Re:Verse reading–Judges 13:1-5, 14:1-9, 16:1-30 (day five)
Judges 16:20- “But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him”.
Questions that come to mind are: 1) I thought God was omnipresent, How can He leave someone? 2) Hasn’t God promised He would never leave us?
We must distinguish between is the Omnipresence of God, the Covenant Presence of God, and the Manifest Presence of God.
The omnipresence of God never changes. He is present and therefore near to everyone and everything for all of time.
The covenant presence of God never changes, for those who have a covenant relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. God is faithful to His Covenant promises to never leave or abandon His children.
God does withdraw is His sweet fellowship (Manifest Presence), which is accompanied by a conscious sense of His power and nearness. Often (as is the case with Samson, Israel, and us), the cause is sin and rebellion against God.
So maybe the Prayer of David in Psalm 51 helps us understand, “Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.”
