Topical Bible: Forsaking God: Followed by Remorse

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Topical Encyclopedia

Forsaking God is a recurring theme throughout the Bible, often leading to a profound sense of remorse and a desire for reconciliation with the Divine. This concept is illustrated through various narratives and teachings, highlighting the spiritual and moral consequences of turning away from God.

Old Testament Examples

1. Israel's Rebellion: The Israelites frequently turned away from God, despite His continuous guidance and provision. In the Book of Judges, the cycle of apostasy is evident as the Israelites forsake God, worship other deities, and subsequently suffer oppression. Judges 2:12-15 states, "They forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger because they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths."

2. King Saul: Saul, the first king of Israel, provides a personal example of forsaking God. Initially chosen by God, Saul's disobedience and failure to fully follow God's commands led to his downfall. In 1 Samuel 15:11 , God expresses His regret: "I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from following Me and has not carried out My instructions." Saul's remorse is evident when he admits his sin to Samuel, but his repentance comes too late to restore his kingship.

3. Prophet Jeremiah's Lament: The prophet Jeremiah often lamented the spiritual adultery of Judah. In Jeremiah 2:13 , God declares, "For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water." The remorse of the people is captured in their eventual cries for mercy and restoration.

New Testament Insights

1. Peter's Denial: The Apostle Peter's denial of Jesus is a poignant New Testament example of forsaking God, followed by deep remorse. Despite his earlier declarations of unwavering loyalty, Peter denies knowing Jesus three times. In Luke 22:61-62 , it is recorded, "And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: 'Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.' And he went outside and wept bitterly." Peter's tears signify his profound regret and eventual restoration.

2. The Prodigal Son: Jesus' parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32 illustrates the theme of forsaking God and the subsequent remorse. The younger son demands his inheritance, leaves his father's house, and squanders his wealth in reckless living. His eventual destitution leads to a moment of clarity and repentance. In Luke 15:17-18 , the son reflects, "How many of my father’s hired servants have plenty of food? But here I am, starving to death! I will get up and go back to my father and say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.’"

Theological Reflections

Forsaking God is often portrayed as a willful act of disobedience and a turning away from the covenant relationship established by God. The remorse that follows is a recognition of the spiritual void and the consequences of such actions. The Bible consistently emphasizes God's readiness to forgive and restore those who return to Him with a contrite heart. This theme underscores the importance of faithfulness and the hope of redemption through repentance.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Ezekiel 6:9
And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations where they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which has departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Sixth Book
... forsaken by God, though we ourselves are forsaking him ... or province that has been
smitten by God's scourge or ... the capture did not survive the ruin that followed. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/salvian/on the government of god/the sixth book.htm

Carey's College
... by the Church to preach the Gospel, wherever God in His ... He followed Paul; his ... the
same; Like him crossed cheerfully tempestuous seas, Forsaking country, kindred ...
/.../smith/the life of william carey/chapter i careys college.htm

The Last Events in Galilee - the Tribute-Money, the Dispute by the ...
... and that He was again surrounded and followed by the ... [3772] [3773] And in the Messianic
age God would assign ... A man, who, thus forsaking the methods of Jewish ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter iii the last events.htm

A Traveler's Note-Book
... soon followed by inglorious servitude; but its sufferings and triumphs had fused
the nation once more into invincible devotion to the Law of their God, and had ...
/.../merriam/the chief end of man/iii a travelers note-book.htm

Introductory Notice Respecting Tauler's Life and Times
... from the time when they had forsaken all things and followed Him. ... title
consisted"namely, in the thorough self-surrender to God, the forsaking all things ...
/.../introductory notice respecting taulers life.htm

Beginning at Jerusalem. --Luke xxiv. 47.
... Go home," saith he, "to thy friends, and tell them how great things God has done
for ... out devils in his name, and they forbade him, because he followed not with ...
/.../bunyan/jerusalem sinner saved/beginning at jerusalem luke xxiv 47.htm

The Jerusalem Sinner Saved;
... 'Go home,' saith he, 'to thy friends, and tell them how great things God hath done ...
out devils in his name, and they forbade him, because he followed not with ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the jerusalem sinner saved.htm

An Exposition on the First Ten Chapters of Genesis, and Part of ...
... This is still followed by that which follows: ... they seek and strive to be heads; as
that cursed monster the pope, forsaking the garden of God, became in ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/an exposition on the first.htm

The Barren Fig-Tree;
... God, whose omniscience penetrates through every disguise, himself examines every
tree in the garden, yea, every bough. ... And, indeed, it displeaseth God. ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the barren fig-tree.htm

The Life and Death of Mr. Badman,
... Lying and pilfering mark his early days; followed in after life by swearing ... glass
for Saints and Sinners; others from 'Beard's theatre of God's Judgments' and ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the life and death of.htm