As a proponent of "Open Theism" I did appreciate the following, as
it does fit nicely within a framework of contingent, not exhaustive foreknowledge as well as "divine temporality" from Deidre Green's on Jacob 5 and the Allegory of the Olive Tree:
Although the Lord
does not deny that some trees are asked to take root in circumstances that
render them unduly vulnerable, he also averts that he offers personal attention
and care to endure that such trees are still capable of producing good fruit. Driving
the point to its logical conclusion, the lord commands his servant to observe
yet another tree that thrives in even poor conditions: “behold I have planted
another branch of the tree also; and thou knowest that this spot of ground was
poorer than the first. But, behold the tree. I have nourished it this long
time, and it hath brought forth much fruit; therefore, gather it, and lay it up
against the season, that I may preserve it unto mine own self” (verse 23).
Conversely, a tree nourished similarly but planted in a good spot of ground has
only partly brought forth good fruit
(verse 25). God is mindful of all so that divine love and care abound
ubiquitously in creation. Yet, neither divine love nor other circumstances
determine outcome. Even when love and care yield little response, God and Christ continue to innovate to coax
a good fruit out of each tree (verse 27-28). These dauntless efforts are
expended amid divine expressions of hopeful anticipation of regaining joy in
the vineyard (verse 60) and lead God to call others to collaboratively “go to
and labor with our might this last time” (verse 62). In this final effort, they
“begin at the last that they may be first, and that the first may be last”
(verse 63). Yet the realization of God’s
joy remains contingent upon the human response to God’s efforts. Divine respect
for human agency implies that in some instances God shares in the human
situation of being able to do no more than remain in love as witness to
alienation with uncertainty about the final outcome. (Deidre Nicole Green, Jacob: A Brief Theological Introduction [Provo,
Utah: Neal A. Maxwell Institute, 2020], 105-6, emphasis in bold added)
