Isaiah 31:1-3

Isaiah 31:2a-"And yet he is wise and brings disaster; he does not call back his words..." (ESV).

That "he is wise and brings disaster" seems almost contrary to God's character, but it is not. Sometimes we may not want to think of God like this, and at other times (and usually for the wrong reasons) we rejoice over this part of God's nature. But I'm willing to bet that whether we hate or love this part of God, we do not understand it. We may think we do, but when pressed a reason why God is like this, we find we don't really understand. However, the second part of the phrase in verse 2 helps us understand this aspect of God's character: "he does not call back his words." In other words, God is immutable; He is unchanging. He brings disaster on those who disobey Him. And He has to. If He did not, He would not be immutable. And if He was not immutable, how could He be trusted? Also, how could He be just? If He were not immutable then He entire character, the entire nature of God would crumble. He would cease to be God! Then where would that leave us? We'd be better off dead.

But if God brings disaster on those who disobey Him, what about Christians who disobey? Praise God, for that is where forgiveness comes into play. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9, ESV).