Verse 3
If so be they will hearken ,.... And obey; which is expressive not of ignorance and conjecture in God, but of his patience and long suffering, granting space and time for repentance, and the means of it; which disregarded, leave without excuse:
and turn every man from his evil way ; his series and course of life, which was evil, and was the case of everyone; so that as their sin was general, the reformation ought to be so too:
that I may repent me of the evil which I purpose to do unto them ; or "am thinking", or "devising F4 אשר אנכי חשב "quod ego (sum) cogitans", Schmidt. to do unto them"; which repentance must be understood not of a change of mind, but of the course of his providence towards them, which, by his threatenings, and some steps taken, portended ruin and destruction; yet, in case of repentance and reformation, he would change his method of action agreeably to his will:
because of the evil of their doings ; this was the reason why he had threatened them with the evil of punishment, because of the evil of their actions; which were breaches of his law, and such as provoked the eyes of his glory.
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