By Dr. Michael King | June 22, 2026
The Bible repeatedly speaks of God as “repenting” or “relenting.” Genesis says that “the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” First Samuel says that God declared, “I regret that I have made Saul king.” Exodus says that “the LORD relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.” Jonah likewise says that when God saw the Ninevites turn from their evil way, “God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them.”
These passages raise a serious theological question: if God “repents,” does this mean that God changes? And if God changes, how can the biblical doctrine of divine immutability remain true? If God, like human beings, changes His mind because of mistaken judgment, emotional instability, external pressure, or new information, how can He still be the eternal, omniscient, omnipotent, faithful, and unchanging God? [1]
On the other hand, if, in order to defend divine immutability, we explain away all biblical texts about God’s “repentance” as merely human-centered language with no real significance in God’s covenantal dealings, then we weaken another important biblical truth: the living God truly acts, truly responds, truly judges, truly shows mercy, and truly relates to His people in history. The God of Scripture is not an abstract, cold, motionless idea. He is the living and true God who makes covenant, speaks, warns, judges, forgives, and shows mercy.[2]
Therefore, the solution is not to choose one side against the other. We should not say either that God does not change and therefore His “repentance” has no real meaning, or that God truly “repents” and therefore He changes like human beings. Biblical revelation itself requires us to hold both truths together: God’s nature, attributes, knowledge, and eternal purpose never change; yet God truly turns in the way He administers His covenantal dealings with human beings in history.
Biblical Tension Theology, or BTT, is helpful precisely at this point. BTT does not flatten biblical tensions, nor does it mistake tension for contradiction. Rather, it seeks to preserve the full structure of biblical revelation by holding together truths that Scripture itself holds together. Regarding the theme of divine “repentance,” the central claim may be stated as follows:
God’s “repentance” is not a change in His nature, attributes, knowledge, or eternal purpose, but the historical manifestation of His unchanging covenantal governance. In His own covenantal order, God truly turns the way He deals with human beings according to their real covenantal condition of rebellion, repentance, intercession, or obedience.
In other words, God is not changed by man; rather, the unchanging God faithfully administers His covenant in history.
In BTT, the doctrine of God must begin with God Himself: His fullness, unity, perfection, and immutability. God is not composed of separate attributes that compete with one another. His holiness, righteousness, love, mercy, faithfulness, sovereignty, wisdom, and goodness are not divided pieces of deity. They do not cancel one another, replace one another, or take turns ruling within God.
Rather, all of God’s attributes are perfectly, simultaneously, and inseparably complete in Him. This is what BTT describes as divine co-perfection. [3]
By co-perfection, we do not mean that God’s attributes contain contradictions that must be reconciled by human logic. We mean that all of God’s perfections are fully and harmoniously present in God Himself. God’s holiness is always holy love; God’s love is always loving holiness. God’s righteousness is not righteousness without mercy; God’s mercy is not mercy that abolishes righteousness. God’s sovereignty is not raw power detached from goodness; God’s goodness is not sentimental kindness that weakens sovereignty. God’s wisdom is not detached calculation; His faithfulness is not rigid mechanical action. All His perfections are one in the simplicity and fullness of His divine being.
Therefore, God’s co-perfection nature is unchanging. God is not more holy at one time and more merciful at another. He does not set aside mercy when He judges, nor does He set aside righteousness when He forgives. He does not lose love because of human sin, nor does He abandon holiness because of human repentance. His attributes do not increase, decrease, divide, fluctuate, or transform. He is eternally Himself.
This is the deeper foundation of divine immutability. To say that God is immutable means more than saying that He does not change His plans. It means that God does not change in who He is. His being does not change. His attributes do not change. His knowledge does not change. His wisdom does not change. His holiness does not change. His love does not change. His righteousness does not change. His mercy does not change. His faithfulness does not change. His sovereignty does not change. His eternal purpose does not change.
Thus, when Scripture says that God “repents,” we must not begin with human experience and project human instability onto God. Human repentance or regret often arises from ignorance, error, sin, impulse, weakness, emotional fluctuation, or new information. Human beings regret because they did not know, because they misjudged, because they were selfish, because they acted rashly, or because circumstances changed beyond their control.
God’s “repentance” is never repentance in this creaturely sense.
God does not regret because He lacked knowledge. He does not revise His plan because He discovered new information. He does not shift because He was emotionally unstable. He does not change because external circumstances forced Him to adjust. He does not move from one mood to another as human beings often do. God is not a creature. He is the self-existent, all-knowing, all-wise, holy, righteous, loving, merciful, faithful, sovereign, and unchanging Lord.
Therefore, any biblical interpretation of divine “repentance” must begin here: God’s co-perfection nature is unchanging.