“It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.”
King James Version (KJV)
Roger Winters's comment on 2020-11-16 04:23:20:
In 1 Sam 15:11,God regretted that he made Saul king. In Genesis, He regretted that He made man. Man says God is omniscient which suggests He knows tomorrow which is preached as such from the pulpit. We sometimes know in advance we are about to move wrong but we move anyway and invoke that old idiom, "I know I'm gonna regret this."
Why we do it is because; we decide the possible gain is worth the risk, we throw caution to the wind, we are wanton and careless by nature or we have an obsessive/compulsive urge or disorder. Is it our fumbling of language that causes us from the Hebrew translation forward to cause a sentence to say that God, though seeing a negative outcome, proceeded regardless? The wording subsequent to the act "...for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments...." is indicative of a fresh observation and not words recognizing an anticipated failure. I pray, believe, am born again and I like witnessing to unbelievers with confidence. Several instances exist of God appearing to be surprised though it's preached that it can't be. In Gen. 11, 5-7, God sees and reacts to an unwelcomed situation in the plain English reading of KJV. Doctrine seems esteemed over literal Bible with many preachers. Discrepancies and contradictions exist which are denied with many seeming to believe God dictated the Bible rather than inspired the writing (except in a couple places). Most never mention that Constantine influenced powerful doctrinal elements yet create narratives embracing those elements as if they are scripture or stretch certain Bible verses and scriptures or interpret them to complement their narrative. Do you think God intended the Bible exactly as is? Why so many versions, doctrines, denominations? Do you see a distinction between liberality and evil that led 50% of the nation to vote for one opposing life for babies, defense of Israel, Christian right of speech over pervert laws claiming it to be hate speech, less law?