GOD’S FAITHFULNESS

“but God is faithful…” 1 Cor 10:13

As we get back to looking at Job’s experience, it is interesting to note at what time his wife gave her advice. Although we can’t be exactly sure how many days have passed since the two appearances of Satan before the Lord, we know that it was after the second appearance and before Job’s three friends appeared that she spoke. We may thus believe that it was sometime near the beginning of Job’s physical suffering. The Scripture teaches that God always makes a way of escape for His servants in times of temptation; and Job was being tempted to question God’s goodness, wisdom, and fairness. The spiritual path that Job was about to enter was a fruitless one; and a path that would lead to no destination, and would give no satisfaction. The only thing found on this path is discouragement, disillusionment, disbelief, despair, and death.

1 Cor 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

God often speaks in a still small voice; but if we are not listening, or if we do not receive into our hearts what He is saying, we will pay the consequences. How many times has a word from God came to you or me that would have saved us grief and pain?—but we dismissed it, choosing not to heed it, or even ponder it. Many a time in traveling somewhere, instead of going the same familiar way, a thought has come to me, ‘Go the other way today.’  Sometimes I heed the thought, never knowing what I may have avoided by doing so. Other times, in my haste, I dismissed the thought, and to my dismay found that I was stuck in traffic because of an accident or construction. Even so Job rejected his wife’s statement, passing it off as if it were coming from one of the “foolish women.” Job may have not sinned with “his lips,” but his heart certainly misjudged what his wife had said. The lesson here is that we should ponder everything that is said to us, especially when it comes from a fellow believer or from one who holds us dear and precious and is concerned about us. It may be that God Himself is speaking to us through them.

1 Kin 19:11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake:
12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?

Psa 81:11 But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me.
12 So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in their own counsels.
13 Oh that my people had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways!
14 I should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adversaries.

Job 2:10 But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

Prov 27:6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

The Parable of the Sower is most rightly applied in terms of how different people react to the Gospel and their subsequent fruitfulness or lack thereof. However, the lessons of the parable can also be applied to what we are presenting here in Job’s situation, and in having our ears attuned to hearing God’s voice.

Mark 4:2 And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,
3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:
4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

The Seed that fell by the wayside:

God often speaks and we do not hear because Satan causes us to dismiss what we have heard, or distracts us so that we do not meditate on what we have heard. Maybe we do not ponder what we have heard because it is not what we wanted to hear; or maybe we do not ponder what we have heard because we disagree with it. It is not something that we learned from momma, or our church, or our pastor, so it must be wrong. Maybe we hear what is said, but someone or something comes along that causes us to forget about what has been said, and we do not meditate on it.

Mark 4:14 The sower soweth the word.
15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.

Matt 13:15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

2 Cor 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

The Seed that fell on stony ground:

God speaks and we do not hear because our spiritual ears are not yet attuned to recognizing God’s voice. The seed that fell on stony ground are hearers that receive the Gospel with gladness. This seed represents those who are truly born-again as new life springs forth. However, because their spiritual roots are shallow, they faint when trials and persecutions come, and bring forth no fruit that is discernible. Likewise, the spiritual depth of many believers is so shallow that their senses have not been exercised to discern good and evil, or to recognize when God is speaking. Samuel was a young boy who was wholly dedicated to God; but when God spoke to him he did not recognize who it was and thought perhaps that Eli the priest was calling him. It was not until the more experienced priest understood what was happening and counseled Samuel, that he was able to respond to God. As believers, we are admonished to be rooted and grounded in Christ; we are to send our spiritual roots deeper into the depth of Gods Word; and grow in the grace and knowledge of Him. As a result we will have ears to hear and a heart that is trained to discern what God is saying.

Mark 4:16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended.

1 Sam 3:1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.
2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;
3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep;
4 That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.
5 And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down.
6 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.
7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.
8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.
9 Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.

Heb 5:13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

Eph 3:17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;

2 Pet 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

The Seed that fell among thorns:

Many believers, who are genuinely born-again, bear little fruit unto God because they get caught up with the things of this world. Even so, God’s voice does not penetrate our thoughts because we are caught up with the world and have little regard for the things of Christ. We do not hear because we are “careful and troubled about many things,” and we do not take the time to sit at the Master’s feet and listen. We may hear, but we do not ponder on what we have heard, because it may interfere with our worldly pursuits and cause discomfort to our hearts. We may sense that we are being confronted by God about our spiritual state or to make a decision about whether to obey Christ our not; but we would much rather just sit on the fence. We are comfortable being “lukewarm” in our Christianity—neither on fire for Christ, but not guilty of being cold toward Him either. We enjoy our church—the people, the singing, and the fellowship dinners—just as long as we don’t have to be “too committed” to anything, or it doesn’t interfere with what we really want to do.

Mark 4:18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.

2 Tim 4:10 For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

Luke 10:38 Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.
40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.
41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:
42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Matt 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

The Seed that fell on good ground:

The one who truly benefits from hearing God’s voice is the one who is praying to hear Him speak, listening for, and expecting to hear His voice. This is the one whose ground is rich. It has great depth in the Word of God; his heart has been broken up—plowed—and is ready to hear God’s voice. The soil of this believer’s mind will mediate upon God’s Word and ponder what he reads. He will carefully listen to the preaching of God’s Word in order to hear what God may be saying to him. This believer will humbly contemplate on what others may say to him—if perchance God may be speaking. The living water of the Holy Spirit, which causes the seed to spring forth, will also cause this believer to grow and bring forth much fruit. This one’s daily walk will abound in fruitfulness, praise, and thanksgiving to God—whose faithfulness to him is “new every morning.”

Mark 4:20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.

Col 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Hos 10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

John 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

Psa 1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

Lam 3:22 It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
25 The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

What might we say were the reasons Job did not hear God’s message through his wife? Undoubtedly, the emotional pain of losing his children, the physical pain of his disease, and the worries and fears of losing all his possessions, must have consumed much of his thoughts. Therefore, the words of his wife seemed to be not much more than an irritation to him. Pain and suffering cause us to be ill-tempered, even to those who are trying to help us. It is often hard to be rational when our bodies are being racked by pain or we are suffering emotionally.

Job 2: 9 Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.
10 But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

Job 30:16 And now my soul is poured out upon me; the days of affliction have taken hold upon me.
17 My bones are pierced in me in the night season: and my sinews take no rest.
18 By the great force of my disease is my garment changed: it bindeth me about as the collar of my coat.

Another reason Job failed to hear, was the troubling thoughts he was beginning to have about God, and the bitterness that was beginning to build-up within him. As we have already studied, Job was getting past the shock of all that had happened and was now entering the anger stage of the grief process. Up to this point, Job had not “charged God foolishly,” nor “did not Job sin with his lips”; but what was going on in his heart was a different matter, and it was beginning to consume most of the resources he had left. When anger and frustration begin to take over our thoughts, there is little room left to contemplate what God may be saying.

Job 1:22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.

Job 6:1 But Job answered and said,
2 Oh that my grief were throughly weighed, and my calamity laid in the balances together!
3 For now it would be heavier than the sand of the sea: therefore my words are swallowed up.
4 For the arrows of the Almighty are within me, the poison whereof drinketh up my spirit: the terrors of God do set themselves in array against me.

Furthermore, Job did not hear because the message was not something he wanted to hear. Human pride often stands in the doorway of our minds and refuses to let God’s voice be heard. Throughout the Bible God is always faithful to warn His people of impending judgment; but the message is often disregarded because it is not something they want to hear. For Job too give up his integrity, when his integrity was the most important thing in his life, was to him absolutely absurd. To curse God, when his piety was all he had left, was totally unreasonable to him. To give up and die, when all his life he had been a fighter and struggled against the forces of sin and death, was unacceptable, even in his intense pain. Job loved his life; he loved the admiration of others, his place in society, and the comforts of wealth that he once enjoyed. He still retained the hope that God would justify him and restore him to his former estate; and he was not ready to throw in the towel.

2 Kin 17:13 Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
14 Notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their necks, like to the neck of their fathers, that did not believe in the LORD their God.

2 Chr 36:15 And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:
16 But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

Job 27:1 Moreover Job continued his parable, and said,
2 As God liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath vexed my soul;
3 All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;
4 My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit.
5 God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me.
6 My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

Job 29:1 Moreover Job continued his parable, and said,
2 Oh that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me;
3 When his candle shined upon my head, and when by his light I walked through darkness;
4 As I was in the days of my youth, when the secret of God was upon my tabernacle;
5 When the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were about me;

God, in His mercy, was ready to restore Job; but He was not going to do so before His refining work was accomplished. God was not insensitive to the suffering of this dear servant, but longed to release him from his pain. He had given to Job, through Job’s dearest friend and lifelong companion—His wife—the message that Job needed to hear; but Job had utterly disregarded what she said. He rejected the “way of escape,” and chose instead to continue to struggle to maintain “his integrity” and self-righteousness. Therefore, God had no other choice but to allow Job’s suffering to continue. As we have already said, pain is a wake-up call that something is wrong; and as a child of God we should be looking and listening for a message from God when troubles come. Sadly, however, like Job, we go on in our own ways, refusing to listen and examine our lives. We begin to murmur and complain that God is not fair, and that He doesn’t really love us, when it is His love that has allowed us to suffer for our greater good. He allowed the suffering of His own Son upon the cross that we might receive the message that He does love us; that something is terribly wrong in our lives; and that we are headed for disaster if we do not heed the message.

Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Police officers put up a sign for our own safety, such as—THE BRIDGE IS OUT. We can, by our own volition, disregard or disobey the sign—which in itself does not cause our death, but going off the bridge does. God gave a message to Job, for Job’s benefit, and Job continued to suffer because he did not heed it. God gave a warning to Adam in the Garden, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Disregarding God’s message, in itself, did not cause Adam’s death, but partaking of the forbidden fruit did; and his act brought to Adam, and all of mankind, a lifetime of suffering. God had a sign put up over His crucified Son, “THIS IS JESUS OF NAZARETH, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS,” that the Jewish people might have no excuse for not knowing that this was their Messiah; that the One hanging upon this cross was their long awaited King; that this One, who is suffering, bleeding, and dying for sinners, was their Saviour too. Israel, as a whole, would not heed the sign; and for generations the people of that nation have suffered as no other people have ever suffered. They were dispersed from their own land and have been persecuted, hated, and despised wherever they journeyed.

Gen 2:16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Matt 27:37 And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Mark 15:26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Luke 23:38 And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

John 19:19 And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.

John 19:14 And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!
15 But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priest answered, We have no king but Caesar.

Matt 27:22 Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.
23 And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.
24 When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.
25 Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.

Deut 28:64 And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.
65 And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:
66 And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life:
67 In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.

Eze 18:31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.

Will we ponder God’s message to us? Will we take the time to meditate upon our lives and upon eternity? God has given us a Word for our good—“obey… the gospel.” If we do not heed it, we will find that when the road of our life comes to an end, that there is a great eternal pit into which we will fall. There our suffering will never end; and no one, not even God, will help us then.

2 The 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

Rev 9:2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

Prov 1:20 Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:
21 She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,
22 How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?
23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.
24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.
28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:
30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.
31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.
32 For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.
33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

Although God’s children do not fear eternal damnation—knowing that He will never leave us nor forsake us—we are not excused us from taking heed to His voice. The nation of Israel, who were God’s chosen people, refused to hear His voice and suffered the chastening hand of God for doing so. So we, as believers, will not escape the rod of God and a lifetime of suffering for refusing to listen when He speaks. We not only bring upon ourselves the rewards of our rebellion, but those around us whom we love, our spouses, our children, our friends, and our brothers and sisters in Christ, all suffer along with us. Job’s obstinance not only prolonged his suffering, but his wife’s also. Even his friends, who became embroiled in his controversy with God, came under the judgment of God. Wherefore, “to day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Rom 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.
34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Isa 28:12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.

Isa 30:15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.

Jer 13:10 This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing.
11 For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.

Jer 29:19 Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the LORD, which I sent unto them by my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith the LORD.

Zech 7:11 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.
12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.
13 Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:

Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

Heb 10:30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.