When God Repents | The Institute for Creation Research
When God Repents

“And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for He is not a man, that He should repent” (I Samuel 15:29).

There are a number of Scriptures that speak of God repenting. For example, in the days before the great flood, “it repented the LORD that He had made man on the earth” (Genesis 6:6). In the same chapter containing our text, God said: “It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments” (I Samuel 15:11). Yet the Scriptures plainly teach that God changes not. “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent” (Numbers 23:19). Bible critics have made much of this apparent “contradiction” in the Bible.

There is no contradiction, of course. The words translated “repent” in both Old and New Testaments, are used of actions which indicate outwardly that a “change of mind” has occurred inwardly. It is precisely because God does not repent concerning evil, that His actions will change toward man when man truly repents (this human “repentance” can go either way; changing from good to evil, or vice versa), and God will respond accordingly, since He cannot change His own mind toward evil.

Thus, He said concerning national repentance: “If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them” (Jeremiah 18:8). That is, if the nation truly repents, then God will change His own projected course of action. He seems outwardly to “repent,” specifically because He cannot repent in His inward attitude toward good and evil.

God has greatly blessed America in the past, but America’s people have drastically changed in recent years. Can the time be long coming when God must say: “It repenteth me that I have so favored this apostate nation”? HMM

The Latest
NEWS
The Cognitive Map: An Incredible Display of the Brain’s Complexity
To be spatially capable creatures, humans need their brains to tell them 1) where things are in relation to themselves and 2) where everything is in...

NEWS
Another Sea Scorpion
There are few animals more nightmarish than an 8-foot sea scorpion! Although, they were not true scorpions, their fossils display a menacing and formidable...

NEWS
June 2023 ICR Wallpaper
"From the rising of the sun to its going down the LORD's name is to be praised." Psalm 113:3 NKJV ICR June 2023 wallpaper is now available...

NEWS
Sauron Inhabits the Amazon
“The Eye was rimmed with fire, but was itself glazed, yellow as a cat’s, watchful and intent, and the black slit of its pupil opened on...

DAYS OF PRAISE DEVOTIONALS
Summer 2023
...

CREATION PODCAST
I Have NO Credentials! | The Creation Podcast: Episode 50
Do you need a science degree to be a champion of creation? How do we communicate the truths of Scripture to our friends and family? The good news...

NEWS
Shark Jaws
Sharks are back in the news, and it’s in regard to their most formidable and fearsome structure—their jaws. Zoologists recently studied...

CREATION.LIVE PODCAST
Established Day 4 | Creation.Live Podcast: Episode 13
Humans have long been fascinated by the night sky. As Psalm 19:1 reminds us, "The heavens declare the glory of God"—His creative signature...

NEWS
Physical Evidence Trumps Evolution Theory
One of the hallmarks of good science is to formulate a cogent theory based on the physical evidence. For example, if the physical evidence (e.g. a fossilized...

NEWS
Solar System Symmetries
Most all school children can recite the planets in our solar system using memory devices such as: “My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Names”...