The Lord has tender care for people - even those who turn away from him. What does the heart of God do when his people turn away from him? God has steadfast, faithful love - to call, care, raise, teach, train, provide for, and to nurture his people. But their response to the tender love of God is to turn from him and go after other lovers. God’s steadfast love is not willing to let his precious children run to other lovers. He loves them too deeply to share their love with anyone else. But what stirs in the heart of God for his adulterous people is warm, tender compassion. He still loves them, with warm, deep, abiding, faithful love. And that love moves him to go and get his people back - by any means necessary. His compassion does not come from seeing anything redeemable in us. It comes completely from within his holy love. We too, have hearts bent away from the Lord. When we see the warm compassion in the heart of God for his prodigal children, it should draw all of us back to him.