He Delights in Unchanging Love
Notes
Transcript
Handout
18 Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love.
18 Who is a God like You, Pardoning iniquity And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy.
18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness.
18 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.
18 Who is a God like Thee? taking away iniquity, And passing by the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance, He hath not retained for ever His anger, Because He—He delighteth in kindness.
INTRODUCTION:
INTRODUCTION:
When we are studying a specific text we always need to remember that the scriptures were not written in English but in Hebrew (Old Testament) and Greek and Aramaic (New Testament).
Therefore we alway need to study multiple translation if possible when trying to decide what a passage is conveying.
Sometimes a single English word is insufficient to convey the original language’s meaning.
This is what we have here is an insufficiency of the English to convey the original language’s meaning in a singular English word.
[2876] 2 חֶ֫סֶד ḥesed 249× unfailing love, loyal love, devotion, kindness, often based on a prior relationship, especially a covenant relationship [2617] See kindness; love; loyalty; mercy.
18 Who is a God like You, Who forgives iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retains not His anger forever, because He delights in mercy and loving-kindness.
In reality to truly understand the meaning of this verse we need all of these versions.
NKJV—delights in mercy.
NASB—delights in unchanging love.
ASV—delighteth in lovingkindness.
NIV—delight to show mercy
YLT—delighteth in kindness
All of these translations demonstrate a nuance that helps us understand God’s redemption of us from our sins.
Who is a God like you, who pardons iniquity.
This shows He delights in mercy.
This shows He delight in unchanging love.
This shows He delights in lovingkindness or compassion.
This shows He delights in kindness
Who passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession.
This shows He delights in mercy.
This shows He delight in unchanging love.
This shows He delights in lovingkindness or compassion.
This shows He delights in kindness.
Body:
Body:
Who is a God like you, who pardons iniquity?
This was important question because a majority of the people of the time where not good.
Micah prophesied during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah in Judah.
Jotham was a good king though he did not remove the high places of the surrounding gods.
32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah became king.
33 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok.
34 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord; he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.
35 Only the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord.
This would mean that the false gods of the surrounding people still had major influence in Judah.
Ahaz was a very evil king.
1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham, king of Judah, became king.
2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord his God, as his father David had done.
3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had driven out from before the sons of Israel.
4 He sacrificed and burned incense on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.
King Ahaz was so evil that he sacrificed one his sons to the false Ammonite god, Molech passing him through the fire.
21 ‘You shall not give any of your offspring to offer them to Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God; I am the Lord.
He also offered these false gods worship which was in direct violation of God’s law.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
This once again would allow these false God’s to have a major influence in Judah.
King Hezekiah was a good king who removed the high places and did everything within his power to restore proper worship.
1 Now it came about in the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah.
3 He did right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.
4 He removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan.
Though King Hezekiah was a good king he neglected to pass this trait on to his son Manasseh.
1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Hephzibah.
2 He did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord dispossessed before the sons of Israel.
He rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah destroyed (2 Kings 21:3a).
He raised up altars for Baal (2 Kings 21:3b).
He worshiped all the host of heaven and served them (2 Kings 21:3c).
He also built altars to false gods in the house of the LORD (2 Kings 21:4).
He built altars to all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord (2 Kings 21:5).
He made his son pass through the fire (2 Kings 21:6a).
Practiced soothsaying (2 Kings 21:6b).
Used witchcraft (2 Kings 21:6c).
Consulted spiritists and mediums (2 Kings 21:6d).
He even set a carved image of Asherah that he had made, in the house of the Lord (2 Kings 21:7).
The fact that it was so easy for Manasseh to return to these false gods demonstrated that the false gods still had a major influence in Judah.
The question—Who is a God like You was relevant because...
The false god’s that Judah was worshiping like Molech and Asherah were not merciful and were unlikely to pardon iniquity or pass over rebellious acts.
The true God would pardon iniquity and pass over rebellious acts for His people.
Micah was dealing with people that need to be reminded about the goodness and love of God for His people.
God showed his people His love in his redemptive work.
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Judah had sinned in worshiping false god’s but God would pardon them if they would repent and turn back to Him; just as he would have in the time of Solomon.
12 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice.
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Just as He does today if we have sin in our lives.
21 “You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
22 “Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you.
These people had been rebellious but God would pass over their rebellion and not retain His anger forever.
9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
This leads us to my last point.
He delights in unchanging love.
This is the reason He pardons our iniquities and passes over our rebellious acts.
He does not delight in the death of the wicked.
11 “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord God, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’
He does not retain His anger forever.
God truly desires to forgive.
This is proven by God giving His Son so we can find forgiveness.
4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,
5 so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
Jesus was given so we could be pardoned and He could pass over our rebellious acts.
11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,
12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,
When we deny ungodliness and worldly desires we allow God to delight in His unchanging love.
by living sensibly, righteously and godly.
This is where all the other translation can help us understand how he does not retain His anger forever.
He delights in mercy (NKJV).
Mercy is not receiving what we deserve.
He Delighteth in lovingkindness or compassion (ASV).
Lovingkindness or compassion gives Him the desire to help us and shows how much He hurts for us.
37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.
He delighteth in kindness (YLT).
Kindness is the attitude that allows him to show mercy and to have lovingkindness or compassion.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
Who is a God like Jehovah.
We sin and offer worship to false god’s and he pardons us.
We know we are wrong and are rebellious and he passes over our rebellion.
2. Because He delights in mercy, kindness, compassion and unchanging love.