Both

Re:Verse passage – Jeremiah 29:10–14 (day four)

There are some who believe God to be like a watchmaker – he sets the “watch” or the world in motion, and then walks away. No longer intimately involved in the world or in our lives, he simply allows time to tick on. Then there are some who think of God more like a character in Greek mythology – constantly meddling in human affairs for their own gain and getting caught up in earthly drama, punishing his people when he has a bad day. Passages like this remind us that neither of these theories are true.

Our God’s character is unlike any other. Only Yahweh is both holy and loving, omniscient and intimate, just and merciful. Only he can stand as Lord of Lords and creator of all the earth while also speaking kindly to the specific circumstances of his people. Only he can exist in perfect holiness while turning his face to sinful people, offering hope and restoration and wanting to be found by them.

Our God is intimate enough to set hopeful plans for us, and he is powerful enough to see them to completion.