THE LORD HAS REMEMBERED YOU

To remember means to recall from one’s memory; to have an image in one’s memory. To keep in mind, be mindful of Remember what I’ve said.

To not forget (to do something required).

Gen 8:1 KJV And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged;

The above incident occurred 150days after the flood that destroyed all the inhabitants of the earth: mankind, animals and every living creature you can ever think about were totally swept away by the torrents of rain and flood. However, Noah and his family with selected living things were saved in the ark. They were there all the while the flood was raging the earth. God Himself shut them in according to Gen 7:16. I think there are some confinement that are divinely arranged for our good. This was meant for their protection and propagation. Can I pray for you that on the day of calamity may you be divinely protected in Jesus name.

He might begin to think that God had forgotten him, having not heard from God for five months together, and also not seeing how he could possibly escape. He had been. whole year in the ark; and now was ready to groan like any other human.

The text we read above says that God remembered Noah and all the occupants of the ark. Question. Does God forget people or things like we humans do? Does He has that kind of ability? What does the Bible mean when it says, “God remembered?”

The Hebrew word used for remembered in that text is “zâkar” and according to Thayer lexicon dictionary, it means: recall, call to mind,

to remember, recall, to be brought to remembrance, be remembered, be thought of, be brought to mind, to mention and to record.

The Strong exhaustive dictionary defined it as: properly to mark (so as to be recognized), that is, to remember; by implication to mention be mindful, recount, record (-er), remember, make to be remembered, bring (call, come, keep, put). It iis from the from a root signifying to prick, pierce, or print, e.g., upon the memory; hence to remember

The expression is an anthropopathism designed to indicate the Divine compassion as well as grace

The Hebrew word translated “remembered” often carries the sense of acting in accordance with what is remembered, i.e., fulfilling covenant promises

Sometimes when we are in difficulty and in an unpleasant situation in life, we feel like God has abandoned us and forgotten about our case. Many times when we pray and it seems that the answer is delayed, we will be thinking that probably God has forgotten us. Such was the thinking of Zion after being in captivity for a long time but God said he has not forgotten her.

As we study the scripture we discover many that actually forgot their own benefactors, their own people and people that have done one thing or the other for them.

When Chief Butler was leaving the prison, Joseph pleaded with him to remember him but the Bible expressly says that the man did not remember Joseph and it was two years after that he was able to make mention of Joseph in King Pharaoh’s palace.

Gen 40:23 KJV Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him.

Ahasuerus did not reward Mordecai immediately when he got to know about the plot to assassinate him by his servants. The plot was made known by Mordeccai but nothing was done for him.

Est 2:21-23 KJV 21 In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king’s gate, two of the king’s chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 22 And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen; and Esther certified the king thereof in Mordecai’s name. 23 And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out; therefore they were both hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the chronicles before the king.

Many days and months had gone by when by divine grace of God Mordeccai was remembered. It was the very night when he was to be put to death that his time of remembrance came.

Est 6:1-3 KJV 1 On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king. 2 And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 3 And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him.

Haman was coming to get permission to kill Mordeccai but he got much more than he bargained for. God used that occasion to promote Mordeccai.

The book of Ecclesiates tells us a profound story of a poor man.

Ecc 9:15 KJV Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.

After the deliverance that was done through the wisdom of the poor man, nobody remembered him again.

Gideon risked his life and with few men at his disposal delivered the children of Israel from the Midianites who were plundering them and making them to be poor but after his death, the same children of Israel that he delivered did not remember him. They didn’t even remember God.

Jdg 8:34-35 KJV 34 And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side: 35 Neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.

Such is man. We forget easily especially after enjoying the blessings and new needs arises., we tend to forget the goodness of God we had enjoyed not too long and we begin to feel as if He had never done anything for us before now. It was on the basis of this that the Psalmist says in Psalm 103 that we should not forget His benefits.

Psa 103:2 KJV Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

But God is not like man. We use to apply certain human emotions to God. This is what they call anthropopathism. But God is not like us.

Isa 49:14-16 KJV 14 But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. 15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. 16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

It is most unlikely and unthinkable that a woman will ever forget the baby she gave birth to and will not give her breast milk. But God says they may forget and truly they do. There have been many cases of abandoned children who are now residents of orphanage homes.  But God says well, human beings are like that they may forget all they passed through in the course of pregnancy but He said emphatically that he will not forget us. And to prove that He said we are engraved upon the palms of his hands. That is mind blowing.

The book of Hebrew in the New Testament gives us this beautiful attribute of God.

Heb 13:5 KJV 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.

The Greek word, “i will never” is very important to us as we study the Bible. Five negations, ‘I will never, no never, no never forsake,’ give strength to the assurance. This is a promise tantamount to this was given to Jacob (Ge 28:15), to Israel (Deu 31:6; Deu 31:8), to Joshua (Jos 1:5), to Solomon (1Ch 28:20). It is therefore like a divine adage. What was said to them, extends also to us. He will neither withdraw His presence (“never leave thee”) nor His help (“nor forsake thee”)

What Paul was saying in this place is that all the promises of divine presence and protection made to the patriarch are applicable to us believers today even though our circumstances are not the same. Because of this we can say boldly:

Heb 13:6 KJV So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

I like putting the two verses together and it reads like his:

“for he had said that we may boldly say”

When the Bible says God remembered Noah. This does not mean that God forgot Noah until this time. It means that at this time God acted to help Noah. and God may be said particularly to remember him, when he sends comfort then he shows that he remembers them, when he showeth his care of us, and makes good his promise to us. 

As proof that God remembered the lonely inmates of the ark, he at once takes steps to accomplish their deliverance when he begins to take measures for removing the waters from the earth, as he did by sending a wind. And thus God’s helping his people when in difficulties and in distress, and delivering out of them, is called his remembrance of them. The wind dried up the water and paved the way for the Ark to come to stability to enable the occupants to alight from it.

It is not Noah alone that the Bible mentioned as being remembered by God. There were other people and I would like to share some things that the scriptures say about them.

When God was about to destroy the twin cities ofSodom and Gomorha, the Bible says He remembered Abraham. Why did God have to remember Abraham after all he was not living there? It was his nephew Lot that was dwelling in Sodom. That is the exact reason why God remembered Abraham.

Gen 19:29 KJV And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.

The question is what did God remembered about Abraham that made Him to sent Lot out of the furnace? God disclosed to Abraham what He was about to do because of the evils been perpetrated in Sodom Gen 18: 17-18. When Abraham got wind of that, he went to work and intercede for Sodom.

Gen 18:23-33 KJV 23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? 25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? 26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. 27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes: 28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it. 29 And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty’s sake. 30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there. 31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty’s sake. 32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake. 33 And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.

Many Biible scholars believed that if Abraham had not cut off his speaking with God at ten and had persisted to two to five, it is mostlikely that may be Sodommight have been spared after all, LOt and his family were there and for their sakes the city might have been spared. The “righteous” Abraham was referring to couldn’t be other than Lot and his family.

So because of his intrecession, God remembered rescued Lot. Because of you and your intercession, god will rescued people, family members and loved ones.

Gen 30:22 KJV And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.

She began to think that God had forgotten her, because she was so long suspended, and her prayers not answered. But God hearkened unto her prayers after she was rebuffed by Jacob in Gen 30: 2. it appears that she sought God by prayer, and that he heard her; so that her prayer and faith obtained what her impatience and unbelief had prevented. the prove that God remembered her is when God toook step to open her womb and she conceived.

Exo 6:5 KJV And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant.

The children of Israel had been in Egypt for a very long time and had been afflicted by the task masters of Egypt. They groan and sigh because of the oppression  they were facing and God told the man He had chosen to be their deliverer that He has remembered the covenant. The covenant concerning bringing them out of Egypt into the land of Canaan, which he would quickly do, and thereby make it appear he was mindful of his covenant, which is indeed never forgotten by him, though it may seem to be.

“God is not unfaithful to forget your work and labour of love,” says the apostle. Heb 6:10 And there is “a book of remembrance written before him,” saith the prophet, “for them that fear the Lord”. Mal 3:16. This is a metaphor from kings that commonly keep. calendar or chronicle of such as have done them good service: as Ahasuerus, Est 6:1. God also is said to have such a book of remembrance. Not that he hath so, or needeth to have; for all things, both past and future, are present with him: he hath the idea of them within himself, and every thought is before his eyes, so that he cannot be forgetful.

 We also are said to be his “remembrancers” Isa 62:6 when we plead his promise, and press him to performance. Not that we persuade him thereby to do us good, but we persuade our own hearts to have more faith, love, obedience, and thereby we become more capable of that good.

A creature”s love may fail, (Isa 49:15 ) a creature”s watchfulness may faint, but not God”s. He made us; can he forget our wants? His purpose is our salvation; will he neglect any step? He gave his own Son for us; is anything else too great for his goodness? Not even your coldness and unbelief can make him cease to care