We Can Never Understand The Ways Of God
So the LORD sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the LORD was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the LORD, "I have sinned; I the shepherd, have done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? Let your hand fall on me and my family." 2 Samuel 24:15-17
When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the LORD was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the LORD, "I have sinned; I the shepherd, have done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? Let your hand fall on me and my family." 2 Samuel 24:15-17
When Moses asked God to show him his glory, the Bible tells us that God put Moses in the cleft of a rock and declared as He passed by: "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation." (Exodus 34:6-7).
The mercies of God are real, but so are His judgments. Judgment and compassion are both part of the divine nature. In the midst of judgment, the Bible says, "the LORD relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, ‘Enough! Withdraw your hand." God could simply not watch the fullness of the divine wrath to unfold through the destruction of Jerusalem! God showed mercy by intervening.
David was also shaken when the LORD opened his eyes to see the destroying angel. He said to the LORD, "I have sinned; I the shepherd, have done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? Let your hand fall on me and my family." Was David questioning the judgment of God? I don’t really think so. I think David was crying out because he was confused. His humanity simply could not understand divinity! How could God leave out the shepherd, who had sinned, and strike the sheep?
The Bible declares that now we see darkly as though we are peering through a fog, but a time is coming when we will understand and see with perfect clarity (1 Corinthians 13:12). David was at a loss because the unfolding of the divine wrath was beyond his finite mind. In our finite minds, we might question the fairness of God. But we must always understand that God is beyond understanding. The finite human mind can never understand the infinite God who is spirit and exists in a dimension beyond our earthly understanding.
When God appeared to Job, He said to him: ‘’Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer Him!’’
Job responded, "I am unworthy -- how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth." (Job 40:2-4)
Listen: No human being can adequately explain God to you. Draw to Him and walk by faith.
The mercies of God are real, but so are His judgments. Judgment and compassion are both part of the divine nature. In the midst of judgment, the Bible says, "the LORD relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, ‘Enough! Withdraw your hand." God could simply not watch the fullness of the divine wrath to unfold through the destruction of Jerusalem! God showed mercy by intervening.
David was also shaken when the LORD opened his eyes to see the destroying angel. He said to the LORD, "I have sinned; I the shepherd, have done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? Let your hand fall on me and my family." Was David questioning the judgment of God? I don’t really think so. I think David was crying out because he was confused. His humanity simply could not understand divinity! How could God leave out the shepherd, who had sinned, and strike the sheep?
The Bible declares that now we see darkly as though we are peering through a fog, but a time is coming when we will understand and see with perfect clarity (1 Corinthians 13:12). David was at a loss because the unfolding of the divine wrath was beyond his finite mind. In our finite minds, we might question the fairness of God. But we must always understand that God is beyond understanding. The finite human mind can never understand the infinite God who is spirit and exists in a dimension beyond our earthly understanding.
When God appeared to Job, He said to him: ‘’Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer Him!’’
Job responded, "I am unworthy -- how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth." (Job 40:2-4)
Listen: No human being can adequately explain God to you. Draw to Him and walk by faith.
Prayer: Lord, I do not understand all your ways, but I will walk with you by faith. Amen