Doesn't God want everyone to be saved?
Yes, and Scripture says so in the strongest terms: God swears He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, Jesus wept over a city that would not come, and the command to repent goes out to every person everywhere. The Bible also uses 'the will of God' for two different things, what He commands and desires of us, and what He has determined to do. Holding both keeps us from two errors: that God is indifferent to the lost, and that anyone is lost because God shut the door.
This question arose from studying Did God choose me to be saved before I chose Him? and Can anyone resist God's grace?.
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What the Scripture says
God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked
This is not our inference from His kindness; it is His own oath. 'Tell them, As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn, turn from your evil ways; for why will you die, house of Israel?' He asks it twice in Ezekiel: 'Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked? says the Lord Yahweh; and not rather that he should return from his way, and live?' and again, 'For I have no pleasure in the death of him who dies, says the Lord Yahweh: therefore turn yourselves, and live.' Lamentations says it from the other side: 'For he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.' And the invitation is issued as a command: 'Seek Yahweh while he may be found; call you on him while he is near.' If God were indifferent to the lost, none of this could be said of Him.
Tell them, As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn, turn from your evil ways; for why will you die, house of Israel?Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked? says the Lord Yahweh; and not rather that he should return from his way, and live?Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?
For I have no pleasure in the death of him who dies, says the Lord Yahweh: therefore turn yourselves, and live.For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
For he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men.For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.
Seek Yahweh while he may be found; call you on him while he is near:Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to Yahweh, and he will have mercy on him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Jesus wept over the ones who would not come
'Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to her! How often I would have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you would not!' Luke's account of the same lament says, 'you refused,' and Luke tells us that when Jesus came near the city He wept over it. He does not say their refusal was impossible; He says they would not. The same Lord says to others, 'Yet you will not come to me, that you may have life,' and explains the refusal from the human side: 'This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil.' Whatever we conclude about God's decree, Scripture never lets us say that the lost were kept out. They would not come.
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to her! How often I would have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you would not!O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, like a hen gathers her own brood under her wings, and you refused!O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!
When he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had known today the things which belong to your peace! But now, they are hidden from your eyes.And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
Yet you will not come to me, that you may have life.And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light, and doesn’t come to the light, lest his works would be exposed.And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
The command goes out to every person without exception
Paul stands in Athens and tells a pagan audience that God 'commands that all people everywhere should repent,' grounding it in a day He has fixed to judge the world. The risen Christ sends His church to 'all nations,' to 'preach the Good News to the whole creation,' with 'repentance and remission of sins' preached 'to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.' The invitation has no gate attached to it: 'the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich to all who call on him. For, whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.' The Bible's last invitation is its widest one: 'He who is thirsty, let him come. He who desires, let him take the water of life freely.' The desire of God and the offer of the gospel are real, and they are universal, and they are for you.
The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent, because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.”And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.
Go,and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
He said to them, “Go into all the world, and preach the Good News to the whole creation.And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich to all who call on him. For, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” He who hears, let him say, “Come!” He who is thirsty, let him come. He who desires, let him take the water of life freely.And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
Scripture uses 'the will of God' for two different things
Here is the distinction that makes the rest of the Bible fit together. Sometimes the will of God means what He commands and what pleases Him: 'this is the will of God: your sanctification,' 'this is the will of God, that by well-doing you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men,' and 'not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.' Sometimes the same phrase means what God has determined to do: 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.' 'Our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he pleases.' 'He does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and no one can stay his hand, or ask him, What are you doing?' Paul blesses God as the One 'who works all things after the counsel of his will.' Both are truly His will, and they are not the same list. So when Scripture says God desires all to be saved, it is telling us what He commands and what pleases Him, and it is telling us the truth. When Scripture says His counsel stands, it is telling us what He will certainly do, and that is true as well. Moses put the boundary in one verse: 'The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.'
For this is the will of God: your sanctification, that you abstain from sexual immorality,For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:
For this is the will of God, that by well-doing you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure;Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
But our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he pleases.But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and no one can stay his hand, or ask him, What are you doing?And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
in whom also we were assigned an inheritance, having been foreordained according to the purpose of him who works all things after the counsel of his will;In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.
So no one is lost because God refused them
Held together, these two truths protect us from two very different mistakes. The first is that God is indifferent to the lost, which Ezekiel and Luke and the whole missionary command forbid. The second is that anyone is lost because God shut the door, which Scripture forbids just as firmly: 'whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved,' and 'he who comes to me I will in no way throw out.' When Paul's own people refused the word, he did not say God had barred them; he said they 'judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life.' Scripture lays the loss at the feet of those who loved the darkness rather than the light. And at the same time it says that the coming itself is a gift: 'No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.' Nobody is condemned for lack of a real offer, and nobody is saved for lack of need.
For, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
All those whom the Father gives me will come to me. He who comes to me I will in no way throw out.All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, and said, “It was necessary that God’s word should be spoken to you first. Since indeed you thrust it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.
This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil.And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up in the last day.No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks after God.There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
Two readings, and what both of them confess
Christians have read these texts in two ways, and it is worth saying so plainly. Some conclude that God's desire to save all means the outcome turns entirely on the free response of each person, and that His grace can be, and often is, finally refused. Others conclude that God's desire declares what He commands and what pleases Him, while the drawing that actually saves is His own gift to whom He gives it, and that no one who is drawn is lost. We take the second, because Paul can spend three chapters on mercy and hardening and then refuse to explain it, ending instead in doxology: 'Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!' And because the same Bible that says God desires all to be saved also says, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,' and that we were saved 'not by works of righteousness, which we did ourselves, but according to his mercy.' What both readings confess is what matters for you: God takes no pleasure in your death, the offer that reached you is genuine, and no one who comes is turned away. If you want to be saved, that wanting did not begin with you, and it will not be refused.
who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth.Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you;And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out! “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” “Or who has first given to him, and it will be repaid to him again?” For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things. To him be the glory for ever! Amen.O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
For he said to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who has mercy.For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
not by works of righteousness, which we did ourselves, but according to his mercy, he saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
As you read, you may wonder…
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How can I be saved?→Jesus Christ trail“for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, that no one would boast.For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”Does God change His mind?→Suffering & God's Will trail““For I, Yahweh, don’t change; therefore you, sons of Jacob, are not consumed.For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.”Is there a second chance after death?→Our Hope trail“Inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once, and after this, judgment,And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”Why does God harden hearts?→God the Father trail“but indeed for this cause I have made you stand: to show you my power, and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth;And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.”We haven't written this one yet. Take it to your church or small group: the Word answers it wherever it is asked. If we study it here later, all the better.
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Verses to meditate on
Tell them, As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn, turn from your evil ways; for why will you die, house of Israel?Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets, and stones those who are sent to her! How often I would have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you would not!O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent,And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:
The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
All those whom the Father gives me will come to me. He who comes to me I will in no way throw out.All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
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