12 Then the woman said, “Please let your servant speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.” 13 The woman said, “Why then have you planned such a thing against the people of God? For in speaking this word the king is like one who is guilty, in that the king does not bring back his banished one. 14 For we will surely die and are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up. Yet God does not take away life, but makes plans so that the banished one will not be cast out from Him. 15 Now then, [g]the reason I have come to speak this word to my lord the king is that the people have made me afraid; so your servant said, ‘Let me now speak to the king, perhaps the king will perform the [h]request of his slave. 16 For the king will listen, to save his slave from the [i]hand of the man who would eliminate [j]both me and my son from the inheritance of God.’ 17 Then your servant said, ‘Please let the word of my lord the king be [k]comforting, for as the angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and evil. And may the Lord your God be with you.’”
18 Then the king answered and said to the woman, “Please do not hide anything from me that I am about to ask you.” And the woman said, “Let my lord the king please speak.” 19 So the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman replied, “As your soul lives, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. Indeed, it was your servant Joab who commanded me, and it was he who put all these words in the mouth of your servant. 20 In order to change the appearance of things your servant Joab has done this thing. But my lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know all that is on the earth.”
This woman was indeed wise, and I love how she says “Yet God does not take away life, but makes plans so that the banished one will not be cast out from Him.”
Even though God himself had established the laws of Israel, it was not his desire to take life away. He is always looking for a way to bring back the “banished one”. Indeed, if it were possible, I think God would even work out a plan for redeeming Satan. But alas, one has to want to be rescued.
If you’ve ever felt like you weren’t worthy, that you weren’t good enough, that you had gone too far for even God to rescue: Stop! Do you think God’s love for you has changed? It doesn’t depend on your works (thank God that it doesn’t). His love is unchanging, and unwavering. All that is necessary is for a change in your heart. Turn back to Him, and you will find at once that He is right there waiting.
He did make a plan to bring you back, and the only thing missing is your heart. Complete the plan, and come back to God while there is still breath in your lungs to do so.