The very first mention of the word repent is God repenting that he had made man on the earth.
Genesis 6:6 And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
And man is made in his image . God doesn’t “ need “ to repent but he does repent by his nature of goodness and mercy . If you notice in tbat first mention of repentance by God it is mans sin and violence against one another and the state of mankind’s sinful hearts and minds , that causes God to grieve for creating them and then repent and decide to destroy them all because of thier sin and wickedness not his own
it shows a connection between mankind’s action on earth and Gods heart in heaven as he watches what we do with the earth and life he gave to us we caused God to grieve and
repent for creating man on earth
man needs to repent for our own sin , God repented
because of our sinand what it causes in earth and mankind’s nature
“And
GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
And
the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air;
for it repenteth me that I have made them.”
Genesis 6:5-7 KJV
this is literally God grieving because of what mankind , who he had created for life and good , had become now just ten generations after eating the fruit in eaten and having its deadly knowledge of good and evil in conflict.
And this then
causes him to repent and change course to destroy man that he had created because tbey had become wicked and corrupt at heart free Will plus good and evil doesn’t bring man to life but to death. The knowledge of Gods word is what man is created for the knowledge of Christ in the gospel that gives us life eternal by his promises to believers
But instead mankind partakes of good and evil and dies as God foretold in Eden.
And now the good and evil has corrupted thier minds and hearts so that they now do violence and kill and harm and abuse everything and everyone else God has created for love and peace and paradise to dwell with us in the body of Christ in earth instead we made it a world of corruption and violence where the ones who do right , are victimized the weak and helpless are used and abused
“And
God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all
flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And
God said unto Noah,
The end of all flesh is come before me; for
the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
Genesis 6:12-13
We are a really important part of Gods creation in that he’s made us to be the people he will spend eternity with but man corrupted everything by sin and this then caused God to repent over creating man in earth because we corrupted his very good creation
But in many ways he’s made everything for mankind in Christ Jesus so he can dwell forever with us in a perfect world eventually. Instead of us men having possession like in tbe ot
“The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's: But the earth hath he given to the children of men.”
Psalm 115:16 KJV
Now
jesus the son of
man and son of
God
“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,
All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”
Matthew 28:18 KJV
instead of corrupt men having dominion now a perfect man and those who follow him have dominion through his name and purpose ordained before men fell in Eden and manifest to all in the gospel