“And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great” (Numbers 13:27,28).
The children of Israel’s complete lack of faith is dramatically emphasized by the word nevertheless. The twelve spies had gone through the land of Canaan and found it to be a very fruitful and desirous place. Upon returning, they described it as a land that flowed with milk and honey. But then came the nevertheless. They planted seeds of doubt in God’s people, causing them to distrust God as they looked at the circumstances. The nevertheless brought them to defeat.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect example of putting the nevertheless in its rightful place. “And He said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt” (Mark 14:36). He did not, would not, turn back in the day of adversity.
A coldness of heart is revealed by the word in Revelation 2. The church at Ephesus had many wonderful works attributed to them in verses two and three. They labored diligently for the Lord and took a strong stand against apostasy. In spite of all that, verse four begins, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee.” They had “left thy first love.” May the Lord never have to put a nevertheless over our service for Christ.
Nevertheless is also used in conjunction with answered prayer. “For I said in my haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications when I cried unto thee” (Psalm 31:22).
The word is also used in connection with a strong, personal security. “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are His” (II Timothy 2:19). NPS
