Does God Change His Mind? - by James Dolezal

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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This is an interesting topic, because there is what appears to be a conflict of information. The Bible presents two ideas that seem to contradict. As an eternal, perfect, all-powerful and all-knowing being, how can it be possible that God would change His mind? Yet as the author admits, there are Scriptures that suggest that God does indeed change his mind.

The author will focus on certain attributes of God, but without explanation will tell us these attributes exclude the possibility of Him changing His mind. Thus His immutability, His predetermined plan, His omniscience, and His perfection require that He doesn't change His mind. But these statements beg the question, why do these attributes exclude this?

And, the author wants God's divine characteristics to be pre-eminent over God Himself as if He were at the mercy of them. He tells us God is immutable, for example, which means He is unable to take another course if He chooses. Because immutability. 

Further, we should mention that the idea of God not changing His mind is built upon two statements in two verses, (1 Sam. 15:29 and Num. 23:19.) The first is about the judgment of King Saul, and the second is Balaam's statement to Balak about Balak's desire to curse Israel. We might suggest that these situations were possibly more geared toward the finality and certainty of God's purpose in these contexts rather than being an all-encompassing truth statement.

Another thing to consider is because God's nature is not like a man, His mind is also not like a man's, so that the way He thinks about things is not like a man. Thus, He does not act in the manner of man, He "...does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, [He's nothing like a man] that he should change his mind [like a man would].”

We should resist the notion that our understanding of how the mind of man works is the same as how the mind of God would work.

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“The Glory of Israel will not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind” (1 Sam. 15:29; cf. Num. 23:19, NIV). These words of the prophet Samuel provide a straightforward reply to the question “Does God change His mind?” Yet in the same chapter, we are told twice that God regretted having made Saul king (1 Sam. 15:11, 35). Indeed, several passages of Scripture describe God as regretting, relenting, or repenting (which fundamentally indicates a change of mind) (e.g., Gen. 6:6–7; Ex. 32:14; 2 Sam. 24:16; Jer. 18:8; Jonah 3:10).

Classical theists understand such passages to be speaking about God anthropomorphically and do not take such descriptions literally. (Ok, so this is the short version: God doesn't change His mind, the verses that say He does are not literal.)

John Gill, for instance, explains Exodus 32:14 in this way:

Not that any of God’s thoughts or the determinations of his mind are alterable; for the thoughts of his heart are to all generations [Ps. 33:11]; but he changes the outward dispensations of his providence, or his methods of acting with men . . . and this being similar to what they do when they repent of anything, who alter their course, hence repentance is ascribed to God, though, properly speaking, it does not belong to him. (This is simply a summary denial. It explains nothing.)

This is similar to the non-literal way we understand passages that speak of God having body parts or performing operations proper to bodies (such as smelling, hearing with ears, seeing with eyes, experiencing intestinal disturbance, moving about locomotively in space, etc.). (So because God is described anthropomorphically in other places in the Bible, the passages in question are anthropomorphic as well? Except this is not how we determine doctrine.

When the Bible describes God as having eyes [1 Peter 3:12, for example], does He not have eyes? When His right arm is upraised [Is. 5:25 for example], does He not have a right arm? Some would answer that God is Spirit [John 4:24] and doesn't possess a physical body. 

But Jesus does. We would suggest that the pre-incarnate Jesus possessed physical being, so when the Angel of the Lord wrestled with Jacob [Genesis 32:24] it was a real, physical Man. Jacob saw His face, the face of the pre-incarnate Savior [Genesis 32:31].

That said, there are certainly descriptors of God that are clearly non-literal [Ps. 91:4, for example]. But we cannot simply dismiss difficult concepts because we can't properly explain them.)

 Several theological truths undergird this interpretation and belief that God does not change His mind.

1. Scripture testifies that God is immutable.

While God changes the heavens and the earth, He Himself is not among the things He changes: “You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same” (Ps. 102:26–27). God declares, “I, the LORD, do not change” (Mal. 3:6). He is “the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow” (James 1:17). (The author drops the ball here. Yes, it is certainly true that God doesn't change. But this is a separate issue. If a man changes his mind, he's still the same man. He doesn't violate his sameness. Similarly, the idea that God would change His mind does not change who He is.)

When God makes a promise, He swears by Himself and so stakes the surety of His word on Himself. (The author changes topics to God's sure promises.)

It is God’s unchangeableness that guarantees the unchangeableness of His promises and that gives us strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us (Heb. 6:13–18). To whatever extent God could change His mind, our confidence in the unchangeableness of His promises would be destabilized. (Well, no. God changing His mind about promises He's made is a separate issue from other ways He might change His mind.

The author is not making a biblical argument, he makes an argument based on how our perception is impacted by God's behavior. This doesn't speak to our confidence about Him. 

The fact is, God many times stated He would destroy Israel but always relented when Israel repented [Ps. 106:45, Je. 26:3, Joe. 2:13]. This despite the times He told Israel He would not relent [Je. 4:28, Ez. 24:14]. 

Clearly there must be a more sensible, and might we say, more nuanced way to deal with this issue?)

2. The universal scope and efficacy of God’s decree also tell against God’s changing His mind.

(The following is an entirely Calvinistic reason based on predestination.) He declares the end from the beginning and from ancient times things which have not been done. These all unfold in accordance with His purpose and good pleasure (Isa. 46:10). God “works all things according to the counsel of his will,” (Eph. 1:11) and no one frustrates His plans (Job 42:1–2; Prov. 19:21; Isa. 14:26–27; Dan. 4:35). Insomuch as a change of mind ordinarily redirects our actions due to unexpected roadblocks, ("Ordinarily?" What about the things that are not "ordinarily?")

God’s mind cannot change. (The author restates his premise.)

All things and circumstances—good and evil—are included in His comprehensive decree for the world and so cannot be the occasion of a change of mind in Him. (That is, everything is predetermined, which apparently excludes God from predetermining a change in what He predetermined. Hmm.)

3. God’s omniscience rules out any change of mind in Him.

A change of mind is invariably due to the acquisition of new knowledge or of a new judgment about reality, (No, we do not accept the author's characterization. A change of mind can and does happen apart from new information. Not that God is arbitrary, but people can change their minds simply because they want to do something different. Similarly, God should have the power as God to choose to do something different if He wants.)

but God is perfect in knowledge (Job 37:16), knowing all things (1 John 3:20). Moreover, His perfect knowledge of the world is not derived from the world. He teaches all humans knowledge (Ps. 94:9–11), but no one teaches or informs God (Isa. 40:12–14). For this reason, the Westminster Confession of Faith states that God’s knowledge is “infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature.” Such omniscience is not susceptible to augmentation, and so, God’s mind is not susceptible to change. (God's foreknowledge does not rule Him, He determines the characteristics of His own godhood. How ridiculous it is to imply that God is at the mercy of His own attributes?)

4. God’s perfection and fullness of being requires that He undergo no change of mind.

A state of mind is a state of being. Mental states have an ontological ("Having to do with the existence of being." The author uses an unenlightening term.)

status. If God were to enter a new state of mental actuality—which is what happens in every change of mind (We do not accept this condition.)

—we would be compelled to say that He previously lacked some actuality of being, namely, the state of mind into which He entered via a change He underwent. (This itself is an anthropomorphic statement. The author wants the possibility of God changing His mind to be exactly like a human changing his mind.)

What’s more, God would be ontologically dependent upon whatever agent or event caused His new state of mind. (Unless He caused His own change of mind...)

New states of mind are caused states of mental being and actuality. (The author is unable to conceive of an uncaused eventuality.)

And there simply are no caused states of being or actuality in God. He is the uncaused cause of all else—the One from whom, through whom, and to whom are all creatures (Rom. 11:36). As such, God is the One who is fullness of being itself, giving to all but receiving from none. Perhaps for this reason most of all, classical theists are correct to insist that God does not experience changes of mind.