Feelings of rejection by God may be a result of alienation caused directly or indirectly by sin. God's people also experience rejection by a hostile world. Experiences and feelings of rejection are to be met with prayer, forgiveness and perseverance, together with confidence in God's commitment to and compassion for, his people. Passages gathered in the Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin H. Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Relevance Score
10%
Why have You rejected us forever, O God? Why does Your anger smolder against the sheep of Your pasture?
Have You not rejected us, O God? Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies?
Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God"?
But if you do not listen, I will weep in secret because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears, because the LORD's flock has been taken captive.
Why are You like a man taken by surprise, like a warrior powerless to save? Yet You are among us, O LORD, and we are called by Your name. Do not forsake us!
She weeps aloud in the night, with tears upon her cheeks. Among all her lovers there is no one to comfort her. All her friends have betrayed her; they have become her enemies.
Then He said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look, they are saying, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.'
How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
At the ninth hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.
For You are the God of my refuge. Why have You rejected me? Why must I walk in sorrow because of the enemy's oppression?
"Look," they said, "you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king to judge us like all the other nations." But when they said, "Give us a king to judge us," their demand was displeasing in the sight of Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. And the LORD said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king.
"I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of Hosts," he replied, "but the Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I am the only one left, and they are seeking my life as well."
Then Elijah said to the people, "I am the only remaining prophet of the LORD, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.
Now Ahab told Jezebel everything that Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like the lives of those you killed!" And Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself traveled on a day's journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers."
But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they sneer and shake their heads: "He trusts in the LORD, let the LORD deliver him; let the LORD rescue him, since He delights in him."
I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind. I am like a broken vessel. For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.
Insults have broken my heart, and I am in despair. I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found no one.
Woe to me, my mother, that you have borne me, a man of strife and conflict in all the land. I have neither lent nor borrowed, yet everyone curses me.
You have deceived me, O LORD, and I was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. I am a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me. For whenever I speak, I cry out; I proclaim violence and destruction. For the word of the LORD has become to me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, "I will not mention Him or speak any more in His name," His message becomes a fire burning in my heart, shut up in my bones, and I become weary of holding it in, and I cannot prevail.
Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me never be blessed. Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, saying, "A son is born to you," bringing him great joy.
Why did I come out of the womb to see only trouble and sorrow, and to end my days in shame?
But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man.
I have given them Your word and the world has hated them; for they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
The Jews, however, incited the religious women of prominence and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their district.
Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won over the crowds. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, presuming he was dead.
The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered that they be stripped and beaten with rods.
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial that has come upon you, as though something strange were happening to you.
O LORD God, do not reject Your anointed one. Remember Your loving devotion to Your servant David."
Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation.
Yet You brought me forth from the womb; You made me secure at my mother's breast. From birth I was cast upon You; from my mother's womb You have been my God. Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.
But You, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me. Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of wild dogs. Save me from the mouth of the lion; at the horns of the wild oxen You have answered me!
Wake up, O Lord! Why are You sleeping? Arise! Do not reject us forever. Why do You hide Your face and forget our affliction and oppression?
Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.
"Will the Lord spurn us forever and never show His favor again? Is His loving devotion gone forever? Has His promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has His anger shut off His compassion?" Selah So I said, "I am grieved that the right hand of the Most High has changed." I will remember the works of the LORD; yes, I will remember Your wonders of old. I will reflect on all You have done and ponder Your mighty deeds.
You understand, O LORD; remember me and attend to me. Avenge me against my persecutors. In Your patience, do not take me away. Know that I endure reproach for Your honor.
O LORD of Hosts, who examines the righteous, who sees the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.
Restore us to Yourself, O LORD, so we may return; renew our days as of old, unless You have utterly rejected us and remain angry with us beyond measure.
Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up His garments by casting lots.
'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I beg you, please forgive the transgression and sin of your brothers, for they did you wrong.' So now, Joseph, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." When their message came to him, Joseph wept.
While they were stoning him, Stephen appealed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Falling on his knees, he cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
At my first defense, no one stood with me, but everyone deserted me. May it not be charged against them.
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For their fathers treated the prophets in the same way.
The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.
Not only that, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
"We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name," he said. "Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us responsible for this man's blood." But Peter and the other apostles replied, "We must obey God rather than men.
Every day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.
"Can a woman forget her nursing child, or lack compassion for the son of her womb? Even if she could forget, I will not forget you! Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are ever before Me.
Is not Ephraim a precious son to Me, a delightful child? Though I often speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore My heart yearns for him; I have great compassion for him," declares the LORD.
Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in Him."
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son. But the more I called Israel, the farther they departed from Me. They sacrificed to the Baals and burned incense to carved images. It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them in My arms, but they never realized that it was I who healed them. I led them with cords of kindness, with ropes of love; I lifted the yoke from their necks and bent down to feed them.
And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
For the Lord will not cast us off forever. Even if He causes grief, He will show compassion according to His abundant loving devotion.
For the LORD will vindicate His people and have compassion on His servants when He sees that their strength is gone and no one remains, slave or free.
O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, for with the LORD is loving devotion, and with Him is redemption in abundance. And He will redeem Israel from all iniquity.
In that day you will say: "O LORD, I will praise You. Although You were angry with me, Your anger has turned away, and You have comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. For the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and He also has become my salvation."
Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; break forth in song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people, and He will have compassion on His afflicted ones.
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Now I will restore Jacob from captivity and will have compassion on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for My holy name.
How could I give you up, O Ephraim? How could I surrender you, O Israel? How could I make you like Admah? How could I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart is turned within Me; My compassion is stirred! I will not execute the full fury of My anger; I will not turn back to destroy Ephraim. For I am God and not man— the Holy One among you— and I will not come in wrath.
So instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him.
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching out. He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall. But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message would be fully proclaimed, and all the Gentiles would hear it. So I was delivered from the mouth of the lion.
I offered My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who tore out My beard. I did not hide My face from scorn and spittle. Because the Lord GOD helps Me, I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set My face like flint, and I know that I will not be put to shame. The One who vindicates Me is near. Who will dare to contend with Me? Let us confront each other! Who has a case against Me? Let him approach Me! Surely the Lord GOD helps Me. Who is there to condemn Me? See, they will all wear out like a garment; the moths will devour them.
No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their vindication is from Me," declares the LORD.
I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us.
But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory.
Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will suffer tribulation for ten days. Be faithful even unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
strengthening the souls of the disciples and encouraging them to continue in the faith. "We must endure many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said.
in purity, knowledge, patience, and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left;