I Will Relent, I Will Reconsider

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.” (Jeremiah 18:1, 6–10, NIV 1984).

My Musings – Whether or not “a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed,” or whether it “is to be built up and planted,” depends upon whether or not “it does evil in [God’s] sight.” The good done in the past is no guarantee that it will continue to enjoy the blessings of God. By the same token, the evil done in the past does not necessarily mean that God will not relent from sending calamity. It is well within God’s prerogative to reconsider His plans.

Ours (the United States of America) is such a nation. In the past we have been “secure [in] the blessings of liberty,” among other blessings. But there is no guarantee it will be the same for “our posterity,” for our children and grandchildren.

It clearly has been a nation “built up and planted” by our Sovereign God. But there has been of late a decline, an increase of “evil in [His] sight.” My sense is that He has not “reconsider[ed]” thus far, because of our relationship with the nation of Israel. Recently that relationship has been shaken. Should that relationship continue its decline, my fear is that God will “inflict on [us] the disaster” that our increasingly evil ways deserve. The disaster that He has thus far relented from sending.

My Advice – “Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. ‘Do you see all these things?’ he asked. ‘I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.'” (Matthew 24:1–2, NIV 1984). Within a generation (70 A.D.), Titus and his legions entered Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and subdued the nation. If God allowed that for His chosen nation, He will not relent from sending calamity our way. Pray for our nation, that it “repents of its evil.”

Author: thebrewisamusing

I was raised in a Christian family and my earliest childhood memories include regular Sunday school and Church attendance as a family. I was taught that our Judeo-Christian values were not just a part of our Sunday routine they should be part of our character and influence all aspects of our lives. I was also taught that as important as these values were they could not save us. We must also be “born again” by accepting Christ. View all posts by thebrewisamusing