Amo 7:1 -> “This is what the Lord GOD showed me: behold, he was forming locusts when the latter growth was just beginning to sprout, and behold, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings. 

 

Amos was taken by the sufferings of the Creator for Israel and manifested it entreating for them:

·       Amo 7:2 -> “When they had finished eating the grass of the land, I said, “O Lord GOD, please forgive! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!”. 

 

The Creator could be comforted for finding, in Amos, opportunity to elate Himself while manifesting His mercy in favor of Israel (Jeremiah 31:20).

 

·       Amo 7:3 -> “The LORD relented concerning this: “It shall not be,” said the LORD. 

 

The cycle is repeated two times, so was the urgency of doing something in favor of Israel:

 

·       Amos 7:4 -> “This is what the Lord GOD showed me: behold, the Lord GOD was calling for a judgment by fire, and it devoured the great deep and was eating up the land. 

 

·       Amo 7:5 -> “Then I said, “O Lord GOD, please cease! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!” 

 

·       Amo 7:6 -> “The LORD relented concerning this: “This also shall not be,” said the Lord GOD. 

 

3 – Here the Creator didn’t wish to obliterate Nineveh and, for this, He made of Jonah a sign to the Ninevites (Luke 11:30) so that He could find room of Repent in their heart and, thus, He could get pleasure manifesting His mercy to them.

 

First, the Creator made a miracle in and through the life of Jonah (Jonah 1). Next, He enjoined Jonah to preach His message:

 

·       Jonah 3:4  -> “Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!””.

In response of this, the Creator found room in the heart of each Ninevite to His Repent (sadness) for their bad deportment and His conversion from their bad ways (2Tim 2:24-26):

 

·       Jonah 3:6-9 -> “The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”. 

 

Finally, the Creator could enjoy seeing the transformation He could work in Nineveh and, thus, allowed Him to move forward the privilege of blessing them.

 

·       Jonah 3:10 -> “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”.

 

4 – The Creator didn’t desire to destroy Judah and, so that He could solace Himself, He sent Micah to prophesy against Judah. From the moment that Hezekiah heard, the Creator could find room in His heart to comfort Himself acting against all the idols of Israel and, thus, destroying everything that was precluding Him of working His grace, mercy and kindness in favor of Israel’s people.

 

In other words, the heart of His people, with the purification of Hezekiah, became more sensitive for His compassion in favor of the neighbor:

 

·       Jeremiah 26:18,19 -> “ “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and said to all the people of Judah: ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “‘Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the house a wooded height.’ Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the LORD and entreat the favor of the LORD, and did not the LORD relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them? But we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.” ”.

 

5 – And He tried to do the same thing in the time of Jeremiah:

 

·       Jeremiah 26.13 -> “Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the LORD your God, and the LORD will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you.”.

 

 

Abridging: the Creator has delight in finding opportunity to console Himself from the evil that is necessary to come in virtue of the sin of people. For this, He seeks way to find room in the hearts so that He can comfort Himself manifesting His grace, mercy, pardon, love in order to surmount all the turpitude (Rom 5:20).

Hence Jeremiah says:

 

·       Jeremiah 18:7,8 -> “If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it.”. 

 

Translating: When the Creator desires to save a nation or a kingdom, He sends His exhortation in order to find room in some heart to manifest His compassion. When He finds someone, He solaces Himself using His super abounding grace to overpower all the evil that was did there and spares people.

 

Hence the real sense of what the Creator said to Moses:

 

·       Rom 9:15 -> “For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.””.

 

He has mercy and compassion of those who can be used by Him to comfort Himself of the evil that needs to come (to wit: being instrument of His grace).

 

And Jonah knew about this:

 

·       Jonah 4.2 -> “And he prayed to the LORD and said, “O LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.”.

 

The Creator delights in promising good things (Jeremiah 29:11-14).

REPENT MEANING “TO HAVE PITY, RELENT”

 

Repent, here, signifies “to have pity, relent”.

 

1 – The wrath of the Creator was kindled against Israel:

 

·       2Sa 24:1 -> “Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.””.

 

So, in order to discipline Israel, the Creator let Ha-Satan incite David to sin. When many of those who were displeasing Him were died, He allowed David to see the angel in order to find room in his heart for His pity.

 

David could experience the sadness of the Creator for having to allow of this calamity and His desire to carry out mercy:

·       II Samuel 24.16,17 -> “And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father's house.””.

 

·       I Chronicles 21.15-17 -> “And God sent the angel to Jerusalem to destroy it, but as he was about to destroy it, the LORD saw, and he relented from the calamity. And he said to the angel who was working destruction, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. And David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the LORD standing between earth and heaven, and in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces. And David said to God, “Was it not I who gave command to number the people? It is I who have sinned and done great evil. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand, O LORD my God, be against me and against my father's house. But do not let the plague be on your people.””.

 

2 – The Creator always desire to relent from all evil that is necessary to come on His servants, as we can see below:

 

Psalms 135.14:

·       (Darby)  For Jehovah will judge his people, and will repent in favour of his servants.

·       (MKJV) For Jehovah will judge His people, and He will have pity on His servants.

·       (ESV) For the LORD will vindicate his people and have compassion on his servants. 

 

For this, the Creator judge His people so that they can repent, convert and, thus, He can find place in their heart to personify His pity (compassion) and favor (grace) in behalf of His servants, as well as vindicate His people.

 

So, when the Creator desire to save His people, He bring some situation that will induce them to break down their heart in total contrition.

 

He arises a prophet to admonish and exhort His people:

 

·       Joel 2.13,14 -> ““and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?”.

 

And, after, when their heart is opened to His mercy and grace, He comfort Himself using them to carry out His salvation:

 

·       Psalms 106:44-46 -> “Nevertheless he regarded their distress, When he heard their cry: and he remembered for them his covenant, And repented according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses. He made them also to be pitied of all those that carried them captive.”.

 

But, there are some cases that the Creator desire to make someone fall (see Ezekiel 3:20), as it was the case of Amaziah and Ahab:

 

·       2Ch 25:16 -> “But as he was speaking, the king said to him, “Have we made you a royal counselor? Stop! Why should you be struck down?” So the prophet stopped, but said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.” 

·       2Ch 25:20 -> “But Amaziah would not listen, for it was of God, in order that he might give them into the hand of their enemies, because they had sought the gods of Edom.”

 

 

·       1Ki 22:20-23 -> “and the LORD said, ‘Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said one thing, and another said another. Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ And the LORD said to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.’ Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD has declared disaster for you.”.

 

This also took place in Israel in the time of David (as we saw in the foregoing topic).

 

It is the sin to death:

 

·       1Jn 5:16,17 -> “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.”.

 

In this case, the Creator gets weary of working in the heart of people:

 

·       Jeremiah 15.6 -> “You have rejected me, declares the LORD; you keep going backward, so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you— I am weary of relenting.”.

 

·       Genesis 6:3 -> “Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.””.

 

 

But, why the Creator cope with people like this?

 

He knows people very well. And, in order to deal with the seed of sin that are hidden very well, He can abandon someone so that He can see what exists in their heart with the own eyes of this person, and, thus, the person can know their spiritual reality (as David asked – Ps 139:23,24):

 

This happened with Hezekiah:

 

• 2Ch 32:31 -> “And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.”.

 

I know that this can be hard. Nonetheless, do you recollect whereof the “small” sin of Adam brought to the world (Gen 3:6)? And what about the sin of Canaan against Noah (Gen 9:21-23)?

 

Not to mention the sin of Achan:

 

• Jos 7:11,12 -> “Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you.”.

 

So, if the Creator knows that the person, after receiving a great blessing or promise, can boast and give place for Ha-Satan (as it took place with Uzziah – 2Ch 26:16), He can allow a falling or a thorn in the flesh:

 

• 2Co 12:7 -> “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.”.

 

 

• Jeremiah 18:9,10 -> “And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it”.

 

In this case, the Creator gets sad in virtue of the necessity of calling off His good promise.

REPENT MEANING “SADNESS”

Repent, here, signifies “sadness”.

 

1 – The Creator decided to blot out all the living being of the face of the Earth in order to show people that, even if all the sinners of the world (together with their possessions) are expunged (so that not even the memory of them can be remembered), not even thus the evil would be effaced.

 

Unfortunately, the humanity didn’t learn this. So much so that the Worldwide Elite plans on making the populational reduction (in a way that the quantity of human beings in the Earth stays below 500,000,000).

 

So, the Creator allowed the violence to fill all the Earth, every flesh defiled their way, even knowing how this would make Him sad.

 

·       Genesis 6.6 -> “And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.”.

 

Even though all that wreak havoc was necessary to come and this was a grievance to His heart, the Creator sought someone who could comfort Him, someone whose heart can harbor His grace and, thereby, manifest it.

 

So, the grace of the Creator was found by Noah (Jer 29:14; Gen 6:8).

 

2 – The Creator felt betrayed, rejected, when the Israelites asked a king:

 

·       1Sa 8:6,7 -> “But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.”.

 

The Creator disliked the request of the Israelites. So, He chose a king that would bring great sadness to His soul in order to teaching to the Israelites a lesson and, at the same time, preparing David to reign over all Israel.

 

The Creator would have to support with patience all his insubordination of Saul and persecution against His anointed until the concretization of His plans.

 

·       I Samuel 15.35 -> “And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the LORD regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.”.

THE CREATOR DOESN’T REPENT NOR CHANGE

 

·       Num 23:19 -> “God is not a man, that he should lie, Neither the son of man, that he should repent: Hath he said, and will he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and will he not make it good?”.

 

·       I Samuel 15.29 -> ““And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.”

 

·       Mal 3:6 -> “For I, Jehovah, change not; therefore ye, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.”.

 

The Creator doesn’t repent as the human being. After all, He is perfect, omniscient and never make a mistake.

CONCLUSION

Always that we go to pore on the Holy Scripture, we need to pay attention to the context and see what meaning of the word “to repent” fits better, considering that the Creator ought to be the spotlight, the One Who is in control of everything and that His ways and thoughts are superior than ours (Isaiah 55:8,9).