We run our website the way we wished the whole internet worked: we provide high quality original content with no ads. We are funded solely by your direct support. Please consider supporting this project.

What is the significance of Jeremiah 26:2–3?

The Lord tells Jeremiah to prophesy to Israel that they should repent, for “I may change my mind about the disaster that I intend to bring on [Israel] because of their evil doings.”

It is difficult to discern what God intended to reveal about himself by claiming he is willing to change his mind if we accept the classical view that God never really changes his mind. Relatedly, it is odd that Open Theists who simply want to affirm what Jeremiah here affirms—that God is willing to change his mind—are sometimes labeled “heretical” by other Bible believing Christians for doing so.

Category:
Tags: ,
Topics:
Verse:

Related Reading

Free Will: What about “natural” evil? Was Hurricane Sandy a Free Agent?

What about natural evil? How does free will help to make sense of this? Greg reflects on the origins of sickness, natural disaster, animal suffering and so on. Hope you’re enjoying the series so far. There’s more to come!

How can we determine what is and is not “open” about the future?

Question: You believe that the future is partly open. You’re writing has pretty much convinced me this is true, but I’ve still got some serious questions about it. For example, how does anyone determine what part is open and what part is not? If we can’t determine what is and is not open, isn’t the…

Open2013 Reflections

Both participants and leaders share about what was happening at Open2013 and some of their thoughts on Open Theism. Listen in and hear from Greg Boyd, John Sanders, Tom Oord, T. C. Moore, Jessica Kelley and many more.

How do you respond to Isaiah 53:9?

Speaking of the suffering servant Isaiah says, “[T]hey made his grave with the wicked and his tomb with the rich…” As with most evangelical exegetes, I believe that Isaiah 53 constitutes a beautiful and stunning prophetic look at the person of Jesus Christ. The most impressive feature of this prophecy is that the suffering servant…

Podcast: The Making of God of the Possible

Greg talks about making his book “God of the Possible,” then offers his initial thoughts on Thomas Oord’s book “God Can’t.” http://traffic.libsyn.com/askgregboyd/Episode_0468.mp3

What is the significance of Numbers 11:1–2?

The Lord was in the process of judging Israel by fire when Moses interceded in prayer “and the fire abated.” A common sense reading of the verse suggests that the fire would have continued had Moses not prayed. Scripture is full of examples of God changing his plans in response to human prayer and repentance.…

Topics: