Promise in the Prophets 381: God repents of the Evil

381. God will repent of the Evil

Jonah 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Does God change His mind? Of course not, for the Bible says, “I am the Lord; I change not.” Repent can mean to change one’s mind, or attitude, or behavior, or at least want to. So God does change His mind and repent. Perhaps this was God’s mind all along; maybe He was hoping He would not have to do what He said He was going to do. This is not changing His mind; it is fulfilling His mind or purpose. It is only from our point of view that God changes. He said He was going to do one thing, but He turned around and did not do it. The evil that He warned of was for the purpose of getting the people of Nineveh to change their mind. And they did so. From their perspective God did repent of the evil.

What happened with Jonah could be one of the most remarkable events in Scripture: not being swallowed by a great fish, but seeing these heathen people repent and turn to the Lord. Jonah only preached one sentence, as far as we re told: “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” That pronouncement was all that was needed for the King and the people to repent and change their evil ways. And so they did, king and people and animals alike repented. And God repented. This turning did not please Jonah for He wanted judgment. He could not understand God’s Grace and Mercy and the abounding Love of God. This is the lesson Jonah learned and the lesson He teaches us: Grace!

God is always true to His character, and He cannot whimsically change His mind. God is both Holy and Just, and He is also at the same time Love and Mercy. Holiness demands disaster for sin; Grace demands forgiveness for sin. God will judge all sin and punish the guilty. He doesn’t want to, but He must. When we repent of our evil and desire to change our ways we receive the grace and forgiveness of God. The evil God warns about is just as certain as death and taxes; the relenting and grace God promises are just as certain as the death and resurrection of Christ. In the end, grace always wins out, and that is a sure word. Our repentance and faith is our reception of the grace of God. Repentance and faith is necessary to receive the gift and avoid the penalty, and we receive it even before our life is changed. The promise is God repents of the judgment on our sin because He placed it upon His Son. In this way, for Christ’s sake, and for our good, God repents, changes His mind, forgives the sinner, and promises He will not judge. Thank you, Jesus!