2 Important Facts About Destiny in the Bible

2 Important Facts About Destiny in the Bible

In this post, I will share 2 important facts about destiny in the bible.

What does the bible say about destiny? Has this question ever crossed your mind, and if it has what was your finding? 

What is Destiny?

Often times people ask the question, what is destiny? Growing up, the topic of what destiny is and whether it can be changed or influenced always generated hot debates. I remember listening to radio programs about this interesting topic of destiny.

Some people believe that destiny cannot be changed while others strongly believe that destiny can be changed.

Destiny is a series of events or circumstances that can happen to an individual either now or in the future. These events are often described as unchangeable and it is deemed that the individual has no control over them. But we shall see that it is possible to take our destiny in our own hands.

What Does the Bible Say About Destiny?

God is Sovereign and He Determines our Destiny

God told Jeremiah that he was ordained as a prophet even before he was formed in the womb. 

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:4-5 (NKJV)

And the Psalmist acknowledged God’s perfect knowledge of man and His predestination when he wrote;

¹⁶ Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them. Psalms 139:16 (NKJV)

It is evident from the bible verse above that God predetermines our destiny even when we were unformed in our mother’s womb.

Related: Tips for Setting Spiritual Goals

To further corroborate the fact that God pre-determines our destiny, we read about God’s response to Rebekah when she inquired of Him; 

… Rebekah his wife conceived. ²² But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” So she went to inquire of the LORD.

And the LORD said to her: “Two nations are in your womb, Two peoples shall be separated from your body; One people shall be stronger than the other, And the older shall serve the younger.” Genesis 25:21-23 (NKJV)

Before the twins Esau and Jacob were born at all, God revealed their destiny to their mother Rebekah. That one will be stronger than the other and the elder shall serve the younger.

I wrote more about this encounter in the post on bible verses to encourage a praying mother.  If you’re out of steam and need encouragement to pray for your children, read the post.

And so we see that God pre-determined the destiny of the twins and declared that the elder will serve the younger. And it was so.

God Can Change a Man / Woman’s Destiny

God can change the destiny of a man/woman, but not only that, He can change the destiny of a whole nation.

There are examples throughout the bible of how God changed the destiny of the Israelites each time they sinned against Him. 

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For example, He told the children of Israel through the prophet Jeremiah to desist from sin else they will be taken captive. 

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. ⁴ Do not trust in deceptive words and say, “This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD!” ⁵ If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, ⁶ if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, ⁷ then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. Jeremiah 7:3-7 (NIV)

But they did not heed God’s warning.

And because they refused to heed His warning, God gave them over to Nebuchadnezzar who banished them from their land. Therefore they became exiles in Babylon and God changed their destiny to be that of exiles for seventy years.

This much was communicated to the Israelites through the letter written by the prophet Jeremiah;

⁴ This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: ⁵ “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. ⁶ Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. ⁷ Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” ⁸ Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. ⁹ They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the LORD. ¹⁰ This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. Jeremiah 29:4-10 (NKJV)

God’s original plan/destiny for the Israelites was that they will continually dwell in the land he gave their ancestors. A land flowing with milk and honey. But every time they sinned and went whoring after other gods, God changed their destiny. 

Just as we see in the above bible verses that God amended their destiny. He amended their destiny to include being exiled for seventy years.

Our choices can affect our destiny and change the course of our lives. Click to read 2 important facts I gleaned about destiny in the bible. #destiny #fate #teacupclub Click To Tweet

Conclusion – Your Choices Can Affect Your Destiny 

The choices we make can affect our destiny either for good or for bad. God has a good destiny for every human being He created but it’s all dependent on our choices. 

We see in the above story of the Israelites that by choosing to live in sin and refusing to repent, their destiny was altered.

We will look at the second part of this topic in my next post. And review a biblical example of someone who had a destiny shift based on their choices.

If you’ve been blessed please like, share, and comment to let me know. And if you have a question(s), please ask away.

Shalom!