When Does God Finally Give Up On A Person?
The concept of God “giving up” on someone is a complicated theological question with no definitive answer. Some believe God never truly gives up on anyone, while others think there comes a point when God’s mercy runs out after continued unrepentant sin.
This article will examine multiple perspectives on if and when God stops pursuing a person’s heart.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your question: There is no clear consensus among theologians on when or if God ever completely gives up on an individual. Some believe God’s patience and mercy are endless, while others think God may abandon those who persistently reject Him.
The Bible offers examples of God relenting from promised judgment when people repent, but also instances when God appears to have hardened hearts that rejected Him.
God’s Patience and Persistence
God Is Slow to Anger and Abundant in Mercy
God is described in the Bible as “slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness” (Exodus 34:6). He does not enjoy punishing sinners, but desires everyone to repent and find salvation (2 Peter 3:9). Even when God brings judgment, it is intended to lead people to repentance (Romans 2:4).
For example, God was patient with ancient Israel even after repeated rebellion. He sent prophets to warn them rather than immediately punishing them (2 Kings 17:13). Even after they were exiled, God brought them back to their land after a period of discipline (Ezra 1:1-4).
Examples Where God Relents When People Repent
There are several examples in the Bible where God relented from judgment when people genuinally repented:
- When the city of Nineveh repented at Jonah’s preaching, God did not bring the prophesied destruction (Jonah 3:10).
- When King Manasseh of Judah repented after leading the nation into idolatry, God heard his prayer and restored him (2 Chronicles 33:12-13)
- After David repented of his sins of adultery and murder, God forgave him and told him he would not die (2 Samuel 12:13). But there were still temporal consequences of his actions.
These examples demonstrate God’s mercy in response to true repentance. However, for the unrepentant, there is a limit to God’s patience as the example of Pharaoh in Exodus illustrates.
God Continues to Pursue Even Hardened Sinners
Pharaoh in Exodus is a notorious example of someone who hardened his own heart repeatedly against God’s commands. But still God gave him multiple chances to repent (Exodus 7:3). God’s motivation was to demonstrate His power and declare His name through all the earth (Exodus 9:16).
So does God eventually give up on people? Consider this perspective: “God, in His mercy, often continues to extend the offer to repent long after we would have given up on someone.” But He lets people persist if they insist on going their own way.
Warnings Against Persistent Unbelief
Passages on Reprobate Minds and Hardened Hearts
Several passages in the Bible warn against those who persistently reject God and develop a reprobate mind and hardened heart. Romans 1:28 says, “Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind.”
Titus 1:15-16 also warns, “To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him.”
These passages indicate that those who continually reject God’s truth may eventually be given over to their sinful desires and lose discernment between right and wrong.
God Giving People Over to Their Sinful Desires
There are several passages that describe God giving people over to their sinful desires when they refuse to repent. Romans 1 states three times that “God gave them over” to their various lusts (verses 24, 26, 28).
It says they exchanged God’s truth for a lie, worshipped created things rather than the Creator, and engaged in sexual immorality and wickedness. Ephesians 4:19 also says, “Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.”
These verses indicate that those who persistently reject God may eventually be abandoned by Him and given over fully to their sin.
The Unforgivable Sin Against the Holy Spirit
Jesus spoke of an unforgivable sin against the Holy Spirit in Matthew 12:31-32, Mark 3:28-29, and Luke 12:10. This sin involves persistently attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to the devil and rejecting the conviction of the Holy Spirit.
It is often understood as denying the deity of Christ or the redemptive power of His death and resurrection even after knowing the truth about Him. This sin indicates a complete hardening of the heart against God’s grace.
However, there is debate over whether this sin can still be committed today and whether God would ever fully abandon someone He knew would never repent.
Views on When God Gives Up
God Never Truly Gives Up on Anyone
Many biblical scholars believe God never completely abandons efforts to bring a person to repentance and faith. As it says in 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.
Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” God’s love and mercy extend to all people until death.
After Death, the Opportunity for Repentance Ends
However, some Christians believe after bodily death, the opportunity for repentance and salvation ends. Hebrews 9:27 declares, “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment. “ So while God patiently waits our entire earthly lifetime, the chance to repent stops when we die and meet our Creator.
This perspective finds support in several Bible passages about judgment.
When a Person Persistently Rejects God’s Convicting Spirit
Another common view holds that God abandons efforts with individuals who continually resist His convicting Spirit over many years. As Stephen said to the Sanhedrin, “You stiff-necked people…you always resist the Holy Spirit” (Acts 7:51).
At some point known only to God, He may cease actively pursuing those who remain obstinate, self-willed, and prideful – while retaining willingness to save them if they later repent.
Only God Knows the Threshold for Each Person
Ultimately, Scripture does not give definitive criteria for when God “gives up” on someone, if at all. The only certainty is that only the Lord knows the appointed time and opportunities granted each individual. God judges “people’s secrets through Jesus Christ” (Romans 2:16).
Until then, it seems safest to assume God retains openness to save even the most outwardly hardened sinner who repents.
God Still Pursues Behind Hardened Resistance
Examples of God Pursuing the Resistant
Throughout the Bible, we see examples of God continuing to pursue people even when they resist and rebel against Him. The apostle Paul is perhaps the most dramatic example. As Saul, he persecuted and imprisoned early Christians before his life-changing encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9).
God saw beyond Saul’s violence and pride to the missionary He knew Paul could become. Even while Saul was imprisoning and killing believers, Christ loved and pursued Him.
Other examples include the early Israelites who repeatedly turned to idol worship. Though they broke covenant with God over and over, still He sent prophets to call them back to Himself (2 Chronicles 36:15).
King Manasseh filled Jerusalem with innocent blood and led the people into heinous idolatry, yet while in exile Manasseh repented and God restored him (2 Chronicles 33:12-13). God’s loving pursuit of resistant sinners is a constant thread throughout Scripture.
God Retains Hope Even for the Wicked
God calls all people everywhere to repentance (Acts 17:30). He is incredibly patient, “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). He always holds out hope for the salvation of even the most wicked.
The apostle Paul speaks of God enduring “vessels of wrath” with patience in order that He might make the riches of his glory known to people He has prepared for glory (Romans 9:22-23).
We might look at violent oppressors or hardened criminals and believe they are beyond God’s redemption. But He sees their potential and Christ’s transforming power. Paul again reminds us that even enemies of Christ can become “reconciled to God by the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10).
As long as someone draws breath, God pursues them and offers them forgiveness and new life in Jesus.
Praying for the Salvation of the Unrepentant
Scripture urges us to pray for all people, rulers and authorities included (1 Timothy 2:1-2). We should pray for both friends and enemies, asking God to grant them repentance leading to salvation (2 Timothy 2:25).
Even if someone’s heart seems cold and closed off, God can give them eyes to see and ears to hear the call of the Gospel. Remember Saul breathing murderous threats against Christians, then becoming Paul the passionate evangelist by God’s grace (Acts 9:1, Romans 11:13).
No one is beyond the reach of prayer.
When tempted to give up hope for an unrepentant person’s salvation, look to Jesus. He prayed from the cross “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” in the ultimate demonstration of radical grace (Luke 23:34).
We must never underestimate the life-changing power of prayer or the boundless depths of Christ’s love for the lost.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there is much mystery around if or when God may finally give up pursuing a resistant heart. The Bible presents a God who is extraordinarily patient and persistent in extending mercy to sinners, but also warns of the danger of persistent unbelief and rejection of God’s Spirit.
While God alone knows the thresholds of each human heart, some theologians believe God retains hope for redemption even behind the most hardened resistance, though His efforts may become less direct. Ultimately, we must cling to the mercy of Christ while urging others to repentance, praying that God might open eyes before hearts grow too calloused against Him.
