Repentance in pretence

“And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.” - Jeremiah 3v10

Israel had already suffered God’s wrath. He had dispersed her to nations for her sin. Sadly, Judah was going down the same track, but she had gone through all the motions of repentance. God knew their hearts though, they had gone through all the motions, but had really done nothing about their sin. They had repented “feignedly,” or “in pretence,” but not with their whole heart.

It is easy for us to sit back and judge Judah. “Shame on them for trying to fool God. Don’t they know He can’t be tricked?” Yet, how often do we do the same thing? We read something in our devotions or hear something in church and we go through the routine of doing something about, but we never really have a change in our hearts. We swear that we are going to do better, but don’t deal with the root of the problem, which is sourced in our wicked hearts.
When God convicts us of sin, may we let the repentance be genuine, from the heart – the kind of repentance that results in real change, and not only a temporary turning away.