Tears From Heaven
“You will say this word to them, ‘Let my eyes flow down with tears night and day, and let them not cease; for the virgin daughter of my people has been crushed with a mighty blow, with a sorely infected wound.’” Jeremiah 14:17 NASB
Not cease – Does God cry? Does He cry over His people? Does He cry over the hideous behavior of men? Does He cry over you?
In most theological constructions, the idea that God actually feels emotions, that He could actually cry, is considered impossible. Language like this is anthropomorphic. It doesn’t actually describe God as He really is. It only describes the way that God communicates in human terms so that we might have some apprehension of the circumstances. Theologically, God cannot cry. Why? Because God is not the kind of being who is subject to the sways of passions. He is perfect and perfection means He does not need to or ever can change. Since emotions are changes par excellence, they are not appropriately ascribed to God. This doctrine is called impassibility (you can look it up in most theology books). It is a direct result of immutability (God does not change).
Why would theologians ever dream up something like this? It seems so contrary to anything believers would wish of the God they worship. What motivation can there be for bringing our trials and hurts and sorrows to God if He cannot feel? The theology that creates this paradox comes from the desire to attribute to God only the most superlative characteristics (like holiness, goodness, mercy). In other words, in order to protect the majesty of God, theologians removed anything that might appear to be entirely too human. This is not a Greek worldview problem (but, of course, it has plenty of representatives in Western theology). Even among Jewish sages, immutability was a way to protect the glory of God.
In contrast, Heschel remarks that Akiva viewed God’s love for Israel as a heart connection. The marriage metaphor of Scripture demonstrated that God was intimately connected to Israel, suffering with Israel, redeeming Israel, empathizing with Israel in His cosmic purposes. According to Akiva, God does cry. How else would a husband express the sorrow of being rejected by His one true love? Other sages did not view God’s relationship with Israel in this manner. They thought of God’s covenant as a matter of the will, not the heart. God, by His own declaration, was obligated to Israel regardless of any emotional expressions. Their view is that God’s commitment is a moral imperative, not the outcome of an overwhelming and compelling love. God promised. That is the end of the matter.
So we see that men have struggled to understand God’s pathos for millennia. This verse in Jeremiah allowed Rabbi Tanhuma to claim that it must be about God, that God cries because no man can cry without ceasing. The Hebrew phrase, al-tidmena (do not let cease – from the verb dāmâ), is used again in Lamentations 3:49. If Akiva and Tanhuma are right, God is very much a God of divine pathos, a God who feels! But what a paradox this creates. We don’t want a God who is like Zeus or Marduk, subject to personal whims and human bribes, but we can hardly worship a God who is far removed from all that makes our lives into roller-coasters. Theology typically opts for transcendent divinity – at the cost of denying empathy. Scripture seems to point in both directions at the same time. Perhaps this is why the great theologians like Augustine and Boethius advised preachers not to actually say anything about this doctrine.
Aside from the theological puzzles, there is something else to learn here. What kind of God do you serve? Does your theology require a straitjacket around life as you know it, or does it give you confidence that God knows your passions and sorrows? Are you willing to allow Scripture to contain paradoxes or does the logic of your position force you to remain silent about some implications?
Oh, yes. One final thought. If you can live with a God who is holy, glorious and eternal and at the same time experiences intimate empathy, then why do you have trouble with other supposed paradoxes (like predestination and free will)? Does your theology tell you what you must believe or do you believe what you have experienced in His presence?
Topical Index: immutability, cry, cease, damah, Akiva, Tanhuma, Jeremiah 14:17
Skip,
What an amazing word today!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I get excited when I see someone who digs so deep into God’s word but is also in tune with his presence. Now that is what I call worshipping in spirit and in truth:) It is also very comforting to have a God in Heaven who weeps with us and for us!
P.S. I want to ask the community to pray for my mother in law…she is only 55 and had a heart attack last week. She had two stents put in her heart and today at 11am(PHX, AZ time) she will have a third one put in her most clogged artery. Her name is Wren and I appreciate the support and prayers. Thank you everyone!
I know that I am a brocken vessel trying to return to His ways. My faith is solely based on the fact that He allows me to experience His love for me. I “feel” it in my heart no matter all my weaknesses. I fail Him so many times over and over. Despite this His love has not changed once. It remains the same. I have gone one full circle with my own attempts to understand and draw closer. I am not any wiser than when I started on this yourney. It does not matter to me anymore because one thing I do know that His love is stable and will not let me go. I cannot run from Him even if I try and this knowledge is what draws me closer to Him all the time.
Christina Venter,
here is a link to a favorite song of mine that explains much of how you feel:
HOLDING ON TO YOU BY PAUL COLMAN (YOUR LOVE REMAINS)…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZB0i1wTJxg&feature=related
jan
Jesus wept. (John 11.35)
One of the first verses committed to memory.. (I wonder why?)
G-d became a man. He was born through the portals of a virgin’s womb, lived among us, breathed the very air He created, ate the same food as the creatures He lived among, laughed, cried, walked, talked, learned the skills of a carpenter for the first thirty years of His life, was baptized in the river Jordan, and accomplished (in full) the work He was assigned to do.
Not only did G-d become a man, -He still is a man. There is a man who now sits upon Heaven’s throne. But this man is more than a man for He is also G-d. He is the G-d/man/Word incarnate. And He is ONE who has been tempted,tried, and tested in every way (just as we are) yet,- this man was the only man ever who could say- “which of you convicts me of sin?” (don’t try this at home- or anywhere else for that matter..) For you see- this man- this Second Adam was the only Perfect One ever to have lived. Amein?
Does G-d weep? Absolutely. Sin always grieves the heart of G-d and sin was the cause of the crucifixion of Christ at Calvary. “All have sinned” includes all, including this man. But Christ died for “whosoever will” and for this cause- this man is exceedingly joyful, because this means this Man died for me and in my stead.
Yeshua wept over the news of the death of his close friend, Lazarus and Yeshua wept over the city of Jerusalem. Why did He weep over Jerusalem? (in this answer found written in a Book?) Who wants all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth? ( 1 Timothy 2.4)
All men? Does this include the Jew? does this include the Gentile? Does this include you or me? Yes, Hallelujah!- “Whosoever will” may come! What an invitation! -What a Savior!
What a wonderful word, Skip!
EL/ABBA is love, and of course HE feels for us, and understands us in our times
of trimming, refining, and maturing, especially so in the Person of Yahshua.
HE is passionate too, and hates luke-warmness, like us.
Thank you.
God is emotional. Or, there is no better language/concept to describe what God “feels” towards us, besides strong emotion. However, I am still unconvinced regarding the “Openness of God” doctrines, which use an anthropomorphic view to argue that God does not know the future. His surprise and disappointment do not necessarily point to a lack of foreknowledge.
I know philosophy says that foreknowledge and Free Will and incompatible, impossible, ect. However, raising the dead is also impossible.
Raising the dead is an apparent PHYSICAL impossibility. Having infallible prior knowledge of an action that is still described as a “free” choice is a LOGICAL impossibility. There is a very big difference.
Thank-you for the response, Skip. I’ve run across this idea twice before, and I’m still chewing on it. Like many things, perhaps my issues with the idea stem from the first sources I heard it from. The first source seemed to balk at the idea that Genesis could be taken literally, and the second would remind everyone in the room how many classes they’ve taken in philosophy every chance they got. Hence, the idea has become connected in my mind with ‘higher criticism” and man’s logic trumping God’s power.
I know you have reverence for scripture, and that is what keeps me coming back here. It is rare to find someone with a scholarly background who can also retain their “fear and trembling” in the Lord. I don’t think I’m closed to the theological possibilities here, but the impossibility argument has yet to convince me.
You need to read God, Time and the Limits of Omniscience, by yours truly. That will convince you.
Thanks, I’ll check it out soon.
Skip, I would say you had God’s favor on this one – what is impossible with men is possible with God – how did you feel – humbled?!?!?!
“This book is the doctoral dissertation for Skip’s degree at Oxford University. “Defending a doctoral dissertation at Oxford is a unique experience. My examination committee included a gentleman whose book I attacked in my work. At Oxford, you either pass the examination, you pass with required corrections, or you fail. There is no second chance. Only about 20% of the candidates pass without any needed corrections. I thought that Professor Swinburne (the gentleman I attacked in my work) would surely demand corrections (if I were lucky), but after 3 hours, the committee accepted the work as it stood.””
jan