ISAIAH 55: 6&7
"6 Seek, inquire for, and require the Lord while He may be found [claiming Him by necessity and by right]; call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have love, pity, and mercy for him, and to our God, for He will multiply to him His abundant pardon." (AMPC)
The fact that these two verses are next to each other in scripture indicate they are connected. I have this beautiful image of seeking the Lord, and in the process of inquiry, the wicked heart is moved to forsake that which is unrighteous. As this happens, and as God "multiplies his abundant pardon", we become more united with Him: there is more of Him to be found.
God suddenly becomes bigger, grander, deeper, and so you seek more, inquire more, and in that process, shed more unrighteousness. And then God multiplies himself again. And the spiral inwards toward union with Him continues on and on, deeper with each inquiry, with each sin that falls away. Yes, repentance is directly connected to his "Abundant Pardon." But let the pardon not just be the gift of salvation - let is be the gift of relationship as well.
I like how this Amplified version says that it is a necessity and a RIGHT to claim Him. This reminds me of God's covenant with Abraham. God promised to multiply His abundance through Abraham. It is ours to claim, by right! And though, through Christ, it is given freely, and though God keeps his covenant with us even when we break our half of the agreement, He always welcomes us to return to Him again, and again.
Seek, Forsake, Return.
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