The Lord Regretted
When we read the Bible, there are many things about which we must ponder and meditate before we can fully understand them. I believe God did this for a reason when He inspired His Word. He knows our human nature. He knows that we can take important things for granted unless we have to come to grips with their meaning or significance. He didn't want us to miss a single truth from His Word. One of the conundrums is when the Bible tells us that "the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth." (Genesis 6:5,6) How could that be true? God created mankind just like He wanted us to be. He knows everything about us. He even knows the future and all of the consequences of His actions forever down the road. Why did God regret making mankind? He saw that wickedness was widespread on the earth and that every inclination of the human mind was nothing but evil all the time. That reality caused Him to regret and to be deeply grieved. How could that have happened to our All-knowing, All-Wise Creator? Let's consider this dilemma.
God made man and woman, so they would populate the whole world, and God would have many people made in HIs image with whom He could have close fellowship. He did that because His nature is love. Love has the desire to be a blessing to others and to meet their needs. God did that perfectly well. He put Adam and Eve in a perfect garden and supplied their needs well. He even took walks with them in the cool of the day. The wickedness entered the picture when they ate of the forbidden fruit. They we separated from God by their sin, and their sin spread to others. God gave them a free will so they could choose to love Him and obey Him, but they chose the opposite. When the whole world except Noah and His family was wicked and thinking of evil all the time, God knew He had to start over with the righteous family, or soon there would be no one with whom to have fellowship. I believe that was His regret. His regret was caused by us not loving Him back and listening to Him in love. That is what grieved Him, and it still grieves Him today, when people reject His love and fail to listen to Him. I pray we will all learn this lesson. I pray God will not regret making us, because we will have a pure heart of love for Him.
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Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 8-10.