ARCHIVE: Open Theism part 1

[Bob Hill]

Rob,

God changes His mind because of man’s actions.
When Job was talking to God, he said. Job 42:5,6 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, And repent [na gham’] in dust and ashes.” This same word is used of God repeatedly.

Gen 6:5-7 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I repent that I have made them.”

Jud 2:18 And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity [yi na ghaym’] by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

1 Sa 15:11,29,35 “I [repent] that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night. 29 “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent. For He is not a man, that He should repent.” 35 And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and the LORD regretted [ni gham’ repented] that He had made Saul king over Israel.

2 Sa 24:16 And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented [then the Lord repented, way yin’ nah ghaym] from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

Jer 18:1-10 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will repent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will repent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.”

The LORD repented so many times in the OT that He said in Jer 15:6, “You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD, “You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am weary of repenting!”

Bob Hill

 

[RobE]

Rob,

God changes His mind because of man’s actions.
When Job was talking to God, he said. Job 42:5,6 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, And repent [na gham’] in dust and ashes.” This same word is used of God repeatedly.

Gen 6:5-7 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I repent that I have made them.”

Jud 2:18 And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity [yi na ghaym’] by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

1 Sa 15:11,29,35 “I [repent] that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night. 29 “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent. For He is not a man, that He should repent.” 35 And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and the LORD regretted [ni gham’ repented] that He had made Saul king over Israel.

2 Sa 24:16 And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented [then the Lord repented, way yin’ nah ghaym] from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

Jer 18:1-10 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will repent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will repent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.”

The LORD repented so many times in the OT that He said in Jer 15:6, “You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD, “You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am weary of repenting!”

Bob Hill

I already agree God can change the future. All of these scriptures point out that God changed something---not man changed something. Open Theism states God MUST change. This I disagree with. Godrulz, spends post after post pointing out that God MUST change. Knight and Clete agree. I don't. To change your emotion or mind doesn't require a change in yourself(as long as these emotions and thoughts were in you to begin with).

All these scriptures point out God's mercy. They don't in any way refute the fact that He has the ability to predict(foreknow) the future. They do point out, however, that He's omnipotent in His ability to change outcomes. Prayer isn't useless. If this is what your trying to point out that I'm saying.

Knowing and creating the future are different as you well know. The problem comes in when the creator knows the future. This is why Open Theist's reject the idea. They believe if God knows the future it is set because He's the creator. Untrue. Knowing and ordinating are different things. By saying that He doesn't have the ability to accurately predict(foreknow) the future they are saying that God is limited in ability. The laws of physics(or metaphysics) would show you that if anyone knew all the forces and actions in the universe; that person could predict exactly what every atom(personality) would do for an eternity.

What's the problem? If someone knows an outcome of an action it doesn't mean that He caused that same action; as long as, He gave the performer(free agent) free will.

Thanks,
Rob

 

[elected4ever]

Rob,

God changes His mind because of man’s actions.
When Job was talking to God, he said. Job 42:5,6 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, And repent [na gham’] in dust and ashes.” This same word is used of God repeatedly.

Gen 6:5-7 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD repented that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I repent that I have made them.”

Jud 2:18 And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity [yi na ghaym’] by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

1 Sa 15:11,29,35 “I [repent] that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night. 29 “And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent. For He is not a man, that He should repent.” 35 And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and the LORD regretted [ni gham’ repented] that He had made Saul king over Israel.

2 Sa 24:16 And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented [then the Lord repented, way yin’ nah ghaym] from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

Jer 18:1-10 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will repent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will repent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.”

The LORD repented so many times in the OT that He said in Jer 15:6, “You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD, “You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am weary of repenting!”

Bob Hill

nacham means to be sorry about something. It does not require change.

 

[Clete]

nacham means to be sorry about something. It does not require change.

Nacham actually means to change your mind in some way when used in this context, but even assuming, for the sake of argument, that your definition is correct then how to you suppose it is possible to be sorry about something without some sort of change? Was God sorry about the condition of mankind before He created them or only after they had become so completely evil? In other words, if God wasn't always sorry, then how is His becoming sorry not a change, as the word nachum actually indicates?

Resting in Him,
Clete

 

[Bob Hill]

Sometimes people change their minds or repent. The Hebrew word for repent is nacham.
Ex 13:17 Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest perhaps the people change their minds repent (they repent) when they see war, and return to Egypt.”

Job 42:1-6 Then Job answered the LORD and said: 2 “I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. 3 You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 4 Listen, please, and let me speak; You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’ 5 I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, and repent (I repent) in dust and ashes.”
Sometimes people do not repent
Jer 8:6 I listened and heard, But they do not speak aright. No man repented of his wickedness, saying, ‘What have I done?’ Everyone turned to his own course, as the horse rushes into the battle.
God repents because of wickedness
Gen 6:4-7 There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. 5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD was sorry [nacham] that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry [nacham] that I have made them.

 

[Bob Hill]

Clete,

It’s good to hear from you. Good post. It seems that determinists don’t like the facts that God actually repents. I praise Him for His compassion.
God repents because of wickedness
1 Sa 15:11,24-29,35 I repent [nacham] that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments. And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night. 24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25 “Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.” 26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27 And as Samuel turned around to go away, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. 28 So Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. 29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent [nacham]. For He is not a man, that He should repent [nacham]. 35 And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and the LORD repented [nacham] that He had made Saul king over Israel.

God repents of disaster or good
Jer 18:1-12 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will repent [nacham] of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will repent [nacham] concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it. 11 Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Behold, I am fashioning a disaster and devising a plan against you. Return now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.”’” 12 And they said, “That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey the dictates of his evil heart.”

God repents because of His compassion
Deu 32:36 For the LORD will judge His people and have compassion [nacham] on His servants, When He sees that their power is gone, And there is no one remaining, bond or free.

Jud 2:18 And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity [nacham] by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

2 Sa 24:15-16 So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died. 16 And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented [nacham] from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

1 Ch 21:14-15 So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell. 15 And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. As he was destroying, the LORD looked and repented [nacham] of the disaster, and said to the angel who was destroying, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Psa 106:43-45 Many times He delivered them; But they rebelled in their counsel, And were brought low for their iniquity. 44 Nevertheless He regarded their affliction when He heard their cry; 45 And for their sake He remembered His covenant and repented [nacham] according to the multitude of His mercies.

Joel 2:12-14 Now, therefore, says the LORD, Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. 13 So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He repents [nacham] from doing harm. 14 Who knows if He will turn and repent [nacham] and leave a blessing behind Him - A grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God?

In Christ,
Bob Hill

 

[RobE]

Sometimes people change their minds or repent. The Hebrew word for repent is nacham.
Ex 13:17 Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest perhaps the people change their minds repent (they repent) when they see war, and return to Egypt.”

Job 42:1-6 Then Job answered the LORD and said: 2 “I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. 3 You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 4 Listen, please, and let me speak; You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’ 5 I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. 6 Therefore I abhor myself, and repent (I repent) in dust and ashes.”
Sometimes people do not repent
Jer 8:6 I listened and heard, But they do not speak aright. No man repented of his wickedness, saying, ‘What have I done?’ Everyone turned to his own course, as the horse rushes into the battle.
God repents because of wickedness
Gen 6:4-7 There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. 5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD was sorry [nacham] that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry [nacham] that I have made them.

Bob,

Again, I emphasize that doing a thing is much more emotional than knowing a thing will happen. A change in emotional state has no bearing on what you may have foreknown, right?

Nacham actually means to change your mind in some way when used in this context, but even assuming, for the sake of argument, that your definition is correct then how to you suppose it is possible to be sorry about something without some sort of change? Was God sorry about the condition of mankind before He created them or only after they had become so completely evil? In other words, if God wasn't always sorry, then how is His becoming sorry not a change, as the word nachum actually indicates?

Clete,

You still argue that a change of mind, or emotional state, is a relevent change of being?

Yours,

Rob

 

[Bob Hill]

I praise God because He responds to prayer.

God repents of stated harm because of prayer
Ex 32:9-14 And the LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! 10 Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.” 11 Then Moses pleaded with the LORD his God, and said: “LORD, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and repent [nacham] from this harm to Your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 14 So the LORD repented [nacham] from the harm which He said He would do to His people.

Amos 7:1-6 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: Behold, He formed locust swarms at the beginning of the late crop; indeed it was the late crop after the king’s mowings. 2 And so it was, when they had finished eating the grass of the land, that I said: “O Lord GOD, forgive, I pray! Oh, that Jacob may stand, For he is small!” 3 So the LORD repented [nacham] concerning this. It shall not be, said the LORD. 4 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: Behold, the Lord GOD called for conflict by fire, and it consumed the great deep and devoured the territory. 5 Then I said: O Lord GOD, cease, I pray! Oh, that Jacob may stand, For he is small! 6 So the LORD repented [nacham] concerning this. This also shall not be, said the Lord GOD.

What a wonderful God we have.

Bob Hill

 

[RobE]

No one has denied this.

 

[Bob Hill]

God doesn’t repent in certain situations. The context shows why. Num 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent [nacham]. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”

1 Sa 15:29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent [nacham]. For He is not a man, that He should repent [nacham].

Psa 110:1-4 A Psalm of David. The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” 2 The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies! 3 Your people shall be volunteers In the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth. 4 The LORD has sworn and will not repent [nacham], “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”

I am safe in the Beloved, Christ,
Bob Hill

 

[godrulz]

It is not a change in His character. It's just that God can change His mind.

Bob Hill

Genuine reciprocal relationships are dynamic (change), not static. Correct. His essential character does not change, but His thoughts, feelings, actions, relations, etc. can and do change because He is a free, personal being.

 

[Bob Hill]

RobE,

No one has denied what?

 

[Bob Hill]

Think about this.

Our wonderful God wants to repent. He wants people to seek Him and turn from their evil ways. Jer 26:3,13,19 Perhaps everyone will listen and turn from his evil way, that I may repent [nacham] concerning the calamity which I purpose to bring on them because of the evil of their doings. 13 Now therefore, amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the LORD your God; then the LORD will repent [nacham] concerning the doom that He has pronounced against you. 19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah ever put him to death? Did he not fear the LORD and seek the LORD’s favor? And the Lord repented [nacham] concerning the doom which He had pronounced against them.

Jer 42:7,9-10 the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah. 9 and said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition before Him: 10 ‘If you will still remain in this land, then I will build you and not pull you down, and I will plant you and not pluck you up. For I repent [nacham] concerning the disaster that I have brought upon you.

In Christ,
Bob Hill

 

[Bob Hill]

Sometimes God will not or did not repent. Jer 4:27-28 For thus says the LORD: The whole land shall be desolate; Yet I will not make a full end. 28 For this shall the earth mourn and the heavens above be black, because I have spoken. I have purposed and will not repent [nacham], nor will I turn back from it.

Jer 20:16 And let that man be like the cities which the LORD overthrew, and did not repent [nacham]; Let him hear the cry in the morning and the shouting at noon.

Eze 24:13-14 In your filthiness is lewdness. Because I have cleansed you, and you were not cleansed, You will not be cleansed of your filthiness anymore till I have caused My fury to rest upon you. 14 I, the LORD, have spoken it; It shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not hold back nor will I spare nor will I repent [nacham]; According to your ways and according to your deeds they will judge you, says the Lord GOD.

God even was weary of repenting.
Jer 15:6 You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD, “You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am weary of repenting [nacham]!”

I wonder what that word [nacham] means? Could it possibly mean what is says, that God actually does repent at times? Hmmmmmmm.

Bob Hill

 

[RobE]

What does this have to do with accurate prediction, Bob?

 

[RobE]

RobE,

No one has denied what?

That prayer is ineffectual.

Rob

 

[Clete]

Clete,

You still argue that a change of mind, or emotional state, is a relevent change of being?

Yours,

Rob

No, I simply argue that any change of any sort renders the term immutable inaplicable and the doctrine of a settled future logically unecessary.

Resting in Him,
Clete

 

[Sozo]

Think about this.

Our wonderful God wants to repent. He wants people to seek Him and turn from their evil ways.

Didn't the death of Jesus resolve this?

Does God still judge man for their evil ways, or only because they refuse His Son?

 

[Bob Hill]

I praise God for who He is.

God is displeased, provoked, grieved and wonders

Isa 59:15-16 So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. Then the LORD saw it, and it displeased Him That there was no justice. 16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered (8074) that there was no intercessor; Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him; And His own righteousness, it sustained Him.
wondered 8074 shamem (shaw-mame); a primitive root; to stun (or intransitively, grow numb), i.e. devastate or (figuratively) stupefy (both usually in a passive sense): KJV-- make amazed, be astonied, (be an) astonish (-ment), (be, bring into, unto, lay, lie, make) desolate (-ion, places), be destitute, destroy (self), (lay, lie, make) waste, wonder.

Psa 78:40-41 How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, and grieved Him in the desert! 41 Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

Can we limit His help for ourselves?

Bob Hill

 

[Bob Hill]

Does our wonderful God of this whole universe hope or wish? It sure looks like He does when we read His Word.

Deu 5:28,29 Then the LORD heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me, and the LORD said to me: I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken to you. They are right in all that they have spoken. 29 Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!
Psa 81:8-13 Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! O Israel, if you will listen to Me! 9 there shall be no foreign god among you; Nor shall you worship any foreign god. 10 I am the LORD your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. 11 But My people would not heed My voice, And Israel would have none of Me. 12 So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, To walk in their own counsels. 13 Oh, that (3863) My people would listen to Me, That Israel would walk in My ways!
3863 (loo); a conditional particle; if; by implication (interj. as a wish) would that!: KJV— if, peradventure, I pray thee, though, I would.

Isa 48:17-18 Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel: I am the LORD your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you by the way you should go. 18 Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

Mat 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!

Praise His Holy Name,

Bob Hill