Today, reply is on divine confession, grace, repentance, and revelation. One of the fighters in the “Yahoo! Answers” forum who uses the ID “Anonymous” (no profile data shared) posted the following:
Did God do something wrong in Genesis 6:6?
I'm SORRY that I bumped into you. I REGRET stealing. I REPENT of my sins.
THE GOLDEN ARROW: So the LORD sent pestilence upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men. And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite. And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces. (1st Chronicles 21: 14-16, King James Version, KJV)
THE DOUBLE DAGGER: Christianity Is A Relationship (04/05/2018); An Act of GOD? (12/20/2017); Neither “All-knowing” Nor “Omniscient” (11/07/2017); Having Consciousness of Death (11/03/2017); Making Sense of Preexistence? (10/06/2017); Corruption of Ones Spirit? (05/14/2017); Divine Knowing, Finite Will? (09/28/2016)
“Anonymous”, developing Christian believers are always a bit surprised to find language in the holy writings suggesting that GOD is not pleased with outcomes and responses to the word he himself has spoken and sent forth. In effect, the perfect, unchanging Creator seems to confess having “changed his mind” and made a costly error when making decisions and exercising his sovereign will. Correctly understood, mature followers grasp that the fullness of divinity (we say, the GODhead; the Trinity; the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit) are providing sacred knowledge and further revelation of the divine makeup and process to benefit mankind following the fall of Adam. Through judgment and expressions of divine wrath, otherwise unseen grace, righteousness, and mercy become displayed; and GOD is to be seen saying he regrets the course that mankind through self-will has chosen to pursue as his created, for it has continued corruption in the earth, and irreversible operations of sin.
That divinity is deeply moved and sorrows for mankind is not simply on the basis of finite human conduct (so to speak, you expect “babies” to make mistakes in the course of their growing up); and his suffering is not a matter of divinity being easily hurt, emotional, and vulnerable. In the same way knowing the pattern ABCDEFG we can say XYZ is coming without being able to read minds, or tell what an individual’s specific future actions will be (i.e., destiny; fate; predestination), the consciousness of GOD apprehends mankind within cosmic patterns that include the conditions of chaos, flux and instability that were in place before the foundations of heaven and earth were laid; the impact of events that must follow the operations of sin; the imperatives (i.e., things that must be done) and limitations of divine law as well as the true threat presented by sin.
Sin opposes the continued existence of divine law, the Lawgiver, and all divine order required for existence and life throughout the universe. Sin may dominate awareness and self-will within created beings and living creatures. Thus, sin must be annihilated (totally eliminated, erased, and wiped out). However, sin has never been created by GOD, and may not be simply removed by a “do over.” Therefore, the multiple operations of GOD include forbearance, forgiveness, imparting aspects of divine personhood, Incarnation (divinity using the form of mankind to appear on the earth as Jesus Christ), rebirth, reconciliation, and men being led to be Christ-like.
Consider again the verse you cite in its context, a passage that showcases the grace of GOD along with the following that uses language from the Bible that are the genuine focus of godly faith. The proclamations of punishment and wrath against sin made by GOD are usually “on the condition” that there is no change or repentance by mankind:
(1.) Genesis 6: 5-8, King James Version (KJV): 5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
(2.) Numbers 23: 19, KJV: 19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?
(3.) Jonah 3: 3-10, KJV: 3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days’ journey. 4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day’s journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown. 5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. 6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water: 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. 9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not? 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.
There is far more that should be said, correctly examined, and spiritually apprehended. (For example, (4.) Isaiah 55: 6-13, KJV: 6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.) Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful. Be it unto you according to your faith.
THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC
