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The UK Bible Students Website Christian Biblical Studies |
GOD REGRETS
Question: Genesis 6: 5, 6 in the King James Version
(KJV) reads:
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.
Does this mean that God had second thoughts about
having created mankind – that He had made a
mistake?
Answer: The word ‘repented’ has come to mean
turning away from one’s past sins or mistakes and embarking on a new direction.
In the KJV translation of the New Testament the word ‘repented’ usually carries
the meaning ‘to reform’. See Matthew 11: 20; 2 Corinthians 12: 21, and
others.
In Genesis 6: 6 ‘repented’ signifies a deep breath as
in a sigh, denoting pity, not remorse on God’s part. Man’s decadent condition
caused God pain and sorrow (‘grieved him at his heart’), especially knowing the
heartbreaking punishment – the Deluge – He would eventually inflict on mankind
to correct matters.
God’s ‘reactions’ are often couched in terms familiar
to our human understanding, but He is never caught off-guard by any turn of
events.
Genesis 6: 5, 6 are translated more clearly in the
following versions:
New International Version (Anglicised
edition):
5 The LORD
saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every
inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. 6
The LORD was grieved
that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with
pain.
Rotherham’s Emphasised
Bible:
5 Then
Yahweh saw that great was the wickedness of man in the earth, and that every
purpose of the devices of his heart was only wicked all the day; 6 and it
grieved Yahweh that he had made man in the earth, – and he took sorrow unto his
heart.
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