Tardy Repentance

May 29th, 2026
by Lance Waldie

Hebrews 12:15-17 …that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it with tears.

Hebrews 12:15 teaches that it is the responsibility of all Christians to look out for each other and monitor ungodly behavior. We are to make sure, insofar as we are able, that unbelievers and Christians in our midst do not fall short of the grace of God. No one should observe us and yet fail to see Christ. Christian behavior involves deeds in keeping with peaceful relations, growing in holiness, and keeping an eye on those with divisive attitudes, leading to a root of bitterness.

As such, Christians are to help themselves (vv. 12-13) by confessing their sins, reading Scripture (thus feeding their souls), and committing to regular church attendance in a Christ-honoring, Bible-teaching church (cf. 10:25). They are also to look out for one another (vv. 14-15), strengthening one another by encouraging grace and forgiveness—peace with all. And for the love of all things holy, they are not to become entangled in the sins of pornos and bebelos—immorality and godlessness (v. 16) like that of Esau. Though sexual sin finds its way into the church from time to time, it cannot be tolerated. Many a church has fallen by ignoring it.

In v. 17 the writer appealed to Genesis 27:30-40 where Esau later regretted his decision to sell his birthright. Having realized his error in judgment, and even though he “desired to inherit the blessing” reserved for the firstborn son, what he had done could not be undone. Although he sought this blessing with tears, he was rejected because there was no place for repentance. Now this could be taken in one of two ways. On one hand, it could be said that what Esau did was like a person losing his or her virginity. Once it is gone it can never be regained. So although God forgives, the sin itself has lifelong ramifications. For Esau, he lost his birthright and could never regain it. But his sin was certainly forgivable by the grace of God.

More accurately, Esau was simply an “immoral” and “godless” person who desired God’s blessing but not God. Notice he did not regret his actions until it was time to receive the blessing. His regret was thus too late. He willfully despised his God-given birthright for a single meal, and though he was later sorry for the consequences of his actions, he never repented of his actions. If he indeed sought forgiveness, and we hope he did, God would have granted it! But, like David (cf. 2 Sam. 12:9-11), he would have to live with the consequences of his sin. He could finish his race faithfully as David did, but the consequences of his sin would always haunt him.

Sadly, there will be many in the eternal fires of hell who are just like Esau (cf. Heb. 6:4-8; 10:26). They will cry with regret over the consequences of their sins, but they will find no place for repentance because they do not truly regret their sin, only the consequences. Regret of sin, yes, but regret that is far too late and for all the wrong reasons.

Food For Thought
No Christian who has committed sexual sins, either before coming to Christ or after, commends such behavior. Everyone who has repented of their selfish unbelief knows that sexual and physical appetites, when given free rein, will ruin us and certainly hinder our Christian race. The grace of repentance is always available of course, but what we lose in our rebellion can often never be regained. The consequences of sin are never worth a quick fix, never worth the cost. Christians therefore have many things for which to be cautious. We might like to be around men like Esau—down-to-earth hunters and fishermen, but godless people are not worth our time, unless we’re sharing Christ with them. We cannot tolerate their behavior in our churches. Jesus spoke very strongly about dealing with those sinful people (cf. Rev. 2:14-17; 3:20).