And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel. 1 Samuel 15:35
I'm not sure there are any more convicting words in the Old Testament to me than the ones contained in 1 Samuel 15. Twice in just 35 verses God says that he regretted making Saul king over Israel.
I do not picture God as someone who regrets anything. He is God. Almighty. All-powerful. All-knowing. Complete. How can He regret? And why would He regret? For me, the idea of God regretting what He had done is just too hard to understand on human terms. I can think of my own regrets in life. I regret eating too much. I regret losing friendships. I regret saying the wrong thing. I regret doing something to disappoint family a friends. I regret the things I never did.
But for God to regret something as big as making Saul the King of Israel? That's huge. That speaks volumes to the way Saul disobeyed and did not trust God. He was told exactly what to do, but He didn't do it. He let his men dictate his actions instead of his God, and the result was tragic. Not only had he led his men poorly and served as a poor king, He had done something that made God regret Him.
I don't know about you, but my fervent prayer every day is that I would never be in that position. I know that I will often fall short and I know that I will often fail, but I hope and pray that I will never do anything that makes God regret.