When making my last post, I read through the surrounding chapters in Jeremiah and found something that got me thinking. Why is it God uses human expressions? Jeremiah quoted God as saying that it didn’t come to His mind that the Israelites would sacrifice kids.
It’s left me wondering whether God says or does things in the Bible which are designed simply to make Himself and His position more relatable to us? I think He does.
Jesus Used Human Expressions
Perhaps the most obvious example of this effect that is when Jesus used a human expression in Matthew 6, directing his followers to pray to their “Father” in heaven. It is a positively inspired choice of words–full of relevant connotation.
God is the ultimate wise and powerful authority figure, giving forth blessings to His children. He protects and guides. He loves truly, without thought to his own benefit. And, He disciplines those he loves.
But, God is not a man. In fact, it’s worth noting that God is no more male than He is female. He is not even the “father” of Jesus, in the literal ways that we understand parenthood and procreation to work. It is a true description, but figurative.
Jesus presents God using a word we can understand to describe things we cannot. “Father” is accurate, insofar as we are able to understand it. But, our minds cannot comprehend the fullness of His being, nor his relationship to us.
It Didn’t Occur to God
Jeremiah 32:35 says that it didn’t occur to God that his people would sacrifice their kids to Molech. But, we know that in Leviticus, God explicitly forbids this exact action.
So, why would God tell Jeremiah that? And, how can something not occur to God, in the first place? Doesn’t He know all things past, present, and future? I must admit that I struggled with the use of this phrase.
But, upon reflection, I think that the most likely reason is that (once again) God is using human expression to convey meaning for us. It shows just how frustrating their choice was, in a way that they could understand.
It is incomprehensible that we would know God, love God, and choose sin. But, we do.
Have you noticed something else like this in the Bible? What sticks out to you?
Prayer for Today
My prayer for today is that I would have my eyes opened to the richness of God’s word. That I would see more of the places where God speaks truth I can understand, while still leaving space for the vastness of his being which I cannot grasp.
I am resolved to make note of these moments more often, and to share the wonder of them with the girls.
Verses About God Uses Human Expressions
“They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.” Jeremiah 32:35 (ESV)
“He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” Psalm 103:10-14 (ESV)
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