God tells us through the prophet Jeremiah that He will react to heartfelt repentance: "The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it" (Jeremiah 18:7-8).

One of the most remarkable case histories of this is the life of Manasseh, king of Judah and Hezekiah's son. Manasseh was only 12 years old when his father Hezekiah died. Like many young people he thought he knew better than his father and turned away from his father’s righteous ways:

"He did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down; he raised up altars for the Baals, and made wooden images; and he worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. He also built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, In Jerusalem shall My name be forever. And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord" (2 Chronicles 33:2-5).

God warned him, but Manasseh would not listen (verse 10). So God allowed him to be taken captive to Babylon: "Therefore the Lord brought upon them the captains of the army of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze fetters, and carried him off to Babylon" (verse 11).

In Babylon Manasseh recognized his mistakes and experienced heartfelt repentance: "Now when he was in affliction, he implored the Lord his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, and prayed to Him" (verses 12-13).

How did God react? Just like He said through Jeremiah: "He received his entreaty, heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom" (verse 13).

Manasseh's example demonstrates how merciful our God is.

With these thoughts I wish everyone a rewarding Sabbath!