“I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. “ Revelation 2:21
We struggle with why evil is allowed to go on. People are hurt
for no good reason yet evil doers are not punished and it bothers us. Why doesn’t God act? In this passage we get a peek into the answer. God sees very differently than we do. We want immediate payback but God sees where people will spend eternity and His heart breaks. So He waits, even if it bothers us. I gave her time The Lord makes an interesting statement. He gave Jezebel a gift – something she did not deserve. Think of that. She deserved immediate judgment but God did not do what she deserved. He did not judge Jezebel immediately despite the evil and damage she was doing to His church. The word time indicates an exact amount of time as used in Matthew 2:7. It specifies am opportunity. The Lord gives Jezebel just as He did Nebuchadnezzar an opportunity – time to repent of their sin. Other than what Christ did on the cross to pay for our sin, there is no greater gift than time to repent.
To repent God gave Jezebel time for one specific reason – to repent. The word means to change one’s mind especially as it relates to the acceptance of the will of God. Jezebel was headed in the wrong direction – away from God and toward hell. God is not willing that any should perish, even a wicked false prophet. If you ever wonder why God does not immediately judge the reprobate wicked, this verse gives you the answer – God truly wants every person to be saved. He sees eternity as it truly is.
There is a second facet that is important. With that time the Holy Spirit has been convicting Jezebel’s heart. God continued to strive with her until the end. This shows why we should continue to pray for and speak God’s truth to those who are in seemingly full rejection to God. The Holy Spirit can use the truth to either convict or, in the case of rejection, as proof they knew the truth.
But she refuses to repent We read the sad conclusion of the time God has given. The Lord uses a negative with the word repentance. The negative rules out repentance as fact.” God has given time but Jezebel has reached her final decision and God knows that decision will never change. Again, we see why we should keep praying for those who appear to have tunned away from God. If God has not yet judged they have not yet made their final decision – there is still time to repent of their sin (if they choose).
Of her sexual immorality God names Jezebel’s sin. The Greek word is porneía from which we get the word “pornography). The word indicates a selling off (surrendering) of sexual purity; promiscuity of all types to include idolatry. Jezebel was fully engaged in every aspect of the word. She was advocating for believers of God to engage in the “free sex” mentality of the economic guilds in direct violation of God’s commandments. Second she advocated believers engage in eating food offered to idols – a clear indication of worshipping idols rather than the living and true God – a great abomination.
What can we learn? In this passage we see God’s mercy and judgment intertwine. He is not willing any shouldperish so He give time to repent. We see God’s mercy. But while God does give time to repent, He doesn’t give unlimited time. This shows us the holiness and judgment of God. We know from Genesis 6:3 that “My Spirit shall
not strive with man forever”. One can thank God for the time He gives to repent, but one cannot take that gift lackadaisically for no one knows when time is up. Jezebel, like Pharoah, hardened her heart to God’s compassion. For her, the clock struck midnight. May that not be true for you!