<sup>5</sup>And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his <nobr>
heart</nobr> was only evil continually.
<sup id="en-KJV-144" class="versenum">
6</sup>And it repented the LORD that he had made <nobr>
man</nobr> on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. <sup id="en-KJV-145" class="versenum">
7</sup>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.
At Genesis 6:6, the Hebrew word
na·cham´ is used and in the majority of cases it has the sense of “feeling regret,” with the reference to Jehovah God. This Hebrew word can mean “feel regret, keep a period of mourning, repent” (Ex 13:17; Gen 38:12; Job 42:6), as well as “comfort oneself” (2Sam 13:39; Eze 5:13), “relieve oneself (as of one’s enemies).” (Isa 1:24) Whether regret or comfort, it can be seen that a
change of mind or feeling is involved.
Genesis 6:6, 7 states that “Jehovah felt regrets that he had made men in the earth, and he felt hurt at his heart,” their wickedness being so great that God determined he would wipe them off the surface of the ground by means of the global Flood. This cannot mean that God felt regret in the sense of having made a
mistake in his work of creation, for “perfect is his activity.” (Deut 32:4, 5)
Regret is the opposite of pleasurable satisfaction and rejoicing. Hence, it must be that God regretted that after he had created mankind, their conduct became so evil that he now found himself obliged (and justly so) to destroy all mankind with the exception of Noah and his family. For God ‘takes no delight in the death of the wicked.’—Eze 33:11.
M’Clintock and Strong’s
Cyclopaedia comments: “God himself is said to repent [
na·cham´, feel regret]; but this can only be understood of his altering his conduct towards his creatures, either in the bestowing of good or infliction of evil—which change in the divine conduct is founded on a change in his creatures; and thus, speaking after the manner of men, God is said to repent.” (1894, Vol. VIII, p. 1042) God’s righteous standards remain constant, stable, unchanging, free from fluctuation. (Mal 3:6; Jas 1:17)
No circumstance can cause him to change his mind about these, to turn from them, or to abandon them. However, the attitude and reactions of his intelligent creatures toward those perfect standards and toward God’s application of them can be good or bad. If good, this is pleasing to God; if bad, it causes regret.
Moreover, the creature’s attitude can change from good to bad or bad to good, and since God does not change his standards to accommodate them, his pleasure (and accompanying blessings) can accordingly change to regret (and accompanying discipline or punishment) or vice versa. His judgments and decisions, then, are totally free from caprice, fickleness, unreliability, or error; hence he is free from all erratic or eccentric conduct.—Eze 18:21-30; 33:7-20.
A potter may begin to make one type of vessel and then change to another style if the vessel is “spoiled by the potter’s hand.” (Jer 18:3, 4) By this example Jehovah illustrates, not that he is like a human potter in ‘spoiling by his hand,’ but rather, that he has divine authority over mankind, authority to
adjust his dealings with them according to the
way they respond or fail to respond to his righteousness and mercy. (Compare Isa 45:9; Rom 9:19-21.)
He can thus “feel regret over the calamity that [he] had thought to execute” upon a nation, or “feel regret over the good that [he] said to [himself] to do for its good,” all depending upon the reaction of the nation to his prior dealings with it. (Jer 18:5-10) Thus, it is not that the Great Potter, Jehovah, errs, but rather, that the human “clay” undergoes a “metamorphosis” (change of form or composition) as to its heart condition, producing regret, or a change of feeling, on Jehovah’s part.
This is true of individuals as well as of nations, and the very fact that Jehovah God speaks of his ‘feeling regret’ over certain of his servants, such as King Saul, who turned away from righteousness, shows that God does
not predestinate the future of such individuals. God’s regret over Saul’s deviation does not mean that God’s choice of him as king had been erroneous and was to be regretted on that ground. God must rather have felt regret because Saul, as a
free moral agent, had
not made good use of the splendid privilege and opportunity God had afforded him, and because
Saul’s change called for a change in God’s dealings with him.—1Sam 15:10, 11, 26.
The prophet Samuel, in declaring God’s adverse decision regarding Saul, stated that “the Excellency of Israel will not prove false, and He will not feel regrets, for
He is not an earthling man so as to feel regrets.” (1Sam 15:28, 29) Earthling men frequently prove untrue to their word, fail to make good their promises, or do not live up to the terms of their agreements; being imperfect, they commit errors in judgment, causing them regret. This is never the case with God.—Ps 132:11; Isa 45:23, 24; 55:10, 11.
God’s covenant made between God and “all flesh” after the Flood, for example, unconditionally guaranteed that God would never again bring a flood of waters over all the earth. (Gen 9:8-17) There is, then, no possibility of God’s changing with regard to that covenant or ‘regretting it.’
Similarly, in his covenant with Abraham, God “stepped in with an oath” as “a legal guarantee” so as to “demonstrate more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of his counsel,” his promise and his oath being “two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie.” (Heb 6:13-18) God’s sworn covenant with his Son for a priesthood like that of Melchizedek was likewise something over which God would “feel no regret.”—Heb 7:20, 21; Ps 110:4; compare Ro 11:29.
However, in stating a promise or making a covenant, God may set out requirements, conditions to be met by those with whom the promise or covenant is made. He promised Israel that they would become his “special property” and “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation,” if they would strictly obey his voice and keep his covenant. (Ex 19:5, 6) God held true to his side of the covenant, but Israel failed; they violated that covenant time and again. (Mal 3:6, 7; compare Ne 9:16-19, 26-31.)
So, when God finally annulled that covenant he did so with complete justice, the responsibility for the nonfulfillment of his promise resting entirely with the offending Israelites.—Matt 21:43; Heb 8:7-9.
In the same way God can “feel regret” and ‘turn back’ from carrying out some punishment when his warning of such action produces a change in attitude and conduct on the part of the offenders. (Deut 13:17; Ps 90:13) They have returned to him and he ‘returns’ to them. (Zec 8:3; Mal 3:7) Instead of being ‘pained,’ he now rejoices, for he finds no delight in bringing death to sinners. (Luke 15:10; Eze 18:32)
While never shifting away from his righteous standards, God extends help so that persons can return to him; they are encouraged to do so. He kindly invites them to return, ‘spreading out his hands’ and saying by means of his representatives, “Turn back, please, . . . that I may not cause calamity to you,” “Do not do, please, this detestable sort of thing that I have hated.” (Isa 65:1, 2; Jer 25:5, 6; 44:4, 5)
He gives ample time for change (Neh 9:30; compare Rev 2:20-23) and shows great patience and forbearance, since “he does not desire any to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance.” (2Pet 3:8, 9; Rom 2:4, 5) On occasion he kindly saw to it that his message was accompanied by powerful works, or miracles, that established the divine commission of his messengers and helped strengthen faith in those hearing. (Acts 9:32-35)
When his message receives no response, he employs discipline; he withdraws his favor and protection, thereby allowing the unrepentant ones to undergo privations, famine, suffering of oppression from their enemies. This may bring them to their senses, may restore their proper fear of God, or may cause them to realize that their course was stupid and that their set of values was wrong.—2Chron 33:10-13; Neh 9:28, 29; Amos 4:6-11.
However, his
patience has its limits, and when these are
reached he gets “tired of feeling regret” (Jer 15:6); then his decision to render punishment is
unchangeable. (Jer 23:19, 20; Lev 26:14-33) He is no longer merely “thinking” or “forming” against such ones a calamity (Jer 18:11; 26:3-6) but has reached an irreversible decision.—2Kings 23:24-27; Isa 43:13; Jer 4:28; Zep 3:8; Rev 11:17, 18.
God’s willingness to forgive repentant ones, as well as his mercifully opening the way to such forgiveness even in the face of repeated offenses, sets the example for all of his servants.—Matt 18:21, 22; Mark 3:28; Luke 17:3, 4; 1 John 1:9;
(source of information -
Insight on the Scriptures, Vol 2, pg 776)
