When God Relents

Isaiah 26

V. 1. Early in the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came from the Lord: 

V. 2. This is what the Lord says: "Stand in the courtyard of the Lord's House and speak to all the people of the towns of Judah who come to worship in the House of the Lord. Tell them everything I command you; do not omit a word. 

V. 3. Perhaps they will listen and each will turn from his evil way. Then I will relent and not bring on them the disaster I was planning because of the evil they have done."

The picture here is that Jeremiah will stand in the courtyard of the Temple where all the people gather, and tell them, not necessarily the Priests and Levites, the leaders of the people. The common people were the ones God wanted to talk to, to get them to individually decide to turn back to the Lord, away from the false idols that have ensnared them.

God saves us one by one. When people each decide to do right instead of the selfish or greedy stuff they've been doing, then God will make Himself known to them, one by one.

Verses 4-6 record the message, that they have not followed the Law or listened to the Prophets that have repeatedly tried to teach them what is right. If they still refuse to listen, then God will destroy His Temple and make the City of Jerusalem an object of cursing.

Well, the religious leaders heard him, too, and got angry. Verses 10 and 11 say that the Priests and Levites wanted to kill Jeremiah, for speaking against the Temple and City.

Verses 12-15 say that Jeremiah then defended his words as God's message to them, and if they would reform [their] ways and [their] actions and obey the Lord [their] God, then the Lord will relent and not bring the disaster He has pronounced against [them]. But if they kill him, they'll be bringing on themselves and the city and all who live there the guilt of innocent blood, so do what they think is good and right, he's in their hands.

V. 16 says that the officials from the royal palace, along with the common people, all said to the religious leaders, This man should not be sentenced to death! He has spoken to us in the Name of the Lord our God!

Vs. 17-18. Then some of the elders of the land stepped forward and said to the entire assembly of people, "Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah. He told all the people of Judah," the same things Jeremiah was saying, against the Land and the Temple and the City of Jerusalem.

V. 19. "Did King Hezekiah or anyone else in Judah put him to death? Did not Hezekiah fear the Lord and seek His favor? And did not the Lord relent, so that He did not bring the disaster He pronounced against them? We are about to bring a great disaster on ourselves!"

V. 24. Furthermore, Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, and so he was not handed over to the people who wanted to put him to death.

This is a very dramatic and hair-raising story! This Prophet goes right into the congregation of the common people, ignoring the religious leaders, telling them to repent, so God won't bring on the disasters He says He will if they don't.

Then the Religious Establishment try to condemn him to death for speaking against the Temple of the very God they were ignoring. And they could have, too.

Good thing the Royal Officials from the king's palace came over, so the people would have their permission to contradict the Priests and Levites.

And some of the old guys who remembered their history brought up Micah, whose book we have in our Scriptures, who said the same things to his contemporary king, Hezekiah, who promptly turned around and followed the Lord again, and he's recorded as a "good" king. And God relented for his sake.

Also another guy who apparently had clout supported Jeremiah, so he wasn't sentenced to die after all. Hurrah! The good guys won.

This is a principle we need to apply in our own lives. 

Even when we've made poor decisions, and harbored dark and evil thoughts, and done things we're now ashamed of; all we need to do is turn around, admit to ourselves and to God that we deserve the punishment we've earned, and change our minds about how we've been living, choosing instead to follow God's ways. 

Realize that Jesus satisfied all of God's wrath you deserve, and accept His gracious substitution in your place to atone in full for everything you've done.

Then He will relent and not subject you to the condemnation we all deserve.

Instead God will cause you to be born into His own Family, with all the privileges and responsibilities of His own child, the child of the King.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!