that I should obey Him? - Future Israel Ministries

L Who is
ORD
the
that I should obey Him?
Exodus 5:2
Studies in the Character of God
Barry E. Horner

W
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
HEN a student of the Word of God is guided along a pathway that leads to his
more solid establishment in the most basic of revealed truths, and even
further to the spiritual enrichment of his soul, then it frequently weighs upon him
that grateful acknowledgment ought to be given to his guides.
While attending Western Conservative Baptist Seminary in Portland, Oregon,
during 1970-73, I received encouragement from the faculty to seriously consider
the nature and attributes of the God of the Bible. The emphasis was not simply one
of attaining a well honed and precise concept of Christian theism, that is the
building of a tidy theological edifice. Rather, a vital foundation was laid which was
seen to establish the root and base of personal spiritual maturity, authentic
evangelism, and local church stability.
Subsequent years of pastoral ministry, as well as observation of the drift of
contemporary evangelical Christianity, have only confirmed the opinion that there
must be a return to a definitive appreciation of the revealed character of the only
true and living God. In this regard, the liberal, existentialist and subjective
influences of the times have reaped havoc in countless local churches.
Christians ought to become reverently excited, that is exultantly overawed in
their souls concerning the full orbed character of the God of the Patriarchs,
Prophets, Apostles, and supremely the Lord Jesus Christ. I am deeply grateful for
the godly faculty at Western who encouraged me to pursue the most important of
all spheres of knowledge, namely the knowledge of the Holy One of Israel.
Barry E. Horner
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE v
Chapter
I. INTRODUCTION TO THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 1
God cannot be known apart from His self-revelation 1
God cannot be known apart from His attributes 3
What exactly do we mean by the “attributes” of God? 9
What we do not mean by the “attributes” of God 12
Why should we study the attributes of God? 14
How are the attributes of God to be classified? 19
II. THE HOLINESS OF GOD 21
What essentially is the holiness of God? 23
The holiness of God evident in Himself 27
The holiness of God evident in the believer 38
III. THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD 44
God’s righteousness – His moral being or positive holiness 46
God’s justice – His moral equity of fairness 47
God’s veracity – His moral integrity or truthfulness 52
God’s faithfulness – His moral consistency or dependability 54
IV. THE GOODNESS OF GOD 56
The goodness of God defined 56
The goodness of God according to Jesus Christ – Mark 10:17-18 59
The goodness of God to the believer – Isaiah 63:7-9 60
The goodness of God in the believer – II Thessalonians 1:11-12 61
V. THE BENEVOLENCE OF GOD 63
The benevolence of God toward His creatures 63
The benevolence of God evident in His human creatures 64
VI. THE GRACE OF GOD 67
God is gracious because He is good 68
The major categories of God’s grace 70
Common grace 70
Preventing grace 73
Saving grace 75
The grace of God evident in the believer 82
VII. THE LONGSUFFERING OF GOD 85
The nature of God’s longsuffering 86
The longsuffering of God toward His people 88
The longsuffering of God evident in the believer 90
VIII. THE MERCY OF GOD 95
The mercy of God directed toward man in distress 96
The psalmist’s delight in the mercy of God 97
The mercy of God evident in the life of the believer 99

IX. THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD 100
God is sovereign over all that comes to pass (ordination) 105
God is sovereign over creation (origination) 109
God is sovereign over providence (preservation) 110
God is sovereign over redemption (salvation) 112
God communicates His sovereignty (dominion) 125
X. THE INFINITY OF GOD 126
God is perfect – infinite in morality 129
God is omnipotent – infinite in power 130
God is eternal – infinite in time 134
God is omniscient – infinite in knowledge 138
God is omnisapient – infinite in wisdom 146
God is omnipresent – infinite within space 149
God is immense – infinity beyond space 156
God is immanent – infinite within creation 157
God is transcendent – infinite beyond creation 158
XI. THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD 160
God is self-existent 160
God is spiritual 163
God is living 168
God is immutable 172
God is unitary in His essence 181
God is a triunity of persons 189
XII. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 204
The personality of God communicated 205
The image of God in the constitution of man 205
The emotions of God directed towards man 211
The personality of God designated 219
The primary names of God in the Old Testament 220
The primary names of God in the New Testament 223
The practical significance of the names of God 228
The personality of God radiated 231
The essential glory of God 232
The reflected glory of God 233
The communicated glory of God 235
The attributed glory of God 239
XIII. CONCLUSION 246
Introduction 246
The attributes of God and biblical preaching 256
The attributes of God and prayer 262
The attributes of God and authentic evangelism 285
The attributes of God and justification by faith 295
The attributes of God and Christian music 301
The attributes of God and local church maturity 312
The attributes of God and individual Christian maturity 318
BIBLIOGRAPHY 000
INDEX 000
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iv
IMMORTAL, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice like mountains high soaring above,
Thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love.
To all life Thou givest—to both great and small;
In all life Thou livest, the true life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish—but nought changeth Thee.
Great Father of Glory, pure Father of Light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
All laud we would render; O help us to see:
’Tis only the splendor of light hideth Thee.
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Walter Chalmers Smith

PREFACE
If God be the God of the Bible, then there is
absolutely nothing more important than His
person being confessed objectively,
subjectively, and satisfactorily. First, God
must be confessed objectively, that is as real,
and there, outside of ourselves. In other
words, He exists whether I exist or not; He
exists apart from my consciousness of Him;
He exists as a concrete rather than an abstract
reality. This is the vital starting point (Heb.
11:6). Second, God must be known
subjectively, that is according to my consciousness
of His concrete reality; He exists
personally, according to inward conviction;
He exists according to individual, sensual
comprehension. Third, God must be known
satisfactorily, acceptably, according to His
established grounds of acceptance. I may
know that God exists as objectively righteous;
I may also be sensitive to His righteousness
subjectively, albeit unhappily so due to
conviction of my unrighteousness. Hence, my
comprehension of God must also incorporate
being rightly, satisfactorily, acceptably related
to Him. When Pharaoh addressed Moses and
Aaron: “Who is the LORD that I should obey
His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the
LORD” (Ex. 5:3), he soon learned of this
LORD both objectively (Ex. 8:8) and
subjectively (Ex. 9:27; 10:16-17), but not
satisfactorily as did Moses and Aaron. It is
this complete knowledge of God that we are
concerned about, which the Psalmist
describes: “The fear of the LORD is the
beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of
the Holy One is understanding” (Ps. 9:10).
However, many contemporary problems face
us that restrict such a blessed comprehension.
THE PRESENT PROBLEM OF PRESUMPTION
The greatest presumption today in the
Christian church must surely be concerning
the nature and character of God.
Approximately 86% of Americans profess to
a belief in God. 1 But if you were to ask the
survey respondents to expound upon the
attributes of the deity they acknowledge, then
the conflicting subjective opinions would
certainly be legion. Many would undoubtedly
confess that they believe in the Judaeo-
Christian God of the Bible. But upon asking
for a description of the character of the God
of Scripture, in a definitive sense, once again a
variety of abstract opinions would come
forth. Sad to say, even within conservative
evangelicalism, a survey of the qualities of
God would more often prove sentimental
rather than true to the Bible. There may be
much God-talk, even by professing multitudes
who are yet starved of a vital knowledge of
the gracious holiness and transcendent glory
of God.
Nevertheless, such commonly glib language
is often void of substance and specificity. Let
us be bold then to assert that a reverent,
humble and truth-founded appreciation of the
attributes of the living God of the Bible is the
need of the hour. The present common void is
like that of a shallow well that offers little to
draw upon at a time when life experiences
leave the soul parched. Arthur Pink describes
the priority of necessary recovered depth as
follows:
“Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at
peace: thereby good shall come unto thee” (Job
22:21). . . . A spiritual and saving knowledge of
God is the greatest need of every human
creature. The foundation of all true knowledge
of God must be a clear mental apprehension of
His perfections as revealed in Holy Scripture.
An unknown God can neither be trusted,
served, nor worshiped. 2
1
George Barna, What Americans Believe, pp. 200-
3. The question asked in 1991 was: “‘There is
only one true God, who is holy and perfect, and
who created the world and rules it today.’ Do you
agree strongly, agree somewhat, disagree
somewhat, or disagree strongly with that
statement?” 74% agreed strongly and 12% agreed
somewhat.
2
Arthur W. Pink, The Attributes of God, p. 7.
Drawing upon Charnock, Gurnall, Haldane,
Manton, Spurgeon, etc., this insightful author
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vi
THE PRESENT PROBLEM OF IGNORANCE
The prevalence today of this diminished
appreciation concerning the profound glory of
the almighty Jehovah cannot be over
exaggerated, nor can the debilitating effects of
such a fundamental doctrinal weakness within
evangelical Christendom be too strongly
lamented. Weakness in our understanding of
God is invariably related to our lack of
nourishment concerning the right nutrients of
the knowledge of God. Perhaps worse than
this condition of spiritual debilitation is the
conclusion, born of ignorance, that our
understanding of the nature of God is, for all
practical purposes, satisfactory or at least
adequate. But how tragic is this delusion! Not
only do multitudes of Christians embrace
shriveled views of God, but also they blindly
pontificate according to such sparse knowledge.
When recently visiting a large Christian
hospital in Kentucky, this writer noticed a
poster in a recreational room that read: “God
is like Winnie-the-Pooh. He’s big and cudly”!
This is nothing less than tragic sentimental
nonsense. Even worse is the fact that those so
deluded, who promote this demeaning of
God, are in fact guilty of gross slander.
On several occasions this writer has heard
professing Christians express their belief that
the reason why God created man was because
He was lonely! Implicit was the idea that God
lacked fulfillment! However, when it was
suggested to one of these persons that the
“glory of God” might be a higher and less
subjective goal, there was trite and unenthusiastic
agreement. Then, having quickly
brushed aside this loftiest of all purposes, we
were yet returned to a more animated crusade
for the thought that God does need man. Yet
nowhere in the Bible is God declared to be
incomplete without man. A study of God’s
attributes in Scripture, particularly His selfexistence,
as well as a consideration of the
eternal blessedness of the members of the
Triunity of God, makes this abundantly clear.
gives an exalted view of the character of God that
ought to humbly drive us to our knees in
confession and adoration.
Here then we have a clear indication of the
fact that the details of our faith and perspective
on life are conditioned by our concept of
God. Concerning the instances just related, an
inadequate appreciation of God results in a
subtly dangerous, inflated distortion of man’s
sense of importance while at the same time
God is deflated to sentimental utilitarian
proportions
From another aspect of this enlarged view
of man and corresponding diminished appreciation
of God, there is the prevalent
contemporary opinion that God can be
known through subjective comprehension
rather than the disclosure of objective special
revelation. In other words, with effort that is
a given characteristic of human autonomy,
God can be found. It is commonplace today
for people to declare, “I think God is . . . ,”
rather than, “God is revealed in the Bible to
be . . . .” However, when man so thinks via a
mind warped with corruption (Jer. 17:9), it
should not surprise us that he concocts a
dependent God who is beholden to man. In
other words, what man declares he has found
is not in fact God, but an idolatrous entity
shaped according to his expectations.
Hence, it is of the highest importance that
both the believer and unbeliever have a right
understanding of the God of the Bible. If
evangelism is ever to regain its proper
scriptural role in our society, it will start with
declaring to sinful mankind the truth
concerning God’s perfections so that they
begin to be disturbed in their souls rather
than continue to amble along in life. Similarly
for the Christian, Scripture emphatically
teaches that according to a man’s right
understanding of God, so in direct proportion
will genuine Christian character be evidenced
in his life. We can only be conformed to the
image of God, that is be godly or “God-like,”
when we progress in our vital knowledge of
God.
When Paul writes in Ephesians 5:1, “Therefore
be imitators of God, as beloved
children,” he assumes two things. First, that
those who he is addressing are regenerate
children of God. Second, that these believers
have a true and substantial knowledge of the

God of the Bible, the only God of Israel, even
as the preceding context has taught. We can
best imitate that which we know well. In I
Peter 1:16, Christians are exhorted: “You
shall be holy, for I [the Father] am holy.” But
how can we attain to that which we know
little about?
Yet today we cannot so easily make such an
assumption regarding an accurate knowledge
of God as do Paul and Peter. The subjective
and utilitarian age in which we live has led
unsuspecting believers to conceive of alien
characteristics which they append to God;
others virtually devise their own God, and
respond in accord with that which has
become a mental idol. However, in this study
we are endeavoring to impart truth and
understanding concerning the God of the
Bible, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ. It is hoped that resultant change,
through the authentic perception of the glory
of God in the soul, will also result in the
reflection of that change, that is the
glorification of that same God of the Bible.
THE PRESENT PROBLEM OF KNOWABILITY
Some would certainly agree that our
understanding of God is sadly lacking, yet
remain resigned to the despairing view that
since God is spirit, infinite, and transcendent,
and man is carnal, finite, and limited,
therefore He is not satisfactorily comprehensible.
So why should we attempt to know the
unknowable? To this we would simply reply
that the infinite God has in fact revealed
Himself to humanity; in so doing He is
declaring that He is knowable, that is to the
extent that He determines. Further, He
declares that finite man can satisfactorily
know Him since in making Himself known, at
the same time He has appended the guarantee
that such “understanding” is supremely soul
satisfying, being knowledge of “the true God
and eternal life” (I John5:20). The problem
arises here when man thinks in terms of
discovering God, that is of the finite creature
finding the infinite God. Such a quest is futile
(I Cor. 1:21). However when God reveals
vii
Himself and the Infinite reaches down with
self-revelation, then God is satisfactorily
knowable. Such knowledge does not result in
frustration when accompanied with submission
and humility, but abiding joy, peace,
and fulfillment. Peter considers the knowledge
of God to be productive of “grace and peace”
(II Pet. 1:2). Paul delights “to know the love
of Christ which surpasses knowledge” (Eph.
3:19), that is to know with delight that which
transcends full knowledge. Of course, if man
insists on invading heaven, so to speak,
desiring to know God on a par with his
Maker, if he arrogantly desires to know as
God knows, more than he desires to know
about God as a creature, then he shall be
forever frustrated and condemned through his
yielding to the original temptation, to “be like
God” (Gen. 3:1-5; Is. 14:13-14).
THE PRESENT PROBLEM OF PRACTICALITY
Quite apart from these philosophic
objections, we return to that tragic attitude on
the part of many Christians who profess to
know God with their lips, yet consider a study
of His attributes to be of minimal worth.
How reminiscent this is of the indictment of
the Son of God toward the Jewish leaders,
“This people honors Me with their lips, but
their heart is far away from Me” (Matt.
15:8). The anomaly of this situation is
heightened when we hear the cry for
“practical Christian teaching,” and yet
discover that the very people who make such
a plea show little interest in the glory and
delights of God's person. Concerning the man
influenced by the pragmatic ways of this
world, a study of God’s attributes may
conjure up in his mind a fear that its content
will be strictly academic, essentially philosophic,
and as a consequence as dry as
proverbial dust. Perhaps he will feel that,
apart from some basic affirmations about
God, this subject should be left undisturbed
with other speculative doctrinal discussions of
a past era since it is of little relevance to
ractical living for today. Possibly he will even
join company with the objection of the nature

viii
lover and environmentalist who claim that
they have learned more about God through
the contemplation of creation on a beautiful
day, or a starry night, or even in the midst of
a terrifying storm, than in a host of such
scholarly and abstract discussions. Probably
they will join hands in echoing that popular
twentieth century ditty:
The place where I worship is the wide open
spaces, Built by the hand of the Lord. 3
Of course we should hasten to explain that
a study such as this ought in no way to be
presented in a coldly intellectual and sterile
form. But neither ought it to be devoid of
solid doctrinal content and propositional
statements, such as those of a more existential
mind-set might demand. Rather, we would
propose that transforming knowledge of God
which Daniel speaks about: “[B]ut the people
who know their God will display strength and
take action” (Dan. 11:32). A. W. Tozer
perceptively writes at this juncture:
I believe there is scarcely an error in doctrine or
a failure in applying Christian ethics that cannot
be traced finally to imperfect and ignoble
thoughts about God. It is my opinion that the
Christian conception of God current in these
middle years of the twentieth century is so
decadent as to be utterly beneath the dignity of
the Most High God and actually to constitute
for professed believers something amounting to
a calamity. 4
Especially note the emphasis here on
Christian ethics, that is that practical element
concerning godly behavior which many
3
Psalm 19:1-6 is also frequently quoted to support
this naturalistic contention that general revelation
is what matters most. However, such a scanty
opinion usually ignores the surpassing importance
of special revelation, specifically the soul-restoring
Word of God, variously expressed in vs. 7-14 of
this same Psalm.
4
A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 10.
This is an excellent introductory volume to a study
of the attributes of God. Tozer bemoans the
shallow concept of God that is current within
church life. It is for this reason that Christian
ethics are faulty and the gospel is weakened.
superficially cry out for. Yet Tozer is
adamant; right holy behavior only comes
from the right beholding of a holy God.
Therefore the apathetic times in which we live
should not be allowed to corrupt profitable
thinking about God. There should be no
heeding of the siren-like suggestion that we
yield to the contorted suggestion that God
must be simply experienced before He is
known. The true knowledge of God is of
fundamental importance for the biblical
Christian. Hence the contemporary problem
requires, not capitulation but, to use a word
distasteful to many, indoctrination! The
doctrine of God must be given a place of
supreme and lively prominence, and yes, even
before the desperate need of faithful
evangelistic ministry.
J. I. Packer explains:
We must not be afraid to start with the basic
facts about God the Creator. Revealed truth has
a structure, and this is its foundation. When
Paul preached to the pagan Athenians, he laid
his foundation before going further. He had to,
or else the point of his witness to our Lord
would not have been grasped. For knowledge of
sin and salvation presupposes some knowledge
of the Creator; nobody can see what sin is till he
has learned what God is. That is why [Richard]
Baxter directed the seeking soul to fix his mind
first and foremost on the nature and majesty of
God. In the pagan West today, we need to lay
the same foundation as Paul laid at Athens. We
complain that our ‘gospel preaching’ (in the
modern sense) does not register with those who
hear it. May not this be in the first instance
because they know nothing about God with
whom they have to do? Have we not taken
pains to teach them who God is? The irony of
our situation is that if we spend time preaching
to modern pagans about the character of God
we shall be told that we are not preaching the
gospel. But the Puritans would not tell us that;
nor would Paul. 5
5 J. I. Packer, A Quest For Godliness, p. 169. This
study of the Puritan vision of the Christian life
practically illustrates that for this spiritually
illustrious group, experiential union with God was
pursued as being of supreme importance. For this
reason Packer adds, “As I move through my own

Nevertheless, as a word of encouragement,
let it be further added that in this
foundational area of Bible study, there is
some evidence of the beginning of an
awakening taking place. Over the last thirty
years a number of volumes have been
published concerning the character of God
that have gained wide circulation. 6 Some
Christians are gaining a far more glorious
vision of the Almighty God with resulting
reverence and awe that has been so
conspicuous by its absence.
THE PRESENT PROBLEM OF PRIORITY
Not surprisingly, many have come to realize
that much of the noise, activity, relational
game playing, and man-centered navel-gazing
in multitudes of churches has not satisfied the
thirsty soul. Rather it is being discovered that
nothing compares with a humble, simple
encounter with the grandeur and grace of
God, the contemplation and trembling
adoration of He who needs no embellishment
due to the demands of contemporary
relevance. The glitzy church cisterns, full of
performance and sensual appeal, designed by
creative worship specialists, are being found
to be full of fractures and thus unable to
provide sustaining spiritual nourishment. It is
slowly being understood that an imbalance in
our understanding of God leads to an
imbalance in our daily living.
Furthermore, it is also being realized that a
neglect of our understanding of God leads not
only to impotent living, but also to a
proportionate tendency to become mancentered.
This latter point is especially
important these days, witness the overwhelming
stress on God as a means to an end,
namely self-fulfillment, self-gratification, self-
6
seventh decade, in better health than can possibly
last, I am more glad than I can say for what
Puritans like Bunyan and Baxter have taught me
about dying,” p. 14.
Such authors would include Packer, Pink, Piper,
Schaeffer, Smail, Sproul, Storms.
ix
aggrandizement, etc., and not as a glor-ious
end in Himself.
It is not an overstatement to claim that this
topic is the most basic that any Christian will
ever consider. J. I. Packer puts it this way:
What were we made for? To know God. What
aim should we set ourselves in life? To know
God. What is the “eternal life” that Jesus gives?
Knowledge of God. “This is eternal life, that
they may know thee, the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3).
What is the best thing in life, bringing more joy,
delight, and contentment, than anything else?
Knowledge of God. “Thus saith the LORD, Let
not the wise man glory in his might, let not the
rich man glory in his riches; but let him that
glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and
knoweth me” (Jer. 9:23f). What, of all states
God ever sees man in, gives Him most pleasure?
Knowledge of Himself. “I desire . . . the
knowledge of God more than burnt offerings,”
says God (Hos. 6:6). 7
Hear also of the priority which Stephen
Charnock, that profoundly insightful Puritan,
places on a true knowledge of God.
Who would willingly live in a stormy world
void of God? If we waiver in this principle, to
whom should we make our complaints in our
afflictions? Where should we meet with
supports? How could we satisfy ourselves with
the hopes of a future happiness? There is a
sweetness in the meditation of his existence, and
that he is a creator (Ps. 104:24). Thoughts of
other things have a bitterness mixed with them:
houses, lands, children now are, shortly they
7 J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 29. This is a soul
thrilling and by far the most stimulating of more
recent writings on this subject, at least at a
popular level. The major attributes of God are
expounded in such a way that it is most difficult
for the reader to avoid their intensely practical
importance.

x
will not be; but God is, that made the world; his
faithfulness as he is a creator, is a ground to
deposit our souls and concerns in our innocent
sufferings (I Pet. 4:19). So far as we are weak in
the acknowledgment of God, we deprive
ourselves of our content in the view of his
infinite perfections. 8
This study is based wholly on the principle
that God is to be preeminently known
through His revelation of Himself in His
Spirit inspired, truthful, inerrant, inscripturated
Word, and this includes the incarnate
revelation of Himself through His Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, God is who the
Bible in its totality reveals Himself to be. No
consideration will be given to liberal and neo-
8
Stephen Charnock, The Existence and Attributes
of God, I, p. 180. This puritan classic provides
what is still the most searching study of God’s
attributes. Herman Bavink may excel in the field
of historical theology in his The Doctrine of God,
but Charnock is supreme in his penetration of
biblical truth. Few modern writers come close to
his ability to apply Scripture concerning God’s
being to the soul of man. This work may at first
be heavy going on account of its antiquated
seventeenth century style, but persistence that
endeavors to overcome our present day spiritual
illiteracy, as well as growing familiarity with the
outlined structure, will result in the discovery of
incomparable pleasure.
orthodox speculations that do not accept this
standard of judgment. 9 It is hoped then, that
the reader of this study will be led to more
enthusiastically, yes even passionately cry out
in his heart with praise for God’s attributes as
did Moses: “For I proclaim the name of the
LORD; ascribe greatness to our God! The
Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways
are just; a God of faithfulness and without
injustice, righteous and upright is He” (Deut.
32:3-4).
9
The barrenness of these deviant considerations of
revealed truth is well illustrated by a recent
Systematic Theology project being published by
Oxford University Press, with Volume I being
titled The Triune God. The author, Robert W.
Jensen, readily admits that this is an ecumenical
project designed to provide a synthesis of Roman
Catholic and Protestant theology. “The present
work is deliberately done in such anticipation of
the one church,” p. vii. The liberal/existential/neoorthodox
bias is over-whelming and one finds it
easy to conclude that for this author, the opinions
of avant-garde theologians and philosophers are
the point of final authority; they certainly
dominate over Scripture references. Jenson
typically comments, “There is an omission to be
noted. Readers will find in this system no separate
doctrine of God’s ‘attributes.’ This is not
accidental. Fundamentally, the predicates we
rightly attribute to God are simply all those that
speaking the gospel may from time to time
require,’” p. 223.

CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION TO THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
A. GOD CANNOT BE KNOWN APART FROM HIS SELF-REVELATION
To consider knowing God presupposes that God is. This being an assumed starting point
(Heb. 11:6), we are specifically concerned here solely with the God of the Bible, the God of
Genesis 1:1, the God of Adam, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of the prophets, the
God of the Apostles including Paul, and the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, which
God is one and the same in biblical Judaeo-Christianity.
1. God cannot be known through self-discovery.
Can a man, believing in God who he confesses not to know, find God? Man may
attempt this quest, as was the case with Greek philosophy evidenced by its inability to
deal with sin. Such a trail, that attempts to find light in the midst of darkness, is
doomed to failure. When man is seen to take the initiative in the discovery of God,
even though seeming pietistic motives are expressed, or probing ritualistic forms are
employed such as meditation concerning self or the universe, whatever he discovers will
only fall within the realm of his cognitive and analytical capacity. How futile it is for
finitude to discover infinity or mortality to attain immortality. Zophar was correct
when he exhorted Job concerning such an impossibility: “Can you discover the depth
of God? Can you discover the limits of the Almighty? They are high as the heavens,
what can you do? Deeper than Sheol, what can you know?” (Job 11:7-8). 1 Carl Henry
well describes man’s arrogant futility at this point.
God is not the Great Perhaps, a clueless shadow character in a Scotland Yard mystery. Far
less is he a nameless spirit awaiting post-mortem examination in some theological morgue.
He is a very particular and specific divinity, known from the beginning solely on the basis
of his works and self-declaration as the one living God. Only theorists who ignore divine
self-disclosure are prone to identify God as the nondescript John Doe of religious
philosophy. 2
Hence as John the Baptist declared: “A man can receive nothing unless it has been
given him from heaven” (John 3:27; cf. Matt. 16:16-17).
2. God can only be known through Self-disclosure.
While man cannot come up to God, yet the wonder is that He is pleased to come down
to man (Ex. 3:7-8; 19:11; Num. 11:16-17). The Scripture is abundantly clear that for
man to know Him, God must take the initiative in finding man and making Himself
known. Man is limited as a creature in being finite while at the same time he is limited
1 F. Delitzsch comments on these verses: “The nature of God may be sought after, but cannot be found
out.” Biblical Commentary on the Book of Job, I, p. 181.
2 Carl Henry, God, Revelation and Authority, II, p. 7.

2
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
in nature as a sinner. For this reason, “the thoughts of God no one knows except the
Spirit of God” (I Cor. 2:11). However, He graciously condescends to reveal Himself
where man is, even as He walked with man in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:8-9).
Further He reaches through the barrier that man has encountered so that, the “‘things
which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of
man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.’ For to us God revealed them
through the Spirit” (I Cor. 2:9-10).
3. God can only be known through His chosen media.
But specifically, how has God made Himself known? What means has He employed?
According to Hebrews 1:1-2 God has spoken “to the fathers in the prophets in many
portions and in many ways.” Further there has been progress that is climactic in the
Lord Jesus Christ since, “in these last days [God] has spoken to us in His Son.” For the
Christian through the centuries all of this has come by means of Scripture. Yet a clear
distinction has been recognized in God’s speaking.
a. Natural revelation, Psalm 19:1-6. God speaks universally through nature,
especially by means of his power and majesty, such as through the wonder of the
silent heavens that eloquently speak of His glory.
Yes, God is good—in earth and sky,
From ocean depths and spreading wood,
Ten thousand voices seem to cry:
God made us all, and God is good.
The sun that keeps his trackless way,
And downward pours his golden flood,
Night’s sparkling hosts, all seem to say
In accents clear, that God is good.
Yes, God is good, all nature says,
By God’s own hand with speech endued;
And man, in louder notes of praise,
Should sing for joy that God is good.
Yet there is limitation with nature, especially when we observe it, according to
Tennyson, “red in tooth and claw.” At best the goodness we behold at this level
concerns God’s attractive benevolence as, “all nature says,” not goodness on
account of moral attractiveness.
b. Special revelation, Psalm 19:7-14. God speaks particularly at a personal level to
individuals of grace and reconciliation at specific times and places to the end that
they might be saved and have an adoptive relationship with God.
I’ve found a Friend; O such a friend!
He loved me ere I knew Him;
He drew me with the cords of love,
And thus He bound me to Him;

INTRODUCTION 3
And round my heart still closely twine
Those ties which nought can sever;
For I am His, and He is mine,
Forever and forever.
The main agents of this gospel communication are the Word of God written and
incarnate in conjunction with the Holy Spirit (John 1:14; II Tim. 3:16; II Pet.
1:20-21), and the engraving of the conscience (Rom. 2:14-15). All of these, though
distinct, are inseparably related. Yes God has, in the past, spoken through audible
speech and historical events, yet now these all subsume under written revelation.
Even general revelation is included in the special revelation of the Bible (Ps. 19:1-
6), yet the concrete speech of God that comprehensively describes God is today
exclusively found in the Word of God written. This is not to deny personal,
subjective encounter with God; yet this must nevertheless submit to the bar of
Scripture. Hence this is the only authoritative basis for rightly comprehending the
knowledge of God, which principle our subsequent study will uphold.
B. GOD CANNOT BE KNOWN APART FROM HIS ATTRIBUTES
1. Can God be defined in a manner of speaking?
Attempt to define a personal, admired friend. In doing so we are bound to use
distinguishing personal characteristics. Then try reverently to define “God,” that is the
God of the Bible, in one extended sentence. We are certain to have mentioned
numerous personal attributes and then begun to wonder what aspects of His being we
have neglected due to spiritual ignorance. While such an exercise is not illegitimate, yet
it ought to have engendered a spirit of caution lest we respond irreverently.
a. From where does our definition of God arise?
What was the basis of your definition? Was it a matter of subjective opinion
expressed as follows, “I think God is,” or, “A particular theologian has said”?
Such an opinion will lead to idolatry. Or was our definition more a matter of
objective revelation and knowledge expressed thus, “God has revealed Himself in
the Bible to be . . . God has authoritatively spoken of Himself thus”? Such a
confession will lead to worship.
b. Does our definition of God conform with our experience?
Furthermore, could you honestly claim to know God as you described Him, that is
in an intimate and experiential manner? If you claim to know the God you
subjectively opined about, all you have ended up doing is expressing your
adoration of man. However, even if you defined God objectively, according to the
revelation of Scripture, was your definition, though theologically correct, yet
coldly theoretical and abstract? In other words, is your true knowledge of God
merely cerebral and cognitive, even as the demons believe (Jas. 2:19)? Or is it after
the manner of David who enthuses: “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so
my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God” (Ps.
42:1-2). Francis Xavier has written a hymn in this regard.

4
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
My God, I love Thee—not because
I hope for heaven thereby,
Nor yet because who love Thee not
Are lost eternally.
Then why, O blessed Jesus Christ,
Should I not love Thee well?
Not for the sake of winning heaven,
Or of escaping hell;
Not with the hope of gaining aught;
Not seeking a reward;
But as Thyself hast loved me,
O ever-loving Lord.
E’en so I love Thee, and will love,
And in Thy praise will sing;
Because Thou art my loving God
And my eternal King.
2. Some descriptions of God described in the Bible.
While the following portrayals of God are not quite so systematically arranged as The
Westminster Confession of Faith, yet they present a historic panorama of harmonious
truth that spans a broad period of 1500 years from Moses to Paul. Furthermore, the
primacy of biblical definitions of God ought always to have primacy.
a. Exodus 34:4-9. Here God is not discovered, but rather He gloriously and
specifically reveals himself by speech to Moses. “Then the LORD passed by before
in front of him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and
gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps
lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He
will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on
the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations,’” vs. 6-
7. Note the harmonious balance that is declared involving both God’s gracious
forgiveness and His demanding justice. The setting concerns the pastor of God’s
fallen, rebellious people being reassured of grace greater than all their sin. As a
result, Moses’ encounter with God’s attributes is productive of humble worship
and the hopeful cry: “O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even
though the people are so obstinate, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take
us as your own possession,” v . 9.
b. Numbers 14:17-19. In a setting reminiscent of Moses’ prior intercession in Exodus
34:4-9, he again pastorally reasons with God that, for the sake of His reputation
before the Egyptians and in accord with His character previously revealed in
Exodus 34:4-9, He manifest further grace. “Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this
people according to the greatness of Your lovingkindness, just as You also have
forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now,” v. 19. Thus this personal
knowledge of God becomes the basis for Moses’ reverent yet successful
intercession with God for mercy in the face of account of Israel’s ongoing carnal
hankering after Egypt. Keil and Delitzsch comment: “This ‘sermon on the name of
the Lord,’ as Luther calls it, disclosed to Moses the hidden nature of Jehovah. It

INTRODUCTION 5
proclaimed that God is love, but that kind of love in which mercy, grace, longsuffering,
goodness, and truth are united with holiness and justice.” 3
c. Deuteronomy 5:1-6:15. This review of God’s revelation of the Ten
Commandments (5:6-21; cf. Ex. 20:1-21) and the Shema (6:4-9) 4 describes the
exclusive moral glory of Jehovah in terms of required worship and godly
conformity on the part of Israel. Of particular importance are God’s holiness and
power, 5:11, 12, 22-26, 32, grace, 5:15, expectation of reverence, 6:2, 13,
benevolence, 6:3, 10-11, unity, 6:4, 14, and anger, 6:15. Here is the classic
revelation of biblical monotheism, the absolute exclusivity of Jehovah. In a world
of polytheistic paganism, the dawning of such a revolutionary thought inevitably
resulted in anti-Semitism. Polytheists were generally tolerant to a degree of other
unknown God’s (Acts 17:22-3), even if rivalry resulted through claims of
superiority. However the proclamation of not only one living and holy God, but
also the falsity and impotence all others, was to deny religious pluralism and
relativism. Over the centuries, since Abraham, an unbelieving world has declared
such a claim to be arrogant, offensive, and lacking in ecumenicity.
d. Deuteronomy 10:12-22. This review of God’s earlier revelation of Himself (Ex.
34:4-9) requires reverent fear and obedience from rebellious Israel. Why should
this chosen nation respond in such a way? Because God is the only true God being
holy, vs. 12, 20, sovereign, vs. 14, 17, 21, gracious, v. 15, just, v. 17, 18,
benevolent, v. 18, glorious, v. 21, and the Savior of His people, vs. 19-22.
Especially notice the specificity here where God is defined as “the LORD [Jehovah]
your God [Elohim],” vs. 12, 14, 17, 20, 22, unrivaled in a pagan world, v. 17.
Response to Moses’ preaching/teaching/inscripturated ministry is expected to be
comprehension that is productive of “fear, obedience, love of God, service, v. 12,
as well as “love of aliens” v. 19, motivated by personal redemption.
e.
righteous, v. 8, faithful, vs. 8, 17, 32-33, merciful, vs. 9, 27-28,
immanent, vs. 13-14, gracious, compassionate, vs. 17-20, 31, patient, longsuffering,
vs. 17, 28-31, spiritual, v. 20, just, vs. 27-28, 33, glorious, v. 32,
immutable, v. 32. The result is a constraint to abide by a covenant that calls for
obedience to God’s commandments and ordinances, 10:28-39. Hence a right
vision of God is inclined to be productive of godliness.
3
C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Commentary on the Pentateuch, II, p. 240.
4
The Hebrew for “hear” is “ˆshāma,” [m'v;, the first word of v. 4, so that the “Shema,” as popularly
designated amongst Jews, has become the representative motto for vs. 4-9, namely the essence of
monotheistic Judaism. In persecution the recitation of this passage has often been the dying Jew’s last
cry.

6
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
f. Ezekiel 1:26-28. Here is an astonishing revelation of, “a figure with the
appearance of a man. Then I noticed from the appearance of His loins and
upward something like glowing metal that looked like fire all around within it,
and from the appearance of His loins and downward I saw something like fire;
and there was a radiance around Him. As the appearance of the rainbow in the
clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the
LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.” vs. 27-
28. This glory is described as fiery radiance so that the overall impression is one of
supreme, brilliant majesty. Such a vision is not unlike that of Isaiah 6:1-7: “I saw
the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling
the temple. . . . And one [seraph] called out to another and said, ‘Holy, Holy,
Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.” Again in
Revelation 1:12-15 we are told: “In the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a
son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest
with a golden sash. His head and His hair were while like wool, like snow; and
His eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has
been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many
waters.”
g.
infinity, vs. 33-34;
wisdom, vs. 33-34; omniscience, vs. 33-34; self-existence, v. 35; sovereignty, v. 32;
glory, v. 36. But what is the context of their being brought to the fore so
prominently? It is v. 32 where Paul declares: “For God has shut up all in
disobedience so that He may show mercy on all,” though in fact it is also the
whole of the preceding display of God’s gospel plan. There is nothing like the
evangel to display all that God is, His singularity, holiness, sovereignty, grace,
fidelity.
5 Jonathan Edwards Works (Banner), I, p. 107.

INTRODUCTION 7
h. I Timothy 1:15-17. Here Paul is once again carried away with a profound sense of
awe at God’s gracious salvation that extends more particularly to himself, the
“foremost of sinners” (I Tim. 1:15). His expression of adoration is a spiritual
eruption of praise to, “the King eternal [of the ages], immortal [incorruptible],
invisible, the only God.” From this we conclude that it is a right appreciation of
the character of God that leads to a right appreciation of the gospel. Paul might
well have eagerly sung:
Great God of wonders! All thy ways
Display the attributes divine;
But countless acts of pardoning grace
Beyond Thine other wonders shine.
Samuel Davies
3. Some confessions of God derived from the Bible.
These historic statements or confessions, one by an assembly of church leaders, and
others by an individual Christian, have something in common, namely the systematic
definition of attributes or characteristics derived from the Old and New Testaments.
However we have purposely placed them after the preceding biblical definitions simply
because they are not only of human derivation and construction, but also lacking in
that divine luster and dazzling glory that the inspired record alone contains. One
reason for this distinction is that the creedal definitions, for all of their formal
exactness, nevertheless do not reflect the living, historic encounter with God that
Moses, Ezra, Ezekiel, and Paul portray.
a. The Westminster Confession of Faith.
Adopted by both Houses of Parliament in London, 1648, and being the definitive
statement of Presbyterian doctrine, it has also influenced a broader Calvinistic
constituency, including Baptists and Congregationalists, during subsequent
centuries. It declares:
There is but one only (Deut. 6:4; I Cor. 8:4, 6) living and true God (I Thess. 1:9; Jer.
10:10), who is infinite in being and perfection (Job 11:7-9; 26:14), a most pure spirit
(John 4:24), invisible (I Tim. 1:17), without body, parts (Deut. 4:15-16; John 4:24;
Luke 24:29), or passions (Acts 14:11, 15), immutable (Jas. 1:17; Mal. 3:6), immense
(I Kings 8:27; Jer. 23:23-24), eternal (Ps. 90:2; I Tim. 1:17), incomprehensible (Ps.
145:3), almighty (Gen. 17:1; Rev. 4:8), most wise (Rom. 16:27), most holy (Isa. 6:3;
Rev. 4:8), most free (Ps. 115:3), most absolute (Exod. 3:14), working all things
according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will (Eph. 1:11),
for his own glory (Prov. 16:4; Rom. 11:36; Rev. 4:11); most loving (I John 4:8, 16),
gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving
iniquity, transgression, and sin (Exod. 34:6-7); the rewarder of them that diligently
seek him (Heb. 11:6); and withal most just and terrible in his judgments (Neh. 9:32-
33); hating all sin (Ps. 5:5-6), and who will by no means clear the guilty (Exod; 34:7;
Nah. 1:2-3).
God hath all life (John 5:26), glory (Acts 7:2), goodness (Ps. 119:68), blessedness (I
Tim. 6:15; Rom. 9:5), in and of himself; and is alone in and unto himself all
sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures which he hath made (Acts 17:24-
25), nor deriving any glory from them (Job 22:2, 23), but only manifesting his own
glory in, by, unto, and upon them: he is the alone foundation of all being, of whom,

8
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
through whom, and to whom are all things (Rom. 11:36); and hath most sovereign
dominion over them, to do by them, for them, or upon them whatsoever himself
pleaseth (Dan. 4:25, 35; I Tim. 6:15; Rev. 4:11). In his sight all things are open and
manifest (Heb. 4:13); his knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent upon the
creature (Ps. 147:5; Rom. 11:33-34); so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain
(Acts 15:18; Ezek. 11:5). He is most holy in all his counsel, in all his works, and in
all his commands (Ps. 145:17; Rom. 7:12). To him is due from angels and men, and
every other creature, whatsoever worship, service, obedience, he is pleased to require
of them (Rev. 5:12-14). 6
Consider how many attributes have been described and ask yourself to what
degree you understand these truths. Do you not best know a friend when you
understand his personal characteristics? God is primarily known by Who He is,
and secondarily by what He does. What He does is the result of Who He is. In this
regard notice how this confessional definition tends to move from attributes of
being to attributes of doing. Consequently, it is important that we first be
concerned with Who God is in Himself, in His essence, lest we merely see Him as
some cosmic utilitarian wonder-worker and benefactor.
b. John Bunyan, author of The Pilgrim’s Progress.
Bunyan composed A Confession of My Faith, and a Reason of My practice toward
the conclusion of his twelve year imprisonment. It was published in 1672 upon his
release and seems designed to concisely declare the doctrine for which he suffered.
1. I believe, that there is but one only true God, and there is none other but he. ‘To
us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things.’ I Cor. 8:6. ‘And this is
life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God.’ &c. Jn. 17:3, Mar. 12:32,
and Ac. 17:24.
I believe, that this God is almighty, eternal, invisible, incomprehensible, &c, ‘I am
the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.’ Gen. 17:1. ‘The eternal
God is thy refuge.’ De. 33:27. ‘Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the
only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever.’ I Tim. 1:17, Job 11:7, and
Rom. 11:33.
I believe, that this God is unspeakably perfect in all his attributes of power, wisdom,
justice, truth, holiness, mercy, love, &c. his power is said to be eternal, Ro. 1:20. his
understanding and wisdom infinite; Ps. 147:5. He is called the just Lord in
opposition to all things, Zeph. 3:5. He is said to be truth itself and the God thereof,
II Th. 2:10, De. 32:4. There is none holy as the Lord. ‘God is love.’ ‘Canst thou by
searching find out God? Canst though find out the Almighty unto perfection?’ Job
11:7. 7
Posthumously published in 1692, An Exposition on the Ten First Chapters of
Genesis was intended to commence an extended commentary on Scripture that
was most likely concluded due to his illness and resulting demise. He commences:
6 Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom, III, pp. 606-7. For a closer study of this classic statement, refer to
the exposition and study questions of A. A. Hodge, The Confession of Faith, pp. 46-62.
7 John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, II, p 594.

INTRODUCTION 9
GOD is a Spirit (John 4:24), eternal (Deut. 33:27), infinite (Rom. 1:17-20),
incomprehensible (Job 11:7), perfect, and unspeakably glorious in his being,
attributes, and works (Gen. 17, 51; Isa. 6:3; Exod. 33:20). ‘The eternal God.’ ‘Do
not I fill heaven and earth? Saith the Lord.’ (Jer. 23:24). ‘Neither is there any
creature that is not manifest in his sight.’ (Heb. 4:13; Prov. 15:11). In his attributes
of wisdom, power, justice, holiness, mercy, &c., he is also inconceivably perfect and
infinite, not to be comprehended by things in earth, or things in heaven; known in
the perfection of his being only to himself. The seraphims cannot behold him, but
through a veil; no man can see him in his perfection and live. His attributes, though
apart laid down in the Word of God, that we, being weak, might the better conceive
of his eternal power and godhead; yet in him they are without division; one glorious
and eternal being. Again, though sometimes this, as of wisdom, or that, as of justice
and mercy, is most manifest in his works and wonders before men; yet every such
work is begun and completed by the joint concurrence of all his attributes. No act of
justice is without his will, power, and wisdom; no act of mercy is against his justice,
holiness and purity. 8
C. WHAT EXACTLY DO WE MEAN BY THE “ATTRIBUTES” OF GOD?
1. A biblical definition.
8 Ibid., pp. 414-5.
a. I Peter 2:9 describes the characteristics of God as “excellencies” (ajrevth, aretē, cf.
singular use “excellence,” II Pet. 1:3), that is the “virtues,” especially from a
moral perspective, or “perfections” of God being various aspects of His essential
being. In context, we are to focus on those admirable, glorious qualities of God
that effectually call sinners out of darkness into His holy light. Also consider
God’s “invisible attributes [things, tav ajovrata, ta aorata]” in Romans 1:20 which
are defined as “His eternal power and divine nature.” Thus we conclude:
(1) These “excellencies” are comprehended in greater undistorted fullness by, “a
chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, . . . the people of God,” that
is genuine believer priests (I Pet. 2:9-10).
(a) The unbeliever has a finite, distorted and arid knowledge of God (Rom.
1:21-25). Hence, he should hear the undistorted truth about God. This
principle should regulate our evangelistic message and method.
(b) The believer has a finite, progressively corrected knowledge of God that
is basic at conversion and requires cultivation. To begin with this
foundational knowledge is gnw'si", gnōsis (Luke 1:77; I Cor. 1:4-5; II
Cor. 10:5; II Pet. 1:5-6). However, such basic knowledge becomes more
mature and full, that is, ejpignw'si",epignōsis (Rom. 3:20; Eph. 1:17;
4:13; Phil. 1:9; Col. 1:9-10; II Pet. 1:2, 8; 2:20), through a sustained
pursuit of an intimate knowledge of God. 9
9
Richard Chenevix Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament, pp. 285-6, citing Chrysostom, Bengel, and
Lightfoot for a distinction of meaning.

10
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(2) These “excellencies” are communicated, that is certain attributes, by the
living embodiment and proclamation of a believer priests, who “in the
likeness of God [have] been created in righteousness and holiness of the
truth” (Eph. 4:24), becoming “partakers of the divine nature” (II Pet. 1:4).
This resemblance is called “God-likeness” or godliness.
(3) These “excellencies” are distinctively evident in God’s great plan of salvation
(Rom. 1:17-18; 11:33-36; I Cor. 1:4, 30; I Tim. 1:15-17).
2. Doctrinal definitions.
a. The attributes of God are, “His infinite perfections in being and working (Rev.
4:8-11).” (John Owen, Congregationalist). More specifically they are his,
“goodness (Ps. 119:68; Matt. 19:17), power (Exod. 15:11; Ps. 62:11; Rev. 19:1),
justice (Ps. 11:7; Zeph. 3:5; Jer. 12:1; Rom. 1:32), mercy (Ps. 130:7; Rom. 9:15;
Eph. 2:4), holiness (Exod. 15:11; Josh. 24:19; Hab. 1:13; Rev. 4:8), wisdom
(Rom. 11:33, 16:27), and the like; which he delighteth to exercise towards His
creatures, for the praise of his glory.” (John Owen, Congregationalist). 10
b. “The attributes of God are those peculiarities which mark or define the mode of
his existence, or which constitute his character.” (James P. Boyce, Baptist). 11
c. “The attributes of God are those distinguishing characteristics of the divine nature
which are inseparable from the idea of God and which constitute the basis and
ground for his various manifestations to his creatures.” (Augustus H. Strong,
Baptist). 12
d. “God’s attributes are those permanent, or essential, qualities of His nature, which
He has made known to us in His Word. . . . They are traits qualifying His nature
always, and making it the nature it is.” (Robert L. Dabney, Presbyterian). 13
e. “The Divine Attributes [of God] are modes either of the relation, or of the
operation of the Divine essence. They are, consequently, an analytical and closer
description of the essence. . . . The attributes are essential qualities of God.”
(William G. T. Shedd, Presbyterian). 14
3. Understanding “attribute” as a description of God’s being.
This most common term for describing an aspect of God’s being, an “attribute,” has
the unfortunate connotation of some quality being added or “attributed.” But facets of
God’s person are not derived. Hence, the preferred term is a “perfection” or
“property” or “virtue.” However, these all may be understood to perceive of God:
10 John Owen, The Works of John Owen, I, p. 471-2.
11 James P. Boyce, Abstract of Systematic Theology, p. 65.
12 Augustus H. Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 244.
13 Robert L. Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 147.
14 William G. T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, p. 33.

INTRODUCTION 11
a. Analytically and synthetically, that is by a study of separate aspects of the essential
nature of God, as are commonly defined. These are aspects which God Himself
has revealed; they are not of human derivation. At the same time, it is important
that God’s attributes be studied synthetically, that is as a related whole or as part
of one indivisible God. While aspects of God’s nature are to be considered
distinctively because the Bible does so, yet individual attributes must also be
understood in relation to other aspects of God’s being. This is extremely
important since failure at this point has led to heresy. For example:
(1) God must be known as both immanent (close), and transcendent (beyond).
Overemphasis on immanence leads to pantheism as reflected in eastern
mysticism and Christian Science (God is all and all is God, including nature).
Overemphasis on transcendence leads to Gnosticism (God is beyond the
material), and deism (God has wound up the universe like a clock and
departed).
(2) Some have posited the “clever” question, “Could God make a rock so heavy
that He could not carry it?” Of course the emphatic answer must be “No!”
However this foolish question attempts to pit one aspect of God’s being, His
omnipotence, against another, His infinity. Rather such a challenge to God’s
power must not be considered alone; He is not only omnipotent and infinite,
but also wise. Hence He does not consider enacting foolish propositions
proposed by finite man that engage infinity.
b. Anthropomorphically, that is as portrayed by various physical parts of the human
body. These include:
(1) God’s face, denoting His sight and presence, being both loving (Ps. 27:8),
and wrathful (Ps. 34:16).
(2) God’s eyes, denoting His omniscience, His seeing of all good and evil (II
Chron. 16:9; Prov. 15:3; Amos. 9:8).
(3) God’s nose and nostrils, denoting both His acceptance of men and their
sacrifices (Gen. 8:20-21), and His anger and non-acceptance of them (Ps.
18:8; Is. 65:2-5).
(4) God’s ears, denoting His readiness to hear, answer and deliver concerning
the requests of His people (Ps. 34:15; Is. 59:1).
(5) God’s mouth, denoting His commands, promises and prophecies (Deut. 8:3;
Is. 1:20; Jer. 23:16).
(6) God’s arm and hands, denoting His power and its operation in creation,
providence and redemption (Ps. 89:13; 102:25; 104:2-28; 118:16; Is. 50:2).
c. Anthropopathically, that is as pictured by various emotional responses and
attitudes of the human being.

12
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(1) God rests (Gen. 2:2; Exod. 20:11).
(2) God is sorry (repentant), and grieves (Gen. 6:6).
(3) God is jealous (Ex. 20:5; Ezek. 39:25).
(4) God does not slumber or sleep (Ps. 121:3-4), even though He may at times be
foolishly charged with dozing (Ps. 7:6; 44:23; Is. 51:9).
(5) God is weary and tired (Is. 1:14; Jer. 15:6).
(6) God weeps (Is. 22:4; John 11:35).
(7) God is angry, indignant in the manifestation of His wrath (Ps. 7:11; Isa.
5:25).
(8) God is joyful (Deut. 30:9; Zeph. 3:17).
D. WHAT WE DO NOT MEAN BY THE “ATTRIBUTES” OF GOD
1. They are not philosophic elements that encourage cerebral speculation.
The greatest danger of finite man studying the characteristics of the infinite God is his
becoming captive to abstract reasonings. On such a pathway man attempts to explore
beyond his limitations, which tendency is not unlike the aspirations of Lucifer (Isa.
14:13-14). He tends to lose sight of God’s glorious being as a whole and rather focuses
on impersonal metaphysical particulars, especially as they have been formulated by
pagan scholarship (Col. 2:8).
2. They are not man’s conception of God.
Man does not discover God; he does not find God; he is unable to independently
conceive of God; he cannot initiate fellowship with God. If the child of God sees “in a
mirror dimly” (I Cor. 12:13), then the true characteristics of God are not obvious and
readily comprehensible before the sinful human race in general. Further God is not a
finite projection of the infinite since the end result is the deification of sinful self.
Rather, God is only rightly understood according to his own self-disclosure (II Cor.
4:3-6; Heb. 1:1-2).
a. God is the subject of this universe, not a passive object who is available for human
scrutiny, as if under a microscope. Certainly man does investigate God’s
sovereignly given revelation both in nature and Scripture, but only as a babe looks
at an adult world and not as an analytical chemist.
b. God’s excellencies are not discovered by means of man’s polluted, subjective,
limited faculties since the focus of his soul is distorted. Rather the corrupt soul
needs cleansing by means of the Holy Spirit whereby spiritual illumination of
objective revelation becomes possible (I Cor. 2:12-16; Titus 3:5-6; II Pet. 1:20-21).

3. They are not separate parts of a composite God.
INTRODUCTION 13
God’s attributes are not a patchwork quilt, an assembly of pieces of God’s essence, but
rather manifestations of the one true God’s indivisible, simple being.
a. God is not composed of numerous compartments. The revelation of one particular
attribute comes yet undetached from the totality of God’s being. God’s grace is at
the same time holy, eternal, sovereign, and based upon omniscience.
b. Hence, God is not to be clinically dissected. We can only know Him in truth when
we know Him in His fullness. In the night sky we perceive only a crescent of the
moon, yet in fact we do not merely believe in a crescent, but a whole moon.
4. They are not distinctive parts of the persons of the triune God.
Sometimes the persons of the triune God are erroneously described as possessing
certain attributes in a disproportionate manner. The Father is said to be more just and
stern; the Son is more gracious and conciliatory; the Holy Spirit is more pervasive and
peaceable. But this is erroneous doctrine that a careful study of God’s nature will
rectify. The Bible reveals that all three Persons of the Godhead have precisely the same
attributes, having the same essence, even though these perfections may appear to have
distinctive economic out-workings in the three individual Persons.
a. The members of the triune God have the same attributes.
(1) The Father has all the attributes of God (I Chron. 29:10-13; Jude 25).
(2) The Son has all the attributes of God.
(a) Holiness (Luke 1:35; Heb. 7:26).
(b) Eternity (John 1:1-2).
(c) Immutability (Heb. 13:8).
(d) Omnipotence (Is. 9:6; Matt. 28:18; Rev. 1:8).
(e) Omniscience (John 21:17), which was on the one hand willingly restrained,
yet not absent (Mark 13:29, 32). It was self-limitation,
through the putting on of humanity, but not to the exclusion of deity
(Phil. 2:5-8).
(f) Omnipresence (Matt. 28:20; Eph. 1:23).
(3) The Holy Spirit has all the attributes of God. Consider Acts 5:3-4 where His
deity and personality are declared.
b. God is one in essence (Deut. 6:4), yet manifest in three persons who have the same
attributes (Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 13:14; Eph. 4:4-6; I Pet. 1:1-2). Consider the
following classic diagrams which portray that it is wrong to distinguish between

14
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
the justice of God the Father, the love of God the Son, and the power of the Holy
Spirit. Rather justice, love, and power are equally attributes of the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit.
THE TRIUNE GOD IS ONE IN ESSENCE
NOT
E. WHY SHOULD WE STUDY THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD?
1. Because it is inherent in the creature to understand his Creator.
While the contemplation of self is essential to personal being, Calvin commences his
Institutes of the Christian Religion as follows: “[N]o one can look upon himself
without immediately turning his thoughts to the contemplation of God, in whom he
‘lives and moves’ [Acts 17:28]. . . . [T]he knowledge of ourselves not only arouses us to
seek God, but also, as it were, leads us by the hand to find him.” 15 Although sin may
invert this priority so that man responds by spurning that God he is first led to
contemplate (Rom. 1:25), it nevertheless remains mandatory for man to learn about his
Maker from the days of his youth onward (Eccles. 12:1).
2. Because upon acknowledging God as God, man first ought to know Him.
“In the beginning God” (Gen. 1:1), and God being God, His claims upon mankind
have absolute priority. So man ought to accept that in the realm of knowledge, He is to
be, by lordly and logical right, the chief of his interests and enquiry. Such a quest ought
to be the most sensible and intelligent and reasonable of all pursuits. So Tozer reasons,
“Let us begin with God. Back of all, above all, before all is God; first in sequential
order, above in rank and station, exalted in dignity and honor. As the self-existent One
15 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, I, I, 1.
BUT

INTRODUCTION 15
He gave beings to all things, and all things exist out of Him and for Him. ‘Thou art
worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things,
and for thy pleasure they are and were created’ (Rev. 4:11).” 16
3. Because the knowledge of God is essential to our desire to give Him glory.
How can man possibly delight in some vague, generic entity designated as “God”? We
delight in a house or automobile through the knowledge of numerous features, aspects
of beauty, performance, etc. What we delight in, particularly in romance, we have first
examined and learned about in great detail. Upon learning of the personal features,
only then can we boast in a person. So we can only glory in God when we have learned
of the composition of His glorious personal features (I Cor. 1:30-31).
4. Because a right biblical understanding of God produces godly virtues.
In the days of his innocence, man bore certain unblemished characteristics of God; in
other words he was “God-like” or “godly,” in an untested sense. But upon the entrance
of sin, he assumed an unholy image that bore the image of Satan, his new master. 17 The
gospel, as central to God’s plan of salvation, is basic to the restoration of godliness in
man (II Cor. 3:17-18; 4:4).
a. The unbelieving sinner needs to know about God in order that he might be
justified. He needs to know about who God is, especially His holiness and
sovereignty, and what He does in just judgment and saving mercy. Through the
reception of this mercy, godliness is obtained. The believing sinner then needs to
behold God more clearly and adoringly, to the end that he might become godly to
a greater degree, and thus progressively sanctified. Nevertheless, this is not to
suggest that conversion comes by a mere gradual apprehension of God’s
attributes. Rather the saving of the sinner unto godliness involves his heartfelt
apprehension of both who God is and what He has done through the atonement
of Jesus Christ.
b. Apart from Charnock’s extensive work, The Existence and Attributes of God, he
has a separate discourse of 160 pages entitled The Knowledge of God based on
John 17:3, “And this is life eternal, that they may know You, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” He lists seven graces that are reliant upon
the knowledge of God and Christ. 18
(1) Faith requires the knowledge of God (II Tim. 1:12; Heb. 11:6). To the degree
that faith comprehends or is deprived of the truth about God, so it is either
strengthened or weakened.
16 A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God, pp. 101-2.
17
This is not to deny that man is presently void of any aspects of the original “imago Dei.” However, it is
maintained that any remnants of this “godliness” are not in the moral sphere. This subject is more fully
dealt with in the section dealing with the personality of God in Chapter XII.
18
Charnock, IV, pp. 31-4.

16
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(2) Desire for God requires the knowledge of God (John 4:10; I Pet. 2:3). To the
degree that the attractiveness and admirableness of God is appreciated, so the
believer will have increasing longing for God in more intimate union.
(3) Love to God requires the knowledge of God (Mark 12:30; I Cor. 2:8). To the
degree that the love of God for sinners is understood by them, so love for
God by those same sinners will be generated.
(4) Joy in God requires the knowledge of God (Ps. 104:34). To the degree that
the goodness of God is personally beheld and understood, so the those who
appreciate this goodness will respond with glad praise and rejoicing.
(5) Repentance toward God requires the knowledge of God (Acts 17:30). To the
degree that God’s demanding and saving righteousness is understood, so the
convicted sinner will yet turn to pardoning grace.
(6) Fear of God requires the knowledge of God (Is. 8:13). To the degree that
man understands the holiness and sovereignty of God, so he will bow with
trembling before the only Lord of heaven and earth.
(7) Patience before God requires the knowledge of God (Heb. 10:32). To the
degree that man understands God’s perfecting ways through the years, His
ordained experiences and even affliction, so he learns to wait upon God.
5. Because God has begotten children after His own likeness.
Is there to be expected any resemblance? We expect orange trees to bear oranges, and
apple trees to bear apples. But what does the seed of God produce (I John 3:9)? What
are the characteristics of His offspring? What are the distinguishing traits of a child of
God?
a. On seeing a new-born babe for the first time, we are quick to detect parental
likenesses and birthmarks, indeed these are out expectation. No likenesses could
suggest masquerading parentage, illegitimacy! Hence, we readily accept the “like
father, like son” principle as that which God has ordained in the natural realm.
b. Hence in the spiritual realm the children of God reflect their parentage. There
ought to be birthmarks on the begotten of God (I John 3:9-10; Matt. 5:44-45).
The absence of spiritual birthmarks may indicate illegitimate parentage. Visible
godliness authenticates legitimacy, lineage, parentage.
c. It is to be expected then that God’s attributes will be reflected in His children.
Further, the true child of God looks to his Father with longing to be more
conformed to that image (I John 3:1-3). Thus, “God is love,” and, “We love,
because He first loved us” (I John 4:7-8, 19). God’s attribute of love is to be the
recognizable hallmark of His children, and thus they will aspire to be more like
their Father (John 13:34-35; I John 3:10-11).

INTRODUCTION 17
6. Because a study of all of the revealed attributes of God results in a balanced view of the
Godhead, especially with regard to those perfections that may appear to be in tension
with each other and with man.
a. Consider God’s immanence and transcendence (II Kings 19:15-16). In spite of
man’s limited comprehension, God is always both near, involved, pervasive, and
other than, surpassing, beyond.
b. Consider God’s unity and triunity (I Cor. 8:4-6; I Pet. 1:1-2). In spite of man’s
limited comprehension, God is one in essence while at the same time a triunity of
persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
c. Consider God’s sovereignty and man’s accountability (Acts 4:27-28). In spite of
man’s limited comprehension, God is absolutely sovereign while man remains a
free agent under that sovereignty.
7. Because a true knowledge of God purges our minds of human conceptions and
unworthy views of God which are in fact intellectual idols.
a. The god supposedly comprehended through human self-discovery, that results in
idolatry, gives way to the God of self-revelation.
b. The god of subjective conception, that conforms to the image of the subject, gives
way to the objective God of Scripture.
c. The god having reliance on man, that results in the inflation of human self-esteem,
gives way to the God of absolute self-sufficiency where man rests in confidence.
8. Because a true knowledge of God places the gospel in its proper, exalted, and glorious
position. At its most basic level, the Christian gospel concerns who God is, especially
His essential qualities, in relation to man.
a. The greater our conception of God, the greater will be our sinful consciousness,
and consequently we will acknowledge that only a great salvation can bridge the
gap.
b. When God is conceived of in modest proportions, man is consequently perceived
as a moderate sinner, and the appropriate gospel is defined as cooperative
assistance.
c. Further, in the gospel is the wonder of seeming contrary attributes, justice and
grace, or “righteousness and peace,” kissing each other (Ps. 85:10). Thus God is
understood as one who is both “just and the justifier” (Rom. 3:26).
9. Because a true knowledge of the living God is the most profound and loftiest pursuit
that can engage the human mind (Ps. 147:5; Prov. 9:10).
a. The atheist or humanistic materialist can pursue the realms of time, space and
matter, insofar as his regnant, healthy mind allows. Yet such a trail, void of

18
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
spiritual and eternal realities, only offers direction within this shallow compass of
man, which is no longer, on average, than seventy years.
b. But for the Christian, true epistemology (the nature of knowledge and knowing)
and ontology (the nature of being and existence) plunge beyond time, space and
matter, beyond the limits of man’s puny mind, toward the spiritual, eternal,
omnipotent God! Oliver Wendell Holmes has written:
Lord of all being, throned afar,
Thy glory flames from sun and star;
Center and soul of every sphere,
Yet to each loving heart how near.
c. In the year 1855, at the commencement of his ministry at the New Park Street
Chapel, London, C. H. Spurgeon, aged twenty, proclaimed:
The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can
ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the
work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father. There
is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity.
It is a subject so vast, that all out thoughts are lost in its immensity; so deep that our
pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with; in
them we feel a kind of self-content, and go our way with the thought, “Behold I am
wise.” But when we come to this master-science, finding that our plumb-line cannot
sound its depth, and that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the
thoughts that vain man would be wise, but he is like a wild ass’s colt and with the
solemn exclamation, “I am but of yesterday, and know nothing.” No subject of
contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God. We shall
be obliged to feel
“Great God! how infinite art thou!
What worthless worms are we!”
[Let the whole race of creatures bow,
And pay their praise to thee.]
. . . . But while the subject humbles the mind it also expands it. He who often thinks
of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow
globe. . . . The most excellent study for expanding the soul, is the science of Christ,
and him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity.
Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a
devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity And, whilst
humbling and expanding, this subject is eminently consolatary. Oh, there is, in
contemplating Christ, a balm for every wound, in musing on the Father, there is a
quietus for every grief- and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for
every sore. Would you lose your sorrows? Would you drown your cares? Then go,
plunge yourself in the Godhead’s deepest sea; be lost in his immensity; and you shall
come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated. I know nothing which
can so comfort the soul; so calm the swelling billows of grief and sorrow; so speak
peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead. 19
d. The following diagram illustrates that holy or unholy behavior in man is directly
related to his prior comprehension of God, whether it be orthodox or
19 C. H. Spurgeon, The New Park Street Pulpit, I, p. 1.

GOD'S
ATTRIBUTE
HOLINESS
GOODNESS
GRACE
BENEVOLENCE
MERCY
SELF-EXISTENCE
INFINITY
IMMUTABILITY
OMNISCIENCE
OMNIPOTENCE
OMNIPRESENCE
INTRODUCTION 19
unorthodox. Therefore orthodoxy does regulate orthopraxy. How we behold God
determines how we behave; behaving results from beholding. Perception
establishes performance.
PERVERTED
PERCEPTION
God is common,
ordinary, secular
God is unjust,
not straight
God is imperfect,
unkind
God is easy on
sin, very tolerant
God is unconcerned,
uncharitable
God's deliverance
is automatic
God is tolerant,
rarely offended
God is dependent,
reliant
God is finite,
limited
God is fickle,
unreliable
God is ignorant,
needs advice
God has lost control,
needs help
God is absent,
unaware
F. HOW ARE THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD TO BE CLASSIFIED?
1. Classifications of the attributes of God.
PERVERTED
RESPONSE
Disrespect,
brashness
Criticism, anger,
despair
Scorn, indifference,
badness
Lawlessness,
antinomianism
Ingratitude,
presumption
Carelessness,
ingratitude
Loose living,
presumption
Disrespect,
pride
Weak faith,
pride
Despair,
uncertainty
Despair, pride,
faithflessness
Carnal confidence,
pride
Licentiousness,
fear
PROPER
RESPONSE
Sobriety,
personal purity
Virtue,
integrity
Love, kindness,
wholesomeness
Graciousness,
forgiveness
Impartiality,
generosity
Active concern
and helpfulness
Patience,
holy gratitude
Meekness,
awesome respect
Humility,
strong faith
Trust,
confidence
Suppliance,
confidence
Submission,
humble awe
Reverence,
confidence
If finite, albeit Christian, man admits to difficulty in pondering the depths of the
infinite person of Almighty God, then it ought not to be a surprise when classification
of His attributes also presents some difficulty. Distinctions have commonly been made

20
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
between God’s incommunicable and communicable, natural and moral, intransitive
and transitive, absolute and relative, active and passive perfections. It will be noted that
the basic difference concerns who God is, and what He does.
2. God’s incommunicable and communicable attributes.
This, the most commonly acknowledged classification, will be utilized in this study as
follows:
a. Incommunicable attributes are those which, in no degree, are reflected in man.
They include God’s self-existence, infinity, immutability, omnipresence, omniscience,
omnipotence, eternality, etc. Certainly man has knowledge, but not in any
total, comprehensive sense as the term “omniscience” requires; man has a small
degree of potency, but not immeasurable “omnipotence.”
b. Communicable attributes are those which, in some degree, may be reflected in
man. They include holiness, righteousness, justice, goodness, love, grace, mercy,
benevolence, longsuffering, wisdom, veracity, spiritual life, personality, etc.
Certainly no Christian has any of these attributes in an absolute sense, but
according to each term yet he does possess some legitimate degree of the essence
of that characteristic; he is a “partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the
corruption that is in the world by lust” (II Pet. 1:4).
3. God’s intransitive and transitive attributes.
Sometimes described as essential and dynamic attributes, again the distinction is based
upon who God is and what He does, or the essence of God and His manifestations.
a. God is essentially holy, but the manifestation of this moral purity is found in His
justice, integrity, and faithfulness, etc.
b. God is essentially good, but the manifestation of this admirable virtue is found in
His love in general, grace, benevolence, longsuffering, mercy, etc.
c. God is essentially infinite, but this quality of his being without limitation is found
in His eternality, omnipresence, immanence, transcendence, etc.
4. God’s attributes in a fourfold distinction.
a. His existent being, including His self-existence, eternality, infinity, omniscience,
etc.
b. His dynamic being, including His omnipotence, omnipresence, etc.
c. His moral being, including His holiness, righteousness, wisdom, goodness, etc.
d. His personal/emotional being, including His joy, peace, anger, hatred, wrath,
sorrow, etc.

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER II
THE HOLINESS OF GOD
Several years ago when pastoring a church in Oregon, this author was preaching a series of
messages on I Peter 1. In focusing on vs. 13-16 over several weeks, especially God’s
exhortation to his people, “You shall be holy, for I am holy,” a lady subsequently raised a
complaint concerning his ministry with the explanation, “I am not leaving the church on
Sunday as happy as I have in the past.” To the preacher, this seemed evidence of progress in
this lady’s life, namely a confrontation with the holiness of God that was having a sobering
effect. Unfortunately, some of the elders did not see it this way, with the result that, a
different tone in pastoral ministry was requested.
1. Where shall we start?
To reverently yet basically describe God, according to His self-revelation in the Bible, a
person must refer to His most pervasive characteristics, in which case it could be said
that He is the, “Only Holy, Eternal, Spiritual, Living, Sovereign Person and LORD,”
named “Jehovah/Yahweh.” While this declaration may seem very incomplete, yet it is
proposed that it is comprised of those qualities of God that are used most frequently in
Scripture to distinguish Him in the midst of a pluralistic religious world. Certainly each
element here is essentially important, yet it is proposed that the moral quality of the
God of the Bible is that which is most distinctive of all, indeed the most foundational
even if not necessarily the most important. This transcendently ethical characteristic is
usually referred to in the Word of God as His holiness or righteousness, though these
two terms will subsequently be distinguished. Granted that there are different aspects
of God’s holiness, nevertheless at this point we first consider Him according to His
moral excellence.
2. What meaning do we readily associate with the term “holiness”?
a. A religious individual who has pronounced negative habits, such as not smoking,
swearing, drinking, living promiscuously. Such a person may live in a Spartan
environment apart from the secular world, such as a recluse, an ascetic, or a monk
in a monastery This lifestyle may involve plain dress, regimented living and a
restrictive diet. But of itself, this is merely living differently from multitudes in this
world. It may involve a degree of sincere commitment and even result in certain
health benefits. However by itself this lifestyle could not be identified with the
basic idea of biblical holiness.
b. A doctrinal emphasis within conservative Christianity that has spawned “holiness
churches” and “holiness conventions” and “holiness lifestyles.” The distinctives
have included sinless perfection of various modes, often defined as the absence of

22
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
known sin, 1 perfect love as coined by John Wesley, full sanctification, total
yieldedness to Christ, spiritual living on a more exalted level, 2 etc. The means to
these ends for the Christian have involved complete as opposed to limited
surrender to Christ, sanctification through faith even as justification is through
faith, a baptism by the Holy Spirit, the laying on of hands, agonizing with God,
acts of self-denial, etc. Here truth and error are deceptively entwined.
c. The fundamental characteristic of God Himself, that so impressed Isaiah the
prophet that on thirty occasions he addressed his LORD as, “the Holy one of
Israel.” In other words, our principal thought concerning God is of His constant,
impeccable moral purity, blending with His life and power, that results in glory of
an immeasurable magnitude, that sets Him apart from that which is unholy. For
this reason the holiness of God is that attribute which brings forth, in the heart of
the genuine believer, awe, reverence, humble submission, conviction of unholiness
and a yearning to be holy even as He is holy.
3. What would be our response if God was visibly manifest before us?
That is, while no man can see God in His unveiled essence and live (Ex. 33:20; John
1:18; I Tim. 6:16), yet if a theophany or personal representation of God appeared
before us, even the glorified Lord Jesus Christ, what would be our immediate reaction?
a. Would we not first be struck by God’s mouth-stopping, sin-reflecting,
overwhelming holiness? Surely our response would be no less than that of Moses
(Ex. 3:5), Joshua (Josh. 5:13-15), or Isaiah (Is. 6:1-5), that is humiliation born of
our sense of personal unholiness. Yes, we would quickly stop talking lightheartedly
about the theology of such an event. When all is said and done, the best
instruction in God’s attribute of holiness is confrontation with it.
b. Surely there would be little brash familiarity and easygoing rapport if God was
perceived according to Job 15:15, “the heavens are not pure in His sight;” 25:5-6,
“the stars are not pure in His sight;” Habakkuk 1:12-13, “O LORD, my God, my
Holy One, . . . Your eyes are too pure to approve evil,” Hebrews 12:28-29, “Our
God is a consuming fire,” and especially the dazzling radiance of Revelation 1:12-
18 where in v. 17 the Apostle John “fell at his [the glorified Christ’s] feet as a
dead man.”
c. Why then today is there such a diminished regard for God’s personal holiness
within the environment of God’s people? Surely it is because God’s people have
lost sight of such a vision, and the reason for this is that the pulpit has not
proclaimed such a vision? To address God as “Holy Father” and “Righteous
Father” by His children is uncommon today; yet why should this be so when the
Son of God so intimately addressed his Father as such (John 17:11, 25)?
1
The “absence of known sin” easily becomes a retreat of the man who all too well appreciates the worldly
proverb: “Where ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise!”
2
Refer to Hannah Whitall Smith, The Christian’s Secret Of A Happy Life, and Ruth Paxon, Life On The
Highest Plane.

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 23
d. If heaven is God’s holy dwelling place (Deut. 26:15; II Chron. 30:27), where he is
surrounded by holy angels (Mark 8:38) who ceaselessly proclaim His Holiness
(Isa. 6:1-3; Rev. 4:8), and there the saints “worship the Lord in the beauty
[majesty] of holiness” (Ps. 29:2; 96:9; Hab. 2:20), then it will only be a
comfortable, suitable haven for holy citizens. If the professing Christian has little
interest in the holiness of the triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit, in this earthly
life, it is contradictory to expect that he will enjoy the greater holiness of heaven,
and supremely the holy God in that heaven (Heb. 12:14).
B. WHAT ESSENTIALLY IS THE HOLINESS OF GOD?
1. The biblical definition of “holiness.”
The basic Old Testament Hebrew word for “holy”, as an adjective, is,v/dq;. The
noun form describes “holiness” while the verb form means “to sanctify.” The root
meaning in the Old Testament is that of “purity which is set apart from impurity,”
hence “separation from defilement,” “otherness” in relation to that which is common.
The aspect of negative “apartness from,” when applied to God declares Him, in all of
His being, to be above and beyond all creation, matter, darkness, and especially in the
earthly moral sphere. However it is the positive encounter and identification with the
pure that is of greatest importance, rather than separation from the impure. Of course,
in the case of God, His holiness concerns being set apart unto Himself since there is no
higher standard (Heb. 6:13). Thus Charnock declares:
The holiness of God negatively is a perfect and polluted freedom from all evil. As we call
gold pure that is not imbased by any dross, and that garment clean that is free from any
spot, so the nature of God is estranged from all shadow of evil, all imaginable contagion.
Positively, it is the rectitude or integrity of the divine nature, or that conformity of it in
affection and action to the divine will as to his eternal law, whereby he works with a
becomingness to his own excellency, and whereby he hath a delight and complacency
[tranquility] in everything agreeable to his will. 3
In the New Testament, the parallel word is, a{gio", hagios, which, via the Greek
language, heavily draws upon the Hebrew concept, and thus has the closely related
meaning of “moral purity, sanctity, consecration,” in both the negative and positive
senses.
a. Nevertheless in the Bible the word “holy” is not essentially a moral term, though
it most frequently takes on moral meaning.
(1) Early Canaanite pagan priestesses were considered “holy” because they were
devoted to, or set apart unto, prostitution. Thus in Genesis 38:21-22,
“temple prostitute” has the root meaning of “holy.” 4
3
Stephen Charnock, Works, II, p. 194.
4
Keil and Delitzsch comment that this person was, “a woman sacred to Astarte, a goddess of the Canannites,
the deification of the generative and productive principle of nature; one who served this goddess by
prostitution (vid. Deut. 23:18). This was no doubt regarded as the most respectable designation for public
prostitutes in Canaan” “The Pentateuch,” Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament, I, p. 341.

24
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(2) The various utensils used in Solomon’s temple were designated as “holy”
because they were set apart from association with other common vessels unto
a particular area of sacred service (I Chron. 22:19). In a similar way the
golden plate on Aaron’s high-priestly turban was designated as “the holy
crown” (Lev. 8:9).
b. By way of illustration, a desk in a pastor’s study was once associated with a
common array of desks in an office furniture salesroom. Then it was purchased
from that ordinary setting and set apart unto the distinctive ministry of the Word
of God. However, the true measure of this desk’s “holiness” is what it was
consecrated to rather than what it was consecrated from. In a non-moral sense, a
dedicated surgeon or thief could be described as “holy” to the degree that either
are devoted to their customary employment.
2. The two basic categories of God’s holiness.
a. The majestic holiness of God.
God is distinct and transcendent with regard to creation in all of His attributes.
His “apartness” involves all of His being (Ex. 15:11; I Sam. 2:2; Is. 57:15).
Berkhof describes this as the “majesty-holiness” of God, 5 that is His
comprehensive, all-inclusive holiness. In this sense God’s holiness includes His
exalted spirituality, righteousness, sovereignty, wisdom, wrath, grace, etc., so that
man as a mere creature is overwhelmed with His awesome, unique presence, His
absolute inapproachability resulting in personal creature sensitivity and
abasement. 6
b. The moral holiness of God.
Though related to God’s majestic holiness, this moral aspect predominates in the
Bible and our study will focus attention upon this particular truth. It could be
claimed that God’s moral holiness is at the heart of His majestic holiness since it
permeates every aspect of His being.
(1) There are three fundamental elements in biblical holiness, though they can
equally be applied to the earlier mentioned secular examples.
(a) A moral standard that governs the separation both negatively and
positively, the right, a measure of oughtness, an ethical compass.
(b) A separation from that which violates this moral standard, designated
as negative holiness or holy separation and alienation.
5
Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 73.
6
Berkhof acknowledges his reliance here, to some degree, upon Rudolf Otto’s The Idea of the Holy. However,
while this work has received wide acclaim, yet the fact of it being based upon liberal presuppositions and
especially the author’s infatuation with eastern mysticism should engender caution.

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 25
(c) A separation unto that which is in agreement with this moral standard,
positive holiness or righteousness, ethical conformity.
(2) With regard to God Himself:
(a) He is His own, consistent, unchanging, morally pure standard, and
never has any need to be compared with another standard outside of
Himself (Ex. 15:11; Is. 6:3; Heb. 6:13). God is independently sufficient
in His own moral being. This aspect declares who God essentially is.
(b) He is set apart from all that is alien to His purity. There is not a speck
of defilement, not the faintest stain of impurity in His person, “no
darkness at all” (I John 1:5). This aspect declares who God actively is
not
(c) He is set apart unto all that is in harmony with His moral excellence,
His utterly righteous being (Ps. 145:17; Hab. 1:13; Rev. 4:8). In Him
there is unalloyed moral purity, and He is utterly consecrated to this,
His own impeccable standard. Thus God is morally content, selfsatisfied.
This aspect declares who God actively is.
(3) With regard to the Christian:
(a) God’s standard of righteousness (positive holiness) is the believer’s
standard, namely that which the Bible reveals (Lev. 11:44; Deut. 18:13;
I Pet. 1:15-16), and especially in the incarnate righteousness of the Lord
Jesus Christ (Col. 2:9; Rev. 3:7). As a consequence:
1) Subjective righteousness, humanistic morality is rejected, namely
what I think is right.
2) Relative righteousness, situational morality is rejected, namely
what is suitable is right.
(b) The Christian is set apart from that which is alien to the moral
character of God, this being negative holiness (II Cor. 7:1; II Tim. 2:22).
1) Hence the believer shuns that which is ungodly, uncharacteristic of
God, unlike Jesus Christ, unholy.
2) However, on its own this negative holiness proves little more than
is civil, according to a pattern of behavior. It certainly does not
indicate that such a person is a regenerate child of God. In
Jonathan Edwards classic work on Religious Affections he explain:
[P]ersons being disposed to abound and to be zealously engaged in
the external exercises of religion, and to spend much time in them,
is no sure evidence of grace. . . . Experience shows, that persons,
from false religion, may be abundant in the external exercises of
religion; yea, to give themselves up to them, and devote almost their
whole time to them. Formerly, a sort of people were very numerous

26
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
in the Romish church, calles recluses, who forsook the world, and
utterly abandoned the society of mankind. They shut themselves up
close in a narrow cell, with a vow never to stir out of it, nor to see
the face of any, (unless that they might be visited in case of
sickness,) but to spend all their days in the exercises of devotion and
converse with God. There were also in old time, great multitudes
called Hermites and Anchorites, who left the world in order to
spend all their days in lonesome deserts, and to give themselves up
to religious contemplations and exercises of devotion. 7
(c) The Christian is set apart unto that which is in harmony with the moral
character of God, this being positive holiness (Lev. 20:26; II Pet. 1:5-8).
1) He is inclined toward the nature of God in his affections. 8 His
desire is to model the very character of God. He thirsts after
godliness. The great commandment (Matt. 22:36-38) is more than
a mandate; rather the Christian is motivated in his heart in that He
admires and adores God’s holiness, and especially as he observes it
in Jesus Christ (Gal. 4:19; 5:22-23).
2) Here is the chief ground for accepting a person is holy according to
Scripture. Attraction to the righteousness of God best indicates
regeneration. In spite of Peter’s sinful bungling, yet he had a heart
for the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Savior was gracious in response
to him (John 6:68; 13:9; 21:15-17). In Jonathan Edwards’ classic
work on Religious Affections he explains:
So the holiness of God, in the more extensive sense of the word—
the sense in which the word is commonly, if not universally, used
concerning God in Scripture—is the same with the moral excellency
of the divine nature; comprehending all his moral perfections, his
righteousness, faithfulness, and goodness. . . . Holy persons, in the
exercise of holy affections, love divine things primarily for their
holiness; they love God, in the first place, for the beauty of his
holiness, or moral perfection, as being supremely amiable in itself.
Not that the saints, in the exercise of gracious affections, love God
only for his holiness; all his attributes are amiable and glorious in
their eyes; they delight in every divine perfection; the contemplation
of the infinite greatness, power, knowledge, and terrible majesty of
God, is pleasant to them. But their love to God for his holiness is
what is most fundamental and essential in their love. 9
7
Jonathan Edwards, Works, I, p. 255.
8
Refer to the whole of Edwards’ significant work, “A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections,” Works, I, pp.
234-343.
9
Ibid., p. 279.

C. THE HOLINESS OF GOD EVIDENT IN HIMSELF
1. Holiness as God’s fundamental attribute.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD 27
The holiness of God is of primary or basic moral importance in relation to the other
attributes, which is not meant to suggest of greater importance. However, an
understanding of this primacy is vital to a correct appreciation of the biblical gospel
and Christian ethics. This truth needs special emphasis in these days of doctrinal
confusion and ignorance.
a. The primacy of the holiness of God according to Scripture.
“[God’s] holiness is the collective and consummate glory of His nature as an
infinite, morally pure, active, and intelligent Spirit.” 10
(1) The Bible as a whole.
Even a cursory study of a concordance will quickly lead one to the
conclusion that the triune God of the Bible is more often described as
“holy,”, using various cognate forms such as “holiness,” “sacred,”
“sanctify,” “sanctification,” than any other attribute, such as “love” or
“mercy.” Unfortunately the ministry of most modern evangelical churches
would not lead their congregations to conclude that this is true.
(2) The activity of God.
Not only is God directly named as “holy” (Lev. 19:2; 21:8; I Sam. 2:2; Ps.
99:5), including the triune persons of the Godhead, the Father (John 17:11),
the Son (Acts 4:27, 30), and the Spirit (I Thess. 4:8), but, as a consequence,
his works, persons, titles, and things associated with His being are also
designated as “holy.” consider:
(a) His name is holy (Ps. 111:9), the context of which specifies “LORD,”
Jehovah/Yahweh, the covenant name given by God only to His
redeemed people (Ex. 3:13-16; 6:2-9). As “the Mighty One . . . holy is
His name” (Luke 1:49).
(b) His temple is holy, chiefly because this is God’s dwelling place, whether
on earth where He has met with His people Israel (Ps. 5:7), and now
meets with them in His church (Eph. 2:21-22), or in heaven where He
judges mankind (Ps. 11:4).
(c) His Old Testament priesthood was holy. Members were set apart from
secular employment unto being “holy to the Lord” through “the service
of the house of the Lord,” particularly “the holy ark,” along with “His
people Israel” (II Chron. 35:2-3). Furthermore, His New Testament
priesthood is holy (I Pet. 2:5).
10 Robert L. Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 173.

28
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(d) His appointed days are holy, that is those times of fellowship that are
devoted to the worship of God, whether the Sabbath in the Old
Testament or the Lord’s Day in the New Testament. Such days are
distinctive when compared with regular weekly, secular activity (Ex.
35:2; Neh. 8:9),
(e) His worship is holy. Whether outward form or, more importantly, an
inner attitude is considered here, there is to be acknowledgment that
God is holy. This would apply to both private devotions and the various
aspects of corporate worship (Ps. 29:2; 96:9; Rev. 4:8).
(f) His covenants are holy. When God makes unilateral promises, such as
to Abraham and through Christ, there is to be the recognition of the
distinguishing holiness of these agreements, particularly when compared
with bilateral, human promises (Dan. 11:28-30; Luke 1:72).
(3) The definitive statement, Isaiah 6:1-7.
This passage of Scripture is arguably the locus classicus with regard to the
doctrine of the holiness of God. Here the God of Israel is principally
described by the Seraphim as “holy, holy, holy,” and not “love, love, love,”
or “wrath, wrath, wrath,” or “eternal, eternal, eternal.” The same trilogy of
praise is offered in Revelation 4:8. However, after Isaiah is humbled and
confesses his sin along with that of his fellow countrymen in vs. 1-5, he
receives grace through the forgiveness and cleansing power of God, even
Christ Jesus (John 12:36-41), in vs. 6-7. The point here is that a holy God
manifests grace and mercy; it is not a gracious and merciful God who
manifests holiness. As we shall see, love requires a moral standard, and it is
the priority of holiness that supplies this.
b. The primacy of the holiness of God according to Stephen Charnock.
In Charnock’s classic study, “The Existence and Attributes of God,” he declares
that:
If any, this attribute [of holiness] hath an excellency above his other perfections.
There are some attributes we prefer, because of our interest in them, and the relation
they bear to us; as we esteem his goodness before his power, and his mercy, whereby
he relieves us, before his justice, whereby he punisheth us. As there are some we
more delight in because of the goodness we receive by them, so there are some that
God delights to honor because of their excellency. 11
(1) His specific reasons.
(a) This attribute is more frequently attached to God’s name than any other
(Ps. 33:21; 111:9; 15:21; Is. 57:15; Luke 1:49). “You never find it
expressed, his mighty name or his wise name, but his great name, and
11 Stephen Charnock, “The Existence and Attributes of God,” The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, II, p.
191.

12
Ibid., p. 190.
13
Ibid., pp. 191-2.
14
Ibid., p. 192.
15
Ibid.
16
Ibid.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD 29
most of all his holy name. This is his greatest title of honor; in this doth
the majesty and venerableness of his name appear.” 12
(b) This attribute is more supremely celebrated in heaven than any other (Is.
6:3; Rev. 4:8). “Do you hear in any angelical song any other perfection
of the divine nature thrice repeated? Where do we read of the crying out
Eternal, eternal, eternal; or Faithful, faithful, faithful, Lord God of
hosts! 13
(c) This attribute is more frequently attached to God’s oaths than any
other. Thus, “Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to
David” (Ps. 89:35); also, “The LORD God has sworn by His holiness”
(Amos 4:2).
He that swears, swears by a greater than himself. God having no
greater than himself, swears by himself; and swearing here by his
holiness seems to equal that single to all his other attributes, as if
he were more concerned in the honor of it than of all the rest. It is
as if he should have said, Since I have not a more excellent
perfection to swear by than that of my holiness, I law this to pawn
for your security, and bind myself by that which I will never part
with, were it possible for me to be stripped of all the rest. 14
(d) This attribute is God’s glory and beauty as is no other, and is to be
acknowledged as such. David desires to “dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life, to behold the beauty [holiness, cf. Ps. 29:2] of the
Lord and to meditate in His temple” (Ps. 27:4; cf. 29:2). Isaiah describes
God’s house as “holy and beautiful” (Isa. 64:11), and this is but a
reflection of his holy and beautiful Being. 15
(e) This attribute is God’s very life which, in Ephesians 4:18-20, is
contrasted with the impurity or unholiness of the Gentiles. Here they
are “excluded from the life of God,” which vitality is the opposite to
their manifold “uncleanness and profaneness,” and thus is His holiness.
“If he were stripped of this, he would be a dead God, more than by the
want of any other perfection. His swearing by it intimates as much; he
swears often by his own life: ‘As I live, saith the Lord;’ so he swears by
his holiness as if it were his life, and more his life than any other.” 16
From this we conclude that his truth is a holy truth (Rev. 6:10), his
wrath is a holy wrath (Ezek. 8:2), his love is a holy love (Rom. 3:26.).

30
(2) His overall conclusion.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
c. The primacy of the holiness of God according to Augustus H. Strong.
Dr. Strong’s Systematic Theology, first published in 1886 and enlarged in 1907, is
a classic Baptist work that is notable for its emphasis on attempting to regain lost
ground previously yielded to liberalism. Specifically, the call is for a return to the
priority of holiness rather than love in the character of God.
(1) His introductory assertion.
“I would lead others to avow anew, as I do now, in spite of the supercilious
assumptions of modern infidelity, my firm belief, only confirmed by the
experience and reflection of half a century [rife with liberalism], in the old
doctrines of holiness as the fundamental attribute of God, of an original
transgression and sin of the whole human race. . . . I believe that the recent
merging of Holiness in Love, and the practical denial that Righteousness is
fundamental in God’s nature, are responsible for the utilitarian views of law
and the superficial views of sin which now prevail in some systems of
theology. There can be no proper doctrine of the atonement and no proper
doctrine of retribution, so long as Holiness is refused its preëminence. Love
must have a norm or standard, and this norm or standard can be found only
in Holiness. The old conviction of sin and the sense of guilt that drove the
convicted sinner to the cross are inseparable from a firm belief in the selfaffirming
attribute of God [Holiness] as logically prior to and as conditioning
the self-communicating attribute [Love]. The theology of our day needs a
new view of the Righteous One. Such a view will make it plain that God
must be reconciled before man can be saved, and that the human conscience
can be pacified only upon condition that propitiation is made to the divine
Righteousness.” 18
(2) His response to objections.
The modern Christian may be inclined to protest that such an idea conflicts
with the supremacy of God’s love. If any, is not love God’s fundamental
attribute? Did not Paul declares in I Corinthians 13:13 that love is “the
greatest”? To this Dr. Strong replies: 19
17
Ibid., p. 193-4.
18
Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. x-xi.
19 Ibid., pp. 296-303.

20 Ibid., p. 297.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD 31
(a) “Love cannot be the fundamental attribute of God, because love always
requires a norm or standard, and this norm or standard is found only in
holiness; Phil. 1:9 – “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet
more in knowledge and all discernment.”. . . Holiness shows itself
higher than love, in that it conditions love.”
(b) “If it be said that God is love as well as holiness, we ask: Love to what?
And the only answer is: Love to the right, or to holiness. . . . We cannot
study character apart from conduct, nor conduct apart from character.
But this does not prevent us from recognizing that character is the
fundamental thing and that conduct is only the expression of it.”
(c) With regard to I Cor. 13:13, we would simply point out that Paul here
is not concerned with the pinnacle of God’s character, but rather the
supremacy of love in the context of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22),
and its regulation of the gifts of the Spirit. Of course for Paul, this love
must be a holy love (Eph. 4:24-5:2).
(3) His illustrations in conclusion.
“Enthusiasm, like fire, must not only burn, but must be controlled. Man
invented chimneys to keep in the heat but to let out the smoke. We need the
walls of discretion and self-control to guide the flaming of our love. The
holiness of God is the regulating principle of his nature. The ocean of his
mercy is bounded by the shores of his justice. . . . Only as God maintains
himself in his holiness, can he have anything of worth to give; love indeed is
nothing but the self-communication of holiness.” 20
d. The primacy of the holiness of God in application.
(1) The contemporary crisis concerning the spiritually anemic state of conservative
evangelical Christianity is addressed at its nerve with regard to this vital
matter of the primacy of holiness in the character of God. One recent writer,
David Wells, has perceptively written, very much along the same path as
Augustus Strong.
Christians in Our Time sometimes act as though they were the first to
recognize that God is a God of love. Of course the Bible tells us that God is
love, but Christians of modernity seem to think that this constitutes an
adequate theology in itself, that God is fundamentally if not exclusively love –
and hence the talk of divine holiness is distractive or intrusive. Protestant
liberalism pioneered this displacement of God’s holiness in the nineteenth
century [citing Harnack], but in this century evangelicals have taken up with
distressing carelessness the wholesale reordering of the Christian faith that it
introduced, from the meaning of Christ’s atonement to the meaning of
Christian sanctification.
Today there is resistance to the tenet that has been most characteristic of
Protestant thought since the earliest days of the Reformation – namely, that

32
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
holiness fundamentally defines the character of God and that love is not an
alternative to it but, rather, an expression of it. This must be so [emphasis
added]. If God’s holiness is his utter purity, his incomparable goodness, the
measure of all that is true and right, the final line of resistance to all that is
wrong, dark, and malignant, then love must be a part of this. If love is virtuous
and right, it must be an expression of divine holiness, the essence of which is
truth and right. God’s love is inescapably a manifestation of his holiness, as are
his goodness, righteousness, mercy, and compassion. Holiness is what defines
God’s character most fundamentally, and a vision of this holiness should
inspire his people and evoke their worship, sustain their character, fuel their
passion for truth, and encourage persistence in efforts to do his will and call on
his name in petitionary prayer. . . . Robbed of such a God, worship loses its
awe, the truth of his Word loses its ability to compel, obedience loses its virtue,
and the church loses its moral authority. 21
(2) By way of illustration, imagine that someone purposely stamps on your toes,
and while you are crying out in pain that same person also exclaims, “I
certainly love jumping on your toes and causing you such anguish.” However
you immediately protest, “But what you are doing is not right!” That is
exactly correct, for what is right establishes what is loving. Hence holiness is
a state of moral being that establishes right and loving activity. God’s love
always has integrity, and that integrity is His holiness.
(3) By way of illustration, if homosexuals and lesbians principally justify their
relationships on the basis of “love,” and at the same time we claim that love
is the supreme attribute of God, then their stance cannot be refuted. But the
primacy of holiness, such as is expressed as primary in Leviticus 18:22;
20:13; Romans 1:26-27 completely invalidates any claims to love in this
matter, as it would with a thief protesting that he loves his work! In terms of
the holiness of God, homosexuality and lesbianism are grossly unholy. The
term “love” must not be allowed to justify unholiness; rather holiness must
justify love.
(4) Hence, this principle concerning God’s being has the most profound
ramifications for human existence. With regard to government and good
relationships in a civil society, the righteousness of God must have primacy
(Prov. 14:34) This priority equally applies to family life and the raising of
children. But further, as holiness is the fundamental attribute of God, so
holiness is the supreme good communicated to man through the Holy Father,
the Holy Son, and the Holy Spirit. Further, we should also conclude that the
communication of this fundamental attribute through Christian conversion
should lead the child of God to appreciate that holiness is to be fundamental
in his being and doing (I Thess. 3:12-13).
2. The triune manifestation of God’s holiness.
a. God the Father is holy (John 17:11, 25).
21 David Wells, God in the Wasteland, pp. 135-6.

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 33
b. God the Son is holy (Ps. 16:10, cf. Acts 2:27; Mark 1:23-24; Acts 3:14; 4:27, 30;
Heb. 7:26).
(1) Hence, the Son is as holy as the Father and the Spirit
(2) If the Father regards the Son as holy, how much more should the children of
God?
(3) If the Son, who is holy, has redeemed unholy sinners, how much more should
they regard their Redeemer as holy?
c. God the Spirit is holy (Ps. 51:11; Is. 63:10; John 14:26; Rom. 5:5).
(1) The Spirit is as holy as the Father and the Son.
(2) The Spirit j'Wr, rah, is holy (Ps. 51:12; Isa. 63:10-11) as opposed to
numerous unholy spirits, j'Wr, rah, in the world, which can include both the
spirit of a man (Ps. 32:2; Isa, 26:9; Ezek. 13:3) and spirit beings (I Kings
22:21; Eph. 6:12).
(a) The spirit of jealousy (Num. 5:14).
(b) The spirit of distortion (Is. 19:14).
(c) The spirit of harlotry (Hos. 4:12).
(d) The spirit of uncleanness (Matt. 12:43).
(e) The spirit of divination (Acts 16:16).
(f) The spirit of the antichrist (I John 4:3).
(g) The spirit of error (I John 4:6).
(3) By way of application, we are not to attribute to the Holy Spirit any work
that is not in keeping with his holiness, or that of the Father and the Son. He
is literally, “the Spirit, the holy One” (John 14:26), hence utterly distinct
from other unholy forces in the world. Any authentic movement of the Holy
Spirit will be productive of an inclination toward personal holiness. In this
regard refer to Jonathan Edwards’ works, A Treatise Concerning Religious
Affections, 22 and The Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God. 23
d. Hence, holiness being God’s fundamental attribute, it must be that holiness is
fundamental to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
22 Jonathan Edwards, Works, I, pp. 265, 278-281.
23 Ibid., II, pp. 257-277.

34
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
3. Two biblical descriptions of the holiness of God.
a. The thrice holy God according to Isaiah 6:1-8.
(1) Introductory context, Isaiah 1-5.
(a) God’s controversy with unholy Judah, 720 BC.
1) Alienation from God, 1:3.
2) Corruption in their ways, 1:4.
3) Pollution in their whole being, 1:5-6.
4) Degeneration through formalistic religion, 1:11-15.
5) Reversion by both men and women.
a) The women are proud, worldly, 3:16.
b) The men are indulgent, oppressive, wicked, 5:22-23.
6) But the holy God of Israel will maintain His justice, 5:15-16.
(b) God’s holy constancy with Judah (cf. Micah 4:1-4), 2:1-4.
1) Future kingdom blessings concerning Israel, 2:1-3.
2) Future kingdom blessings concerning the nations, 2:4.
(2) Isaiah’s vision of God’s holiness and its effect on his life, Isaiah 6:1-8.
(a) Isaiah’s vision described, vs. 1-4.
1) The Lord, v. 1.
a) He is Adonai, sovereign potentate over the nation of Israel,
who identifies with specific human history, that is “the year
of King Uzziah’s death” in 730 BC.
b) He is Jesus Christ, beheld by Isaiah as a Christophany (John
12:36b-41; cf. Is. 6:10).
c) He is regally seated and exalted very, very, very high above
the temple perspective of Isaiah.
d) He is fully glorious, majestic; His train or the skirts of his
lavish robes fill the temple (John 17:5).

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 35
2) The seraphim, vs. 2-3.
a) They are heavenly attendants mentioned only here and v. 6 in
the Bible. They have feet, faces, wings; they speak and
appreciate morality, that is holiness.
b) They are reverential beings each with three pairs of wings to
cover their feet, faces, and fly; yet they are standing ready to
serve. In v. 6 they are messengers of grace, though we are not
told how many there are here. However in Revelation 4:6 this
parallel scene describes “four living creatures full of eyes in
front and behind.”
c) They are worshipful beings, constantly proclaiming to one
another the exquisite purity and holy glory of Jehovah and
Jesus Christ, v. 3.
d) This repeated theme of holiness is at the very core of Isaiah’s
vision of God. Hence, this prince of the prophet’s usual title
for Jehovah is, “the Holy One of Israel” (1:4; 10:20; 43:3).
e) By way of application, if then this angelic activity is foremost
amongst the company of heaven, how then shall we react
toward such eternal preoccupation? Would we be bored,
bothered, or blessed?
3) The temple, v. 4.
a) The glory of God shakes the building, even as it should shake
a local church (Eph. 2:21-22).
b) The glory of God fills the building as with smoke, even as it
should fill a local church (Eph. 2:21-22).
(b) Isaiah’s reaction to his vision, vs. 5-8.
1) The holiness of God produces an awareness of sin, v. 5.
a) Most likely this account refers to Isaiah’s initial prophetic
call. Perhaps he had previously been identified with Israel’s
gross wickedness described in Isaiah 1-5.
b) First, Isaiah’s own sin is confessed when he is confronted with
the Holy Lord (cf. Mal. 3:1-3).
c) Second, Judah’s sin is confessed by representation when
confronted with the Holy Lord.
d) The authentic evidence of a true work of the Holy Spirit in a
person’s life is not an outcry against sin that surrounds us, but

36
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
rather sin that indwells us individually (Gen. 38:24; 39:14-18;
Ps. 51:1-4). So David writes, “Who may ascend into the hill
of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? He who
has clean hands and a pure heart” (Ps. 24:3-4).
2) The holiness of God produces forgiveness, mercy, and grace, yet
without any diminution of this same holiness, vs. 6-7.
a) Note the relationship here between holiness and grace. In
accord with the primacy of holiness, grace issues forth and
not vice versa. Thus character produces conduct.
b) Clearly, God is the source of this cleansing which is portrayed
by the atoning action of the burning coal that is taken from
the altar of necessary sacrifice.
c) It is significant that Isaiah needed clean lips, hence a clean
heart, before he can minister God’s Word as required, in v. 8.
3) The holiness of God is productive of proper activity in Isaiah,
specifically dedicated service as a prophet of God, v. 8.
a) Now for the first time in this vision God speaks, and for the
first time Isaiah truly hears and understands.
b) Isaiah’s response is spontaneous rather than contrived, eager
rather than grudging, for he has been confronted with the
Holy One of Israel (cf. Ps. 51:10, 13-15).
b. The thrice holy God according to Revelation 4:1-11.
Whereas Revelation 2-3 plainly deals with the earthly reign of the glorified Jesus
Christ over his churches, it is plain that Revelation 4 transports us to the heavenly
abode of that same Sovereign. In visionary terms, John the Apostle is transported
heavenward concerning which he declares: “I was in the Spirit; and behold a
throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne,” v. 2.
(1) There is an obvious parallel with this passage and Isaiah 6:1-8.
(a) In Isaiah 6:1-8, Jehovah sits on His throne while receiving reverent
worship.
1) Yet Jesus Christ is also present (John 12:36b-41).
2) Angelic beings worship God’s holiness.

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 37
(b) In Revelation 4:1-11, Jehovah sits on His throne while receiving
reverent worship.
1) In Revelation 4:8 it is “the LORD God, the Almighty,” who sits on
the throne of heaven; in 3:21 Jesus Christ speaks of “My Father on
His throne.”
2) Yet in 3:21 it is Jesus Christ who sits with the Father on His
throne. Likewise in 5:5-6, “the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah,
the Root of David,” is the “Lamb,” “in the middle of the throne.”
Further, in 5:11-14 this Lamb receives the same honor and glory as
the Father from the four and twenty elders and the four living
creatures, in addition to the angels, a numberless host, and all of
creation. Such acknowledged glory and honor must incorporate
the same chorus of, “Holy, holy, holy,” 4:8.
(2) The creaturely worship of “the Lord God, the Almighty,” vs. 4-11.
(a) The four and twenty elders are present, and likely represent the Church,
that is all the saints, their chief activity being worship, vs. 4, 10-11.
(b) There are four distinctive “living creatures,” not “beasts” KJV, before
God’s throne, instead of the “seraphim” of Isaiah 6:2-3; vs. 6-7.
Concerning them we note:
1) These living creatures are identical with the seraphim, since they
are the same in position, complement of wings, and activity.
2) The eyes in front and behind speak of God’s omniscience and
omnipresence, v. 6.
3) The lion-like creature speaks of God’s majestic sovereignty, v. 7a.
4) The calf-like creature speaks of God’s toiling benevolence, v. 7b.
5) The man-like creature speaks of God’s personality, intellect, will,
emotions, v. 7c.
6) The eagle-like creature speaks of God’s transcendent dominion, v.
7d.
(c) But in spite of this display of God’s perfections, yet the chief activity of
the living creatures is the ceaseless proclamation of God’s holiness, v. 8.
1) Note that this holiness is immutable, for God is described as He,
“who was and who is and who is to come.”
2) Since this declaration is described as giving “glory and honor,” v.
9, and the elders do likewise, vs. 10-11, we conclude that one of

38
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
the chief occupations of the Church in heaven is intense delight in
God’s holiness.
(3) By way of application, again all people who contemplate going to heaven
ought to ponder if this activity, the praise of God’s glorious holiness, is their
present great interest. If God’s holiness is not their earthly concern, then how
is it possible for them to have such a concern in heaven? Why would they
ever want to go to heaven if they are unhappy with holiness on earth?
D. THE HOLINESS OF GOD EVIDENT IN THE BELIEVER
1. God’s attribute of holiness is communicable.
a. The holiness of God is to be manifest in believers (Eph. 1:4; 4:24; I Pet. 1:15-16).
b. The holiness of God is fundamentally to regulate a multitude of human responses.
(1) It is to stimulate prayer (I Sam. 2:1-2; I Tim. 2:8).
(2) It is to stimulate the singing of praise (Ps. 30:4; 96:1-9).
(3) It is to stimulate understanding and deep perception (Prov. 9:10).
(4) It is to stimulate rejoicing (Is. 29:19).
(5) It is to stimulate daily conduct (Rom. 12:1; II Pet. 3:12).
(6) It is to stimulate reverential fear (Rev. 15:4).
2. God’s communicable holiness in I Peter 1:13-16.
a. The foundation of declarative holiness in I Peter.
(1) God’s elect are set apart, determined as holy, sanctified by the Holy Spirit, to
the end that they might be redeemed through faith in the sprinkled blood of
Jesus Christ, 1:1-2.
(a) God’s foreknowledge here is His “forelove” for His elect in eternity past
(cf. 1:19-20; Rom. 11:2).
(b) Jeremiah was holy, foreknown, foreloved in eternity past (Jer. 1:4-5).
(2) The fact that all true believers have been redeemed, as a slave who has been
ransomed from a slave market unto liberty in Christ, means that they are by
definition, declaratively set apart or holy (Tit. 2:14), 1:18-19.
(3) All true believers comprise, by declaration, a holy priesthood, 2:5, a holy
nation, 2:9.

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 39
(4) All true believers, having been called from darkness unto light, 2:9a, are, by
declaration, holy.
(5) John Murray writes in his article on Definitive Sanctification:
“When we speak of sanctification we generally think of it as that process by
which the believer is gradually transformed in heart, mind, will, and conduct,
and conformed more and more to the will of God and to the image of Christ,
until at death the disembodied spirit is made perfect in holiness, and at the
resurrection his body likewise will be conformed to the likeness of the body
of Christ’s glory. It is biblical to apply the term ‘sanctification’ to this process
of transformation and conformation. But it is a fact too frequently overlooked
that in the New Testament the most characteristic terms that refer to
sanctification are used, not of a process, but of a once-for-all definitive act. . .
. We are thus compelled to take account of the fact that the language of
sanctification [holiness] is used with reference to some decisive action that
occurs at the inception of the Christian life, and one that characterizes the
people of God in their identity as called effectually by God’s grace. It would
be, therefore, a dereliction from biblical patterns of language and conception
to think of sanctification exclusively in terms of a progressive work.” 24
b. The consequence of practical holiness in I Peter 1:13-16.
(1) The context is the believer’s privileged position as a happy participant, 1:8,
in God’s matchless plan of salvation, 1:10-12. There is a three-fold testimony
given as proof:
(a) The Old Testament prophets, “were not serving themselves, but you,”
1:10-12a.
(b) The New Testament apostles, “preached the gospel to you by the Holy
Spirit sent from heaven,” 1:12b.
(c) The angels, with rapt attention and admiration, are amazed at such a
depth of grace bestowed on human sinners, especially since they, a
higher created order (Heb. 2:6-7), yet are not the objects of such saving
interest (Luke 2:13-14), v. 12c.
(2) In the light of such gracious privilege, believers are soberly exhorted to
exercise their minds towards holy activity, vs. 13-14.
(a) “Therefore” calls us to reflect in our minds upon our responsibilities in
the realm of holiness in view of our holy and merciful privileges (Rom.
12:1).
(b) “Gird up your minds for action,” pictures an eastern person dressed in a
long, loose garment who desires to run quickly without tripping. Hence,
24 John Murray, Collected Writings of John Murray, II, p. 277-8.

40
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
he draws the back hem of his outer gown through his legs and tucks it
tightly under his belt. He is now prepared for rapid mobility and action.
1) One of the most serious problems facing evangelical Christianity
today is that of the depreciation of the primary role of the mind,
both with regard to evangelism and practical sanctification (Rom.
6:17). The cult of mindless, anti-doctrinal, pseudo pious
pragmatism, is delivering psyched up, carnal, religious trendies, but
not holy saints!
2) In this regard, John Stott’s timely booklet Your Mind Matters,
subtitled “The Misery and Menace of Mindless Christianity”,
ought to be mandatory reading. He comments, “The modern
world breeds pragmatists, whose first question about any idea is
not, ‘Is it true?’ but ‘Does it work?’ . . . I am not pleading for dry,
humorless, academic Christianity, but for a warm devotion set on
fire by truth. . . . But one of the most neglected aspects of the quest
for holiness is the place of the mind, even though Jesus Christ put
the matter beyond question when he promised, ‘You will know the
truth, and the truth will make you free’ (John 8:32). It is by his
truth that Christ liberates us from the bondage of sin.” 25
3) In Romans 12:1-2, the spiritual metamorphosis of the Christian
results from the renewed mind that has substantially embraced
God’s gospel mercies.
4) In Ephesians 6:14, the center of physical strength insofar as
mobility is concerned is the loins, which are to be “girded with
truth,” that is implicitly in the mind.
5) By way of application, a sloppy, undisciplined mind results in a
slovenly, erratic Christian. But if a Christian would be holy, then
he must pull his mind together for strenuous employment,
stretching, and strict service.
(c) We are to “hope” (imperative) with sobriety, in the face of fierce
opposition (I Tim. 6:11-12), with our minds set upon Christ’s return
(Eph. 5:8, 15-16; Tit. 2:11-13), v. 13.
(d) The mind is to generate a new obedience to holiness in contrast with the
former unrestrained lusts and desires, v. 14.
25 John Stott, Your Mind Matters, pp. 9, 11, 32.
1) But it must be a renewed mind, a spiritually taught mind in
contrast with a formerly carnal mind (Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 1:21).
2) It is only a holy mind that produces holy living (Prov. 23:7).

THE HOLINESS OF GOD 41
(3) The standard of holiness we are called to manifest in our lives is that of the
holy God of Israel, vs. 15-16.
(a) In the Old Testament Israel was to keep clean from defilement and be
like God (Lev. 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:7). This holiness was moral godliness
or “God-likeness.”
(b) Hence, it is necessary for the Christian to be like this God of Israel in all
of his manner of life (II Cor. 7:1; I Thess. 4:7).
1) He thirsts for spiritual food and life that is sourced in God (Ps.
84:2).
2) He hates what God hates and loves what God loves (Ps. 119:128).
3) He desires to be of the same holy mind as God (Ps. 139:17).
4) He longs to be like his Holy Savior, Jesus Christ (Gal. 4:19; Eph.
4:13; Phil. 2:5).
3. God’s communicable holiness in Hebrews 12:14.
a. The disciplined pursuit of Christ in glory, vs. 1-11.
In this race in which the Christian participates, he is required to experience
necessary and beneficial discipline, so that he may finally “win” (I Cor. 9:24).
(1) How do we learn to run this race well? By “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the
author and perfecter of faith,” v. 2.
(2) What is the purpose of this race with its accompanying discipline? It is “that
we may share His holiness,” v. 10.
b. The determined pursuit of Christ in glory, vs. 12-13.
Yet in spite of a corrective whipping from God, we are to run with strong
commitment and uprightness, rather than feebly, so that we might victoriously
finish the course, vs. 12-13.
(1) Do we have various bodily ailments that can hinder our running well? Yes,
all Christians do. So we are to run wisely in the light of this knowledge, v.
12.
(2) We are to choose “straight paths” or righteous ways that do not cause our
infirmities to restrict our progress, v. 13.
c. The holy pursuit of Christ in glory, v. 14.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
Along this pathway or spiritual running track, what priorities then are we to be
occupied with more than others? With what shall our mind be especially
occupied?
(1) We are “to pursue peace with all men,” being patient with the worst of
sinners, even as our Savior “endured such hostility by sinners against
Himself,” v. 3, who “while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while
suffering, He uttered no threats” (I Pet. 2:23).
(2) We are “to pursue . . . the sanctification [holiness] without which no one
will see the Lord.”
(a) Positional holiness is certainly assumed here.
(b) But the main emphasis here is upon practical holiness since the context
still appears to be that of discipline while we “run with endurance the
race that is set before us,” v. 1.
1) Practical holiness is the insignia or proof of declarative holiness.
2) By way of application, a labeled or declared apple tree is
vindicated by its production of apples.
3) By way of application, a designated child of God who does not
manifest the parental birthmarks is illegitimate (I John 3:9-10).
(c) Since God is unspeakably holy, only those who possess an identical
holiness can acceptably draw near (Matt. 5:8).
(d)
For further profitable reading on practical holiness,
refer to the classic work of J. C. Ryle titled Holiness, from which the

26 “Extracts from Old Writers,” J. C. Ryle, Holiness, pp. 330-333.
THE HOLINESS OF GOD 43

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER III
THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD
1. Our study of the holiness of God has led us to understand that God is fundamentally a
moral Being. That is, He is righteous and not unrighteous; He is good and not bad; He
is true and not false.
a. While the origin of evil is not without its profound problems, especially insofar as
finite man is concerned, yet at this point the following summary comments
concerning its reality ought to be kept in mind.
(1) In spite of the difficulties that are involved in contemplating evil, to deny the
existence of objective, as distinct from relative, evil in this world is, for most
people as they contemplate themselves, an infinitely greater difficulty. To
accept the existence of objective evil in this world calls for an objective
standard against which evil and its antithesis are measured. Hence, if
objective evil exists, then so does objective righteousness.
(2) In the eternal realm, before the creation of the angelic hosts and the first
emergence of sin, yet it was always a theoretical opposite, and no doubt
within the realm of God’s contemplation and rejection.
(3) Evil is the seed and root of which sin is the fruit. In the mystery of its origin,
we affirm with John Owen: “God was pleased to permit the entrance of sin,
both in heaven above and in earth beneath, whereby this whole order and
harmony was disturbed.” 1
(4) Evil, though wholly opposed to God, yet allows the display of His justice and
grace. This is not to suggest that God was not gracious before the entry of sin
into the universe since His mere contemplation of sin would engender a
gracious response.
(5) Evil, though a profound mystery, yet finds it clearest exposure in the Bible as
being of spiritual origin and not merely the result of material and
environmental causes (Eph. 6:11-12).
(6) Evil being such a blight on the whole human race, yet the Bible promises that
God shall finally vanquish and abolish it with the result that righteousness
will prevail (Rev. 20:10-22:5). Again Owen explains: “Divine wisdom was
no way surprised with this disaster. God had, from all eternity, laid in
provisions of counsels for the recovery of all things into a better and more
1 John Owen, The Works of John Owen, I, p. 61.

permanent estate than what was lost by sin. This is . . . the revivication, the
restitution of all things (Acts 3:19-21), the . . . gathering all things in heaven
and earth into a new head in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:10).” 2
b. But now we focus on the positive side of God’s moral being, or His positive
holiness. It is no exaggeration when Dabney declares, “We have now reached that
which is the most glorious and at the same time, the most important class of
God’s attributes; those which qualify Him as an infinitely perfect moral Being.” 3
These aspects of holiness are:
(1) God’s righteousness; His moral being or positive holiness.
(2) God’s justice; His moral administration with equity of fairness.
(3) God’s veracity; His moral integrity or truthfulness.
(4) God’s faithfulness; His moral consistency, loyalty or dependability.
2. To the ungodly, hostile, guilty sinner, God’s moral attributes are disturbing, offensive
and not communicated with desire or delight, though they may be communicated
legalistically, socially, unwittingly. Whereas to the authentic Christian, God’s moral
attributes are admired, adored, and communicated with desire and delight.
a. Consider the hostile sinner.
(1) He shuns the righteousness of God (Ps. 52:1-3; Isa. 26:10).
(2) He does not understand the justice of God (Prov. 28:5).
(3) He suppresses the truth of God (Rom. 1:18, 25).
(4) He despises the faithfulness of God (Isa. 49:7; II Thess. 3:1-3).
b. Consider the genuine Christian.
(1) He delights in and embodies the righteousness of God (Ps. 111:1-3; 119:40;
Matt. 5:6)
(2) He upholds and reflects the justice of God (Gen. 18:18-19; Mic. 6:8).
(3) He pursues and embraces the truth of God (Ps. 57:1-3; Prov. 3:1-6).
(4) He proclaims and manifests the faithfulness of God (Ps. 89:1-2; 92:1-2; Rev.
2:10).
2
Ibid., pp. 61-2.
3
Robert L. Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 165.
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46
B. GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS - HIS MORAL BEING OR POSITIVE HOLINESS
1. The righteousness of God defined.
a. It is the full measure and standard of His positive holiness, specifically who God
morally is as distinct from who He is not; it is the full specification of His moral
purity; it is His objective moral essence.
b. The meaning of “righteousness” in Hebrew involves two concepts, first, that of
moral integrity, loyalty, rightness, qd,x, sedeq; second is the meaning of “straight,”
like a pathway, rv,y, ysher, so that in Hosea 14:9, “the ways of the Lord are right,
and the righteous [morally straight] will walk in them.” In Greek, dikaiosuvnh,
dikaiosunē, means “upright, upstanding, just.” Like the Old Testament,
“righteousness” is the perfect standard of God’s moral nature, it being true,
ethically straight and not crooked. Hence, this righteousness is the one and only
standard for all moral creatures; it is the basis of all objective rights and rightness.
(1) God is essentially righteous, positively holy (Ezra 9:15; Ps. 129:4).
(2) God is actively righteous, administering justice, communicating truth, with
consistency (Ps. 145:17; Dan. 9:24).
c. God’s righteousness is not governed by any standard or law external to Himself
(Heb. 6:13). He is righteous in Himself, not arbitrarily, but according to His own
consistent, pure, eternal standard.
2. The righteousness of God revealed.
a. In the Word of God, as inscripturated righteousness (Ps. 119:144, 172).
b. In the Son of God, as incarnate righteousness (Isa. 11:5; II Tim. 4:8; I John 2:1).
c. In the law of God, as codified righteousness (Rom. 2:26; 8:4).
d. In the covenants of God, as promised righteousness (Neh. 9:6-9).
e. In the atonement of Jesus Christ, as justifying righteousness (Rom. 1:16-17; 3:21-
26), which idea of “saving righteousness” draws heavily upon Isaiah (Isa. 11:4-5;
45:8, 19, 23-24; 46:12-13; 51:5, 6, 8; 56:1; 59:15-17; 61:10-11; 62:1-2).
3. The righteousness of God communicated.
a. As God is righteous and does righteousness, so his genuine children are righteous
and do righteousness. God expresses His moral character, and it is inevitable that
the child of God will do the same. Both Psalms and Proverbs give great emphasis
to this matter.
b. The Christian is declared to be righteous through a judicial righteousness of God
received through faith alone (Rom. 3:21-22; 4:1-25; 5:17; Phil. 3:9; Heb. 11:7).

c. The Christian is accountable for reflecting the righteousness of God through the
life of God in his soul that results inobedience (Rom. 6:11, 16, 19; Eph. 5:9; Phil.
1:11; I Pet. 2:24; II Pet. 1:3-4; I John 3:7).
d. Illustration. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, in expounding on Matthew 5:6 as part of
the Sermon on the Mount, comments:
The world is seeking for happiness. That is the meaning of its pleasure mania, that is
the meaning of everything men and women do, not only in their work but still more
in their pleasures. They are trying to find happiness, they are making it their goal,
their one objective. But they do not find it because, whenever you put happiness
before righteousness, you will be doomed to misery. That is the great message of the
Bible from beginning to end. They alone are truly happy who are seeking to be
righteous. Put happiness in the place of righteousness and you will never get it.
This is equally true, however, of many within the Church. There are large numbers
of people in the Christian Church who seem to spend the whole of their life seeking
something which they can never find, seeking for some kind of happiness and
blessedness. They go round from meeting to meeting, and convention to convention,
always hoping they are going to get this wonderful thing, this experience that is
going to fill them with joy, and flood them with some ecstasy. They see that other
people have had it, but they themselves do not seem to get it. So they seek it and
covet it, always hungering and thirsting; but they never get it.”
Now this is not surprising. We are not meant to hunger and thirst after experiences;
we are not meant to hunger and thirst after blessedness. If we want to be truly happy
and blessed, we must hunger and thirst after righteousness. We must not put
blessedness or happiness or experience in the first place. No, that is something that
God gives to those who seek righteousness. Oh, the tragedy that we do not follow
the simple teaching and instruction of the Word of God, but are always coveting and
seeking this experience which we hope we are going to have. The experiences are the
gift of God; what you and I are to covet and to seek and to hunger and thirst for is
righteousness. 4
C. GOD’S JUSTICE – HIS MORAL EQUITY OR FAIRNESS
1. God’s justice is the maintenance and administration of His righteousness A holy God
governs His universe according to His righteous will, statutes, and ordinances. (Ps.
89:14; Isa. 9:6-7; Jer. 23:5).
a. The preservation of God’s righteousness in His kingdom requires:
(1) God as judge, the only moral Arbiter, the Upholder of His righteousness (Ps.
75:7; II Tim. 4:1, 8; Rev. 19:11), Who yet has delegated “all judgment to the
Son” (John 5:22, 26-7).
(2) God’s justice, the distribution and execution of His righteousness (Ps. 82:1-4;
89:14) according to His decree, statute, and delegation.
4 D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, I, pp. 75-6..
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48
(3) God’s judgment, the pronouncement of His righteousness (Ps. 19:9; 103:6;
119:7, 30, 75, 160; Rev. 16:7; 19:1-2), which appoints penalty,
compensation, and reward. Such righteous pronouncements assume God’s
authority and power for their execution.
(4) God’s justification, the pardon or acquittal of unrighteousness according to a
righteous ground (Is. 53:11; Rom. 3:24-26; 4:5).
b. By way of application, justice demands a moral standard by which it can operate,
and for the Christian this benchmark is the righteousness of God. So whenever
there is a loosely expressed call for justice in the world today, we ought to enquire
as to the specific moral standard that is presupposed.
(1) The frequent call today for “economic justice” needs to be qualified. Is this a
cry for the righteous justice of God, or for man’s relative, flexible, ideological
justice?
(2) When today there is a call for justice in our courts, is it a request for the
implementation of righteous laws derived from the Word of God, or for
man’s humanistically based, relativistic, democratic, cultural laws?
(3) When men and women cry out in agony of soul, “Where is the justice of it
all?” we ought to be able to direct them to the justice of God that will
transcend man’s injustice (Gen. 18:25; Isa. 9:7).
c. Through justice, God perpetuates righteousness, restrains unrighteousness, and
thus upholds His moral standards in the universe (Isa. 33:22; Rom. 1:18, 32-2:3,
16).
2. The operation of God’s justice.
a. It is by means of His just judgments.
(1) God has made just moral declarations called His judgments, laws, statutes,
commandments, precepts, testimonies, word (Psa. 119; Rom. 7:12).
(2) God has codified His righteousness and stamped His justice:
(a) Objectively, upon the two tables of stone (Ex. 34:1), clay, papyrus,
parchment, paper, and the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7).
(b) Subjectively, upon human, especially Gentile hearts (Rom. 2:1-15).
b. It is by means of complementary attributes (Zech. 9:9; Rom. 3:26; I John 1:9;
Rev. 19:1-2).
c. It is by means of His distributive justice, both positively and negatively.

(1) Often the Bible speaks of both aspects together, that is God’s remunerative
and retributive justice, His vindictive and punitive justice (Is. 3:10-11; Rom.
2:5-8; I Cor. 3:11-15).
(2) God’s positive, remunerative, vindicative justice.
(a) By way of illustration, in contemporary law it is declared that, “the law
awards and the law punishes.” In our society the law awards damages,
vindicates and protects the innocent, frees the oppressed, upholds
integrity, delivers the accused, encourages the law abiding citizen.
(b) Likewise in the Bible, God’s justice establishes peace, salvation, the
vindication of the righteous (Psa. 7:9; Jer. 23:5-6; Zech. 9:9).
(c) God awards, not on the basis of obedience that seeks a merited reward,
but according to the obedience of faith (Deut. 7:9, 12-13; Psa. 58:11;
Rom. 1:1-5; 16:25-27), the acknowledgment of faithful service (Matt.
25:14-30; II Cor. 5:10). Concerning the rewards promised to Israel
because of obedience, the true basis for Israel’s keeping of the law was
to be the principle of faith, not human merit. However, at this point
Israel failed (Rom. 9:31-33).
(3) God’s negative, retributive, punitive justice.
(a) God punishes so as to meet or satisfy the demands of His violated
righteousness. In a sinful universe, this is the principal intent of His
justice
1) It upholds and vindicates. His holy integrity. It is a sober truth that
God is glorified through the just disposal of the wicked to hell
since by this means his righteousness is upheld.
2) It proclaims His moral government. In a world permeated by sin,
God’s justice enables the orderly operation of society that would
otherwise be chaotic.
3) It deters, restrains unbridled sin. When justice is properly
promoted, when it is not only done but seen to be done, then there
is some deterrent effect when a tempted sinner weighs
consequences.
(b) God’s punishment is not simply deprivation of blessing or separation
from Himself. It is a positive penalty that expresses God’s wrath and
results in the guilty sinner’s anguish.
1) God does withhold blessing because of sin, but He further extracts
a penalty (Luke 16:19-26).
2)
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(c) God’s negative punishment of unrighteousness involves the moral
consistency of His holy character.
1) If God does not deal justly with sin, then He participates in that sin
or is culpable of it, just as a parent does who refrains from
punishing a child even though a warning has been given.
2) It is a further solemn thought that a sinner being punished in hell
(Rev. 20:11-15), yet glorifies God by means of this display of His
unswerving justice.
(d) God’s justice demands that sin be judged and punished in one of two
ways.
3. God’s justice and justification.
1) Either in the sinner as a transgressor, in which case God’s
righteousness is upheld and grace is denied (Rom. 1:32-2:6; II
Thess 1:8-9).
2) Or in an acceptable substitute, even Jesus Christ, in which case
God’s righteousness is upheld and grace is provided (Rom. 5:1-11;
Col. 2:13-14; I Pet. 2:24).
a. The gospel distinctively and gloriously displays God’s justice in such a way that
the believing sinner is led to praise Him rather than fear Him.
(1) In human terms, God’s problem was how He might maintain His inviolate
justice and yet fully show mercy and grace to the sinner. The answer to this
problem is found in Christ’s atonement fully described in Romans 3:21-26.
(2) “Justification,” as the very terms suggests, is God’s right or just way of
saving sinners. It is His means by which He judicially pardons with full
integrity (Rom. 4:25-5:1; 5:18).
b. Illustration. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones comments: “How can God be just and justify
the ungodly? The answer is that He can, because He has punished the sins of
ungodly sinners in His own Son. He has poured His wrath upon Him. ‘He bore
our chastisement.’ ‘By his stripes we are healed.’ God has done what He said He
would do; He has punished sin. He proclaimed this through the Old Testament
everywhere; and He has done what He said He would do. He has shown that He
is righteous. He has made a public declaration of it. He is just and can justify,
because having punished Another in our stead, He can forgive us freely. And He
does so. . . . On Calvary God was making a way of salvation so that you and I
might be forgiven. But He had to do so in a way that will leave His eternal
consistency still absolute and unbroken. Once you begin to look at it like that, you
see that this is the most glorious, the most staggering thing in the universe and in
the whole of history. God is there declaring at the same time His own eternal
greatness and glory, declaring that ‘He is light and in him is no darkness at all’.
‘When I survey the wondrous Cross . . .’, says Isaac Watts, but you do not see the

wonder of it until you really do survey it in the light of this great statement of the
Apostle. God was declaring publicly once and for ever His eternal justice AND
His eternal love. Never separate them, for they belong together in the character of
God.” 5
4. The communication of God’s justice.
a. God not only administers justice directly (Gen. 18:25; Rev. 20:11-15), but also
indirectly by means of human agency (Ps. 82:1-4).
(1) The human agency of Israel (Jer. 7:1-7; 21:11-12; 22:1-3; Amos 5:21-24;
Micah 6:6-8; Zech. 7:8-10).
(2) The human agency of the Church (Matt. 5:13-16; Gal. 6:10; I Thess. 5:15; I
Tim. 3:7; Tit. 1:7-8).
(3) The human agency of civil government (Rom. 13:1-7; I Pet. 2:13-15).
b. The Christian is to do justice, that is to reflect personal righteousness in his daily
life (I John 2:29; 3:7), to “live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age”
(Tit. 2:12), but especially at a most practical level that contrasts with the injustice
of this world, making “the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger” (Amos 8:4-5).
(1) Christian justice must not be confused with humanistic justice or expedient
political justice. It is distinguishable as a reflection of the justice of the only
living and true God of Abraham (Matt. 5:16).
(a) Humanistic justice is that which is a reflection of situational human
consensus; it is that which sinful man believes to be right for the times
in which we live. This is the standard when man has become a law unto
himself.
(b) Expedient political justice is that which is a reflection of humanistic
social ideology and engineering; it is often the whim of an elite ruling
class that strengthens its grip on society. Its hermeneutic concerning a
constitution is not “original intent,” but “fluid meaning.”
(2) Christian justice is a reflection of the biblical Christ and his righteousness,
which is the righteousness of God (I Cor. 1:30). Hence Christian justice is
sourced outside of man, the objective Word of God. The Christian believes
that righteousness must be seen to be done.
c. The Christian is to promote justice in the society in which he lives.
Whatever his employment or vocation, he can be relied upon to apply the
principles of the righteousness of God to every situation. He can also be relied
upon to protest when injustice shows its ugly face. Why do Christians pursue such
5 D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans - Atonement and Justification, pp. 107-8..
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causes of justice? Because, like the constraint of the love of Christ (II Cor. 5:14),
so the righteousness and justice of God, rightly understood, must find similar
expression. Consider some examples.
(1) The example of John Bunyan, 1628-88.
Just before his death, Bunyan was approached by a young man who asked
for help so that he might become reconciled with his father. John rode on his
horse to Reading, accomplished the reconciliation, then rode on to London
through bad weather. At London a friend received him, where John caught a
fever and died within several days. An elegy written in memory of Bunyan
declared:
“He in the pulpit preached truth first, and then
He in his practice preached it o’er again.”
(2) The example of William Wilberforce, 1759-1833.
This wealthy Cambridge graduate became a member of the British
Parliament. Converted under the ministry of George Whitfield, he sought
advice about entering the ministry from John Newton, who suggested he
remain as a parliamentarian. Influential in the early ministry of the Church
Missionary Society and the Bible Society, his greatest concern was the
abolition of slavery, eventually accomplished in 1807.
(3) The example of the Earl of Shaftsbury, 1801-85.
D. GOD’S VERACITY - HIS MORAL INTEGRITY OR TRUTHFULNESS
1. God is true in Himself, genuine, faithful, dependable, having perfect integrity (I John
5:20; Rev. 3:7) according to His holy uprightness (Rev. 6:10). Hence God is
trustworthy because He “is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He
should repent; has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not
make it good? (Num. 23:19).
a. All reality, material and immaterial, visible and invisible, actual and theoretical,
external and essential, totally corresponds with He who is the ultimate, principal
reality (Ps. 31:5).
b. He is the center and origin of all truth (Ps. 24:1; Col. 1:16-17). Every element of
truth, physical, spiritual, temporal, and eternal, is sourced in Him.

c. He is uniquely and exclusively true. All other gods are not the true God (Jer. 10:6-
10; John 17:3; I Thess. 1:9).
d. He is the God of truth who delights to deal in truth while hating every false way
(Ex. 34:6; Ps. 119:104, 128). Error is everything which does not correspond to
His reality.
e.
(1) God the Father is genuine and truthful (Jer. 10:10; Dan. 4:37).
(2) God the Son is genuine and truthful (John 1:14; 14:6; I John 5:20; Rev. 3:7).
(3)
2. He communicates His truth using various media.
a. The good Angels (Dan. 9:20-27; Luke 2:8-14).
b. The creation (Ps. 19:1-6).
c. The written Word (John 17:17; II Tim. 3:15-16).
d. The spoken Word (Acts 19:8-10; 20:20; II Tim. 4:2).
e. The Incarnate Word (John 1:14; 14:6).
f.
(1) They know the truth (I John 2:21).
(2) They are indwelt by the truth II John 1-2.
(3) They walk in the truth (III John 4).
(4) They speak the truth (Acts 26:25; Eph. 4:15).
g.
6 Francis A. Schaeffer, The Great Evangelical Disaster, p. 37.
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E. GOD’S FAITHFULNESS - HIS MORAL CONSISTENCY OR DEPENDABILITY
1. The faithfulness of God by definition.
If God is true in Himself and speaks only truth, then His being proven, demonstrated
as true speaks of His faithfulness and dependability. In the O.T. the main word is ÷m'a;,
’āman, to be certain, enduring, hence qualified to be trusted, from which is derived the
strong affirmation, ’āmēn, hence “amen.” Thus in Deuteronomy 7:9, “Know therefore
that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps covenant and His
lovingkindness” (cf. Deut. 32:3-4; Ps. 33:4). In the N.T. the main word is pistov",
pistos, meaning to be trustworthy, reliable, dependable (I Cor. 1:9; 10:13; Heb. 10:23;
11:11; I John 1:9). However it is the righteous moral character of God that is at the
foundation of His faithfulness. Unfaithfulness is the fruit of immorality.
a. He is the faithful triune God.
(1) The faithful God the Father, which dependability distinguishes Him in the
midst of a polytheistic world (Deut. 7:9).
(2) The faithful God the Son, especially in his loyalty to the will of His Father
(Is. 11:1-5; Heb. 2:17; Rev. 1:5).
(3) The faithful God the Holy Spirit, the guarantor of faithfulness to His people
(Hag. 2:3-5).
b. He is unable to be unfaithful, even in the midst of unfaithfulness on the part of
His people (II Tim. 2:13).
c. He is demonstrably the faithful God in contrast with other unfaithful gods (Ex.
3:15-17; 18:8-11; Ps. 96:1-6, 11-13).
d. His faithfulness is great because it does not fail, He does not abandon His cause as
His creation and providence indicate (Ps. 119:90; Lam. 3:19-23).
2. The faithfulness of God demonstrated in His covenants or big promises.
a. He will keep his covenants and promises in general.
The unilateral covenants made with Noah, Abraham, and preeminently the New
Covenant, are reflective of God’s faithfulness in spite of man’s disobedience.
(1) The promised providence of God to Noah and his seed, signified with the
rainbow (Gen. 8:20-22; 9:11-16; Isa. 54:9-10; Acts 14:15-17).

(2) The promised exile and return of Israel, based upon God’s promises to
Abraham and David (Jer. 25:11-12; Dan. 9:1-19; Ezra 1:3).
(3) The promise of salvation through Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman, the
Mediator of the New Covenant (Gen. 3:15; 22:15-18; II Sam. 7:8-16; Mic.
5:2; Isa. 7:14; 9:1-2; 52:13-53:12; Jer. 31:27-37; Matt. 1:1, 18-23; 2:1-11;
4:13-16; Luke 1:67-79; Rom. 1:1-4; Heb. 8:7-13).
b. He will keep his covenants and promises in particular.
(1) To strengthen saints when Satan assails (II Thess. 3:3).
(2) To cleanse from sin in the life of the Christian (I John 1:9).
(3) To do away with suffering (I Pet. 4:12-13, 19).
(4) To take His elect to glory (I Thess. 5:23-24).
(5) To finally save Israel (Rom. 11:25-29).
3. The faithfulness of God practically considered.
God’s faithfulness, when rightly comprehended, that is apart from presumption, is
especially productive of stability, assurance, and rest in the believer’s life. So Arthur
Pink writes:
The apprehension of this blessed truth will preserve us from worry. To be full of care, to
view our situation with dark forebodings, to anticipate the morrow with sad anxiety, is to
reflect poorly upon the faithfulness of God. . . . The apprehension of this blessed truth will
check our murmurings. The Lord knows what is best for each one of us, and one effect of
resting on this truth will be the silencing of petulant complainings. . . . The apprehension
of this blessed truth will beget increasing confidence in God. . . . When we trustfully resign
ourselves, and all our affairs into God’s hands, fully persuaded of His love and
faithfulness, the sooner shall we be satisfied with His providences and realize that “He
doeth all things well. 7
‘Great is Thy faithfulness’, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not;
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.
4. God’s faithfulness is communicated to and reflected in His children.
a. In their faithfulness toward God (Eccles. 5:4-5; Ps. 61:5, 8; 66:13; I Cor. 4:17;
Col. 1:7).
b. In their faithfulness toward man (Josh. 9:16-21; Prov. 11:1, 3).
7 Arthur Pink, The Attributes of God, p. 56.
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A. THE GOODNESS OF GOD DEFINED
1. Goodness by definition.
CHAPTER IV
THE GOODNESS OF GOD
Try to define “goodness” apart from the character of God. There will probably be
some difficulty. Consider the following common ideas.
Goodness is the opposite of badness. However, a negative concept does not define
a positive concept, though it does help to isolate it. Of course we could
immediately ask, “What is badness?”
Both Plato and Aristotle considered goodness to be, “the highest end to which
knowledge and action lead us.” 1 On the other hand, for German philosopher
Nietzsche, to be good is “to be brave,” it is “all that increases the feeling of
power, the will to power, power itself, in man.” 2 Therefore does this make the
“highest end” in the realm of larceny to be good?
Pleasure, human happiness, or as one philosopher expresses it, that which is
“maximally conducive to human happiness.” 3 But would this make the perspective
of the hedonist or sadist “good”?
The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines it as, “having the right qualities,
satisfactory.” But this brings us back to the related term of “righteousness.” How
then do “goodness” and “righteousness” differ?
2. Goodness by comparison with holiness.
Recall the two major aspects of God’s overall moral being, His holiness. Negative
holiness is that which God is wholly set apart from, that is moral impurity or
unrighteousness. Positive holiness is that which God is set apart to, that is
absolute moral purity intrinsic to himself, or righteousness.
What then is the difference between God’s righteousness and His goodness, and
particularly according to biblical definition.
God’s righteousness is the totality of His moral being in an absolute, positive
and essential sense.
1 Everett F. Harrison, ed., Baker’s Dictionary of Theology, p. 253.
2 Will Durant, Outlines of Philosophy, p. 368.
3 William H. Halverson, A Concise Introduction to Philosophy, p. 234.

God’s goodness, bo/f, tb, is that which is observed in God’s moral being and
works with admiration, pleasant moral appreciation, especially by man (Ps.
104:24-28; 119:68; Jer. 31:10-14; but cf. Gen. 1:31). It is God’s moral
attractiveness which is both satisfying, pleasing, and praiseworthy (Ps. 65:4;
118:29). In the New Testament, the goodness of God is described by
ajgaqov", agathos, meaning essentially good, that is morally dependable,
honorable (Mark 10:17-18), and thus morally beneficial.
God’s goodness is His admirable being and doing, but especially His
attractive moral excellence, which when expressed actively is defined as His
love. God is good, worthy of admiration, and when He demonstrates His
goodness, He loves. “Goodness is the generic attribute of which the love of
benevolence, grace, pity, mercy, forgiveness, are but specific actings,
distinguished by the attitude of their objects, rather than by the intrinsic
principle.” 4
Stephen Charnock comments: “Goodness is the brightness and loveliness of
our majestical Creator.” In an active sense it is God’s “inclination to deal
well and bountifully with His creatures.” 5 Hence God is morally attractive in
both His being and doing.
3. Goodness by comparison with love.
God’s goodness refers to that observed, attractive moral excellence, that
appreciation of His righteousness which man especially delights to acknowledge.
God’s love refers to His active goodness. When God communicates His goodness
to His creation and man in particular, He expresses love. By its very nature, love
has a transitive, active quality, that is it must be directed towards an object; this
communicative goodness of God has four distinct aspects which are diagramed
below. 6 The Triune God is righteous in nature, and the admiration of His holiness,
which is perceived by His righteousness being contrasted with the heavens (Job
15:15), results in the creature declaring that God is good. When God expresses
His goodness, there is the active manifestation of His love as benevolence, grace,
mercy, and longsuffering.
4 Robert L. Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 169.
5
Stephen Charnock, Works, II, pp. 281, 283-4.
6
Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, pp. 70-3. Also refer to Charles Hodge, Systematic
Theology, I, pp. 427-9; William G. T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, pp. 385-92.
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THE GOODNESS OF GOD COMMUNICATED TO HIS CREATURES
Love as benevolence, or God’s welfare to all His creatures and man in
particular (Matt. 5:45; Acts 14:15-17).
Love as grace, or God’s depth of love directed towards man as an unholy
sinner and law-breaker (Rom. 3:24; 5:1-2, 6-8; II Cor. 8:9; I Tim. 1:13-15).
Love as longsuffering, or God’s patient breadth of love (Rom. 2:4; 3:25; I
Pet. 3:20; II Pet. 3:9, 15).
Love as mercy, or God’s relieving love to man in distress and agony (Ps.
86:14-15; II Cor. 1:3-4).
By way of illustration, John Hampden Gurney well describes God’s observed and
active goodness as follows:
Yes, God is good—in earth and sky,
From ocean depths and spreading wood,
Ten thousand voices seem to cry:
God made us all, and God is good.
Yes, God is good, all nature says,
By God’s own hand with speech endued;
And man, in louder notes of praise,
Should sing for joy that God is good.

For all Thy gifts we bless Thee, Lord,
But chiefly for our heavenly food;
Thy pardoning grace, Thy quickening word,
These prompt our song, that God is good.
B. THE GOODNESS OF GOD ACCORDING TO JESUS CHRIST - MARK 10:17-18.
A man enthusiastically addressed Jesus Christ as follows, “Good teacher, what shall I do to
inherit eternal life?” To this he was given the reply, “Why do you call me good? No one is
good except God alone.”
1. “Goodness” as defined by a natural man, v. 17.
Clearly this man used the term “good” in a loose though respectful manner in applying
it to Christ. It was more a patronizing approach, an offer of social respect rather than a
deep reverential enquiry. Most likely he had heard Jesus before and been impressed.
However this man needs to be jolted into thinking about what he had too familiarly
spoken about. Many a person today speaks of Jesus Christ without really thinking
about what they have said. Jesus often called men to account concerning loose
declarations (Matt. 5:33-37; 23:16-22).
2. “Goodness” as defined by Jesus Christ, v. 18.
Jesus does not respond, “No one is good except the Father.” Only then would he have
excluded himself as being good. Of course if Jesus is God, as this man fails to perceive,
then he should rightly be addressed as “good,” but only when that perception is
genuine and not casual. Rather Jesus wants this man to carefully consider who he really
is. But what exactly is this “goodness of God” here? In a sermon on Mark 10:17,
Thomas Manton makes a fourfold distinction concerning God the Father being
declared by the Son of God as “good.” 7
God is originally good.
His goodness originates from Himself and no other source, so goodness for man
comes from no other source (Jas. 1:17).
God is essentially good.
He is not only good, but goodness itself. The goodness of God and the goodness of
the creature differ, as a thing whose substance is gold differs from that which is
gilded and overlaid with gold. With a vessel of pure gold, the matter itself gives
luster to it; but in a gilded vessel, the outward luster is one thing, and the
substance is another.
7 Thomas Manton, The Complete Works of Thomas Manton, XVI, pp. 428-9.
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God is infinitely good.
While a creature’s goodness is limited according to what has been given to it, there
is no limit to the goodness of God. God is an ocean without banks or bottom; the
goodness of the creature is but a drop from the ocean (I Sam. 2:7).
God is immutably good.
His goodness cannot be diminished or augmented. Our state is full of changes, as
the sea has its ebbings and flowings. God is pure, but we are purified. We were
once defiled, but God’s goodness ever is and ever was in the same fullness.
C. THE GOODNESS OF GOD TO THE BELIEVER - ISAIAH 63:7-9
1. Introduction to Isaiah 63.
In Isaiah 40-66, the second major division of this evangelical prophecy, we have
the Suffering Servant, the Messiah Prince and his kingdom program introduced.
The Messiah Prince and his two comings (61:1-3; cf. Luke 4:16-20).
The kingdom program is established and centered in Jerusalem where Israel
displays her glory (62:1-4).
Christ’s wrath is displayed at Armageddon against a rebellious world (63:1-6, cf.
Rev. 19:13 re his dress of blood).
But now a stark contrast is made between God’s regard for the world, v. 6a,
and His own people. v. 1b.
We are now suddenly transported from a vision of God’s wrath and justice
to that of His goodness and love.
2. Isaiah rejoices at the goodness and love of God toward Israel (Isaiah 63:7-9).
Love as benevolence, “according to all that the Lord has bestowed on us. . . . he
bore them, and carried them all the days of old,” vs. 7, 9.
Love as grace, “I shall make mention of the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, . . .
according to the multitude of His lovingkindnesses,” v. 7.
The word for “lovingkindness” here means God’s loyal, steadfast, covenant,
undeserved love to the sinner.
Consider God’s grace in Isaiah 49:14-16; 54:8, 10.

Love as longsuffering, “he bore them, and carried them all the days of old,” v. 9.
Longsuffering is God’s patient love, just as a mother carries her child through
the years of early life.
Consider God’s longsuffering in Nehemiah 9:28-31.
Love as mercy, “In all their afflictions he was afflicted, and the angel of his
presence [face] saved them” v. 9.
Mercy is God’s relieving love, that rescues man from distress and despair.
Consider God’s mercy in Ezra 9:9; Psalm 31:7.
D. THE GOODNESS OF GOD IN THE BELIEVER - II THESSALONIANS 1:11-12
1. Introduction to II Thessalonians 1.
Some Thessalonian believers are convinced that “the Great Tribulation” or “the
day of the Lord” is upon them, 2:1-2.
However, Paul; teaches that this terrible “day of the Lord” is yet future (I Thess.
5:2-3; II Thess. 1:6-10).
Unbelievers will be judged by the Christ they rejected, and removed from his
glorious presence, 1:7-9.
Believers will enjoy holy and blissful fellowship with Christ, being
instruments for his glory and admirers of his glory, 1:10.
2. Paul’s prayer is for the manifestation of God’s goodness, II Thessalonians 1:11-12.
While anticipating the day of Christ’s return in glory, v. 10, the Apostle repeatedly
prays for the Thessalonians’ present manifestation of goodness and faith, v. 11.
He desires that they “fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with
power,” v. 11, that the regenerate disposition for goodness be fruitful.
In other words, believers are expected to desire goodness, that is God’s quality of
goodness, and also reflect it.
This reflected goodness will signify that they are “worthy of their calling” (I
Thess. 2:12), v. 11; it will legitimate their calling; it will confirm the validity
of their spiritual vocation.
This reflected goodness will be generated through “faith with [the] power of
the Holy Spirit.” Such a dynamic will distinguish this goodness from social
do-goodism
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This reflected goodness will bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ, v. 12. As
objects of God’s goodness, He intends that believers reflect a quality of
goodness, mediated through Jesus Christ, resulting in reciprocal glorification.
3. Paul’s prayer is for the communication of God’s goodness.
The communicable nature of this attribute of God’s goodness is plainly evident. An
interest in goodness is an expectation of conversion. When God is good to the creature
through the saving work of the gospel, there should be an inevitable thirst for personal
goodness in response, and a consequent manifestation and reflection of it. Otherwise
there is no reason to believe that a work of grace has been done in the heart by the God
who is good.
Specifically, since God’s goodness is communicated as love and distinguished as
benevolence, grace, longsuffering, and mercy, we are to admire, desire, and
manifest these facets of God’s love.
But note that Paul describes these characteristics as coming “with power,” v. 11,
that is they are supernaturally endowed, not naturally developed, and thus
distinctively “glorify our Father who is in heaven”
Thus the goodness of God is derived from a living union with God since we have
“become partakers of the divine nature” (II Pet. 1:4).
In Galatians 5:22, the fruit of goodness is derived from the indwelling Spirit
of God. Consider also Romans 15:13-14.
In Ephesians 5:8-9, the reflected light of goodness in the believer is derived
from the fact of being “light in the Lord.”
In II Peter 1:3, the “divine power [of God] has granted to us everything
pertaining to life and godliness.”

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER V
THE BENEVOLENCE OF GOD
1. Have you ever been blessed in your business employment or profession or family life,
and thus drawn comfort from Psalm 5:12, “[I]t is you who blesses the righteous man,
O Lord, You surround him with favor as with a shield.” But then you notice that your
unbelieving neighbor, has been similarly blessed in these same areas of life. Indeed you
may be like Asaph who noticed that many of his godless acquaintances had been
blessed beyond his acquisitions (Psalm 73:3-9). Hence you wondered whether, in the
circumstances, you were more worthy than your neighbor of such heavenly generosity.
a. The problem here is that reward is bring confused with benevolence, or special
grace is being confused with common grace. There is particular grace that
powerfully works toward and within God’s elect, and there is common grace that
is showered upon all of mankind, both elect and non-elect. And, paradox though
it may seem, God is also angry with the workers of iniquity (Ps. 7:11-17).
b. God does reward the righteous (Ps. 58:11; Prov. 11:18), primarily in spiritual,
though secondarily, also in material ways. However He is also benevolent and
kind toward believer and unbeliever alike. This kindness is often a stumbling
block in much the same way that the elder brother was irritated at the kindness of
his father toward the prodigal son (Luke 15:25-30).
2. Benevolence is God’s welfare lavished upon His creatures even though none deserve
this sustenance (Psa. 145:9, 15-16).
a. What God creates with high regard and affection (Gen. 1:31-2:3), He likewise
sustains with continuous care and devotion (Matt. 6:26; John 5:17; Heb. 1:3). He
invests in His creation close loving scrutiny and enriching influence.
b. God’s maintenance of His creation is referred to as His providence, His provision
or benevolence, akin to His generosity, that includes fondness for the inanimate,
animate as well as the human works of His own hands.
B. GOD’S BENEVOLENCE TOWARD HIS CREATURES
1. The animal world (Job 38:41; Psa. 36:6; 104:10-12, 16-18, 20-21, 25-28; Matt. 6:26).
a. God is not averse to His own handiwork, nor does He neglect or act indifferently
toward it. Rather His “open handedness” reflects a widespread generosity (Psa.
104:24-28) which, when combined with his forbearance and covenant
faithfulness, indicates, not spasmodic but dependable divine care.

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b. God seems to experience the greatest delight when He observes His frolicking,
stampeding, raging masterpieces (Gen. 1:20; Job 38:39-39:30; 40:15-18; Ps..
50:10-11; 104:21-28).
c. Allowing for the probability that before the Fall animals were more vegetarian, yet
presently being “red in tooth and claw,” still God provides for them, just as with
raging mankind (Ps. 104:20-21).
2. The human world (Gen. 8:22; Acts 14:16-17).
a. Man, having the imago dei, self-consciousness, moral consciousness, and
appointed dominion, is more important to God than the animals (Matt. 6:25-26).
Hence God’s benevolence is commensurate with this exalted personal relationship
in which He speaks to man and treats him as a friend (Ex. 20:22; 33:11); He
originally provided a garden for him (Gen. 2:8-9) indicating His kind intent.
b. By way of illustration, the benevolence of parents toward their children is greater
than that bestowed by children on their brothers or sisters, or that provided for
the family pets. So God’s benevolence to man is greater than man’s benevolence to
man or that provided for the animal world.
c. God’s benevolence is nondiscriminatory, being dispensed to sinner and saint,
young and old, of every race alike (Matt. 5:44-45; Luke 6:35). On the other hand
man, who is so merit rather than grace oriented, will even be partial toward
certain preferable animals, let alone his own human kind.
d. God’s benevolence is given unconditionally, according to His covenant promise
with regard to the guarantee of “seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and
winter, day and night” (Gen. 8:22), even to those who enjoy its benefits and yet
refuse to acknowledge the generosity of its Provider (Acts 14:15-17).
C. GOD’S BENEVOLENCE EVIDENT IN HIS HUMAN CREATURES
1. In contrast with God, the natural man is discriminatory in offering help to his fellow
human brother. That is he is selectively malevolent and benevolent towards mankind
in general.
a. He will hate and neglect those he considers to be unworthy, and regard with
preferential treatment those he esteems to be worthy. Blanket kindness toward
sinner and saint is not his natural desire (Rom. 5:7-8; Gal. 5:19-20).
b. By way of illustration, giving presents at a birthday or at Christmas time, we tend
to give selectively and generously to our favorites, our closest friends or to those
who give us good presents. But this is not so with God (Luke 2:10).
2. However children of God with the likeness of God are to manifest the benevolence of
God to the animal world. Man’s dominion will be one of protection with the avoidance
of commercial exploitation.

a. By way of illustration, Albert Schweitzer is reported to have taken his “reverence
for life” philosophy to extremes with regard to the preservation of animals and
insects at his medical mission in Lambarene, Africa.
b. However, it is to be expected that the Christian will treat the animal world with
tender care (Deut. 22:6-7; Prov. 12:10). Nevertheless, Jesus Christ was not a
vegetarian (Luke 24:41-43).
c. By way of application, a definite contrast should be made here between godless
environmentalism, humanistic animal welfare movements, and the Christian
benevolence that the Word of God exhorts concerning the world we live in. Pagan
benevolence, which presupposes an evolutionary world view, perceives such
involvement as material kinship; this kinship is one of identical essence, even if
man is more complex. However, Christian benevolence, which presupposes a
biblical world view, perceives man as having the imago dei, a personal and distinct
soul relationship with God, and the responsibility for fulfilling the mandate of
lordly care for the created order in Genesis 1:27-30. Pagan benevolence is
accountable only to man; Christian benevolence is accountable to God.
3. Children of God, with the likeness of God, are to manifest the benevolence of God to
the human world. There will be a wideness in our kindness, a lavishness in our
tenderness, a liberality in our charity.
a. Israel was to be motivated by God’s redemption out of Egypt in providing for the
poor and needy.
(1) Benevolence was to be shown to the needy Hebrew (Deut. 15:7-8, 11-15),
with the same “open hand” attitude that God manifests (Ps. 104:28; 145:16).
(2) Benevolence was to be shown to the needy stranger since Israel was once a
stranger in Egypt (Lev. 19:33-34; Deut. 10:18-19; 24:19-22).
b. The Church is to be likewise motivated by Jesus Christ’s redemption from
bondage to sin and darkness in providing for the poor and needy.
(1) Jesus Christ’s teaching on benevolence (Matt. 5:43-45).
(a) Benevolence according to the natural man, is discriminatory
benevolence, v. 43.
(b) Benevolence according to the spiritual man, is nondiscriminatory
benevolence, v. 44.
(c) Benevolence according to God the Father as the pattern and measure of
the true sons of God, v. 45. He does not ask us to do what He not do
himself. Hence, in conjunction with v. 44, it is obvious that there is a
very real sense in which God does love the reprobate, even if it is
qualified as a “benevolent love.”
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(2) The Christian is to give priority to showing benevolence toward all believers
(Gal. 6:10; Col. 3:12-14; I Tim. 3:4-5).
(3) The Christian is to show benevolence to “all men.”
(a) With goodness (Gal. 6:10).
(b) With love (I Thess. 3:12).
(c) With patience (I Thess. 5:14).
(d) With kindness (II Tim. 2:24).
(e) With consideration (Tit. 3:2).
(f) With peace Heb. 12:14).
(g) With honor (I Pet. 2:17).
c. By way of illustration, John Bunyan writes: “There is a state in us, I know not
how it doth come about, when we are converted, to scornfully regard them that
are left behind. Poor fools as we are, we forget that we ourselves were so. But
would not it become us better, since we have tasted that the Lord is gracious, to
carry it towards them so, that we may give them convincing ground to believe that
we have found that mercy which also sets open the door for them to come and
partake with us. . . . We ourselves live by grace; let us give as we receive, and
labor to persuade our fellow sinners, which God has left behind us, to follow
after, that they may partake with us grace. We are saved by grace; let us live like
them that are gracious. . . . Why not go to the poor man’s house, and give him a
penny, and a Scripture to think upon? Why not send for the poor to fetch away, at
least, the fragments of thy table, that the bowels of thy fellow-sinner may be
refreshed as well as thine?” 1
1 John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, I, p. 98.

A. INTRODUCTION
1
2
CHAPTER VI
THE GRACE OF GOD
1. By way of illustration, Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes: “This word ‘grace’ is one of
the great words of the New Testament. It is not surprising that Philip Doddridge in the
eighteenth century should write as follows:
Grace! ’Tis a charming sound,
Harmonious to the ear:
Heaven with the echo shall resound
And all the earth shall hear.
Grace first contrived the way
To save rebellious man,
And all the steps that grace display
Which drew the wondrous plan.
There is no more wonderful word than ‘grace’. . . . What is your reaction to this word?
In many ways this is the acid test of any profession of the Christian faith. The Christian
is one who reacts in the same way as Philip Doddridge in the lines that I have just
quoted. The same thought is also expressed by Charles Wesley:
His only righteousness I show,
His saving grace proclaim.
Do you feel that this word ‘grace’ opens the very gates of heaven to you? That is really
what it means to be a Christian.” 1
2. By way of illustration, when the light of God’s truth concerning “grace” dawned upon
Martin Luther, he used those very terms of it being “a gate to heaven.” Concerning his
quest to understand the gospel which Paul expounds in Romans, he writes: “Night and
day I pondered until I saw the connection between the justice of God and the statement
that ‘the just shall live by faith’. Then I grasped that the justice of God is that
righteousness by which through grace and sheer mercy God justifies us through faith.
Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open gates into
paradise. The whole of Scripture took on a new meaning, and whereas before the
‘justice of God’ had filled me with hate, now it became to me inexpressibly sweet in
greater love. This passage of Paul became to me a gate to heaven. . . . If you have a true
faith that Christ is your Savior, then at once you have a gracious God, for faith leads
you in and opens up God’s heart and will, that you should see pure grace and
overflowing love.” 2
Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans, Atonement and Justification, pp. 57-8.
Roland Bainton, Here I Stand, pp. 49-50.

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3. Here then we ought to remind ourselves, as Luther has taught us, of the priority of
knowing a gracious God in our quest for grace.
a. The preoccupation of multitudes of religious people today is how they might
experience God’s grace and appear gracious before men. God is perceived as a
utilitarian vehicle of grace.
(1) For many, the supreme end of life is the attainment of genuine fulfillment,
personal happiness, bubbling vitality, real personal identity, and a satisfying
self-image, frequently via religion. These people may even agree that they
need grace to attain this end. But God is merely perceived as a useful means
to an end and not gloriously gracious in Himself. It ought not to surprise us
then that such people never attain true graciousness.
(2) In contrast with this modern day pervasive subjectivity is the primary search
of Martin Luther, not for the answer to the question, “How can I receive
grace and be gracious?” but for a gracious God Himself and reconciliation
with Him. This is not a trivial distinction since it strikes at the heart of
contemporary man-centeredness.
b. The difference between these two concepts is crucial and fundamental. The
ramifications effect evangelism and personal spiritual growth.
(1) The search for a gracious God should find its fulfillment in the embrace of
the good news concerning a gracious God. It is this God-centered emphasis
which is central to the New Testament and lacking today. Supremely, God is
gracious in Himself and must be adored as such. Our study of this attribute
seeks to regain this emphasis.
(2) However, a primary search for grace that satisfies my groaning condition,
based on the assumption that God is gracious, only leads to subjective
frustration without the longed for fulfillment. Growth in grace will only be
experienced when I continue to praise and enjoy God as being wonderfully
gracious in Himself. The Christian ought to be frequently exhorting himself,
“Behold [the grace of] your God. . . . Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,
in His arm He will gather the lambs and carry them in His bosom; He will
gently lead the nursing ewes” (Isa. 40:9b, 11).
B. THE GRACE OF GOOD AS AN ASPECT OF HIS LOVE
1. The distinctive nature of God’s gracious character.
Whereas God is essentially good, His expression of that goodness towards thoroughly
polluted and rebellious mankind is that facet of love called grace.
a. Grace is God’s goodness bestowed upon man in the face of his ugly badness, his
sinfulness and misery, there being no rightful claim to it, no merit to obtain it, no
ground for the deserving of it, because of man’s utter disqualifying character.

(1) In the Old Testament, the most important term is the Hebrew word ,
hesed, which describes God’s loyal, covenant love, His steadfast faithfulness
and loving-kindness that confronts man’s unfaithfulness and ungodliness (Ex.
34:6-7; Neh. 9:17; Ps. 103:8-11; Jonah 4:2). God’s promise to save and keep
according to His sovereign, electing determination, knows only unremitting
commitment, irregardless of human failure.
(2) In the New Testament, the most important term is the Greek word ,
charis, which, in the context of God’s relationship with man, describes His
free, gratis favor and mercy bestowed upon sinful and guilty man without
regard to absent worthiness and present unworthiness (Rom. 3:24; 4:4-5;
5:15; Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 2:11). Here the basis of this mercy bestowed upon
sinners is the same covenant faithfulness revealed in the Old Testament (Jer.
32:36-40; Ezek. 37:224-28; Heb. 13:20).
b. Grace is not merely God’s love in the face of man’s indifference or supposed
neutrality, but rather His deep and determined affection directed toward the
openly hostile and aggressive sinner (Rom. 5:1-2, 6-8; Eph. 2:1-9; Col. 1:21).
Hence Grace is not merely unmerited favor, but demerited favor. God is for man
even though man plots and schemes and positively opposes God .
(1) Grace is inadequately described by the popular anagram, “God’s Riches At
Christ’s Expense,” because it is mute concerning man’s essential problem; it
does not in any way describe man’s sinful antagonism against God.
(2) Grace is not simply that God is kind towards sinners who come short of
offering acceptable righteousness and harm themselves, but rather He is kind
towards sinners who are militantly averse to God and as a consequence store
up demerit (Acts 7:54-8:3; 26:9-14).
(3) So in Psalm 2 we see this conflict in stark relief.
(a) The world, in concert, strenuously opposes Jesus Christ, vs. 1-3.
(b) Jesus Christ is appointed as a gracious Savior, vs. 4-9.
(c) Jesus Christ is offered as a gracious Savior, vs. 10-12.
c. Grace is not simply the distinctive love of Jesus for sinners, but rather the identical
love of the three Persons of the triune God.
(1) The grace of God the Father (Rom. 3:24).
(2) The grace of God the Son (II Cor. 8:9).
(3) The grace of God the Holy Spirit (Heb. 10:29).
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3
d. Grace is God’s love for sinners that is purposed and originates solely within the
heart of the Eternal; it does not come in response to worth and value in man. The
grace of God is “according to the kind intention of His will” (Eph. 1:5).
(1) “Being justified freely [as a gift] by His grace” (Rom. 3:24; cf. John 15:25),
means that within the sinner there is no cause for him to be justified. The
cause exclusively resides within God and it is for this reason that it is often
called “free grace.”
(2) However, God’s grace is not capricious or fickle, but according to wisdom
(Eph. 1:7-8).
(3) Therefore, grace is love that is purposeful, intentional, willful, steadfast, the
emphasis being place on God’s volition and loyalty to His promise (John
3:16; Rom. 11:29; Jas. 1:18; I John 4:10).
e. Grace is not love that overlooks, neglects, or disregards sin. If God were to sweep
sin under the carpet, so to speak, He would not be gracious, but unholy and
without integrity (Gen. 3:3).
(1) Every sin of every sinner with whom God deals with graciously is also dealt
with justly!
(2) Grace is God’s love with integrity, so that He maintains unblemished justice
and yet justifies the sinner (Rom. 3:25-26).
f. J. I. Packer comments: “The grace of God is love freely shown towards guilty
sinners, contrary to their merit and indeed in defiance of their demerit. It is God
showing goodness to persons who deserve only severity, and had no reason to
expect anything but severity. We have seen why the thought of grace means so
little to some church people - namely, because they do not share the beliefs about
God and man which it presupposes. Now we have to ask: why should this thought
mean so much to others? The answer is not far to seek; indeed, it is evident from
what has already been said. It is surely clear that, once a man is convinced that his
state and need are as described, the New Testament gospel of grace cannot but
sweep him off his feet with wonder and joy. For it tells how our Judge has become
our Savior.” 3
2. The major categories of God’s grace.
a. Common grace.
(1) It is that general, comprehensive, and kind providence of God mediated
through His Spirit which finds all of creation under the dominion of sin.
John Murray describes it as, “every favor of whatever kind or degree, falling
J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 120.

4
5
short of salvation, which this undeserving and sin-cursed world enjoys at the
hand of God.” 4
(a) Common grace accounts for sinful man having some knowledge of God,
some appreciation of truth, some virtue on a man to man basis, and a
variety of talents and accomplishments (Gen, 20:1-18; Mark 12:28-34;
Acts 10:1-4). Broad travel will sometimes lead to our meeting certain
pagan people who yet evidence considerable civil kindness, hospitality,
and integrity.
(b) Whereas common grace focuses upon a degree of favor that man
receives from God as a sinner, that is in a universal or multitudinous
sense, benevolence focuses upon man, both before the Fall and after,
who is in need of innate support, maintenance. Hence common grace
and benevolence are closely connacted.
(2) Various aspects of common grace include:
(a) The living existence of all men as sinners (Lam. 3:22; Acts 17:27-8).
Every breath we breathe is a wonder of common grace since God could
have justly extinguished the whole human race in immediate judgment.
He defers the execution of our sentence by means of comprehensive
grace so that we might receive the offer of a full pardon by particular
grace (Rom. 3:24-25).
(b) Restraint upon sin, divine wrath, evil, and the bestowal of good with
limitation.
John Murray writes that,
John Murray, Collected Writings, II, p. 96.
Ibid., pp. 97-112.
The evidence drawn from Scripture, then, compels the conclusion that the
world as a whole, though subject to the curse incident to sin, receives the
showers of manifold blessing, that men who still lie under the divine
condemnation of sin, including even those who will finally suffer the full
weight of that condemnation in perdition, are the recipients in this life of
multiple favors that proceed from God’s lovingkindness, that of
unregenerate men is predicated moral good that externally or formally is
that required by the law of God, that unregenerate men who come into
contact with the revelation of God’s grace in the gospel may even taste
the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and that in the
institutions of civil righteousness and order we have a divine provision
that ensures even for the ungodly restraint upon their evil works and
outward tranquility and peace. So that viewing God’s government of this
world, even from the aspect of his common or non-saving grace, we may
say, the earth is full of the glory of the Lord and all peoples see his glory. 5
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(c) The general call and wooing of the Holy Spirit (Gen. 6:3; Acts 7:51).
Man’s accountability is heightened as the knowledge of God (Rom.
1:20; 2:14-16), and the truth of the gospel (John 16:7-11), is
communicated not only to the ears of all men, but also to their hearts.
This is not a mere presence, but an earnest, persuasive striving.
(d) The universal offer of saving grace (John 3:16; 6:35; 7:37).
This bona fide offer to all men (Matt. 11:28-30; 24:14), yet confronts
men in their blindness (Luke 4:18; John 9:39), deafness (John 8:3; Acts
7:56-58), deadness (Eph. 2:1, 5; Col. 2:13), and unwillingness (John
3:19; 5:40). Being unwilling, man is accountable. God’s offer is genuine
in that whoever responds through faith will be saved. 6
(3) Although common grace is for the temporal blessing of all souls, such
goodness ought to be pointed out to all souls (Acts 14:15-17).
(a) It ought to result in repentance, though man often responds with
presumption concerning this grace(Rom. 2:4-5).
(b) It ought to result in praise, though man often responds with perversion
of this grace (Ps. 65:4-13; 104:1-35; Rom. 1:25).
(c) It ought to be properly understood in relation to saving grace. Murray
points out:
[W]e must jealously guard the distinction between the grace that is
common and the grace that is saving. To change the terms, we must not
obliterate the distinction between nature and grace. Saving grace differs
in its nature, it differs in its purpose and it differs in its effect. But we
must beware of a false dualism whereby we incline to regard special grace
as nullifying or annihilating the good things it finds in that sphere upon
which it falls. Common grace is after all God’s grace. It is a gift of God
and ‘every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh
down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither
shadow of turning’ (Jas. 1:17). Special grace does not annihilate but
rather brings its redemptive, regenerative and sanctifying influence to
bear upon every natural or common gift; it transforms all activities and
departments of life; it brings every good gift into the service of the
kingdom of God. Christianity is not a flight from nature; it is the renewal
and sanctification of nature. It is not flight from the world; it is the
evangelization of the world. 7
6
John Owen, in upholding the particular definiteness of Christ’s atonement, yet writes of a universal offer of
that same gospel as follows: “A minister is not to make enquiry after, nor to trouble himself about, those
secrets of the eternal mind of God, namely,—whom he purposeth to save, and whom he hath sent Christ to
die for in particular. It is enough for them to search his revealed will, and thence take their directions, from
whence they have their commissions. . . . They command and invite all to repent and believe; but they know
not in particular on whom God will bestow repentance unto salvation, nor in whom he will effect the work of
faith with power.” Works, X, pp. 299-300.
Ibid., p. 117.

8
9
10
11
b. Preventing grace.
(1) By definition, “preventing” here means “to go before.” Hence it refers to
grace that comes to a person before conversion and is sometimes designated
as “prevenient” grace. It is that particular measure of grace poured out upon
God’s elect before actual salvation and conversion; it effectually prepares,
guides, instructs, and draws the sinner to Christ for saving grace (John 6:37,
44-45).
(a) It is a particular work of grace that is to be distinguished from universal
Wesleyan-Arminian “prevenient grace,” which is said to be bestowed
upon all of Adam’s sinful race so as to restore limited ability, so that
any man can savingly believe in Christ if he wills. John Wesley writes:
“Natural free-will, in the present state of mankind, I do not understand:
I only assert, that there is a measure of free-will supernaturally restored
to every man, together with that supernatural light which ‘enlightens
every man that cometh into the world’ [John 1:9] 8 ”
(b) By way of personal illustration, John Bunyan describes this particular
preventing grace in his own life before conversion. “Yea, such
prevalency had the lusts and fruits of the flesh in this poor soul of mine,
that had not a miracle of precious grace prevented [gone before], I had
not only perished by the stroke of eternal justice, but had also laid
myself open, even to the stroke of those laws, which bring some to
disgrace and open shame before the face of the world.” 9
(c) By way of explanation, Richard Sibbes writes:
Preventing mercy is the greatest. How many favors doth God prevent [go
before] us with! We never asked for our being, nor for that tender love
which our parents bore towards us in our tender years. We never asked
for our . . . engrafting into Christ. What a motive therefore is that to stir
us up, that . . . we may plead with the Lord, and say, Thou hadst a care
of me before I had a being; and therefore much more wilt thou now have
a care of me, whom thou hast reconciled unto thyself, and remember me
in mercy for time to come. 10
(d) By way of illustration, the Scottish hymn writer, James G. Small,
drawing upon Hosea 11:1-4, has so aptly written: 11
John Wesley, Works, X, pp. 229-30. We believe this to be a wrong understanding of John 1:9 which, as
elsewhere in this Gospel (3:19; 8:12; 12:46), describes light confronting mankind in general as distinct from
giving inward illumination of the soul. Refer to Barrett, John, pp. 134-5.
John Bunyan, Works, I, p. 7.
Richard Sibbes, The Complete Works of Richard Sibbes, VII, p. 198.
James G. Small, Trinity Hymnal, 433.
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I’ve found a Friend, O such a Friend!
He loved me ere I knew Him;
He drew me with the cords of love,
And thus He bound me to Him;
And round my heart still closely twine
Those ties which nought can sever,
For I am His, and He is mine,
For ever and for ever.
(2) Thus this particular grace deals only with the elect of God (Eph. 1:3-6; Col.
3:12), but prior to actual conversion. It is finally effectual (I Cor. 1:9),
though it may be rejected for a period (Acts 26:14). In this sense it is
ultimately “irresistible” and “efficacious” grace (Gal. 1:15-16).
(a) Preventing grace protects the sinner like a hedge since his ultimate and
certain salvation is in view (Gen. 27:41-4).
(b) Preventing grace directs the sinner along paths that are instrumental in
guiding him to Christ (Acts 7:58).
(c) Preventing grace effects the safe arrival and certain salvation of the
chosen sinner, “by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey
Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood” (I Pet. 1:1-2). Here the
work of the Spirit is preparatory for obedience (of faith?) and the
application of Christ’s atoning blood (cf. John 3:3-8; II Thess. 2:13; Tit.
3:5).
(3) By way of illustration, in 1865 C. H. Spurgeon preached a sermon titled,
“Prevenient Grace,” based upon Galatians 1:15. Under this title he includes
as subdivisions, “formative, restraining, preparatory,” and “convicting
grace.” He declares that,
Prevenient grace comes before regeneration and conversion. I think we
sometimes overlook it. We do not attach enough importance to the grace of
God in its dealings with men before he actually brings them to himself. Paul
says that God had designs of love towards him even before he had called him
out of the dead world into spiritual life. . . . It is a mercy for some men that
they cannot do what they would. Ah! My fine fellow, if you could have had
your own way, you would have been at the top of the mountain by now! So
you think, but no, you would have been over the precipice long before this if
God had let you climb at all, and so he has kept you in the valley because he
has designs of love towards you, and because you shall not sin as others sin.
Divine grace has its hand upon the bridle of your horse. . . . Another inch
forward and you will be over the precipice and lost. And therefore God has put
that hand there to throw your horse back on its haunches, and make you pause
and think, and turn from the error of your ways. . . . Look at the life of St.
Augustine, how wearily he wanders hither and thither with a death-thirst in his
soul, that no fount of philosophy, or scholastic argument, or heretical teaching
could ever assuage. He was aware of his unhappy estate, and turned his eye
round the circle of the universe looking for peace, not fully conscious of what
he wanted, though feeling an aching void the world could never fill. He had
not found the center, fixed and steadfast, around which all else revolved in

12
ceaseless change. Now, all this appetite, this hunger and thirst, I look upon as
not of the devil, nor of the human heart alone. It was of God! He strips us of
all our earthly joy and peace, that, shivering in the cold blast we might flee,
when drawn by his Spirit, to the Man who is as a hiding-place from the storm,
a cover from the tempest, and the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. 12
(4) By way of application, let any Christian consider his own conversion and
recall how God’s preventing grace led him by many marvelous and often
circuitous ways to the foot of the Cross. Ought not such an awareness cause
him to erupt in praise of God such as Paul did in Romans 11:33-35;
Galatians 1:13-16, and I Timothy 1:15-17?
c. Saving grace.
(1) It is grace that rescues the sinner.
(a) Essentially, God provides and applies grace through the redemptive,
atoning work of the Cross to impotent, miserable, and guilty sinners
(Rom. 3:9-26; Eph. 2:1-10; Tit. 3:3-7). This grace has several saving
aspects:
1) In justification, God through Christ pronounces the unrighteous
sinner to be not guilty and acceptably righteous (Rom. 1:16-17;
3:21-24, 28; 5:1; Gal. 2:16; 3:11, 24). This is just grace.
2) In redemption, the sinner is delivered from the slave-market and
captivity of sin through Christ’s ransom sacrifice (Mark 10:45;
Rom. 3:24; Gal. 3:13; 4:4-5). This is liberating grace.
3) In substitution, the sinner’s judgement is vicariously born by
another who is willing and qualified according to the Father’s just
demands, namely Christ ( Mark 10:45; II Cor. 5:21; I Pet. 2:24).
This is free and costly grace.
4) In reconciliation, God befriends the sinner, through Christ the
mediator, by taking away that guilt and enmity which divide (II
Cor. 5:19; Eph. 2:15-16; Col. 1:21-22). This is rapprochement
grace.
5) In adoption, the sinner believing in Christ is lifted from sin’s
captivity and placed as a son and heir in God’s kingdom (Rom.
8:14-17; Gal. 4:4-7; Eph. 1:5). This is filial grace.
6) In sanctification, the saved sinner yet continues to be saved
through Christ’s intercessory work, the indwelling of the Holy
Spirit, and the milk and meat of the Word of God (Matt. 4:4; Acts
C. H. Sturgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, XI, pp. 589-600.
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13
14
20:32; Rom. 5:1-5; 8:1-17; I Cor. 1:3-9; Heb. 7:25; I Pet. 2:2; II
Pet. 3:18). This is transforming grace.
7) In glorification, the saved sinner receives the consummation of his
salvation, the promised full inheritance (Eph. 2:7). This is radiant,
consummating grace (I John 3:2).
(b) By way of illustration, A. W. Tozer writes:
No one was ever saved other than by grace, from Abel to the present
moment. Since mankind was banished from the eastward Garden, none
has ever returned to the divine favor except through the sheer goodness
of God. And wherever grace found any man it was always by Jesus
Christ. Grace indeed came by Jesus Christ, but it did not wait for His
birth in the manger or His death on the cross before it became operative.
Christ is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. The first man
in human history to be reinstated in the fellowship of God came through
faith in Christ. In olden times men looked forward to Christ’s redeeming
work; in later times they gaze back upon it, but always they came and
they come by grace through faith. We must keep in mind also that the
grace of God is infinite and eternal. As it had no beginning, so it can have
no end, and being an attribute of God, it is boundless as infinitude. 13
(c) By way of illustration, the Christian has certainly been saved by past
tense grace (Eph. 1:13), is still being saved by present tense grace (II
Cor. 2:15), and will be saved consummately at his glorification by
future tense grace (Phil. 1:6; Jude 24). Thus John Newton could write: 14
Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
(2) It is grace that is sovereign over the sinner.
(a) By way of definition, Sovereign grace is that dominion and reign of
grace which certainly and effectually accomplishes God’s particular
saving purposes, even though sin may rage with all of its foulness and
power (Rom. 5:20-21).
1) God is sovereign in the particular distribution of grace (Ex. 33:19;
Rom. 9:11, 14-16).
2) God is sovereign in the application and maintenance of grace (Eph.
1:4-6; 2:8-10).
(b) Sovereign grace contrasts with that impotent offered grace which man,
with his supposed autonomy, may freely accept or reject.
A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge Of The Holy, p. 102.
John Newton, Trinity Hymnal, 402.

15
1) By way of illustration, of what use is it to place the most delectable
food outside the tomb of Lazarus. Such offered grace has little
value for a dead man, that is unless he is first made alive (Eph. 2:1-
7).
2) The Father has not sent His beloved Son to suffer and die so that
men might be saved, but rather that men will certainly be saved
(Luke 10:22; John 6:37, 44; 10:1-3, 11; 17:1-2, 6, 9, 12, 24; Rom.
8:32).
3) Thus, whoever God elects to salvation, He also, through appointed
means, applies the gracious merits of Christ’s atonement (I Pet.
1:1-2).
4) By way of illustration, God does not, as it were, merely throw
down a rope into the pit of man’s predicament and invite him to
haul himself out. Rather, he actually climbs down into the pit and
lifts his sheep out (Luke 15:3-7).
(c) By way of explanation, in a sermon entitled “Reigning Grace,” C. H.
Spurgeon comments on Romans 5:21 as follows:
Just as sin has reigned, and with despotic and irresistible power has
ground his subjects in the very dust, and then cast them into the flames,
so doth grace with irresistible goodness, constrain the chosen multitudes
to yield obedience, and thus prepares them for eternal bliss. . . . I tell you
brethren, if all the troubles that ever came from heaven, all the
persecutions that ever came from earth, and all the afflictions that ever
arose from hell, could meet on your poor devoted head, the reigning
grace of God would make you master of them all. You have never need
to fear. Storms are the triumph of his art, and grace can steer the ship the
better for tempestuous waves. Trust in the Lord, and do good; rest thou
on his grace, and hope thou in his mercy. 15
(d) Sovereign grace was the especial constant delight of the Apostle Paul
because:
1) It was given in his mother’s womb (Gal. 1:15).
2) It is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8-9).
3) It was given to the chief of sinners (I Tim. 1:13-16).
4) It abounds and reigns over sin (Rom. 5:20-21).
5) It is God who makes grace to abound (II Cor. 9:8).
Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, VI, pp. 349, 354.
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(3) It is grace that is free.
(a) Romans 3:24 declares that the believing sinner is, “justified as a gift
[freely] by His [God’s] grace through the redemption which is in Christ
Jesus.”
1) “Freely,” , dōrean, here means, “without a cause,” just as
the same word in John 15:25 is used by Jesus to declare, “They
hated me without a cause [freely].” Man has no meritorious
contribution to make whatsoever toward his salvation, though he
does contribute demeritorious corruption.
2) Hence, there is no good cause within the sinner which God would
regard as a ground for justification. The only cause is within God,
according to His gracious purpose (Eph. 1:9, 11). Thus the
believing sinner is justified gratuitously, or for gratis.
(b) By way of explanation, John Murray comments on Romans 3:24:
No element in Paul’s doctrine of justification is more central than this -
God’s justifying act is not constrained to any extent or degree by
anything that we are or do which could be esteemed as predisposing God
to this act. And not only is it the case that nothing in us or done by us
constrains to this act but all that is ours compels the opposite judgment -
the whole world is brought in guilty before God (cf. vs. 9, 19). This
action on God’s part derives its whole motivation, explanation, and
determination from what God himself is and does in the exercise of free
and sovereign grace. Merit of any kind on the part of man, when brought
into relation to justification, contradicts the first article of the Pauline
doctrine and therefore of his gospel. It is the glory of the gospel of Christ
that it is one of free grace. 16
(c) However, as is common today, the term “free grace” can lend itself to
misunderstanding.
John Murray, The Epistle To The Romans, p. 115.
1) It is not free grace that is received as cheap and easy.
a) Free grace is wholly gratis to the recipient, nevertheless costly
with regard to the donor. Thus the recipient is deeply aware,
respectful, and responsive concerning this cost (II Cor. 8:9;
Phil. 2:5-8; Heb. 12:2-3).
b) By way of illustration, “free” here does not relate to a “free
sample” that one might choose to accept at a food store.
Many a child, even a prodigal, has received a free inheritance.
But the parents as benefactors have accumulated such an
inheritance only at sacrificial cost to themselves.

2) It is not free grace that is received with apathy.
a) By way of explanation, free grace is not offered to a man as
he is offered a vacation package by a telemarketer. Rather, it
is liberty offered to a miserable, agonizing, confined prisoner
who is deservedly bound. Therefore his reception of free grace
results in spontaneous jubilation, astonishment, praise,
thanksgiving.
b) Free grace confronts a man as being wholly unworthy of
pardon and worthy of condemnation. Yet should such a
criminal, before a judge, receive a free pardon, his response
will not be casual but intense delight and rejoicing. Grace is
regarded in proportion to the sinner’s estimate of his sin,
guilt, and condemnation (Luke 7:47).
3) It is not free grace that is received for abuse.
a) Although grace abounds in Romans 5:17, 20, yet in Romans
6:1-2 Paul is repulsed by the thought that sin is justified by
grace. Such an attitude is “disgraceful.”
b) Rather, grace is to be the justification of both judicial and
personal righteousness (Rom. 6:17-18); the grace that saves is
the grace that is productive graciousness (Matt. 18:21-35).
(4) It is grace that is rich to the sinner.
(a) In Ephesians 1:7; 2:7, the believer is declared to be the inheritor of
spiritual treasure, that is the wealth of “the riches of His [God’s] grace,”
which, according to Hebrews 6:9, may be “the things that accompany
salvation,” and proceed from grace.
1) By way of explanation, clearly Paul and the author of Hebrews
envision a multitude of blessings that accrue to the genuine
Christian through the gospel. But specifically what are these
“riches”? While the following list of thirty categories is far from
exhaustive, yet it does reflect something of the wealth that flows
forth from the grace of God for the believer. Thus the child of God
receives:
a) Acknowledgment by God that he has been the object of
particular loving interest from eternity past, before the
foundation of the world. Specifically he has been foreknown,
predestinated, elected, chosen, called (Rom. 8:29-30; Eph.
1:4-5, 11; I Thess. 1:4; I Pet. 1:1-2).
b) Regeneration from death in the soul unto the life of God
(Rom. 6:11, 13; Eph. 2:4-5; Titus 3:5-6).
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c) Justification by God for the unjust (Rom. 3:2; 5:1; Gal. 2:16;
3:11; Titus 3:7; I Pet. 3:18).
d) Redemption by God from captivity to sin (Rom. 3:24; 8:23;
Eph. 1:7; I Pet. 1:18-19).
e) Reconciliation to God from past alienation (II Cor. 5:18-21;
Eph. 2:13-18; Col. 1:19-23).
f) Peace with God through propitiation of His righteousness
(Rom. 3:24-26; 5:1; I John 2:2; 4:10).
g) Adoption from slavery to sonship with God (Rom. 8:15, 23;
Gal. 4:5; Eph. 1:5).
h) Forgiveness of all sin through the satisfactory atonement of
Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:7; Col. 2:13).
i) Marriage to Christ having died to the Mosaic law (Rom. 7:1-
4; cf. Rev. 19:7-9).
j) Freedom from condemnation and accusation (John 5:24;
Rom. 8:1, 33-34).
k) Freedom from the dominion of the law (Rom. 6:14; 7:1-6; II
Cor. 3:6-13; Gal. 5:18).
l) Placement in the body of Christ through Spirit baptism (I Cor.
12:13).
m) Union with the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
(Matt. 28:19; Eph. 4:4-6).
n) Declared, positional sanctification (I Cor. 1:2; 6:11; Col.
3:12). I Pet. 2:9
o) Security, having been given by the Father to the Son for
certain, safe salvation and keeping (John 6:37; 17:1-12, 24).
p) Citizenship in the heavenly household of God (Eph. 2:19;
Phil. 3:20).
q) Deliverance from the power of darkness unto becoming
children of light in Christ (John 8:12; Acts 26:18; Eph. 5:8;
Col. 1:12-13; I Pet. 2:9).
r) Sealing by the Holy Spirit (II Cor. 1:22; Eph. 1:13).

s) Heirship and an imperishable inheritance from God with
Christ (Rom. 8:17; Gal. 4:7; I Pet. 1:3-4).
t) Inheritance of every spiritual blessing (Eph. 1:3).
u) Usefulness for the glorification of God (Eph. 1:12, 14).
v) Reception of Christ’s victorious spoils (Eph. 4:7-8).
w) Crowns of life and glory (Jas. 1:12; I Pet. 5:4).
x) Appointment to rule the world and judge angels (I Cor. 6:2-
3).
y) Creation anew according to God’s workmanship (II Cor.
5:17; Eph. 2:10).
z) Reception of the blessings of Abraham as his seed (Gal. 3:7-9,
29).
aa) Participation in Christ’s fold and pasture (John 10:1-18).
bb) Fellowship with the saints in Christ (John 17:11, 21-23; Eph.
4:1-3).
cc) Having access to God, that is access into His grace, access
unto the Father, access with reassurance (Rom. 5:2; Eph.
2:18; Heb. 4:16; 10:19-20).
dd) Glorification, into the immortal, incorruptible image of Christ
(Rom. 8:18-19, 30; I Cor. 15:53; Col. 3:4; I John 3:2).
2) By way of illustration, a person may be an heir to a large and
wealthy estate. However, unless he has read an inventory of his
inheritance, he will not fully appreciate his potential possessions
and the grace of his benefactor! A Christian ought to know all
about those inherited riches of grace that are bestowed through
Jesus Christ. But if you are not a Christian, then you have no such
inheritance, nor any interest in such spiritual wealth. Rather you
must toil for Satan’s wages which are well earned, namely death
and judgment (Rom. 6:23).
(b) In I Timothy 6:17-18, the believer who is materially rich ought rather to
fix his hope on the enjoyment of God’s generous spiritual wealth. Then
as a consequence he ought to be rich in good works.
1) By way of explanation, Thomas Goodwin comments on Ephesians
2:7:
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What is pardon of sin to heaven? It is but so many riches buried in
the foundation. What is the Spirit’s pouring forth here? It is but the
earnest [down-payment] of that riches which is to come. All that he
hath done here, it is but that he might show forth the exceeding
riches of his grace on us, in ages to come, in kindness towards us in
Christ Jesus. All that is done for us here, it is but like a lighter
metal; as always in mines you shall have a lighter metal before you
come to the mine itself. All the riches of grace expended upon us
here, they are but that lighter metal to that great mine that is then
to be broken up. 17
2) According to the authority of Jesus Christ, the person who is not
rich toward God in his soul is a fool (Luke 12:16-21). Further, it is
that same Jesus Christ who, “though He was rich, yet for your
sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become
rich” (II Cor. 8:9). In spiritual terms, the rich/poor gap is as wide
as our separation from Jesus Christ. So, “let the word of Christ
richly dwell within you” (Col. 3:16); let the Word of God be
“more desirable than much fine gold” (Ps. 19:10).
C. THE GRACE OF GOD EVIDENT IN THE BELIEVER
17
1. As God is gracious towards the rebellious sinner, so the redeemed sinner is
consequently to be gracious towards sinners who scorn even his Savior as well as
himself (Matt. 5:44; I John 4:11).
a. Grace becomes a subject which the believer delights to study in detail, so that he
might be “strengthened by grace” (Heb. 13:9), and “grow in grace” (II Pet. 3:18).
b. Grace motivates the believer to be gracious (Rom. 5:1-5; II Cor. 5:14-15). The
doctrines of grace are productive of the grace of the doctrines.
c. Grace is implanted in the believer’s soul through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit,
so that graces and gifts become evident (Gal. 5:22-23; I Pet. 4:10). However, this
same Spirit uses “means of grace” through which grace is mediated to the child of
God. Such “means of grace” include Bible study, prayer, preaching, teaching,
Christian fellowship, hymnody, etc.
d. Grace becomes an operative principle in the believer whereby the regenerate heart
is stimulated to respond, in heart and life, according to greater understanding of
the gracious heart of God (Rom. 5:21; I John 4:19).
2. The parable of the Unforgiving Debtor best illustrates the principle that it is incumbent
upon the recipient of God’s great grace to be likewise gracious to his neighbor (Matt.
18:21-35).
Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas Goodwin, II, p. 308.

a. This parable is prompted by Peter’s enquiry of Jesus as to how forgiving he ought
to be toward a brother who frequently sins against him, vs. 21-22.
b. A slave, in fact a picture of a sinner before God, is in debt to his king for an
extremely large amount of money. Hence, he asks for an extension of credit so as
to pay his debt in full, vs. 23-26.
c. The king (God), at first demanding, yet is exceedingly gracious in that he cancels
the debt, and so rejects the slave’s request for extended credit. Why did he do this?
Because he “felt compassion” for the slave, v. 27. Obviously there is no merit in
the slave himself.
d. This same slave who has received great grace, yet refuses to offer a little grace to a
small debtor. No extension of credit is allowed. Rather, immediate payment is
harshly demanded; inability to pay brings severe imprisonment, vs. 28-30.
e. The king, on hearing of this lack of modest grace, declares that the recipient of
great grace should have been gracious. As a consequence the slave will be deprived
of great grace. Thus the Savior warns that professing believers who lack grace will
be treated as illegitimate, and disgraced, vs. 31-35.
3. Thus the objects of the grace of God should manifest grace towards others, and
“especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Gal. 6:10).
a. Paul admonishes: “And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and
beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and
patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a
complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you” (Col.
3:12-13; cf. Eph. 4:32).
b. Hence, although we may recommend the grace of God in our speaking, that is by
means of our words, yet our manner should also “give grace” (Eph. :29), being
“seasoned with grace” (Col. 4:6).
c. Further, those who are rich in spiritual and material grace ought, “to be generous
and ready to share” (I Tim. 6:17-18; cf. John 13:34; Jas. 2:15-16; I John 3:16-18).
d. By way of illustration, apprenticed London hairdresser, Robert Robinson, was
shaken when he heard George Whitefield preach on, “the wrath to come” (Matt.
3:7). After three years of spiritual darkness, he was converted and later became a
pastor at Norwich. Only then could he write of the saved sinner’s continual
reliance upon grace.
Come, thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above;
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Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of God’s unchanging love.
O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be;
Let that grace now, like a fetter,
Bind my wand’ring heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it from Thy courts above

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER VII
THE LONGSUFFERING OF GOD
1. Why is it that God does not now rightly judge America for its sins?
At times we may feel like crying out as did Habakkuk, “How long, O Lord, will I call
for help, and Thou wilt not hear? I cry out to Thee, ‘Violence!’ Yet Thou dost not save.
. . . Therefore, the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround
the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted” (Hab. 1:2, 4).
a. To begin with, this holding back on God’s part is undoubtedly due to concern for
His elect, a godly remnant, as was the case with Lot (Gen. 19:22; cf. Matt. 24:21-
22). Yet this is not to suggest that God is indifferent and unconcerned toward the
non-elect, as His common grace indicates.
b. While Habakkuk is told that fierce judgment is certainly coming upon backslidden
Israel, yet the Lord declares, “Thou it tarry, wait for it” (Hab. 2:3). Surely the
additional reason for this delay is the longsuffering of God, which the true child of
God, such as Habbakuk, needs to rightly appreciate. He appears to be far more
impetuous than God, though he seems eventually to learn (Hab. 3:16-19).
2. Why did God give 120 years advance notice concerning the judgment of the earth by
the Flood (Gen. 6:3)? Was it simply for the building of the ark and the gathering
together of God’s elect, which in this instance was comprised of Noah and his family,
and none else. Again, God was undoubtedly zealous with care for His elect; but was
this the only reason?
a. Remember, even at the time when God first announced the Flood, He assessed
man’s wickedness in those days as very great, and saw “that every intent of the
thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:3, 5). When that period of
120 years commenced, that is at the beginning of the building of the Ark, Noah
and his family already appear to be a consecrated unit.
b. The further answer, according to Peter, is that “the patience of God kept waiting
in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark” (I Pet. 3:20). Also
consider that the whole created order of planet earth seems to have been prepared
for judgment, yet not in a hurry. Clearly, extended opportunity was given to man,
through the preaching of Noah (II Pet. 2:5), so that he might once again “call
upon the name of the Lord” (Gen. 4:26).
3. Why is it that while over 1970 years have passed since the first coming of Jesus Christ,
yet his second coming still waits?

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a. Certainly many have continued to treat this delay with scorn and unbelief in a
manner reminiscent of Noah’s generation (Matt. 24:37-39, 48; II Pet. 3:3-4).
b. The answer is the patience of God during the time called “the fulness of the
Gentiles” (Luke 21:24; Rom. 11:25); then, “the Deliverer will come from Zion”
(Rom. 11:26). God awaits until His gospel is preached throughout “the whole
world” (Matt. 24:14), after which the end of this age will come.
4. Why is God so patient with me when, in all honesty, I admit to my indifference,
spiritual lethargy, and faithlessness in the face of His continuous call?
a. God’s patient, persistent interest in rebellious sinners and saints is well
documented in Scripture (Is. 30:18; Rom. 3:25).
b. The answer is, “the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience” (Rom.
2:4), which are extended so that man might be led to repentance.
c. By way of illustration, C. H. Spurgeon comments:
Perhaps you began your religious life with the great mistake of hoping to find
salvation in your own goodness. You looked to your feelings, prayings, doings and
professions for safety. You thought that your deliverance must come from yourself,
and so you sought “to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,”
without remembering that “it is God that worketh in us to will and to do of his own
good pleasure.” You knew nothing of God’s grace; you thought much of your own
good works. So many prayers and tears, so many church-goings or chapel-goings, so
much of sacraments, almsgivings, and the like; and this would make up a sweetsmelling
sacrifice, acceptable to God. Blessed be the Lord who had great patience
with you. . . . See how much more patience there is in God than in man. We refuse
his free salvation, and go round by way of our own merits, and everywhere else, to
try and find some other ground of confidence, and then at last, when everything has
broken down, we come back to God and to salvation through Jesus Christ; and yet
we find the Lord lovingly waiting - a God ready to pardon. 1
B. THE NATURE OF GOD’S LONGSUFFERING
1
1. By definition, God’s longsuffering is that patient, breadth of love that withholds
judgment so that grace and mercy might be offered to sinners, and the grounds of
condemnation and eventual abandonment of sinners might never be more certain.
a. It means that God is slow to anger and restrained in temper (Neh. 9:17; Isa.
30:18).
b. It is God’s waiting love, or patience in the face of provocation to judgment (Deut.
9:7).
C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, XXX, pp. 98-9.

2
3
4
c. It is God’s restraint and postponement of judgment that is instantly merited
(Jonah 3:10; Nah. 1:1, 14; Rom. 3:25).
d. It is God’s forbearance that allows Him to persist with offered forgiveness (Matt.
18:21-35).
2. God’s longsuffering or endurance is directed towards sinner and saint.
a. To the sinner, God defers judgment (Rom. 2:4; 3:25; 9:22).
b. To the saint, God defers judgment before salvation (I Tim. 1:16) and discipline
after salvation (II Pet. 3:9).
3. By way of explanation, Charnock writes that God’s longsuffering,
is part of the divine goodness and mercy, yet differs from both. God being the greatest
goodness, hath the greatest mildness. Mildness is always the companion of true goodness,
and the greater the goodness, the greater the mildness. Who is so holy as Christ, and who
so meek? God’s slowness to anger is a branch or slip from his mercy (Ps. 145:8), “The
Lord is full of compassion, slow to anger.” It differs from mercy in the formal
consideration of the object. Mercy respects the creature as miserable; patience respects the
creature as criminal; mercy pities him in his misery, and patience bears with the sin which
engendered the misery, and is giving birth to more. 2
a. Further according to Charnock, 3 God’s patience is manifested towards:
(1) Our first parents, in view of their great age (Gen. 5:5).
(2) The Gentiles, to whom God “winked at” (Acts 17:30).
(3) The Israelites, whom He endured for forty years in the wilderness (Ps.
95:10), and longer.
b. Why then, according to Charnock, 4 does God exercise patience?
(1) To show that His anger may be appeased.
(2) To wait for men’s repentance.
(3) To allow for the propagation of mankind instead of its extinction.
(4) To allow for the continuance of the church, enduring thorns so that roses
might ultimately be gathered.
(5) To suffer the wicked so that the church might be properly fashioned.
Stephen Charnock, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, II, p. 506.
Ibid., pp. 512-4.
Ibid., pp. 524-530.
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(6) To show the impeccable fairness of His future judgment.
4. God’s longsuffering, or “forbearance and patience” according to Romans 2:4-5, allows
for two possible outcomes:
a. In v. 4, such longsuffering is designed to give encouragement for repentance.
Thomas Manton gives eight reasons why this is so: 5
(1) It gives time to think and call out for pardon.
(2) Forfeited mercies are yet followed by more mercies..
(3) Continuing mercies point to God’s goodness.
(4) God provides a remedy during his time of patience.
(5) There is time to turn from our doubt and disobedience.
(6) God provides means of grace during his waiting.
(7) God warns us of the abuse of continuing mercies.
(8) God suffers even the despisers of grace.
b. In. v. 5, such longsuffering gives time for stubborn and unrepentant hearts to store
up wrath and the righteous judgment of God.
5. Hence, God’s patience must not be presumed upon. When Jonah’s call to Nineveh
brought forth repentance, then God’s hand of judgment was stayed (Jonah 3:4-10).
However, this did not mean that judgment would never fall. Approximately 150 years
later, Nahum warns of judgment upon Nineveh that finds no reprieve on account of
continuous bloodshed and corruption (Nah. 1:2-3).
a. Although God’s patience is tempered with wrath, vs. 2-3a.
b. Although God’s patience is restrained power, v. 3a.
c. Yet God’s patience is temporary reprieve, v. 3b.
C. THE LONGSUFFERING OF GOD TOWARD HIS PEOPLE
5
1. God’s longsuffering in the Old Testament.
a. The Hebrew, , ’erek aphayim, “longsuffering” means to be “slow to
anger,” or literally to be “long of nostrils,” by which anger finds cooling
ventilation (Neh. 9:17; Ps. 86:15)!
Thomas Manton, The Complete Works of Thomas Manton, XVIII, pp. 231-3.

. In Noah’s day, God was longsuffering in waiting 120 years while the Ark was
being built and Noah preached righteousness (Gen. 6:3; I Pet. 3:20; II Pet. 2:5).
c. In Moses’ day, God was longsuffering.
(1) It was revealed to Moses (Ex. 34:6).
(2) It was experienced by Israel through Moses (Num. 14:18-20).
d. In David’s day, God was longsuffering (Ps. 86:15).
e. In Isaiah’s day, God was longsuffering (Is. 48:1-11).
(1) Israel’s relationship with the longsuffering God, vs. 1-8.
(a) Religious, but not reverent or righteous, v. 1.
(b) Formal, but not submissive, vs. 2-3.
(c) Obstinate, unyielding, and shameless, v. 4.
(d) Idolatrous, v. 5.
(e) Faithless, treacherous, in spite of God’s revelations, vs. 6-8a.
(f) Rebellious from birth, v. 8b.
(2) The longsuffering God’s relationship with Israel, vs. 9-11.
(a) It is longsuffering for the sake of His name, v. 9a.
(b) It is longsuffering for the sake of His praise, v. 9b.
(c) It is longsuffering that refines, v. 10.
(d) It is longsuffering for His glory, v. 11.
f. In Nehemiah’s day, God was longsuffering (Neh. 9:26-31).
Here is a description of a cyclical pattern in the history of Israel of sin, discipline,
and grace. But the larger picture is that of God’s covenant faithfulness, likened
unto the father who patiently awaits his prodigal son.
(1) Sin followed by discipline (oppressors) and grace (deliverance from
oppressors), vs. 26-27.
(2) Sin followed by discipline (abandonment to enemies) and grace (rescue with
compassion), v. 28.
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(3) Sin followed by patience, discipline (foreign captivity) and grace (the return
of a remnant under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah), vs. 29-31.
2. Longsuffering in the New Testament.
The Greek , hupomonē, means “a waiting, enduring under,” particularly for
the believer, although it also refers to “the word of My [Christ’s] patience” (Rev. 3:10).
In parallel with the Hebrew for “longsuffering” is , makrothumia,
similarly meaning “long [rather than short] temper,” with reference to God (Rom. 2:4;
I Pet. 3:20) and His child (II Cor. 6:4-6; Gal. 5:22).
D. THE LONGSUFFERING OF GOD EVIDENT IN THE BELIEVER
6
1. Believers are saved for the purpose of reflecting, along with other virtues, the
longsuffering of God. Paul declares, “I found mercy, in order that in me as the
foremost [sinner], Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience, as an example
for those who would believe in Him for eternal life” (I Tim. 1:16). This communicable
“perfect patience,” , of Jesus Christ describes “length in temper”
that extended to the “perfect/full measure” or degree necessary to accomplish God’s
saving plan in Paul’s life, which the Apostle assessed as so utterly wretched. Thus the
patience of Christ was not thwarted, but fruitful as divinely intended.
a. Believers, who have encountered the longsuffering of Jesus Christ, are to exercise
longsuffering (Rom. 15:5-6), in particular regarding:
(1) Fellowship in the church (Eph. 4:2-3; Col. 3:12-13).
(2) In Christian pilgrimage (Heb. 6:12; 12:1-2).
(3) Involvement in Christian ministry (II Cor. 6:4-6; II Tim. 2:24).
(4) All men (I Thess. 5:14).
(5) Christ’s imminent return (Jas. 5:7-8).
b. However, while Jesus Christ is the model of patience, yet it is the powerful agency
of the Holy Spirit that cultivates this choice fruit (Gal. 5:22; Col. 1:9-11).
2. By way of illustration, in The Pilgrim’s Progress, the patient child of God is graphically
portrayed in contrast with the impetuous child of this present world. At the house of
the Interpreter, Christian enters a room in which two children, under a Governor, sit
upon separate chairs. The eldest child called Passion appears most discontented. The
other child called Patience is very quiet and unruffled. Both have the future promise of
great treasure from their Governor. However, Passion would have it all now, but
Patience is content to wait till next year. 6
John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, III, p. 99.

a. The temperament of Passion expounded as a child of this world.
(1) Because of his agitation, his treasure is immediately brought to him, at which
he rejoices for a time, but finds that it wastes away so that only rags are left
behind.
(2) Passion is a man of this world who has no time for that which is to come
beyond the grave.
(a) His proverb is, “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
(b) His philosophy is, “Let’s have the goodies here and now, not pie in the
sky when you die by and by.!”
(c) But his pleasure is short lived (Ps. 73:3-9, 18-20; Luke 16:25; I John
2:17).
(d) Yet he mocks and scorns Patience because of his temporary poverty.
b. The temperament of Patience expounded as a child of the world to come.
(1) He patiently accepts his Governor’s will that he wait for the best things next
year, even though he temporarily lacks and is ridiculed by Passion.
(2) His benefits, though deferred, yet are wisely waited upon, for he is a child of
eternity.
(a) His treasure shall be vastly superior (Rom. 8:18). This is so since that of
Patience is eternal while that of Passion is temporal (II Cor. 4:16-18).
(b) His glorious enjoyment of these riches shall be when Passion has but
rags.
(3) He is the spiritual man awaiting God’s glorious heavenly provision, not as
Passion who invests in fleeting earthly treasure (Heb. 12:1-2; Jas. 5:7-8).
3. The perfecting work of patience in James 1, 5.
a. The fruit of patience or endurance in James 1:1-4.
(1) The endurance that is of God’s bond-servant, v. 1.
(2) The endurance that is joyful in trials, v. 2.
(3) The endurance that comes from tested faith, v. 3.
(4) The endurance that produces a perfect result, v. 4.
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7
8
By way of illustration, when London was on fire in 1666, the godly puritan,
Thomas Goodwin, had his large library located in two parts of the city. His
secular collection was distant from the fire while his sacred portion was near
the blaze. Yet he later discovered that the secular collection was destroyed
while the sacred portion was preserved. This led him to admit that he had
loved his library too well. Nevertheless, he confessed that God had saved the
better part. In reflecting on the benefits of this experience, Goodwin wrote a
small discourse based upon James 1:1-5 entitled, “Patience and its Perfect
Work under Sudden and Sore Trials.”
Goodwin significantly points out that James is not describing patience in v. 4
individually, that is as one grace that needs to be perfected. Rather, the point
is that by its very nature and requirement of time, patience allows other
graces to flower and bear fruit. 7 This perfecting work results in negative and
positive effects. 8
(a) Negatively, contrary passions are expelled, such as excessive grief, envy,
passionate anger, fears, murmuring against God, worldly cares.
(b) Positively, quiet fruits are produced, such as contentment, the
sufficiency of a pure heart, and constant joy.
b. The fruit of patience or endurance in James 5:1-11.
The same principle is taught here as in James 1:1-4, as well as the contrast of
patience and passion reminiscent of Bunyan’s allegorical illustration.
(1) The corrosive results of passion for this world, vs. 1-6.
(a) The weeping and misery of the materialist, v. 1.
(b) The wasting away of riches, vs. 2-3.
(c) The wages of selfish and ill-gotten gains, vs. 4-6.
1) Pay-day is coming for the harsh employer, v. 4.
2) Pay-day is coming for the self-indulgent, v. 5.
3) Pay-day is coming for the unjust and conniving, v. 6.
(2) The fruitful results of patience for the world to come, vs. 7-11.
(a) The waiting that produces spiritual growth and produce, v. 7.
(b) The waiting that produces strength of heart, v. 8.
Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas Goodwin, II, pp. 432-3.
Ibid., pp. 446-9, 454-7.

(c) The waiting that produces contentment, v. 9.
(d) The waiting that produced endurance in the prophets, v. 10.
(e) The waiting that produced blessing for Job, v. 11.
4. The glorifying work of patience in Romans 15:1-6.
a. The example of Christ, our model, for longsuffering, vs. 1-3.
(1) The strong Christian is to patiently bear with the weaknesses of the less
mature Christian, for Christ, the Strong One, has borne that which we
weaklings could not carry (Matt. 11:28-30), vs. 1-2.
(2) The earthly ministry of Christ is a continuous testimony to his patience, v. 3.
(a) He bore all the wrath that men wished to vent upon God the Father,
willingly, patiently (Rev. 1:9), in fulfillment of Psalm 69:9.
(b) Though he was oppressed and afflicted, “yet He did not open His
mouth” (Isa. 53:7).
b. The dynamic of God, our Father, for longsuffering, vs. 4-6.
(1) The example of divine longsuffering is communicated to the believer through
the Word of God, v. 4.
(2) The impartation of divine longsuffering is a sovereign bestowal channeled
through the instrumentality of prayer, v. 5.
(a) Specifically, God the Father grants it, God the Holy Spirit implants it,
and God the Son models it. But each member of the Godhead is equally
longsuffering in spite of these differing functions.
(b) The New International Version correctly translates the end of v. 5, “as
you follow Christ Jesus.”
(3) The purpose of the believer manifesting divine longsuffering is that of
glorifying God, not man, as with all of the communicable attributes, v. 6.
(a) God is glorified when the church, the body of Christ, manifests a unity
in the display of the attributes of God (I Pet. 4:11).
(b) The following diagram illustrates the cyclical influence of God’s
longsuffering toward mankind.
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94
9
5. Charles Simeon comments on Psalm 36:1:
How marvelous is the forbearance of our God! He sees the state of every living man: he
sees, not our actions only, but our very thoughts: for “he trieth the heart and reigns.”
What evils, then, does he behold in every quarter of the globe! Not a country, a town, a
village, a family, no, not a single soul, exempt from the common malady! all fallen; all
“enemies in their hearts to God by wicked works!” Take but a single city, our own
metropolis for instance [Cambridge, England], and what a mass of iniquity does God
behold in it, even in the short space of twenty-four hours! Is it not astonishing that God’s
wrath does not break forth against us, even as against Sodom and Gomorrah, to consume
us by fire; or that another deluge does not come, to sweep us away from the face of the
earth? Dear Brethren, “account this long-suffering of our God to be salvation” (II Pet.
3:15), and “let it lead every one of you to repentance” (Rom. 2:4). 9
Charles Simeon, Horae Homileticai, V, p. 270.

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER VIII
THE MERCY OF GOD
1. In the parable of the Pharisee and the tax-gatherer (Luke 18:9-14), we have portrayed
two men, one who is wholly ignorant of his need of God’s mercy, and the other who
hopes only in God’s mercy.
a. The Pharisee is comfortable with himself. In fact he boasts in a personal sense of
well-being that others have not attained.
(1) His posture as a religious dignitary suggests that the word “mercy” is part of
his everyday vocabulary, though remote from personal experience.
(2) His mock confession, “I thank Thee,” v. 11, his perversion of sovereign
grace, must be interpreted as, “I congratulate myself.”
(3) His definition of sin, v. 16b, is certainly biblical. His condemnation of sin is
severe, though it is exclusively directed towards others.
(4) His appreciation of personal guilt is at best suppressed and at worst
calloused. He is insensitive to pangs of personal corruption and the torments
of his fallen nature.
b. The tax-gatherer also prays, but he appears as a man with low self-esteem who is
greatly, even visibly, physically troubled. He speaks of his need of mercy with
trembling and desperation.
(1) His posture is that of a broken, subdued man. His body shakes as he strikes
his chest with deep remorse. He bemoans his condition, and so does the
critical world around him.
(2) His confession leaves no doubt as to his estimate of his problem, “God, be
merciful to me, the [emphasis added] sinner,” v. 13. Like Paul, he sees himself
as the “chief of sinners” (I Tim. 1:15).
(3) However this man knows something of the true nature of God since he
pleads, “God, be merciful [ , hilaskomai, be propitious, kindly
disposed] to me, the sinner.” He implores God that He be mercifully inclined
toward him and so heal the present miserable breach that his sin has caused.
(4) This man is certainly aware of his guilt before God and consequent need of
grace. But more than this, he is in agony of soul in his present condition.
Being so tormented, he urgently needs God’s relief from this misery, which
deliverance is distinctively called “mercy.”

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(5) This man, having cried to God for mercy [a propitious, kindly disposition],
“went to his house justified [ , dikaioō] rather than the other,” v. 14.
The legal language here describes relief being brought to an unrighteous soul.
2. When David sinned in numbering Israel, he cried out in anguish of soul,
“I am in great distress. Let us now fall into the hand of the Lord for His mercies are
great, but do not let me fall into the hand of man” (II Sam. 24:14). Only Jehovah’s
mercy, based upon the presupposition that He has been offended, can relieve a soul in
agony. When man is offended, he tends to extract vengeance rather than offer mercy.
B. THE MERCY OF GOD DIRECTED TOWARD MAN IN DISTRESS
1.
2.
1. Mercy is essentially God’s relieving love poured out upon man in deep misery and
trouble. Such affliction is spiritually rooted in the soul, though physical consequences
are to be expected (Ps. 31:9-10; 32:3-4). Hence, when God’s mercy relieves the soul, it
may be expected that there will be attending physical benefits (Ps. 30:1-2; 107:19-20).
a. In the Old Testament mercy is God’s practical exhibition of loving-kindness, ,
cheçed (Ps. 86:14-15; 136:1-26), which ought to be evident in His children. It also
means practical pity and compassion, , râcham (Isa. 47:6; 49:10, 13).
(1) By way of illustration, in a sermon based upon Hosea 5:15, Jonathan
Edwards declares, “that it is God’s manner to make men sensible of their
misery and unworthiness before he appears in his mercy and love to them. . .
. The mercy of God, which he shows to a sinner when he brings him home to
the Lord Jesus Christ, is the greatest and most wonderful exhibition of mercy
and love, of which men are ever the subjects.” 1 Edwards further draws from
the life of Joseph to illuminate this point.
(a) Joseph, before his great promotion in Egypt, languished in captivity for
twelve years.
(b) Joseph’s brothers, before being reconciled and cared for, suffered
twenty-two years of guilty anguish in their souls.
(c) Joseph’s father Jacob, before receiving gifts from his lost son and refuge
in Egypt, also felt the sorrow of those arid twenty-two years.
(2) David vividly describes the agony of his soul to which mercy answers. In
vexation and distress he implores God for relief (Ps. 6:2-4; 31:9-13; 51:1, 8).
b. In the New Testament mercy is similarly God’s compassion, , eleos, relief
from distress, or “the outward manifestation of pity” 2 (Luke 1:72; Tit. 3:5).
Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, II, pp. 830-8.
Vine, Unger, White, eds., Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, p. 403.

THE MERCY OF GOD
(1) The parable of the Good Samaritan best pictures the physical, active aspect
of mercy, and especially its communicable nature (Luke 10:30-37).
(2) However, more often it refers to God’s mercy toward the sinner (Rom. 15:7-
9; Tit. 3:5; I Pet. 1:3; 2:10).
(3) Note that grace is God’s response to the sinner in his guilty rebellion,
whereas mercy is God’s response to the sinner who suffers on account of his
guilt and rebellion.
2. Mercy may be more broadly understood in different categories.
a. Arthur Pink describes three aspects of God’s mercy as follows: 3
(1) General mercy, to all of His creation (Ps. 145:9).
(2) Special mercy, to all of mankind (Matt. 5:45).
(3) Sovereign mercy, to all heirs of salvation (Romans 9:15-16).
b. There are distinctive qualities of God’s mercy:
(1) Great mercy (I Kings 3:6).
(2) Covenant mercy (Neh. 1:5).
(3) Abundant mercy (Ps. 86:5).
(4) Everlasting mercy (Ps. 103:17).
(5) Tender mercy (Luke 1:78).
(6) Rich mercy (Eph. 2:4).
(7) Full mercy (Jas. 5:11).
C. THE PSALMIST’S DELIGHT IN THE MERCY OF GOD
3.
1. John Calvin has well stated that the Psalms are, “an anatomy of all the parts of the
soul.” At the same time, the chief response of the human authors is that of praise, and
surely one of the leading themes that results in such praise is that of the mercy of God
which relieves the miseries of the soul.
a. The child of God repeatedly finds himself in trouble, in agony of soul, in distress,
in torment, bodily discomforts (Ps. 38:1-12, 21-22).
Arthur Pink, The Attributes of God, p. 73.
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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
b. But God, who is known for His great mercies, His relieving aid and comfort, is
both petitioned and praised (Ps. 40:1-3).
c. Thus we have numerous references to God’s mercy, pity, compassion, even though
in many places these actual terms are not used (Ps. 34:17-19; 146:7-9).
2. The mercies of God meet every situation.
a. In Psalm 25, consider how God’s mercy, vs. 6-7, answers to the following trials:
(1) Ensnarement, v. 15.
(2) Loneliness, v. 16.
(3) Distress, v. 17.
(4) Affliction, v. 18.
(5) Violent hatred, v. 19.
b. In Psalm 103, consider how God’s mercy, vs. 8-14, answers to the following trials:
(1) Sin as a disease, v. 3.
(2) Destruction as in a pit, v. 4.
(3) Oppression, v. 6.
c. In Psalm 109, consider how God’s mercy, vs. 21, 26, answers to the following
trials:
(1) Heartache, v. 22.
(2) Fading strength and weakness, v. 24.
(3) Condemnation and cursing, vs. 25, 28.
3. According to Psalm 136, every situation is cause for thankfulness at the remembrance
of God’s mercies.
a. A mark of the true believer is not simply that he calls upon the mercies of God
when in need, but rather he recognizes them as having already been received, and
consequently is thankful (Ps. 63:6-8; 107:19-22; 111:4).
b. Psalm 136, sometimes called “The Great Hallel (Praise) Psalm,” because of its
antiphonal (alternating response) form, should in fact be called, “The Great
Mercy Psalm.” All of the twenty-six verses conclude, “For His loving-kindness
(mercy KJV) is everlasting.” Especially notice the major divisions of God’s mercy:
(1) God’s mercies evidenced in creation are cause for thanksgiving, vs. 1-9.

THE MERCY OF GOD
(2) God’s mercies evidenced in redemption are cause for thanksgiving, vs. 10-22.
(3) God’s mercies evidenced in providence are cause for thanksgiving, vs. 23-26.
D. THE MERCY OF GOD EVIDENT IN THE LIFE OF THE BELIEVER
4.
1. The Son of God clearly expected true disciples to manifest mercy and compassion
(Matt. 9:13; 12:7; 23:23; Luke 10:25-37).
2. God’s election of sinners is productive of mercy (Col. 3:12-13).
a. Our election is unto the fruit of the Spirit, v. 12.
(1) Election essentially speaks of purest mercy (Rom. 9:15-16).
(2) Election is evidenced by mercy. Compassion declares our parentage. It gives
visible proof that we as branches have been grafted into the merciful and lifegiving
Vine (John 15:16).
(3) Election, according to sovereign mercy, is identified by reassuring graces,
including mercy (II Pet. 1:5-10; Jude 1-2, 20-23).
b. Our example as God’s elect is the Lord Jesus Christ, v. 13.
(1) He is a tender shepherd (Is. 40:11; Luke 15:5).
(2) He is a compassionate physician (Matt. 14:14).
(3) He is a burden-bearing Savior (Phil. 2:1-2).
(4) He is a merciful High Priest (Heb. 4:14-15).
3. The authentic believer is directed by the principle of mercy rather than judgment (Jas.
2:12-13).
a. Mercy should regulate judgment (Hab. 3:2), v. 12.
b. For the merciless there is only judgment, v. 13.
4. By way of illustration, Thomas Goodwin exhorts us: “You that have received this
mercy from God, show mercy to others. Use all that is within you so as to endeavor to
beget men to God. Though God alone does it, yet he uses means; though means
contribute nothing, yet God uses them as the clay to open the eyes. Have you a friend
who lives with you, perhaps a student or brother who is unconverted? Oh, if you have
received mercy from God, endeavor to bring them in to obtain like mercy with
yourself.” 4
Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas Goodwin, VI, p. 415.
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A. INTRODUCTION
1
CHAPTER IX
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
1. The essential required attitude of submission to God’s sovereignty
From the outset, while this glorious attribute has resulted in both revival blessing and
contention amongst sincere Christians, let it be pointed out that the resolution of such
a controversy is to be found, not so much in reasoned understanding as in submission.
The fundamental issue is whether a person will yield to God’s inscrutable ways
without demanding an answer to his every question.
a. By way of illustration, in a sermon entitled, God’s Sovereignty in the Salvation of
Men, Jonathan Edwards declares:
Let us, therefore, labor to submit [emphasis added] to the sovereignty of God. God
insists, that his sovereignty be acknowledged by us, and that even in this great
matter, a matter which so nearly and infinitely concerns us, as our own eternal
salvation. This is the stumbling-block on which thousands fall and perish; and if we
go on contending with God about his sovereignty, it will be our eternal ruin. It is
absolutely necessary that we should submit [emphasis added] to God, as our
absolute sovereign, and the sovereign over our souls; as one who may have mercy on
whom he will have mercy, and harden whom he will [Rom. 9:18]. 1
b. The Book of Job likewise illustrates this principle. Although Job strenuously
maintains his own righteousness, even to the point of accusing God, by
implication, of wrongdoing (Job 40:6-8), yet to the very end he does not receive
from God an explanation concerning his sufferings and trials, including the role of
Satan. What is it that causes Job’s frustration, when unjustly and slanderously
accused by his friends, to give way to submissive, humble resignation? It is not the
vindication of Job’s character, but the humiliation that results from an
overwhelming description of God’s transcendent ways, especially concerning His
wisdom and sovereignty. Both the revelation presented by Elihu (Job 34-37), and
supremely that of God Himself (Job 38:41), completely subdue Job to the point
where his submission is unconditional. Consider that Job’s problem is resolved,
not so much by a logical explanation as his yielding to God’s unimpeachable, holy
omnipotence (Job 40:3-5; 42:1-6). The end result is reconciliation with God, and
greater blessing and contentment than before (Job 42:10-17).
c. The great argument of Paul in Romans 9:18-20 finds its resolution, not in a
factual, reasoned explanation concerning a seeming paradox, and antinomy, but
rather in the rightful submission of man, as a creature, to his sovereign Creator.
Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, II, p. 854.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 101
(1) In v. 18, God’s unconditional sovereignty over man is asserted according to
His sole determination. He dispenses mercy and judgment with
discrimination according to His own good pleasure that at the same time
excludes the consideration human merit. Man has no part in the
determination of his eternal destiny. God’s action is unilateral toward Jacob
and Esau, indeed before they were born! (Rom. 9:10-11).
(2) In v. 19, a strong objection is raised by an imagined opponent. If God is so
absolutely sovereign in determining our eternal destiny, then why award man
with praise or blame since he appears to have no autonomous or
contributory part in the matter? Therefore the implication is that man, under
duress from the divine will, cannot be held accountable for his actions and
thus should not be chargeable with guilt since it is God who alone determines
his moral course. Hence, an explanation is demanded.
(3) In v. 20, and the following argument, a detailed and reasoned reply to v. 19
is not given. Rather, the creature is called upon as clay to submit to the
Creator as the potter. Explanation by God is not necessary. There is a suggestion
of impudence on man’s part: “On the contrary, who are you, O man,
who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder,
‘Why did you make me like this,’ will it?” As Murray comments, the appeal
here is to “the reverential silence which the majesty of God demands of us.” 2
2. The basic contemporary importance of God’s attribute of sovereignty.
a. A common objection to emphasis upon God’s sovereignty is that we are
unbalanced in stressing it. After all, should not all of God’s attributes be taught
with equal weight and emphasis?
(1) From the perspective of knowing all about God, that is with regard to the
totality of his attributes, this is a valid point. There are those who lopsidedly
enthuse and promote the sovereignty of God more than His other
characteristics. Yet we have already seen that God’s attribute of holiness is of
fundamental importance, even in terms of its frequent mention in the Bible.
(2) From the perspective of both the sovereignty of God and human
responsibility, those who are eager to promote the former can, at the same
time, be negligent in the promotion of the latter. That is, in telling the sinner
that salvation is a work of sovereign grace, there can be neglect in pressing
home the invitation and responsibility to believe, even as the Bible does.
(3) From the perspective of sin in this universe and its captive power or
sovereignty, the vital question concerns its confrontation with God’s
sovereignty, and which realm of authority is triumphant. More particularly
concerning man, having a degree of autonomy while at the same time being
thoroughly polluted, yet does the sovereignty of God extend over him in
every way, particularly with regard to his salvation? This is a vital matter!
2 John Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, II, p. 31.

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(a) Lucifer’s desire was to be independently sovereign, to be equal with
God: “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself
like the Most High” (Isa. 14:14). Will he autonomously prevail? The
Bible emphatically denies such a possibility.
(b) At the Garden of Eden, the serpent’s appeal to Eve was that she and
Adam would be as their Creator: “For God knows that in the day you
eat from it [the forbidden fruit of the tree of life] your eyes will be
opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:5).
Yet the sovereignty of God will prevail over this rebellion (Gen. 3:15).
(c) Hence, while fallen man may be jealous of many of God’s attributes,
e.g. omniscience, yet it is that perfection of sovereignty that he especially
craves for, that is sovereign autonomy apart from God.
1) In Psalm 2:1-3, the nations feverishly plan to beak away from
God’s fetters, to cast aside His cords of sovereign restraint. In
particular, there is frantic opposition to God’s “Anointed
Messiah” (Luke 19:14; Acts 4:25-27).
2) By way of application, in young and old alike there is that
inclination by nature to shed the restraining ties of God’s sovereign
righteousness (Jer. 14:10). Sinful mankind is racially prodigal. Yet
God is sovereign and able to save a rebel like Paul (Gal. 1:13-16).
(4) By way of illustration, Arthur Pink, in devoting a whole book to the subject
of God’s sovereignty, makes the following defense:
Probably 95 per cent. of the religious literature of the day is devoted to a
setting forth of the duties and obligations of men. The fact is that those who
undertake to expound the responsibility of man are the very writers who have
lost ‘the balance of truth’ by ignoring, very largely, the Sovereignty of God. It
is perfectly right to insist on the responsibility of man, but what of God? - has
He no claims, no rights? A hundred such works as this are needed, ten
thousand sermons would have to be preached throughout the land on this
subject, if “the balance of truth” is to be regained. The “balance of truth” has
been lost, lost through a disproportionate emphasis being thrown on the
human side, to the minimizing, if not the exclusion, of the Divine side. We
grant that this book is one-sided, for it only seeks to deal with one side of the
truth, and that is the neglected side, the Divine side. 3
b. The sovereignty of God is of far-reaching importance insofar as other doctrines
and activities are concerned.
(1) God and man. Is man autonomous in relation to God, or does God have full
authority over man that includes his intellect, will, and emotions?
(2) Salvation. Is it a cooperative, bilateral work between God and man, or a
totally sovereign work of God upon man, granting repentance and faith?
3 Arthur Pink, The Sovereignty of God, p. 11.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 103
(3) Sanctification. Is Christian growth a collaborative work that maintains
salvation, or a collaborative work resulting from secured salvation?
(4) Church life and growth. Does God have no hands but our hands so that the
building of local churches depends on feverish human activity, or does God
build and add to His church in conjunction with faithful human activity?
(5) Witnessing. Is it man campaigning for a dependent God so as to capture
decisions and hence souls, like scalps, or is it God declaring his saving power,
through man, in such a manner that His effectual gospel is glorified?
c. The sovereignty of God is especially fundamental insofar as the practical
manifestation of the Christian life is concerned.
(1) It elevates our conception of God to a glorious level, which is productive of
hope, confidence, worship, humility.
(2) It repudiates salvation by works in any form, so that the believer is
continually encouraged to walk with holy boldness under a panoply of
sovereign grace (Rom. 8:31).
(3) It guarantees the triumph of good over evil, both in my own life as a believer
as well as in the world as a whole.
(4) It results in greater Christian maturity along with consequent assurance (Phil.
1:6).
(5) It produces a genuine burden for authentic biblical witnessing, both in the
fields of evangelism and missions (Matt. 28:18-20).
(a) In evangelism, representative are the ministries of John Bunyan, George
Whitefield, Edwards, C. H. Spurgeon, Asahel Nettleton, Martyn Lloyd-
Jones, etc.
(b) In missions, representative are the ministries of David Brainerd, William
Carey, Henry Martyn, Adoniram Judson, Robert Murray M’Cheyne,
George Muller, etc.
3. The controversy surrounding God’s attribute of sovereignty.
The contentious nature of God’s attribute of sovereignty also needs to be kept in
historical perspective. It may surprise and quieten us when we discover exactly what
notable and esteemed saints of the past believed, and even more importantly, why they
believed it!
a. John Wesley and George Whitefield.
For a time there was a sharp division between John Wesley and George Whitefield
over the sovereignty of God. Wesley’s Arminianism was at odds with Whitefield’s
Calvinism! However, reconciliation did eventually take place so that Wesley

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preached in London on November 18, 1770, a very affectionate memorial sermon
following the death of Whitefield in Massachusetts; his text was Numbers 23:10,
“Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!” Certainly
God was pleased to bless the ministries of both men. However, this is not to
suggest that the doctrinal issues involved were of little significance. For this
reason, the following doctrinal exposition makes a decided commitment, not
simply to the side of Whitefield, but rather to that predominant and expansive
historic understanding of God’s sovereignty declared by Augustine, Tyndale,
Luther, Calvin, Knox, Owen, Goodwin, Bunyan, Charnock, Manton, Henry,
Edwards, Carey, Spurgeon, Warfield, Machen, Pink, Lloyd-Jones, Packer, etc.
b. C. H. Spurgeon.
In 1890, only two years before his death, C. H. Spurgeon proclaimed that he was
certainly not immune from the antagonism of those who were averse to his
straightforward preaching on the sovereignty of God. He boldly confesses:
I have known men bite their lip and grind their teeth in rage when I have been
preaching the sovereignty of God. . . . The doctrinaires of to-day will allow a God,
but he must not be King: that is to say, they choose a god who is no god, and rather
the servant than the ruler of men. We, however, declare on God’s behalf, that “it is
not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy”;
and at the sound of this doctrine they stamp their foot with rage. They would rob
God of his crown, and leave him neither throne, nor will. This will not do for me;
my heart delights to say, “It is the Lord: let him do what seemeth him good.”
Whatsoever is his pleasure shall by my pleasure. Even if the Lord condemn me, I
cannot say that he is unjust; but if he hath mercy upon me, I must ascribe it wholly
to his free and sovereign grace. Rob not God of his sovereignty; but rejoice that the
Lord reigneth and doeth as he wills. 4
c. Hyper-Calvinism.
This deviance from the biblical standard, a going beyond what the Bible teaches
concerning God’s sovereign, electing grace, has manifested itself in two ways. First
there is that emphasis, often born of new discovery, that must speak the truths of
Calvinism at every breath, that relishes the slaughter of any hint of Arminianism,
that cannot broach a biblical topic without zeroing in on the “five points,” and
that sniffs “free-will-ism” at every hand. Second there is that stifling, hyperrationalistic
limitation on evangelism which not only denies the free offer of the
gospel, but also the warrant of unbelieving man in general to believe since he is
“dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). Iain Murray succinctly states the
problem, as Spurgeon vigorously opposed it, as follows: “These, then, are the four
main points at which Spurgeon disagreed with Hyper-Calvinism - [1] its
restriction of gospel invitations, [2] its failure to treat the word and promises of
God as sufficient warrant for faith, [3] its minimizing of the place of human
responsibility, [4] and its denial of any love in God except love to the elect.” 5
4 C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, XXXVI, p. 416.
5 Iain H. Murray, Spurgeon v. Hyper-Calvinism, p. 99. For a more historical description, refer to Peter Toon,
The emergence of hyper-Calvinism in English Nonconformity, 1689-1765.

4. The scriptural doctrine of God’s sovereignty at a glance.
a. Psalms 33:8-11.
b. Isaiah 14:24-27; 43:11-13; 44:24-25; 46:9-11.
c. Daniel 4:34-35.
d. Luke 10:22.
e. John 6:37, 44, 65.
f. Acts 2:22-23, 47; 4:27-28; 13:48.
g. Romans 8:28-30; 9:6-24; 11:33-36.
h. I Corinthians 1:26-31.
i. Ephesians 1:3-12.
j. II Thessalonians 2:13-14.
k. II Timothy 1:9-10; 2:24-25.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 105
B. GOD IS SOVEREIGN OVER ALL THAT COMES TO PASS (ORDINATION)
1. By way of definition, it is common for God’s sovereignty and omnipotence to be
understood interchangeably. However, Charnock plainly describes an important
distinction between theses two terms.
Omnipotence is his [God’s] physical power, whereby he is able to do what he will;
dominion is his moral power, whereby it is lawful for him to do what he will. Among
men, strength and authority are two distinct things. A subject may be a giant, and
stronger than his prince. . . . As God is Lord, he hath a right to enact; as he is almighty, he
hath a power to execute. His strength is the executive power belonging to his dominion.
In regard to his sovereignty, he hath a right to command all creatures; in regard to his
almightiness, he hath power to make his commands be obeyed, or to punish men for the
violation of them. His power is that whereby he hath a right to subdue all creatures under
him. 6
a. God’s omnipotence is His absolute power as the Almighty (Ps. 62:11; 91:1-4; Isa.
40:28).
b. God’s sovereignty is His rightful dominion over all that is undergirded by His
omnipotence (Dan. 4:34-35).
6 Stephen Charnock, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, II, p. 407.

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2. The “decree of God” is that term given to describe His determination of all things
according to His eternal and wise purpose.
a. The First London Confession Of Faith (Second Edition), published by seven
Baptist congregations in 1646, declares: “God hath decreed in Himself, before the
world was, concerning all things, whether necessary, accidental or voluntary, with
all the circumstances of them, to work, dispose, and bring about all things
according to the counsel of His own will, to His glory: (Yet without being the
author of sin, or having fellowship with any therein) in which appears His wisdom
in disposing all things, unchangeableness, power, and faithfulness in
accomplishing His decree (Isa. 46:10; Eph.1:11; Rom. 11:33; Ps. 115:3; 135:6;
33:15; I Sam. 10:9, 26; Prov. 21:6; Exod. 21:13; Prov. 16:33; Ps. 144; Isa. 45:7;
Jer. 14:22; Matt. 6:28, 30; Col. 1:16-17; Num. 23:19-20; Rom. 3:4; Jer. 10:10;
Eph. 1:4-5; Jude 4, 6; Prov. 16:4).” 7
b. The Westminster Confession Of Faith (Presbyterian) published in 1647, declares
in Chapter III: “God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of
his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass (Eph.
1:11; Rom. 11:33; Heb. 6:17; Rom. 9:15, 18); yet so as thereby neither is God the
author of sin (Jas. 1:13, 17; I John 1:5; Eccl. 7:29), nor is violence offered to the
will of the creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken
away, but rather established (Acts 2:23; Matt. 17:12; Acts 4:27-28; John 19:11;
Prov. 16:33).” 8
3. The evidence of Scripture for God’s all-encompassing decree.
a. The definitive passage is Ephesians 1:11 where God, “predestined [us, the elect,
redeemed, vs. 4, 7] according to His purpose [provqesi", prothesis, cf. v. 9] who
works all things after the counsel/advice [boulhv, boulē, Acts 4:27-28; Heb. 6:17]
of His will [qevlhma, thelēma, 1:9; 5:17; Gal. 1:4]” Other passages include Isaiah
14:26-27; 46:9-11; Daniel 4:35.
b. By way of explanation, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones comments on Ephesians 1:11:
No-one suggested to God that it might be good to do this or that. It was not only
not suggested to Him by anyone else, it was not even suggested to God, as some
have supposed, by reason of His foreknowledge whereby He saw that certain people
were going to think and do certain things, in consequence of which His own
thoughts were determined. Such an idea is a complete denial of what the Apostle
teaches here. Everything is according to the counsel of His own will. He thought
with Himself, He deliberated and meditated with Himself [in Triune relations]. The
whole plan of salvation from beginning to end is exclusively of God, with nothing at
all from the outside. Everything originates in God, everything comes out from God. I
said at the beginning that we were considering high doctrine. 9
7 The First London Confession Of Faith, 1646 Edition, pp. 1-2.
8 Philip Schaff, ed., The Creeds of Christendom, III, p. 608.
9 Martyn Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, p. 227.

c. The characteristics of God’s decree.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 107
(1) It encompasses such terms as “plan” (Isa. 14:26-27; Acts 2:23), “purpose”
(Jer. 4:28; Acts 4:28), “counsel” (Jer. 23:18; Eph. 1:11), “good pleasure” (Is.
53:10), “kind intention” (Eph. 1:5, 9), “ordinances” (Ps. 119:91), “statutes”
(Jer. 31:35; 33:25).
(2) It is known by His revelation in part, even progressively, but not in total
(Deut. 29:29; Eph. 1:9).
(3) It is especially related to certain other attributes.
(a) God’s holy and gracious decree (II Tim. 1:9).
(b) God’s eternal decree (Is. 46:9-10; Eph. 3:11).
(c) God’s immutable decree (Job 23:13; Mal. 3:6).
(d) God’s wise decree (Ps. 104:24).
(4) It is inclusive of:
(a) Stability of the physical universe (Ps. 119:89-91).
(b) Circumstances of nations (Acts 17:26).
(c) Length of human life (Job 14:5).
(d) Good acts of men (Isa. 44:28; Eph. 2:10).).
(e) Evil acts of men (Gen. 50:20; Prov. 16:4, 9; Luke 22:22; Acts 2:23;
4:27-28; Rom. 9:17; Rev. 17:16-17).
(f) Means as well as ends (Rom. 10:17; II Thess. 2:13).
4. The evidence of reason for God’s all-encompassing decree.
a. A. A. Hodge comments, “If one event is decreed absolutely, all events must
therefore be determined with it. If one event is left indeterminate, all future events
will be left in greater or less degrees indeterminate with it.” 10
b. Loraine Boettner comments, “It is unthinkable that a God of infinite wisdom and
power would create a world without a definite plan for that world. And because
God is thus infinite His plan must extend to every detail of the world’s
existence.” 11
10 A. A. Hodge, Outlines of Theology, p. 205.
11 Loraine Boettner, The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination, p. 20.

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5. Common objections to God’s all-encompassing decree.
a. God is made to be the chargeable author of sin.
(1) Yes, sin must be included in God’s decree (Prov. 16:4; Isa. 5:7). No, it is
impossible for God to be the chargeable author of sin (I John 1:5). That is,
God’s permission for sin to be a result of creaturely activity must be
distinguished from his holy and good pleasure (Num. 11:4-6, 18-20. 31-34;
Ps. 78:27-31; 106:15; Acts 14:16; 17:29-30).
(2) Whether one’s doctrinal conviction is Calvinistic or Arminian, the origin of
sin is ultimately a mystery, even if we probe back of Adam and delve into the
initial angelic fall. It seems best by far to declare this to be an antinomy
(where two seeming opposite propositions are true in God’s reality) concerning
God’s sovereign decree that includes sin and His unimpeachable holy
character, rather than proposing man as having a God-given, untouchable
freedom and autonomy that is in fact an abdication of sovereignty.
(3) Berkhof comments, “For good and holy reasons He [God] renders these
sinful acts certain, but He does not decree to work evil desires or choices
efficiently in man. The decree respecting sin is not an efficient but a
permissive decree, or a decree to permit, in distinction from a decree to
produce, sin by divine efficiency.” 12
(4) Other aspects of sin to be remembered are:
(a) Sin has existed as a theoretical opposite as long as God has existed
(Gen. 3:5).
(b) Sin allows God to demonstrate His grace, without in any way excusing
sin in this regard.
(c) God is sovereign over sin, both with respect to its present dominion and
its future banishment (Rom. 5:17-21; Rev. 20:7; 21:1-8).
b. Man is properly restricted as a free, moral agent.
(1) The question of man’s freedom in relation to God’s sovereignty is dealt with
more specifically later in this chapter. However, at this point it is imperative
that man’s freedom be understood as being under God rather than
independently alongside of God. Man’s freedom is real, but as we shall see,
like all realms of freedom, even that of God, it is circumscribed. This means
that man’s real freedom is circumscribed by the decree of a sovereign God.
(2) Berkhof comments that the Bible
12 Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 108.
clearly reveals that God has decreed the free acts of man, but also that the
actors are none the less free and responsible for their acts (Gen. 50:19-20; Acts

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 109
2:23; 4:27-28). It was determined that the Jews and Gentiles should bring
about the crucifixion of Jesus; yet they were perfectly free in their wicked
course of action, and were held responsible for this crime. There is not a single
indication that the inspired writers are conscious of a contradiction in these
matters. They never make an attempt to harmonize the two. This may well
restrain us from assuming a contradiction here, even if we cannot reconcile
both truths. 13
C. GOD IS SOVEREIGN OVER CREATION (ORIGINATION)
1. The majestic proclamation of Genesis 1:1 should be sufficient in itself to establish
God’s unqualified dominion over the work of His hands – “In the beginning God
created the heavens and the earth”
a. By force of logic, the Creator rules absolutely over His creation.
(1) The creation owes its existence to its Creator.
(2) The creation did not cooperate with or consent to the work of the Creator
(Job 38:4-5).
(3) The creation will never be equal to its Creator.
(4) The creation is dependent upon its Creator
b. Thus Charnock comments:
When God himself makes an oration in defence of his sovereignty, his chief
arguments are drawn from creation (Job 38:1-41; Ps. 89:11-12; 95:3-5; Isa. 44:21;
Acts 17:23-28). The sovereignty of God naturally ariseth from the relation of all
things to himself as their entire creator, and their natural and inseparable
dependence upon him in regard of their being and well-being. . . . As soon as ever
anything began to be a creature, it was a vassal to God as a lord. Every man is
acknowledged to have a right possessing what he hath made, and a power of
dominion over what he hath framed. 14
c. Further Scripture support includes Nehemiah 9:6; Psalms 33-6-9; 18:1-6; Isaiah
42:5-6; 45:18; Malachi 2:10; Revelation 4:11.
2. Reason also tells us that if God did not create something, whether by direct or indirect
means, then that something has an inherent independence from God that challenges
His sovereignty. However, if God did create everything, then He is totally sovereign,
unless He gives part of His sovereignty away, in which case He is no longer fully
sovereign. Some suggest that God has indeed given away part of His sovereignty to
man, allowing him to be autonomous and beyond divine interference. However, we
suggest that this results in God ceasing to be fully God.
13 Ibid., p. 106.
14 Charnock, Works, II, p. 411.

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3. What response then should this foundational truth produce in man?
a. The profoundest humility, as with Job (Job 38:1-6; 40:3-5), born of a yielding to
God’s unqualified, rightful reign over His total creation.
b. The strongest aversion to any suggestion, especially evolutionary theory, that this
universe is a product of mindless chance plus eons of time.
c. The sobering reality of man’s inescapable accountability before God (Rom. 1:20)
that is in full harmony with His sovereignty.
D. GOD IS SOVEREIGN OVER PROVIDENCE (PRESERVATION)
1. God’s providence is His “provide-ence,” that is His government, administration,
sustenance and maintenance of all of His creation. “Your righteousness is like the
mountains of God; your judgments are like a great deep. O LORD, You preserve man
and beast” (Ps. 36:6).
a. For God to create, but not to preserve and maintain, is to give grounds for the
charges of negligence and indifferent concern, especially with regard to that which
He designated, with divine satisfaction, as being “very good” (Gen. 1:31). The
result would be a creation that gives way to dismay and despair since it can have
no confidence in succor from its Creator.
b. Arthur Pink asks us to ponder a world void of God’s continuing government.
Suppose that God created the world, designed and fixed certain laws (which men
term ‘the laws of nature’), and that He then withdrew, leaving the world to its
fortune and the outworking of these laws. In such a case, we should have a world
over which there was no intelligent, presiding Governor, a world controlled by
nothing more than impersonal laws - a concept worthy of gross Materialism and
blank Atheism. . . . If there is nothing more than the laws of Nature regulating the
wind, then, perhaps tomorrow, there may come a terrific tornado and sweep
everything on the surface of the earth to destruction. What assurance have we
against such a calamity? 15
c. So for John Calvin, if God is Creator, He is also indivisibly the “everlasting
Governor and Preserver - not only in that he drives the celestial frame as well as
its several parts by a universal motion, but also in that he sustains, nourishes, and
cares for, everything he has made, even to the last sparrow.” 16
d. When Jesus Christ was accused of breaking the Sabbath because he healed a sick
man on that day, he gave the astounding reply, “My Father is working until now,
and I Myself am working” (John 5:17). In other words, just as the Father
continues to administer and direct His creation, even on the Sabbath, so the Son
15 Pink, Sovereignty of God, p. 31.
16 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, I:XVI:1.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 111
of God jointly administers the universe (Heb. 1:3), even on the Sabbath with acts
of mercy (John 5:1-10).
2. Hence, God sovereignly cares for His creation with the same executive power that
brought all things into existence. Further, His sovereign government at all times
incorporates those perfections of righteousness, goodness, and wisdom. For Strong, this
sovereign administration may be described according to various categories, as
follows: 17
a. God’s general providential government over His creation.
(1) Over the universe at large (Ps. 103:19; Dan. 4:35; Eph. 1:11).
(2) Over the physical world (Ps. 104:10-22; 135:6-7; Nah. 1:3-).
(3) Over the brute creation (Ps. 104:21-28; Matt. 6:26; 10:29).
(4) Over national affairs (Job 12:23; Ps. 22:28; Dan. 4:17, 34-36).
(5) Over man’s birth and destiny (I Sam. 16:1; Ps. 139:16; Jer. 1:5).
(6) Over outward successes and failures (Ps. 75:6-7; Luke 1:52).
(7) Over the small and seeming accidental Prov. 16:33; Matt. 10:30).
(8) In the protection of the righteous (Ps. 4:8; 5:12; Rom. 8:28).
(9) In the supply of the saint’s needs (Gen. 22:8, 14; Phil. 4:19).
(10) In ordering answers to prayer (Is. 64:4; Matt. 6:8, 32-33).
(11) In the exposure and punishment of the wicked (Ps. 7:12-13; 11:6).
b. God’s particular providential government over the actions of men.
(1) Over men’s free acts (Ex. 12:36; I Sam. 24:18; Ps. 33:14-15; Prov. 16:1;
19:21; 20:24; 21:1; Jer. 10:23; Ezek. 36:27; Phil. 2:13; Eph. 2:10; Jas. :13-
15).
(2) Over men’s good acts (Ps. 37:23; Isa. 44:28; Eph. 2:10).
(3) Over men’s sinful acts (II Sam. 16:10; 24:1; Rom. 11:32; II Thess. 2:10-12).
This government may be further understood as:
(a) Preventative, that is concerning the restriction of sin (Gen. 20:6; 31:24;
Ps. 19:13; Hos. 2:6).
17 Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 421-5.

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(b) Permissive, that is concerning the allowance of sin (Ps. 81:12-13; Is.
53:4, 20; Hos. 4:17; Acts 1:16; Rom. 1:24; 3:25).
(c) Directive, that is concerning the ordering or channeling of sinful acts
(Gen. 50:20; Ps. 76:10; Isa. 10:5; Acts 4:27-28).
(d) Determinative, that is concerning the limitation of sinful acts (Job 1:12;
2:6; Ps. 124:2; I Cor. 10:13; Rev. 20:2-3).
3. For the child of God, great comfort and confidence is derived from this truth.
a. To Noah and his descendants was given the promise of regularity concerning
seasons and the availability of food (Gen. 8:22).
b. To David was given the assurance that, “I have been young, and now I am old; yet
I have not seen the righteous forsaken, or his descendants begging bread” (Ps.
37:25).
c. To the disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ is given the promise of providential care in
both the material and spiritual realms.
(1) Concerning his earthly needs, he has been sovereignly promised that “all
these things shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).
(2) Concerning his heavenly requirements, he has been sovereignly promised that
“God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ
Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
E. GOD IS SOVEREIGN OVER REDEMPTION (SALVATION)
1. Introduction.
a. Thus far, our study of God’s sovereignty over the realms of creation and
providence has probably not generated sharp or heated disagreement. However,
now that we commence a study of God’s sovereignty with regard to man’s
salvation, history indicates that a different prospect awaits us. The plain fact is
that within the range of all of God’s attributes, no aspect of His being is more
liable to produce controversy than that of His sway and dominion over the
salvation of man.
(1) Religious men in general will readily confess God’s absolute sovereignty in
creation. After all, by force of logic, when God first created He must have
been totally sovereign since He alone was present. But why does religious
man become disturbed when confronted with God’s sovereignty over him as
an individual in the present? Does such truth of God’s dominion threaten his
claims to autonomy, personal determination, sovereignty?
(2) Further consider, why is it that modernism and liberalism within

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Christendom in general never give serious place to a high view of God’s
sovereignty? Could it be that, at its roots, modernism and liberalism, having
a naturalistic, humanistic mindset, represent a revolt against God’s
sovereignty over man (Ps. 2:1-3)?
b. To help avoid uneasiness at this stage, the following introductory points are to be
thoughtfully considered.
(1) Remember that God’s sovereignty must not be divorced from His other
attributes, especially those with a moral quality. Hence, he has a sovereignty
that is regulated by His holiness, a sovereignty that is regulated by His
goodness, and a sovereignty that is regulated by His grace.
(2) Remember that this truth involves sovereign and rightful dominion over
man, and not simply raw, indiscriminate omnipotence before man. This
being so, the terms of salvation are His to determine; man as a sinner has
absolutely no grounds for appeal except grace and mercy.
(3) Let God be supremely God, while acknowledging human limitation. Seek to
understand sovereignty through His eyes, His perspective as the Creator and
sustainer of all. Desire His vindication. Acknowledge the precedence of His
rights over the vaunted rights of man.
(4) Seriously consider the doctrine of man as a sinner. To what extent is he
captive to inherited and actual sin? If man is thoroughly polluted, what effect
does this have on his every desire and choice? Does fallen man as a race have
any true desire for God and His glory?
(5) Maintain an open mind concerning the Word of God. Be ready to learn
something new. George Rawson has wisely written: 18
We limit not the truth of God
To our poor reach of mind,
By notions of our day and sect,
Crude, partial, and confined:
No, let a new and better hope
Within our hearts be stirred;
The Lord hath yet more light and truth
To break forth from His Word.
2. The sovereignty of God over the condition of man.
a. His state of innocence (uncontested holiness).
(1) Man’s original righteousness, happiness, and dominion, were not self-
18 The inspiration for these lines by George Rawson probably comes from John Robinson who, in giving a
parting exhortation to the Pilgrim Fathers about to sail in the Mayflower from Leyden in 1620, declared, “He
was very confident that the Lord had more truth and light yet to break forth out of His holy word.” Hugh
Martin, ed., The Baptist Hymn Book Companion, p. 217.

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generated (Gen. 1:26; 2:16).
(2) Yet God maintains His dominion over man by giving him a level of freedom
that is never independent of God. The actions of this freedom, while never
being grounded in God’s direct causation, are yet never beyond His influence
(Gen. 50:20).
b. His state of pervasive depravity (soul corruption).
(1) Man’s original sin and unrighteousness were self-generated, and thus
inherited by the whole human race (Gen. 3:6; Rom. 5:12).
(a) This depravity is comprehensive (Rom. 3:10-18).
1) Inherited human soul disease is extensive, vs. 10-12.
2) Inherited human soul disease is intensive, vs. 13-18.
(b) This depravity is mortal (Eph. 2:1-3; Col. 2:13a).
(c) This depravity is debilitating (John 6:44; Rom. 5:6).
(d) This depravity is alienating (Eph. 2:12; Col. 1:21).
(2) Yet God maintains His dominion over sinful man with a salvation that is
greater in every dimension (Rom. 5:14-21).
(a) This salvation is comprehensive.
1) Human soul salvation is extensive (Rom. 3:22; 4:11).
2) Human soul salvation is intensive (II Cor. 4:16; 5:17; Col. 1:27).
(b) This salvation is immortal (I Cor. 15:53-54; II Tim. 1:10).
(c) This salvation is regenerating (Jas. 1:18; I Pet. 1:3, 23).
(d) This salvation is reconciling (II Cor. 5:18-19; Eph. 2:11-16; Col. 1:19-
22).
(3) Yet God maintains His dominion over sinful man with a judgment that is
equitable (Ps. 96:13; Heb. 9:27).
(a) He will justly save the repentant sinner (Rom. 3:26).
(b) He will justly condemn the impenitent sinner (Rom. 1:28-2:2).
c. His state of righteousness (gracious justification).
(1) The justified sinner is judicially regarded as righteous for Jesus Christ’s sake
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using appointed means of grace (Heb. 12:14; II Pet. 3:18).
(2) The justified sinner is adopted, as a child through grace, into the family of
God (Gal. 4:4-7; I John 3:1). As such he is expected to live actively,
responsibly, that is to “watch and pray” (Matt. 26:41), “walk” (Eph. 2:5, 8),
“wrestle” (Eph. 6:12), “be alert” (I Thess. 5:6), “fight” (I Tim. 6:12), “run”
(Heb. 12:1).
(3) Yet God remains sovereign over His children in both the cultivation and
production of “the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ”
(Phil. 1:11).
(a) “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom
from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (I
Cor. 1:30).
(b) “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph.
2:10).
(c) “Work out your salvation [outwardly express and manifest it] with fear
and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to
work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12-13).
d. His state in eternity (either glory or gloom).
(1) The resurrection of life (John 5:29a).
(a) The child of God shall inherit “glory” (Rom. 8:18, 29-30), “impeccable
holiness” (Eph. 5:25-27; Jude 24), “completion” (Phil. 1:6), “entire
sanctification” (I Thess. 5:23).
(b) But to Jesus Christ has been given sovereignty over the gates of heaven
(Matt. 25:21, 23; John 1:2-3).
(2) The resurrection of judgment (John 5:29b).
(a) The child of Satan shall inherit “gloom” (Matt. 21:30), “eternal
punishment” (Matt. 25:45-46), “torment and agony” (Luke 16:19-26),
“the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:15).
(b) But to Jesus Christ has been given sovereignty over the gates of hell
(Matt. 7:21-23; 16:18; Luke 13:23-28).
3. The sovereignty of God over the will of sinful man.
a. The limitations of human freedom.
(1) Contrary to popular opinion, man is not able to fulfill his boast, “I can do
what I like.” Like a toddler in a play-pen, man only has freedom with limits.
Like a train set upon railway lines, man only has freedom to go in certain

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directions.
(a) He is not free to fly unaided, to walk on four legs, to live without
sleeping, to regenerate lost limbs.
(b) He is not free in society to murder, to slander, to be exempt from
paying taxes, to break the law without consequences.
(c) He is not free to live as his innocent first parents, Adam and Eve. Why?
Because his loss of innocence has rendered him captive to sin, just as a
man freely jumping into a pit is yet unable to escape from that same pit.
(2) Even God is not absolutely free. He does not have the capacity to sin or deny
Himself (II Tim. 2:13; Jas. 1:13; I John 1:5). God is free to act only according
to the limits of His infinitely holy and immutable nature.
(3) Freedom in man is primarily established according to the set of his nature
and not the availability of real options. Place before a lion the options of red
meat and chocolate cake and it will be evident that his nature determines a
clear preference, even though a most obvious option is present.
(4) Which of the following four freedoms does man presently have?
(a) Freedom as an agent without restraint by external, coercive forces? Yes,
for man is not subject to outward constraint. He inwardly originates
free acts.
(b) Freedom as a sinner by nature? Yes, in that man may freely choose
within the arena of his sinful disposition between sinful alternatives
(John 8:34; Rom. 6:16-17). Man has the freedom of the pigsty.
(c) Freedom in a state of moral neutrality or equilibrium? No, since man as
a sinner is not in a state of moral equipoise. Man is biased and inclined
towards evil. Man’s soul is polluted; his appetite is predisposed toward
sin; he has no taste for God’s righteousness, and in the smorgasbord of
life will never choose it.
(d) Freedom to conform to God’s standard of righteousness? No, if he
remains a child of this world. But yes, if through conversion as a “new
species” (II Cor. 5:17) he becomes “a slave of righteousness” (Rom.
6:18).
b. The biblical perspective of human freedom.
(1) Man’s freedom is always under the sovereignty of God.
(a) Erroneous views concerning human autonomy (self-law) and freedom
have led even evangelical Christians to declare that God regards the
human will, assumed to be “free,” as sacrosanct, untouchable, and
beyond influence. This is represented by a famous preacher’s evangelistic
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you. You must now choose Christ through an act of your will.”
1) It is to be expected that the unbelieving world will be quick to
claim autonomy through “free-will.” But when Christians uphold
similar human autonomy, especially in the realm of evangelism,
that is of the natural man having a state of moral neutrality with
the ability to choose either good or bad, Christ or sin, then they
reflect a shallow understanding of man’s thorough captivity to sin,
his consequent impotence, and God’s sovereignty.
2) It is claimed that for a response of faith and love toward God to be
genuine, such a choice must be between at least two genuinely
possible options, namely faith and love or unbelief and enmity.
However, does God need this capacity for free-will in order that
His love might be genuine? If this were the case then He must
retain the real possibility of His committing sin through free
choice, of His making a reversal concerning His covenant promises
through free-will. Of course this cannot be. Though it is
undoubtedly impossible for God to sin, yet there is not a lack of
genuineness in His acts of righteousness and love.
(b) God’s will does not merely operate alongside of man’s will, but over it.
God’s will is accomplished whether man cooperates or not. Man’s will
must be subordinate to God’s will or else God is not God (Prov. 21:21;
Isa. 29:16; 45:9; 46:8-11).
1) Yet God does not violate or abuse man’s will. He does not force an
unwilling man to enter heaven. Rather He draws and influences
sinners with strong cords of grace and power (Acts 9:1-9). When a
sinner’s heart is converted, the unwilling becomes most willing.
2) Even Satan has freedom (I Pet. 5:8), yet it is limited according to
God’s greater freedom and sovereignty over him (Job 1:6-12).
3) According to the Bible, God is fully sovereign over man. At the
same time man has freedom under God, and thus is never free from
God.
(2) Man’s freedom as a sinner is always under the sovereignty of God.
(a) The Word of God describes the freedom of the man of this world as
slavery to sin (John 8:34), concerning which only the sovereign grace of
God can deliver him from (Rom. 6:17).
1) Fallen man has no innate capacity to will divine righteousness
(John 6:44, 64-65; 8:34; Rom. 5:6; I Cor. 2:14; Gal. 4:3; Col.
2:13).
2) Although the natural man “walks according to the course of this
world,” yet he is “dead in trespasses and sins” before God (Eph.
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3) By way of illustration, man has the freedom of the City of
Destruction and Vanity Fair in John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s
Progress, while having no desire to set out on pilgrimage for the
Celestial City. The swill of Satan’s pigsty is preferable to God’s
green pastures. Man is as incapable of purifying his sinful
character as is the leopard of changing his spots or the Ethiopian
the color of his skin (Jer. 13:23).
(b) Man’s only hope of salvation is for God to sovereignly, graciously,
particularly effect a change of will from bondage to liberty (John 1:13;
Rom. 8:21; 9:16; Phil. 2:12-13; Jas. 1:18).
1) He needs to be spiritually raised from the dead (John 11:43; Eph.
2:4-10).
2) He needs to be spiritually reborn through regeneration (John 3:3-8;
Tit. 3:3-6).
3) He needs the gift of repentance and faith (Luke 22:31-32; Acts
5:31; 11:18; 16:14; Eph. 2:8-9; II Tim. 2:24-25).
(3) Man’s freedom as a Christian is always under the sovereignty of God.
(a) He has been set free from captivity to sin and now lives as a new man,
temporarily residing in an old, crumbling shell of decaying flesh (Rom.
6:6; 7:22; 8:15; II Cor. 3:16-17; 4:16; Gal. 2:4; 5:1, 13; Eph. 4:24; Col.
3:10).
1) Being free, he yet experiences conflict with his body or vehicle of
flesh (Rom. 7:24-25; 8:23; Gal. 4:29; 5:17).
2) Being free, he is both wedded and subject to Christ to the end that
he might be fruitful (Rom. 7:4). This subjection is obedience to the
Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9-14; Gal. 5:16, 25).
(b) He shall be perfectly set free, living as a new man in a new and glorious,
incorruptible body (I Cor. 15:51-54; II Cor. 5:2; Phil. 3:20-21; Rev.
21:3-4).
c. The historic perspective on human freedom.
(1) The following notable Christians have all held in common the biblical
doctrine that the freedom of unregenerate man is limited to the sphere of his
sinful nature. They deny that all men have an intrinsic capacity or
autonomous freedom of will to respond to saving grace. They affirm that
only sovereign grace can save the individual sinner through the renewal of his
soul and will.

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(a) Aurelius Augustine, 354-530 AD. Refer to his Treatise on Grace and
Free-Will, and The Enchiridion, Ch. XXXII, where he inquires: “Why
are we taught to pray for our enemies (Matt. 5:44), who are plainly
unwilling to lead a holy life, unless that God may work willingness in
them?” Works, IX, p. 199.
(b) Martin Luther, 1483-1546. In his Bondage of the Will, the German
reformer strenuously upholds the incapacitating corruption of the
human will.
So you see [Erasmus] that free choice is completely abolished by this
passage (Rom. 3:9-18), and nothing good or virtuous is left in man, since
he is flatly stated to be unrighteous, ignorant of God, a despiser of God,
turned aside from him, and worthless in the sight of God. . . . . In short,
the reign of Satan in men could not have been described in fewer or more
expressive terms than by this saying that they are ignorant of God and
despisers of God. That [is an omen of] betokens unbelief, it betokens
disobedience, sacrilege, and blasphemy toward God; it betokens cruelty
and lack of mercy toward our neighbor; it betokens love of self in all the
things of God and men. There you have a picture of the glory and power
of free choice! 19
Although he writes opposing the views of Erasmus, yet he thanks the
Dutch humanist for raising such a vital issue since it touches the very
nerve of the gospel of the grace of God. 20
(c) John Calvin, 1628-1688. Like Luther, the French reformer establishes
that the true doctrine of sin reveals man to be a slave to his corrupt
nature. Refer to his Institutes of the Christian Religion, II:II:1-27. “Man
does not choose by reason and pursue with zeal what is truly good for
himself according to the excellence of his immortal nature; nor does he
use his reason in deliberation or bend his mind to it. Rather, like an
animal he follows the inclination of his nature, without reason, without
deliberation.” 21
(d) John Bunyan, 1628-1688. Unregenerate man is not free to embrace the
saving things of the kingdom of Christ. “It is no error to say, that a man
naturally has Will, and a Power to pursue his will, and that as to his
salvation. But it is a damnable error to say, that he hath will and power
to pursue it, and that in God’s way [emphasis added]. 22
(e) Jonathan Edwards, 1703-1758. Freedom of the Will is perhaps his most
acclaimed work. It declares that the direction of volition is established
by the strongest motive or directive, which for unregenerate man is ever
his sinful nature. “The subject [of the freedom of the will] is of such
19 E. Gordon Rupp, Philip S. Watson, eds., Luther And Erasmus: Free Will And Salvation, pp. 300-301.
20 Ibid.p. 333.
21 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, II, II, 26.
22 John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, II, p. 241, cf. p. 312.

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importance, as to demand attention, and the most thorough
consideration. Of all kinds of knowledge that we can ever obtain, the
knowledge of God, and the knowledge of ourselves, are the most
important.” 23
(f) John Nelson Darby, 1800-1882. In a “Letter on Free-Will,” he declares
that this popular notion only arises when sin is superficially perceived.
“If Christ has come to save that which is lost, free-will has no longer
any place.” 24
(g) Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834-1892. In his sermon entitled “Free-
Will - A Slave,” man is both legally and spiritually dead. Hence, his
supposed “free-will” is the mythical liberty of a slave from which only
Christ can emancipate.
Any one who believes that man’s will is entirely free, and that he can be
saved by it, does not believe the fall. As I sometimes tell you, few
preachers of religion do believe thoroughly the doctrine of the fall, or else
they think that when Adam fell down he broke his little finger, and did
not break his neck and ruin his race. Why, beloved, the fall broke man up
entirely. It did not leave one power unimpaired; they were all shattered,
and debased, and tarnished. 25
(2) What then is the point of this historic spectrum of doctrinal truth? It is to
reinforce the fact that God’s sovereignty over the will of man inevitably
means that God is sovereign over the redemption of man. Or as J. I. Packer
writes:
There is really only one point to be made in the field of soteriology [salvation]:
the point that God saves sinners. God—the Triune Jehovah, Father, Son and
Spirit; three Persons working together in sovereign wisdom, power and love to
achieve the salvation of a chosen people, the Father electing, the Son fulfilling
the Father’s will by redeeming, the Spirit executing the purpose of Father and
Son by renewing. Saves—does everything, first to last, that is involved in
bringing man from death in sin to life in glory: plans, achieves and
communicates redemption, calls and keeps, justifies, sanctifies, glorifies.
Sinners—men as God finds them, guilty, vile, helpless, powerless, blind, unable
to lift a finger to do God’s will or better their spiritual lot. . . . Sinners do not
save themselves in any sense at all, . . . salvation, first and last, whole and
entire, past, present and future, is of the Lord, to whom be glory for ever;
amen! 26
4. The sovereignty of God over the election of sinful men.
a. It is both biblically and logically conclusive that if God is sovereign over man’s
thoroughly polluted condition, and his sinfully biased will in particular, then He
23 Edwards, Works, I, p. 4.
24 John Nelson Darby, The Collected Works of John Nelson Darby, X, pp. 185-7.
25 Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, I, 52, pp. 705-706 (Ages Software).
26 J. I. Packer, A Quest For Godliness, p. 130.

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must be sovereign in His gracious, particular election of sinners.
(1) If man’s condition is one of spiritual deafness, blindness, deadness, and
impotence, then salvation can in no sense originate within himself, not even
true faith. Man is a spiritual Lazarus who needs Christ to give spiritual
resurrection (Eph. 2:4-6).
(2) However, not only is God sovereign in giving life through Christ (Luke
11:22), but also He precedes that saving work by individually choosing to
whom He will give life. It is the sovereignty of this choice or election which is
at the heart of salvation by grace (Rom. 9:10-13; 11:5-6).
b. God’s election is, according to Berkhof, “that eternal act of God whereby He, in
His sovereign good pleasure, and on account of no foreseen merit in them,
chooses a certain number of men to be the recipients of special grace and of
eternal salvation.” 27
(1) To use an English word that is rooted in the basic New Testament meaning
of “election,” ejklektov", eklektos, Greek (Rom. 8:33; Eph. 1:4; Col. 3:12; II
Tim. 2:10; Tit. 1:1; I Pet. 1:1; 2:9), God is “eclectic/selective.” He chooses
with discrimination.
(a) In the realm of honor.
1) Jesus Christ (Isa. 42:1; Matt. 12:18; Luke 9:35; 23:35; I Pet. 2:4,
6).
2) Angels (I Tim. 5:21).
(b) In the realm of grace.
1) National Israel (Deut. 7:6-8; Isa. 44:1-5; Acts 13:17).
2) The Church (I Pet. 2:9).
3) The Apostles (Luke 6:13; John 6:70; 13:18; 15:16, 19; Acts 1:2).
4) Christians (Mark 13:20; Rom. 8:33; I Cor. 1:26-29; Eph. 1:4; Col.
3:12; II Tim. 2:10; Tit. 1:1; I Pet. 1:1-2; 2:9; Rev. 17:14).
(2) John Bunyan in A Confession Of My Faith provides us with seven aspects of
biblical election. 28
27 Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 114.
28 Bunyan, Works, II, pp. 598-9.
(a) Election is free and permanent, being founded in works-excluding grace
and the unchangeable will of God (Rom. 11:5-6; Eph. 1:11; II Tim.
2:19).

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(b) Election was before the foundation of the world and thus before the
elect had any being (Rom. 4:17; Eph. 1:4; II Tim. 1:9).
(c) Election excludes foreseen works, though it does result in holiness and
the graces of the Spirit (Rom. 8:29; Eph. 1:4; 2:10; 3:8-11; II Tim. 1:9).
(d) Election is always considered in Jesus Christ, and without him there is
neither election, grace, nor salvation (Acts 4:12; Eph. 1:5-7, 10).
(e) Election cannot be impeded or frustrated; nothing can negate or
effectually oppose it (Jer. 51:5; Acts 9:12-15; Rom. 8:30-35; 9:7).
(f) Election can only be known by an individual according to his particular
calling (Hos. 2:23; Rom. 9:24-25).
(g) Election does not exclude means which God uses to bring us to Christ,
grace, and glory (II Thess. 2:13; I Pet. 1:12; II Pet. 1:10).
(3) Perspectives of God’s election in grace derived from the classic passage,
Ephesians 1:3-14.
(a) The source of God’s election is “the counsel of His will, v. 11, cf. vs. 5,
9.
(b) The motive for God’s election is His love and grace, v. 11, cf. Romans
9:15-16; I Thessalonians 1:4.
(c) The ultimate purpose of God’s election is that the child of God should
be “to the praise of His glory,” vs. 12, 14.
(d) The complementary purpose of God’s election is that “we should be
holy and blameless before Him,” v. 4.
(e) The time of God’s election is eternity past, and not when we first
believed, v. 4.
(f) The saving agent of God’s election is Jesus Christ, vs. 4-5, cf. John 6:37,
39-40; 17:2, 6.
(g) The sealing agent of God’s election is the Holy Spirit, vs. 13-14, cf.
Ephesians 4:30; II Corinthians 1:21-22.
(h) The objects of God’s election are “us” and “we” and “you,” vs. 3-9,
11-13, who are later defined as soul-dead, worldly, sinners, 4:1-3.
(4) Clarification of God’s election in grace.
(a) The election of some men through grace presupposes the guilt of all men
(Rom. 1:19-20; 2:12-15). God does not owe the gospel to any man, as if

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 123
he were an innocent heathen. After all, do the innocent need the gospel?
(b) The objects of God’s particular election are individuals, not a corporate
identity (John 10:3; Acts 13:48). The church is an elect body because it
is comprised of elect individuals (I Pet. 2:9-10).
(c) The antithesis of particular election is not particular reprobation
(damnation), but particular preterition (abandonment). God passes by
those He does not choose to salvation, and so leaves them to their just
deserts (Rom. 1:21-32). Those in hell will only have themselves to
blame, not God.
c. God’s election in grace in relation to His foreknowledge.
(1) Does God elect simply because He knows in advance who will believe (Rom.
8:29-30)? In other words, is God merely a good predictor (I Pet. 1:1-)? On
the contrary, and logically rather than chronologically speaking, God knows
in advance because He foreordains and elects individuals to salvation.
(a) Sometimes in Scripture “foreknowledge” means knowing in advance as
with simple prescience (II Pet. 3:17). But often the context indicates a
different and much more profound meaning.
(b) In Scripture, “to know” often means more than bare, factual cognition.
Rather it can speak of intimacy of relationship (Gen. 4:1; Amos 3:2
NKJV; Matt. 7:23; John 10:14-15, 27; I Cor. 8:3; II Tim. 2:19). So in
Romans 11:2, “foreknowledge” means “intimate knowledge before,” or
“love before time,” or “forelove,” and not mere awareness in the past.
(c) Hence, “foreknowledge” in Romans 8:29 is best understood as “prior
distinguishing, determining love,” since Paul writes, “For whom
[emphasis added] He foreknew,” without any suggestion of foreseen
faith. So Murray translates, “[for] whom he knew from eternity with
distinguishing affection and delight.” 29 Jeremiah 1:5 expresses the same
thought: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.” Similarly
James Small has written in his well known hymn:
I’ve found a Friend; O such a Friend!
He loved me ere [before] I knew Him;
He drew me with the cords of love,
And thus He bound me to Him.
And round my heart still closely twine
Those ties which naught can sever,
For I am His and He is mine,
For ever and for ever.
(d) Likewise in I Peter 1:1-2, “foreknowledge” precedes God’s election
since it is that preceding love which moves Him to choose sinners, so
that they might be “sprinkled with His [Christ’s] blood.” It is significant
29 Murray, Epistle to the Romans, I, pp. 315-318.

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that while the NASB accurately translates proginwvskw, proginōskō, in I
Peter 1:20 as “[Christ] foreknown [emphasis added] before the
foundation of the world,” yet the KJV translates “[Christ] foreordained
[emphasis added] before the foundation of the world.”
(2) Reason also indicates that foreknowledge understood as foreseen faith is an
unreasonable explanation of biblical election.
(a) By way of illustration, imagine arriving at a birthday party uninvited
declaring that because you are there you are invited! However, a
legitimate guest only arrives having been previously invited. So God
elects, then grants faith, and as a consequence has foreknowledge of
what is predestined to occur.
(b) Election based upon foreseen faith establishes man as the arbiter
concerning the determination of God’s elect. It is in fact election after
the fact or postordination! Refer to Strong’s more detailed explanation
and refutation. 30
5. In conclusion, let C. H. Spurgeon sum up the supreme importance of this vital matter.
There is no attribute more comforting to His children than that of God’s sovereignty.
Under the most adverse circumstances, in the most severe trials, they believe that
Sovereignty has ordained their afflictions, that Sovereignty overrules them, and that
Sovereignty will sanctify them all. There is nothing for which the children ought more
earnestly to contend than the doctrine of their Master over all creation - the Kingship of
God over all the works of His own hands - the Throne of God and His right to sit upon
that Throne. On the other hand, there is no doctrine more hated by worldlings, no truth
of which they have made such a football, as the great, stupendous, but yet most certain
doctrine of the Sovereignty of the infinite Jehovah. Men will allow God to be everywhere
except on His throne. They will allow Him to be in His almonry to dispense His alms and
bestow His bounties. They will allow Him to sustain the earth and bear up the pillars
thereof, or light the lamps of heaven, or rule the waves of the ever-moving ocean; but
when God ascends His throne, His creatures then gnash their teeth. And we proclaim an
enthroned God, and His right to do as He wills with His own, to dispose of His creatures
as He thinks well, without consulting them in the matter; then it is that we are hissed and
execrated, and then it is that men turn a deaf ear to us, for God on His throne is not the
God they love. But it is God upon His throne whom we trust. 31
F. GOD COMMUNICATES HIS SOVEREIGNTY (DOMINION)
1. Man has lesser sovereignty than God.
a. Again, we distinguish between omnipotence and sovereignty. Man is not “allpowerful”
in any sense. But he does have a degree of delegated dominion over
part of God’s universe.
30 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 356-8
31 Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, II, p. 185.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 125
b. Charnock comments: “[God] rules in the heavens alone; there is some shadow of
empire in the world; royalty is communicated to men as his substitutes. He hath
disposed a vicarious dominion to men in his footstool on earth, he gives them
some share of his authority, and therefore the title of his name (Ps. 82:6). . . . He
rules men that are on his footstool by others of the same kind, men of their own
nature.” 32
2. Man has sovereignty over his earthly habitat.
a. He reigns over the animal world.
(1) It is a responsibility that attends those who are created in the image of God
(Gen. 1:26-28).
(2) It is a glorious privilege that gives rulership over the work of God’s hands
(Ps. 8:3-8).
b. He reigns over mankind.
(1) It is God’s to bestow, withdraw, and reappoint (Dan, 4:31, 36).
(2) It is misunderstood by an unbelieving world (John 19:10-11).
(3) It calls for subjection by man to man (Rom. 13:1-2).
3. By way of application, those who ardently uphold God’s sovereignty in the realms of
creation, providence, and redemption, ought to be most sensitive concerning their
exercise of human sovereignty.
a. As they appreciate the goodness of God’s creation, so they will maintain that
goodness in their sovereignty.
b. As they appreciate God’s providence, so they will reflect providence in their
sovereignty.
c. As they appreciate God’s sovereign grace, so there will be grace in their
sovereignty.
32 Charnock, Works, II, pp. 404-5.

A. INTRODUCTION
1
CHAPTER X
THE INFINITY OF GOD
1. It may seem presumptuous for finite man even to attempt to ponder the infinite, and
especially when he frequently makes such a fool of himself in his futile attempt to
discover God, that is his carnal pursuit of the spiritual.
a. Tozer points out the difficulty as follows:
Of all that can be thought and said about God, His infinitude is the most difficult to
grasp. Even to try to conceive of it would appear to be self-contradictory, for such
conceptualization requires us to undertake something which we know at the outset
we can never accomplish. Yet we must try, for the Holy Scriptures teach that God is
infinite and, if we accept His other attributes, we must of necessity accept this one
too. 1
b. On the other hand, if the infinite Creator who has made finite man should deign
to reach down from His eternal and glorious throne to frail flesh, then such
condescension is characteristic of the goodness of God (Ex. 19:20; John 1:14).
c. Thus the glorious truth is that in the incarnate Son of God and his reconciling
work, a bridge has been established before man which enables the finite creature
and the infinite God to have personal discourse and true fellowship, for man with
temporal life to enter into eternal life, for material earth to be reached by the
highest heaven.
2. From the perspective of man as a fallen creature, his frustration at this point arises not
so much from his inability to comprehend God’s infinity as his reluctance to accept his
own finiteness.
a. Finiteness means to be bounded, limited, restricted, having an end, and man with
his sinful, proud constitution, has great difficulty in accepting this truth
concerning himself. Specifically, he is finite in the following areas:
(1) Motion: he is limited by his physical constitution.
(2) Time: he is limited to temporal rather than eternal concepts.
(3) Existence: he is limited in being dependent, mortal.
(4) Personality: he is limited on account of an inherited matrix.
A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, pp. 9-50.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 127
(5) Presence: he is limited in relation to location in space.
(6) Knowledge: he is limited according to cerebral design.
b. Inifiniteness means to be unbounded, unlimited, unrestricted, without end,
inexhaustible, beyond, and man with his sinful, proud nature has great difficulty
in acknowledging his mere finite grasp of the infinite (Job 11:7-8).
(1) Perpetual motion would transport man into the realm of the infinite, yet it
remains as elusive as ever. Order in the world descends into randomness.
Man finds mortality inescapable.
(2) Man’s probing of space has hardly scratched the surface, for back of the
beyond reveals a mind-boggling, seemingly limitless universe that defies
human comprehension.
(3) However, the Bible reveals that man can only come to grips with his
finiteness when he yields to the infiniteness of the eternal God (Ps. 147: 4-5;
Isa. 40:28-29).
c. By way of illustration, the limits of man’s understanding are best appreciated
when it is realized that he cannot fully comprehend either the finite or the infinite.
Consider that if we were told outer space ended at a distance beyond us of one
thousand light years, we would refuse to believe it. Instead we would desire to
investigate this “end” of space and “explore beyond,” so to speak. On the other
hand, if we were told that space was eternal, we would just as strenuously declare
that it must eventually come to an end somewhere! Hence, as with the sovereignty
of God, so the infinity of God requires submission rather than understanding.
3. Defining the infinity of God.
a. God is unlimited, unbounded, unconfined, unsearchable, immeasurable, beyond
ultimate comprehension (I Kings 8:27; Job 5:8-9; 9:10; 11:7-9; Isa. 40:28; Rom.
11:33).
(1) Yet God is not limitless by nature for there are the fixed bounds of His own
essential being. Hence, Strong explains: “Infinity implies simply that God
exists in no necessary relation to finite things or beings, and that whatever
limitation of the divine nature results from their existence is, on the part of
God, a self-limitation.” 2
(2) In Psalm 145:3, David declares that “His [the LORD’S] greatness is
unsearchable,” beyond man’s reach through exploration. But this infinite
greatness is within the bounds of a glorious array of unchanging attributes in
vs. 3-13 of this same Psalm. Thus the transcendent nature of God gives
David good reason to respond with joyful praise and worship rather than
dissatisfaction and despair, vs. 2-4, 7. Thus Isaac Watts has written:
2 “Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 255.

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THE INFINITY OF GOD
Great God! How infinite art Thou!
What worthless worms are we!
Let the whole race of creatures bow,
And pay their praise to Thee!
Thy throne eternal ages stood,
Ere seas or stars were made;
Thou art the ever-living God,
Long after empires fade.
All time and nature open lie
To Thine immense survey,
From the formation of the sky,
To the great burning Day.
Eternity, with all its years,
Stands present in Thy view;
To Thee there’s nothing new appears-
And Lord, there’s nothing new!
Our lives through various scenes are drawn,
And vexed with trifling cares,
While Thine eternal will moves on
Unchanging through the years.
Great God! How infinite art Thou!
What worthless worms are we!
Let the whole race of creatures bow,
And pay their praise to Thee!
Also consider that God is “unsearchable” in the realm of His wonders (Job
5:9; 9:10) and His understanding (Isa. 40:28).
b. God is infinite in all of His nature. This infinity includes the three persons of the
triune God. Of special mention here ought to be the infinity of God the Son who,
in becoming clothed with finite flesh in a finite world, at the same time became the
bridge between the finite and the infinite; through him, man possessing temporal
life is able to become the recipient of eternal life; through him the material attains
spirituality. Hence, because of man’s temporal, spatial, material, moral
relationship with this finite present world, particular aspects of God’s infinite
being are worthy of subsequent special study. They are listed as follows
God is perfect ⇒ Infinity of morality
God is omnipotent ⇒ Infinity of power
God is eternal ⇒ Infinity of time
God is omniscient ⇒ Infinity of knowledge
God is omnisapient ⇒ Infinity of wisdom
God is omnipresent ⇒ Infinity within space
God is immense ⇒ Infinity beyond space
God is immanent ⇒ Infinity within creation
God is transcendent ⇒ Infinity beyond creation

A. GOD IS PERFECT - INFINITE IN MORALITY
THE INFINITY OF GOD 129
1. In a broad sense, every aspect of God’s being is “perfect.” that is “complete” or
“absolutely pure” or “unblemished.” It is for this reason that God’s attributes are
frequently called “perfections.”
a. Hence, John Owen declares that, “He [God] is absolutely perfect, inasmuch as no
perfection is wanting [lacking] to Him, and comparatively above all that we can
conceive or apprehend of perfection.” 3
b. However, God is not merely the perfect extension of our own imperfections, or an
advanced projection of our incompleteness. This rationalist conception is based
upon a world view that is random, lacking belief in the reality of a perfect order.
It is sin that has introduced dissolution. Rather, God is the eternal fullness of
deity, being perfect at the beginning (Gen. 1:1), whose nature is constantly and
impeccably holy.
2. Yet the perfection of God more often refers to specific moral or ethical aspects of His
person. He is perfect in holiness and righteousness.
a. Strong makes this distinction as follows: “By perfection we mean, not mere
quantitative completeness, but qualitative excellence. The attributes involved in
perfection are moral attributes.” 4
b. Hence, the Bible emphasizes God’s moral perfection according to the following
aspects.
(1) God is perfect in justice (Deut. 32:4). In other words, God’s righteous
dealings with man are unfailingly equitable. His judgments are rocklike, that
is immovable. His movements are always and absolutely right.
(2) God is perfect in love (Matt. 5:43-48). In other words, God’s love transcends
mere human, selective regard for the attractive and satisfying. Rather, He
loves His enemies; He loves the unlovely; He loves profoundly; He loves with
integrity; He loves absolutely.
(3) God is perfect in the goodness of His will (Rom. 12:2). Murray comments:
“The will of God is the transcript of his holiness, justice, and goodness.
When we are commanded to be perfect as God is perfect (cf. Matt. 5:48), the
will of God as revealed to us in his Word is in complete correspondence with
the pattern described, namely ‘As your heavenly Father is perfect’”. 5
3 John Owen, The Works of John Owen, XII, p. 95.
4. Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 260.
5. John Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, II, pp. 115-6.

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THE INFINITY OF GOD
c. Surprisingly, the Bible expects believers to reflect God’s perfection.
(1) In Deuteronomy 32:3-5, God’s children are to dispense perfect justice.
(2) In Matthew 5:43-48, God’s children are to manifest perfect love.
(3) In Romans 12:2, God’s children are to reflect His perfect will.
B. GOD IS OMNIPOTENT - INFINITE IN POWER
1. By definition, God’s omnipotence is His absolute power that is the source of all
causation, efficiency, activity, and growth, channeled through either primary or
secondary means (Ps. 62:11; 89:13; 115:3; Jer. 32:17; Luke 1:37; Rom. 1:20). As
previously considered, it is the dynamic of His dominion and sovereignty.
a. Perhaps the earliest patriarchal name for God was “El Shaddai,” or “God
Almighty” (Gen. 17:1; Ex. 6:3; Rev. 1:8; 4:8; 19:6).
b. Omnipotence is boundless power that has only the confines of God’s holy and
immutable nature.
(1) Charnock comments: “God were not omnipotent unless his power were
infinite; for a finite power is a limited power, and a limited power cannot
effect everything that is possible. Nothing can be too difficult for the divine
power to effect. He hath a fullness of power, an exceeding strength, above
all human capacities; it is a mighty power (Eph. 1:19).” 6
(2) God’s power is limited only by the absurd and the self-contradictory, for He
cannot uphold a logical fallacy according to divine logic or self-destruct, or
oppose one attribute with another
c. Omnipotence is also to be understood as both absolute and ordinate.
(1) God’s absolute or potential power includes activity that could accomplish
what is possible and yet not ordained (Gen. 18:14; Jer. 32:27; Matt. 3:9;
26:53).
(2) God’s actual or ordinate power includes activity that will accomplish that
which is ordained (Isa. 46:9-11)..
d. Omnipotence includes the boundless power of God manifest in both the realms of
spirit and matter. The power of God is evident in physics and chemistry as well as
in non-material, eternal, spiritual reality.
e. Omnipotence is always to be understood in conjunction with God’s moral
attributes. Charnock explains:
6. Stephen Charnock, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, II, p. 111.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 131
The power of God is that ability and strength whereby he can bring to pass
whatsoever he please, whatsoever his infinite wisdom can direct, and whatsoever the
infinite purity of his will can resolve. . . . as holiness is the beauty, so power is the
life of all his attributes in their exercise; and as holiness, so power is an adjunct
belonging to all, a term that may be given to all. God hath a powerful wisdom to
attain his ends, without interruption. He hath a powerful mercy to remove our
misery; a powerful justice to lay all misery upon offenders; he hath a powerful truth
to perform his promises; an infinite power to bestow rewards and inflict penalties.
So in Psalm 62:11-12, David declares two related things, first, ‘that power belongs
to God,’ and second, that ‘lovingkindness is Thine, O LORD, for Thou dost
recompense a man according to his works.’ In every perfection of God David heard
of power. 7
f. Omnipotence is evident in the triunity of God, that is in:
(1) The omnipotence of the Father (Mark 14:36; Eph. 1:18-20; Rev. 21:22).
(2) The omnipotence of the Son (Rom. 1:4; Phil. 3:20-21; Col. 1:15-17).
(3) The omnipotence of the Holy Spirit (Job 33:4; Ps. 104:30; Acts 1:8; Rom.
15:13; I Pet. 3:18).
g. Omnipotence is manifest in various aspects of God’s administration.
(1) Creation (Gen. 1:1; Neh. 9:6; Ps. 89:11-13; Rom. 1:20).
(2) Preservation (Ps. 36:6; 104:20-21, 25-28; 145:15-16; Heb. 1:3).
(3) Redemption (Rom. 1:16; I Cor. 1:18, 22-24; II Cor. 13:4).
(4) Judgment (Rom. 9:22; Heb. 12:29; Rev. 6:12-17; 20:11-15).
(5) Government (Isa. 40:15-17; Rom. 13:1; Rev. 11:15; 21:1-3).
2. The practical consequences of learning about God’s omnipotence are:
7 Ibid., pp. 106, 108.
8 Ibid., pp. 174-82.
a. According to Charnock: 8
(1) It is a source of contempt.
(a) Obstinacy in sin challenges God’s power.
(b) Distrust of God’s truth challenges God’s power.
(c) Fear of man’s power challenges God’s power.
(d) Self-confidence challenges God’s power.

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THE INFINITY OF GOD
(e) Unbelief of the gospel challenges God’s power.
(2) It is a source of abuse.
(a) “We abuse this power when we believe every idle story that is reported,
because God is able to make it so if he pleased. We may as well believe
Æsop’s fables to be true, that birds spake and beasts reasoned, because
the power of God can enable such creatures to such acts.”
(b) “When men sit with folded arms, and make a confidence in his power
of glorious title to their idleness and disobedience, they would have his
strength do all, and his precept should move them to do nothing; this is
a trust of his power against his command, a pretended glorifying his
power with a slight of his sovereignty.”
(3) It is a source of comfort.
(a) In affliction and distress (Ps. 121:2).
(b) In temptation and conflict (Eph. 6:10-11).
(c) In the certain fulfillment of God’s promises (Isa. 14:27).
(d) In the encouragement of perseverance and security (John 10:29).
b. According to Timothy Dwight, grandson of Jonathan Edwards and president of
Yale College: 9
(1) The omnipotence of God means that He is absolutely independent and selfsustaining.
Because He does not lack power, his purposes cannot be opposed
or disappointed.
(2) God is best qualified to govern the universe. Hence, He upholds his dignity
by being able to supply all needed energy so far as to quash his enemies and
preserve his subjects.
(3) God is an inescapable terror to those who oppose him since He replies with
the power by which the heavens were formed.
(4) God is a stalwart friend to the righteous since his omnipotence guarantees
the bestowal of all good things upon them according to the riches of his
grace.
(5) God is consequently almighty and glorious, “in the deluge, the destruction of
Sodom, the wonders of Egypt, of Sinai, and of Canaan; in the miracles of the
prophets of Christ, and of the apostles, as cannot fail to astonish every
mind.”
9 Timothy Dwight, Dwight’s Theology, pp. 37-40.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 133
3. The operation of God’s omnipotence is directed towards man in a twofold manner (Jer.
32:17-19).
a. God’s power is directed toward the unrighteous.
(1) It is his power of which they are ignorant (Matt. 22:29).
(2) It is his power which they yet reflect (Ex. 9:13-17; Rom. 9:17).
(3) It is his power in wrath (Ezra 8:22; Rev. 6:14-17).
(4) It is his power in judgment (II Thess. 1:6-9; Rev. 16:7-9; 18:8).
b. God’s power is directed toward the righteous.
(1) It is his power of salvation (Deut. 4:37; Rom. 1:16; Eph. 1:19).
(2) It is his power poured out upon his people (Ps. 68:35; Isa. 40:29-31; Eph.
3:20; Col. 1:10-11; I Pet. 1:5; II Pet. 1:3).
(3) It is his power distributed for ministry (Eph. 6:10).
(a) Directed towards God’s people (Mic. 3:8; Heb. 4:11-12).
(b) Directed towards the world (Acts 1:8; I Cor. 1:24; 2:4-5).
(4) It is his power of resurrection (I Cor. 6:14).
c. By way of application, according to Spurgeon in a sermon titled “The Mighty
Arm” based upon Psalm 89:13, 10 he concludes that:
(1) If God be so strong, then resist no longer and yield to Him.
(2) If God be so strong, then trust Him to save you through Christ.
(3) If God be so strong, then trust Him to deliver from everything.
(4) If God be so strong, then shake off all fear of mortal man.
(5) If God be so strong, then think no longer of personal weakness.
(6) If God be so strong, then commit the future into His hands.
10 C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, XXII, pp. 526-7.

134
C. GOD IS ETERNAL - INFINITE IN TIME
THE INFINITY OF GOD
1. While it is common for God to be defined, in relation to time, as being eternal and thus
without beginning or end, yet it would be better to say that He is before time, above
time, and beyond time (Deut. 33:27; Ps. 90:1-4; 102:11-12, 27-28; Is. 40:28; I Tim.
1:17).
a. God does not simply inhabit limitless time, rather He transcends time. Although
God has entered time (Gal. 4:4), yet time has originated with God so that He is
not limited or regulated by a temporal scheme of things (Josh. 10:12-13).
b. Charnock explains:
The Spirit of God in Scripture condescends to our capacities in signifying the eternity
of God by days and years, which are terms belonging to time, whereby we measure
it (Ps. 102:27); but we must no more conceive that God is bounded or measured by
time, and hath succession of days because of those expressions, than we can
conclude him to have a body because members are ascribed to him in Scripture, to
help our conceptions of his glorious nature and operations. 11
2. God in His essential nature is eternal.
Charnock adds:
God is his own eternity. He is not eternal by grant, and the disposal of any other, but by
nature and essence. The eternity of God is nothing else but the duration of God, and the
duration of God is nothing else but his existence enduring. . . . Hence, all the perfections
of God are eternal. In regard of the divine eternity, all things in God are eternal; his
power, mercy, wisdom, justice, knowledge. God himself were not eternal if any of his
perfections, which are essential to him, were not eternal also; he had not else been a
perfect God from all eternity, and so his whole self had not been eternal. 12
a. God is eternal in His triune existence.
(1) God the Father is eternal (Isa. 40:28; 57:15).
(2) God the Son is eternal (John 1:1; Col. 1:17; Heb. 13:8; Rev. 1:8).
(3) God the Holy Spirit is eternal (Heb. 9:14).
b. God is eternal in His personal covenant name. As Jehovah/Yahweh, He is
uniquely “I AM WHO I AM” (Ex. 3:13-15).
11 Charnock, Works, I, p. 354.
12 Ibid., pp. 353-4.
(1) Charnock describes this title as follows: “I AM is his proper name. This
description being in the present tense, shews that his essence knows no past
nor future. If it were he was, it would intimate he were not now what he
once was; if it were he will be, it would intimate he were not yet what he will

THE INFINITY OF GOD 135
be ; but I am; I am the only being, the root of all beings; he is therefore at the
greatest distance from not being, and that it eternal.” 13
(2) Thus in Genesis 21:33, “Abraham “called on the name of the LORD
[Jehovah], the Everlasting God [El Olam].”
c. What then would we conclude if God was known not to be eternal? Charnock
explains: 14
(1) God would not be self-existent, and thus be disqualified as deity. God could
not have been non-existent in the past and then come to have existence
through another or self-generation.
(2) God would not be immutable in that He would have passed from non-being
to being, from nothing to something.
(3) God would not be infinitely perfect since He would have known searchable
limitation and moral bounds.
(4) God would not be omnipotent and almighty because He would have been
absolutely impotent in non-being. He would have had no sovereignty in
non-existence.
(5) God would not be the first cause of all. In this case, to have being after nonbeing
would require a prior cause, so that this being would be derived rather
than original.
3. The nature of time and eternity from the perspective of man and God.
13 Ibid., p. 355.
14 Ibid., pp. 356-8.
a. According to Carl Henry, the definition of time “is one of the most vexing
problems in philosophy.” 15 This would be especially so if our thinking was
humanistic and thus excluded the contrasting thought of eternity. Time is to be
understood as a relationship rather than a substance. That is, time involves a
perceived sequence of events rather than a material quality. As such we tend to
comprehend this order in a linear sense rather than a circle. Herman Bavinck
states that, “the essence of time is not that it is without beginning or end but that
it contains a succession of moments; that is past, present, or future. From this it
follows that time - intrinsic time - is a mode of existence of all created and finite
things.” 16 Even so, when those moments are identified as birth, life and death,
then past present and future are most significant expressions. God originated time
so that the creation we inhabit exists in time, yet He his design never envisaged
separation from the eternal since He, in having fellowship with His creation in
time, yet remains eternal beyond time.
15 Everett F. Harison, ed., Baker’s Dictionary of Theology, p. 523.
16 Herman Bavinck, The Doctrine of God, p. 156.

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THE INFINITY OF GOD
b. Time involves the succession, that is the order of events that make up the
panorama of our earthly existence. It is understood in much the same way that
we think of speed. In a jet plane at high altitude, being distant from objects, speed
is hardly noticed. But at low altitude the opposite is the case as we relate our
movement to other nearby objects visible on the ground. Time involves
perspective or sequential comprehension. While we agree that time comprises an
order of events, yet it also requires a certain understanding or perception of that
order. It is especially true in this realm regarding the great difference that exists
between man’s comprehension of time and that of the eternal God.
(1) Man comprehends time in terms of consecutive events according to order or
succession. It is as if man’s mental limits necessitate this restricted level of
perception. He simply cannot perceive all events in the now. Man, unlike
God, comprehends time as truth that comes piece by piece, frame by frame,
and goes like night follows day and death follows life (Ps. 139:11-12).
(2) God comprehends all events, even if logically, yet instantaneously, that is in
the eternal now (Isa. 57:15). Thus God never ages since His existence is
measureless. God comprehends time as a totally comprehensive embrace of
reality and truth that is always in the present or now dimension (John 8:58).
(3) Hence man is not to put God in a time box of limitation (II Pet. 3:8),
although God, in the person of His beloved eternal Son, has entered a spatial,
temporal world and submitted Himself to its limitations. However, this same
Son was always desirous of returning to that eternal realm (John 1:18; 7:33;
17:5, 11, 13).
c. By way of illustration, William Shedd well pictures both aspects of successive
events and panoramic perspective as follows. Imagine a person in the foyer of a
tall building observing the procession of individual people as they pass by the
main door, one by one. By contrast, imagine the all-inclusive, relatively instant
perspective of a person watching the same scene from the top of that same tall
building. 17 Hence, while time suits man’s limited mode of existence, yet perception
in the eternal dimension suits God’s infinite mode of existence.
4. The practical importance of temporal man knowing the eternal God.
Two factors especially impinge upon our appreciation of time. First there is the fact
that man is living and indeed he loves life more than death. Yet being alive is on a
continuum, and time connects us with inevitable death, seemingly a conclusion to time
in this present economy, so that there is no real rest in the present as time relentlessly
“marches on.” Second there is man’s problem with sin, and resultant carnality, that not
only extinguishes life, but also corrupts and frustrates his participation in time.
17 William G. T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, pp. 344-45.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 137
a. Charnock offers the following practical applications. 18
(1) God’s eternity ought to make us soberly consider our sin. For while man
quickly brushes aside his evil into the past, God perceives all of that
wickedness in the eternal now!
(2) God’s eternity deflates man’s pride since he comes to realize just how limited
is his temporal nature.
(3) God’s eternity should cause us to take our love away from the transient
world and direct it toward the everlasting God.
(4) God’s eternity ought to stimulate us to worship His greatness and enjoy
endless communion.
(5) God’s eternity ought to encourage us to serve Him with the excellence of
service that His timeless majesty deserves.
b. Concerning man’s present existence as part of a thoroughly corrupt human race,
time is an inescapable tyrant since:
Time like an ever-rolling stream,
Bear’s all its sons away;
They fly forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.
Time is frustrating since we never seem to have enough hours in a day; how
common it is to hear, “If only I had more time.” Yet when we seem to have years
of it ahead of us, especially in youth, then we presume upon it and find that it
passes almost unnoticed. Suddenly we realize that we don’t really have much time
left. The older we get the more we attempt to bargain for smaller amounts. Such
was the plea of King Hezekiah who, being mortally ill, pleaded with God for a
further fifteen years (II Kings 20:1-11). Nevertheless, good king that he was,
during those fifteen years Hezekiah acted foolishly by displaying his wealth to a
Babylonian delegation. Therefore God revealed, through Isaiah, that this wealth
would be taken as spoil to Babylon (II Kings 20:12-17). But then the fifteen years
passed and he died! Solomon likewise was frustrated with time concerning fleeting
material delights, the temporal nature of pleasure, the obsolescence of experience,
all like sand passing through his fingers never to be regained. He writes that: “A
generation goes and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. . . . For
there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man. . . . I hated all the fruit of my
labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who
will come after me. . . . All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all
return to the dust. . . . For who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime,
during the few years of his futile life? He will spend them like a shadow” (Eccles.
1:4; 2:16, 18; 3:20; 6:12 ).
18 Charnock, Works, I, pp. 367-73.

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c. But in the midst of his frustration, yet Solomon realized that the answer to this
inevitable perplexity, which the temporal order of things brings about, is to be
found in the truth that, “everything God does will remain forever” (Eccles. 3:14).
Thus he concluded that his soul could only be delivered from this tyranny of time
when he, the temporal creature was engaged with the eternal God. Hence, “Fear
God and keep His commandments” (Eccles. 12:13). Man became disengaged from
the eternal God at the Fall; the result was total captivity to a temporal world.
Only through redemption in Jesus Christ is a man restored to eternal perception
and an eternal inheritance in a temporal world. Thus, as the recipient of eternal
life, man enters into the eternal dimension which God graciously shares (I John
1:1-2; 2:17).
D. GOD IS OMNISCIENT - INFINITE IN KNOWLEDGE
1. Introduction.
a. Although God is an intelligent being possessed of perfect knowledge, His
creatures, in their fallen condition, choose to live as if His understanding of their
lives was limited. For example, man believes:
(1) Some matters are too insignificant for God to be aware of them. He is not
concerned about counting atoms or trivia.
(2) God needs to be kept in the picture, brought up to date, otherwise He will be
out of touch. He needs to be informed and reminded about facts.
(3) There are secret corners of the soul that are hid from God. He cannot see in
the dark, hear whispers, or know deep motives!
b. A more recent manifestation of limitation being attributed to God’s knowledge is
Process Theology which, as a product of theological liberalism, defines Him as a
“becoming, growing, developing God” so that He does not possess absolute
knowledge. Thus God does not know all of the future because it is based upon
human contingency concerning possibilities over which He has no absolute
sovereignty. A modified form of this humanizing of God, this Arminianism in a
new dress, coming from the fringe of evangelicalism, is called Openness Theology.
Central to the open view is a belief that humans have libertarian free will. . . . With
creatures who have libertarian free will, there is no iron-clad way to know for
certain what they will do. . . . God’s lack of knowledge about the future also means
that, though he has hopes and plans for what will occur, he may need to scrap them
and choose another course of action, once He sees what we do. . . . It also follows
with this model of God that God has not foreordained whatever happens. To do so
would be to act as a domineering monarch concerned only with what he wants.
Since that is not the open God, history is not the working out of his predetermined,
irresistible, and sometimes inscrutable decrees. Rather, history is open to whatever
we make it. This makes the future an unknown adventure, not only for us but also

THE INFINITY OF GOD 139
for God. Moreover, with such a God our prayers and petitions really do matter; for
by them we can move God to do things he otherwise did not plan to do.” 19
c. However, when a person can truly confess, “Even before there is a word on my
tongue, behold, O LORD, Thou dost know it all,” then one can honestly cry out,
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts;
and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” Ps.
139: 23-24.
2. By way of definition, Strong defines divine omniscience as “God’s perfect and eternal
knowledge of all things which are objects of knowledge, whether they be actual or
possible, past, present, or future.” 20 In other words, God knows all there is to know
about Himself and His universe. “His understanding is infinite [limitless]” (Ps. 147:5).
a. God has no need to discover, learn, or receive advice. Hence, it is impertinent for
man to attempt to inform God (Is. 40:13-14), to infer that God needs to be
reminded of certain details, to recommend possibilities.
b. God does not come to know by a process of observation or reasoning. Rather, His
knowledge is immediate total vision; it is innate and intuitive. He knows of man’s
perception by process and time. Yet His knowledge is not by process but eternal
(Is. 40:28). Owen comments: “God knows all things as they are, and in that order
wherein they stand. Things that are past, as to the order of the creatures which he
hath appointed to them, and the works of providence which outwardly are of him,
he knows as past; not by remembrance, as we do, but by the same act of
knowledge wherewith he knew them from all eternity, even before they were.” 21
c. God being omniscient, it is also to be expected that He is equally omnipresent.
For God to fully know His universe He must totally fill it. Consider these related
attributes in Psalm 139:1-6, 7-12.
3. The extent of God’s knowledge.
a. God has perfect knowledge of Himself, for “the thoughts of God no one knows
except the Spirit of God” (I Cor. 2:11).
(1) This self-knowledge of God has not been acquired or inherited. Rather He
has known Himself comprehensively, intimately, eternally, with resulting
absolute satisfaction and contentment. He has a true self-image that cannot
be increased.
(2) This self-knowledge of God includes the interpersonal knowledge of the three
persons of the Trinity, one with each other (Rom. 8:27). There is perfect
knowledge of being and purpose. John Gill explains:
19 John S. Feinberg, No One Like Him, pp. 67-73. Also refer to The Openness of God by proponents Pinnock,
Rice, Sanders, Hasker, Basinger.
20 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 282.
21 Owen, Works, XII, p. 127.

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God knows himself in all his persons, and each person fully knows one
another; the Father knows the Son, begotten by him, and brought up with him;
the Son knows the Father, in whose bosom he lay; and the Spirit knows the
Father and the Son, whose Spirit he is, and from whom he proceeds; and the
Father and the Son know the Spirit, who is sent by them as the Comforter; see
Matthew 11:27; I Cor. 2:10-11. God knows the mode of each person’s
subsistence in the Deity, the paternity of the Father, the generation of the Son,
and the spiration of the Holy Ghost. 22
(3) This self-knowledge of God is primary in the matter of The Nature of True
Virtue, as Jonathan Edwards titles one of his most important and profound
works. He writes that,
the virtue of the divine mind must consist primarily in love to himself, or in the
mutual love and friendship which subsists eternally and necessarily between the
several persons in the Godhead, or that infinitely strong propensity there is in
these divine persons one to another. There is no need of multiplying words, to
prove that it must be thus, on a supposition that virtue, in its most essential
nature, consists in benevolent affection or propensity of heart towards being in
general; and so flowing out to particular beings, in a greater or lesser degree,
according to the measure of existence and beauty which they are possessed of.
It will also follow, from the foregoing things, that God’s goodness and love to
created beings, is derived from and subordinate to his love of himself. 23
b. God has perfect knowledge in His triunity as three persons.
(1) God the Father is omniscient (Matt. 6:8; Luke 16:15; Heb. 4:13; I John
3:20).
(2) God the Son is omniscient (Matt. 9:4; John 2:24-25; 6:64; 16:30; 21:17; Col.
2:2-3)
(a) Did Jesus know the “month” of his return?
Is Jesus Christ’s omniscience denied in Matthew 24:36-37; Mark 13:32-
33? Was he ignorant of the time of his return? Tortuous attempts to
avoid the obvious meaning here have been made by those suggesting
that the exact or approximate time of Christ’s return may be known.
For instance there is the proposition that we can know the month of
Christ’s second coming, but not the “day or hour.” However, that Jesus
is referring to a specific point of time, whether hour, day, month, or
year that he was then unaware of, is indicated by the following
contextual evidence.
1) In Mark 13:33, the word “time,” kairov", kairos, is a comprehensive,
chronological term, which concept is supported by the
following illustration of the returning master, vs. 34-37. To
22 John Gill, “ Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity, p. 42.
23 Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, I, pp. 126-7.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 141
“know” of the coming of the master in v. 35 is to “know” of a
specific time, such as evening, midday, or morning.
2) Did Jesus know the month of his return, but not the hour or day?
To assert this seems to avoid the truth of an encompassing
idiomatic expression, and thus offer a senseless, even absurd
proposal.
(b) The maturing humanity of Jesus Christ did not know to begin with the
time of his return.
1) As a child he “increased in wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:53).
Likewise as God’s Son, “He learned obedience from the things
which he suffered” (Heb. 5:8). Yet after his resurrection, ignorance
concerning his return is stated only with regard to the apostles
(Acts 1:7).
2) As the incarnate Son of God, he wholly submitted to the will and
determination of the Father (Matt. 20:23; 26:39; John 4:34).
3) As the submissive Servant, he at times voluntarily restricted the use
of certain of his divine attributes, in the same way that his glory
was veiled and briefly unveiled (Matt. 26:53; John 5:19-30; Phil.
2:5-8).
(c) The undiminished deity of Jesus Christ did know the time of his return.
1) Admittedly this is a mystery, as is the overall truth that Jesus Christ
is the “theanthropic person,” or the “God-man.” However, his
humanity must never be allowed to diminish his deity.
2) The fulness of Christ as revealed in Scripture must always be
studied. “For in Him [Jesus Christ] all the fulness of Deity dwells
in bodily form” (Col. 2:9; cf. Matt. 28:18; John 21:17). Deity that
is not omniscient is not deity.
(d) By way of illustration, Shedd suggests that “the ignorance of Jesus
Christ may be illustrated by the forgetfulness of an ordinary man. No
man at each and every instant, holds in immediate consciousness all that
he has ever been conscious of in the past. He is relatively ignorant of
much which he has previously known and experienced. But this
forgetting is not absolute and total ignorance. This part of his
consciousness may reappear hear upon earth; and all of it will reappear
in the day of judgment. But he cannot recall it just at this instant. . . .
Similarly, as we suppose that Christ when he spoke these words [Matt.
24:36-37; Mark 13:32-33] to his disciples was ignorant of the time of
the judgment, he may subsequently have come to know it as his human
nature increased in knowledge through the illumination of the Divine. . .
. Christ was relatively ignorant, not absolutely, if he was destined
subsequently to know the time of the judgment day. It is more probable

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that the glorified human mind of Christ on the mediatorial throne now
knows the time of the day of judgment, though it was ignorant of it.” 24
(3) God the Holy Spirit is omniscient (I Cor. 2:10-11).
c. God has perfect knowledge of His universe. “How great are Thy works, O LORD!
Thy thoughts are very deep” (Ps. 92:5).
(1) Concerning creation in general (Ps. 147:4-5).
(a) Things minute and of least significance (Matt. 10:29-30).
(b) Things actual, possible and impossible, real and contingent (Ezek. 2:7;
3:7).
(c) Things past, present, and future (Is. 42:9; 44:7; 46:9-10). However, this
knowledge concerns God’s awareness of man’s limited, temporal field of
vision, even though His actual perception is of everything in the eternal
now.
(2) Concerning mankind in particular (Ps. 139:1, 13-16).
24 Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, II, pp. 276-7.
(a) The thoughts of his heart (I Kings 8:39; II Chron. 16:9; Ps. 44:21; Jer.
17:10; John 2:24-25; I John 3:19-20).
(b) The evil and good of his soul (Ps. 7:9; 69:5; Prov. 15:3; Jer. 16:17; 17:9-
10).
(c) The span of his life (Job 14:5; Ps. 139:16).
(d) The direction of his life (Ps. 1:6; 119:168).
(e) The future actions which he freely chooses (Is. 44:28).
1) Some reject this concept since such foreknowledge demands a fixity
of future events in man’s life that conflicts with his necessary
freedom. Hence, God is not believed to be absolutely omniscient.
2) Others suggest that God has advance knowledge of all of man’s
possible actions in a given situation. Hence, He is never surprised.
God has a plan to counter whatever man may propose. But man
retains the initiative while God is merely the respondent!
3) However, Bavink quotes Augustine as follows:
Wherefore our wills have power to do all that God wanted them to
do and foresaw they could do; and therefore, whatever power they
have, they have most certainly; and whatever they are to do they

THE INFINITY OF GOD 143
themselves most certainly do, for he whose foreknowledge is
infallible foreknew that they would have the power to do it and that
they would do it. 25
In other words, the mystery is that man’s real freedom comes
under the certainty of events ordained and foreknown by God.
4) From God’s perspective, His knowledge of future human activity is
really His knowledge of man in the eternal now (Jer. 1:4-5).
4. The practical importance of God’s absolute knowledge.
a. Charnock makes four major applications concerning God’s omniscience. 26
(1) His boundless knowledge is slandered by man.
25 Bavink, Doctrine of God, p. 190.
26 Charnock, Works, I, pp. 517-36.
(a) This happens when man seeks forbidden mysteries and future
knowledge in opposition to Deuteronomy 29:29. The inference is that
God is partially ignorant. Hence, man grasps after all knowledge like a
person who is blinded by incessantly and curiously gazing at the sun.
(b) This happens when man swears by anyone or anything besides God.
This is to substitute an inferior witness for God who is the only
infallible witness.
(c) This happens when we judge the actions of a man, as distinct from his
thoughts, even though unlike God, we do not truly know the motives of
his heart. The inference is that man qualifies as a judge with virtual
omniscience.
(d) This happens when we neglect to pray so as to seek his all knowing
counsel. The inference is that there is an alternative source of absolute
knowledge that can be consulted,
(e) This happens when we make an outright denial of God’s omniscience
(Ezek. 9:9).
1) We deny His full knowledge in thought that considers God to be
ignorant (Hab. 1:2-3).
2) We deny His full knowledge in deeds that suggest that God is
ignorant (Jonah 1:3).
3) We deny His full knowledge with speech that implies that God is
ignorant (I Sam. 15:13-15).

144
27 Ibid., p. 527.
THE INFINITY OF GOD
4) We deny His full knowledge with worship that presumes that God
is ignorant (Is. 29:13).
(2) His boundless knowledge is a comfort to man.
(a) When the church is assaulted by enemies (Ps. 69:16), yet these
adversaries shall not escape God’s flaming eyes (Rev. 1:13-14), try as
they may to hide (Is. 29:15).
(b) God is especially to be trusted since He is not ignorant or forgetful. His
intelligence is wholly dependable, particularly with regard to His
covenants (Ps. 105:8).
(c) God has well known from eternity with intensity those who belong to
Him as Creator, Redeemer, and Shepherd (II Tim. 2:19).
(d) While men may be blind to the sincerity and deep feelings of our heart,
thankfully God is not since He has infinite understanding (Ps. 1:6). He
“knows the least dram of grace and righteousness in the hearts of His
people, though but as a ‘smoking flax,’ or as the least bruise of a saving
conviction (Matt. 12:20), and knows it so as to cherish it.” 27
(e) We are comforted in our secret prayers, sighs, and works. Our groans
are not hid from God Ps. 38:9), nor are our hidden labors which He is
careful to repay (Matt. 6:4, 6).
(f) We are encouraged when we have company with good men who are
persecuted (Ex. 3:7). As with the poverty of the church, Christ declares
to the church at Smyrna, “I know your tribulation . . . but you are rich”
(Rev. 2:8-9). There is a future reward for God’s suffering servants. He
hears their cry and will avenge and reward them (Matt. 5:11-12).
(g) We are comforted in the infirmities and weaknesses of the flesh (Ps.
103:14), for God’s knowledge of these encourages Him to “remove our
transgressions” (Ps. 103:12).
(h) We are comforted while being fearful of lurking corruption in our
hearts. That is, we appeal to God for a true assessment: “Search me, O
God, and try my heart” (Ps. 139:23-24).
(i) We are comforted in great assurance of pardon for sin. If God well
knows our sin, He well knows the greater power of grace through the
blood of Christ to cover sin.

28 Ibid., p. 532.
THE INFINITY OF GOD 145
(3) His boundless knowledge is humbling to man.
(a) Man’s hoped for secrecy is demolished (Ps. 90:8), just as Jonah’s
rebellion is known in the privacy of his cabin on the way to Joppa
(Jonah 1:3).
(b) Man’s contrived hypocrisy is unmasked as if our bodies were a crystal
(Heb. 4:13). “All the rooms of the heart, and every atom of dust in the
least chink of it, is clear to his eye.” 28
(c) Man’s carelessness regarding sin is driven away. Old sins rise up to
haunt and convict; they are all known of God in the eternal present;
they are recorded and resurrected (Amos 8:7); none are forgotten.
(d) Man’s actions are exactly weighed and numbered (I Sam. 2:3). God has
spread before Him the guilt of every circumstance. Nothing escapes His
careful gaze (Ps. 11:4).
(e) Man’s injustice finds settlement before God’s impeccably just
knowledge. As both a perfect witness and judge (Luke 16:15), He will
not overlook any transgression, no matter how large our catalogue of
sins may be.
(4) His boundless knowledge is an exhortation to man.
(a) Let us resist the temptation to sin Prov. 5:20-21). When we are enticed
to commit evil, let us first ask, “Would not God find this out? For He
knows the secrets of the heart” (Ps. 44:21).
(b) Let us be watchful over our heart and thoughts, and quick to blush
knowing that God probes the soul’s every recess.
(c) Let us make good preparation for every duty that we perform. With
God ever-watchful, we should shrink from being idle, careless, or
intemperate.
(d) Let us be stimulated to work before God with transparent sincerity (I
Chron. 28:9), even when we are at times unconscious of His watchful
eye (Gen. 28:16; John 1:48).
(e) Let us be deeply humbled. As His children, yet He knows our hurt to
Him in the face of His blessings, our ingratitude to Him in the face of
His benefits, as well as our idolatry, blasphemy, and secret enmity.
(f) Let us yield to God unreservedly since being naked in His sight, “the
unfortunate [poor man] commits himself to Thee” (Ps. 10:14).

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b. A. W. Tozer concludes that God’s omniscience is a source of either shaking fear or
consoling hope. 29
(1) Concerning fear: “The unblessed soul may well tremble that God knows the
flimsiness of every pretext and never accepts the poor excuses given for evil
deeds, since He knows the underlying motives.”
(2) Concerning hope: “To us who have fled for refuge in the gospel, no
talebearer can inform on us, no enemy can make an accusation stick. He
knew us utterly before we knew Him and called us to Himself in the full
knowledge of everything that was against us.”
E. GOD IS OMNISAPIENT - INFINITE IN WISDOM
1. Introduction.
a. Religious man may readily give theoretical acknowledgment concerning God’s
absolute wisdom, since God could not be God if He were not all-wise. Yet in the
practical issues of life, this same representative man may nevertheless quickly
charge God with being indiscreet, or at worse foolish. For instance, man may
propose:
(1) In a given situation, God made a poor move in doing something in a
particular way. His modus operandi was not the best plan, according to
human estimates.
(2) God needs man’s advice in certain complex situations. Being remote in
heaven’s heights, He should heed an earthly opinion.
(3) Because God’s ways are so different from those of contemporary man, they
probably will not work very well. Hence, He should be warned and listen!
b. However, when a person follows the example of Solomon and yearns for “an
understanding heart” from God (I Kings 3:9), he then concludes, “How blessed is
the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding. For its profit
is better than the profit of silver, and its gain than fine gold” (Prov. 3:13-14). As
a consequence, he delights to give glory “to the only wise God, through Jesus
Christ” (Rom. 16:27).
2. By way of definition, God’s wisdom is that active characteristic which results from the
interaction that occurs between His knowledge and goodness. Or as Strong states, the
wisdom of God “is omniscience, as qualified by a holy will.” 30 Once again we are
confronted with the importance of considering God’s attributes integrally and not in a
piecemeal fashion.
29 Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy, p. 63.
30 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 286.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 147
a. Wisdom is the application of knowledge toward a good purpose. Its
administration involves the employment of good means that lead to a good end.
(1) Wisdom is not raw shrewdness or smartness, as in the case of the Unjust
Steward (Luke 16:1-8). Here knowledge is used with a questionable purpose
in mind, even a machiavellian cleverness. We could say that the unrighteous
steward was astute, but not wise in a virtuous sense.
(2) Wisdom involves the reflective, studied, discriminating transfer of true
knowledge through the grid of a good and holy will.
(a) Knowledge is data. However wisdom involves practicality; it envisages
good activity that prevails even in spite of difficult circumstances.
(b) Knowledge is acquired. However wisdom is intuitive; it has an established,
virtuous grid in the soul that is well able to apply knowledge.
(c) Knowledge is most efficiently handled according to the degree of
intelligence. However wisdom is prudence that sanctifies mental acuity.
(3) Wisdom and knowledge are treated separately in the Bible, yet remain in
close relation as Daniel acknowledges (Dan. 2:20-23, and as is evident in the
harmonious working of spiritual gifts in local church life (I Cor. 12:8, 12).
b. Charnock defines wisdom as, “acting for a right end” while “observing all the
circumstances for action.” It involves, “willing and acting according to the right
reason, according to a right judgment of things. We never count a willful man as
wise, but him only that acts according to a right rule, when right counsels are
taken, and vigorously executed. . . . Man may have knowledge without wisdom,
but not wisdom without knowledge.” 31
3. Wisdom in God is an identical characteristic in the three persons of the triune
Godhead.
a. God the Father is wise (Rom. 16:27; I Tim. 1:17; Jude 25).
b. God the Son is wise (Luke 2:40; Matt. 13:54; I Cor. 1:30; Col. 2:2-3; Rev. 5:12).
c. God the Holy Spirit is wise (I Cor. 2:11-13; 12:8).
4. Wisdom in God, especially that manifestation of its “richest depths” (Rom. 11:33-36),
that display of its “manifold glory” (Eph. 3:8-11), is supremely displayed in the design
and outworking of the Gospel (I Cor. 2:6-8).
31 Charnock, Works, II, pp. 11-12.
O loving wisdom of our God!
When all was sin and shame,
A second Adam to the fight
And to the rescue came.

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5. The practical importance of God’s absolute wisdom.
32 Ibid., pp. 74-98.
a. God’s wisdom is manifest in every aspect of His dealings with His universe.
(1) In creation (Ps. 19:1-6; 104:24).
(2) In providence (Ps. 33:10-11; Rom. 8:28).
(3) In redemption (Rom. 11:33; 16:25-27; I Cor. 2:7-8; Eph. 3:7-10).
b. Charnock considers four applications concerning God’s wisdom. 32
(1) We may confidently say of an all-wise God:
(a) He is best fitted to govern this world (Ps. 104:24).
(b) He has good reason to be patient with man (Acts 17:30).
(c) He has no reason to change His decrees (Is. 46:10).
(d) He is the best object of human trust (I Cor. 2:4-5).
(e) He is the best hope for vanquished evil (Jude 15).
(2) We may conclude concerning man’s wisdom:
(a) It defames the wise workmanship of God.
(b) It is disrespectful of God’s commandments.
(c) It neglects the true means of worshiping God.
(d) It sits in judgment over God’s Word.
(e) It is reluctant to trust God’s promises.
(3) We may be comforted by the fact that:
(a) In affliction and disease, God wisely appoints and removes.
(b) In temptations and trials, God wisely permits and overrules.
(c) In our praying, God wisely allows and disallows.
(d) In church tribulations, God wisely foresees and confounds.

(4) We ought to give attention to:
THE INFINITY OF GOD 149
(a) Meditation upon God’s wisdom, that is serious reflection.
(b) Investigation and admiration of God’s wisdom.
(c) Avoidance of trusting in man’s wisdom.
(d) Pursuit and reception of God’s wisdom.
(e) Submission to God’s infinite wisdom without criticism.
c. God’s wisdom is a communicable attribute.
(1) The wisdom of God is sovereignly endowed, yet certain human attitudes and
responses are also involved (Dan. 2:20-23; Eph. 1:17). These include:
(a) Reverence for God (Ps. 111:10; Prov. 9:10).
(b) Requisition from God (I Kings 3:5-12; Jas. 1:5).
(c) Reception of God’s Word (Ps. 119;97-99; Col. 3:16; II Tim. 3:15-17).
(d) Recognition of Jesus Christ as the fount and incarnation of the wisdom
of God (Prov. 8:22-31; John 1:1; I Cor. 1:23-24, 30).
(2) The wisdom of God is necessary to travel in this foolish world toward the
consummated kingdom of God (Prov. 8;12, 34-34; Eph. 5:15-17).
(3) The wisdom of God is productive of the fruit of the Spirit in the life of an
authentic child of God (Jas. 3:17-18).
(4) The wisdom of God is to be manifest in a multitude of human attitudes, acts,
and relationships, as enumerated by Solomon in the Book of Proverbs.
Much of his concern is that of passing on to his son practical aspects of
spiritual prudence.
F. GOD IS OMNIPRESENT - INFINITE WITHIN SPACE
1. Introduction.
a. By way of illustration, in a busy city, you decide to visit a large cathedral. Leaving
the noisy street you enter a lofty and majestic stone structure with the result that
you are struck by the contrasting quiet atmosphere. Your immediate thought is,
“Why how real is the presence of God here.” But such thinking misunderstands
the omnipresence of God for He was equally present out in the busyness of the
street.

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b. By way of illustration, in visiting a maximum security prison, your soul is chilled
with the sense of judicial severity and contained evil that pervades such an
institution. You say to yourself, “What a godless place this is. Let me leave as
soon as is possible.” But such thinking ignores God’s omnipresence for He is there
even in the worst of jails.
c. By way of illustration, a business executive bids his wife and family goodbye as he
leaves for a conference some distance away. While absent, the man involves
himself with company and activities that would offend his loved ones at home.
Why does he do this? Because he limits God’s perception and at the same time
ignores his all-pervasive presence.
d. By way of illustration, in defense of the questionable life-styles of some politicians,
it is commonly asserted today that, “what they do in private is their own
business.” But this perspective fails to realize that God is present during those
times of supposed privacy, and accountability is not restricted to public affairs.
e. The natural or unregenerate man is especially unmindful of God’s omnipresence,
and his behavior reflects this attitude. In fact this private fortress mentality
becomes the fertile breeding ground of all types of hypocrisy. That is, such a
person convinces himself that secret, immoral activities can happily exist in one’s
life just as long as they are not known publicly. Only when he becomes aware of
the presence of God in his life at all times and in every place does he confess, as
did Jacob at Bethel, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it” (Gen.
28:16; cf. Isa. 29:15).
2. Definition.
Strong declares: “God, in the totality of his essence, without diffusion or expansion,
multiplication or division, penetrates and fills the universe in all its parts.” 33 Compare
Charnock’s similar but expanded definition. 34
a. God was before all else. Hence, creation came into God’s presence and did not
displace Him. Shedd comments that, “the Divine omnipresence means rather the
presence of all things to God, than God’s presence to all things. They are in his
presence, but he is not in their presence.” 35
b. Yet the language of God to man is commonly that of His presence filling all (Jer.
23:23-24; Acts 17:24-28; Eph. 1:23; 4:1-6). Here is further explanation of God’s
omniscience.
33 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 279.
34 “[According to Jeremiah 23:24, T]his essential presence is, 1. without any mixture, 2. without any division of
himself, 3. not by multiplication, 4. not by extension or diffusion. 5. There is no space, not the least, wherein
God is not wholly according to his essence, and wherein his whole substance doth not exist.” Charnock,
Works, I, pp. 429-431.
35 Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, p. 340.

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(1) Both omnipresence and omniscience are intimately related Ps. 139:1-12).
Certainly the God who is everywhere must of necessity know everything.
Yet man who is here and not there, struggles to grasp such transcendent
truth (Ps. 139:6-12).
(2) By way of illustration, “The atheist wrote: ‘God is nowhere,’ but his little
daughter read it: ‘God is now here,’ and it converted him.” 36
c. God’s omnipresence is not merely potential but actual. Yet this real presence does
not transform all things into God! C. Samuel Storms clarifies this point as
follows: “God is omnipresent according to His being and not merely according to
His operation. That is to say, He is essentially or substantially, not only
dynamically, omnipresent. It is the heresy of deism which contends that God is
present in all places only by way of influence and power, acting upon the world
from a distance, but not Himself wholly present throughout. . . . Although God is
wholly present throughout all things, He is yet distinct from all things. It does not
follow that because God is essentially in everything that everything is essentially
God. It is the heresy of pantheism that the being of God is one and the same with
the being of all reality.” 37 Refer to Herman Bavinck for a more detailed refutation
of both extremes. 38
d. God’s omnipresence is essential to the persons of His triunity.
(1) God the Father is in all and through all (Isa. 66:1; Jer. 23:23-24; “cts 17:26-
27).
(2) God the Son is in all and through all (Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 1:22-23; Col.
1:17).
(3) God the Holy Spirit is in all and through all (Gen. 1:1-2; Ps. 139:7; I Cor.
2:10).
e. By way of illustration, Spurgeon graphically declares:
36 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 280.
We believe that He filleth heaven and earth, and hell; He is in the very space which
His creation seems to claim, for creatures do not displace God; and even the space
which is occupied by His handiwork is still filled with Himself. The rocky bowels of
the unsearchedout depths are full of God; where the sea roars, or where the solid
granite lives no interstice [crack] or vacuum, even there is God; not only in the open
place, and in the chasm, but penetrating all matter, and abounding everywhere in all,
and filling all things with Himself. 39
37 C. Samuel Storms, The Grandeur of God, p. 88.
38 Bavinck, The Doctrine of God, pp. 159-162.
39 Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, VII, p. 426.

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f. By way of illustration, Charnock soberly warns man:
How foolish is it to imagine any hiding-place from the incomprehensible God, who
fills and contains all things, and is present in every point of the world. When men
have shut the door, and made all darkness within, to meditate or commit a crime,
they cannot in the most recesses be sheltered from the presence of God. . . .
Hypocrites cannot disguise their sentiments from him; he is in the most secret nook
of their hearts. No thought is hid, no lust is secret, but the eye of God beholds this. .
. . We may exclude the sun from peeping into our solitudes, but not the eyes of God
from beholding our actions. 40
3. Problems that seem to confront God’s omnipresence.
a. The Bible speaks of God as being distinctively located.
40 Charnock, Works, I, p. 450.
(1) In other words, is it possible for God to be more present in one place than
another?
(a) How can God be distinctively present in heaven and yet everywhere?
(b) How can God be distinctively present in the believer and yet
everywhere?
(c) Is God more distinctively present in heaven than in hell?
(2) God is present everywhere in His essence, yet especially present in His moral
being in certain situations. Since God is holy, He is especially present in
heaven while also being present in hell.
41 Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 61.
42 Bavink, The Doctrine of God, p. 157.
(a) Berkhof declares that God, “does not dwell on earth as He does in
heaven, in animals as He does in man, in the inorganic as He does in the
organic creation, in the wicked as He does in the pious, nor in the
Church as He does in Christ.” 41
(b) Bavinck rightly makes the same distinction:
[God] is not present in the same degree and manner everywhere.
Scripture everywhere teaches that heaven, though also created, has been
God’s dwelling and throne ever since it was called into being (Deut.
26:15; II Sam. 22:7; I Kings 8:32; Ps. 11:4; 33:13; 115:3, 16; Isa. 63:15;
Matt. 5:34; 6:9; John 14:2; Eph. 1:20; Heb. 1:3; Rev. 4:1 ff., etc.). But
from heaven God descends (Gen. 11:5, 7; 18:21; Ex. 3:8), walks in the
garden (Gen. 3:8), appears often and at various places (Gen. 12; 15; 18-
19; etc.), and in a special sense comes down to his people on Mt. Sinai
(Ex. 19:9, 11, 18, 20; Deut. 33:2; Judg. 5:4). 42

THE INFINITY OF GOD 153
(c) Although Solomon declares that “the highest heaven cannot contain
Thee” (I Kgs. 8:27), yet God especially dwells “above the mercy seat,
from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the
testimony” (Ex. 25:22).
(d) Although God is present with all of Israel (Ex. 29:45), yet He is
especially present before Moses on Mt. Sinai since the prophet’s face is
caused to shine at that place (Ex. 34:29).
b. The Bible speaks of the ubiquity of Jesus Christ.
43 Charnock, Works, I, p. 445.
(1) In other words, in view of the clear teaching of the Son of God in Matthew
18:20; 28:20, how is it possible for him, as the theanthropic person, to be
everywhere in the light of John 14:2-3? Furthermore, how can Jesus Christ
be everywhere if he has ascended and now sits at the right hand of the Father
(Acts 2:32-33; Col. 3:1)?
(a) It is not sufficient to say that Jesus Christ is omnipresent through the
Holy Spirit according to John 14:26; 15:26; 16:13-14; Rom. 8:9. The
person of Jesus Christ is nor merely omnipresent by representation.
(b) Yet it would seem that we can definitely claim that the physical body of
Jesus Christ was not omnipresent, even in its initial post-resurrection
state (Acts 1:9-11).
(2) Of special significance at this point is John 3:13 (NKJV): “No one has
ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of
Man who is in heaven.”
(a) While the NASB and NIV omit the phrase, “who is in heaven,” yet the
textual support for this expression is reasonably solid, witness its
inclusion in the American Standard Version of 1901 and the New
English Bible of 1970.
(b) Charnock makes an illuminating comment on this verse as follows:
Not which was, but which is [in heaven]; he comes from heaven by
incarnation, and remains in heaven by his divinity. He was, while he
spake to Nicodemus, locally on earth, in regard of his humanity, but in
heaven according to his deity, as well as upon earth in the union of his
divine and human nature. He descended upon earth, but he left not
heaven; he was in the world before he came in the flesh. 43
In support of this John Gill refers to:
the omnipresence of the divine nature in Christ, who, as a divine person,
was in heaven, when he, a man, was here on earth (John 1:18; 3:13) and,
indeed, unless he was omnipresent, he could not be in whatsoever place
two or three are gathered together in his name, or be in the midst of the

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candlesticks, the churches, or with his ministers, to the end of the world
(Matt. 18:20; 28:29). 44
(3) Colossians 1:17 speaks of Jesus Christ: “And He is before all things, and in
Him all things hold together [exist, cohere].” Vincent cites Athanasius
concerning this verse: “He, the All-powerful, All-holy Word of the Father,
spreads His power over all things everywhere, enlightening things seen and
unseen, holding and binding all together in Himself. Nothing is left empty of
His presence, but to all things and through all, severally and collectively, He
is the giver and sustainer of life.” 45
4. The practical importance of God’s omnipresence.
a. Man cannot hide himself from God’s presence (Jer. 23:23-24).
(1) By way of illustration, Thomas Manton comments:
God is everywhere, here where you are; nearer and more intrinsic to us than
our very souls. Therefore all we think, speak, or do, is better known to him
than it is to ourselves; we do all as in his sight, speak all as in his hearing, think
all as in his presence; that which can be absent is not God; you may be far
from him, but he is not far from every one of you [Acts 17:27]. 46
(2) The unbeliever cannot run away from God; he is always running into Him!
The person of Jesus Christ is His precise image (John 14:9; Col. 1:15); man’s
conscience ceaselessly testifies to Him (Rom. 2:15). Try as we can to forget
or ignore Him, yet His presence relentlessly confronts us.
(3) The believer cannot stay away from God; for him there is no such thing as
personal privacy, nor does he desire it (Ps. 73:28).
(a) In his unregenerate state he detested God’s presence; now he enjoys it
and would be unhappy without it. He may bow in fear and humility
before God, but he does not despitefully turn from God.
(b) “In Thy presence is fulness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures
for ever” (Ps. 16:11; cf. 63:1-2; 73:25-28; 84:1-4).
b. Man can hide himself within God’s presence (Ps. 139:7-12).
44 Gill, Body of Divinity, p. 31.
(1) Note that David’s description of God’s omnipresence is not so much a
stimulus to fear as to hope and comfort. So Spurgeon declares: “Not that the
Psalmist wished to go from God, or to avoid the power of divine life. . . . The
exploring missionary in his lonely wanderings is led, in his solitary feebleness
45 Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies In The New Testament, III, p. 471.
46 Thomas Manton, The Complete Works of Thomas Manton, XII, p. 244.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 155
he is held; . . . and in this respect it matters not what realms they resort, the
active energy of God is around them still.” 47
(2) Note the various aspects of God’s reassuring presence.
(a) The nature of His presence, v. 7.
(b) The height and depth of His presence, v. 8.
(c) The breadth of His presence, v. 9.
(d) The intimacy of His presence, v. 10.
(e) The penetration of His presence, vs. 11-12.
(3) Hence, for the believer in Jesus Christ “who fills all in all” (Eph. 1:23). His
omnipresence both stimulates and establishes the local church (Eph. 1:4-6).
c. Charnock concludes with the following useful applications concerning God’s
omnipresence. 48
(1) Let us be warned:
(a) God’s presence is commonly forgotten (Gen. 3:10).
(b) God’s presence is frequently despised (Job 24:15).
(2) Let us be comforted:
(a) In all violent temptations (Ps. 14:4-5).
(b) In sharp and scorching afflictions (Ps. 27:10).
(c) In all duties of worship (Ex. 20:24).
(d) In special tasks and offices (Matt. 28:20).
(e) In the presence of all of His attributes.
(3) Let us be exhorted:
(a) His presence ought to shield us against temptations (Heb. 11:27).
(b) His presence ought to stimulate us to holy actions (Ps. 119:168).
(c) His presence ought to encourage purity of worship (Ex. 3:2-6).
47 C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, VII, pp. 236-7.
48 Charnock, Works, I, pp. 448-456.

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G. GOD IS IMMENSE - INFINITY BEYOND SPACE
1. By way of definition, God’s immensity involves His transcendent relationship to space.
This means that He is not confined or subject to space. Hence God is literally
“immeasurable,” beyond measure. Thus Solomon declares: “But will God indeed dwell
on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain Thee, how much
less this house which I have built!” (I Kgs. 8:27).
a. Since space involves the relationship between things, and God is the creator of all
things and space as a consequence, it then follows that God is greater than space.
b. God’s omnipresence is part of His immensity. Shedd declares: “Omnipresence has
respect to the universe of created beings and things; so space as filled. Immensity
has reference to this, and to what is beyond.” 49 Berkhof explains: “‘Immensity’
points to the fact that God transcends all space and is not subject to its
limitations, while ‘omnipresence’ denotes that He nevertheless fills every part of
space with His entire being.” 50
c. God is immeasurable and transcends our spacial/temporal terms of measurement.
John Dagg writes that, “the essence of God is immense or unmeasured, . . .
because it is spiritual, and, therefore without such dimensions as may be measured
by feet and inches; and because, in whatever sense dimensions may be ascribed to
it, these dimensions are boundless.” 51
d. Concerning Solomon’s understanding of God’s immensity described in I Kings
8:27, Charnock adds: “Considering the immensity of God’s essence, [Solomon]
wonders that God should order a house to be built for him. . . . He that is not
contained in the heavens, as a man is in a chamber, is without, and above, and
beyond the heavens; it is not said they do not contain him, but it is impossible
they should contain him, they ‘cannot contain him.’“ 52
2. What practical lessons then should we learn from God’s immensity, that is His
surpassing presence, as described by Solomon in I Kings 8:27?
a. Whatever difficulty we may have in grasping such infinite truth, yet we are
assured by Solomon in I Kings 8:28-53 that this immense God is no less gracious
and merciful.
b. Though God be immense, yet this perfection never hinders the particular focus of
His omnipresence, specifically by means of His “eyes” and “ears,” upon the
penitent groans of His children (I Kings 8:28-53).
c. This God of Israel alone is to be worshiped. There cannot be two immense gods.
To regard any other god is to insult His unique greatness (I Kings 8:59-60).
49 Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, p. 340.
50 Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 61.
51 John L. Dagg, Manual Of Theology, p. 62.
52 Charnock, Works, I, pp. 431-2.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 157
(1) He is to be worshiped with obedience to His commandments (I Kings 8:61).
(2) He is to be worshiped with acceptable sacrifices (I Kings 8:62-64; 9:1-5).
d. However God may condescend to accommodate Himself to man’s material/
temporal/spacial existence by dwelling in a temple, yet the excellence of His
spiritual and essential immensity must always be our greater focus and concern.
H. GOD IS IMMANENT - INFINITE WITHIN CREATION
1. By way of definition, God is intimately and actively present within His creation; He is
very near and close by His creatures in particular (Acts 17:26-28).
a. Immanence is an attribute of God coexisting with His transcendence (Gen. 1:2;
2:7; Job 27:3; 33:4; 34:14-15; Isa. 63:11; Jer. 23:24; Mic. 3:8; Hag. 2:5).
b. While God is omnipresent, His immanence focuses attention upon a close
relationship with His creation. In the material sphere it is a real pervasive
presence. In the sphere of the creature it is a real personal presence.
c. The immanence of God is only properly regarded when it is comprehended along
with equal regard for God’s transcendence. True worship of the God who indwells
the believing heart only retains a right sense of awe and reverence when we realize
that this same God inhabits eternity. “For thus says the High and Lofty One who
inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him
who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to
revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isa. 57:15 NKJV).
2. The comprehension of God as immanent with little regard for His transcendence, His
beyondness, is associated with a variety of doctrinal errors, cults, and major world
religions.
a. Pantheism. God is all, and all is God. Hence the universe is God; He is without
personality, while being the substance of all things. Pantheistic religions include:
(1) Hinduism. The one divine essence is Brahma, a neuter divine power or
world-soul. Hence, all the world is Brahma, even the soul of man, which
must come to this realization through the process of reincarnation.
Brahamans are the highest cast of Hindu priests.
(2) Buddhism. Having a kinship with Hinduism, man as part of the universal
consciousness aspires to enlightenment through successive reincarnations
within nature. Past experiences or karma are transcended when nirvana is
attained, the extinction of individuality.
(3) Christian Science. Mary Baker Eddy taught that God is Divine Principle,
Life, Truth, Love, Soul, Spirit, Mind. God is good and good is God. The only
reality and existence is Divine Mind and His ideas. As a consequence, evil,
sin, sickness are non-reality.

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b. Classic Liberalism. There is no sacred/secular distinction since God is naturally
rather than supernaturally at work in all the world. “God is within nature rather
than beyond or outside it.” 53
c. Relational theology. God is subjectively comprehended as the ground of allimportant
human interpersonal relationships. Egocentric and utilitarian emphases
restrict objective holy reverence.
I. GOD IS TRANSCENDENT - INFINITE BEYOND CREATION
1. By way of definition, God is beyond and above all of creation. The majesty of His
regnant glory surpasses both matter and the natural world. Thus according to
Erickson, “God is separate from and independent of nature and humanity.” 54 In
particular, His supremacy places Him above all rational creatures (Job 11:7-8; Isa.
55:8-9; I Tim. 6:13-16).
a. Transcendence is an attribute of God coexisting with His immanence (Ex. 15:11;
Ps. 90:1-2; 115:3-6; Isa. 40:22-25; 66:1; Hab. 2:20; Eph. 4:6).
b. While God is omnipresent, His transcendence focuses attention upon Him as
being inexpressibly distinct from His creation. In the material sphere, His perfect
spirituality presents a radical distinction. In the sphere of the creature, His holy
attributes declare Him to be unspeakably lofty.
c. The transcendence of God is only properly regarded when it is comprehended
along with equal regard for God’s immanence. When Isaiah was overwhelmingly
confronted with “the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted” (Isa. 6:1), yet
that same God condescended to mediate particular grace to a smitten sinner (Isa.
6:6-7).
d. By way of illustration, Tozer well instructs and warns us when he writes:
We must not think of God as highest in an ascending order of beings, starting with
the single cell and going on up from the fish to the bird to the animal to man to
angel to cherub to God. This would be to grant God eminence, even pre-eminence,
but that is not enough; we must grant Him transcendence in the fullest meaning of
that word. Forever God stands apart, in light unapproachable, . . . Conversely, the
self-assurance of modern Christians, the basic levity present in so many of our
religious gatherings, the shocking disrespect shown for the Person of God, are
evidence enough of deep blindness of heart. Many call themselves by the name of
Christ, talk much about God, and pray to Him sometimes, but evidently do not
know who He is. “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,” but this healing fear is
today hardly found among Christian men. 55
53 Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, pp. 304-6.
54 Ibid., p. 312.
55 Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy, pp. 76, 78.

THE INFINITY OF GOD 159
2. The comprehension of God as transcendent with little regard for His immanence is
associated with a variety of doctrinal errors, cults, and major world religions.
a. Gnosticism. This early church heresy comprehended the Supreme Being, or the
Absolute as ineffably and exclusively spiritual. Consequently, this Being was
utterly separate from matter since it was believed to be intrinsically evil.
b. Mohammedanism. Since “God is great,” man must bow with awe and obedience.
However, there is no gracious, spiritual union with Allah that prompts the child of
God to pray, “My Father, . . .”
c. Deism. Although God is personal and Creator, a denial of the Trinity reflects His
more remote involvement with this present world. Like a clock, God has wound
up our immediate universe so as to let it run without His close, hovering,
brooding concern.
d. Neo-orthodoxy. For Soren Kierkegard, Karl Barth, and Emil Brunner, God is
transcendent existentially rather than objectively. Hence existential faith is placed
in the real living Word (Jesus Christ) rather than inscripturated, propositional
truth.
3. Since both God’s immanence and transcendence ought to be comprehended together,
the following implications of each attribute are likewise considered together. 56
a. The implications of God’s immanence.
(1) God is not limited to working directly to accomplish His purposes.
(2) God may use persons and organizations, not even being avowedly Christian.
(3) We should have an appreciation for all that God has created.
(4) We can learn something about God from His creation.
(5) God’s nearness has gospel relevance for the unbeliever.
b. The implications of God’s transcendence.
(1) God, being higher than man, cannot be completely framed in human terms.
(2) Our salvation is not our achievement. He must descend to deliver.
(3) There will always be a difference between God and man.
(4) Reverence is appropriate in our relationship with God.
(5) We will look for genuinely transcendent working by God beyond nature.
56 Erickson, Christian Theology, pp. 311-12, 317-19.

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER XI
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
1. “Ontology” involves the study of “being” or “existence,” though here we are focusing
on “personal existence” and its origin in the personal existence of God. As being has its
root in the eternal and original being of God, so man’s derived being comes from that
same source. Therefore, to properly understand personal human being, one must first
understand the only personal God. Secular, humanistic, philosophic contemplation of
personal being tends to be grounded upon man, that is subjective speculation, inward
contemplation as to what is meant when I declare, “I am.” Of course such a focus
purposely puts aside the priority of being as originating in God. In this study, personal
being, as grounded in the being of God, is defined according to objective revelation.
2. God is a particular being with self-consciousness, self-determination, and selfmanifestation,
which entities will be considered in more detail in Chapter XII titled,
“The Personality of God.” Further, He is distinguished as the only person with
existence that is underived, without origin. All other being is derived from the eternal,
independent, self-sustaining being of God, either directly or indirectly. Hence, His
personal name is fittingly, “I AM WHO I AM” (Exod. 3:14).
3. The God of the Bible is distinctively personal. Erickson points out that there is no
personal deity in a number of Eastern religions. He quotes G. T. Manley on Hinduism,
who writes: “In Hinduism, reality is Brahma, the whole, of which we are individual
parts or Atman. One does not relate to reality by turning outward, as to an individual
person. One rather withdraws, inward, through a process of contemplation. The aim of
this process is to lose one’s own individual identity and self-consciousness, to be in
effect absorbed into the whole. Nirvana is the stage at which all individual striving
ceases, and one becomes simply at rest. The biblical view is quite different. Here God is
personal. He is an individual being, with self-consciousness and will, capable of feeling,
choosing, and having a reciprocal relationship with other personal and social beings.” 1
B. GOD IS SELF-EXISTENT
1. Introduction.
The gods of mankind originate or come into being, whether by material construction or
mental conception, whereas the eternal, self-existent God of the Bible has always
existed.
1 Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, pp. 268-9.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 161
a. Idols of wood and stone are carved, hewn, and manufactured. Hence, they are
reliant upon an originator or maker. Idols of the intellect are likewise conceived
by the mind, then modified by mental chiseling, and ultimately shelved or
exchanged or remodeled as circumstances dictate. Similarly they are reliant upon a
creator. Therefore, it follows that the originator ought to be more revered than
that which he originates. These idols then were never worthy or reverence to begin
with. Such idolatry is often self-worship by proxy.
b. But someone will protest, “Then where did the God of the Bible come from?” To
this we first reply, “God is self-existent and has always been; he never came into
existence.” Second, we then enquire, “Now tell us where matter has come from.”
If we are told, “Matter just came into being,” then we pursue the nature of the
originating source. To postulate an endless chain of coming into being is not
satisfactory; it suggests a de facto realm of the eternal. But if we are told, and this
is a much more likely response, “Matter has always existed,” then we answer,
“Our preference is to believe in an eternal, personal, self-existent God, rather than
eternal, impersonal, self-existent matter.” Strong makes the same point as follows:
“Self-existence is certainly incomprehensible to us, yet a self-existent person is no
greater mystery than a self-existent thing, such as Herbert Spencer supposes the
universe to be; indeed it is not so great a mystery, for it is easier to derive matter
from mind than to derive mind from matter.” 2
2. The meaning of God’s self-existence.
a. God has aseity or underived existence. That is, He is without origin and as a
consequence is absolutely independent. He has not known causation, so that He is
not answerable to anyone or anything. He is eternally grounded in Himself.
(1) In II Corinthians 9:8 we are told, “God is able to make all grace abound to
you, that [He] always having [self-]sufficiency in everything, you may have
an abundance for every good deed.” The Greek compound here, aujtavrkeia,
autarkeia, stresses “self-sufficiency” (cf. I Tim. 6:6). Likewise consider John
5:26 where “the Father has life in Himself” (cf. Ps. 36:9; 90:1-2; Eph. 1:5).
(2) It is not correct to say that God is self-originating or His own cause. In His
essence He has not in any sense been caused. However, it would be true to
say that He is self-sustaining, self-perpetuating.
(3) God’s self-existence is fully satisfactory to Himself. Hence, He is both selfsufficient
and all-sufficient. This means He is never lonely, needful, or
unfulfilled, especially when His triunity is taken into consideration.
b. By way of illustration, Arthur Pink writes: “’In the beginning, God’ (Gen. 1:1).
There was a time, if ‘time’ it could be called, when . . . there was nothing, no one,
but God; and that, not for a day, a year, or an age, but ‘from everlasting.’ During
a past eternity, God was alone; self-contained, self-sufficient, self-satisfied; in need
of nothing. Had a universe, had angels, had human beings been necessary to Him
2 Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 257.

162
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
in any way, they also had been called into existence from all eternity. The creating
of them when He did, added nothing to God essentially.” 3
c. God’s self-existence is variously manifest in
(1) His name (Exod. 3:13-15; 6:6-8).
(2) His thought (Rom. 11:33-34).
(3) His will (Dan. 4:35; Rom. 9:19).
(4) His counsel (Ps. 33:11).
3. The practical importance of God’s self-existence.
a. God does not lack satisfaction in relationships as does uneasy man.
(1) While God is solitary and essentially one, yet within the triunity of God the
Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, there is perfect personal
fellowship (John 1:18; 3:35; 14:16-17, 26). Consequently, God did not create
man because of lack in His eternal existence, but rather so that His glory
might be displayed (John 15:8; Rom. 15:5-6; I Pet. 4:11). Thus Jonathan
Edwards explains in his The End For Which God Created The World that,
“the great end of God’s works, which is so variously expressed in Scripture,
is indeed but ONE; and this one end is most properly and comprehensively
called, THE GLORY OF GOD.” 4
(2) However, man is dependent since he has a ground of existence outside of
himself, namely the eternal God of all creation. Hence, man is unfulfilled
unless he yields in humble submission to this relationship. This means that
the shoulder of the eternal God is the only place for man to find stable
support and lasting acceptance (Isa. 57:15). Any other shoulder has weakness
in that it also is dependent as a creature. By way of illustration, consider
Tozer’s call for reassessment of our current understanding of the selfsufficient
God:
3 Arthur W. Pink, The Attributes of God, p. 9.
Almighty God, just because He is almighty, needs no support. The picture of a
nervous, ingratiating God fawning over men to win their favor is not a
pleasant one; yet if we look at the popular conception of God that is precisely
what we see. Twentieth- century Christianity has put God on charity. So lofty
is our opinion of ourselves that we find it quite easy, not to say enjoyable, to
believe that we are necessary to God. . . . Too many missionary appeals are
based upon this fancied frustration of Almighty God. An effective speaker can
easily excite pity in his hearers, not only for the heathen but for the God who
has tried so hard and so long to save them and has failed for want of support. I
fear that thousands of young persons enter Christian service from no higher
motive than to help deliver God from the embarrassing situation His love has
gotten Him into and His limited abilities seem unable to get Him out of. . . .
4 Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, I, p. 119.

C. GOD IS SPIRITUAL
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 163
Let us not imagine that the truth of the divine self-sufficiency will paralyze
Christian activity. . . . For the blessed news is that the God who needs no one
has in sovereign condescension stooped to work by and in and through His
obedient children. 5
1. Introduction. Consider the opposite terms “spirit” and “matter” as they are generally
used, and then attempt to define their distinctive nature.
a. Matter is material that has mass, that coheres in occupying space, that is physical.
Matter that has uniform properties is called substance.
b. Spirit is immaterial, living being, intelligent power that is incorporeal, invisible to
material perception. There is a danger here that objective terms will distort true
definition. The most common analogies are those of “wind” and “breath,” which
terms are at the root of the primary biblical words for spirit, namely j'Wr, rûwach,
Hebrew, and, pneu`ma, pneuma, Greek.
c. Charles Hodge comments: “It is impossible, therefore, to overestimate the
importance of the truth contained in the simple proposition, God is a Spirit [John
4:24]. . . . None of the properties of matter can be predicated of Him. He is not
extended or divisible, or compounded, or visible, or tangible. He has neither bulk
nor form.” 6
2. God is essentially, distinctively, transcendently spirit.
a. God is essentially spirit, that is, “God is spirit,” pneu`ma oJ qeov", pneuma ho theos
(John 4:24), NASB, NKJV, NIV, and not, “God is a Spirit” KJV.
(1) Since “pneuma” is in the emphatic position and without the definite article,
so Westcott concludes, supported by Hendriksen and Morris, that, “the
nature and not the personality of God is described.” 7 The Apostle John
makes similar inferences in John 1:18; 5:37; I John 4:12.
(2) Westcott also suggests that John’s understanding of God as spirit is derived
from Isaiah 31:3; 8 note the parallelism here. In this verse, Jehovah is
described as “spirit” or “rûwach,” Hebrew, in contrast with the flesh of the
Egyptians and their horses.
b. God is distinctively spirit, being eternal and underived. Hence, He is “the Father
of spirits” (Heb. 12:9), the source of man as a spiritual being.
5 A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, pp. 40-1, 43.
6 Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, I, pp. 378-9.
7 B. F. Westcott, The Gospel According to St. John, p. 73. Also William Hendriksen, The Gospel of John, p.
168; Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, pp. 271-2.
8 Ibid., p. 73.

164
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(1) The spirituality of God is not merely a character trait, but a description of
His unique, essential being, which is yet reflected. Charnock explains that,
“God is a most spiritual spirit, more spiritual than all angels, all souls. . . . Ss
he exceeds all in the nature of being, so he exceeds all in the nature of
spirit.” 9
(2) God is pure spirit, having no necessary connection with matter, 10 or
contamination or limitation. While there are finite spirit beings, both good
(Zech. 6:5; Heb. 1:13-14) and bad (Mark 1:27; I Tim. 4:1), yet only God is
most pure spirit, essentially and incomparably.
(3) While God is variously described to finite man in anthropomorphic terms,
yet He remains pure spirit without in reality being composed of material
parts or organs. 11 His essence as spirit has no bodily form, while in the
person of the Son, as theophany (Gen. 32:24-30); Josh. 5:13-15) or
incarnation (John 1:14; Phil. 2:5-8), He is clothed in bodily form.
c. God is transcendently spirit, “the blessed and only Sovereign, . . . who alone
possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light; who no man has seen
or can see” (I Tim. 6:15-16; cf. Job 37:22-23). “s such, worship “in spirit and
truth” alone is fitting to His person.
Thou art, O God! “ Spirit pure.
Invisible to mortal eyes;
The immortal, and the eternal King,
The great, the good, the only wise.
My soul, thy purest homage pay,
In truth and spirit Him adore;
More shall this please than sacrifice,
Than outward forms delight Him more.
3. The practical importance of the spirituality of God.
a. The communication of spiritual life to man.
(1) While man is composed of both material and immaterial parts, yet the Bible
declares that his immaterial/soulish/spiritual core is most fundamental to his
being (Gen. 2:7; Matt. 10:28;16:26; II Cor. 4:16; 5:1-8; II Pet. 1:13-15).
(a) Material man is made “of the dust from the ground” (Gen. 2:7a), and is
designated as an “earthly vessel” (II Cor. 5:1). However, the fall has
rendered this body of flesh as polluted and corrupt (I Cor. 15:50, 53).
(b) Immaterial man is derived from the breath of God after His image (Gen.
1:26-27; 2:7). Hence, at his core, man originates from the spiritual life
9 Stephen Charnock, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, I, p. 263.
10 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 149-50.
11 James Petigrew Boyce, Abstract of Systematic Theology, pp. 63-4.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 165
of God, and as such was, in his innocence, a spiritual being in
fellowship with God (Gen. 3:8-9). However, the invisible, spiritual
“inner man” (Eph. 3:16), may be divided into two further parts, namely
“spirit and soul” (I Thess. 5:23; cf. Heb. 4:12). Certainly they are
closely related to each other.
1) The soul of a man is that distinctive, superior, complex, selfconscious
format of his immaterial being, that is in advance of the
simple format of animals. According to Leviticus 24:18, an animal
has a distinct soul, nephesh, Hebrew, which the NASB translates as
“life.”
2) The spirit of a man, united with his soul, is that distinguishing
“God-conscious power that elevates the human personality so that
it might commune with God. Consider Shedd’s explanation. 12
(c) This trichotomous, three-fold partition of man, namely into “body,
soul, and spirit,” contrasts with the dichotomous partition of “body and
soul.” While “spirit” and “soul” are at times used interchangeably
(Heb. 12:23; Rev. 6:9), yet an intentional distinction seems clear in I
Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 4:12.
(d) But can fallen man yet retain an active spirit? Yes, in that his spirit is
dead to God along with his body and soul, but not extinct. When man’s
spirit is made alive to God through Christ, “the last “dam . . . a lifegiving
spirit” (I Cor. 15:45), then he may truly be described as
“spiritual” (I Cor. 2:15; Gal. 6:1).
(2) The significance of the spiritual nature of man.
(a) It demands the rejection of the claim of the atheist, humanist, and
Marxist-socialist, that man is solely of material and molecular
composition, sans any spiritual or soulish component.
(b) It demands the rejection of the abortionist’s claim that the unborn child
is merely fetal tissue.
(c) It demands the rejection of the behaviourist’s claim that man may be
conditioned to respond after the manner of Pavlov’s dog.
(d) It demands the rejection of the evolutionist’s claim which would require
that matter gradually attained a spiritual dimension or awareness.
(e) It demands the proper acceptance of man’s nobility in relation to other
animals, and his only hope of spiritual fulfillment when reconciled to
God through Christ (II Cor. 5:19-21).
12 William G. T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, II, pp. 656-8.

166
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
b. The regulation of spiritual worship by man.
(1) From the very birth of the nation of Israel, God prohibited the worship of
Himself by means of material representation (Ex. 20:3-6; cf. Deut. 5:7-10).
Idolatry constituted man’s arrogant attempt to finitely portray the infinite
God, with only degrading and perverted results.
(a) A modern, but conservative, Jewish commentary declares concerning
Exodus 20:4: “Judaism alone, from the very beginning, taught that God
was a Spirit; and made it an unpardonable sin to worship God under
any external form that human hands can fashion.” 13
(b) Calvin comments concerning the Second Commandment: “God’s glory
is corrupted by an impious falsehood whenever any form is attached to
him.” 14 “gain he declares: “He [God] wholly calls us back and
withdraws us from petty carnal observances, which our stupid minds,
crassly conceiving of God, are wont to devise. And then he makes us
conform to his lawful worship, that is a spiritual worship established by
himself. . . . [He] restrains our license from daring to subject God, who
is incomprehensible, to our sense perceptions, or to represent him by
any form.” 15
(2) In John 4:20-24, there are significant consequences that are derived from
comprehending the spirituality of God.
(a) Spiritual worship is not geographic, material or formal, vs. 20-21.
1) J. I. Packer explains: “The true condition of acceptable worship is
not that your feet should be standing in either Jerusalem or
Samaria, or anywhere else for that matter, but that your heart
should be responsive to His revelation.” 16
2) Attempts by man to stimulate a “worshipful atmosphere” by
physical means such as lighting, audio effects, drapery, metal or
wooden furniture, vestments, bodily movements, architecture, etc.,
are to be repudiated. Indeed they become sophisticated
manifestations of idolatry. Refer again to Packer. 17
(b) Spiritual worship is based upon revealed truth, not mere tradition,
sentiment, sensuality, personal preference or ingenuity, v. 22.
1) Jesus plainly tells the woman at Jacob’s well that the Samaritans
were ignorant and in error concerning their claims with regard to
13 J. H. Hertz, ed., The Pentateuch And Haftorahs, p. 295.
14 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, I, XI, 1
15 Ibid., II, VIII, 17.
16 J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 109.
17 Ibid., pp. 38-44.

18 Charnock, Works, I, p. 291.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 167
Mt. Gerazim. “[The] salvation is from the Jews,” means that the
Hebrew Scriptures alone, endowed to Israel, are the true revelation
of Messianic salvation (Ps. 147:19-20; Isa. 2:3; Rom. 3:1-2; 9:3-5).
2) Similarly in vs. 23-24, true worship is to be, “in spirit and truth
[emphasis added].” We are only to worship the true God revealed
by propositional statements in the Bible, whose nature being spirit,
demands corresponding spiritual esteem and adoration.
(c) Spiritual worship, inaugurated by Jesus Christ, is a new and superior
mode when compared with the worship of Israel in the Old Testament,
v. 23.
1) It is new covenant, gospel centered, heavenly worship (Acts 2:42;
Eph. 1:3).
2) It is worship that has done away with former carnal/racial
distinctions through the one body of Christ (Matt. 27:51; Eph.
2:11-18).
3) It is worship that is animated by God’s outpoured Holy Spirit (I
Cor. 12:13; II Cor. 13:14; Eph. 4:4).
4) By way of illustration, Charnock states that,
the whole [old] economy consisted in sensible and material things
which only touched the flesh; it is called ‘the letter,’ and the ‘oldness
of the letter’ (Rom. 7:6). . . . The gospel hath an efficacious spirit
attending it, strongly working upon the mind and will, and molding
the soul into a spiritual frame for God. 18
(d) Spiritual worship is according to God’s terms, especially the demands of
His spiritual being, and not those of human determination, v. 24.
1) Man may devise forms of worship such as “fig leaves” (Gen. 3:7),
“the fruit of the ground” (Gen. 4:3), and “lip service” that
“consists of tradition learned by rote” (Is. 29:13), but God is not
impressed or pleased.
2) Charnock further comments concerning spiritual worship:
Worship is nothing else but a rendering to God the honor that is
due to him, and therefore the right posture of our spirits in it is as
much or more due than the material worship in the modes of his
own prescribing. . . . One spiritual evangelical believing breath is
more delightful to God that millions of altars made up of the richest
pearls, and smoking with the costliest oblations, because it is
spiritual; and a mite of spirit is of more worth than the greatest
weight of flesh. . . . The heart must first be cast into the mould of

168
D. GOD IS LIVING
1. Introduction.
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
the gospel, before it can perform a worship required by the gospel. .
. . “ll worship issuing from a dead nature, is but a dead service. “
living action cannot be performed without being knit to a living
root. . . . God being a Spirit, calls for a worship in spirit: to
withhold this from him, implies him to be some gross corporeal
matter. “s a Spirit, he looks for the heart, a wrestling heart in
prayer, a trembling heart in the word (Isa. 66:2). 19
3) By way of application, true worship is not a matter of taste, of
personal preference for contemporary or traditional style, of an
inclination for material and symbolic representation as some
suggest. The Lord Jesus here does not offer options, but a mandate
for heart worship that needs no artificial props or set rubric or
liturgical form. Such worship can take place in a Roman catacomb,
a prison cell, a home meeting, or a plain mission hall. Certainly
ventilation, acoustics, heating, necessary furniture have practical
importance; however, they are but as clothing to the body; they
facilitate worship, though they do not produce it. Pure worship is
in “the beauty of holiness” (Ps. 29:2).
While this world is confronted with the claims of many gods, yet the God of the Bible
is chiefly distinguished as “the living God” (Jer. 10:6-10). “ll other gods are dead,
impotent, without personal characteristics (Deut. 4:28; Ps. 115:4-7; Isa. 45:20).
a. The only God is not dead, but alive (Ps. 42:2; 84:2; 106:28).
b. The only God is not asleep, but awake (Hab. 2:19-20).
c. The only God is not mute, but vocal (Deut. 5:26; I Cor. 12:2).
d. The only God is not passive, but active (Dan. 6:26-27).
2. Definition.
God has underived, eternal personal energy that is the source of self-motion and
activity; it is related to His ability to be self-conscious. Strong comments that “life is
mental energy, or energy of intellect, affection, and will. God is the living God, as
having in his own being a source of being and activity, both for himself and others.” 20
While plants have life, as do animals to a greater degree, yet, as Gill explains,
19 Ibid., pp. 289, 295, 299, 335.
there is an higher degree of life still, which is in rational creatures, angels, and the souls of
men; by which they are capable not only of operating on bodies, on matter, without them,
20 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 251-2.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 169
but of performing acts within themselves, by a self-motion, suitable to their nature as
spirits, and rational ones; such as to understand, to will, to choose, and refuse; love and
hate, &c. which may be called the motions of the mind; as the first thoughts of, and
inclinations to sin, are called, motions (KJV, Rom. 7:5). 21
a. The life of God is “in Himself” (John 5:26). Charnock adds:
He hath life in his essence, not by participation. He is a sun to give light and life to
all creatures, but receives not light or life from anything, and therefore he hath
unlimited life; not a drop of life, but a fountain; not a spark of a limited life, but a
life transcending all bounds. He hath life in himself; all creatures have their life in
him, and from him. . . . “ll life is seated in God, as in its proper throne, in its most
perfect purity. God is life; it is in him originally, radically, therefore eternally. 22
b. The life of God is revealed in:
(1) His distinctive, personal name, “I AM” (Ex. 3:14). The point here is not only
that God exists eternally, self-sufficiently, but also that He Himself actively
declares His existence.
(2) His activity, that is in contrast with the “activity” of humanly contrived
gods. What so impressed King Darius, at the deliverance of Daniel from the
lion’s den, was God’s evident saving zeal. “s a consequence, he made a decree
concerning the God of Daniel: “He is the living God and enduring forever, . .
. He delivers and rescues and performs signs and wonders in heaven and on
earth, Who has also delivered Daniel from the power of the lions” (Dan.
6:26-27).
(3) His triunity, in which all three persons of the Godhead have the same
essential life that yet exists in economic relations.
(a) God the Father is living ((John 5:26; 6:57).
(b) God the Son is living (John 5:26; 6:57).
(c) God the Holy Spirit is living (Ezek. 37:11-14; II Cor. 3:6; Rev. 11:11).
3. God is life-giving, that is He communicates His life (“cts 17:27-28).
a. This life is imparted to various categories of His creation.
(1) God gives vegetative life, such as to plants and trees (Gen. 1:11-12).
(2) God gives animal life, such as to fish, birds, insects, cattle, reptiles, beasts,
and even man at the physical level (Gen. 1:20-21, 24-25, 26-27).
(3) God gives personal life, such as to angels and mankind.
21 John Gill, Body of Divinity, p. 36.
22 Charnock, Works, I, p. 356.

170
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(a) Both good and bad angels have life from God (Col. 1:16-17).
(b) Both elect and reprobate men have life from God (Col. 1:16-17).
1) The elect have, “everything pertaining to life and godliness” (II Pet.
1:3).
2) The reprobate have active, conscious participation in “the lake of
fire and brimstone, . . . forever and ever” (Rev. 20:10, 15).
(4) God gives eternal life, that is to erstwhile dead, then repentant and believing
sinners (John 6:35; 10:27-28; 17:2; Rom 5:20-21; Eph. 2:1-6).
(a) This eternal life is the knowledge of union and communion with the
only true God (John 17:3; I John 5:19-20).
(b) This eternal life is mediated through Jesus Christ (John 3:16; I John
5:11).
(c) This eternal life is the gracious gift of God received through faith in
Christ crucified (John 3:14-16; Rom. 6:23; I Tim. 1:16; I John 5:11).
b. This life is imparted throughout the course of human history.
(1) To animal creatures first, limited life (Gen. 1:20-25).
(2) To subsequent innocent humanity, untested life (Gen. 1:26-27; 2:7).
(3) To fallen humanity, temporal life (Gen. 2:16-17; 3:17-19).
(4) To national Israel, covenantal life (Deut. 5:26; Josh. 3:10; Isa. 44:1-3; Hos.
1:10; Mal. 3:6).
(5) To the church of Jesus Christ, eternal life (Matt. 16:16-18; I Tim. 3:15;
4:10).
c. This life is imparted for the praise of His glory.
(1) By way of illustration, Calvin encourages us reverently to appreciate both
earthly life and eternal life as follows:
(a) Concerning earthly life:
If we recognize in it [earthly life] no divine benefit, we are guilty of grave
ingratitude toward God himself. For believers especially, this [earthly life]
ought to be a testimony of divine benevolence, wholly destined, as it is, to
promote their salvation. For before he shows us openly the inheritance of
eternal glory, God wills by lesser proofs to show himself to be our Father.
These are the benefits that are daily conferred on us by him. Since,
therefore, this life serves us in understanding God’s goodness, should we
despise it as if it had no grain of good in itself? We must, then, become so

23 Calvin, Institutes, III, IX, 3.
24 Ibid., I, XIII, 14.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 171
disposed and minded that we count it among those gifts of divine
generosity which are not at all to be rejected. 23
(b) Concerning eternal life: “It is the Spirit who, everywhere diffused,
sustains all things, causes them to grow, and quickens them in heaven
and in earth. . . . “gain, if regeneration into incorruptible life is higher
and much more excellent than any present growth, what ought we to
think of him from whose power it proceeds?” 24
(2) Why has God given life to man? Is it merely for the purpose of him enjoying
the exhilaration of personal existence as he exclaims, “It is good to be
alive!”? According to the Bible, the answer must be an emphatic “No!”, for
Scripture declares that God has given life to man so that he might, before
anything else, praise his Maker. “ living creation, but especially living
persons, shall best praise the living, personal God.
(a) The Book of Psalms, or Book of Praises, to use its Hebrew title,
continually reiterates the thought, “I will sing to the Lord as long as I
live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being” (Ps. 104:33; cf.
Ps. 63:4; 119:175; 146:2).
1) When the soul of man is awakened to the source of its life (Ps.
36:5-9), it cannot but respond with an eruption of thankful praise
and adoration (Ps. 66:8-9).
2) When the soul of man finds its only satisfaction in the life of God
(Ps. 42:1, 8), it passionately exhorts the whole creation, “Let
everything that has breath [life] praise the Lord” (Ps. 150:6).
(b) By way of illustration, Isaac Watts wrote a hymn based upon Psalm 146
which became a favorite of the founder of Methodism. John Wesley
made several minor changes to the wording, and on his death-bed was
repeatedly heard to attempt to gasp forth the lines:
I’ll praise my Maker while I’ve breath;
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler powers:
My days of praise shall ne’er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
Or immortality endures.

172
E. GOD IS IMMUTABLE
1. Introduction.
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
For man who is restless, wavering, variable, fluctuating, it is difficult for him to
comprehend that God is stable, constant, invariable, immutable. Yet it is basic to the
problem of this disquiet and agitation in man’s soul, that his salvation from unrest is
only to be found in the unchanging, steadfast God of the Bible (Ps. 102:11-12, 25-27).
a. Strangely, it would seem that unregenerate man, being akin to the tempestuous,
restless sea (Isa. 57:20), is so averse to the undeviating God of Scripture that he
attempts to change the Changeless One to our changing mood!
(1) Today, God has become the object of man’s proud scrutiny and
modification, not the sovereign Subject beneath whom man reverently bows,
confessing semper idem, “always the same.”
(2) Man, in professing to be wise, has attempted to change, or exchange, the
revelation of the true, unvarying God for material or mental images that need
frequent updating (Ps. 106:19-20; Jer. 2:11; Rom. 1:22-23, 25).
(3) By way of illustration, the God who declared homosexuality and lesbianism
to be unnatural and depraved is now described as being receptive to this
behavior. The God who established distinctive male and female roles is now
declared to be supportive of male and female egalitarianism.
b. However, man’s fidgeting, moody ways are reflective of his treadmill existence
which, apart from the true and living God, is forever frustrating and
unsatisfactory (Eccl. 1:3-11; 2:1-23; 6:1-12).
(1) Man lusts for change, variety, modernity in place of what he describes as
stale and old-fashioned, while the consumer industry fans this endless craving
for Athenian novelty (Acts 17:21).
(2) By way of illustration, the fashion industry thrives on alternating low and
high hemlines, wide and narrow neckties, floral and plain designs, etc. The
automobile industry regularly styles its vehicles with curved and sharp
features. Inbuilt obsolescence further caters to change.
(3) But man’s continuous appetite for greener pastures, new horizons, a fresh
start, or simply tomorrow, is never satisfied until he heeds the invitation of
the unchanging Christ, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden,
and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28; cf. John 4:13-14). This is the Savior
who is “the same yesterday and today, and forever” (Heb. 13:8).
(4) By way of illustration, in his famous hymn “Abide With Me,” Henry Lyte
vividly contrasts Gods unchangeableness with a changing world.
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day,
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 173
Change and decay in all around I see,
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
2. The immutability of God in a world of change.
a. By way of definition, God does not change in His essential being, that is in His
nature, attributes, and purposes. He is constant, invariable, without mutation
(Mal. 3:6).
25 Charnock, Works, I, p. 382.
(1) By way of illustration, in biological science, a mutation results from inherent
genetic change, that is variation in genetic structure. Hence, while God acts
variously and differently, and not merely repetitively, yet His essential
character does not mutate. God’s distinguishing traits (perfections) never
alter; He is essentially, always of the same essence.
(2) Immutability arises from other attributes, especially God’s self-existence,
simplicity, spirituality, and eternity. In this regard Charnock comments:
[God] is unalterably fixed in his being, that not a particle of it can be lost from
it, not a mite added to it. . . . In God there can be no alteration by the
accession [addition] of anything to make his substance greater or better, or by
diminution [subtraction] to make it less or worse; he who hath no being from
another cannot but be always what he is. God is the first being, an independent
being; he was not produced of himself, or of any other, but by nature always
hath been, and therefore cannot by himself, or by any other, be changed from
what he is in his own nature. . . . Again, because he is a Spirit, he is not subject
to those mutations which are found in corporeal and bodily natures; because
he is an absolutely simple Spirit, not having the least particle of composition,
he is not capable of those changes which may be in created spirits. 25
(3) God is the Father of the heavens with its luminaries that cast ever-changing
shadows. But He does not change in the slightest (Jas. 1:17).
(4) God does not improve, modify, or deteriorate, nor does He gain new
attributes. There is no development or obsolescence in His character. God is
eternally modern, mature, relevant, never old-fashioned.
(5) God is exactly the same God who Israel worshiped in the past (I Kings 8:23;
Ps. 72:18-19; Matt. 15:29-31), and the church shall worship in the future
(Acts 3:12-13; Rev. 4:1-11).
(a) The God of the Old Testament, of Adam, Noah, Moses, David,
Solomon, and Elijah, is exactly the same as the God of the New
Testament, of Jesus of Nazareth, Peter, James, John, and Paul.
(b) Progressive revelation is the gradual unveiling of the developing
purposes of an unchanging God, not the gradual unveiling of the
developing character of an evolving God.

174
26 Ibid.
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(c) God’s sameness today, as yesterday, does not guarantee the same events
as yesterday. However, He is the same whatever and whenever various
events may occur.
(6) God is unchanging in all of His attributes. The unity of His being is eternally
invariable.
(a) God is as holy today as He was when manifest on Mt. Sinai (Ex. 19:16-
20) and before Isaiah (Is. 6:1-5), as well as when envisaged by John the
Apostle on the island of Patmos (Rev. 1:1-19). God was as gracious
during the days of Noah (Gen. 6:8) as He is today.
(b) But while God does not change in His essence, yet His administration of
the universe does change or vary. God created the universe, then He
rested at its completion and continues to maintain it. God is eternally
gracious, and only and ever saves by grace. However His revelation and
management of this grace has differed (Heb. 10:1-10).
b. The constancy and stability of God’s nature are further known by:
(1) His distinctive and personal name, “Jehovah.” Charnock reasons: “It could
not be truly said by [God] himself, I am that I am (Ex. 3:14), if he were such
a thing or being at this time, and a different being at another time.” 26
(2) His Word, promises and covenants (Gen. 17:6-8; II Sam. 7:1-29; I Kings
8:23; Ps. 119:89, 152; Isa. 40:8). It is especially significant in Malachi 3:6
that the nation of Israel is not consumed because of God’s covenant loyalty
to Jacob (Israel).
(a) By way of illustration, Spurgeon exclaims:
If I thought that the notes of the bank of England could not be cashed
next week, I should decline to take them; and if I thought that God’s
promises would never be fulfilled—if I thought that God would see it
right to alter some word in his promises—farewell Scriptures! I want
immutable things: and I find that I have immutable promises when I turn
to the Bible. 27
(b) However, God’s promises and covenants must be understood with
regard to whom they were addressed, especially the Mosaic Covenant.
Further, a promise or covenant must be understood as being either
conditional or unconditional, temporary or everlasting.
(c) Nevertheless, the immutability of God’s promises and covenants means,
as Balaam was forced to learn (Num. 23:19-20), that man cannot in any
way disannul them.
27 C. H. Spurgeon, The New Park Street Pulpit, I, p. 3.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 175
(3) His contrast with a continually changing creation, like a storm that
highlights the following calm, or the night that causes us to welcome the
dawn. For man, this contrast between an unstable universe and a stable God
is heightened by the fact that change in the created order tends to be
deleterious.
(a) By way of illustration, matter is active rather than passive. Even basic
chemical elements comprised of molecules, and atoms with their
neutrons and electrically charged protons, are involved in movement
and change. The Second Law of Thermodynamics further indicates that
change in matter is not only continuous, but also necessarily regressive
due to the entropy principle, that is a reduction in the availability of
useful energy.
1) Matter in its structure always tends to change from order to
randomness and never the reverse.
2) Seal up a clean room for fifty years and at the end of this period
inspection will reveal increased decay and disorder rather than
improved order.
3) For man, nowhere is this principle more evident that in the
deteriorative course of his own body.
(b) However, God is distinctively unchanging in His essence, and the Bible
calls upon man to not only acknowledge this immutable Jehovah with
the rest of faith (Heb. 4:9-11), but also to make confession of his own
crumbling being and purposes.
1) Creation in general wears out like worn garments, but God
remains “the same” (Ps. 102:25-27). Further, the person who
yields to this God will continue to be established before Him (Ps.
102:28).
2) Man in particular is temporal, like a passing shadow and withering
grass, but God “abides forever” (Ps. 102:11-12; cf. 103:15-17; Isa.
40:6-8; 57:20-21). This truth then guarantees eventual
“compassion in Zion” (Ps. 102:13).
3) The “counsel of the nations” and the “plans of the peoples” will
be nullified, frustrated, and supplanted by the eternal counsel of
the Lord (Ps. 33:10-12). Those persons who wisely abdicate from
man’s sinking ship will find mercy in the Lord (Ps. 33:18).
3. The immutability of the triune God.
a. God the Father does not change in His essential being (Mal. 3:6; Heb. 6:17-18;
Jas. 1:17).

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(1) In His economic, decretal role (Ps. 2:7), as the Father who ordains all things
(Eph. 2:11), though distinct from the Son and the Holy Spirit, yet His
purposes unchangeably stand (Prov. 19:21; Isa. 14:24).
(2) However, the Father remains substantially immutable even as are the Son
and the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 12:4-6).
b. God the Son does not change in His essential being (I Cor. 12:4-6; Heb. 1:10-12,
cf. Ps. 102:25-27 which refers to Elohim; 13:7-8).
(1) The eternal Christ, proceeding from the bosom of the Father (John 1:14, 18),
is “the same yesterday [as pre-incarnate and incarnate] and today
[interceding at the Father’s right hand], yes and forever [in his consummated
kingdom]” (Heb. 13:8).
(2) However, the incarnation was not a change in the nature of the Son of God,
but his assumption of human flesh. In other words, the eternal Christ took
on humanity (Phil. 2:5-8).
28 John Gill, Body of Divinity, p. 27.
29 Spurgeon, New Park Street Pulpit, I, p. 2.
(a) By way of explanation, John Gill explains:
The divine nature in him [Christ] was not changed into the human
nature, not the human nature into the divine, nor a third nature made out
of them both; was this the case, the divine nature would have been
changeable; but so it was not; for as it has been commonly said, “Christ
remained what he was, and assumed what he was not;” and what he
assumed added nothing to his divine person; he was only manifest in the
flesh; he neither received any perfection, not imperfection, from the
human nature; though that received dignity and honor by its union with
him. 28
(b) By way of explanation, Spurgeon declares:
There are no furrows on his [God’s] eternal brow. No age hath palsied
him; . . . He is the great I AM—the Great Unchangeable. Mark you, his
essence did not undergo a change when it became united with manhood.
When Christ in past years did gird himself with mortal clay, the essence
of his divinity was not changed; flesh did not become God, nor did God
become flesh by a real actual change of nature; the two were united in
hypostatical union, but the Godhead was still the same. It was the same
when he was a babe in the manger, as it was when he stretched the
curtains of heaven; it was the same God that hung upon the cross, and
whose blood flowed down in a purple river, the selfsame God that holds
the world upon his everlasting shoulders, and bears in his hands the keys
of death and hell. He never has been changed in his essence, not even by
his incarnation. 29

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 177
c. God the Holy Spirit does not change in His essential being (John 4:24; I Cor.
12:4-6).
(1) The Westminster Confession of Faith declares that God is, “a most pure
spirit [emphasis added], invisible, without body, parts, or passion,
immutable.” 30 The distinctive person of the Holy Spirit is likewise most pure,
and thus without parts and incapable of addition or subtraction.
(2) By way of explanation, Charnock similarly reasons: “Because he [God] is a
Spirit, he is not subject to those mutations which are found in corporeal and
bodily natures; because he is an absolutely simple Spirit, not having the least
particle of composition, he is not capable of those changes which may be in
created spirits.” 31
4. The immutability of God, misrepresentations and objections.
a. It is implied by some representations of immutability that God is necessarily static
and lacking in variety of thought and activity.
(1) By way of illustration, Bavinck explains in response: “Immutability should
not be confused with monotonous inactivity or immobility. . . . There is
change round about him; there is change in the relations of men to God; but
there is no change in God. . . . The sun remains the same, whether it scorches
and singes, or warms and fosters [or melts], a coin remains a coin whether it
be called a price or a pledge (Augustine); the pillar remains standing, whether
it be called the right or the left-hand column (Thomas Aquinas); . . . [these]
all make clear that an object may change in its relations, while it remains the
same in essence.” 32
(2) By way of explanation, Strong also clarifies: “God’s unchanging holiness
requires him to treat the wicked differently from the righteous. When the
righteous become wicked, his treatment of them must change. . . . Hence
God’s immutability itself renders it certain that his love will adapt itself to
every varying mood and condition of his children, so as to guide their steps,
sympathize with their sorrows, answer their prayers. . . . He seems to change,
but it is we who change after all.” 33
b. It is objected that Scripture explicitly declares that God changes His stated
purposes by way of repentance (Gen. 6:6; Ex. 32:10-14; I Sam. 15:35; Ps. 106:45;
Amos 7:3; Jonah 3:10).
(1) Note that in Genesis 6:6, it is man who has changed in his nature; in I
Samuel 15:35, it is Saul who has changed; in Jonah 3:10, it is the Ninevites
who have changed. In the cases of Exodus 32:10-14; Psalm 106:45; Amos
30 Philip Schaff, Creeds of Christendom, III, p. 606.
31 Charnock, Works, I, p. 382.
32 Herman Bavinck, Doctrine of God, pp. 151-2.
33 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 258; cf. Charnock, Works, I, pp. 404-5.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
7:3, while anthropopathic terms are used, yet God’s course of action changes
rather than His unchanging, covenant keeping character.
(2) By way of explanation, Boyce describes such statements as, “anthropopathic
expressions, intended simply to impress upon men his [God’s] great anger at
sin, and his warm approval of the repentance of those who has sinned
against him. The change of conduct, in men, not God, had changed the
relation between them and God. Sin had made them liable to his just
displeasure. Repentance had brought them within the possibilities of his
mercy.” 34
(3) By way of explanation, Charnock similarly states: “God accommodates
himself in the Scripture to our weak capacity. God hath no more of a proper
repentance than he hath of a real body. . . . God therefore frames his
language to our dullness, not to his own state, and informs us, by our own
phrases, what he would have us learn of his nature, as nurses talk broken
language to young children. . . . Therefore repentance in God is only a
change in his outward conduct, according to his infallible foresight and
immutable will. He changes the way of his providential proceeding according
to the carriage of the creature, without changing his will.” 35
c. It is objected that God must be changeable, otherwise He could not answer
prayer. In other words, why should we bother to pray if God’s purposes are fixed
and inflexible?
(1) From a strictly biblical perspective, the simple response would be that God
reveals a paradoxical truth to finite man, namely that He is both immutable
(Mal. 3:6) and responsive to prayer (Matt. 7:7-11).
(2) But nowhere in the Bible is the child of God encouraged to pray so that God
would change His will (I John 5:14). Quite the opposite is the case (Matt.
6:10; 26:39; John 4:34; 6:38).
(3) By way of explanation, Boyce declares, “the course of human events has thus
been different from what it would have been had there been no prayer and
no answer to it. But the mistake arises from supposing that there has been
change in God’s purpose or action from what he always contemplated.?”
Further, prayer “is a secondary cause, which has a place, like all other
secondary causes, which, like other such, is necessary to produce the result. .
. . So far then from changing his purpose when he answers prayer, God is in
reality only carrying out that purpose.” 36
34 Boyce, Abstract of Theology, p. 76.
35 Charnock, Works, I, p. 401.
36 Boyce, “bstract of Theology. Pp. 77-78.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 179
d. It is objected that since God is eternally evolving and affected in the process of His
being, He cannot be immutable.
(1) Herman Bavinck identifies Gnosticism and Pantheism as denying God’s
immutability, “by representing him as eternally BECOMING. . . . God is his
own creator. He produces himself. Very gradually he attains to personality
and self-consciousness.” 37
(2) More recently, process theology, with its pantheistic overtones, has taught
that the being of God is always processive, that is proceeding independently
with the world and man. However, since God is becoming, He is not
immutable, omniscient, or sovereign. For modern refutations of this
perversion of God’s character, refer to the works of Gruenler 38 and Morey 39
where they identify how process theology subjects God to human autonomy
and limitations.
(3) A derivative and mediating view of God in relation to process and more
orthodox theology is that which is designated as open view theology. In
reality it is warmed over Arminianism since it proposes that, to preserve
man’s autonomy, God takes risks, He yields determination, He learns from
experience, He adjusts His course. Thus Feinberg cites John Sanders who
declares that, “God’s will is not the ultimate explanation for everything that
happens; human decisions and actions make an important contribution too.
Thus history is the combined result of what God and his creation decide to
do.” 40 Surely this is simply new terminology for semi-pelagianism and
synergistic theology.
(4) The God who is (Ex. 3:13-15), is also the God who actively proceeds for the
cause of His people (Ex. 6:2-8). But this is a process of saving activity and
not that of character development within God. It is God’s covenant
immutability that guarantees His saving action (Ma. 3:6). Further, because
man is a becoming being, he ought to beware of foisting his own experience
upon the transcendent God of Scripture (Jer. 2:11; Rom. 1:22-23).
5. The immutability of God and its practical influence upon man.
a. According to Packer, we can face changing times. The eastern world of Abraham
and Moses may appear different from our modern age. Hence, we may feel remote
from the truth of the Bible and its eastern character. Yet we ought not to be of this
mind. “Where is the sense of distance and difference, then, between believers in
Bible times and ourselves? It is excluded. On what grounds? On the grounds that
God does not change. Fellowship with Him, trust in His word, living by faith,
37 Bavinck, Doctrine of God, pp. 146-49.
38 Robert Gordon Gruenler, The Inexhaustible God.
39 Robert Morey, Battle of the Gods.
40 John S. Feinberg, No One Like Him, p. 508.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
‘standing on the promises of God’, are essentially the same realities for us today as
they were for Old Testament believers.” 41
b. According to Tozer, we can draw near to God with confidence.
In coming to Him at any time we need not wonder whether we shall find Him in a
receptive mood. He is always receptive to misery and need, as well as to love and
faith. He does not keep office hours nor set aside periods when He will see no one.
Neither does He change His mind about anything. Today, this moment, He feels
toward His creatures, toward babies, toward the sick, the fallen, the sinful, exactly
as He did when He sent His only-begotten Son into the world to die for mankind. 42
c. According to Pink, we can be consoled by God’s promises.
Herein is solid comfort. Human nature cannot be relied upon; but God can!
However unstable I may be, however fickle my friends may prove, God changes not.
If He varied as we do, if He willed one thing today and another tomorrow, if He
were controlled by caprice, who could confide in Him? But, all praise to His glorious
name, He is ever the same. His purpose is fixed, His will is stable, His word is sure.
Here then is a rock [cf. Deut. 32:3-4] on which we may fix our feet, while the
mighty torrent is sweeping away everything around us. The permanence of God’s
character guarantees the fulfillment of His promises (Isa, 54:10). 43
d. According to Charnock, numerous principles are established for our witness and
profit. 44
41 Packer, Knowing God, pp. 72.
(1) We can worship God with encouragement since He is not like the chameleon
which changes color every day, but rather is more constant than the laws of
the Medes and Persians.
(2) We can reliably warn sinners that God cannot be expected to alter His holy
will. He is the same in being both the enemy of the wicked and the friend of
the righteous. There must be a change in man; there can be none in God.
(3) We can console the faithful by means of His immutable covenant grace,
which agreement guarantees the satisfaction of God’s elect (II Tim. 2:19).
(4) We can view creation and this world aright, that is as transient, unreliable,
and full of decay. Riches, human honor and wisdom, even our children, rise
and fall in trustworthiness. Only God has never-fading glory.
(5) We can learn patience with regard to the certainty of God’s will. The length
of our trials is appointed by His immutable plan, so that we are not to
murmur or bargain for its alteration. However, this unchanging purpose will
guarantee the deliverance of God’s elect from their tribulations.
42 Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy, p. 59.
43 Pink, Attributes of God, p. 39.
44 Charnock, Works, I, pp. 407-19.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 181
(6) We can learn to imitate God by striving to be immoveable in goodness (I
Cor. 15:59). While the hypocrite vacillates and breaks his covenant, the child
of God is known for his steadfast obedience.
(7) We can have recourse to a god of undiminished zeal when our spirits begin
to flag and our soul cools. He will assuredly add the ballast of His nearness
for our stability. This vital union is most promoted by the righteousness of
Christ that shall never wear out, and the grace of the Spirit that shall never
burn out.
e. While God alone is immutable, yet by means of evangelistic proclamation,
mutable transient man may enter, through faith in the Son of God, into
intransient, eternal life.
(1) In Isaiah 40:6-8, the prophet is commissioned “[to] call out,” that is “to
preach,” that all flesh withers and fades, but “the word of our God stands
forever.”
(2) In I Peter 1:22-25, the apostle correctly expounds Isaiah 40:6-8 to teach that
fleeting, perishing man, can only partake of imperishable, eternally saving
truth, by means of the preached, implanted, “word of the Lord [which]
abides forever.”
F. GOD IS UNITARY IN HIS ESSENCE
1. Introduction.
The oneness of God has both outward (exclusive) and inward (integral) aspects that
ought to be considered in close relationship with each other. God is both numerically
unique and essentially simple. In a time when religious pluralism abounds, this aspect
of the character of God calls for renewed emphasis
a. When the truth of the one God of the Bible is described in terms of monotheism,
the most common perversion of this aspect of His unique oneness is the
promotion of polytheism or many gods.
(1) For the ancient Greeks and Romans, God was not one with many attributes,
but there were many gods having distinctive and decidedly humanistic
attributes. These included:
(a) Saturn, the god of time.
(b) Jupiter, the god of greatest power.
(c) Neptune, the god of the sea.
(d) Vulcan, the god of fire and metal working.
(e) Mars, the god of war.

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(f) Mercury, the god of eloquence and commerce.
(g) Apollo, the god of medicine and the fine arts.
(h) Venus, the goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, mirth, graces.
(i) Diana, the goddess of hunting.
(2) While Jehovah/Yahweh, the God of Israel and the Bible, is the only Creator,
Sustainer, and Savior of this universe, yet an explanation of the prolific
nature of polytheism is appropriate at this point.
(a) To a certain degree, Hodge is correct in tracing polytheism to
pantheism. He writes that,
In no part of the world has pantheism had such a field for development
as in India, and nowhere has it brought forth its legitimate effects in such
a portentous amount of evil. Nowhere has polytheism been carried to
such revolting extremes. . . . Polytheism, which has been almost
universal, has its origin in nature worship; and nature worship rests on
the assumption that nature is God. 45
Yet this comment, true as it is, avoids an important explanation
concerning basic motivation.
(b) According to Romans 1:18, 23, polytheism results from the
“ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress [resist, hold
back] the truth.” The outcome is that men have “exchanged the glory of
the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and
of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” Thus man as
a sinner finds one God a threat to his coveted autonomy; he prefers a
choice that also allows for rejection and selection. Monotheism does not
allow choice; it calls for unqualified submission. Further, in unbelief,
man conceives that one God, as he conceives Him to be, could not
handle all of the government and details of the universe. On the other
hand, monotheism proposes one God who is so great that He alone,
unaided, can both create and govern the universe.
(c) So Dabney declares, that
45 Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, I, pp. 244, 309.
46 Robert Dabney, Systematic Theology, pp. 40-1.
a more powerful impulse to polytheism arises from the co-action of two
natural principles in the absence of the knowledge of God in Christ. One
is the sense of weakness and dependence, craving a superior power on
whom to lean. The other is the shrinking of conscious guilt from infinite
holiness and power. The creature needs a God: the sinner fears a God.
The expedient which results is, the invention of intermediate and
mediating divinities, more able than man to succor, yet less awful than
the infinite God. 46

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 183
b. When the truth of the one God of the Bible is described in terms of personal
attributes and triunity, the most common perversion of these aspects of His
unique oneness is that He is composed of parts and added qualities.
(1) God is not a composite being comprised of distinctive attribute
compartments or building blocks which operate intermittently or with a
degree of separateness.
(2) God is not distinct from His attributes as if they were external, detached,
mere anthropomorphic labels; neither is He pure and simple without
distinction.
(3) God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are not thirds of the
being of God; they are distinct personal representations, according to the
principle of diversity in unity, of the one essential God.
2. The singular unity of God.
a. By definition, Jehovah/Yahwek of the Bible is distinctly, uniquely, exclusively,
solely, wholly and only, God.
(1) Francis Pieper well states: “God is in a class by Himself. Every creature has
at least something in common with other creatures and exists in duplicate,
triplicate, or multiple form. There can be no other God besides God. God is
not unus genere [one kind], nor unus specie [one species], but unus numero
[one only]. Viewed in His entirety, He cannot be divided into several such
entities as He is Himself. God is the absolute monad.” 47
(2) As such, biblical monotheism categorically excludes:
(a) Polytheism. Truth, being, morality originate from one eternal source,
and not from a host of various competing deities who have different
characteristics, being unknown as well as known (Acts 17:23-31).
(b) Tritheism. The triunity of the one God means a oneness in essence
manifest in three persons, not three Gods that constitute three
connecting entities. The historic, triangular, symbolic illustration well
represents this unity of God with diversity.
(c) Dualism. There are no rival, competing, distinct powers such as light
and darkness, good and evil, spirit and matter, but only one God who is
Light, Good, and Spirit.
(d) Pantheism. Although God pervades the universe, yet He was before it
existed, He made it all, He transcends it. If all is God and God is all,
then His biblical, holy uniqueness and distinctiveness are impossible
characteristics.
47 Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, I, p. 437.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(3) As such, biblical monotheism positively establishes:
(a) The unity of the human race. Man, originally made in the image of
God, albeit as presently fallen, is consequently, without exception, a
united race that bears the marks of one Creator.
(b) The unity of the universe. Such a world-view unites the creation and
nature in both structure and purpose, in contrast with an alternative
world of conflict and chaos.
(c) The unity of history. The course of human events is a tableau, with
diverse yet connected patterns, that progresses towards a righteous and
consummate destiny that has God at its center.
(d) The unity of morality. The one God has one standard of righteousness
to which all mankind must submit in the only possible harmony. The
contradictory morality of polytheism is excluded.
b. The extensive and united testimony of the Bible is to the unique oneness of God
from several perspectives.
(1) Boyce gives a comprehensive list of aspects of God’s unity as follows. 48
48 Boyce, Abstract of Theology, p. 58.
(a) God explicitly is one (Deut. 6:4; Mal. 2:10; Mark 12:29, 32; Eph. 4:5-6;
I Tim. 2:5; Jas. 2:19).
(b) There is no other god besides God (Deut. 4:35, 39; I Sam. 2:2; II Sam.
7:22; I Kings 8:60; Isa. 44:6, 8; 45:5-6, 21-22; 46:9; Joel 2:27).
(c) There is no other god to be compared with God (Ex. 8:10; 9:14; 15:11;
II Sam. 7:22; I Kings 8:23; II Chron 6:14; Isa. 40:25; 46:5; Jer. 10:6).
(d) God is God alone (II Sam. 22:32; Neh. 9:6; Ps. 18:31; 86:10; Isa. 37:16;
43:10, 12; 46:9; John 17:3; I Cor. 8:4-6).
(e) God alone is to be worshiped (Ex. 20:4-5; 34:14; I Sam. 7:3; II Kings
17:36; Matt. 4:10; Rom. 1:25; Rev. 19:10).
(f) No one else is to be accepted as God (Ex. 20:3; Deut. 5:7; Isa. 42:8;
Hos. 13:4).
(g) God is supreme over all so-called gods (Deut. 10:17; Josh. 22:22; Ps.
96:4-5; Jer. 14:22; I Cor. 8:4-6).
(h) God only is the true God (Jer. 10:10; I Thess. 1:9).

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 185
(2) Deuteronomy 6:4 or the Shema, [m'v;, is the fundamental confession of
monotheistic Judaism, which has customarily been the motto of daily
devotions as well as often the Jewish martyr’s last cry: “Hear, O Israel! The
LORD is our God, and the LORD is one!”
(a) While there are many so-called elohim, µyhil¿aÔ, or gods, yet
Jehovah/Yahweh, hw:hyÒ, alone is the true God of Israel who is exclusively
to receive total, obedient, loving devotion (Deut. 6:4-5).
1) Primarily, concerning Deuteronomy 6:4-5, there is reference to a
subjective acknowledgment, or confession for the confessor, that
Jehovah/Yahweh only receives exclusive allegiance (Exod. 20:2-3;
23:24; Josh. 23:7).
2) Secondarily, there is reference to an objective acknowledgment
whereby this Jehovah/Yahweh is the only existent God in the
universe (Isa. 44:8; 45:5, 18, 22).
(b) What exactly is the “oneness” here described? The Hebrew word is
echad, dj;a,, as in Genesis 1:9; 2:24, which often means a distinctive,
united oneness that certainly enables compatibility with the triunity of
God. Michael Brown adds:
So also, in Exodus 36:13, God instructs Moses to join the many pieces of
the tabernacle together so that it will be “one” (’echad; see also Exod.
26:6, 11; 36:18). There are many components but one, unified
tabernacle. The Bible also speaks of Israel being “one nation” (goy
’echad; see II Sam. 7:23; Ezek. 37:22), just as in the Pledge of Allegiance
we in America speak of being ‘one nation under God.’ 49
However this diversity in unity is distinct from yachid, dyjiy: (Gen. 22:2,
12; Ps. 25:16; Jer. 6:26; Zech. 12:10) meaning essential, absolute
oneness which would disallow a triunity of persons. 50
(c) So the truth of monotheism represented by Deuteronomy 4:39; 6:4;
Zechariah 14:9, finds harmonious continuity in the New Testament
(John 17:3; Rom. 16:27; I Cor. 8:4-6; I Tim. 2:5-6; Jas. 2:19; Jude 25).
c. From a logical point of view, the idea of two or more gods is self-contradictory
since neither of them can be the absolute and perfect independent being. Either
god would limit the other and destroy his godhood. 51
49 Michael Brown, Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus, II, p. 5.
50 Loraine Boettner, Studies in Theology, pp. 104-6.
51 Boyce, Abstract of Theology, pp. 57-8; Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 259.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
d. The practical significance of God’s exclusive oneness.
(1) It is a monumental misunderstanding of Deuteronomy 6:4 to suggest that
this charter of monotheism is a superior religious principle or creed that
nevertheless has no vital importance.
(a) The resultant demand of Deuteronomy 6:5 for love that is exclusively
directed toward God is the highest of moral imperatives from which all
other true ethical behavior on a horizontal level flows (Matt. 22:37-40;
I John 4:21).
(b) However, as Keil and Delitzsch point out, “the motive for this [love
toward God] is to be found in the words ‘thy God,’ in the fact that
Jehovah was Israel’s God, and had manifested Himself to it as one
God.” 52
(2) Bavinck describes the consequences of neglect of this doctrine as follows:
When the confession of the only true God begins to weaken and to be denied,
and the much longed for unity offered by pantheism satisfies neither the mind
nor the heart, then the solidarity of the universe and of the human race, of
religion, morals, and truth succumbs with it, and can no longer be maintained;
consequently, nature and history break up into fragments, and as a result of
conscious or subconscious polytheistic leanings, there is today a resuscitation
of every kind of superstition and idolatry. The time in which we are living
furnishes an abundance of evidence for this statement and for that very reason
the open confession of the only true God is today even more vitally necessary
than formerly. 53
e. Hence, the unity of God has a particular unifying effect upon man which rescues
him from fragmentation and moral disunity.
(1) Salvation is only in Jehovah (Ps. 3:8; Jonah 2:9), so that those who are saved
are united to one another in being united to the only Jehovah (Eph. 4:3-6).
(2) Idolatry is expressly, universally forbidden in any form (Ex. 20:3-5; Deut.
4:15-19), so that worship, both individual and corporate, must be directed to
the only true God according to His terms (John 4:24).
f. Timothy Dwight perceptively concludes with regard to the doctrine of the unity of
God: 54
(1) The oneness of God exhibits the wickedness of men. The one perfect God,
formerly known to all nations, has been substituted for innumerable, sinful,
stupid, blind, deaf, and dead gods. Why? Because men loved not to retain
52 C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament, III, p. 323.
53 Bavinck, Doctrine of God, pp. 167-8.
54 Timothy Dwight, Dwight’s Theology, p. 23.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 187
God in their knowledge. Thus the human mind has loved to recede as far as
possible from its maker.
(2) The oneness of God strongly necessitates revelation, that is the knowledge of
the true and living God in the world, and especially concerning His
character. Hence, the preached and taught Word of God must declare the
nature of the God of salvation before the salvation of God (Isa. 6:9; Acts
17:23-29).
3. The simple unity of God.
a. By definition, God is not an assemblage of attribute parts or a mixture of
character additives. Rather, He is simple, that is pure in the totality of His full
being. Yet God’s simplicity does not lack the reflection of variety any more than a
flawlessly pure diamond lacks the reflection of distinctive facets and colors.
(1) For Dabney, God’s simplicity means that, “He is uncompounded, that His
substance is ineffably [unspeakably] homogenous, that it does not exist by
the assemblage of atoms, and is not discerptible [divisible].” 55
(2) Similarly, Bavinck declares: “By simplicity is meant the quality of being
uncompounded or incomposite. If God be compounded of parts, as a body is
composed of parts, of genus and differentia, substance and accidence, matter
and form, power and activity, essence and existence, his perfection, unity,
independence and immutability cannot be maintained. . . . God is one in
every respect. He is whatever he has.” 56
(3) The necessity of this definition is chiefly based upon the finite, spatial,
temporal, sensual perception of man who, notwithstanding his soulish/
spiritual nature, is yet confined to a material universe that is constantly
defined in terms of composition and categorical order. However, God is
neither distinctively complex nor indistinguishably simple, but rather
distinctively simple. Thus Bavinck attributes to Augustine that, “God is
simple in his multiplicity and multifold in his simplicity.” 57
b. Scripture declares that God is “spirit” (John 4:24), “light” (I John 1:5), “love” (I
John 4:8)), “eternal” (Deut. 33:7), which attributes of His pure and perfect
essence are not merely parts of His being, but are intrinsically His being. Note that
John does not merely write that God has spirit, light, love, but that God is spirit,
light, love.
c. Objections and answers to the legitimacy of God’s attribute of simplicity are as
follows:
55 Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 43.
56 Bavinck, Doctrine of God, pp. 170, 168.
57 Ibid., p. 171.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
(1) The simplicity of God is a logical abstraction without biblical foundation.
But the extensive scriptural evidence for the spirituality of God (cf. pp. 163-
68) demands simplicity and is utterly opposed to the idea of a composite
nature.
(2) The simplicity of God is in conflict with His personal triunity. To this Boyce
responds that the Trinity “presents to us three Persons who are not three
gods, but one God, and, . . . shows us that the unity of God is to be found in
his nature or essence and not in the personal relations in that essence, so that
there is but one divine nature or essence, one being, one God, although there
are three persons subsisting therein, who, by virtue of that subsistence, are
each God.” 58 In other words, simplicity pertains to essence, not personal
manifestation.
(3) The simplicity of God is in conflict with the distinctive manifestations of His
attributes. Pieper raises this problem and explains:
But does Scripture not become involved in a contradiction when it ascribes to
God both simplicity and a plurality of attributes? True, God is one, indivisible,
uncompounded, for, . . . all the divine attributes are God’s invisible being. But
this is simply beyond all human comprehension. Therefore God Himself has
condescended to us, divided Himself, as it were, into component parts, and
because of our finite intellect permits us to conceive of God’s attributes, e.g.,
justice, omnipotence, grace, as following one after another or as existing
alongside one another. This is a knowledge of God ‘in part,’ as St. Paul says in
I Corinthians 13:12. 59
d. In practical terms, the simplicity of God means that He is not to be equated with
the sphere of earthly complexity, even though He takes on human flesh and
sympathy through the man Christ Jesus.
(1) The persons of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are of the same simple
essence and pure being. Here is perfect diversity in unity.
(2) The attributes of God reflect His fullness, but they do not describe His
composition.
(3) True worshipers of God are to behold all of His attributes as glorious facets
of His pure fullness. So Isaac Watts had written:
58 Boyce, Abstract of Theology, p. 60.
59 Pieper, Dogmatics, I, p. 439.
Almighty God, to Thee
Be endless honors done,
The undivided Three,
And the mysterious One,
Where reason fails, with all her powers,
There faith prevails and love adores.

G. GOD IS A TRIUNITY OF PERSONS
1. Introduction.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 189
If by now our confessed finite understanding of the infinite Jehovah has humbled us,
then we are better prepared to study the mystical biblical revelation of the triunity of
God. At the outset let it be declared that the scriptural evidence for the doctrine of the
Trinity is substantial, even if admittedly implicit with regard to the specific term in
question. But he who refuses to yield to clear biblical teaching that transcends human
understanding, such at the eternity of God or His triunity, is to be guilty of original
idolatry (Gen. 3:5-6; Isa. 14:14), that is aspiration to supreme human autonomy and
deification. L. S. Chafer quotes M. Coquerel in this respect: “God is the only intelligent
Being, for Whom no mystery exists. To be surprised, to be indignant at encountering
mysteries, is to be surprised, is to be indignant at not being God.” 60
Therefore the argument that the doctrine of the Trinity is at best obscure, especially
because the term “Trinity” is nowhere mentioned in the Bible, needs to dispensed with
at the outset. Robert Morey, in his recent definitive work, The Trinity, Evidence and
Issues, responds as follows:
What if someone were to issue the challenge: I challenge you to find the word ‘attribute’
in the New Testament and all such words as “omnipotent,” “omnipresent,” etc. If you
cannot find these words in the Bible and if you cannot find them defined in the modern
sense, then I refuse to believe in them. We would look with pity at such convoluted
statements. To demand that a first century document use words and terms which did not
develop until centuries later is patently absurd. . . . The word ‘attribute’ is not the issue. It
is the idea that the word expresses. . . . The same situation holds true when we deal with
the theological word or term “Trinity.” The word “Trinity” is no more found in the Bible
than the word “attribute.” It is a theological term coined by the Christian Church to
express the biblical truth that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 61
a. From another perspective, John Stott describes the humbling effect of the doctrine
of the Trinity as follows:
[God’s] grace bears a Trinitarian shape. First, in both spheres [of the Bible and the
cross] the Father took the initiative, teaching us what we could not otherwise know,
and giving us what we could not otherwise have. Secondly, in both the Son has
played a unique role as the one mediator through whom the Father’s initiative was
taken. He is the Word made flesh, through whom the Father’s glory was manifested.
He is the sinless one made sin for us that the Father might reconcile us to himself.
Moreover, the word God spoke through Christ and the work God did through
Christ were both hapax [Greek], completed once and for all. Nothing can be added
to either without derogating from the perfection of God’s word and work through
Christ. Then thirdly, in both revelation and redemption the ministry of the Holy
Spirit is essential. It is he who illumines our minds to understand what God has
revealed in Christ, and he who moves our hearts to receive what God has achieved
through Christ. Thus in both spheres the Father has acted through the Son and acts
through the Spirit. It is this horizon of Trinitarian grace which, more than anything
60 Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, I, p. 273.
61 Robert Morey, The Trinity, Evidence and Issues, pp. 433-4.

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
else, makes humility appropriate, the humility which acknowledges our dependence
on grace. 62
b. Yet R. T. France is also correct when he describes the perception by many of the
triunity of God as unpopular, a puzzle, a scandal to Muslim and Jew, a joke and
an embarrassment. Why is this so? Because Christians have lost sight of a genuine
biblical crisis that erupted in early church history. To recapture this setting is to
discover that this vital truth, “belongs not to the cold detachment of the
philosopher’s study, but to the warm and living experience of the man who has
come to know Jesus Christ as the divine Redeemer, and in whose life the Holy
Spirit has made God a reality.” 63
c. Away then with any approach to this truth which anticipates mere metaphysical
speculation! In I Peter 1:1-3, the Apostle Peter, having contemplated the gracious
election of the Father, the sanctifying work of the Spirit, and the sprinkled blood
of Jesus Christ, immediately responds to this revelation of triune mystery with the
cry of adoring praise, “Blessed be . . . God.” No doubt it is for this reason that
since the second century Christians have joyously sung the doxology, Gloria Patri:
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
And to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
World without end. Amen.
More recently Reginald Heber’s notable hymn published in 1826, the year of his
death, has become a universal proclamation of God’s glorious triunity.
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee;
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty,
God in Three Persons, blessed Trinity!
2. The Trinitarian controversy between Athanasius and Arius.
a. The great doctrinal controversy of the first four centuries of the early church
concerned the nature of Christ’s person, and especially in relation to God the
Father and God the Holy Spirit. In this context, including the heretical challenge
of Gnosticism and Manichaeism, Tertullian of Carthage (c. 200 A.D.) first used
the term “Trinity”, and in spite of holding erroneous views of subordinationism
along with Origen, yet he defended the imprecise declaration of the Apostles’
Creed. 64 During this prelude to the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., at which the
doctrine of the Trinity was more exactly defined, four Trinitarian views arose.
62 John Stott, Essentials, pp. 336-37.
63 R. T. France, The Living God, pp. 102-3.
64 Refer to Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, p. 82; Otto Heick, History of Christian Thought, I, pp. 143-69.
The Apostles’ Creed (c. 400 A.D.) declares: “I Believe in God the Father almighty, and in Jesus Christ, his
only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary.” Bettenson, Documents of the
Christian Church, p. 33.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 191
(1) There are three distinct Gods, or tritheism, a reactionary perspective that was
soon repudiated.
(2) There is one God who manifests Himself in three ways or modes, variously
known as patripassianism, modalism, or Sabellianism, which was officially
condemned in 263 A.D.
(3) There is one God whose first creation or generation was Christ through
whom the Spirit is produced. Known as subordinationism or Arianism, this
virulent heresy has its modern counterparts in Unitarianism, the Jehovah’s
Witnesses, and Christadelphians.
(4) There is one God, that is one in essence, who exists in three distinct persons,
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, who have that same
essence. This is known as biblical, orthodox Trinitarianism.
b. In 325 A.D., The Council of Nicea declared that Jesus Christ was, “begotten of
the Father, only begotten, that is, of the substance of the Father, God of God,
Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of one substance
[oJmoouvsio", homoousios] with the Father, through whom all things were
made.” 65 Concerning this distinction regarding Christ’s essence, the Emperor
Constantine is said to have commented that his kingdom was divided by the
Greek letter “iota,” for the following reasons.
(1) The party of Arius of Alexandria declared that Jesus Christ was oJmoiouvsio",
homoiousios, with the Father, that is of similar substance to the Father.
Banished, then restored to favor for a time, yet Athanasius refused to have
communion with Arius. Arianism from then on has always been regarded as
cardinal heresy.
(2) The party of Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, declared that Jesus Christ
was oJmoouvsio", homoousios, with the Father, that is of the same substance
of the Father. Although victorious at Nicea, yet Athanasius was exiled
several times due to powerful Arian influence. However, the truth he so
relentlessly upheld finally triumphed after his death at the Council of
Constantinople in 381 A.D. The famous Scottish historian, Thomas Carlyle,
who at first sneered that Christendom was torn in pieces over a diphthong,
later confessed that through Athanasius Christianity was delivered from
ignominy as a mere Jewish sect. 66
c. By c. 410 A.D., the Trinitarian controversy came to a period of settlement with
the publication of one of Augustine’s most important works, namely, On the
Trinity. At the beginning, the Bishop of Hippo invites us to “enter together upon
the path of charity, and advance towards Him of whom it is said, ‘Seek His face
evermore’ (Ps. 105:4). And I would make this pious and safe agreement, . . . in the
case of those which inquire into the unity of the Trinity, of the Father and the Son
65 Henry Bettenson, ed., Documents of the Christian Church, p. 35.
66 Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 329.

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and the Holy Spirit; because in no other subject is error more dangerous, or
inquiry more laborious, or the discovery of truth more profitable.” 67
3. The biblical teaching of God’s three-in-oneness.
a. It is readily admitted that while the triunity of God is foreshadowed and intimated
in the Old Testament, yet its greater clarity and unveiling is evidenced in the New
Testament. This should not surprise us if we accept the biblical principle of
progressive revelation, that is the increasing disclosure through inspiration of pure
divine truth. As God has progressively revealed His saving purposes through
Abraham and Moses to Christ, from promise to fulfillment and shadow to
substance, so He has similarly unveiled the glory of His triunity in advancing
detail, and especially in the incarnation of the Son of God.
b. The persons of the triune God revealed corporately as God.
(1) The Old Testament witness. Recall the “oneness” of God according to
Deuteronomy 6:4 (p. 185).
(a) God is a plurality of persons, represented by a plural noun governed by
a singular verb (Gen. 1:26; 11:7; Isa. 6:8).
(b) God is separate from the Angel of Jehovah who is yet designated as God
(Gen. 16:7-13; 18:1-19:29; Zech. 3:1-3).
(c) God is distinct from the person of the Spirit of God (Gen. 1:2; Ex. 31:1-
4; Is. 63:10-11; Zech. 4:6).
(d) God is triune by intimation (Num. 6:24-26; Isa. 6:3), and there is
mention together of the persons of “the Lord,” “the angel of His
presence,” and “His Holy Spirit” (Isa. 63:7-10).
(2) The New Testament witness. Note that the following evidence comes from
four entrenched Jewish monotheists.
(a) The triune doctrine of Matthew.
1) The Father and Spirit join in the exaltation of the Son (Matt. 3:16-
17; cf. 17:4-5).
2) Following conversion, Christians are to identify with the “name”
(singular) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19).
(b) The triune doctrine of John.
67 Aurelius Augustine, On The Trinity, VII, p. 5.
1) The believer’s salvation involves intimacy of relationship between
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (John 1:33-34; 14:16, 26; 15:26).

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 193
2) The believer’s intimate union with God involves the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit (John 20:20-22; I John 4:13-14).
(c) The triune doctrine of Paul.
1) The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are intimately involved in the
believer’s salvation (Eph. 1:3-14; II Thess. 2:13-14, resultant
fellowship (Eph. 4:4-6), and service (I Cor, 12:4-6).
2) The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are addressed in prayer on equal
terms (II Cor. 13:14).
(d) The triune doctrine of Peter.
The Father, Son, and Holy Spirt are intimately involved in the believer’s
salvation (I Pet. 1:1-2, 3-5).
c. The persons of the triune God revealed individually as God.
The defense of the doctrine of the Trinity does not rest upon arithmetical
calculations, or their use for its disproof for that matter. At the heart of this
essential doctrine is the divine character of God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ,
and the Holy Spirit. Once it has been established that all three of these persons are
deity, that is having the same divine essence or substance, then the doctrine of the
Trinity is inevitable truth. Thus it is fundamental that the following truth, outlined
by Boyce, 68 be upheld by the Bible.
(1) The Father is God.
(a) God has a Son, hence God is Father (Mark 1:1; Luke 1:35; John 5:25;
10:36; 11:27; Acts 9:20; Gal. 4:4; I John 4:15; 5:5, 20, 21).
(b) The Father is expressly named God (John 1:18; 5:18; Rom. 15:6; I Cor.
15:24; II Pet. 1:17; II John 3).
(2) The Son is God.
68 Boyce, Abstract of Theology, pp. 126-34.
(a) He is directly called God (Matt. 1:23; John 1:1; 20:28).
(b) Jesus Christ is also called Lord, that is deity as well as sovereign (Matt.
12:8; 22:41-45; Mark 2:28; Luke 6:46; 20:41-44; John 13:13, 14; Acts
10:36; Rom. 14:9; I Cor. 2:8; Gal. 1:3; 6:18; Phil. 2:11; II Thess. 2:16;
Jude 4; Rev. 17:14; 19:13, 16).
(c) He is worshiped as deity (Matt. 14:33; Luke 24:52; Acts 7:59, 60; II
Cor. 12:8, 9; Phil. 2:10; Heb. 1:6; Rev. 5:8-14; 7:9-12).

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(d) He is to be honored equally with the Father (John 5:23).
(e) His relations to the Father are those of identity and unity (John 1:18;
5:17-19; 8:16, 19; 10:30; 12:44, 45; 14:7-11; 15:24; Col. 1:15, 19; 2:9;
Heb. 1:3; I John 2:23, 24).
(f) They are equally known to each other, and unknown to others (Matt.
11:27; Luke 10:22; John 1:18; 6:46; 10:15).
(g) He is the creator of all things (John 1:3, 10; I Cor. 8:6; Col. 1:16; Heb.
1:10).
(h) He upholds and preserves all things (John 5:17; Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3).
(i) He is the manifestation of the Divine Being in this world (John 1:10, 14,
18; 14:8-11; 16:28-30; Col. 1:15; I Tim. 3:16; I John 1:2).
(j) He is greater than all others, including Moses, David, Solomon, Jonah,
John the Baptist (Matt. 3:11; 12:41, 42; Mark 12:37; Luke 11:31, 32;
John 1:17; Eph. 1:21; Phil. 2:9; Heb. 1:4, 5; 3:3; I Pet. 3:22).
(k) He is the source of all spiritual blessing.
1) He gives the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49; John 16:7; 20:22; Acts 2:33).
2) He forgives sins (Mark 2:5-10; Luke 5:20-24; 7:47-49; Acts 5:31).
3) He gives peculiar peace (John 14:27; 16:33).
4) He gives light (John 1:4, 7-9; 8:12; 9:5; 12:35, 46; I John 1:5-7;
Rev. 21:23).
5) He gives faith (Luke 17:5; Heb. 12:2).
6) He gives eternal life (John 17:2).
7) He confers all the spiritual gifts bestowed upon his churches (Eph.
4:8-13).
(l) All the incommunicable attributes of God are ascribed to him.
1) Self-existence (John 2:19; 5:26; 10:17, 18).
2) Eternity of existence (John 1:1-2; 17:5, 24; Heb. 1:8, 10-12; I John
1:2).
3) Omniscience (Matt, 9:4; 12:25; Mark 2:8; Luke 6:8; 9:47; 10:22;
John 1:48; 2:24-25; 10:15; 16:30; 21:17; Col. 2:3; Rev. 2:23).
4) Omnipresence (Matt. 18:20; 28:20; John 3:13; Eph. 1:23).

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 195
5) Omnipotence (Matt. 28:18; Luke 21:15; John 1:3; 10:18; I Cor.
1:24; Eph. 1:22; Phil. 3:21; Col. 2:10; Rev. 1:18).
6) Immutability Heb. 1:11-12; 13:8).
(m) The judgment of the world is entrusted to him (Matt. 7:21-23; 16:27;
24:30; 25:31; John 5:22, 27; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Rom. 2:16; 14:10; II
Cor. 5:10; II Tim. 4:1).
(n) Absolute equality with the Father, not only of will but of nature, is
ascribed to him.
1) Equality in works (John 5:17-23).
2) Equality in knowledge (Luke 10:2; John 10:15).
3) Equality in nature (John 5:18; 10:33; Phil. 2:6; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:3).
(3) The Holy Spirit is God.
(a) He has personality.
1) He has intelligence (I Cor. 2:10-11), feelings (Eph. 4:30), will (I
Cor. 12:11).
2) He can be obeyed (Acts 10:19-21), lied to (Acts 5:3), resisted (Acts
7:51), reverenced (Ps. 51:11), blasphemed (Matt. 12:31), grieved
(Eph. 4:30), outraged (Heb. 10:29).
3) He is identified by masculine rather than neuter pronouns (John
15:26; 16:7-8, 13-14).
(b) The activity of Jehovah in the Old Testament is ascribed to the Spirit in
the New Testament (Isa. 6:9; cf. Acts 28:25-27; Ex. 25:1; 30:10; cf.
Heb. 9:8).
(c) The creation of the world is ascribed to the Spirit (Gen. 1:2; Job 26:13;
Ps. 104:30).
(d) He is said to search and know even the deep things of God (I Cor.
2:10).
(e) He is expressly called God (Acts 5:3-4, 9).
4. The triunity of God defined, detailed, and defended.
a. The doctrine of the Trinity defined.
(1) Although the following definition by Augustine is extremely precise, yet the
serious Christian ought to study it carefully. He states of the Trinity,

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THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit intimate a divine unity of one
and the same substance in an indivisible equality; and therefore that they are
not three Gods, but one God: although the Father has begotten the Son, and so
He who is the Father is not the Son; and the Son is begotten by the Father, and
so He who is the Son is not the Father; and the Holy Spirit is neither the Father
nor the Son, but only the Spirit of the Father and of the Son, Himself also coequal
with the Father and the Son, and pertaining to the unity of the Trinity.
Yet not that this Trinity was born of the Virgin Mary, and crucified under
Pontius Pilate, and buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into
heaven, but only the Son. Nor, again, that this Trinity descended in the form of
a dove upon Jesus when He was baptized; nor that, on the day of Pentecost,
after the ascension of the Lord, when ‘there came a sound from heaven, as of a
rushing mighty wind,’ the same Trinity ‘sat upon each of them with cloven
tongues like as of fire,’ but only the Holy Spirit. Nor yet that this Trinity said
from heaven, ‘Thou art my Son,’ whether when He was baptized by John, or
when the three disciples were with Him in the mount, or when the voice
sounded, saying, ‘I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again;’ but that it
was a word of the Father only, spoken to the Son; although the Father, and the
Son, and the Holy Spirit, as they are indivisible, so work indivisibly. This is
also my faith, since it is the Catholic faith. 69
(2) The Westminster Confession of Faith declares: “In the unity of the Godhead
there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity: God the
Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. The Father is of none, neither
begotten nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy
Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son.” 70
b. The doctrine of the Trinity detailed.
(1) The clarification of terminology. Both the classic and more modern
definitions of the Trinity use terms that need careful explanation, and two in
particular.
69 Augustine, On The Trinity, VII, pp. 7-8.
(a) Person. A human person is not to be our model here. Pieper cites Luther
in this regard: “Our terminology is inadequate and is really only a
stammering. . . . [But] we have no better term.” 71 A common alternative
is distinct subsistence. Or consider, a triune person is, “the individual
framework of essential, rational, self-existent Divine Being.” Of course
three human persons have three distinct natures. But God is one
indivisible nature in three persons! Here is mystery!
(b) Substance. This concerns underlying nature, as distinct from outward
manifestation. God is one or singular in pure essence, or pure being, or
pure nature, or underlying being. More particularly, God’s essence is
reflected in His attributes, which are the fullness of His being.
70 Schaff, Creeds of Christendom, III, pp. 607-8.
71 Pieper, Dogmatics, I, p. 409.

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 197
(c) Conclusion. God is one in substance or essence while subsisting in three
distinct persons. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have the same
essence, hence attributes, since they are three individuals of the one God
of Israel.
(2) The relation of the persons of the Trinity to each other.
(a) In the one being of God there is triune interpersonal relationship. This is
sometimes referred to as the ontological Trinity which deals with
logical, not chronological derivation. 72
1) God the Father has eternal paternity (I Cor. 8:6); Eph. 3:14-15),
without generation or procession.
2) God the Son has eternal filiation, or sonship by means of
generation by the Father (Ps. 2:7; John 1:1-2, 14, 18; I John 4:9),
without procession.
3) God the Holy Spirit has eternal procession (John 15:26; note the
present tense), from the Father and the Son (John 15:26; 16:7;
20:22), without generation.
(b) So Shedd cautions us:
The most enigmatical part of the doctrine of the Trinity is in the
hypostatical character. What is this paternity of the Father? and this
filiation of the Son? and this being spirated or procession of the Spirit?
Since revelation has given only the terms, Father, Son, and Spirit, with
the involved ideas of paternity, filiation, and procession, the human
intellect can go no further towards a metaphysical explanation than these
terms and ideas will yield materials. And this is not far. 73
(3) The relation of the persons of the Trinity to external activity.
72 Berkhof, Systematic Theology, pp. 88-9.
73 Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, p. 278.
(a) In the one being of God there is distinct, personal manifestation within
the Trinity. This is sometimes referred to as the economic Trinity which
deals with the individual reflection of certain attributes by the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit. According to Berkhof, 74 these distinctions are as
follows:
74 Berkhof, Systematic Theology, pp. 88-9, 91, 85, 98.
1) The Father designs the work of creation, providence, and
redemption. This activity is from the Father (I Cor. 8:6; II Pet.
1:17).

198
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
2) The Son mediates the work of creation, providence, and
redemption. This activity is through the Son (John 1:3, 10; I Cor.
8:6).
3) The Holy Spirit consummates the work of creation, providence,
and redemption. This activity is in the Spirit (Rom. 15:18-19; Jude
20).
(b) Bavinck further explains:
All ‘outgoing works’ have one Author, namely God; but they are
produced by means of the co-operation of the three persons; and in the
works of creation, redemption, and sanctification, a definite place and
order is assigned to each of these three. All things are originated by the
Father, are carried out through the Son, and are brought to completion
by the Holy Spirit. . . . [While there is overlap,] nevertheless, in the
economic sense the work of creation is ascribed more particularly to the
Father, the work of redemption to the Son, and the work of sanctification
to the Holy Spirit. 75
(4) The relation of the persons of the Trinity to self-consciousness.
(a) In contemplating the oneness and solitariness of God, the human
distaste for loneliness has led to the association of this condition with
God. In other words, since the Bible teaches that God desires fellowship
with man (Gen. 3:8-9), then the question has been raised as to whether,
before creation when God was alone, “Was He lonely?”
(b) The explanation of Shedd is most helpful here:
God as personal, is self-conscious. Consequently he must make himself
his own object of contemplation. Here the doctrine of the Trinity, the
deep and dark mystery of Christianity, pours a flood of light upon the
mystery of the Divine self-consciousness. . . . God cannot be selfcontemplating,
self-cognitive, and self-communing, unless he is trinal in
his constitution. 76
In other words, God was blessed, content, self-satisfied before creation
because there has always been perfect fellowship between the persons of
the Trinity. God has always been happily aware of Himself (Matt.
11:27; John 1:1-2, 18; 17:5). Refer to Edwards’ statement on God’s selfknowledge
as self-love, p. 140.
(5) Illustrations of the triunity of God.
75 Bavinck, Doctrine of God, pp. 319-20.
76 Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, pp. 183, 251.
(a) While Bavinck gives the most comprehensive catalog of illustrations of
the Trinity, yet he warns that our knowledge of this doctrine is
exclusively obtained from Scripture. On the other hand, to exclude any
approximate illustration of the Trinity, for at best approximate is all

77 Bavinck, Doctrine of God, p. 323.
78 John Dagg, Manual of Theology, p. 249.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 199
they are, would be to argue for the exclusion of any illustration of
essential Bible truth. Included in this collection are,
the three dimensions of space [height, breadth, depth]; the three
measurements of time [past present, future]; the three kingdoms of
nature: matter, spirit, and the union of the two in man; the solid, fluid,
and gaseous state; the power of attraction, repulsion, and equilibrium;
the three functions of the human soul: reasoning, feeling, and desiring;
the three capacities of the soul: mind, will, and moral nature; the three
factors that constitute a family: husband, wife and child; the three classes
in society: teachers, soldiery, and peasantry . . . the three ideals: the good,
the true, and the beautiful; the three tones in music: key-tone, tierce-tone,
and quint-tone; the rainbow and its many colors; the sun with its
quickening, illuminating, and warming energy; the three basic colors:
yellow, red, and blue, etc. 77
Consider also electricity manifesting heat, light, and power. Dagg
mentions water, ice, and snow, but then comments in contradiction:
“All such illustrations darken counsel with words without knowledge.
What shall we liken unto the Lord?” 78 However, is not nature an
illustration of God in part? (Ps. 19:1-6).
(b) The most historic illustration of all is the following diagram which
represents God as a triangle set in a circle incorporating unity, triune
diversity, patriarchal headship, and eternality.
IS NOT
IS
FATHER
IS
GOD
1) There is an indivisible oneness of essence that incorporates the
distinct persons of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
2) There is a triune diversity that distinguishes between the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit within the one indivisible essence of God.
3) There is a headship that portrays the distinct economic role of the
Father over the distinct role of the Son and the distinct role of
Holy Spirit.
IS NOT
SON SPIRIT
IS NOT
IS

200
79 Dabney, Systematic Theology, p. 178.
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
4) There is triune diversity in the unity of one God, which existence is
eternal.
(c) The doctrine of the Trinity defended.
1) The most crude objection to the doctrine of the Trinity is that of
the religious rationalist who agrees that, 1 (God the Father) + 1
(God the Son) + (God the Holy Spirit) = 3 (Gods). But why is this
antagonist so selective with this equation since 1 (God the Father)
× 1 (God the Son) × 1 (God the Holy Spirit) = 1 (God). Of course
God cannot be explained by a mere formula anymore than finite
man can comprehend the infinite. Surely truth about God in every
aspect is supra-rational, that is beyond reason without being
absurd. Hence Dabney calls this objection an argument based on
ignorance. He continues:
But it is not just what we would expect, that when God reveals
something about the subsistence of His being, it should be
thoroughly inscrutable to us? We must remember that the human
mind has no cognizance of substance, in fact, except as the existing
ground, to which our intuitions impel us to refer as properties. It is
only the properties that we truly conceive. This is true of material
substance; how much more of spiritual substance? And more yet of
the infinite? God, in revealing Himself to the eternal reason, only
reveals His being and properties or attributes – His substance
remains as visible as ever. Look back, I pray you, to that whole
knowledge of God which we have acquired this far, and you will
see that it is nothing but knowledge of attributes. 79
2) It is objected that the title Son of God can only mean that Jesus, in
both his person and nature, is inferior to the Father and not equal.
a) It is agreed that the person of Jesus Christ, existing before
creation, has taken upon himself a subordinate rank or role,
that is, “the form of a bond-servant” (Phil. 2:7). Hence Jesus
Christ can say in this servant role, “the Father is greater than
I” (John 14:28).
b) However, it is also true that before Jesus Christ took upon
himself “the likeness of men,” he “existed in the form of
God” Phil. 2:6-7). It is for this reason that Paul can declare
of the Son of God that, “in Him all the fullness of Deity
dwells in bodily form” (Col. 2:9).
c) We must also remember that as Fatherhood originates in
heaven (Eph. 3:14-15), so too does Sonhood (Ps. 2:7). It is a
grave error to force the figure of human sonship upon the
heavenly reality. Hence the role of the Son of God is

THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD 201
submission to the Father, while the essence of the Son is
identical with the Father John 1:1).
d) Note also that the Jews of Jesus’ time equated the title “Son
of God” with the deity of God when they charged him with
blasphemy (John 5:18, 23; 10:33; 19:7).
3) It is objected that the doctrine of the Trinity is historic, creedal,
metaphysical speculation that involves verbal juggling by
contentious minds that detracts from true piety.
a) It is agreed that, like many other vital Christian truths, the
doctrine of the Trinity has suffered at the hands of those who
seem to revel in abstract debate and so tend to sterilize vital
orthodoxy. However the offering of Unitarianism hardly
presents a heart-warming alternative. Pieper pulls no punches
in declaring that, the
pious-sounding phrase of the [Unitarian] fatherhood of God is
nothing but human speculation and self-delusion. And sooner
or later the Unitarians experience that their favorite formula is
without spirit and without life, for in spiritual anguish or in
the hour of death the voice of conscience, which had been
violently suppressed, will no longer be silenced, as the cases of
Horace Bushnell, A Ritschl, W. R. Harper, and others prove. 80
b) It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the doctrine of the
Trinity supremely rests upon the full deity of Jesus Christ.
When we passionately hold true to this biblical foundation as
we ought, along with the deity of the Father and the Holy
Spirit, then there will reverently burst forth from our hearts
that cry of Thomas so full of authentic worship, “My Lord
and my God!” literally, “the Lord of me and the God
[oJ qeov", ho theos] of me” (John 20:28). But further, when we
personally learn of the saving work of the Father, Son, and
the Holy Spirit in essential holy harmony, then we will join
with Paul (II Thess. 2:13-14), and Peter (I Pet. 1:1-3) to
“always give thanks to God.”
5. The practical application of the doctrine of the Trinity.
a. While teaching on the Trinity is rarely heard today, even from evangelical pulpits,
yet it is significant that the Church of England has required that all fourty-four
articles of the Athanasian Creed (c. A.D. 600?), not written by Athenasius, be read
each year on Trinity Sunday, which is the Sunday following Pentecost. This
confession is prefaced and concluded with the assertion that belief in its expressed
truth is necessary to salvation.
80 Pieper, Dogmatics, I, p, 404.

202
THE PERSONAL BEING OF GOD
b. In the fluctuating spiritual climate in evangelical churches today, faithful teaching
on the triunity of God will correct the following perversions of fundamental
biblical truth.
(1) That erroneous “Jesus only” emphasis which excludes the primary passion of
the Son of God, namely the will of the Father (John 4:34; Luke 22:42). Refer
to Thomas Smail’s The Forgotten Father, in which he confesses that much of
his loyalty to the Charismatic Movement had to be abandoned on account of
its doctrinal imbalance at this point, especially concerning pneumaticism.
(2) That deistic posturing of God as the benign, semi-involved, Unitarian Father
who also masquerades in Christian churches that vaguely speak of
worshiping “God in general,” while qualified patronage is given to the
ethical teaching of Jesus the Galilean and “the Spirit(?) at work in the world
today.”
(3) That Charismatic pneumaticism which subtracts from the supreme purpose
of the Father’s glory, and dethrones the reigning centrality of Jesus Christ’s
atonement, as if Pentecost trumps Calvary. Thus the experience of the
baptism and gifts of the Spirit takes precedence over the preliminary matter
of redemption.
c. Strong concludes that the doctrine of the Trinity regulates other important
doctrines. 81
(1) The Trinity is essential to proper theism and preservation from
Mohammedanism, modern Judaism, Unitarianism, and Pantheism. Love is
an impossible exercise to a solitary being.
(2) The Trinity is essential to any proper revelation. No trinity means Christ is
not God and cannot perfectly know or reveal God.
(3) The Trinity is essential to any proper redemption. There is no applicable
atonement, for only one who is God can reconcile us to God. God as only a
unity can judge but not save.
(4) The Trinity is essential to any proper model for human life. Godliness is
impossible unless the true likeness of God be seen.
d. For Bavinck, the doctrine of the Trinity is vital for practical religion because:
81 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 347-52.
82 Bavinck, The Doctrine of God, p. 333.
The work of redemption is thoroughly trinitarian in character. Of God, and through
God, and in God are all things. It is one divine act from beginning to end.
Nevertheless, it reveals a threefold distinction: it is summarized in the love of the
Father, the grace of the Son, and the communion of the Holy Spirit. . . . The triune
God is the source of every blessing we receive. He is the mainspring of our entire
salvation. 82

A. INTRODUCTION
1. Person and personality.
CHAPTER XII
THE PERSONALITY OF GOD
a. By definition, God is pure, underived, self-conscious, self-determining, selfmanifesting,
holy, living being, and thus is personal.
(1) A dog, fish, tree, plant, amoeba, are not persons even though each possesses
life.
(2) Man has derived, limited personal existence, being self-conscious, selfdetermining,
self-manifesting, unholy, living being, after the image of God
(Gen. 1:26-27).
(3) God, having underived, transcendent, holy, living, personal being, exists as
the only absolute “I.”
(a) He is perfectly self-conscious or self-aware, declaring “I am” (Ex. 3:14).
(b) He is perfectly self-determining or independently decisive, declaring “I
will” (Ex. 6:2-8).
(c) He is perfectly self-expressive or self-manifesting, declaring “I actively
show” (Ex. 9:16; 16:6-10; 19:16-20).
b. Hence, while God is personal, His active self-expression or self-manifestation is a
revelation of His personality.
(1) However, it is important that the revelation of God’s personality be
perceived as the expression of the fulness of His attributes, and not unrelated
emotion and radiance.
(2) At the level of mankind, we may strongly assess a human being according to
certain incongruous personality traits, such as an outwardly happy
countenance that does not betray inner melancholy. The emotions, names,
and general aura of a human being may be deceptive. But the personality of
God is in perfect harmony with His essential being.
(a) The emotions of God, as revealed in Scripture, truly reflect His
attributes and essential existence.
(b) The names of God, as revealed in Scripture, truly reflect His attributes
and essential existence.

204
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(c) The radiance of God, as revealed in Scripture, truly reflects His
attributes and essential existence.
c. Since personhood is sourced in God who expresses the perfect, righteous
personality, and man as a person is modeled after God (Gen. 1:26-27), it follows
that man was created to have personal fellowship with God and express a godly
personality (Gen. 3:8-9). However, the corruption of man’s person and
personality through sin has resulted in a breach of personal fellowship between
God and man. Thus, only God can reconcile alienated man to Himself by
restoring the person and personality of man to its original matrix.
(1) As a sinful person, my warped personality finds satisfaction and eternal rest
only through renewal and realignment unto the righteous personality of God.
(a) My sin-biased intellect finds true correction and stability only in the
righteous intellect of God (Rom. 12:2; I Cor. 2:16; Phil. 2:5).
(b) My sin-biased will finds true correction and stability only in the
righteous will of God (Col. 4:12; I Pet. 4:2; I John 2:17).
(c) My sin-biased emotions find true correction and stability only in the
righteous emotions of God (Neh. 8:10; Is. 65:19; Phil. 4:4).
(2) This means that only in Jehovah God are my personal needs truly met, for in
Him I find:
(a) The truest Friend, as did Moses (Ex. 33:11).
(b) The most merciful Helper (Ps. 10:14; Heb. 13:6).
(c) The most steadfast Sovereign (Ps. 33:11; Is. 46:10).
(d) The kindest Father (Matt. 6:9; 7:11; Rom. 8:15-16).
(3) The popular cult of excessive self-analysis, subjectivism, existential
encounter, introspection, and relational theology, finds its demise at this
point. True personhood is attained, not by self-preoccupation, but rather
through preoccupation with the God of the Bible. Man’s urgent need at this
time is a true and holy God-image rather than a stimulating, egocentric selfimage.
2. Triunity and personality.
a. If the one living God is a triunity of persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit, does this mean that God has a trichotomous personality, or three
personalities? Decidedly not, for the personality of God is the expression of His
essential attributes which are of the same essence for each person of the Trinity.
b. Our problem here is, as is so often the case, that of conceiving of the term
“person” in crassly human terms (cf. p. 196). Three human persons do have

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 205
different personalities, but this is not so with the triune Jehovah. We might say
that God has one personality expressed through three individual persons.
B. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD COMMUNICATED.
1. The image of God in the constitution of man.
a. Introduction.
Concerning God’s attributes communicated to man, it ought to be understood
that they are predicated, of necessity, upon the communication of God’s image to
man. Such impartation seems to be directly described in Genesis 2:7 where it is
revealed that, “the LORD God formed man of the dust from the ground, and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” In
other words, God made man in the physical realm, and his soul was formed by the
transmission of life, though not God’s essence, whereby a living human being was
created.
(1) God is glorified throughout all of His creation. But His resplendent majesty
is supremely comprehended when the creature is enabled to have personal
adoring fellowship, and not mere presence, with God. Such fellowship
requires a created being that, cast in a mold similar to God, can commune
with God according to His personal/moral nature. It is for this reason that
man was created in God’s likeness and image (Gen. 1:26-27; 3:8-9).
(2) However, because man received nobility and dignity at his creation, and yet
is now depraved, disfigured, delinquent, and disreputable, through the fall, a
tension presents itself that needs to be carefully resolved. In other words,
does man today still have nobility and dignity as a thorough sinner? Much
popular teaching has stressed this dignity in terms of human self-worth and
self-esteem, and is quick to glibly claim supposed support from the fact that
modern man still retains a measure of the image of God in his being. Now in
general terms this biblical premise is true, though the extrapolation
concerning self-value is questionable. What precisely is retained and what is
lost concerning the “imago Dei”? Does the Bible gratify polluted humankind
by describing it in terms of nobility and dignity? It must be admitted that it
flatters and comforts sinners to think that this is so. But what specifically, yet
universally, does the Bible teach?
b. Key biblical principles concerning man made in the image of God.
(1) Man was framed in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-28; 5:1-3).
(a) God shaped “mankind” (plural), so that His reflected image is international.
(b) The terms “image” and “likeness” are synonymous in meaning according
to Hebrew parallelism.

206
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(c) Man’s image is after the triune God, cf. “Our image, . . . Our likeness,”
not only that of God the Son.
(d) The likeness of man to God is illustrated by the generated likeness of
Seth to Adam (Gen. 5:3).
(e) Both man and woman were made in the image of God.
(f) Because man is unique and superior in the earthly sphere, he is to
exercise dominion over the animal world.
(2) Man is to revere man made in the image of God (Gen. 9:6).
(a) To murder or slay man is to attempt to slash, deface, and defame God
by proxy.
(b) A shedder of human blood is a spiller of sacred life who outrages God,
the giver of personal/moral life after His image.
(3) Man retains the image of God as a congenital sinner (Gen. 9:6; I Cor. 11:7;
Jas. 3:8-9).
(a) Even a murderer or a gossip retains at least portion of the image of
God, but it is perverted to some degree. Nevertheless, a measure of
glory also remains.
(b) Calvin comments” “Even though we grant that God’s image was not
totally annihilated and destroyed in him, yet it is so corrupted that
whatever remains is frightful deformity.” 1
(4) Man is recreated in the image of God (Rom. 8:29; I Cor. 15:45-49; II Cor.
4:4; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 1:15; 3:9-10).
(a) God’s elect are destined to be conformed to the last Adam, Jesus Christ,
who is the precise image of God.
(b) Through Jesus Christ, morally perverted man is created anew, that is in
true knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, after God’s holy image.
c. Possible elements that comprise man made in the image of God.
(1) The physical image of God in man?
(a) According to Ecclesiastes 7:29, some have identified God’s image with
man’s vertical posture. But surely this passage refers to man’s moral
uprightness. Besides, if we relate the “imago Dei” merely to physical
1 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, I, XV, 4.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 207
features, then we would be forced to confess that certain monkeys are
endowed with a lesser divine image.
(b) Mormonism takes us to the realm of absurdity when it declares:
“Joseph Smith has proclaimed anew to the world the simple [sic] truth
that the Eternal Father and His glorified Son Jesus Christ are in form
and stature perfect Men; and that in Their physical likeness mankind
has been created in the flesh.” 2
(c) But God is pure spirit (Is. 31:3; John 4:24), Whom the heavens cannot
contain (I Kings 8:27). The “imago Dei” relates to God’s essence in all
three persons of the Trinity (Gen. 1:26), not material substance.
(2) The dominion image of God in man?
(a) Certainly man’s appointed dominion over the animal world is closely
related to the “imago Dei” in Genesis 1:26-28. Furthermore, it appears
that man, having received God’s image, is consequently well equipped
to reign over the earth. Dominion, or sovereignty (cf. p. 125), is the
responsibility of man, having been made in God’s image.
(b) Although the image of God in man is diminished and distorted, yet man
continues to exercise dominion in a manner that Scripture describes as
remaining glory.
1) In Psalm 8:4-8, this glory is man’s present dominion over the
animal world.
2) In I Corinthians 11:3, 7, this glory is man’s present dominion or
headship over the woman.
(3) The personal image of God in man?
(a) Since God is the only underived, transcendent personal being, we have
already concluded (cf. pp. 203-204) that personhood is sourced in God,
and that He expresses the perfect righteous personality. Hence:
1) God is self-conscious, self-determining, and self-expressive.
2) Any fellowship with the person of God by a creature must be by
means of another person, and this role or image has been
incorporated in the being of man.
(b) As a sinner, man retains the undiminished elements and framework of
personhood as endowed by God. He continues to have being, selfconsciousness,
determination, and expression, and in this sense
continues to reflect the image of God’s person.
2 James E. Talmage, The Vitality Of Mormonism, p. 44.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
1) Strong explains: “This first element of the divine image
[personhood] man can never lose until he ceases to be man. Even
insanity can only obscure this natural image. . . . The lost piece of
money (Luke 15:8) still bore the image and superscription of the
king, even though it did not know it, and did not even know that it
was lost.” 3
2) However, it is the moral base of a man’s soul that colors these
faculties and framework of personhood. The unrighteous soul of a
man stains his being, determination and expression, and in this
sense he bares the image of Satan! Thus for man as an
unregenerate sinner, personhood, as well as dominion, are the only
remaining vestiges of the imago Dei.
(4) The moral image of God in man?
(a) Adam was created with original righteousness (Gen. 1:31), which
although unverified in innocence to begin with, yet was positively good
without any tendency toward evil. Thus the first man was a holy
person; his being, determination, and expression, found perfect
fulfillment in an acceptable, loving and obedient relationship with God.
Hence, the moral soul of Adam was able to bloom through personality.
(b) Strong gives priority to holiness over personhood concerning these two
chief elements of the imago Dei as follows: “Since holiness is the
fundamental attribute of God, this must of necessity be the chief
attribute of his image in the moral beings whom he creates. That
original righteousness was essential to this image, is also distinctly
taught in Scripture (Eccl. 7:29; Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:9-10).” 4
(c) However, at the Fall, man’s original righteousness was supplanted by
original sin with the result that the holy moral element of the imago Dei
was completely, not partially, lost. John Bunyan graphically portrays
this tragic transformation in his classic allegory The Holy War, as
follows:
3. Augustus Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 515.
4. Ibid, p. 517.
When the giant [Diabolus] had thus ingarrisoned himself in the town of
Mansoul, and had put down and set up whom he thought good; he
betakes himself to defacing. Now there was in the market-place in
Mansoul, and also upon the gates of the castle, an image of the blessed
King Shaddai; this image was so exactly engraven, and it was engraven in
gold, that it did the most resemble Shaddai himself of anything that then
was extant in the world. This he basely commanded to be defaced, and it
was as basely done by the hand of Mr. Notruth. Now you must know,
that as Diabolus had commanded, and that by the hand of Mr. Notruth,
the image of Shaddai was defaced. He likewise gave order that the same
Mr. Notruth should set up in its stead the horrid and formidable image

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 209
of Diabolus; to the great contempt of the former King, and debasing of
his town of Mansoul. 5
d. Man was made in the image of God as a holy, dominant person.
(1) It is the combination of the elements of holiness, dominion and personhood
that constitute the original and complete imago Dei in man. Eric Sauer best
states this principle thus:
(2) If there is to be a relation of mutual love between the Creator and His creature,
between God and man, then His finite creature, in spite of his ever remaining
different from the infinite Creator, so far as philosophical thought is concerned,
must nevertheless be united with him in a morally based spiritual relationship. But
God’s moral nature is holy love. Hence man must also have been so made that holy
love is his vocation and ideally the basic power of his personality. Therefore he must
be a created likeness of his eternal Creator, and, since God’s moral creation is called
to have fellowship in love with God, he must also of necessity be in the image of
God.” 6 In basic agreement with this understanding of the imago Dei are Bavinck, 7
Edwards, 8 Pieper, 9 and Strong. 10
(a) It should be noted that the element of dominion is included because of it
being integral to the description of the imago Dei in Genesis 1:26-28. In
other words, as God has total dominion over all of His creation, so He
has communicated His image in giving man some dominion over some
of His creation.
(3) But the remnant skeletal form of God’s image in unregenerate man, that is
his distinctive, natural personhood, is directed by an unholy heart/soul on
account of inherited (original) sin. Thus unsaved man, as a person, is unholy
in his being, determination, expression, and dominion. John 8:44 illustrates
this thorough pollution of man’s personhood as follows:
(a) The unbeliever has being through the devil as his father. Thus he is
unholy.
(b) The unbeliever has determination in doing the desires of the devil as his
father. Thus he wills unholiness.
(c) The unbeliever has expression in murdering and lying like the devil who
is his father. Thus he expresses unholiness.
(4) By way of illustration, the imago Dei in fallen man may be likened to a new,
prestigious, smooth-running automobile of distinctive character, such as a
5 George Offor, ed., The Works Of John Bunyan, III, p. 263.
6 Eric Sauer, The King Of The Earth, p. 139.
7 Herman Bavinck, Our Reasonable Faith, pp. 210-5.
8 Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, I, p. 12.
9 Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, I, pp. 516-517.
10 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 514-523.

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Cadillac or Rolls Royce, that suddenly develops serious engine and
transmission trouble. Because of developing noise, vibration, a smoking
exhaust, and unpredictable stops and starts, the still functional vehicle is yet
gradually ravaged through accidents and overall body deterioration. The
vehicle now retains only part of its original image, and increasingly reflects a
deformed and disreputable character. Nevertheless, such an automobile
remains a Cadillac or Rolls Royce.
(5) However, it must not be thought that the Christian, through redemption, is
merely restored to the full imago Dei of the innocent first Adam. Rather, the
New Testament believer is ultimately to be made conformable to the image
of the last Adam, Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:29; I Cor. 15:45; I John 3:2-3). This is
to boldly suggest that the redeemed sinner shall ultimately have a more
complete imago Dei than the first Adam, since the Christian abundantly,
distinctively reflects the grace of God that could not possibly be reflected in
innocence (Rom. 5:17-21).
e. The significance of man made in the image of God.
(1) While horizontal relationships at the human level are important, yet the full
imago Dei in man was principally designed to establish a holy, vertical
relationship between God and man (Gen. 1:26-27). So Charnock explains
that “[God] did not only make man so noble a creature in his frame, but he
made him after his own image in holiness. He imparted to him a spark of his
own comeliness, in order to a communion with himself in happiness.” 11
From this we conclude:
(a) Man originally received the complete imago Dei so that through
fellowship he might personally glorify God.
(b) Man is primarily fulfilled in personally knowing God.
(c) Man is also fulfilled in personally knowing men who personally know
God.
(d) Man is unfulfilled in personally knowing men who do not personally
know God.
(2) When it is realized that the unholy image of Satan has been imposed upon
man’s God-given personhood (II Cor. 3:16; 4:4), any enthusiasm for
unregenerate man’s boasting in human nobility and self-worth based upon
the imago Dei is rightly dampened. Natural man is an indignity before God!
(a) While unsaved man’s continuing dominion reflects a degree of glory, yet
it is but a pale reflection of God’s original holy purpose. His reign is
now more ignoble.
11 Stephen Charnock, The Complete Works of Stephen Charnock, II, p. 308.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 211
(b) To ascribe to godless man dignity and nobility is to attempt to turn a
sow’s ear into a silk purse, or flatter the prodigal son while he revels in
the far country.
(c) Yet it is true that the lost sinner does have value in the sight of God, but
only insofar as he is fully worthy of judgment and thus qualified to
receive grace (Rom. 4:5; 5:6, 8).
(3) While the first Adam was instantly, fully created in God’s image on the sixth
day (Gen. 1:23-31), yet the re-creation of lost sinners into the likeness of the
Son of God is both instantaneous and ongoing.
(a) At conversion, the Christian has become a “new creature [species]” (II
Cor. 5:17; Gal. 6:15).
(b) Following conversion, the Christian is progressively “transformed into
the same image [of Christ] from glory to glory” (II Cor. 3:18; Gal.
4:19).
(c) However, the Christian is created in the image of God the Son so that,
like the first Adam, he might glorify God in holy personal fellowship (I
John 1:3; Rev. 5:6-14).
2. The emotions of God directed towards man.
a. Introduction.
It is a surprising fact that while the Bible describes the emotions of God at every
hand, yet some of the most respected writers concerning the attributes of God,
including Charnock, Bavinck, Pink, Tozer, and Packer, give little if any attention
to such an important though complex aspect of His being. It may be that the
reason for this regrettable omission is the frequent explanation given by
evangelical Christians that, in general, God’s affections are anthropopathic, that is
mere human emotional representations of the eternally blessed and spiritual
Jehovah. At a more technical level is the definition of God as being “impassible,”
that is incapable of feeling or emotion. On the other hand it may be that we
simply shrink from ascribing emotion to God in His essence since it tends to
improperly humanize Him. Be that as it may, the considerable weight of biblical
testimony at this point calls for a fresh, reverent, and exceedingly careful analysis
of an aspect of God’s being that has been neglected for some time.
(1) Nevertheless, great caution is called for as we consider the revealed spectrum
of God’s affections, since this closing twentieth century finds man
inordinately fascinated with personal feelings, emotions, passions,
temperament, sensuality, etc. This should lead us to be concerned lest the
priority of warped human emotions is impressed upon the triune God with
the result that His holy name is defamed. Even so, we ought not to regard
Jehovah as stoically passive and quiescent, after the manner of Greek
conceptions of deity. In an article entitled The Emotional Life Of Our Lord,
Benjamin B. Warfield enlarges upon this problem as follows:

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There is a tendency in the interest of dignity of his [Jesus’] person to minimize,
and there is a tendency in the interest of the completeness of his humanity to
magnify, his affectional movements. The one tendency may run some risk of
giving us a somewhat cold and remote Jesus, whom we can scarcely believe to
be able to sympathize with us in all of our infirmities. The other may possibly
be in danger of offering us a Jesus so crassly human as scarcely to command
our highest reverence. Between the two, the figure of Jesus is liable to take on a
certain vagueness of outline, and come to lack definiteness of thought. 12
As we also consider the emotions of God the Father and God the Holy Spirit,
similar reverence and care ought to be invested.
(2) In the realm of personal human expression, both the soul/spirit and the flesh
are intimately related insofar as emotions and affections are concerned.
When joy, laughter, sorrow, and anger are experienced, the human body is
invariably involved, though the source of this expression via the body is in
the realm of the immaterial, that is the movement of the soul/spirit. Hence,
there is a sphere of mystery here, and this being so, how much greater is the
mystery with regard to the emotions of God. A variety of profound questions
has to be considered, such as:
(a) Are the emotions of God mere anthropopathic expressions of His
dealings with man, while He remains essentially unmoved and ever
blessed?
(b) Because God in His essence is pure spirit, simple and immaterial, does
He experience emotion in His being?
(c) Is it possible for the immutable God to experience a change of emotion
and mood in His being?
(d) What distinction, if any, can be made between the generation or
stimulus of emotion in God within and without His being?
(e) Are there real emotional expressions evident between the triune Persons
of the Godhead?
(f) Are the numerous emotions of Jesus Christ only expressions of his
humanity?
(g) Are the emotions of spiritual beings such as angels (Luke 15:10) real?
(3) If it be agreed as a general principle that emotions are sourced in the
immaterial being or personal essence of God and man, radically different
though they be, then it follows that a correct understanding of essence, is of
fundamental and importance. Hence, priority must be given to
comprehending God’s essential attributes before considering His expressions
of emotion. To contemplate the emotions of God while being relatively
12 Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, The Person And Work Of Christ, p. 94.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 213
ignorant of His perfections is to unfailingly reduce the Almighty to puny,
unworthy, unholy, and human proportions.
b. The emotions and feelings of the triune God.
(1) God the Father is described in the Bible as expressing:
(a) Joy, delight, gladness, laughter (Deut. 28:63; Ps. 2:4; 104:31; Is. 65:19).
(b) Compassion, pity, concern, great mercy (Ps. 78:38; 119:156; Ezek.
36:21; Joel 2:18).
(c) Zeal, marching, riding, guarding (Ps. 45:3-4; Isa. 9:7; 27:2-3; 37:32;
Hab. 3:12).
(d) Sorrow, grief, repentance, displeasure, hatred, weariness (Ps. 5:5-6;
45:7; 95:10; 119:158, 163; Is. 43:24; Amos 6:8; Mal. 2:16).
(e) Anger, wrath, fury, indignation, jealousy (Num. 11:1; 25:4; Isa. 34:2;
Jer. 4:8; 51:45; Zeph. 2:1-2; Rom. 1:18; I Cor. 10:5).
(2) God the Son is described in the Bible as expressing:
(a) Joy, gladness, wonder, astonishment (Matt. 8:10; Mark 6:6; Luke
10:21; 15:3-7; John 11:15; 17:13).
(b) Compassion, visceral pity, mercy, sympathy (Matt. 9:36; Mark 8:2;
Heb. 2:17; 4:15).
(c) Sorrow, anguish, grief, inner disturbance (Isa. 53:3; Matt. 26:37-38;
Mark 14:33-34; John 13:21).
(d) Tears, sighs, groaning, screaming (Matt. 27:46; Mark 7:34; 8:12; John
10:33, 38; 11:33, 35, 38; Heb. 5:7).
(e) Rebuke, warning, condemnation, woe (Matt. 17:18; 23:13-36; Mark
8:30, 33; Luke 4:39).
(f) Anger, indignation, sternness, righteous zeal, irritation (Matt. 9:30;
Mark 3:5; 10:14; John 2:17; Rev. 6:16).
(3) God the Holy Spirit is described in the Bible as expressing:
(a) Grief (Is. 63:10; Eph. 4:30).
(b) Sympathetic groaning (Rom. 8:26).
(c) Joy, through the Son (Luke 10:21), and the believer (Rom. 14:17; Gal.
5:22).

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c. The reality of the emotions and feelings of the triune God.
(1) Definition.
According to The Oxford English Dictionary, the fundamental meaning of
“emotion” is “out + motion,” or “to move out,” thus, “any agitation or
disturbance of mind, feeling, passion; any vehement or excited mental
state.” 13
(2) A creedal definition critiqued.
13 The Oxford English Dictionary, 5, p. 183.
(a) The Westminster Confession of Faith, completed in 1648, declares that
God is, “a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or
passions,” 14 the last mentioned quality being supported by the footnote
reference to Acts 14:11, 15. While the commentary of A. A. Hodge at
this point regarding God being passionless is helpful at several points,
yet other aspects ought to be questioned. He declares:
We deny that the properties of matter, such as bodily parts and passions,
belong to him [God]. We make this denial - (a) because there is no
evidence that he does possess any such properties; and (b) because, from
the very nature of matter and its affections, it is inconsistent with those
infinite and absolute perfections which are of his essence, such as
simplicity, unchangeableness, unity, omnipresence, etc. When the
Scriptures . . . speak of his repenting, of his being grieved, or jealous, they
use metaphorical language, . . . teaching us that he acts toward us as a
man would when agitated by such passions. Such metaphors are
characteristic rather of the Old than of the New Testament, and occur for
the most part in highly rhetorical passages of the poetical and prophetical
books. 15
(b) In a similar vein, Robert Shaw adds that, “when he [God] punishes men
for sin, he is said to be angry; when he does that by severe and
redoubled strokes, he is said to be full of fury and revenge; when he
punishes for idolatry, or any dishonor to himself, he is said to be
jealous.” 16 Again some criticism is necessary here concerning several
matters.
(c) The exclusive association of passions and affections with material,
human bodily expression, ignores the real emotions of spiritual beings
such as angels and seraphim who manifest:
1) Joy (Luke 2:13-14; 15:10).
2) Adoration and praise (Ps. 148:1-2).
14 Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom, III, p. 606.
15 A. A. Hodge, The Confession of Faith, p. 49.
16 Robert Shaw, Exposition Of The Confession Of Faith, p. 27.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 215
3) Reverence and awe (Isa. 6:2-3; Rev. 4:8-9).
4) Craving desire (I Pet. 1:12).
(d) While it is readily agreed that some emotions attributed to God, such as
repentance and laughter, are more anthropopathic than others, yet
surely the human analogy represents an essential feeling and motion
within God rather than insensible quiescence. The appeal to God’s
immutability is misplaced as shall subsequently be explained. Also note
that Hodge and Shaw do not mention such less anthropopathic
emotions as God’s joy and pity. But are these, as Hodges suggests,
merely terms of “condescension to our weakness,” 17 or preferably
representations of the transcendently affectionate soul of the living
God?
(e) Concerning the appeal of the Westminster Confession of Faith to Acts
14:15, where Paul and Barnabas describe themselves as “of the same
nature [oJmoiopaqhv", homoiopathēs]” as the citizens of Lystra, they are
contrasting themselves with the vanity and lifeless apathy of the gods
Zeus and Hermes. In any case, surely this verse does not prove that Paul
and Barnabas believe God to be passionless (Rom. 1:18; I Cor. 10:5). If
they do draw a contrast with the “living God,” it is one of degree in
which Paul and Barnabas are merely mortal in their sensible nature
when compared with God’s infinite, spiritual sensibility.
(f) Shaw’s comment is really evasive since nobody questions that God’s
action such as punishment depicts emotion. The real question is, does
the emotion expressing act arise from a holy, spiritual movement in
God’s being or not? Again, the impression this author gives, albeit
unintentionally, is that God is in reality insensible, even if active, in
holiness.
(3) A defense of God as being really emotional.
17 Hodge, Confession of Faith, p. 49.
It is proposed that the Bible clearly, repeatedly describes God as being
essentially, spiritually emotional and affectionate. When one considers the
fullness of emotion that is expressed by the Son of God, and his confession to
Philip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9), it appears
quite inadequate to explain away the affections of Jesus Christ as being
anthropopathic and exclusive to his humanity.
(a) John Owen, being representative of the teaching of the Westminster
Assembly at this point, describes divine emotions, particularly anger,
fury, zeal, wrath, hatred, jealousy, repentance, grief, joy, fear, as
anthropopathisms, though in reality, passionless metaphorical acts of
the ever blessed God’s will. 18 Thus, in his denial of any real affections in
18 In The Lion Concise Book of Christian Thought, there is an interesting comment concerning pre-Christian
concepts of God in this realm: “The Greek God belongs to the realm of being. He is thus unchanging or

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
God’s being, he maintains that: “To ascribe affections properly to God
is to make him weak, imperfect, dependent, changeable, and
impotent.” 19 More specifically he reasons:
1) Emotions require stimuli, and for God this would make Him
dependent on such emotional causes. But as we have seen
regarding God being fully satisfied with fellowship in His own
triune Self (p. 140, 198), and thus not lonely, so God has full
emotional satisfaction within His own triune Self apart from any
necessary external stimulation (Matt. 3:16-17; 17:5; Luke 10:21;
John 1:18; 3:35; 5:20; 14:31; 15:9). This being so, God may
respond emotionally to external stimuli, such as angels or men,
without being emotionally dependent, in the same way that He
may have fellowship with angels and men without being
dependent. 20 Further, Owen’s argument would deny God as being
essentially gracious since this exhibition is dependent upon the
manifestation of sin.
2) Emotions necessarily require change, whereas God is immutable
(Mal. 3:6). However God’s joy in righteousness and hatred of sin
are expressions of God’s unchanging righteous essence. God’s
essence is unchanging though He acts variously, such as in not
creating, then creating, and then ceasing to create with the
acknowledgment that the creation is good (Gen. 1:31). As
Charnock states, “the creation was a real change, but the change
was not subjectively in God, but in the creature.” 21 “ judge who
both protects the innocent with joy and judges the guilty with
anger is not chargeable with essential change. 22
3) God is “blessed forever” (Rom. 9:5; I Tim. 6:15). Hence, “can he
be blessed, is he all-sufficient, who is tossed up and down with
hope, joy, fear, sorrow, repentance, anger, and the like?” 23 Because
we so easily impose human conceptions upon the character of
God, it escapes our puny thoughts that God could be blessed in
His anger and joy! Again, claiming that God could be emotionally
“tossed up and down” is merely to describe human perception and
experience. When God has feelings and emotions, He is always
immutable. This means that he cannot have any direct contact with this world of becoming and change. It
also means that he is impassible: not subject to any emotions or feelings. The early fathers had to grapple
with the inherent contradictions between the Greek and the biblical concepts of God,” p. 12. Owen was
highly trained in Aristotelian and Platonic thought at Oxford University; of course this does not refute his
idea of God being “impassible,” but it ought to be carefully considered.
19 . John Owen, The Works of John Owen, XII, p. 110; also refer to pp. 108-115.
20 Ibid., p.110.
21 Charnock, Works, I, p. 397.
22 Ibid.
23 Ibid., p. 115, cf. p. 109.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 217
blessed. Further, the blessedness of Romans 9:5 (eujloghtov",
eulogētos) describes an attributed rather than a contemplated
condition.
(b) William Shedd, though unconvincingly denying that God has passions,
to uphold it would seem the language of The Westminster Confession of
Faith, yet convincingly declares that God “has feelings and emotions,”
and that “he is self-moved in all his feelings.” He further adds that,
the two feelings of love of holiness and hatred of evil coexist in the
character of God, the most perfect of beings, and in that of angels and
redeemed men. . . . These emotions of love and wrath are compatible
with the Divine blessedness. . . . The feelings of wrath against the
wickedness of man and devils, is constantly in the Divine essence. Yet
God is supremely and constantly blessed. . . . While therefore God as a
most pure spirit has no passions, he has feelings and emotions. He is not
passively wrought upon by the objective universe, so that he experiences
physical impressions and organic appetites, as the creature does, but he is
self-moved in all his feelings. 24
(c) The emotions of Jesus Christ.
Concerning the earthly passions of the Son of God, Warfield cautions us
at the commencement of his study in this regard: “It cannot be assumed
beforehand, indeed, that all the emotions attributed to Jesus in the
evangelical narratives are intended to be ascribed distinctively to his
human soul. Such is no doubt the common view.” 25 While undoubtedly
some, but by no means all, of the emotions in Jesus Christ arise more
from his humanity, the truth of the transcendent, affectionate, spiritual
nature of the triune God dispenses with any artificial distinction which
admits only an emotional humanity.
1) In support of this consider:
24 William G. T. Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, pp. 170-8.
25 Warfield, Person And Work Of Christ, pp. 94-95.
a) When the Father expresses satisfaction and pleasure at the
ministry of His Son (Matt. 3:17; 17:5), to suggest that this
emotion is anthropopathic is almost to accuse Him of putting
on a charade on account of human weakness.
b) In Mark 14:33, Jesus having come to Gethsemane is
“distressed and troubled.” Then in v. 34 he exclaims to Peter,
James, and John, “My soul [yuchv, psuchē] is deeply grieved/extremely
sad [perivlupo", perilupos, intensive compound] to
the point of death,” which response seems to draw from a
well that is deeper than mere human emotion.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
c) In Hebrews 4:15, not only is Jesus Christ as high priest able
to sympathize, sumpaqevw, sumpatheō, with human frailty,
but through him as mediator the Godhead is emotionally able
to identify with the human predicament.
2) Since Jesus Christ is the Son of God:
a) In his assumption of human flesh, the emotional capacity of
his deity is united with the emotional capacity of his
humanity.
b) There is a real emotional relationship between the Father and
the incarnate Son (John 3:35; 5:20; 14:31).
c) The suffering and anguish of the Son during his earthly
passion were not only according to the will of the Father, but
also sensibly appreciated by the Father (Matt. 27:46).
(d) Problems with an emotionless God.
Although it is freely granted that the emotions of God, who is pure
spirit, infinitely transcend their human counterpart as well as human
language, yet the denial of God as being essentially affectionate presents
the child of God with some depressing conclusions.
1) While man is really sensible and emotional as a person, yet God is
really insensible and unemotional as a person. It little comforts the
soul to be told that nevertheless, God is eternally blessed. The
approach of John Owen in this regard leads to a form of stoicism.
2) If the Bible describes God as loving and merciful, it matters little to
the human spirit to be told that these attributes, for all their grand
display in Scripture, are rooted in a willing but unfeeling God!
3) But for finite man to grasp that the infinite God is affectionately
moved in His essential being to holy joy, and compassion, and
anger, is to be aware that a saving relationship with Him is
intensely real, and more than an accommodation.
d. The communication by God of emotion and feeling to man.
(1) It ought not to surprise us that God, who is personally emotional within
Himself, and about Himself, should create man as an emotional person. At
the same time, let us be quick to recognize the chasm which separates God as
an infinite, emotional spirit, and man as a finite, emotional, carnal creature.
Yet God has communicated to man an emotional capacity that in a finite
way bears some resemblance to Himself, and enhances personal fellowship.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 219
(2) Since God’s fundamental demand upon man includes an emotional response
(Deut. 6:4-5; 10:12), it seems proper to expect that an emotional God would
model such a capacity after Himself, even though His emotions remain
lordly.
(3) Since the Holy Spirit is affectionately joyous, so He communicates joy as an
aspect of love (Gal. 5:22). Charnock comments: “The thoughts instilled by
the Spirit of adoption (Gal. 5:22), are not violent, tumultuous, full of
perturbation [disturbance]; but like himself [emphasis added], gentle and
dove-like solicitings, warm and holy impulses.” 26
(4) Hence, the emotional capacity that God emotes or communicates is the full
range of personality from which human emotional personality is derived;
nevertheless, human personality is regulated by an unholy or holy set of the
heart.
(a) An unregenerate personality will emote according to the set of the soul
which, after the image of Satan, manifests the deeds of the flesh (II Cor.
12:20; Gal. 5:19-21; I Tim. 6:3-5).
(b) A regenerate personality will emote according to the set of his soul
which, having been renewed after the image of Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:29;
Col. 3:10), manifests the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23; Jas. 3:17-18).
C. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD DESIGNATED
1. Introduction.
a. Personal names are important since they not only reveal levels of truth concerning
character, whether desired or actual, but also establish relationships at different
levels of intimacy.
26 Charnock, Works, V, p. 315.
(1) Consider how few people are named Ichabod, Delilah, Jezebel, or Judas,
while Ruth, David, Mary and Paul remain amongst the most popular of
names.
(2) Consider how the Bible describes certain individuals whose given names
reflect their subsequent manner of life, such as Abraham, “a father of many
nations” (Gen. 17:5), Jacob, “supplanter” (Gen. 25:21-26), which became
Israel, “to strive with God” (Gen. 32:28), and Nabal, “foolish” (I Sam. 25:2-
38).
(3) Consider how we may remotely know someone by a generic title, formally
know someone by a surname, and intimately know someone by a Christian
name.

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b. It should not surprise us then to discover in the Bible that names are important
with God, not only in terms of man being known by Him (John 10:3; I John 3:1;
Rev. 2:17; 3:12), but also with regard to man knowing Him (Matt. 6:9; John
20:28; Rom. 8:14-15). God is not anonymous; the mere suggestion of such a
thought leaves man in a hopeless state of perplexity and despair. Rather, the Bible
nominates God according to His own names, both personal and generic. These
names designate the essence of His being in terms of attributes and consequent
activity.
(1) The names of God are revelatory and not according to human discovery.
Bavinck explains that, “men do not give him [God] a name; he gives himself
a name. God’s name is, therefore, most of all God’s revelation of himself
whereby he actively and objectively makes himself known.” 27
(2) The names of God are descriptive of the panorama of his nature, which titles
are given for frequent reference by man to His attributes and activity. Hence,
the names of God are designed to constantly focus our attention upon who
God is in particular, that is quite apart from a mere basic confession of His
existence.
(3) The names of God are suitable to creation, that is they are designed to edify
personal creatures, namely:
(a) The hosts of heaven, that is seraphim, angels, and living creatures (Is.
6:3; Luke 2:13-14; Rev. 5:11-12).
(b) The humanity of earth, through the mediation of Israel to the Gentile
nations (Ezek. 36:21-38).
(4) The names of God are progressively revealed. While God was known to
Abraham as God Almighty or El Shaddai, yet a greater revelation was given
to Moses and Israel in the name of Jehovah or Yahweh (Ex. 6:3). Yet
Jehovah was more fully revealed in the New Testament in His triunity as
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:16-17;
28:19).
2. The primary names of God in the Old Testament.
a. The name of God as Elohim.
(1) The essential meaning of Elohim.
(a) Elohim, µyhil¿aÔ, is the most general name for God meaning, “the
Exceedingly Strong and Mighty One.” The plural form here adds an
intensity of majesty, which point is supported by the fact that in Genesis
1:1, the verb “create,” bara, ar;B;, takes a singular subject.
27 Herman Bavinck, The Doctrine of God, p. 84.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 221
(b) While other forms such as Eloah (singular), Elah (Aramaic), and the
simple El, may or may not be related etymologically, yet they “express
the same idea. . . . All occur, together with Jehovah, in Deuteronomy
32:15-19.” 28
(c) Nevertheless, Elohim is basically generic so that it can refer to pagan
deities (I Sam. 5:7; Ps. 95:3; 96:5), and human judges (Ex. 22:8-10; Ps.
82:1).
(2) The compound names using El.
(a) El Shaddai, or “God Almighty” (Gen. 17:1-8). This was the main
patriarchal name for God (Gen. 28:3; 35:11; 43:14; 49:25), that is prior
to the revelation of Jehovah or Yahweh during the Exodus (Ex. 6:3).
(b) El Elyon, or “God Most High” (Gen. 14:18-22; Ps. 78:35).
(c) El Roi, or “God Who Sees” (Gen. 16:13).
(d) El Olam, or “God Everlasting” (Isa. 40:28).
b. The name of LORD or GOD as Jehovah or Yahweh.
(1) The essential meaning of Jehovah or Yahweh.
(a) Strictly speaking, God has only one proper, personal name, which was
revealed through Moses to Israel (Ex. 3:13-15). This four-lettered,
consonantal word or Tetragrammaton, hw:hyÒ, commonly pronounced as
Jehovah or Yahweh, is the unique name of God which came through
self-disclosure and not human discovery or nomination. Most English
translations identify this name by means of the capitalized forms of
either LORD or GOD, or alternatively with the use of Jehovah or
Yahweh.
(b) To avoid the defamation of God’s name and its consequences (Lev.
24:16), the Jews attempted to place a hedge around the Third
Commandment, “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in
vain” (Ex. 20:7), by using the substitute, generic name, “Lord” (yn"d¿a,
Adonai), for the ineffable or unutterable name. Consequently, the
original pronunciation of Jehovah or Yahweh has been lost. While the
modern “Yahweh” may represent more correct vowel pointing of the
consonantal name, yet it lacks the awesome majesty that “Jehovah”
conveys. Since both words communicate the same meaning, this writer
continues to sing, “Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah.”
(c) It is commonly believed that the root meaning of Jehovah is derived
from the verb “to be,” so that God proclaims Himself to His people as
28 Robert Girdlestone, Synonyms Of The Old Testament, p. 31.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
“the self-existing One,” who inhabits the eternal now. Furthermore, the
exclusive revelation of God’s name to Israel at the Exodus signified the
new covenantal relationship that had just been established. The Hebrew
received a new means of expressing the ground of his access to God,
that is the vocalizing from the heart of God’s proper name, especially in
prayer (I Kings 8:22-25; II Kings 19:14-16; II Chron. 20:5-11; Ezra 9:5-
15; Dan. 9:3-5; Hab. 3:1-2).
(d) In addition to Jehovah being the “I am” God of Israel, He consequently
becomes the “I will be” God of Israel who is covenantally and
irrevocably committed to continually saving and sanctifying His people
(Ex. 6:2-8). In response, Israel is to reverently delight in the praise of
Jehovah’s holy name (Ps. 5:11; 8:1; Is. 42:8). Hence, when Jesus Christ
taught His disciples to pray, “Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be
Your name” (Matt. 6:9), he is reflecting his preeminent desire that the
name of God be universally regarded with holy awe, praise, and
reverence.
(2) The compound names using Jehovah or Yahweh.
(a) Jehovah Elohim, or commonly “LORD God” (Neh. 9:7; Ps. 84:11; Jer.
44:26; Amos 3:7).
(b) Jehovah Adonai, or commonly “Lord GOD” (Gen. 15:2; Ps. 71:5; Ezek.
5:11; Hab. 3:19).
(c) Jehovah Elohay, or “the Lord my God” Dan. 9:4).
(d) Jehovah Elyon, or “the Lord most high” (Ps. 7:17).
(e) Jehovah Jireh, or “the Lord will provide” (Gen. 22:13-14).
(f) Jehovah Nissi, or “the Lord my banner” (Ex. 17:15).
(g) Jehovah Shalom, or “the Lord is peace” (Judg. 6:24).
(h) Jehovah Sabbaoth, or “the Lord of hosts” (I Sam. 1:3).
(i) Jehovah Maccaddishkem, or “the Lord who sanctifies you” (Ex. 31:13).
(j) Jehovah Raah, or “the Lord is my shepherd” (Ps. 23:1).
(k) Jehovah Tsidkenu, or “the Lord our righteousness” (Ps. Jer. 23:6).
(l) Jehovah Gmolah, or “the Lord is the God of recompense” (Jer. 51:56).
(m) Jehovah Neka, or “the Lord who strikes” (Ezek. 7:9).
(n) Jehovah Shammah, or “the Lord is there” (Ezek. 48:35).

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 223
(o) Jehovah Rapha, or “the Lord who heals” (Ex. 15:26).
(p) Jehovah Hoseenu, or “the Lord our maker” (Ps. 95:6).
c. The name of Lord as Adonai.
(1) The essential meaning of Adonai.
(a) Adonai, as a generic name, is most commonly translated as Lord,
meaning master or sovereign as a king has dominion over his servants
or vassals (Gen. 24:9). Adonai may even express ownership (I Kings
16:24), but most frequently in the Bible it is either a substitute for or a
qualifier of the name Jehovah, the unique God of Israel.
(b) Girdlestone comments that Adonai “indicates the truth that God is the
owner of each member of the human family, and that He consequently
claims the unrestricted obedience of all.” 29 It should also be added that
such lordly dominion has special application to God’s redeemed
children (Neh. 10:28-29).
(c) Also note in Daniel 9:4 that Adonai is associated with both Elohim and
Jehovah, while in Malachi 1:6 it refers to man and Jehovah Sabaoth.
(2) The compound names using Adonai.
(a) Adonai Elohai, or “O Lord my God” (Ps. 38:15; cf. 35:23).
(b) Adonei adonim, or “the Lord of lords” (Deut. 10:17).
3. The primary names of God in the New Testament.
29 Ibid., p. 34.
a. The names expressing unity.
(1) God, or qeov", theos, is a generic title equivalent to elohim in the Old
Testament, though it can also specifically refer to Jehovah (Acts 2:17; cf. Joel
2:27-28). While theos describes the deity of Israel in general, as well as pagan
gods (Acts 14:11), yet it is also used with reference to all three persons of the
Trinity.
(a) God the Father (John 8:41; I Cor. 8:6).
(b) God the Son (John 20:28; Rom. 9:5).
(c) God the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3-4).
(2) Lord, or kuvrio", kurios, is a generic title that most frequently is equivalent to
Jehovah in the Old Testament (Matt. 3:3; cf. Isa. 40:3), and infrequently

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
translates Adonai in the Old Testament (Matt. 1:22-23; cf. Isa. 7:14). The
Father takes the name of Lord (Matt. 11:25), as does the Son in no lesser
degree (John 20:28). Kurios also describes angels (Acts 10:4), idols (I Cor.
8:5), kings (Acts 25:26), and is a common title of respect at the human level
(Matt. 13:27; 21:30; I Pet. 3:6).
(3) Lord, or despovth", despotēs, is a generic title equivalent in meaning to
adonai in the Old Testament, that is, God is absolute Master and Owner
(Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; Rev. 6:10). Jesus Christ receives this title (II Pet. 2:1;
Jude 4), though it can also refer to human masters (I Tim. 6:1, 2).
b. The names expressing triunity.
(1) The Father is God, but distinctively (cf. pp. 200-201), as His name suggests.
He is the person of headship, generation, and gracious benefaction (Matt.
5:44-45; 6:26-33; John 15:26; I Cor. 11:3; 15:24).
(a) While Jehovah in the Old Testament is the Father of Israel (I Chron
29:10; Isa. 63:16; 64:8), yet a concordance study will quickly reveal that
the Fatherhood of God is overwhelmingly a New Testament emphasis.
So Wilbur Smith reminds us: “It is strange how in almost all of our
theologies we develop attributes of God, with long Latin words and
arguments for God, but when you go to look for a treatment on the
fatherhood of God, in a systematic theology, you can hardly even find
the idea in an index, yet our blessed Lord Jesus referred to God as our
Father over forty times.” 30
(b) From another perspective, Thomas Smail, an Anglican who was
formerly Charismatic, perceptively comments that, “we have had in
recent years a Jesus movement and a charismatic movement. The one
has almost disappeared and the other is threatening to run out of steam,
perhaps because each is in a different way inadequate to the gospel,
which is basically a Father movement. It is not first a Jesuology (a
doctrine about Jesus) or a pneumatology (a doctrine about the Spirit)
but it is a theology or even a patrology, a doctrine about God the
Father. It starts not with the cross of Jesus or with the gift of the Spirit,
but with the Father who so loved the world that he gave his Son in his
Spirit.” 31
(c) God the Father is to be clearly distinguished with regard to His
relationship with God the Son in contrast with that of adopted children
of God. This distinction is noticeably evident in the Gospels where, not
only are references to God’s fatherhood more than double those found
in the remaining books of the New Testament, but also Jesus Christ
“never joins his disciples with himself in allusions to his relationship
30 R. T. Kendall, The Word Of The Lord, p. 247.
31 Thomas Smail, The Forgotten Father, p. 20.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 225
with the Father, in such a way as to suggest that their relationship to
God is of the same kind.” 32
1) While pagan religions declare God to be Father as the Creator, yet
the Bible makes no explicit declaration (cf. Matt. 5:45; Acts 17:29;
Heb. 12:9). “Man is created in the image of God, not begotten;
God-sonship is a thing not of nature but of grace.” 33 Furthermore,
the Bible expressly states that some of mankind are children of the
devil (Matt. 13:38; John 8:44; I John 3:10).
2) The relationship of God the Father to His redeemed children is
descriptive of several facets of the believer’s filial union with God.
These include:
a) Adoption (John 1:12; Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:4-7).
b) Sonship (Rom. 8:14, 16; Gal. 3:26; I John 3:1-2).
c) Likeness (Matt. 5:44-45; I John 3:2, 9-10).
d) Inheritance (Rom. 8:16-17; Gal. 4:7).
e) Discipline (Prov. 3:12; Heb. 12:5-7).
f) Unity (Eph. 3:14-15; I John 1:3).
3) The relationship of God the Father to His only begotten Son is
descriptive of an eternal relationship within the Godhead. Through
the heavenly patronage of the Father:
32 William Cameron, Baker’s Dictionary Of Theology, p. 215.
a) He gives eternal generation to the Son (John 1:14, 18; 5:26;
8:58; 17:5, 24; Col. 1:15; I John 4:9).
b) He embraces the Son to His bosom (John 1:1, 18).
33 Alan Richardson, A Theological Word Book Of The Bible, p. 77.
c) He endows the Son with a glorious inheritance (Ps. 2:7-8;
Eph. 1:18).
d) He directs the Son to accomplish His will (John 4:34; 5:30;
6:38; Heb. 10:5-7).
e) He encourages the Son in his obedience (Matt. 3:17; 17:5;
Luke 22:42-43).
f) He cultivates the Son unto fruitfulness (John 15:1; Heb. 5:8-
9).

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
g) He appoints the Son to judge and reign (Ps. 2:7-9; John 5:22,
27; Acts 10:42; 17:30-31).
h) He glorifies the Son so that He may be glorified through him
(John 17:1).
(d) How then is God the Father to be properly honored? Through obedient
children who reflect their holy parentage.
1) In Malachi 1:6-14, God cries out for respect as Father since His
children dishonor His sacred name.
2) Rather, just as the Son of God gives honor to the Father with his
life (John 17:4) and lips (John 17:13-14, 25), so true adopted
children of the Father will honor Him with their works (Matt.
5:16, 44-45) and words (Matt. 6:9; 10:32-33; John 5:23; 16:23).
(2) The Son is God, but distinctively (cf. pp. 200-201), as His name suggests. He
is the person of precise representation, subordination, and implementation
(John 4:34; 14:9; Col. 1:15; 2:9).
(a) As Jesus Christ, he takes names that identify him as the incarnate God
of Israel.
1) He explicitly takes the “I am” name of Jehovah (John 8:58-59; cf.
4:25-26; 6:35; 8:12; 10:7, 11, 36; 14:6; 15:1; Rev. 1:8; 21:3-6).
2) He takes the name of Jehovah itself (Matt. 3:3; cf. Isa. 40:3. John
12:37-41; cf. Isa. 6:1-10), as well as compound forms:
a) Jehovah Raah, or “the Lord is My Shepherd” (John 10:11; cf.
Ps. 23:1).
b) Jehovah Tsidkenu, or “the Lord Our Righteousness,” which
title is prophetically given to Christ as the “righteous Branch”
of David (Jer. 23:5-6).
3) He takes the name of God (Elohim).
a) As the Creator (John 1:1; Col. 1:16; cf. Gen. 1:1).
b) As the Almighty (Rev. 1:8; pantokravtwr, pantokratōr; cf.
Gen. 17:1; Shaddai).
c) As the Highest (Ps. 89:27-29; Elyon, prophetically, cf. Gen.
14:19). Cf. “The Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:31-32).
d) As Immanuel, or “God [Elohim] with us” (Matt. 1:23; cf. Isa.
7:14).

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 227
4) He takes the equivalent name for Adonai, that is, despovth"
despotēs, or Master (II Pet. 2:1; Jude 4).
(b) As Jesus Christ, he takes names that identify him with God’s saving
work in the Old Testament.
1) Jesus, or ’Ihsou'", Iēsous (Matt. 1:21), meaning “Savior,” is
equivalent to Joshua, or Jehoshua, Hebrew (Num. 27:15-23),
likewise meaning “Savior.”
2) Christ, or Cristov", christos (John 1:41; 4:25-26), or Messiah,
j'yvim;, mashiah (Ps. 2:2; Dan. 9:25-26), meaning “the anointed” of
God, is equipped to accomplish salvation (Luke 2:11) and reign
over an everlasting kingdom (I Cor. 15:22-25; Rev. 11:15).
3) Son of Man, the title most commonly attributed by Jesus to himself
(Matt. 12:8; Mark 9:9; Luke 19:10; John 1:51), reflects more the
messianic/prophetic sense of Daniel 7:13-14 and the frequent use,
over 90 times, of this name by Ezekiel, rather than simply the
concept of an ideal man.
4) Son of God, the title that finds the greatest emphasis in John’s
writings, is often a synonym for Messiah (Matt. 6:16; Mark 1:1;
John 1:49; I John 5:5-6), that can also describe intimate union with
the Father (Matt. 11:27; John 10:15, 38), and Deity which the
Jewish leaders readily acknowledged (John 5:18; 10:33; 19:7). At
the annunciation, Jesus is described as the Son of God because he
is “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32, 35), or El Elyon (Gen.
14:18-20).
5) Root of David (Rev. 5:5; 22:16; cf. Isa. 11:1).
6) Chosen One (I Pet. 2:4, 6; cf. Isa. 42:1).
7) Cornerstone (I Pet. 2:6-8; cf. Ps. 118:22).
8) Lamb of God, incorporating both the Passover lamb and the
messianic lamb of Isaiah 53 (John 1:29; I Cor. 5:7; cf. Ex. 12:3-11;
Isa. 53:7-9).
9) Great High Priest (Heb. 2:17; 3:1; 4:14; 7:11-28; cf. Ex. 28:1-3).
10) Last Adam (Rom. 5:12-21; I Cor. 15:45).
(3) The Holy Spirit is God, but distinctively (cf. pp. 200-201), as His name
suggests, He is the person of holy presence and dynamic enablement (Zech.
4:6; John 16:7-8; Acts 1:8; 2:17).

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(a) As the Holy Spirit, or literally “the Spirit, the holy One” (John 14:26),
He is essentially holy as are the Father and the Son, and quite distinct
from unholy spirits (cf. p. 33).
(b) As the Helper, or Comforter, or Counselor, paravklhto", paraklētos,
(John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7), He is sent to the Christian by the Father
through the mediation of the Son (John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7). He
substitutes in the life of the Christian for, and represents, the person of
Christ (John 14:16-18), while ministering conviction to the world (John
16:7-11).
1) Hence, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Father (Matt. 10:20).
2) Hence, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:9; I Pet.
1:11).
(c) As “the power of the Most High” (Luke 1:35), He is the Spirit of God
Most High, or El Elyon (Gen. 14:18-20).
4. The practical significance of the names of God.
a. While the faithful Hebrew believer of the Old Testament could passionately
declare his devotion to the God of Israel through the praise and adoration of His
individual attributes, still by means of the unique personal name he could
encapsulate all of this essential truth within one title, namely the “I am” Jehovah.
(1) Yet fervent worship of Jehovah required that other lesser names be used to
further describe His glory. Hence, in Deuteronomy 10:17 we find this
majestic confession that goes to the limits of human language: “For the LORD
[Jehovah] your God [Elohim] is the God [Elohei] of gods [elohim] and the
Lord [Adonei] of lords [adonim], the great, the mighty, and the awesome
God [El].” Surely in times when Christians speak so glibly and loosely
concerning Jehovah, it behooves them to return to a more serious study of
God in the Scriptures such as Moses here describes. Many Christians have a
sub-Hebrew understanding of the only living and true God!
(2) Consider also the Hebrew regard for the name of Jehovah in the Book of
Psalms alone:
(a) His name is to be praised (Ps. 99:2-3; 113:1-3).
(b) His name is to be loved (Ps. 5:11; 69:35-36).
(c) His name is majestic in the universe (Ps. 8:1; 148:13).
(d) His name shall endure forever (Ps. 102:12; 135:13).
(e) His name is holy and awesome (Ps. 103:1; 111:9).
(f) His name is salvation (Ps. 20:1; 54:1).

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 229
b. For the Christian, the New Testament presents an advance in emphasis insofar as
an understanding of the personal name of God is concerned. While the Hebrew
believer has his hope grounded upon the only saving, covenant name of Jehovah,
yet this relationship maintained a degree of detachment, except for the priesthood
(Ex. 19:21-24), that can only be reconciled through Messiah who introduces us to
the Son of Jehovah (Ps. 2:7; Jer. 23:5-6; Acts 4:25-26). Furthermore, it is the name
of this Son as Jesus, the Christ, that is the exalted and pre-eminent name of God in
the New Testament. It is Jesus Christ “who comes in the name of the Lord”
(Matt. 21:9; cf. Matt. 23:39; John 5:43; 10:25; Rev. 14:1), who has “manifested
Thy name” (John 17:6, 26).
(1) While Jesus has taught his disciples to pray to the Father [Jehovah],
“Hallowed be Thy name” Matt. 6:9), yet in the clearest terms he indicates
that a radical change will be ushered in with his death, burial and
resurrection: “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; . . .
whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified
in the Son” (John 14:13-14; 15:16; 16:23-24, 26). In the New Testament it is
the name of Jesus Christ that supplants the name of Jehovah as the ground of
the believer’s intercession with God (I Tim. 2:5).
(2) Hence, the early Christian church, “kept right on teaching and preaching
Jesus as the Christ. . . . [They were] rejoicing that they had been counted
worthy to suffer shame for [His NASB] the name [Hashem? cf. Phil. 2:9-11]”
(Acts 5:42, 41).
(3) While in the Old Testament Jehovah was proclaimed as, “the God of gods
and the Lord of lords” (Deut. 10:17), yet in the New Testament it is written
of Jesus Christ that, “on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written,
KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev. 19:16).
(4) While in the Old Testament “Jehovah” was µeVh', Hashem, or “The Name”
(Isa. 42:8), now in the era of the New Testament, “God [has] highly exalted
Him [Jesus Christ], and bestowed on Him the name [exclusively attributed to
Jehovah] which is above every name, that at the [common] name of Jesus
every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth, and under
the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord
[God], to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11; cf. Isa. 45:22-24; Eph.
1:20-21; Heb. 1:1-5). 34
c. For the Christian, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ is supremely glorious
affecting every aspect of his daily life. Here is no trite verbal formula, so often
thoughtlessly used at the conclusion of prayer, but the holy name of God
incarnate before whom he bows with reverent and adoring worship.
34 Note that in Ephesians 2:9, the more correct translation reveals that God the Father has bestowed on Jesus
Christ “the name [emphasis added] which is above every name.” In other words, Jesus has received the name
of Jehovah. In v. 10, “Jesus” is not the bestowed name, but rather a very common Hebrew name. However,
in v. 11 we are told that “Jesus Christ” is to be superscribed with “the name,” that is “Lord” or “Jehovah.”

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(1) Since he names the name of Christ, he is careful to live in conformity with
the righteousness that the name of Jesus personifies. II Timothy 2:19 exhorts:
“Let every one who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness.”
To this John Bunyan comments that, “the apostle’s design in this exhortation
was, and is, that the naming of the name of Christ might be accompanied
with such a life of holiness as might put an additional luster upon that
name.” 35
(2) Since he prays in the name of Christ (Eph. 5:20; Col. 3:17), he is careful
never to presume, but rather to always meditate upon the mediatorial work
of his Lord and Savior (Heb. 7:25).
(3) Since he sings concerning the name of Christ, he will delight in such
representative hymns as:
(a) Jesus! The Name High Over All, by Charles Wesley.
Jesus! The name high over all,
In hell, or earth, or sky;
Angels and men before it fall,
And devils fear and fly.
Jesus! The name to sinners dear,
The name to sinners given;
It scatters all their guilty fear,
It turns their hell to heaven.
Happy, if with my latest breath
I might but gasp His name;
Preach Him to all, and cry in death:
Behold, behold the Lamb!
(b) Jehovah Tsidkenu, by R. M. M’Cheyne.
35 John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, II, p. 513.
When free grace awoke me, by light from on high,
Then legal fears shook me, I trembled to die;
No refuge, no safety in self could I see -
Jehovah Tsidkenu my Savior must be.
My terrors all vanished before the sweet name;
My guilty fears vanished, with boldness I came
To drink at the fountain, life-giving and free -
Jehovah Tsidkenu is all things to me.
Even treading the valley, the shadow of death,
This “watchword” shall rally my faltering breath;
For while from life’s fever my God sets me free,
Jehovah Tsidkenu my death-song shall be.

D. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD RADIATED
1. Introduction.
THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 231
a. It is fitting that this concluding section should focus attention upon the fullness of
God’s radiated personality, that is His expressed glory. By way of illustration, it is
most helpful in musical appreciation to gain an understanding of the individual
instruments of a symphony orchestra. However, this knowledge is only useful
when the full weight of an orchestration is heard to resound as a vibrant,
harmonious whole. So it is the case with regard to a study of God’s attributes. It is
vitally important to study the individual perfections of the Godhead, and it is
certainly correct to know that they are part of Jehovah’s individual essence.
Nevertheless, beyond this there must also be that overwhelming, all consuming
encounter with the greatness, splendor, and majesty of God that causes us to bow
in awesome yet adoring silence, as if kneeling upon holy ground. If we do but
break the silence, it is only for the purpose of crying out as David did: “Blessed art
Thou, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Thine, O Lord, is the
greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed
everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Thine is the dominion, O Lord,
and Thou dost exalt Thyself as head over all” (I Chron. 29:10-11).
b. B. B. Warfield points out that,
[T]he biblical idea of the Summum Bonum [chief and ultimate good] is the glory of
God. [Why is this so? Because] [i]t takes man out of himself, and bids him seek the
highest good in the glory, not of his pitiful self, but of his all-glorious God. In no
self-gratification, in no self-glorification, can he reach the height of his ideal. He is
forced to look out of himself; he is necessarily lifted above himself. . . . With his eye
set on glorifying his Savior and Maker, his idea of virtue is transfigured and purified
from earthly dross, his notions of duty are ennobled, his motives become holy, and
his whole life divine. In this one point we can see the transforming greatness of
Christian ethics. 36
c. When a person is dominated by a sense of the glory of God, there is no telling
what he may accomplish. Consider the example of Jonathan Edwards who, when
no older than twenty years of age, formulated seventy resolutions for private
meditation. The following examples reflect Edwards’ acute appreciation of the
glory of God. 37
Resolution 1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to the
glory of God.
Resolution 4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul
or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God,
nor be, nor suffer it, if I can possibly avoid it.
Resolution 23. Resolved, frequently to take some deliberate action, which
seems most unlikely to be done, for the glory of God, and
trace it back to the original intention, designs, and ends of it;
36 Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, Selected Shorter Writings, I, pp. 132-3.
37 Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, I, pp. xx-xxi.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
and if I find it not to be for God’s glory, to repute it as a
breach of the fourth resolution.
Resolution 27. Resolved, never willfully to omit anything, except the
omission be for the glory of God; and frequently to examine
my omissions.
2. The essential glory of God.
a. Definitions.
(1) In the Old Testament the primary Hebrew word for “glory” is dboK', kabōd,
meaning weight, heaviness, load, that is an impressive quality that is
abundant and substantial in density and magnitude. It is related to greatness,
splendor, and majesty.
(a) In a material and secular sense, it may refer to wealth (Gen. 31:1; Nah.
2:9), human honor (Gen. 45:13; Job 19:9), military might (Isa. 8:7),
lush timber (Isa. 60:13), and priestly garments (Ex. 28:40).
(b) Concerning Jehovah, He is laden with magnificence which is the sum
total of His attributes reflected in His name (Ps. 8:1; Is. 59:19), that also
distinctively includes His:
1) Personal glory, or face (Ex. 33:18-23).
2) Moral glory, or holiness (Ex. 29:38-43; Isa. 6:3).
3) Radiant glory, or light (Deut. 5:22-26; Ezek. 1:26-28).
4) Mighty glory, or power (Ps. 19:1-6; Isa. 63:1, 12).
5) Infinite glory, or essence, which no man can see (Ex. 33:20-23).
(2) In the New Testament, the predominant Greek word for “glory” is dovxa,
doxa, from which is derived “doxology,” which has at its root the idea of a
good opinion or estimate, which results in the meaning of brightness,
splendor, magnificence, and related fame, renown, honor.
(a) In a material and secular sense, it may refer to the radiant brightness of
the sun, moon, and stars (I Cor. 15:41), the magnificent splendor of a
king such as Solomon (Matt. 6:29), fleshly human attractiveness (I Pet.
1:24), and personal fame and honor (John 5:44).
(b) Concerning the glory of God, it has particular reference to His “selfmanifestation,
i.e., what He essentially is and does, as exhibited in
whatever way he reveals Himself in these respects, and particularly in
the person of Christ, in whom essentially His glory has ever shone forth

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 233
and ever will do (John 17:5, 24; Heb. 1:3).” 38 Distinctive aspects include
His:
1) Personal glory, or face (John 1:18; 6:46; II Cor. 4:6; Col. 1:15).
2) Moral glory, or holiness (Rom. 3:23; II Cor. 3:9, 18).
3) Radiant glory, or light (II Cor. 4:4-6; Tit. 2:13; Rev. 21:23).
4) Mighty glory, or power (Matt. 24:30; Col. 1:10-11).
5) Infinite glory, or essence, which no man can see (I Tim. 6:16; I
John 4:12).
b. Although the glory of God in the Bible primarily describes His radiant splendor,
yet this emanation is sourced in His essential glory. The light rays of the sun are
but a communication of the material/molten/gaseous/blaze of that star. So the
shining forth of the glory of the triune God is also a procession from the glorious
essence of His being (I Tim. 6:14-16).
(1) Thomas Goodwin explains that:
God is most glorious in himself, though no creature had been to glorify him.
He was as glorious when there was no world as now he is. Men’s honors
depend upon the opinion and apprehensions of them that honor them. Where
is the glory of a king, but in the multitude of his subjects? But God the Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost, are sufficient to glorify each other, if there were no
creatures. . . . All three persons do mutually endeavor to give glory each to the
other. . . . “The Father hath committed all judgment to the Son, that all might
honor the Son as the Father” (John 5:22-23). The Son he honored the Father:
“I have glorified Thee on earth (John 17:4),” &c. And the Holy Ghost glorifies
the Son: “He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of mine” (John 16:14). 39
(2) In an excellent and detailed article on the glory of God, as His chief end in
creation, Edwards comments:
3. The reflected glory of God.
The thing significant by that name, ‘the glory of God,’ when spoken of as the
supreme and ultimate end of all God’s works, is the emanation and true
external impression of God’s internal glory and fullness. . . . It includes the
exercise of God’s perfections to produce a proper effect, [that is] the
manifestation of his internal glory to created understandings, the
communication of the infinite fullness of God to the creature. 40
a. By way of illustration, when a person sleeping in a totally dark room is suddenly
awakened by a call, and the light is turned on at the same time, the immediate
38 Vine, Unger, White, eds., Vine’s Expository Dictionary, p. 267.
39 Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas Goodwin, VI, pp. 497, 499.
40 Edwards, Works, I, p. 119.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
response of intolerance to the brilliance leads to a shielding or covering of the
dazzled eyes. So the Bible describes God’s revelation of Himself as the appearing
of His radiant glory in a dark place (Isa. 9:1-2; 60:1-3; John 1:5).
(1) In the case of a newly converted person, as it were awakened from sleep by
the truth, such a confrontation with the glory of God is the response of an
aroused and redeemed sinner to moral radiance he has not been accustomed
to in the past (John 9:25, 35-38). He is like the early disciples who did not
readily comprehend too much revealed glory to begin with (Luke 9:28-36;
24:25-26; Acts 1:6-11). Yet there is no desire to retreat from it.
(2) In the case of the unregenerate person, also as it were awakened from sleep
in being confronted with the truth, yet in his perversity he is determined to
put a blindfold over his eyes so that he refuses to acknowledge the light (John
3:19; 9:39-41). However, when that day of the last judgment arrives, the
blindfold will forcibly be removed so that the accused will fearfully face the
unveiled glory of the righteous Judge of all mankind (Rev. 20:11-15).
b. The exhibition of God’s essential or internal glory, or the outshining of His
glorious attributes, is that which is reflected by a variety of ways.
(1) The glory of God reflected from His Word.
(a) In the Old Testament consider:
1) God’s glory revealed to Moses (Ex. 33:18-23). Moses could only
stand to see obliquely God’s back parts, or goodness, but not His
face of essential glory.
2) God’s glory revealed to Israel (Hab. 3:3-4, 12-13). God jealously
comes to deliver His redeemed people manifesting splendor,
radiance, sunlight, and rays (horns) of power from His hands.
(b) In the New Testament consider:
1) God’s glory revealed in the face of Jesus Christ (Matt. 17:1-2;
Mark 9:2-3; Luke 9:28-29; John 1:14; II Cor. 4:6; Rev. 1:12-15).
At the Transfiguration, Jesus’ face is like the sun; his person and
garments are radiant as light, exceedingly white and gleaming.
Risen with the Father, he has eyes as flames of fire while his feet
glow as if in a furnace.
2) God’s glory revealed in the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:9-22:5).
Coming from God in heaven, this holy city has overall brilliance
that is sourced in the illuminating glory of God.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 235
(2) The glory of God reflected in His triunity.
(a) The Father displays glory (Matt. 16:27; Eph. 1:17).
(b) The Son displays glory (Matt. 16:27; John 1:14; 2:11; II Pet. 1:16-18).
(c) The Holy Spirit displays glory (I Pet. 4:18).
(3) The glory of God reflected by His mighty acts.
(a) God’s glory is made known in creation (Ps. 19:1-6).
(b) God’s glory is made known in providence (Ps. 19:1-6).
(c) God’s glory is made known in redemption (John 17:1; I Tim. 1:11).
1) The glory of His grace (Eph. 1:6).
2) The glory of His resurrection power (Rom. 6:4).
3) The glory of His gospel (II Cor. 4:; I Tim. 1:11).
4) The glory of His church (Eph. 3:21; 5:27).
5) The glory of His appearing in Christ (Tit. 2:13).
c. What then is man to do with such an exhibition? Is it designed merely for his
wonderment and exhilaration? In no way! Rather the glory of God displayed has
a reflexive purpose , namely that man, in himself beholding and receiving glory,
should return glory to God. Charnock explains this principle as follows:
The glory of God must be principally in our minds, and nearest our hearts in all our
supplications. Christ prays first for his own glory, but as a means for the glory of his
Father, before he prays particularly for the good of the church (John 17:1). . . .
“Hallowed be thy name,” is the first petition of the Lord’s prayer. The glory of God
must weigh more in our thoughts than our private interest: his glory is to be our end
in our common actions (I Cor. 10:31), much more in acts of religious worship. . . .
We must seek to God for all blessings, with the same end for which God gives them;
he gives us the highest for his glory: “He hath accepted us in the beloved to the
praise of the glory of his grace” (Eph. 1:6). We must beg for self subordinately, but
for God’s glory ultimately. Our Savior begged glory for himself, that he might return
glory to his Father. 41
4. The communicated glory of God.
a. It is to be expected that the works of a glorious God will be, by their very nature,
inherently glorious, even if to a lesser degree than their Creator. However, the Fall
has brought shame and ignominy to the universe so that inglorious mankind only
41 Charnock, Works, IV, p. 7.

236
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
has hope of restored glory through the glorious grace of God. Thus the course of
Adam’s race may be understood with regard to:
(1) Original glory (Gen. 1:26-31).
(2) Lost glory (Rom. 3:23).
(3) Restored glory (Rom. 5:2; 8:21; I Cor. 15:42-43, 49; Phil. 3:20-21; Col.
1:27; II Thess. 2:14; I Pet. 4:13).
b. By way of illustration, Erich Sauer recounts:
I visited the church where not only Frederick I, but also Wilhelm 1 (the later
emperor Wilhelm I of Germany) was anointed as king. On the walls, the choir-stalls
and pillars I saw decorations seldom seen in a church. There were hundreds of coats
of arms of the knights of the Black Eagle. I myself counted over seven hundred. The
meaning this most unusual ornamentation in a Christian church is obvious. It was to
maintain the memory of the historical event. When the ruler is honored his servants
also shall be honored. . . . Crowns and principalities pass away. Dynasties sink into
the dust. Human honor and earthly glory are alike transitory. But one thing remains
- the eternal kingdom of the Most High. The essence of this kingdom is the Person of
the King. . . . But He does not retain His kingly glory for Himself alone. His people
are to share His splendor. . . . “The glory which Thou hast given Me I have given
unto them” [John 17:22]. 42
c. How then shall people who are inglorious share in the glory of God and His
kingdom (I Thess. 2:12)? How is glory communicated to vainglorious mankind
(Ps. 94:3-4)? How shall anyone stand before the glory of God (I Sam. 6:20)? How
does a person in darkness (Col. 1:13) become “light in the Lord” (Eph. 5:8)? How
do people, “in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, . . . appear as lights
in the world” (Phil. 2:15)?
(1) By means of regeneration and atonement.
42 Sauer, The King Of The Earth, pp. 151-12.
(a) Just as God brought light and glory to a dark creation (Gen. 1:1-3), so
He has sovereignly entered into the darkness of men’s souls bringing
regeneration, illumination, redemption, and glory, through “the gospel
of the glory of Christ” (II Cor. 4:4-6).
(b) Concerning Ephesians 5:14, Thomas Manton comments that Christ,
“doth not only rescue them [dead men] out of the power of darkness,
but ‘he will give them light.’ . . . It implieth eternal glory and happiness,
to which we have a right now, and for which we are prepared and fitted
by grace.” 43
43 Thomas Manton, The Complete Works of Thomas Manton, XIX, p. 337.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 237
(2) By means of spiritual osmosis through beholding faith and union with Christ.
(a) In Exodus 34:29-35, after Moses has been in the close presence of
Jehovah for forty days and nights, he descends from Mt. Sinai with the
result that his face is literally “rayed” or shining. However, Moses’
withdrawal from God’s presence results in fading, diminishing glory (II
Cor. 3:7). It is significant to consider that though Moses was a
redeemed sinner, yet in close union with God he became gloriously
God-like.
(b) In II Corinthians 3:7-18, Paul describes the superior and more lasting
metamorphosis or glorious transformation that results when the
Christian has sustained faith in the glory of Jesus Christ. If Moses
experienced glorious transformation as a minister of the Law, “how
shall the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory? For if the
ministry of condemnation has glory, much more does the ministry of
righteousness abound in glory,” vs. 8-9. What is this “ministry of the
Spirit”? In v. 17 we are told that “the Lord [Jesus Christ] is the Spirit,”
so that in “beholding the glory of the Lord [Jesus], [we] are being
transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the
Lord [Jesus], the Spirit,” v. 18. According to Richard Sibbes, this
gradual transformation is by Jesus Christ, “a powerful root that
changeth all his branches into his own nature.” 44
(c) Thomas Goodwin explains and then forcefully illustrates:
The law was a dead letter, and though it showed us the will of God, yet it
changed us not into the image of it; but the gospel reveals the glorious
image of Jesus Christ to true believers, and changeth them into the same
image, yet so as by degrees, from one degree of glory to another, this
glorious image being perfected by little and little, will we come to the full
stature of Christ. . . . In all true believers, that have their eyes opened to
see Jesus Christ in the gospel by true faith, there is a most blessed change
[glorification] wrought in them into the same image of Jesus Christ, as he
is revealed in that gospel. . . . At the latter day, and day of death, when
your souls are brought to him [God], either to own, or to refuse, the very
first things that he will inquire into will be, as Christ did when he saw the
penny [Matt. 22:19-20], whose image is it? . . . So will God say; if it hath
the image of Christ on it, give it to Christ, for it belongs to him; if of the
devil (for one of these you must have), then give it to him, for it belongs
to him. Nothing will pass current coin with God, but what hath the
image [glory]of Christ on it. 45
(3) By means of resurrection and consummate glorification.
(a) While the Christian is gradually irradiated, “from glory to glory” (II
Cor. 3:18), by his faith vision of the Savior, yet this process culminates
at a point of time or moment, a[tomo", atomos (I Cor. 15:52), when
44 Richard Sibbes, The Complete Works of Richard Sibbes, IV, pp. 260-1.
45 Goodwin, Works, VI, pp. 217-8, 221.

238
46 Ibid., VII, p. 464.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
Jesus Christ “will transform the body of our humble state into
conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power
that He has even to subject all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:21).
1) The believer in his groaning body eagerly waits for bodily
redemption (Rom. 8:18-23, 30).
2) The believer in his perishing body eagerly awaits for bodily
immortality (I Cor. 15:42-43, 51-53).
(b) Hence, what constant encouragement this hope offers to persevering
Christians in this present life. Goodwin further exhorts:
Whatsoever befalls us, let what will come, what afflictions, what throbs,
what miseries or crosses will come, heaven will make amends for all; God
will be better to thee than all. Put them all in one balance, and God with
that glory he will bestow on you in another balance, and he will overweigh
them all, for they are not worthy to be compared to this glory.
This was it that made the martyrs run through so many persecutions and
tortures, and that with cheerfulness; they took God for their portions; so
they had him, they cared not what became of their bodies. 46
This is confirmed in the case of John Bradford of St. Paul’s Cathedral,
who in 1555 was burned at the stake in Smithfield, London. Kissing a
faggot, he declared to a young fellow-sufferer named Leaf: “Be of good
comfort, brother; for we shall have a merry supper with the Lord this
night.” 47
d. Hence, the Christian progresses from present glory (John 17:22; I Pet. 4:14), to
that fullness of glory which he shall embrace when he passes over the river of
death to the presence of Christ, and accompanies his Savior at his second coming
(Ps. 73:24; 84:11; Rom. 5:2; 8:18, 23; II Cor. 4:17; Col. 3:4; I Pet. 5:1, 4, 10).
This then is very much the theme of Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, though it is
the fullness of glory to come which is the constant incentive of Christian and his
companions. Consider three incidents:
(1) The shepherds at the Delectable Mountains, by means of a telescope on top
of the hill Clear, enable Christian and Hopeful to be spurred on by faintly
seeing “some of the glory” of the Celestial City ahead. 48
(2) Beulah country finds Christian and Hopeful much closer to the Celestial
City, so that, “they had yet a more perfect view thereof; . . . [and] by reason
of the natural glory of the city, and the reflection of the sunbeams upon it,
Christian with desire fell sick; Hopeful also had a fit or two of the same
disease.” 49
47 J. C. Ryle, Five English Reformers, p. 20.
48 Bunyan, Works, III, p. 145.
49 Ibid., p. 162.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 239
(3) Having crossed the River of Death, Christian and Hopeful “went in at the
gate [of the Celestial City]: and lo, as they entered, they were transfigured,
and they had raiment put on that shone like gold. . . . Now just as the gates
were opened to let in the men, I looked in after them, and behold the city
shone like the sun; the streets also were paved with gold. . . . And after that,
they shut up the gates; which when I [Bunyan] had seen I wished myself
among them.” 50
5. The attributed glory of God.
50 Ibid., p. 166.
a. The self-glorification of God in all creation.
(1) Having seen that God’s essential glory is reflected and communicated by
varying degrees to all of creation, there is yet that reflexive acknowledgment
by creation of His glory which reveals the ultimate purpose for which all
things were made, that is God’s attributed or accredited glory (Rom. 11:36).
(2) According to Strong, 51 both Scripture and reason attest to the glory of God
as the principal purpose of creation, as follows:
51 Strong, Systematic Theology, pp. 397-402.
(a) The Word of God declares that God’s supreme purpose in creation is
His holy glory exclusive of anything outside of Himself.
1) God’s end is in Himself (Isa. 48:11; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 15:28; Col.
1:16 re Christ).
2) God’s end is His own will and pleasure (Eph. 1:5-6).
3) God’s end is His own glory (Is. 43:7; 60:21; 61:3; Luke 2:14).
4) God’s end is in making known His power, wisdom, and holy name
(Ps. 143:11; Ezek. 36:21-22; 39:7; Rom. 9:17, 22-23; Eph. 3:9-10).
(b) Reason declares that God’s supreme purpose in creation is His holy
glory exclusive of anything outside of Himself.
1) God’s glory is the end that alone is attainable.
2) God’s glory is the end that is most valuable.
3) God’s glory is the end that is most consistent with His unique
independence and absolute sovereignty.
4) God’s glory is the end that alone comprehends and secures every
interest in the universe.

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5) God’s glory is the end that best suits a consistently moral and holy
universe.
(3) In Edwards’ superb discourse entitled, The End For Which God Created The
World, he concludes:
Thus we see that the great end of God’s works, which is so variously expressed
in Scripture, is indeed but one; and this one end is most properly and
comprehensively called, the Glory of God. . . . In the creature’s knowing,
esteeming, loving, rejoicing in, and praising God, the glory of God is both
exhibited and acknowledged; his fullness is received and returned. Here is both
emanation and remanation. The refulgence shines upon and into the creature,
and is reflected back to the luminary. The beams of glory come from God, are
something of God, and are refunded back again to their original. So that the
whole world is of God, and in God, and to God; and he is the beginning, and
the middle, and the end. 52
b. The distinctive glorification of God by all creation.
(1) By angelic beings.
(a) Such as the seraphim and heavenly creatures who are particularly
occupied with the praise of God’s holy glory (Isa. 6:1-2; Rev. 4:6-11).
(b) Such as that multitude of the heavenly host who glorified God before
the shepherds at the birth of the Savior, Jesus Christ (Luke 2:8-14).
(2) By the inanimate created heavens (Ps. 19:1-6).
(a) The loud proclamation of the silent heavens, vs. 1-4a.
(b) The radiant proclamation of the rising sun, vs. 4b-6.
(3) By the animate creation.
(a) Such as botanical trees (Ps. 148:7, 9; Isa. 55:12-13).
(b) Such as birds, beasts, and cattle (Ps. 84:1-4; 148:7, 10; Isa. 43:20).
(4) By humankind.
52 Edwards, Works, I, pp. 119-20.
(a) Unregenerate, pagan humanity glorifies God (Ps. 76:10), and specifically
with regard to:
1) Pharaoh (Ex. 14:4; Rom. 9:17).
2) Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 4:34-37).

53 Goodwin, Works, VI, pp. 501-5.
THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 241
3) Darius (Dan. 6:25-28).
4) Cyrus (Isa. 44:28-45:3).
5) Pilate (John 19:11; Acts 4:27-28).
(b) National Israel glorifies God (Lev. 10:3; Isa. 49:3; Ezek. 36:2-27).
(c) Regenerate humanity glorifies God (Rom. 15:5-9; I Cor. 6:20; I Pet.
4:11).
1) Thomas Goodwin suggests fifteen ways by which the Christian
ought to glorify God. 53
a) To earnestly desire to know and think much about God is to
glorify Him (Ps. 46:10).
b) To admire God is to glorify Him (II Thess. 1:10).
c) To speak genuinely about God is to glorify Him (Ps. 71:8;
113:3).
d) To ascribe all to God is to glorify Him (I Chron. 29:11-12; Ps.
115:1).
e) To suffer for God is to glorify Him (I Pet. 4:14-16).
f) To have a heart after God’s image is to glorify Him (Matt.
5:16; I Cor. 11:7).
g) To boast in God as our ground of happiness is to glorify Him
(I Chron. 16:10; Ps. 44:8).
h) To boast in God as our source of fruitful holiness is to glorify
Him (John 15:8).
i) To do all things with God chiefly in mind is to glorify Him
(Rom. 11:36).
j) To do all things for God through Christ our mediator is to
glorify the Father (Phil. 1:11).
k) To repent from sin and turn to God is to glorify Him (Rev.
16:9).
l) To call on God in trouble and praise Him for deliverance is to
glorify Him (Ps. 50:15).

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m) To believe in God with pure faith is to glorify Him (Ps. 115:9-
15; Rom. 4:20).
n) To fear God with awe and reverence is to glorify Him (Rev.
14:7).
o) To properly fellowship with God’s saints is to glorify Him
(Lev. 10:3; Ps. 63:2; Isa. 60:7-9).
2) Man also distinctively proclaims the glory of God when he
comprehends Jehovah and His universe in contrast with himself.
a) With respect to man’s humble subjection before God’s
reigning grandeur, he declares the glory of His majesty.
b) With respect to man’s puny smallness before God’s
overwhelming immensity, he declares the glory of His
greatness and magnificence.
c) With respect to man’s appreciation of the beauty of the
universe in contrast with God’s incomparable holy loveliness,
he declares the glory of His delightful splendor.
c. The cyclical glorification of God according to John 17.
(1) A study of the term “glory” in the New Testament, in both its common noun
and verbal forms, reveals that this doctrine has distinctive emphasis in John’s
Gospel. Consider the following statistics.
(a) In the four gospels, dovxa, doxa, for “glory,” and doxavzw, doxadzō, for
“I glorify,” are used 80 times, 42 of which occur in John’s Gospel, that
is more frequently than the three synoptic gospels combined. The most
frequent usage of these terms in the other writings of John is 19 times in
Revelation.
(b) In Paul’s epistles, the greatest frequency of dovxa, doxa, and doxavzw,
doxazō, is 22 times in II Corinthians and 21 times in Romans.
(c) In John’s Gospel, 24 of the 42 instances of dovxa, doxa, and doxavzw,
doxadzō occur in chapters 12-17 inclusive, that is with regard to the six
days immediately prior to Jesus’ crucifixion. Further, these words are
used 8 times in John 17, which chapter could aptly be titled, Jesus
Christ’s Glorification Prayer (cf. vs. 1, 4, 5, 10, 22, 24).
(2) In considering God’s essential glory as reflected, communicated, and
acknowledged, no more concise revelation of this truth as a whole can be
found than in John 17. It is common for this chapter to be titled Jesus
Christ’s High Priestly Prayer, since it reveals the Son of God prayerfully
interceding for those disciples who the Father has given to him (John 17:2, 6,
9, 15, 20). Certainly this is a significant truth, yet it falls short of reflecting

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 243
the ultimate and all-embracing purpose of the glorification of the Father,
which so consumed the Son. In simple terms, the Father glorifies the Son to
the end that the Son might glorify the Father. Moreover, the Son
accomplishes this by glorifying the believer to the end that the believer might
glorify the Son, and thus glorify the Father. The following diagram illustrates
this cyclical pattern of glorification.
JESUS CHRIST’S GLORIFICATION PRAYER - JOHN 17:1-26
The Son glorifies
the Father through:
the atonement
effected, cf. John
13:31-32; 14:13; 15:8
The believer glorifies
the Son through:
the Word received,
being set apart from
the world, unity
within the world
UNBELIEVER
v. 1b, 4a
FATHER
John 17:1-5
SON
v. 10 John 17:6-26 v. 22
BELIEVER
vs. 15, 18, 21, 23
WORD OF GOD
John 17:17
WORLD SEA
(3) There are three key verses in John 17 that together describe the cyclical
nature of the glory of God, and concerning these, the following comments
are helpful.
(a) Verse 1: J. C. Ryle comments:
v. 1a, 5a
The Father glorifies
the Son through:
the atonement
ordained, cf.
John 13:31-32; 16:14
The son glorifies the
believer through:
the Father's name, the
Word of God, the unity of
the Father and Son, the
sanctification of the Son
UNBELIEVER
[Glorify Thy Son . . . glorify Thee]. I think the meaning of this sentence
must be this: Give glory to Thy Son, by carrying Him through the cross
and the grave, to a triumphant completion of the work He came to do,
and by placing Him at Thy right hand, and highly exalting Him above

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every name that is named. Do this, in order that He may glorify Thee and
Thy attributes. Do this, that he may bring fresh glory to Thy holiness,
and justice, and mercy, and faithfulness, and prove to the world that
Thou art a just God, a holy God, a merciful God, and a God that keepeth
His word. My vicarious death and resurrection will prove this, and bring
glory to Thee. Finish the mighty work. Glorify Me, and in so doing
glorify Thyself. Finish Thy work, not least, that Thy Son may glorify
Thee by bringing many redeemed souls to heaven, to the glory of Thy
grace. 54
(b) Verse 10: Thomas Manton comments and asks the question: “But what
is it [for the disciple] to glorify Christ? I answer:” 55
1) You will glorify him by faith, that is by accepting Christ (I Pet. 2:7)
and presenting Christ (Eph. 3:1).
2) You will glorify him by the holiness of your conversations (Rom.
14:7-8; Gal. 2:20; Phil. 1:21).
3) You will glorify him in your enjoyment of such privileges as your
justification, sanctification, and glorification (I Cor. 3:22-23).
4) You will glorify him by living and suffering for the advancement of
his interest and kingdom (Acts 5:41; II Cor. 5:13; Phil. 1:29).
5) You will glorify him by being zealous for his household and
commandments (John 15:14, 17).
6) You will glorify him by taking time to admire his person and the
fulness of his redemption so as to be ravished of heart (I Cor. 2:2;
Rev. 4:10, 11; 5:8).
(c) Verse 22: Again Thomas Manton comments:
Our glory for substance is the same that Christ’s is. In degree there is a
difference, according to the difference that is between head and members.
The head weareth the crown and badge of honor, and the eldest son had
a double portion. So doth Christ excel in degrees of everlasting glory, but
the substance is the same; therefore we are said to be ‘co-heirs with
Christ,’ and ‘to be glorified with Christ’ (Rom. 8:17). . . . Christ’s coming
doth not eclipse, but perfect our glory; the more near Christ is, the more
we shine. 56
(4) By way of application, when the doctrine of the glory of God lays hold of a
child of God, he is transported from mediocre religious commitment to a
consuming passion that is always dominated by a God-centeredness that has
at the same time displaced man-centeredness. A true vision of God enables
54 J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts On John, III, p. 195.
55 Manton, Works, X, pp. 262-7.
56 Ibid., XI, p. 57.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD 245
man to see himself in right perspective, yet in losing sight of himself in the
face of God’s holy radiance, he finds that his former frustrated quest for
fulfillment now finds satisfaction. In other words, in losing sight of ourselves,
we find ourselves in the absorbing contemplation and enjoyment of the glory
of God. Here is the answer to human happiness, and at the same time the
reason why so many do not obtain it.

A. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER XIII
CONCLUSION
What ought to be the outcome of a serious study of the Bible concerning the character of
God? Undoubtedly such a quest should be deeply effecting in the sense that,
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Prov. 9:10) 1
Yet supremely, such wisdom/understanding, by its very biblical nature, should inevitably
lead to true praise and worship in its highest form.
Praise the Lord in song, for He has done excellent things;
Let this be known throughout the earth.
Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel (Isa, 12:5-60
In other words, the right understanding of God obtained, through His self-revelation, is, to
use Jonathan Edwards’ terminology, to be refunded back via the creature by means of
heartfelt adoration.
On the other hand, to study the being of God in a detached and impersonal sense is surely to
be guilty of one of the most irreverent pursuits possible. A secular and profane regard for
God does not have to involve the explicit taking of His name in vain, or even open
blasphemy. All that is required is the cool, detached consideration of God’s character that
results in indifference and apathy; such is one of the great snares that is involved in the
academic study of Bible truth. Here can be found irreverence at its most sophisticated level,
for while the truth about God may be rightly comprehended cognitively speaking, yet God is
nevertheless given a slap in the face, so to speak, because the student refuses to bow,
acknowledge, and worship.
However, because the reverent study of Jehovah/Yahweh is the highest pursuit for man to
aspire to in terms of a hoped for embrace of ultimate truth, the authentic believer in God
pursues this revelation of Himself because He not only wants to comprehend the reality of
this great Being, but also embrace it with the total commitment of his soul, whatever the
consequences may be. Herein lies the distinctive attitude that the biblical Christian should
manifest. He is distinguished by the mature, vital, experiential knowledge of God that
comes, first according to His own revelation, second as a result of passionate pursuit for
God, third through the faith embrace of redemption mediated through Jesus Christ, and
fourth by means of resultant intimate union with this Son of God. All four factors, in this
order, are indispensable for the true Christian insofar as his understanding of the Holy One
of Israel is concerned.
1 The synonymous parallelism in this verse equates “fear” with “knowledge,” the “LORD” with the “Holy
One,” and “wisdom” with “understanding.” The Hebrew myvidoq], quadoshim, for “Holy One,” being plural,
may find later expression in the thrice holy God of Isaiah 6:3 and Revelation 4:8.

CONCLUSION 247
So throughout the corridors of Bible and church history, the choicest of saints have
manifested true piety at the level of their comprehensive reverence and love for God,
expressed not in some glib fashion, but rather by means of fervently expressed, heartfelt
devotion that enters into the sheer wonder and glory of God’s character.
1. Some encouraging examples from human history.
a. The knowledge of God according to Job.
Suffering Job has strenuously maintained his innocence, in terms of the charges of
guilt by his self-righteous condemning friends, to the point where he implicitly
charges God with complicity (Job 40:8). So God responds with a revelation of His
greatness that is both humbling and mouth-stopping (Job 38:1-40:2; 40:6-41:34).
Specifically, God reveals Himself as sovereign over inanimate and animate
creation. More to the point, as the creator of “Behemoth” (40:15) and
“Leviathan” (41:1), “Who then is he that can stand before Me? Who has given to
Me that I should repay him?” (41:10-11). As a result Job’s self-defensive spirit
gives way to a mood of profound humiliation and quiet subjection. Thus he
confesses: “Behold, I am insignificant; what can I reply to You? I lay my hand on
my mouth. Once I have spoken, and I will not answer; even twice, and I will add
no more. . . . I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; but now my eye sees
You; therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes” (Job 40:4-5; 42:5-6).
While Job does not appear to have received an explanation as to his prolonged
suffering, nevertheless it was a profound confrontation with God, particularly His
majesty, sovereignty, and infinite wisdom (37:22-23; 40:9-10), that led to
submissive rest in his soul and consequent blessing.
b. The knowledge of God according to Ezekiel.
In Ezekiel 1:28, cf. 3:23, the prophet declares, after a remarkable encounter with
God, “Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And
when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.” But what exactly was
this revelation of God’s glory revealed in vs. 4-28? It is a theophany that
commences with a distant appearance, “a storm wind coming from the north, a
great cloud with fire flashing forth continually and a bright light around it, and in
its midst something like glowing metal in the midst of the fire,” v. 4. Then appear
four distinctively faced living creatures, perhaps representative of the revelation of
Jesus Christ in the four gospels, in the midst of which was bright fire and flashing
lightening, vs. 5-14. The creatures are then described as being posted at the four
sides of the chariot of the Lord with its jewel-like, bi-directional wheels, vs. 15-21.
Over the four living creatures is a crystal platform, above which is a radiant
throne, vs. 22-26a. And on the throne is “a figure with the appearance of a man.
Then I noticed from the outward appearance of His loins and upward something
like glowing metal that looked like fire all around within it, and from the
appearance of his loins downward I saw something like fire; and there was a
radiance around Him. As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy
day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance,” vs. 26b-28a. Not
surprisingly, when the Apostle John was confronted with the “Son of Man” in a
similar manifestation of dazzling glory, he “fell at His feet like a dead man” (Rev.
1:12-18). Such an encounter with the full glory of God, even as Paul experienced

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
on the Damascus road (Acts 9:3-5; 22:6-11; 26:12-15), inevitably results in
responses of profound unworthiness, total submission, and speechless praise.
c. The knowledge of God according to John Calvin.
At the commencement of his Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin’s
doctrinal starting point is “The Knowledge of God” as Creator and Redeemer.
However such understanding is never to be divorced from personal encounter.
What help is it, in short, to know a God with whom we have nothing to do? Rather,
our knowledge should serve first to teach us fear and reverence; secondly, with it as
our guide and teacher, we should learn to seek every good from him, and having
received it, to credit it to his account. For how can the thought of God penetrate
your mind without your realizing immediately that, since you are his handiwork,
you have been made over and bound to his command by right of creation, that you
owe your life to him?—that whatever you undertake, whatever you do, ought to be
ascribed to him? If this be so, it now assuredly follows that your life is wickedly
corrupt unless it be disposed to his service, seeing that his will ought for us to be the
law by which we live. Again, you cannot behold him clearly unless you acknowledge
him to be the fountainhead and source of every good. From this too would arise the
desire to cleave to him and trust in him, but for the fact that man’s depravity seduces
his mind from rightly seeking him.
For, to begin with, the pious mind does not dream up for itself any god it
pleases, but contemplates the one and only true God. And it does not attach to him
whatever it pleases, but is content to hold him to be as he manifests himself;
furthermore, the mind always exercises the utmost diligence and care not to wander
astray, or rashly and boldly to go beyond his will. It thus recognizes God because it
knows that he governs all things; and trusts that he is its guide and protector,
therefore giving itself over completely to trust in him. Because it understands him to
be the Author of every good, if anything oppresses, if anything is lacking,
immediately it betakes itself to his protection, waiting for help from him. Because it
is persuaded that he is good and merciful, it reposes in him with perfect trust, and
doubts not that in his loving-kindness a remedy will be provided for all its ills.
Because it acknowledges him as Lord and Father, the pious mind also deems it meet
and right to observe his authority in all things, reverence his majesty, take care to
advance his glory, and obey his commandments. Because it sees him to be a
righteous judge, armed with severity to punish wickedness, it ever holds his
judgment seat before its gaze, and through fear of him restrains itself from
provoking his anger. And yet it is not so terrified by the awareness of his judgment
as to wish to withdraw, even if some way of escape were open. But it embraces him
no less as punished of the wicked than as benefactor of the pious. For the pious
mind realizes that the punishment of the impious and wicked and the reward of life
eternal for the righteous equally pertains to God’s glory. Besides, this mind restrains
itself from sinning, not out of dread of punishment alone; but, because it loves and
reveres God as Father, it worships and adores him as Lord. Even if there were no
hell, it would still shudder at offending him alone.
Here indeed is pure and real religion: faith so joined with an earnest fear of
God that this fear also embraces willing reverence, and carries with it such legitimate
worship as is prescribed in the law. And we ought to note this fact even more
diligently: all men have a vague general veneration of God, but very few really
reverence him; and wherever there is great ostentation in ceremonies, sincerity of
heart is rare indeed. 2
2 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, I, II, 2.

CONCLUSION 249
d. The knowledge of God according to Stephen Charnock.
Of Charnock’s premier work The Existence and Attributes of God, the original
editors, Edward Veel and Richard Adams, rightly declare: “In a word, he handles
the great truths of the gospel with that perspicuity, gravity, and majesty which
best becomes the oracles of God; and we have reason to believe, that no judicious
and unbiased reader but will acknowledge this to be incomparably the best
practical treatise the world ever saw in English upon this subject.” 3
Complementary to this major treatise are A Discourse of the Knowledge of God
and A Discourse of the Knowledge of God in Christ, based upon John 17:3,
which well reflect the author’s constant concern for profundity of thought that
leads to discernment in application.
To know a living God with a dead heart is at best but a carnal knowledge, a dead
knowledge, unsuitable to a living object, which calls for lively actions. . . . Such a
knowledge [with a living heart], which ravisheth the mind, quickens the prayers,
seasons the converse, and fortifies against temptations. Such a knowledge as wraps
up the soul in admiration, spirits the will to operation, allures it with a close union
with the truth discovered, till it be like a leaven working in the will, and shaping the
whole man according to its own mold. The fixing our eye on God by a spiritual
knowledge derives a tincture from him, dyeing our souls into his own likeness; if the
life doth not differ from that of an infidel, the knowledge, though as high as an
angel’s, is no more saving than that of a devil.
Try your knowledge of God by your affections to him. What strong desires are
there for the enjoyment of God and Christ; what delight in approaches to him; what
propensities of the heart in spiritual duties? Do they spring from affection, or move
by the fears and jerks of conscience? Doth the knowledge of Christ in his mediation,
natures, offices, as the only remedy for our lost souls, kindle desires, holy affections,
unexpressible heart-breakings for him, as we find David’s heart often flying up upon
this wing? Is there a love to God rising out of a sense of his love to lost man? God
cannot be known as an infinite, and unbounded, and outflowing goodness without a
flight of our affections to him. It is as impossible that a good spiritually known
should not be beloved, as that any good should be beloved that is not known. Every
common witness of God in the works of creation “fills the heart with gladness”
(Acts 14:16-17), much more every spiritual witness of God in the work of
redemption apprehended by the soul.
Try yourselves whether you have the knowledge of God or no; try it not so
much by the notions you have of God and his truth as by the operation of it, and the
draught [deep supply] of the perfections of God in your own souls. The greatest
heads have often had the worst hearts. . . . When we cast our eyes upon God, let us
reflect upon ourselves, and see whether the temper of our hearts answer the notions
in our heads. Can any man say, I know God to be merciful, and I have an imitation
of it; God is holy, and I have a draught of it; God is omniscient, and I have a deep
sense of it in my actions; God hath a sovereign dominion, and I have an obedient
frame; God is true in his word, and I have a sincerity answering to divine truth, a
faith in his promises, a fear in his threatenings; there are some lineaments
[characteristics] in my heart answering in some measure to the perfections of my
Creator. 4
3 Stephen Charnock, The Works of Stephen Charnock, I, p. 125.
4 Ibid., IV, pp. 18-19, 48-49, 84-85.

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e. The knowledge of God according to Jonathan Edwards.
Overall, it is abundantly clear that Jonathan Edwards’ was passionately
theocentric in his life and ministry. Thus he writes that, “it is evident, that true
virtue must chiefly consist in LOVE TO GOD; the Being of beings, infinitely the
greatest and best.” 5 His Religious Affections is emphatic that love of God, his
being or character, should be the great interest of the believer.
The divine excellency of God, and of Jesus Christ, the word of God, his works,
ways, &c. is the primary reason why a true saint loves these things [love, affections];
and not any supposed interest that he has in them, or any conceived benefit that he
has received or shall receive from them.
. . . This infinite excellency of the divine nature, as it is in itself, is the true
ground of all that is good in God in any respect; but how can a man truly love God,
without loving him for that excellency, which is the foundation of all that is good or
desirable in him? They whose affection to God is founded first on his profitableness
to them, begin at the wrong end; they regard God only for the utmost limit of the
stream of divine good, where it touches them, and reaches their interest. They have
no respect to that infinite glory of God’s nature, which is the original good, and true
fountain of all good, and of loveliness of every kind.
. . . In a gracious attitude, men are affected with the attribute of God’s
goodness and free grace, not only as they are concerned in it, or as it affects their
interest, but as a part of the glory and beauty of God’s nature. . . . A true saint,
when in the enjoyment of true discoveries of the sweet glory of God and Christ, has
his mind too much captivated and engaged by what he views without [outside of]
himself, to stand at that time to view himself, and his own attainments. 6
f. The knowledge of God according to C. H. Spurgeon.
While recollecting Spurgeon’s reverent exuberance at the heartfelt knowledge of
God, expressed on page 18, further consider this same preacher’s exaltation, when
musing on vacation, concerning God’s greatness with regard to Psalm 8:1.
How excellent is thy name! No words can express that excellency; and therefore it is
left as a note of exclamation. The very name of Jehovah is excellent, what must his
person be. Note the fact that even the heavens cannot contain his glory, it is set
above the heavens, since it is and ever must be too great for the creature to express.
When wandering amid the Alps, we felt the Lord was infinitely greater than all his
grandest works, and under that feeling we roughly wrote these few lines:
Yet in all these how great soe’er they be,
We see not Him. The glass is all too dense
And dark, or else our earthborn eyes too dim.
Yon Alps, that lift their heads above the clouds
And hold familiar discourse with the stars,
Are dust, at which the balance trembleth not,
Compared with His divine immensity.
The snow-crown’d summits fail to set Him forth,
Who dwelleth in Eternity, and bears
Alone, the name of High and Lofty One.
5 Jonathan Edwards, The Works Of Jonathan Edwards, I, p. 125.
6 Ibid., pp. 275, 277, 278.

CONCLUSION 251
Depths unfathomed are too shallow to express
The wisdom and the knowledge of the Lord.
The mirror of the creatures has no space
To bear the image of the Infinite.
’Tis true the Lord hath fairly writ his name,
And set his seal upon creation’s brow.
But as the skillful potter much excels
The vessel which he fashions on the wheel,
E’en so, but in proportion greater far,
Jehovah’s self transcends his noblest works.
Earth’s ponderous wheels would break, her axles snap,
If freighted with the load of Deity.
Space is too narrow for the Eternal’s rest,
And time to short a footstool for his throne.
E’en avalanche and thunder lack a voice,
To utter the full volume of his praise.
How then can I declare him? Where are words
With which my glowing tongue may speak his name?
Silent I bow, and humbly I adore. 7
This challenges us also to think more deeply concerning the vital role of serious
reflection on the character of God. Here Spurgeon relates how an excursion into a
mountainous region of Europe stimulated his faculty of meditation. His mind was
exercised to such a degree that he was constrained to give poetic expression to his
inner contemplations. Of course Spurgeon was not so influenced by our news-bite
culture that encourages rapid comprehension of editorial vignettes and video clips.
However, here is exposed our poverty in these modern times. There can be no
condensed learning of God; the very thought is an insult to His transcendent
majesty. Rather we have to learn, from the likes of Spurgeon, what it is to slow
down and meditate on the truth of His Being, to ruminate over, to ingest and
digest the revelations concerning His holy character, to wonder overwhelmingly,
to “be still [cease striving] and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10).
2. Some discouraging examples from human history.
In the realm of the academic consideration of the character God, that often maintains a
close alliance with speculative philosophy, there is a vast amount of literature that will
stimulate the intellect without in any way challenging the soul to respond with heartfelt
submission and worship. One such example, that certainly ought not to be considered
radical, is a semi-classic work of this century by E. L. Mascall, He Who Is – A Study In
Traditional Theism. Notwithstanding the author’s claim that his purpose is purely
academic, which excuse is supposed to placate the Almighty in terms of an attitude of
detachment, yet in 205 pages there are references to only twelve passages of Scripture,
while copious notes refer to Aristotle, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Descartes, Kant,
Bertrand Russell, Barth, etc. 8
7 C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, I, p. 89.
88 E. L. Mascall, a Catholic priest and university lecturer in the Philosophy of Religion, upholds “traditional
theism” which he insightfully describes as follows: “The traditional approach [in the comprehension of God]
judges man by the measure of God, the ‘modern’ approach at least tends to judge God by the measure of
man. The famous Aberdonian epitath-

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
More recently, evangelical Ronald H. Nash in his The Concept Of God – An
Explanation Of Contemporary Difficulties With The Attributes Of God, like Mascall,
expresses a similar excuse that, “these reflections about God will probably not inspire
much in the way of reverence or personal piety.” 9 Not surprisingly, in 106 pages this
author does not make so much as one reference to a supporting verse or an exegeted
passage of Scripture! Again, Aristotle, Augustine, Anselm, and Thomas Aquinas receive
fulsome attention, and to be honest, who along with Charnock would ever think to
deny their consideration. But when wrestling with the attributes of God and many of
the problems related to His being leads to an ever so slight patronage at best of
Scripture, then there is something radically wrong that only a return to the precedence
of the Word of God can remedy.
3. Some consideration of the parched contemporary scene.
D. A. Carson has written concerning “The Urgent Need of the Church” by first
summarizing a variety of matters that seriously interest Christians at the
commencement of this twenty-first century. These include sexual immorality, AIDS,
violence, abortion, corporate corruption, acquisitiveness, and materialism, that
necessitate evangelism, church planting, ethnic missionary outreach, etc. Nevertheless,
“the evangelism that has dominated much of the Western world—does not seem
powerful enough to address our declension. Perhaps what we most urgently need, then,
is disciplined, biblical thinking. We need more Bible colleges and seminaries, more
theologians, more lay training, more expository preaching” 10 However, as important as
these remedial items are, Carson further explains that,
[t]he one thing we most urgently need in Western Christendom is a deeper knowledge of
God. We need to know God better. When it comes to knowing God, we are a culture of
the spiritually stunted. So much of our religion is packaged to address our felt needs—and
these are almost uniformly anchored in our pursuit of our own happiness and fulfillment.
God simply becomes the Great Being who, potentially at least, meets our needs and fulfills
our aspirations. We think rather little of what he is like, what he expects of us, what he
seeks in us. We are not captured by his holiness and his love; his thoughts and words
capture too little of our imagination, too little of our discourse, too few of our priorities.
In the biblical view of things, a deeper knowledge of God brings with it massive
improvement in the other areas mentioned: purity, integrity, evangelistic effectiveness,
better study of Scripture, improved private and corporate worship, and much more. But if
we seek these things without passionately desiring a deeper knowledge of God, we are
selfishly running after God’s blessing without running after him. 11
‘Here lie I, Martin Elginbrodde;
Ha’e mercy o’ my soul, Lord God,
As I would do, were I Lord God
And ye were Martin Elginbrodde’-
puts in a nutshell the anthropocentrism of this type of thought. How different in effect is the ejaculation
attributed to St. Augustine: ‘O my God, if I were God and thou Augustine, I would wish that thou wert God
and I Augustine.’” He Who Is, A Study In Traditional Theism, p. 196.
9 Ronald H. Nash, The Concept Of God - An Explanation Of Contemporary Difficulties With The Attributes
Of God, p. 10.
10 D. A. Carson, A Call to Spiritual Reformation, p. 15.
11 Ibid., pp. 15-16.

CONCLUSION 253
Hence, the overall concern of this study manual is that, in spite of the activism and
finely honed methodology of modern evangelicalism, there is in reality only a veneer
thin exterior of biblical Christianity that betrays a foundational weakness of immense
proportions. When the lives of the greatest saints are studied, one matter that stands
out above all else is the frequently noted characteristic that, quite apart from their
biblical orthodoxy, they were known to have “something of God about them,” some
indefinable aura that marked them out as having drawn close to God, in a manner that
may be likened to Moses’ encounter on Mt. Sinai. Such a transforming experience
results from learning more profoundly about God, and the consequent holy glow is not
so easily shrouded.
This was the case when the sons of Israel were surprised at the shining appearance of
Moses’ face when he descended from intimate fellowship with God (Ex. 34:29-30). So
that for we Christians who claim to have been reconciled to God, whatever resultant
manifestation might ensue, whether it be a trembling and shudder of the soul, a state of
blissful composure and rest, a quiet and holy spirit, or an eruption of joyful praise, yet
above all else a quality of godliness should be discernable to all who converse and
interact with us. Such an evident knowledge of the triune God, substantiated even by a
watching fallen human race, is the fervent prayer of Jesus Christ for his disciples when,
in interceding with the Father, he is desirous “that they also may be in Us [the Father
and the Son]; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me” (John 17:21).
Yet today, the spiritual poverty in godliness of professing evangelical Christians is such
that we seem clothed more in tissue thin, scanty, tawdry religious garments rather than
the distinctive, rich, and pure robes of God’s righteousness, imputed and imparted.
After all, should not imputed righteousness produce a certain resonance and glow of
godliness? Thus Sinclair Ferguson well describes our sorry plight as follows:
When we look back on what the masters of the spiritual life have written and said, it is
hard to escape the conclusion that we have been the victim of a confidence trick in our
century. Over the past few decades, the evangelical church has been gripped by a series of
issues and concerns that have been of marginal, or at best of secondary importance.
Conferences, seminars, and books on a whole series of issues of ‘vital concerns’ have
dominated center stage and determined the agenda in many churches and for many
individual Christians. But strikingly absent has been concentration on God himself.
Indeed, on the rare occasions when this absence has not been the case, we have sat up to
take notice as though something out of the ordinary were being said! What has happened,
in effect, is that we have redefined the Christian life and the meaning of eternal life in
terms of any number of particular issues. We have not listened to the insistent voice of
Jesus Christ telling us that it means the knowledge of God [John 17:3; I John 5:11, 20]. 12
It is for this reason we return to Stephen Charnock since he remains supreme as the
master teacher concerning the attributes of God, notwithstanding his seventeenth
century style. While nobody could charge him with having a lack of fine reasoning
skills and philosophic insight, yet his priority for a reverent and exhaustive exposition
of Holy Scripture is accompanied with penetrating practical application that results in
both truly awesome regard for God’s being and a humbling conviction of one’s present
ignorance in this realm. As an example of his classic Puritan manner, and apart from
his extensive Existence And Attributes Of God, again consider the complementary A
Discourse Of The Knowledge Of God and A Discourse Of The Knowledge of God in
12 Sinclair B. Ferguson, A Heart For God, pp. 4-5.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
Christ, 13 consisting of 161 pages which, although slightly prolix according to a style
acceptable during the seventeenth century, yet are without equal in their breadth and
depth of spiritual substance, and as a consequence are profoundly rewarding to the
determined student. Both of these discourses, according to Charnock’s customary
method, are first based upon careful exegesis of John 17:3, followed by a wider
doctrinal application and extensive practical conclusion. Consider the following
representative examples.
Ignorance of God is the cause of all sin in the world. This is the fountain of all the sin that
ever was; of the first sin (II Cor. 11:3). . . . Therefore daily endeavor to increase in the
knowledge of God. Our main work in the world is to increase in the knowledge of sin,
that we may more vehemently detest it; and the knowledge of God, that we may more
closely embrace him and resign up ourselves to him. . . . There can be no growth in grace
without an increase in the knowledge of God. God is the object of grace, and the object
must be known before any act upon it can be exercised; and as the object is cleared, the
acts about it are more vigorous. There may be indeed a knowledge without grace; but
there can be no increase of grace without an increase of knowledge, as the heat of the fire
cannot be made more intense without a supply of fuel.
The discovery of God was the great end of Christ’s appearance upon the earth, his
office. He was to declare things “hid from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 13:35); to
unfold the mysteries and secret counsels of God, and remove the shades and veils between
him and the understandings of men, and reveal things which God never revealed before. . .
. The knowledge of Christ is urged in Scripture, not as the ultimate term of our
knowledge, but as the medium of our knowledge of God; for the term mediator, and the
office of prophet, evidence this. . . . We are to know Christ, as he is the only person
appointed to direct us to the knowledge of God; therefore, though Moses and Elias were
with him upon the mount of transfiguration, i.e. though the law and the prophets pointed
to Christ and declared something of God, yet we are ordered by the voice of God to hear
him only, as the great instructor of the world: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased: hear ye him” (Matt. 17:5). 14
However, if we as professing Christians have difficulties or questions concerning the
nature of God, then what type of wisdom is it that gives greater attention to human
opinion, however sanctified or learned it may be, than that of God’s own objective
revelation of Himself? In this area of the study of God’s attributes, as with other
Christian doctrines, there is always a real danger that we will become gradually
seduced, though quite imperceptibly, by historic movements and the speculations of
well-meaning men that yet are subject, like ourselves, to human fallibility and sinful
bias. Hence, we can become so fascinated and enticed by human opinion about the
nature of God, indeed so full of notions of certain prominent men, that secular,
humanistic, philosophically derived concepts are imported into our appreciation of His
glorious Being. The result is that God can gradually become a human projection, a
finite self-extension into the infinite, rather than Jehovah’s self-revelation from heaven.
Of course this was the theory of the German materialist philosopher, Ludwig
Feuerbach, who in his The Essence Of Christianity, proposed that, “religion has its
origin in man’s wish, it is a product of man’s wishful thinking. As man’s wishes are, so
are his gods.” 15 Indeed, to the degree that man arrives at notions of God via
13 Charnock, Works, IV, pp. 3-163.
14 Ibid., pp. 77, 87-88, 133.
15 Otto W. Heick, A History Of Christian Thought, II, p. 197. Consider a similar analysis: “Feuerbach accepts
the classical attributes which are found in the literature of the [Christian] tradition. Love, justice, and

CONCLUSION 255
speculative, subjective, skeptical liberal theology, in which environment Feuerbach was
steeped, then of course he was correct. For as Lord [Francis] Bacon declared:
“Rationalists are like spiders, they spin all out of their own bowels. 16
When arrogant human reason confronts transcendent truth, especially with regard to
the Bible and the nature of its holy and infinite God, then it may be likened to
Alexander the Great’s legendary encounter with the Gordion knot in Asia Minor.
When the Greek king of Macedon could not unravel the mysteriously intertwined cord
that showed no loose ends, in frustration he drew his sword and divided the knot by
force. 17 So when finite man attempts to assert himself over the infinite God of
Scripture, in vainly attempting to unlock this Mystery, he employs vaunted autonomy
and the force of reason to destroy God!
But for the Christian who yields to God’s revelation of Himself in Scripture as
impeccable truth that is outside and over him, rather than peccable conjecture that is
under and subject to him, then Feuerbach was fundamentally wrong. And no doubt it
was for this reason that Paul wrote: “See to it that no one takes you captive through
philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the
elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ” (Col. 2:8). We
need to remember that, “God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message
preached [revelation] to save those who believe” (I Cor. 1:21). Hence, our great need at
the moment is not simply a systematic understanding of God’s perfections, but much
more a constant expository unveiling of the glories of God that does justice to His
whole person according to the analogy of faith, or the proportion of emphasis in the
Bible. We need twentieth century preachers who passionately embrace Charnock’s
emphasis and method, though quite apart from his antiquated style, because they have,
to borrow R. C. Sproul’s title, One Holy Passion – The Consuming Thirst To Know
God. 18 But further, we also need congregations, sufficiently serious in their desire to
know God, who encourage their pastors to satisfy the deep thirst of their souls, instead
of opposing preaching and teaching ministry that in fact challenges superficiality and
deep-rooted carnality.
personality, for example, can legitimately be attributed to God. Indeed, all the attributes which describe
human nature can be applied to God insofar as God is nothing else than human nature freed from its
individual limitations. All the attributes of the human nature ipso facto become attributes of the divine
nature.” Frank N. Magill, ed., Masterpieces Of Christian Literature In Summary Form, p. 698. It is
significant that a synthesis of Hegel and Feuerbach by Karl Marx known as dialectical materialism became,
not surprisingly, the atheistic root of atheistic communism.
16 Lord [Francis] Bacon, cited by John F. Hurst, History Of Rationalism, p. vii.
17 J. B. Bury, A History Of Greece, p. 756. According to an oracle, it was said that whoever unraveled the knot
would rule over Asia. Alexander’s questionable fulfillment was indeed followed by his rule over Asia, though
he suddenly died at the age of 32 at the peak of his military career as the result of a fever that followed a
drunken feast.
18 R. C. Sproul, One Holy Passion, 185 pp. Here is an easy-to-read introduction to the attributes of God written
in the modern idiom by an infectiously enthusiastic evangelical theologian.

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B. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND BIBLICAL PREACHING
19
Preaching is primarily “proclamation” (khru,ssw, kērussō, Matt. 24:14; Acts 8:5; 28:31; I
Cor. 1:21, 23; 2:4; II Cor. 1:19; 4:5; Gal. 2:2; I Thess. 2:9; I Tim. 3:16), it is the appointed
heralding of a given message in such a way that the addressed audience has no doubt that an
authoritative declaration is being made. Hence, when we speak of Christian preaching we
are describing that distinctive pronouncement of the Word of God (II Tim. 4:2), though
more essentially the gospel it contains, according to the authority of God in Scripture and
through the agency of the Holy Spirit (Mark 1:14). In more broad terms, we should also
include the aspects of “evangelizing” (euvaggeli,zw, euangelizō, Acts 13:32; Rom. 10:15; Heb.
4:2) and “teaching” (dida,skw, didaskō, Matt. 4:23, 35, where the usage of didaskō, kērussō,
and euangelion is combined; cf. Acts 5:25; 15:35; 28:31), concepts that are often integral to
“proclamation,” Yet while this three-fold terminology, concerning what is technically called
the science of “homiletics,” or the principles and practice of preaching, has been faithfully
expounded upon in a number of helpful books, our concern here takes us to a level that is so
lacking in emphasis today that we seem to have more often focused upon a shell or outward
form or methodology while neglecting the heart and essence of the matter. A. W. Tozer
explains this distinction as follows:
Sound Bible exposition is an imperative must in the Church of the Living God. Without it no
church can be a New Testament church in any strict meaning of that term. But exposition may
be carried on in such a way as to leave the hearers devoid of any true spiritual nourishment
whatever. For it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God Himself, and unless and until
the hearers find God in personal experience they are not better for having heard the truth. The
Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge
of God, that they may enter into Him, that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and
know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts. 19
Hence the particular emphasis of this study concerns the vital importance of God
centeredness in the Christian pulpit today, but more importantly, the preacher.
1. Why the need of God-centeredness in the pulpit today?
Authentic God-centeredness in the pulpit vastly transcends the mere presumptive
acknowledgment of God as is common in sermons every Sunday in America, and
especially the presupposition that we all know Who we are talking about. It also rises
far above the assumption that of course the man in the pulpit is a man of God because
of his ordination, denominational affiliation, and degrees. Rather, the reality of a
current void in this matter is indicated by means of the following signs that preaching is
anemic, even if professional.
a. The widespread pragmatic and utilitarian regard of God in countless churches
today might be better described as belief in God-usefulness, that is religious
utilitarianism. He is at hand when needed; He is beside me in time of trouble; but
He is not above me in humbling awesome majesty, sovereignty, and holiness,
which perspective the contemporary professing Christian has minimal regard for.
Yet the apostolic preaching of God in Acts, which book of the Bible incidentally
does not contain one reference to “love,” is dominant in both the messenger and
message.
A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God, p. 10.

CONCLUSION 257
b. The increasing paganism, multiculturalism, and religious pluralism of modern
society requires that contemporary preaching should be more specific when it
speaks about God, and not more accommodating or ambiguous. The gods of the
larger world religions such as Mohammedanism, Hinduism, and Buddhism, as
well as multiplying sects, call for a specificity that even Israel in the Old Testament
was careful to maintain (Ps. 83:1-18; 86:8-10).
c. The present underemphasis concerning the character of God in modern preaching
stands out in stark contrast when compared with certain periods of church
history, including the Reformation, the Puritan era, and the Great Awakening of
the eighteenth century. Compare the mood of worship today that tends to be
unendingly cacophonous, sensual, horizontally relational, and amusing, with the
earlier centuries when God was held in awe, quietness was desirable, and a serious
attitude involved the focus of the mind.
d. The shallowness of much contemporary preaching, often justified on the grounds
of the communication syndrome, market orientation, or cultural relevance, has at
its roots a doctrinal rather than a homiletical problem. Who God is and what He
has spoken determine the mode of proclamation, not man’s assessment that
concludes the times call for a new approach. This is not to deny the need for
modern relevance; but it is a call for a recovery of the dominant emphasis in
Scripture of the unchanging character of God.
e. There is a failure in much formal homiletical instruction indicated by a neglect of
emphasis on the inseparable relationship between knowing the character of God
in an experiential sense and being His spokesman. Precise, contextual exegesis is
only to be encouraged; resultant systematic theology proper is similarly to be
fostered; also sermon formation, outlining, and presentation is to be taught, but if
the preparation stops there, then the pulpit inherits a biblical and theological
lecturer, while the souls of the people starve for the life of God, both reflected and
felt.
This writer recalls that in his seminary training, there was a concerted attempt to
relate his language studies in Greek and Hebrew to homiletics courses. The
integrating purpose here was a wise and desirable one, except that it would have
been better also to relate the theology course on the doctrine of God to those same
homiletics courses. Often in seminary training, this most important relationship
between preaching and the character of God is neglected, with the result being
merely a smooth pulpiteer, and not a man dominated by the claims of Almighty
God upon his life (II Tim. 3:16-17).
2. Biblical perspectives on God-centeredness in the pulpit.
a. Isaiah 6:1-10. Assuming that this passage of the Word of God describes Isaiah’s
call to the prophetic ministry, it is obvious that only after a soul-stirring revelation
of the holiness of God is he fit to respond to the Lord’s call in v. 8, “Whom shall I
send, and who will go for Us?” with the reply, “Here am I, send me!” Such an
encounter may be the reason that God is more often addressed by this prophet as,
“the Holy One of Israel” (Isa. 10:20) than any other title. Isaiah’s appreciation of
the glory of God’s holiness is more than cognitive respect; rather it is a humbling

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vision, a driving burden (Isa. 13:1), that constrains him to speak the Word of the
Lord.
b. Acts 2:22-24. After Peter has explained the phenomena of Pentecost (Acts 2:14-
21), he proclaims Christ, yet always under the panoply of God the Father’s
sovereign working. This Jesus of Nazareth has worked signs and wonders
according to God’s enabling, v. 22. This man Jesus, with specific reference to his
crucifixion, has been the object of “the predetermined plan and knowledge of
God,” v. 23. This same Jesus has been raised from death to life by the power of
God, v. 24. Now as Peter frequently speaks of God in his preaching here (Acts
2:30, 32, 33, 36), he obviously does not have in mind deity in general, but rather
the definitive and exclusive God of Israel, who he so exalts in (I Pet. 1:3; 5:6).
c. Acts 24:14-25. When Paul spoke before Felix and Drusilla at Caesarea, he not
only explained concerning “faith in Jesus Christ,” but also “righteousness, selfcontrol
and the judgment to come.” Here was ministry not only concerning
salvation through belief in God the Son, but also soul-troubling accountability
before God the Father. Clearly, the fact that “Felix became frightened” indicates
the truth of Paul’s later declaration that, when he came to Corinth, “my message
and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration
of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of
God, but on the power of God” (I Cor. 2:4-5). The same point is made by the
Apostle when, in writing to the church at Thessalonica, he recalls his original visit
to that city, namely that “our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in
power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction” (I Thess. 1:5).
d. Romans 1:1. Here Paul describes his calling as an apostle. He has been set apart
for “the gospel of God,” or “God’s gospel” (cf. I Pet. 4:17). Now while this
expression may describe the gospel as “belonging to God,” as the gospel “about
God,” as the gospel “sourced in God,” or as the gospel “sent by God,” all of these
possible aspects are grounded upon the definition of “God,” and such an
understanding is vital for a right appreciation of the gospel that Paul proclaims
(Rom. 11:33-36; I Tim. 1:17).
3. Model perspectives on God-centeredness in the pulpit.
a. Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones.
(1) This writer, along with countless others who have heard Dr. Lloyd-Jones
preach, has come to understand that preaching is more “caught than
taught.” Even a tape cassette cannot fully capture the spiritual dynamic of
this man in the pulpit expressed, not only in his sermons, but also his praying
and personal presence. God was his passion and he exuded it.
(2) An estimate by Iain Murray.
Reflecting on Lloyd-Jones’ Sunday night preaching, and comparing it with the
message of other well-known London pulpits, an observer once said, ‘Soper
preaches love, Weatherhead preaches Jesus, and Lloyd-Jones preaches God.’
For ML-J his emphasis was not a matter of personal preference, it was biblical.

20
21
22
Ibid., pp. 324-25.
CONCLUSION 259
. . . This proclamation of God he saw as much more than the teaching of
orthodox statements. It required the sense and experience of God both in the
preacher and, if hearers were to be saved, in the pew. The presence and power
of God Himself must be there. 20
(3) An estimate by Dr. J. I. Packer.
I have never heard another preacher with so much of God about him. . . . His
approach is habitually Isaianic: having survey man’s pretensions, his fancied
greatness and adequacy, moral, religious, cultural, intellectual, he punctures
them, humbling man and exposing his weakness, futility and sin, in order then
to exalt God as the only Savior. The thrust of Lloyd-Jones’ sermons is always
to show man small and God great. . . . Thus the preacher slips out of the
picture and leaves us with the God whom he would have us know. 21
(4) An estimate by Dr. Lloyd-Jones himself.
b. Dr. John Piper.
What is the chief end of preaching? I like to think it is this. It is to give men
and women a sense of God and His presence. As I have said already, during
this last year I have been ill, and so have had the opportunity, and the
privilege, of listening to others, instead of preaching myself. As I have listened
in physical weakness this is the thing I have looked for and longed for and
desired. I can forgive a man for a bad sermon, I can forgive the preacher
almost anything if he gives me a sense of God, if he gives me something for my
soul, if he gives me the sense that, though he is inadequate in himself, he is
handling something which is very great and very glorious, if he gives me some
dim glimpse of the majesty and the glory of God, the love of Christ my Savior,
and the magnificence of the Gospel. If he does that I am his debtor, and I am
profoundly grateful to him. 22
As a contemporary preacher in Minneapolis, John Piper freely admits to the
massive influence of Jonathan Edwards upon his life and ministry, and this being
the case, his writings take on an inevitable God-centeredness that is so refreshing
in these parched and arid times. How often it is possible to visit a church today
and at the end of the “worship” service sadly conclude that, “the show is now
over and it is time to go home.” But Piper knows how this starves the soul; only
the glory of God himself feeds the soul.
(1) The supremacy of God in preaching.
This book by Piper, The Supremacy of God in Preaching, ought to be
mandatory reading for any man who believes he is called to the pastoral
ministry. He writes:
Iain Murray, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, The Fight of Faith, pp. 325-6.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Preachers and Preaching, pp. 97-8.

260
23
24
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
My burden is to plead for the supremacy of God in preaching - that the
dominant note of preaching be the freedom of God’s sovereign grace, the
unifying theme be the zeal that God has for his own glory, the grand object of
preaching be the infinite and inexhaustible being of God, and the pervasive
atmosphere of preaching be the holiness of God. Then when preaching takes
up the ordinary things of life - family, job, leisure, friendships; or the crises of
our day—AIDS, divorce, addictions, depression, abuses, poverty, hunger, and,
worst of all, unreached peoples of the world, these matters are not only taken
up. They are taken all the way up into God. . . . Is this what people take away
from worship nowadays - a sense of God, a note of sovereign grace, a theme of
panoramic glory, the grand object of God’s infinite Being? Do they enter for
one hour on the week - not an excessive expectation - into an atmosphere of
the holiness of God which leaves its aroma upon their lives all week long? 23
(2) The significance of Jonathan Edwards.
Piper expresses his indebtedness to Edwards as follows:
When I was in seminary, a wise professor told me that, in addition to the Bible,
I ought to choose one great theologian and apply myself throughout life to
understanding and mastering his thought - to sink at least one shaft deep into
reality rather than always dabbling on the surface of things. . . . The theologian
I have devoted myself to is Jonathan Edwards. I owe him more than I can ever
explain. He has fed my soul with the beauty of God and holiness and heaven
when every other door seemed closed to me. He has renewed my hope and my
vision for ministry in some very low times. He has opened the window on the
world of the Spirit time and again when all I could see were the curtains of
secularism. He has shown me the possibility of mingling rigorous thought
about God with warm affection for God. He embodies the truth that theology
exists for doxology. He could spend whole mornings in ejaculatory prayer
walking in the woods outside Northampton. He had a passion for truth and a
passion for lost sinners. All of this flourished in the pastorate. Above all,
Edwards had a passion for God, which is why he is so important if we are to
focus on the supremacy of God in preaching. 24
(3) The attestation of David Brainerd.
In writing to his brother John during the summer before his death, Brainerd
comments:
Read Mr. Edwards on the Affections, where the essence and soul of religion is
clearly distinguished from false affections. Value religious joys according to the
subject matter of them: There are many that rejoice in their supposed
justification; but what do these joys argue, but only that they love themselves?
Whereas, in true spiritual joys the soul rejoices in God for what he is in
himself; blesses God for his holiness, sovereignty, power, faithfulness, and all
his perfections; adores God that he is what he is, that he is unchangeably
possessed of infinite glory and happiness. Now when men thus rejoice in the
perfections of God, and in the infinite excellency of the ‘way of salvation by
John Piper, The Supremacy of God in Preaching, pp. 20, 22.
Ibid., pp. 65-6.

25
CONCLUSION 261
Christ’ [Acts 16:17 and I Thess. 5:9], and in the holy commands of God, which
are a transcript of his holy nature, these joys are divine and spiritual. 25
Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, “Mr. Brainerd’s Remains,” II, p. 439.

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C. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND PRAYER
26
27
28
1. Introduction.
It is common to hear well-intentioned Christians expressing their belief that what we
need today is more prayer, in quality and quantity. And who for a moment would deny
that this is a sadly neglected biblical imperative that our Savior upheld when He
exhorted His disciples, “that at all times they ought to pray and not lose heart” (Luke
18:1). Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones further argues this point quite emphatically:
Prayer is beyond any question the highest activity of the human soul. Man is at his
greatest and highest when, upon his knees, he comes face to face with God. . . . When a
man is [authentically] speaking to God he is at his very acme. It is the highest activity of
the human soul, and therefore it is at the same time the ultimate test of a man’s true
spiritual condition. There is nothing that tells the truth about us as Christian people so
much as our prayer. . . . Prayer is undoubtedly the ultimate test, because a man can speak
to others with greater ease than he can speak to God. Ultimately, therefore, a man
discovers the real condition of his spiritual life when he examines himself in prayer, when
he is alone with God. [Prayer] is not only the highest activity of the human soul, it is the
ultimate test of our true spiritual condition. Another way of putting that is this. You will
find that the outstanding characteristic of all the most saintly people the world has ever
known has been that they have not only spent much time in private prayer, but have also
delighted in it. 26
Consider also the similar emphasis of D. A. Carson who furthermore injects the
importance of biblical direction in our praying, that is God’s speaking to us in such a
manner that we respond in prayer.
One of the foundational steps in knowing God, and one of the basic demonstrations that
we do know God, is prayer—spiritual, persistent, biblically minded prayer. Writing a
century and a half ago, Robert Murray M’Cheyne declared, ‘What a man is alone on his
knees before God, that he is, and no more.’ But we have ignored this truism. We have
learned to organize, build institutions, publish books, insert ourselves into the media,
develop evangelistic strategies, and administer discipleship programs, but we have
forgotten how to pray. 27
Further consider J. C. Ryle in his book Practical Religion, in particular a chapter titled
“Prayer,” in which it is strongly asserted that, “prayer is the most important subject in
practical religion.” Seven reasons in support of this proposal are listed as follows: 28
a. Prayer is absolutely needful to a man’s salvation.
b. A habit of prayer is one of the surest marks of a true Christian.
c. There is no duty in religion so neglected as private prayer.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies In The Sermon On The Mount, II, pp. 45-47. Yet surely caution is needed
here lest we prioritize subjective mysticism. For is it better in private to talk to God or listen to Him speak to
us? It is better to acknowledge that both prayer to God and listening to Him in His Word are together of
supreme importance. Surely God does not primarily desire that a man should speak to Him and secondarily
then listen to Him.
D. A. Carson, A Call To Spiritual Reformation, p. 16.
J. C. Ryle, Practical Religion, pp. 46-59.

CONCLUSION 263
d. Prayer is that act of religion to which there is the greatest encouragement.
e. Diligence in prayer is the secret of eminent holiness.
f. Neglect of prayer is one great cause of backsliding.
g. Prayer is one of the best recipes for happiness and contentment.
2. The God who is addressed.
However, all of the preceding being acknowledged as vitally true, yet there is an
additional matter that must be considered which, unless acknowledged, will invariably
result in a shallowness in prayer that can only be remedied by means of clearer focus
concerning the nature of God to whom we pray. Consider the problem that arises when
“faith” is so objectified and elevated to a place of prominence that it tends to obscure
the glory of faith’s saving object, who is God Himself. In reality faith is nonmeritorious
linkage to He who actually does the saving and sanctifying. In itself, faith
does not save, though for the Christian its object certainly does. Therefore true saving
faith does not look to itself but He who saves, that is Jesus Christ who faith beholds.
Similarly with prayer, we must be careful about so objectifying it that we obscure the
vision of He to whom we pray. In the world there will often be glib talk about the need
to pray in a very abstract sense; specificity concerning who we pray to is usually pushed
aside as being a concern that will unnecessarily inject dissension. Even Christians often
speak of prayer in a similar mechanistic manner. Praying is declared to be all important;
particular, definitive God-centeredness in content is a neglected concern. But surely
Christians who pray to God should know the God to whom they pray, especially when
they boast in access to Him through Jesus “as a new and living way” (Heb. 10:19-20).
But when we come to the Bible and consider the nature of numerous prayers that are
recorded there, we find a repeated emphasis that is decidedly God-centered and
definitive. To begin with, it seems customary that there be no immediate presentation
of human need and predicament to God, even in situations involving great urgency.
Rather, He, the great Jehovah, is first addressed with reverence that is specific and
comprehensive. It becomes immediately obvious that those in the Bible who pray know
He to whom they pray with both experiential breadth and depth; there are indications
of intimate union and communion that presuppose a profound appreciation of the
character of God. Even in the Old Testament, while the saints there lived during
centuries of promise and shadow preceding New Testament revelation, nevertheless it
would be foolish to suggest that this faith relationship was primitive and shallow. It is
nothing short of astounding to see how such children of God addressed Him in a
manner that would shame many a New Testament Christian. The reason for this would
seem to be due to the fact that while, for them, the coming of the Messiah was
prospective, yet a faith alone relationship looked to a glorious God whose perfections
were well comprehended, such as was the case with Abraham (Rom. 4:1-9, 13-25).
3. The Old Testament pattern of prayer.
While, in unproven innocence, Adam and Eve freely communed with God in the
Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:8-9), following the Fall we find the birth of Seth to the first
parents, in place of Abel, ushering in a godly lineage. Thus, “To Seth, to him also a son

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was born; and he called his name Enosh. Then men began to call upon the name of the
LORD” (Gen. 4:26). Certainly an ongoing indication of this godly line was that of
commitment to earnest prayer, as the following examples indicate.
a. Jacob (Gen. 32:9-12, 24-32).
Fear of vengeance from pursuing, aggrieved Esau, causes his fearful brother Jacob
to offer material appeasement while distancing himself and his family from the
seeming threat of retribution. Although receiving angelic guidance, yet alarmed
Jacob is constrained to pray to God, “Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my
brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, that he will come and attack me
and the mothers with the children,” v. 11.
However this prayer is based upon a preceding invocation and confession. Even in
such a short prayer, the character of God is clearly defined. Living in a world
presently saturated with idolatry, Jacob is careful to identify the sole and specific
God he is addressing. He intends to give exclusive honor to this God and no other.
There is also a desire for proper access to God, which hearing cannot be presumed
upon, except the approach be made according to God’s terms. The appeal then is
to the God of the Abrahamic Covenant, the God who has revealed himself and
spoken, the God of covenanted reliability, v. 12.
Here, as with all of the prayers of the Bible, there is no mere vague sentiment, no
abstract meandering, no sentimental form. Rather, those who pray in Scripture are
grounded upon the knowledge of God revealed in that same Word. Thus Jacob’s
apprehension of his God is clearly defined.
(1) Jacob’s God is “Elohim,” the God of all power, v. 9.
(2) Jacob’s God is “Jehovah,” the eternal God of loyal covenant love, v. 9.
(3) Jacob’s God is unchanging, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, vs. 9, 12.
(4) Jacob’s God is living, for He has spoken, vs. 9, 12.
(5) Jacob’s God is self-revealing, for He has spoken, vs. 9, 12.
(6) Jacob’s God is merciful, abundant in lovingkindness, v. 10.
(7) Jacob’s God is faithful in His covenant keeping, v. 10.
How ready God proves to be in answering Jacob’s prayer and coming to him, for
that very night, “a man [even God the Son] wrestled with him [Jacob] until
daybreak,” v. 24. As a result Jacob prayed yet again, but with a greater
earnestness than ever before. “I will not let you go unless you bless me,” v. 26;
“Please tell me your name,” v. 26. The result was greater blessing than ever
before. The Lord Jesus said to him, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but
Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed,” v. 28.
Here is no primitive encounter with God, but profound prayerful intimacy.
b. Hannah (I Sam. 1:9-18; 2:1-10).
In the midst of Israel’s descent into unprecedented decadence during the reign of
the Judges, yet a faithful remnant existed that included Elkanah the Ephraimite

CONCLUSION 265
and his two wives, loved and favored barren Hannah and fruitful Peninnah. Being
tormented by the rival Peninnah, in distress Hannah prayed for a son at the
temple of the Lord before Eli the priest.
Upon the eventual birth of a son, who she named Samuel, and his being weaned,
Hannah brought an offering to Eli at the house of the Lord at Shiloh. When the
sacrifice was completed, Hannah presented Samuel to Eli and dedicated him to the
Lord. Then she prayed in exaltation of this same Lord who had so blessed she and
her husband.
(1) Hannah’s prayer of petition for a son (I Sam. 1:9-18).
(a) Being at a point of extremity in her need, barren Hannah turns, not
indifferently, to the true and living God of Israel. She is in deadly
earnest, vowing to consecrate a prospective son to the Lord’s service, vs.
10-11.
(b) She addresses God on the basis of His proper covenant name, Jehovah
or Yahweh, which occurs fifteen times in these prayer passages (cf. Ex.
3:13-15; 6:2-8). God’s real name was to Hannah her ground of access,
just as the name of Jesus Christ is the ground of access for the Christian
(John 14:13-14, 26; 15:16; 16:23-26). Her prayer is based upon a
redemptive covenantal relationship, not ritual or sterile religion, v. 11.
(c) She addresses God on the basis of His power and sovereignty over the
“hosts,” first mentioned here in the Old Testament, that is all armies,
angels, luminaries, v. 11.
(2) Hannah’s prayer of exaltation at the gift of son (I Sam. 2:1-10).
Note the similarity of v. 1 with the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-47). Most likely
Mary’s declaration of praise was stimulated by Hannah’s example with
regard to the birth of a son coming as a blessing from God. Here is a perfect
illustration of learning to pray according to the pattern of Scripture.
Hannah is preoccupied with the person of God, not creature benefits,
personal stimulation, or self-gratification. True, her prayerful request for a
son has been answered. But it is the glory of God that possesses her soul,
spontaneous overflowing praise, for the justification of His person. Hannah’s
vindication, even Peninnah’s humiliation, is for the honor of God.
(a) “My heart exults in the LORD,” again indicates Hannah’s address to the
only true God of Israel, the God of covenant faithfulness who will
maintain His promises to His people. Because of this, He is readily
approachable, v. 1.
(b) “My horn is exalted in the LORD,” draws upon the posture of strength
of an ox that is capable of repulsing the charge of an enemy (Deut.
33:17, v. 1.

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(c) “My mouth speaks boldly [is enlarged, KJV] against my enemies,” that
is Hannah has received boldness from God in the face of much
opposition (I Thess. 2:2), v. 11.
(d) Notice how many attributes or perfections or attributes of God are
mentioned as the basis of Hannah’s exultant emphasis. This is an
exceedingly God-centered prayer, as is the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55).
1) God is holy, v. 2a.
2) God is solitary, without equal, unique, v. 2b.
3) God is immutable, unchanging, so that He may be relied upon
even as a rock (Ps. 62:2, 6-7), v. 2c.
4) God is omniscient, all-knowing, and therefore not ignorant of our
problems such as Hannah’s, v. 3.
5) God is omnipotent, all-powerful, such as against enemies, vs. 4-5.
6) God is benevolent, bountiful in His supply to the body, v. 5.
7) God is sovereign, that is in total, unflustered control of mankind,
and orders all things according to the good pleasure of His just and
perfect will (Eph. 1:11). Only a sovereign God is worth praying to,
vs. 6-8.
8) God is gracious, that is He upholds those who acknowledge their
need of His sustaining power, v. 9.
9) God is just, that is history will vindicate His righteousness when
Satan and his hosts are defeated by God and eternally punished. At
the same time His Messiah will reign as King, v. 10.
(e) Hence the greater our knowledge of God, the greater will be our
capacity to pray to God. When we pray to God according to such
knowledge, at the same time we will intercede for a broader and more
intimate knowledge of His being that will inevitably be communicated
through His Spirit, Word, and ordained experiences.
a. Hezekiah (II Kings 19:15-19).
This good king of the southern kingdom of Judah reigned 29 years during 715-
690 BC. His revival of true worship, following the bad reign of King Ahaz,
brought many changes, including the cleansing of the temple (II Chron. 29:3-
31:21), the reinstatement of the Passover (II Chron. 30:21-22), the destruction of
the brazen serpent (Num. 21:4-9; II Kings 18:4), but preeminently an example of
personal faith and godliness in the face of religious declension (II Kings 18:4-6;
31:20-21). Having inherited subservience to the king of Assyria from his father
Ahaz, Hezekiah’s religious and social reforms fostered increasing independence.

29
CONCLUSION 267
Foolishly he boasted of his wealth to a Babylonian emissary, at which Isaiah
rebuked him (Isa. 39:1-8). Then in 701 BC, the Assyrian emperor launched a
campaign to bring Palestine into line. As a result Jerusalem was besieged by
Assyrian hordes under Tartan, Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh. Reassured by Isaiah of
eventual deliverance by God, Hezekiah takes a mocking letter of ultimatum from
Rabshakeh, spreads is before the Lord and prays. However, notwithstanding a
perilous situation, Hezekiah is immediately and continually definitive in his
humble address to God.
(1) This LORD, mentioned nine times in this short prayer, is Jehovah, Israel’s
covenant keeping God. Here is Hezekiah’s ground of access, v. 15a.
(2) This LORD is the holy God of Israel who dwells between the cherubim above
the mercy seat and ark of the covenant, v. 15b.
(3) This LORD is the only authentic God of all the nations, including Assyria.
There is one true God alone; all others are invalid, v. 15c, 19b.
(4) This LORD is the sovereign Creator of heaven and earth. He alone has eternal
existence; everything else is derived from Him, v. 15d.
(5) This LORD is a personal, infinite God capable of entering the realm of the
finite, even “hearing” and “seeing” the concerns of frail human flesh, v. 16a.
(6) This LORD is the only living God, who is able to deliver, in contrast with the
numerous combustible gods that the Assyrians have destroyed, vs. 16b-18.
(7) This LORD is the only God able to save. Hence He alone is worthy of
vindication and glorification, v. 19a.
b. Nehemiah (9:6-37).
Following the return of Jewish exiles from Babylon under Zerubbabel in 537 BC
and Ezra in 457 BC, a third small group returned under Nehemiah in 445 BC.
Upon the completion of the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem according to
Nehemiah’s direction, Ezra led the Jews in the renewal of their covenant before
God. Immediately before the actual renewal vow, a solemn, prayerful confession
of sin was made under Ezra’s direction, which is recorded in Nehemiah 9:6-37.
This prayer includes repeated emphases upon the character of God, especially for
the purpose of distinguishing Jehovah’s uniqueness, His solitariness, in the midst
of a pagan world. Probably these verses reflect the similar emphasis of Psalms
105-107. 29
(1) The priority of the character of the LORD God, v. 6.
It becomes increasingly obvious that, as here, biblical prayers frequenly focus
on the attributes of God at their commencement. More broadly speaking, it
C. F. Keil, Biblical Commentary on Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, pp. 237-8.

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is also evident here just how important the distinctive character of God was
in the history of Israel.
(a) He is Yahweh/Jehovah, the particular God of Israel.
(b) He is the solitary, only true God.
(c) He is the creator God of the heaven of heavens.
(d) He is the living God, the source of all life.
(e) He is alone worthy of worship, submission.
(2) The priority of the character of the LORD God in Hebrew history, vs. 7-31.
(a) Review, the founding of Israel through Abraham, vs. 7-8.
1) The salvation of Abraham was specifically of the LORD God, by
electing grace through faith, v. 7.
2) This LORD’S salvation, of righteousness and integrity, was by a
covenant that promised a land for his descendants, v. 8.
(b) Review, the redemption of Israel through Moses, vs. 9-25.
1) There was saving grace, from Egypt to Mt. Sinai; water from a
rock, bread from heaven, guidance to the Jordan. Especially
evident is God’s compassion, v. 9, power, vs. 10-11, justice, vs. 13-
14, benevolence, faithfulness, vs. 12, 15.
2) There was sin in the face of grace; rebellion, idolatry, blasphemy.
Especially evident is God’s mercy, patience, vs. 16-18.
3) There was sustaining grace; a pillar of cloud, a pillar of fire,
continuing manna and water, possession of the land, victory over
the Canaanites, great spoil, “hewn cisterns, vineyards, olive groves,
fruit trees in abundance. So they ate, and were filled and grew fat,
and reveled in Your great goodness.” Especially evident is God’s
benevolence, patience, vs. 19-25.
(c) Review, the establishment of Israel in the land, vs. 26-31.
Here is a description of a repetitive, cyclic pattern in the history of Israel
of sin, discipline, and grace. But the larger picture is that of God’s
covenant faithfulness, likened unto a father who patiently awaits his
prodigal son. In all of this, especially evident is God’s justice,
compassion, patience, grace.

CONCLUSION 269
1) There is sin followed by discipline (oppressors) and grace
(deliverance from oppressors), vs. 26-27.
2) There is sin followed by discipline (abandonment to enemies) and
grace (rescue with compassion), v. 28.
3) There is sin followed by patience, discipline (foreign captivity) and
grace (the return of a remnant under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and
Nehemiah), vs. 29-31.
(3) The priority of the character of the LORD God in confession, vs. 32-37.
Here the children of God are heartbroken over their history of sinning.
Hence, “Do not let all the hardship seem insignificant before You,” v. 32;
“we have acted wickedly,” v. 33.
(a) Here is confession before “the great, the mighty, and the awesome
God” of Israel who also shows “covenant loyalty and loving-kindness,”
even toward His sinning children, v. 32.
(b) Here is confession before this same God who is always “just” and
“faithful,” even toward His sinning children, v. 33.
(c) Here is confession before God’s “law, commandments and
admonitions,” His Word. The result is a people under discipline,
slavery, subjection to pagan oppression, in spite of the present
restoration of Jerusalem, vs. 34-37.
(d) Even for the child of God, sin has consequences. Ask Abraham
concerning the birth of Ishmael; ask Moses concerning his exclusion
from the land of promise, ask David concerning family strife, etc. But
true confession results in reconciliation, for God abides faithful to His
covenant. And such prayerful confession will inevitably make reference
to the glorious character of God.
c. Daniel (9:1-27).
Having been a resident in Babylon as a Jewish exile for about 67 years, aged
Daniel has never ceased to be concerned about the continued desolation of
Jerusalem and the consequent dishonor it has brought to God’s name,
notwithstanding the fact of this circumstance being a judgment of that same God.
In spite of gloom that the preceding prophecies stimulated, with Daniel becoming
sick in mind and body, 7:19-21, 28; 8:23-24, 27, nevertheless as a student of
prophecy, he now derives hope from God’s promise that Israel would be captive
for seventy years, and the fact that this period appears to have nearly expired (Isa.
44:28; Jer. 25:11-12; 29:4-10). In the midst of affliction and difficulty, Bible
prophecy is always a comfort for the believer (I Thess. 4:18; 5:11), and, as we
shall also see, a stimulant to prayer.

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(1) Daniel’s manner of prayer, v. 3.
It was governed by dedicated meditation on the Word of God, the Book of
Jeremiah in particular. This is not to say that God will not hear the
unlearned, stammering, feeble cry of a believer in desperate need. However,
the God of the Word ought to be the focal point of prayer and not vague
intimations of some ill-defined “God.” Hence it is the specific revelation of
God in Scripture that gives us a focus which is identical with that of Daniel.
It was disciplined prayer, humble prayer, probably three times daily (6:10-
11), yet no less sincere on this account. Discipline need not be legalism; it is
simply our responsible subjection of all things in our lives, and especially our
allocation of time, to the will of God (I Cor. 9:24-27; II Cor. 10:5).
(2) Daniel’s basis of prayer, the character of God, v. 4.
There is intense devotion in this introductory verse. It is one of the clearest,
most comprehensive, and yet concise patterns for our commencement in
prayer in all of the Bible. Notice how the three primary names of God are
incorporated.
(a) Expressed in the three primary names of God.
1) He is LORD or Jehovah/Yahweh, hw"hy>, meaning “I am that I am,”
and “the eternally self-existing one” (Exod. 3:14-15), as “the one
who causes to be for His own people” (Exod. 6:2-8). This is God’s
own personal name used of no one else; it speaks of His
unchanging covenant relationship with His people. It is
appropriately used here since Daniel is pleading on the basis of
God’s covenant faithfulness, that is with regard to His steadfast
unchanging promises that were given to Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and still apply to the true seed of Abraham today. As the
Christian today prays to the Father on the basis of Christ’s name
and hence His mediatorial work, so the Old Testament saint
prayed in the name of Jehovah which in a similar way spoke of a
redemptive relationship.
2) He is God or Elohim, ~yhil{a/, meaning “the strong, mighty one,”
appropriately used in Genesis 1:1. It is a generic term and not
personal. Hence in Exodus 23:24 it also refers to heathen gods.
3) He is Lord or Adonai, yn:d{a], meaning “master,” and “the one as
sovereign owner,” requiring obedience and subjection as a servant
to his lord. Again this is a generic term that can also refer to
human lords who command servants (Gen. 24:9), and even be used
as a term of polite address (Gen. 18:12).

(b) Expressed in the attributes of God.
CONCLUSION 271
1) His transcendent holiness, justice, and omnipotence, His being
“great and awesome,” (Ps. 68:3; 99:3; 145:6), as is especially
revealed in His name (Ps. 111:9). Here is described the moral
splendor of God’s righteous reign, even in the punishment of
Israel’s wickedness.
2) His steadfast, covenant love (Jer. 30:18, 22), to true Israelites (Ps.
73:1), that is those who respond with love and obedience.
(c) Expressed in all prayer worthy of being biblical.
Our approach to God is not initially to be personal needs or problems,
but God’s glorious person. The foundation of our salvation and
sanctification is the very essence and nature of God, and so it is to be in
the realm of prayer. The evident shallowness of so much prayer today is
man-centeredness, morbid introspection, and self-preoccupation. Our
great need is not so much a proper self-image as an exalted God-image.
The believer is changed by looking to Christ (II Cor. 3:18), not himself.
Likewise, the believer is to first focus his attention on the One to whom
he is praying in true worship, and so ratify his confidence in Him
concerning whatever matters may be later declared.
(3) Daniel’s prayer of confession, vs. 5-15.
(a) The catalog of Israel’s sins.
1) Note Daniel’s personal identification with Israel’s sinning when he
repeatedly uses the inclusive “we,” vs. 5-6.
2) Israel has rebelled against the Word of God, vs. 5, 11.
3) Israel has rejected the testimony of God’s spokesmen, vs. 6, 10.
4) Israel has not sought the Lord in prayer and truth. They have
become lazy and indifferent regarding the Word and prayer. They
demean serious and substantial preaching. They refuse to subject
themselves to the leaders of God’s people and in poverty of soul
are ignorant of profound and holy communion with God, v. 13.
(b) The consequences of Israel’s sins.
Any nation with a godly heritage that acts in a manner similar to Israel
will also be put to shame or else God will be obliged to apologize to His
ancient people.

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1) Shame at severe and humiliating punishment, vs. 7-8.
2) Dispersion to Gentile captivity, v. 7.
3) Cursing according to the law of Moses (Deut. 27:15-26; 30:17-19),
v. 11, 13.
4) Desolation at Jerusalem, v. 12.
5) Calamity on account of disobedience, v. 14.
6) Bondage for the redeemed, v. 15.
(4) Daniel’s prayer for pardon, vs. 16-19.
(a) It is based on God’s righteousness, vs. 7, 16.
1) In v. 7 it is the righteousness of God which condemns. His holy
demands find Israel utterly lacking. Daniel does not flinch from
making a full confession.
2) But in v. 16 Daniel pleads for God’s pardoning righteousness, or
more accurately “righteousnesses.” In other words, God’s saving
righteousness manifested towards Israel in the past is now once
again claimed. This saving reputation of God is based upon His
covenant faithfulness, His promise to keep Abraham’s seed.
3) This reminds us of God’s saving righteousness displayed in the
gospel, especially as described in Romans 1:16-17; 3:21-26.
Though a believer may sin, yet his hope is forever based upon
Christ’s blood-covenant faithfulness (I John 1:9).
(b) It is based upon God’s reputation, that is “Your sake,” His glory, v. 17,
cf. v. 15. Moses similarly pleaded for Israel on the ground of God’s
honor (Num. 14:11-21). To know the character of God in an intimate
way, especially His holiness, sovereignty, grace, and veracity, is to
possess great boldness in the light of His promises.
(c) It is based upon God’s great mercies that are appealed to on account of
Israel’s agony in captivity and desire for relief, v. 18. Human
righteousness is totally excluded. Though again, God’s reputation is
related to the maintenance of His people.
(d) It is based upon the upholding of the essential significance of God’s
particular name revealed exclusively to His people, v. 19. Both Israel
and Jerusalem are inextricably bound up with “Jehovah,” who has
covenanted to save, keep, and prosper His people. Therefore Daniel
may have had in mind the declaration of his contemporary Ezekiel
(Ezek. 36:21-25).

(5) Daniel’s answer to his prayer, vs. 20-27.
CONCLUSION 273
(a) He receives a swift answer, apparently because he is “highly esteemed”
(Jas. 5:16), vs. 20-23.
(b) He receives a saving answer concerning the coming of “Messiah the
Prince,” who will be “cut off,” and eventually “bring in everlasting
righteousness,” vs. 24-26.
(6) In conclusion, this magnificent prayer should humble us when we consider
the poverty of contemporary Christians in speaking to God. Our mundane,
sterile, grocery list, materialistic, stereotyped prayers undoubtedly reflect the
poverty of our relationship with God, our shallow desire for holy fellowship
with Him, and fundamentally our ignorance of Him.
Hence we should greatly delight ourselves in the person of God, not simply
because of obligation, but rather because we genuinely delight to do no
other. It was no chore for Daniel so spend time with God, whether in prayer
or with His Word, even though he was not exempt from “extreme
weariness,” v. 21. To know God in both truth and experience is to desire to
know even more about Him. To have little interest in prayer or God’s Word
is simply to indicate at best, our impoverished condition, and at worst, our
unconverted state.
2. The New Testament pattern in prayer.
While God remains eternally the same, yet His determination to progressively reveal
His character to mankind over centuries of time is especially evident when we consider
the transition from the era of the Old Covenant to that of the New Covenant.
However, this enhanced revelation is supremely portrayed in the person of the Son of
God (Heb. 1:1-4). Thus when Jesus Christ prays, we should not only anticipate the
ultimate pattern of address toward the throne of God, but also expect a comprehension
of His Father that far exceeds any intercession of a mere mortal child of God. In both
the didactic prayer commonly called “The Lord’s prayer,” (Matt. 6:9-18; Luke 11:1-4)
and “Jesus Christ’s glorification prayer” (John 17:1-26) we are not disappointed.
Even with the prayers of the Apostle Paul there is a New Covenant comprehension
concerning the exalted mediatorial office of Christ, seated “at His [God’s] right hand in
the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:20) that far exceeds any Old Covenant comprehension.
The same advance in understanding concerns the triune content with regard to the
Apostle’s prayer to “the Father, . . . that He would grant you . . . to be strengthened
with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your
hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:14-21).
a. Jesus Christ’s didactic prayers.
(1) The pattern prayer for Jesus Christ’s’ disciples (Matt. 6:9-18).
Consider the preceding context in which the hypocrite’s motive and method
in prayer is described, v. 5. Here is a religious charade in which there is
inward lusting for the applause of man and self-glorification by means of the

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31
Charles Simeon, Works, XI, p. 185.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
pretense of outward piety. Here is insincerity toward the true God. In
contrast is the pagan or Gentile’s prayer in v. 7, who, with some sincerity
and considerable energy, prays to a false god. By way of contrast, Christ
exhorts His disciples concerning their distinctive praying to an “all-seeing
and rewarding Father,” v. 6, and an “all-knowing and benevolent Father,” v.
8.
Concerning the addressees of this prayer, Charles Simeon writes:
Highly as the Lord’s Prayer is esteemed amongst us [in the Church of England],
and frequently as it is used, there is scarcely any part of Scripture less
considered: we are contented with repeating the words, without ever attending
to its true report. The fact is, that though it is written for the use of all, none
can use it aright but the true Christian: it is the Christian only, whose heart can
embrace the subjects contained in it. 30
Concerning the structure of this prayer, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes:
This prayer is undoubtedly a pattern prayer. . . . There is a sense in which you
can never add to the Lord’s Prayer; nothing is left out. . . . To say that this
prayer is all-inclusive, and is a perfect summary, simply means, therefore, that
it really does contain all the principles. We might say that what we have in the
Lord’s Prayer is a kind of skeleton. 31
(a) The injunction or command, v. 9a.
“Pray, then, in this way [after this manner],” not “with these words,”
suggests a general guide, not mandatory recitation. The pattern here is
not so much concerning words as doctrinal structure, order, priorities,
content. As John the Baptist taught his disciples to pray, not with any
known verbal pattern (Luke 11:1), so Jesus Christ provides an orderly
truth model that establishes universal principles.
(b) The invocation or call to God, v. 9b.
“Father” here does not infer the Fatherhood of God, hence the
brotherhood of all mankind (John 8:44; Rom. 8:8-9, 14-17). To the Jew
this term indicated a distinctive covenant relationship (Deut. 32:6; Isa.
64:8-9), but it was obtained on the basis of faith (Rom. 4:13; Gal. 3:7-
9). To Jesus, in His conversation and prayer directed toward heaven, the
operative title was “Father,” path,r, patēr; the Son does not directly refer
to Him as Jehovah (cf. John 8:58; 17:6, 11-12, 25-26). To the Christian
this term indicates an adopted relationship established through faith
(John 1:12; I John 3:1-2), so that as a result he partakes of the blessings
of Abraham (Gal. 3:9, 26). This privilege of access as a son to the
Father does not confer the right of casual and nonchalant address.
Consider Mark 14:36; John 17:11, 25, where Jesus addresses His Father
with reverence.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies In The Sermon On The Mount, II, pp. 48-49.

CONCLUSION 275
“Our” Father suggests communal prayer in contrast with the individual
recommendation of v. 6. However, surely we can also pray “my” Father
as John 8:19; 14:7 suggest. Here Jesus stresses the difference between a
fact and a relationship. It is one thing to address God as “Father,” but
quite another to genuinely know Him on the basis of personal faith in
Christ, and so address Him as “my” Father. In the latter instance there
is worship of He who has personally begotten me, and thus unfailingly
sustains me on the basis of my irrevocable new birth and adoption.
“Who is in heaven,” or more literally, “Who is in the heavens,” speaks
of God’s abode where He dwells in unclouded glory, as transcendent in
majesty, yet also imminent, calling forth awe and respect (Ps. 8:1;
113:4). Remember that Jesus has come from that place of glory of
which He speaks (John 1:18; 3:31-32; 6:33).
(c) The petitions concerning the affairs of God (theocentric), vs. 9c-10.
In the prayers of the Old Testament we have easily recognized a
repeated emphasis on the priority of the character of God. Even in the
face of great and fearful danger, the child of God has not neglected to
first address God with comprehensive and reverent adoration, and
especially with regard to addressing Him as Jehovah, the name of
Israel’s covenant Head. In the same manner the Son of God instructs
His disciples to pray according to this order. In simple terms, whenever
we pray, it is God’s glory and business that should take precedence over
man’s status and business.
1) “Let Your name be hallowed/revered as holy [a`gia,zw, hagiazō],” v.
9c.
This is an imperative of desire, as is the case with the other five
imperatives that follow. To “hallow” the name of God is to set it
apart from defiling influences and tendencies; it is to treat it as
holy, sacred, revered, in a manner that differs from common
worldly treatment. In other words, God’s reputation is preserved
from soiling and displayed only as totally pure (John 17:11). What
then is God’s name here? Our previous study of the primary names
of God should help us at this point. It is not “Elohim,” or
“Adonai,” but “Jehovah/Yahweh,” God’s own distinctive,
personal, covenantal name revealed to His redeemed children. This
same name has also been attributed to the Son of God (Phil. 2:9-
11), so that for the Christian, it is the “Lord Jesus” who has
become his ground of access to the Father (John 14:13-14; 15:16;
16:23-24, 26; Eph. 5:20). God’s name is holy, not because of the
expression of a certain sounds, but because of its distinctive
meaning. Having a fullness of meaning, it was considered of
particular importance to Christ (John 17:6, 11-12, 26). Hence it is
not to be used thoughtlessly, lightly, but with deep respect. Even
more, the name of God has a priority here that ought to
profoundly impress the Christian. This is particularly so if the

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expression in v. 10, “on earth as it is in heaven,” is applicable to
all of the first three imperatives. The heavenly accolade of Isaiah
6:3 and Revelation 4:8 is appropriate here on earth.
2) “Let Your kingdom come, v. 10a.
Again we have an imperative of desire in which true children of
God pray for that which, in the main, is future. It is implicit that
God alone establishes His kingdom and not man. Here is the true
Christian’s hope in the midst of a wicked and perverse generation,
not some conservative political agenda (Tit. 2:11-13; II Pet. 3:13).
a) It is the kingdom promised (Dan. 2:44; 7:27; Mic. 4:1-8;
Zech. 14:9-11), prior to the first coming of the King of the
kingdom.
b) It is the kingdom inaugurated (Matt. 3:1-2; 4:17; 10:7; 12:28;
Mark 9:1-2; Luke 11:20; 17:20-21), at the first coming of the
King of the kingdom.
c) It is the kingdom developed (Matt. 13:31-33, 47-50; Luke
16:16; Col. 1:13-14), during the inter-advent period when the
King of the kingdom has gone to “a distant country” (Luke
19:11-15).
d) It is the kingdom anticipated (Matt. 25:31-34; Luke 19:11-27;
21:25-31; 22:14-18; Acts 14:22), prior to the second coming
of the King of the kingdom.
e) It is the kingdom consummated (Acts 3:19-21; I Thess. 2:12;
II Tim. 4:1, 18; II Pet. 1:10-11), at the second coming of the
King of the kingdom.
3) “Let Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” v. 10b.
There is obviously a very close connection between the second and
third imperatives of desire. Again Lloyd-Jones comments.
The result of the coming of the kingdom of God amongst men will
be that the will of God will be done amongst men. In heaven the
will of God is always done perfectly. . . . What is characteristic of
heaven is that everyone and everything is waiting upon God and
anxious to glorify and magnify His name. The angels as it were, are
on the wing all ready and waiting to do His bidding. The supreme
desire of all in heaven is to do the will of God, and thereby to praise
and worship Him. And it should be the desire of every true
Christian, says our Lord here, that all on earth should be the same.
Here, again, we are looking forward to the coming of the kingdom,
because this petition will never be fulfilled and granted until the

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kingdom of God shall indeed be established here on earth amongst
men. Then the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 32
Of course men ought not to pray for God to change His will;
rather they pray, as part of the will of God, to acknowledge the
will of God (Luke 22:42). Such prayer is best offered when a
comprehensive and profound knowledge of God is at the
foundation of such supplication.
(d) The petitions concerning the affairs of man (anthropocentric), vs. 11-
13a.
As man’s first duty is to God and then second to man (Matt. 22:35-40),
so this order is to be reflected in the prayer life of true disciples of Jesus
Christ. However, Thomas Manton explains:
In those [first three] petitions, the benefit is not God’s, but ours. When
his name is sanctified, his kingdom cometh, and his will is done; these
things do not only concern the glory of God, but also our benefit. It is
our advantage when God is honored by the coming of Christ’s kingdom
and the subjection of our hearts unto himself. But these latter petitions do
more immediately concern us. 33
From another perspective, with regard to the petitions that follow
dealing with more man-centered concerns, there is yet necessary and
underlying God-centeredness that ought not to be neglected.
1) “Give us our necessary bread each day,” v. 11.
Such a concern presupposes the benevolence and generosity of
God, otherwise such a prayer is vain.
2) “Forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven others,” v. 12.
Such a concern presupposes the holiness of God that reveals our
transgressions and the grace of God that pardons them, otherwise
such a prayer is vain.
3) “Deliver us from the evil [one], and his temptations, v. 13a.
Such a concern presupposes the holiness of God that is offended by
evil and the sovereignty of God that conquers evil, otherwise such
a prayer is in vain.
(e) The doxology or glorification of God, v. 13b.
There is serious question as to whether this declaration was uttered by
the Son of God at the time this prayer was taught. This has been a
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies In The Sermon On The Mount, II, pp. 64-65.
Thomas Manton, Works, I, p. 149.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
matter of doubt since the days of the early church fathers. It is
impossible to be dogmatic, though everyone seems to agree that the
truth expressed here is most appropriate. Many believe it was a suitable
liturgical conclusion, having many variations, that was added to
complement more formal worship. However, it does seem likely that the
truth of this fitting declaration may have been derived from I Chronicles
29:10-13 where David offers this doxology as he anticipates the
building of the temple, Here it offers praise to God on account of His
incarnate Temple.
Reverting to the thrust of concern for God’s business in vs. 9c-10, here
is a parallel three-fold declaration of God’s transcendent glory.
1) To the Father belongs the eternal kingdom.
2) To the Father belongs the sovereign kingdom.
3) To the Father belongs the radiant glory.
(2) Jesus Christ’s glorification prayer (John 17:1-26).
Thomas Manton, Works, X, p. 115.
While the earlier study of this prayer focused on the glory of God as its
essential motif, pp. 242-245, yet a more brief consideration draws attention
to the closely related God-centeredness of Jesus Christ’s address to His
Father.
(a) The direct address of “Father.”
The first word of address is the title path,r, patēr, which occurs six times
in this prayer. It is the most frequently used term of address by Jesus to
His Father while at no time does He employ the more common name of
“Lord.” In this instance, surely there is a depth of meaning here that
cannot be plumbed by any man. Compare the use of this name here
with that in Matthew 6:9, page 273. Certainly “Father” here declares
that eternal triune relationship between God the Father and God the
Son. As Thomas Manton states: “It is good to observe that Christ doth
not say, ‘Our Father,’ as involving our interest with his, because it is of
a distinct kind. Christ would observe the distinction between us and
himself: he is a son that is equal with the Father, co-eternal with his
Father; but we are adopted sons made so.” 34
In terms of prayer structure, it is obvious that the Son’s concern for His
Father is preeminent, but particularly that plan of redemption which
was committed to the Son’s execution. Thus in the next words, “the
hour has come; glorify the Son, that the Son may [by means of His
perfect obedience] glorify You,” v. 1, is Jesus’ singular focus because of
His great love for the Father. The immediate way ahead concerns a trial
of unimaginable proportions. Nevertheless, the Father’s will is Jesus’

CONCLUSION 279
dominant concern. His love for the individual sinners given to Him by
the Father is undiminished, yet He especially loves them just because
they are that legacy received from His Father. In other words, the Father
is everything to the Son, and His prayer reflects this passionate
devotion.
(b) The direct address by means of explicit attributes.
It is necessary to appreciate that Jesus’ address of His Father as both
“holy” and “righteous” reflects His intense love of these characteristics.
Unlike the sons of Adam, there is no tremor or hint of shortfall in Jesus’
tone since the Son has perfect and essential moral correlation with His
Father. Thus the Son desires that His disciples should have the same
prayerful priority.
1) Holy Father, v. 11.
There is a remarkable wedding here of moral transcendence and
filial imminence. The request is, “Holy Father, [in view of my
immediate departure] keep them [the eleven disciples remaining in
the world] in Your name.” In other words, let them know of that
holiness incorporated in Your name, that apartness from the world
that Jesus has embodied, cf. vs. 15-17, 19.
2) Righteous Father, v. 25.
There is a remarkable wedding here of moral purity and filial
imminence. Here the Son proclaims His loyalty to the character of
His Father since He presently abides in an unrighteous world that
“has not known You.” Thus, as the hour of death fast approaches,
in conclusion Jesus declares that His commitment to the righteous
will of His Father, and His disciples, is undiminished (Ps. 22:3).
(c) The indirect address by means of implicit attributes.
1) The Father has authority over all flesh, v. 2.
Here is acknowledgment of the sovereignty, the absolute authority
of God that has been imparted to His Son (Matt. 28:18). This in
turn results in those, given to the Son, receiving eternal life.
2) The Father has eternal glory, v. 5.
Here is acknowledgment of the majestic glory of God, that fullness
of radiance that the totality of His attributes comprises. More
particularly it is the glory of God’s gospel soon to be completed.

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3) The Father has the name, vs. 6, 11, 12, 26.
There are four references to “Your name,” which, in the light of
Matthew 6:9, undoubtedly refers to the Tetragrammaton, hw"hy>, that
is Jehovah/Yahweh, as the listening Hebrew disciples would
comprehend.
b. The Apostle Paul’s pastoral prayers.
The emphasis of Paul concerning prayer is indicated not only by his confession,
“we have not ceased to pray for you” (Col. 1:9; cf. 1:3; Phil. 1:4), but also his
exhortation, “pray at all times in the Spirit” (Eph. 6:18; cf. I Thess. 5:17). This
manner of praying, as an ongoing attitude, is more frequent with the Apostle in
the New Testament than any other person (Acts 10:2). However, particularly
outstanding in Paul’s two main recorded prayers, is his passion that his addressees
should increase in their knowledge of God the Father through the mediatorial
revelation of God the Son.
(1) Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians’ greater knowledge of God (Eph. 1:15-23).
Overall, this prayer continues the biblical pattern of God-centeredness; the
focus of Paul is outward, that is directed toward “the Father of the glory”
and the exaltation of His Son from death to “His right hand in the heavenly
places.” He is not so much concerned with a grocery list of individual
physical needs. He knows that should his prayer be answered and the
Ephesian saints obtain the comprehension he desires, then temporal and
material concerns will lose their place of importance.
(a) His manner of prayer, vs. 15-16.
“For this reason,” v. 15, connects us with Paul’s preceding passionate
eulogy, vs. 3-14, directed toward God the Father concerning the
believers’ blessed standing in sovereign grace through Christ. This
comprehension stimulates the Apostle to pray repeatedly with
thankfulness for the Ephesian believers while at the same time making
mention of a specific and future hope.
(b) His petition summarized, v. 17.
1) The address is to God the Father, specified as “the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ,” He who is accessible only through the merit of
His Son (1:5). Further, He is “the Father of the glory,” He who
dwells in transcendent heavenly glory and is lauded by the cry of
the seraphim around His throne, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD
of hosts” (Isa. 6:1-3). The dominant assumption at the
commencement of this prayer is that it is God alone who grants
spiritual understanding that is about to be described in detail. It is
certainly not latent in the natural man, and not even in bloom in
many believers (Jas. 1:5).

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36
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CONCLUSION 281
2) Paul’s dominant desire for the Ephesian saints is “the knowledge of
Him [the Father].” More specifically, this is an accumulating,
maturing spiritual knowledge that has a depth of quality about it.
“Knowledge” here is evpi,gnwsij, epignōsis, being an intensified form
of gnw/sij, gnōsis, meaning “a deeper, fuller, more intimate,
experiential knowledge.” Trench explains: “It is bringing me better
acquainted with a thing I knew before; a more exact viewing of an
object that I saw before afar off. That little portion of knowledge
which we had here shall be much improved, our eye shall be raised
to see the same things more strongly and clearly.” 35 Note in I
Corinthians 13:12 how gnōsis and epignōsis are contrasted (cf.
Rom. 3:20; Eph. 4:13; Phil. 1:9; Col. 1:9-10; II Tim. 3:7; II Pet.
1:2-3, 8).
3) The resultant effect of this knowledge is “a Spirit [not spirit] of
wisdom and revelation” (cf. John 6:44-45; I Cor, 2:6-13). Lloyd-
Jones explains.
The Apostle prays for the Ephesian believers that the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give them ‘the Spirit of
wisdom’ (Testimonium Spiritus Externus) and ‘the Spirit of
revelation’, the ability to see it and to receive it and revel in it and
to enjoy it (Testamonium Spiritus Internus). What a perfect
provision for damned, blind, helpless, wretched sinners! All the
truth I need to know and the ability to receive it and to apprehend
it! 36
(c) His petition elaborated, vs. 18-23.
Note the progressive descent that follows into the deeper realms of
glorious biblical truth, the epignōsis of God, particularly concerning
what He has accomplished through Christ. So Paul details three areas of
knowledge which he considers to be of particular importance.
1) The “hope of His calling,” v. 18a.
R. C. Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament, p. 285.
D. M. Lloyd-Jones, God’s Ultimate Purpose, pp. 362-363.
W. Hendriksen, Ephesians, p. 99.
Here greater assurance is sought, through enhanced enlightenment
of the soul, concerning God’s particular, elective call. Again, there
is to be advance from gnōsis to epignōsis. Thus Hendriksen makes
a significant comment: “Paul knows that the best way to drive
away old sinful tendencies is no longer to concentrate on them but
rather on the blessings of salvation.” 37

282
38
Ibid.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
2) The “riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,” v. 18b.
This “inheritance” is more likely that which the Ephesian believers
have in store than that which they are (cf. 1:11, 14; 2:7; 3:8, 16). 38
However, that which He bestows with such abundance is surely a
reflection His gracious Bring. Again, there is to be advance from
gnōsis to epignōsis.
3) The “surpassing greatness of His power,” vs. 19-23.
While the Christian believes in the power [du,namij, dunamis] of
God, Paul’s prayer is that it be outpoured upon the Ephesians in a
“surpassing” measure, with greater excess [u`perba,llw, huperballō],
than had been experienced to date, that is with an advance from
gnōsis to epignōsis.
a) This power defined, v. 19.
More specifically, this “greatness of His power” is to be
comprehended as “the working [evnergi,a, energia] of the strength
[kra,toj, kratos] of His might [ivscu,j, ischus].” Yet once again we
have a desired advance from gnōsis to epignōsis.
b) This power demonstrated, vs. 20-23.
i By Christ’s resurrection, v. 20a.
ii By Christ’s session, vs. 20b-21.
iii By Christ’s dominion over all things, v. 22a.
iv By Christ’s headship over the church, vs. 22b-23.
(d) By way of summary, in this intensely doctrinal, theocentric section of
Paul’s epistle, yet doctrine is an integral part of the Apostle’s
understanding of prayer. Further it is doctrine that gives substance and
purpose to prayer. In particular, Paul is trinitarian in his approach to
prayer. He prays to the Father, v. 17, through the gospel power of the
Son, vs. 20-23, while being reliant upon “the Spirit of wisdom and
revelation,” v. 17. Paul’s prayerful pastoral concern is clearly seen.
Souls saved is not the end of his ministry, but souls reaching full
maturity through an expanding knowledge of the Father (I Thess. 2:19;
3:12-13). Thus prayer is not so much a formal recitation as a
progressive descent into the heart of God. Witness how Paul plunges
deeper and deeper into the doctrine of the Father and the Son, both here

CONCLUSION 283
and in 3:14-21. So we are to progress in our prayer life from gnōsis to
epignōsis, from earth closer and closer to heaven.
(2) Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians’ greater love of Christ (Eph. 3:14-21).
The context of this prayer is indicated in v. 14 by the expression, “for this
reason,” which is also found at the commencement of v. 1. Hence, what
intervenes is commonly considered to be a parenthetic explanation, a Pauline
“anacoluthon,” a literary detour. Thus the primary context is in fact 2:11-
22, while 3:1-13 is a secondary, though related, aside. In 2:11-22 the
fabrication of the church is in mind, particularly in vs. 19-22. The spiritual
construction described here contrasts with the material construction of the
then existing temple in Jerusalem. It is a distinctive fellowship of both Jew
and Gentile, v. 19. It has a distinctive foundation, Christ and the apostles, v.
20. It has a distinctive framework, believer-priests forming a holy temple, v.
21. It has a distinctive function as a more permanent dwelling-place of God
the Holy Spirit, v. 22. Hence the church of Jesus Christ, the wonder of its
construction and constituency, is a stimulus to prayer for Paul. Specifically,
this involves his concern for members growing spiritually in Christ from gnōsis
to epignōsis (1:17; 4:13).
(a) His prayer for greater knowledge of Christ’s transcendent love, vs. 14-
19.
1) He addresses the Father, vs. 14-15.
As with 1:17, this is a reference that distinguishes from God the
Holy Spirit, v. 16, and God the Son (cf. 2:18), v. 17.
2) He entreats the Father, vs. 16-19.
a) For the strengthening of the Holy Spirit, v. 16.
This blessing of “His Spirit” is sourced in “the riches of His
glory” (cf. 1:18; 3:8), which terms collectively portray much
of the wondrous character of God.
b) For the indwelling of the love of Christ, v. 17.
Paul’s desire is that the Spirit’s indwelling ministry might
bloom, again from gnōsis to epignōsis, concerning the love of
Christ. The Ephesians are like a plant, rooted in Christ, yet
they must be “rooted” more firmly, with greater stability, in
the love of Christ. They are like a building, founded upon
Christ (Col. 1:23), yet they need to be better informed or
“grounded” in the love of Christ (Col. 2:7).

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
c) For a greater understanding of the love of Christ, vs. 18-19.
Paul desires that the Ephesians receive a greater, multidimensional,
“comprehension/grasp” katalamba,nw, katalambanō, of
the love of Christ.
i The dimensions of Christ’s love, its breadth, length,
depth, height, v. 18.
ii The transcendence of Christ’s love, that is a finite
understanding of the infinite, v. 19a.
iii The fulfillment of knowing God, that is being wholly lost
in God’s immensity, the vortex of His being, v. 19b.
(b) His prayer that God may be glorified through the love of Christ, vs. 20-
21.
Paul’s prayer turns from petition to praise. The dynamic of this
intercession is the indwelling life and power of God that grants more
abundantly than we could ever hope to think or ask about.
1) The ground of God’s glory in the church is His life in its living
members, that is “living stones” (I Pet. 2:5; cf. Eph. 2:19-22). At
the same time it is the life of God that stimulates prayer in the
church toward God, so that the members are found “praying in the
Holy Spirit” (Jude 20), v. 20.
2) The ultimate goal of the church in prayer ought to be the glory of
God, that which is refunded back to He who is glorious and
reflects glory. Thus, while the character of God is fittingly
addressed at the commencement of prayer, so it is equally suitable
to conclude a prayer with this same perspective, v. 21.
3) Thus John Bunyan warns us:
John Bunyan, The Works of John Bunyan, II, pp. 276-277.
It doth not always follow, that they that pray do know God, or love
Him or trust in Him. This conclusion is evident by the Pharisee in
the text [Luke 18:10-13]; he prayed, but he knew not God, he loved
not God, he trusted not in God; that is, he knew Him not in His
Son, nor so loved, not trusted in Him. He was, though a praying
man, far off from this. . . . It is the sensible sinner, the selfbemoaning
sinner, the self-judging sinner, the self-abhorring sinner,
and the self-condemning sinner, whose prayers prevail with God for
mercy. Hence I infer, that one reason why men make so many
prayers, and prevail no more with God, is because their prayers are
rather floatings of pharisaical fancies, than the fruits of sound sense
of sin, and sincere desire of enjoying God in mercy, and in the fruits
of the Holy Spirit. 39

CONCLUSION 285
D. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND AUTHENTIC EVANGELISM
40
It is probably in the realm of Christian evangelism that presumption concerning the
character of God is most prevalent. The amount of printed material available that proposes
either to declare the gospel of the grace of God or explain how this saving message ought to
be communicated is vast indeed. The attempts to employ novelty, relevance, artful
persuasion, and attention-getting media seem to be endless. Yet concerning this huge literary
and communications deposit, you will search with more success seeking for that proverbial
“needle in a haystack” than the discovery here of a substantial and distinguishing
explanation of the nature of the only true and living God. Yet how beguiling, even seductive,
this approach so often proves to be. When we enthusiastically commend our prospective life
partner to friends, how very careful we are to give a detailed description of that person’s
attractive characteristics, their virtues and distinctive strengths. Yet when we desire to
commend to a sinner the greatness of God’s gospel, we assume that the person we are
witnessing to has a sufficient understanding of the Almighty. But how fatal such a
supposition can be, for while a person may confess their belief in “god,” and the person who
is witnessing takes this confession to mean “God,” the possibility of meaningful
communication, based upon agreement of meaning, becomes an impossibility until both are
talking about the same “God.” And the only way there can be agreement here is when the
person witnessing makes clear the distinguishing marks of “God.” The looseness, indeed
irreverent use of the name of “God” today, makes such clarification all the more important.
Hence, to truly know the God of the Bible is to be under constraint to tell of His glorious
and unique being, whether one be a Moses (Deut. 32:1-4), or a Paul (Acts 28:30-31; Rom.
1:15-16). At its heart, the Christian gospel is concerned with what God is like with respect
to man as an inveterate sinner. On the one hand, unrighteous man learns that God is
absolutely righteous in his being and demands (Ezra 9:15), while on the other hand man in
his consequent guilt learns that God justifies the ungodly (Rom. 4:5). The great question
then is not how a man might be reconciled to himself or a neighbor, but how he might be
reconciled to God (Job 4:17; 9:2; 25:4; II Cor. 5:20). This is the supreme issue of life today
that is increasingly hid from view because of the obscurity that man-centered, relational
theology injects. It is true an unbeliever may have a basic and biblical understanding of the
God of the Bible. But today, it is becoming less likely that such a perspective is to be
expected, especially that which engenders awe and reverence. Hence, the proclamation of
the gospel must involve a telling of godless humanity of what God is like. Without this
essential content, evangelism degenerates into sentimental abstraction at a horizontal human
level, or evangelism that describes a god other than He who is alone revealed in the Bible.
Sad to say, it is to this point that modern evangelism has fallen. Tozer writes in this respect:
The gospel can lift this destroying burden [of obligation to God] from the mind, give beauty for
ashes, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. But unless the weight of the burden
is felt the gospel can mean nothing to the man; and until he does see a vision of God high and
lifted up, there will be no woe and no burden. Low views of God destroy the gospel for all who
hold them. 40
A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, p. 11.

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41
42
43
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
1. Evangelism starts with the God of the Bible.
Of course the gospel means “good news” or “glad tidings,” and Scripture makes it
quite plain that this wonderful message is sourced in God. It is indeed “the gospel of
God,” or more specifically, (a) the gospel “belonging to God,” (b) the gospel “about
God,” (c) the gospel “sourced in God,” and (d) the gospel “sent by God” (Rom. 1:1;
cf. 15:16; Mark 1:14; II Cor. 11:7; I Thess. 2:2, 8, 9; I Tim. 1:11). What exactly is the
gospel? Why then the gospel? For what purpose was the gospel ordained? What is the
prime saving work that the gospel accomplishes? Any answers to these questions that
do not focus upon the fundamental necessity of reconciliation between God and man
are grossly inadequate. Hence the Christian gospel commences with God, and that God
is uncompromisingly the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of the prophets,
the only God of Israel, the God of the Gentiles, the only true and living God of the
Bible. Consequently any proclamation of this good news from God demands that, in a
pluralistic society, the character of this God be distinctively and emphatically made
plain. This means that to proclaim God’s gospel as the Bible declares it is, at the same
time, to declare that gospel’s God. To make this point even clearer, let us consider four
passages of New Testament Scripture that focus on God’s gospel and that gospel’s
God.
a. John 3:16.
In our familiarity with certain parts of the Bible, we often overlook vital truth and
this is certainly the case with this passage, which is so frequently used in the
proclamation of the gospel. The subject of this sentence is “the God” [o` qeoj,,,, ho
theos] and everything else is subordinated to this glorious fact. The definite article
here distinguishes the God of Abraham from all other gods. 41 Thus for the Apostle
John, he specifically calls attention to the only God of Israel, and none other; only
this God sent forth His Son to save sinners from perishing. A study of John’s
writings only confirms this emphasis. Robert Cook has given us an excellent study
of the doctrine of God in this regard. 42 In summary he declares:
(1) John teaches that “God is spirit [pneu/ma, pneuma]” (John 4:24; cf. 1:18; I
John 4:12). That is, God is spiritual in His nature. “This is an affirmation
that God is transcendent, pure person (in contrast to one who is a compound
of matter and spirit or that which is only matter and therefore finite). He is
unlimited by space and time and must be understood in spiritual terms.
Therefore we must worship Him personally (in spirit) and on the basis of
truth.” 43
(2) John teaches that “God is light [fw/j, phōs]” (I John 1:5). “[The context
strongly supports the view that I John 1:5 is an affirmation of God’s holiness.
. . . Fellowship is predicated upon a God who is light sharing common things
with children who are walking in light. Since it is sin that mars and destroys
Where o` qeo,j, ho theos, is used, “the [definite] article appears when the specific Jewish or Christian God or
Lord is meant.” Blass, Debrunner, ed. Funk, A Greek Grammar of the New Testament, p. 133.
W. Robert Cook, The Theology of John, pp. 40-5.
Ibid., p. 40.

44
Ibid., pp. 40-2.
45
Ibid., p. 42.
46
Ibid., p. 42.
47
Ibid., pp. 42-3.
48
Ibid., p. 44.
CONCLUSION 287
this fellowship, the light that makes fellowship possible must be construed as
the absence of sin (light is the absence of darkness [I John 1:5b]). God’s
holiness represents among other things His absolute moral perfection. He is
totally separated from sin in His essential being. Figuratively speaking, the
outstanding quality of light is its purity. This is especially apt here since light
is used to picture a moral quality and the appropriate ethical relationship of
man vis-a-vis God (I John 1:7). 44
(3) John teaches that “God is love [avga,ph, agapē]” (I John 4:8; 16). “God is
loving, but John’s aim here is to distinguish the activity of love from the
attribute of love. The latter is the source from which the former arises. Love
in God is that which moves Him to self-communication both within and
outside the Godhead. Thus the affirmation that He is love asserts that God
is, by nature, One who is wont to share Himself with others, especially His
children. 45
(4) John teaches that God “the Father has life in Himself” (John 5:26). “This
sets forth His aseity, or selfexistence. It sets him apart from every other
being, all of whom are dependent in that they have life from a source outside
themselves (a concept also implied in the Creator-creature relationship (Rev.
4:11).” 46
(5) John teaches that God is, by nature, true (John 17:3; I John 5:20; cf. John
3:33; 8:40). “The term used here is avlhqino,j, alēthinos, meaning true in the
sense of ‘real’ or ‘genuine.’ The God of Scripture, about whom John writes, is
neither false nor counterfeit nor the figment of some man’s or society’s
imagination. This God conforms to reality intrinsically; in fact He is the
source and standard for all that is genuine and real.” 47
(6) John teaches that God is personal, but especially the Father in relation to His
Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, “the only begotten from the Father” (John 1:14;
cf. 1:18; 3:16; I John 4:9). This Son, “is the manifestation, or revealer, of the
Father. Although the Father is invisible to human perception, the Son has
‘explained’ the meaning of the Father for men (John 1:18.” 48 Further, this
God is also the believer’s Father (John 1:12-13; 3:1-8; I John).
b. Romans 3:24.
While it may sound like a contradiction in terms, yet the gospel is often presented
in a way that is unbiblical in its sole christocentric emphasis. By this is meant the
focus upon the Lord Jesus Christ as the beginning and end of the gospel; and
again, notwithstanding Revelation 1:8; 21:6; 22:13; but cf. 1:6; 22:18, such an

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idea is quite inadequate. Now while this matter will inevitably lead us into a
consideration of trinitarian relations, yet it ought to be said that the gospel begins
and finishes with God, and more specifically God the Father, and this is no mere
fine theological distinction. While John 3:16 has made this matter quite clear, so
also does Romans 3:24 as it nestles in the middle of the most concise and yet
comprehensive gospel passage in all of the Bible, that is Romans 3:21-26. In fact,
with the inclusion of personal pronouns, “God the Father” is spoken of eight
times within these six verses.
(1) Free justification, or full and righteous acquittal through faith in Christ’s
atonement, is sourced in “His grace,” to the total exclusion of human merit.
The pronoun “His” here must, in context, refer to God the Father in v. 23.
Hence, it is God the Father who is moved by infinite mercy to reach down to
man in his hopeless predicament. In other words, it is God the Father who is
the prime mover in the establishing of the gospel, even as Romans 1:1, 5
support.
(2) Therefore, in true biblical evangelism there must be a clear declaration about
the character of this God and His demands upon man. Such characteristics
are disarmingly presented in the preceding teaching of Romans 1:18-3:20, as
the following categories indicate.
(a) God is angry, wrathful, 1:18; 2:5; 3:5.
(b) God is invisible, 1:20.
(c) God is eternal in power, 1:20.
(d) God is divine in nature, 1:20.
(e) God is glorious, 1:23.
(f) God is incorruptible, 1:23.
(g) God is true, 1:25; 3:4, 7.
(h) God is blessed forever, 1:25.
(i) God is just and a judge, 1:32; 2:2-3, 6, 11, 16.
(j) God is kind, 2:4.
(k) God is forbearing, patient, 2:4.
(l) God is faithful, 3:3.
(m) God is righteous, 3:5.

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CONCLUSION 289
(3) By way of illustration, consider Romans 8:31 where Paul encourages the
believer with the rhetorical question, “If God is for us, who is against us?”
So J. I. Packer asks concerning this verse:
c. II Corinthians 5:18-21.
Who is [this] God? Paul speaks of the God of the Bible and of the gospel, the
Lord Jehovah, “a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in
steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ex. 34:6), the God whom “the only begotten
Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, hath declared” (John 1:18). This is the
God who has spoken to announce His sovereignty: “I am God, and there is no
other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the
beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel
shall stand, and I will accomplish all My purpose’” Isa. 46:9 f., RSV). This is
the God who showed His sovereignty by bringing Abraham out of Ur, Israel
out of captivity in Egypt and later in Babylon, and Jesus out of the grave: and
who shows the same sovereignty still every time He raises a sinner to spiritual
life out of spiritual death. This is the God of Romans, the God whose wrath
“is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men”
(1:18), yet who “commendeth His love towards us, in that, while we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us” (5:8). This is the God who calls, justifies and
glorifies those whom from eternity He “predestinated to be conformed to the
image of His Son” (8:29). This is the God of the first Anglican [Church of
England] article, the “one living and true God, everlasting . . . of infinite
power, wisdom and goodness; the Maker and Preserver of all things both
visible and invisible.” 49
Here Paul exhorts those who have been reconciled to God, as a consequence, to be
ministers of reconciliation. Including pronouns, God the Father is referred to nine
times in these four verses; the name of Christ as mediator is mentioned six times.
However, the dominant concern of Paul is that those reconciled to God the Father
through Christ should in turn exhort sinners to likewise be reconciled to God the
Father through Christ.
(1) At the risk of being misunderstood, the point here is that evangelism is not
simply about “being a disciple of Christ” or “coming to Christ” or “being a
follower of Christ.” Rather, the purpose of becoming a Christian is that the
sinner, as an enemy of God, might become a friend of God. The following
list of references makes this point overwhelmingly clear (Matt. 5:16; John
13:31; 14:6, 13; 17:1, 4; I Cor. 15:24, 28; Rom. 15:5-6; 16:27; Phil. 2:5-11; I
Pet. 3:18; 4:11; I John 2:1).
(2) However, when Paul writes of being reconciled to God and commends
Christians to this ministry of reconciliation, who is the “God” that the
Christian is to proclaim? He uses the term “God” with the assumption that
he is describing the exclusive God he defines in numerous places in II
Corinthians. It should be noted that the following list of attributes indicates
Paul’s integral use of these characteristics rather than a systematic listing.
J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 237.

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51
d. I Peter 3:18.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(a) God is living, 1:9; 2:3; 6:16.
(b) God is gracious, 1:12; 8:1.
(c) God is faithful, 1:18.
(d) God is glorious, 4:6.
(e) God is righteous, 5:21.
(f) God is powerful, 6:7; 13:4.
(g) God is love, 13:11, 14.
The great end of evangelism is, “to bring us to God.” Selwyn describes this as “the
be-all and end-all of religion.” 50 Manton comments that this reconciliation, “is not
fully done till we live with him in heaven; this is the end of our faith (I Pet. 1:9);
this is the prime benefit offered to us in the gospel, to which all others tend.” 51
(1) Thus Jesus Christ’s great saving design was “to bring us to God [the
Father],” that is acceptance by Him, the enjoyment of His presence, the
beholding and praise of His glory. But again, the question to ask in today’s
pluralistic society concerns the exact identification of the God who Peter
speaks about. I Peter leaves no doubt in this regard.
(a) God has foreknowledge, 1:2.
(b) God is merciful, 1:3; 2:10.
(c) God is powerful, 1:5.
(d) God is holy, 1:15-16.
(e) God is just, 1:17.
(f) God is radiant, 2:9.
(g) God is omniscient, 3:12.
(h) God is patient, 3:20.
(i) God is gracious, 4:10; 5:10, 12.
(j) God is powerful, 5:6.
Edward Gordon Selwyn, The First Epistle Of St. Peter, p. 196.
Thomas Manton, The Complete Works of Thomas Manton, XII, p. 198.

52
(k) God is glorious, 5:10.
CONCLUSION 291
(2) So Peter points us to needed course adjustment in ourselves concerning the
desire to be faithful in evangelism. Like Paul, the character of God is dealt
with integrally rather than systematically. That is, the person of the definitive
God is woven into Peter’s writing, and likewise his preaching. To meet this
man would be to conclude that, “there is so much of God about him; his
passion is wholly God; everything in his life is grounded upon God.” And to
agree with this priority is not only to be mentally exercised concerning the
knowledge of God, but also moved in the soul and affections. A. W. Tozer
writes of this dominant and pervasive emphasis as follows:
2. Evangelism in Athens.
As the sailor locates his position on the sea by “shooting” the sun, so we may
get our moral bearings by looking at God. We must begin with God. We are
right when, and only when, we stand in a right position relative to God, and
we are wrong so far and so long as we stand in any other position. . . . So let
us begin with God. Back of all, above all, before all is God; first in sequential
order, above in rank and station, exalted in dignity and honor. As the selfexistent
One He gave beings to all things, and all things exist out of Him and
for Him. “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power:
for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were
created” (Rev. 4:11). 52
In other words, true biblical evangelism starts with my own relationship with
God so that proclamation of the “good news” is reflective of my own
encounter. Thus personal evangelism will be as full of God as is the
evangelist.
The arrival of the Apostle Paul in Athens during his second missionary journey (Acts
17:15-16), is highly significant with regard to the proclamation of the character of
God. While he had recently ministered in Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea, especially
to audiences with some exposure to Judaism, yet in witnessing at the Areopagus or
Mars Hill, his preaching is particularly notable because it involves the first major
gospel presentation to a gathering that is solidly pagan and lacks any substantial Jewish
or Old Testament background. Hence, the distinctive emphasis that is quite obvious in
Paul’s sermon here is a matter of the greatest importance insofar as evangelizing the
ignorant pagan masses of this twentieth century.
a. The priority of God at Athens.
Notice that Paul’s message in Acts 17:22-31 is remarkable in that Jesus Christ is
proclaimed only in the concluding verse. In other words, in vs. 22-30 we find
detailed exposition of the nature of the only true and living God. Specifically, God
is described according to His numerous attributes as follows:
Tozer, Pursuit Of God, pp. 101-2.

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54
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
(1) God is the creator of all things, v. 24.
(2) God is sovereign over heaven and earth, v. 24.
(3) God is transcendent, not confined, v. 24.
(4) God is independent, self-sufficient, v. 25.
(5) God is benevolent, giving life and all things, v. 25.
(6) God is wise in His ordering of creation, v. 26.
(7) God is immanent, not far from any of us, v. 27.
(8) God is life-giving, hence living, v. 28.
(9) God is immaterial, hence spiritual, v. 29.
(10) God is forbearing, patient, v. 30.
(11) God is righteous and just, v. 31.
(12) God is omnipotent, v. 31.
b. The response at Athens.
However, some have maintained that Paul’s attempt to address the Athenian
intelligentsia on their own philosophic level proved to be a failure, so that at
Corinth he expressed deep regret and was entirely different in his approach (I Cor.
2:1-5). Representative of this opinion is James Strahan who fancifully speculates
that Paul, “departed [Athens] with a crushing sense of failure. . . . All that he said
to the philosophers of Athens was true, but ineffective.” 53 But surely this
hypothesis is to be roundly rejected, for Acts 17:34 describes the significant
conversion of Dionysius as well as other members of the Areopagite audience.
Further, Eusebius, the early church historian, records that this same Dionysius
became the first bishop of the church at Athens. 54
c. The lesson of Athens for today.
While rejecting the proposal of Strahan, we believe that Paul knew exactly what
he was doing at Athens and that he had no regrets. Certainly he did not explicitly
denounce the Greek paganism that surrounded him, but he did politely describe
the Athenians as ignorant idolaters, and exhort them to repent. However, when
Paul stated, “What therefore you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you”
James Strahan, “Athens,” James Hastings, ed., Dictionary Of The Apostolic Church, I, pp. 109-10. While Sir
William Ramsay popularized this theory in 1895, he considerably modified his verdict eighteen years later.
Refer to E. M. Blaiklock, The Acts Of The Apostles, p. 143.
“Dionysius,” F. L. Cross, ed., The Oxford Dictionary Of The Christian Church, pp. 401-2.

55
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CONCLUSION 293
(Acts 17:23), he immediately delivered the only firm base upon which any person
can repent, and that is a full-orbed understanding of the God of Abraham. It is
not enough merely to speak to men of “God,” presuming that they understand
what you mean, especially today, since all we may be verbalizing is, for the
audience, to use Francis Schaeffer’s term, a “contentless banner.” 55
J. I. Packer comments concerning this same scene:
We must not be afraid to start with the basic facts about God the Creator.
Revealed truth has a structure, and this is its foundation. When Paul
preached to the pagan Athenians, he laid this foundation before going
further. He had to, or else the point of his witness to our Lord would not
have been grasped. For knowledge of sin and salvation presupposes some
knowledge of the Creator; nobody can see what sin is till he has learned what
God is. That is why [Richard] Baxter directed the seeking soul to fix his mind
first and foremost on the nature and majesty of God. In the pagan West
today, we need to lay the same foundation as Paul laid at Athens. We
complain that our “gospel preaching” (in the modern sense) does not register
with those who hear it. May not this be in the first instance because they
know nothing about the God with whom they have to do? Have we taken
pains to teach them who God is? The irony of our situation is that if we
spend time preaching to modern pagans about the character of God we shall
be told that we are not preaching the gospel. But the Puritans would not tell
us that; nor would Paul. 56
3. Evangelism in Papua New Guinea.
By way of illustration regarding this principle of necessary pre-evangelistic instruction
concerning God, especially the vital relevance here concerning this ignorant modern
generation, consider just one remarkable, contemporary missionary experience. In
1978, missionaries from the New Tribes Mission commenced pioneering work with the
primitive Bisorio tribe in the central highland foothills of Papua New Guinea, a people
oppressed with violence, fear of enemies, and personal jungle and ancestor spirits.
When reasonable communication was eventually possible by means of Pidgin English
and the native language, Scripture was taught to the Bisorio people over a period of
eight months before the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ was formally presented. The
method was as follows:
We began teaching the Bisorios, of course, about God of whom they had no concept.
Their god was the sun. . . . We knew that this was where we had to begin, tearing down
their previous concepts and beginning to build according to the truth. . . . We began by
teaching who God was and who he wasn’t. . . . [We taught] God’s eternity. He had no
beginning or end, that He was before anything. . . . As we taught them the Old Testament,
we sought to bring out four basic things. [First], God’s holiness and righteousness,
[second] man’s sinful condition, [third] God’s wrath against man’s sinful condition,
[fourth] and yet God’s grace and His condition for acceptance by faith in His provision
for salvation. Now we figured the best way to teach the Bisorios about God was not just
giving them a list of dry doctrines, but to teach through Old Testament history where they
Francis Schaeffer, Escape From Reason, p. 78.
J. I. Packer, A Quest For Godliness, p. 169.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
could see God in action and appreciate and begin to understand who this God is. . . . We
began to share the truth of God found in Genesis 1-2. And we took them through creation
bringing out the fact of God’s power, His greatness, His almightiness, creating things just
with His Word, how He was a God of order, and a God of kindness, how He provided
for His creation. . . . One of the things that stood out in this teaching, as we began to
develop the character of God before their eyes in Genesis 1-2, was the fact that God was
creator and that He was the owner and it stood out immediately in the Bisorio’s mind that
if God created everything, surely He was the owner of everything, and this really gripped
their lives. 57
Subsequent to teaching on the introduction of sin there followed much of the history of
Israel, and the life of Jesus Christ. The ensuing spontaneous responses to the Savior,
quite apart from evangelistic pressure, were widespread, leading to the formation of a
church, and a ready desire by the new converts to share the gospel with other local
tribes.
George Walker and Bob Kennell, tape cassette, Bisorio Salvation Story. New Tribes Mission, Sanford, Florida.

CONCLUSION 295
E. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH
58
59
60
The biblical gospel includes the use of many terms that are part of God’s one plan of
salvation, such as “election, regeneration, redemption, atonement, propitiation, substitution,
righteousness, reconciliation, grace, adoption,” etc. However, it is the term “justification
through faith” that takes on special meaning and emphasis, not simply historically, but
rather in the light of man’s sinfulness and his arrogant but foolish attempt to attain right
standing with the holy God of the Bible by means of his own terms and energy. According to
the Bible, man’s fundamental problem is a moral issue rather than a matter of lost
relationship due to separation. The separation is there, that is man’s estrangement from
God, but it is a result of moral conflict. So in Isaiah 59:2 we are told that, “your iniquities
have made a separation between you and your God.” Thus when the problem of iniquity is
dealt with, separation will give way to reconciliation. As Job pondered, “How then can a
man be just with God? Or how can he be clean who is born of woman? If even the moon
has no brightness and the stars are not pure in His sight, how much less man, that maggot,
and the son of man, that worm!” (Job 25:4-6).
Thus both the Old Testament and the New Testament, and especially the Apostle Paul, have
revealed that man’s only hope of right acceptance before this holy God is through faith in
the personal, perfect, objective, imputed, and substitutionary righteousness of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Such faith, as looking after the manner of Isaiah 45:22 and John 3:14-15, has hope
only in Christ’s completed atonement, and through such faith alone the sinner is pardoned
of all his sin and completely covered with that same Christ’s perfect righteousness (Rom.
3:24; 4:5; 5:17). Thus the believing sinner is accepted by God solely “for Jesus’ sake.” Hence
when Martin Luther grasped this truth of justification through faith alone, he confessed
that, “this straightaway made me feel as though reborn, as though I had entered through
open gates into paradise itself.” 58 Now God had become his gracious friend, whereas
concerning his former regard he tells us, “For, however irreproachably I lived as a monk, I
felt myself in the presence of God to be a sinner with a most unquiet conscience nor could I
trust that I had pleased him with my satisfaction. I did not love, nay, rather I hated this just
God who punished sinners and if not with ‘open blasphemy’ certainly with huge murmuring
I was angry with God.” 59 Yet at the same time, Luther adds that this restlessness of his soul,
and this hounding and depressing perspective of God’s condemning righteousness, drove
him to, “knock importunately at Paul in this place [Romans 1:17], thirsting most ardently to
know what Paul meant.” 60 Thus it can be concluded that the Reformer’s guilty concern
regarding the demands of God’s righteousness led him to the discovery of the grace of God’s
pardoning righteousness. Such comprehension, it is maintained, was very much grounded
upon Luther’s understanding of the character of God.
1. The loss of Reformation emphasis.
That evangelical Christendom today has lost sight of the biblical truth of doctrine of
justification by faith ought to be obvious to all, that is if this doctrine is comprehended
Gordon Rupp, The Righteousness Of God, p. 122.
Ibid.
Ibid.

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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
according to Luther 61 , Calvin 62 , Owen 63 , Bunyan 64 , Wesley 65 , Edwards 66 , Spurgeon 67 ,
Lloyd-Jones 68 , and Packer 69 . Why is this so?
a. Man-centeredness.
The average evangelical church in the United States has fallen from the faith of its
more God-centered fathers. Certainly orthodoxy broadly prevails, but true church
worship has been transformed into a religious happy hour, an opportunity for
feeling good about oneself, a place where ego-massage is available for those who
are hurting, a source of satisfying human relationships in an environment of
ecstatic, upbeat, cacophonous sound. External philosophies such as existentialism,
materialism, rationalism, and hedonism have all played their part in the invasion
of this insidious infection. In particular, there has been indulgence in:
(1) Utilitarianism.
While man, namely myself, is at the center of my universe, God is
conveniently stationed at his right hand, but not above in holy and sovereign
dominion. He is a “blessing provider,” a “physical sickness prescription,” a
“religious cornucopia,” a “guarantor of entrance into a designer heaven.”
God is regarded even as the Son of God was in John 6:26, namely as a meal
ticket. Even if government welfare fails, a final resort is religious welfare.
(2) Sensuality.
Today, being a Christian is not so much a matter of “How are you?” that is
concerning a state of being, as “How are you doing?” or a state of
accomplishment and activity, and especially “How are you feeling? or a state
of delicious experience. Religious euphoria, signs and wonders, and
phenomena are the hallmark of Christianity in the twenty-first century with
truth as an attending handmaiden rather than a master.
61 Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, “Lectures on Romans,” “Lectures on Galatians.”
62
John Calvin, John T. McNeill, ed., Institutes of the Christian Religion, III, XI, 1 - XVIII, 10.
63
John Owen, William H. Goold ed., The Works of John Owen, “The Doctrine of Justification by Faith,” V,
pp. 1-400.
64
John Bunyan, George Offor ed., The Works of John Bunyan, “Of Justification By An Imputed
Righteousness,” I, pp. 300-334; “A Defense Of The Doctrine Of Justification By Faith,” II, pp. 278-334.
65
John Wesley, Fifty-Three Sermons On Several Occasions, “Salvation By Faith,” pp. 7-17, “Justification By
Faith,” 58-71, “The Righteousness Of Faith,” pp. 71-83, “The Scripture Way Of Salvation,” pp. 610-622.
66 Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, “Justification by Faith Alone,” I, pp. 622-54.
67
C. H. Spurgeon, The New Park Street and Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermons 362, 814, 844, 964,
1280, 1456, 1749, 1917, 2357, 2513.
68
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans, Atonement and Justification, 3:20-4:25, 250 pp; Luther and His Message
for Today, 30 pp.
69
J. I. Packer, article, “Just, Justify, Justification,” Everett F. Harrison ed., Baker’s Dictionary Of Theology, pp.
303-8.

(3) Relationalism.
CONCLUSION 297
With religious man nevertheless focusing on himself as the center of his
universe, his chief interest is how he relates to his fellow man, especially in
terms of acceptance, approval, self-image, fulfillment, self-assertiveness,
openness, egalitarianism, etc. God is certainly acknowledged, but once again
He is more on the sidelines as a supplementary consultant, a back-up when
trouble arises. Modern psychology has only fostered this self-focus and its
effect has become evident in the dominance of many church “counseling”
programs.
b. Neglect of essential Bible truth.
Within evangelical orthodoxy in the United States today, thankfully there has
remained a strong formal commitment to the truthfulness and inerrancy of the
Bible. However, it is one thing to have the infallible Word of God in one’s hand,
and quite another to have the essence of this truth embraced in the soul.
(1) The nature of God.
This whole study has repeatedly maintained that back of all of the multitude
of problems that biblical Christianity faces today is a shallow and distorted
apprehension of God. The contemporary vision is conditioned by this mancenteredness
which has attempted to make God conformable to human
expectations and wishes. The end product is not the God of the Bible who
man can only hope to know through His initiative and righteous
reconciliation, but rather the god of unconditional acceptance who is moved
according to divine, warm fuzzy feelings! This being so, biblical justification
has tended to become irrelevant insofar as Paul, the former rabbi, expressed
it; his legal perspective must be understood more existentially and sensitively.
(2) The nature of man.
At this other end of the spectrum, with God not appearing quite so
transcendently awesome, man does not appear to be quite so sinful, so that
the resultant breach does not now appear to be so vast. The nominal
acceptance of man’s sinfulness in the Christian church has been assailed by
the humanism of the day, with the result that weak resistance has led to the
embrace of a humanistic mind set clothed in orthodox garments. Consider
the dominance in church life of relational theology, counseling and
psychology, self-image development, free-will doctrine and autonomy,
human rights, sensual stimulation through performance, etc. In multitudes of
evangelical churches, the focus is fundamentally upon man; and it is God
who is merely the patron of this celebration.
(3) The exact nature of the gospel.
The good news that the Bible declares is clearly stated according to Romans
4:5; it is that God “justifies the ungodly.” For hundreds of years this doctrine
of sovereign and justifying grace, that remains on offer to repentant sinners,

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has been declared by a host of faithful preachers who have reveled in
explaining to starving mankind how a true gospel feast has been set before
them. The emphasis has most often been of the sinner being reconciled to
God, of the enmity being done away with (Eph. 2:15-16) so that God
becomes Father. But today a different man-centered emphasis has emerged,
and it is well illustrated in the realm of tract literature where the gospel is
offered, in a formulated manner, on the basis of it being a sort of benefit
package. Over forty years ago Campus Crusade For Christ introduced The
Four Spiritual Laws booklet in which it commences, “Law One - God loves
you and offers a wonderful plan for your life.” And many variations on this
theme have followed. Consider some additional examples that indicate how
so many commence with this personal benefit thrust and merely mention in
passing the necessity of being reconciled to God so that the package might be
obtained. “1 - A happy and meaningful life begins with God!” “Smile God
loves you! Here are four things He wants you to know. . . . 1 st thing. God’s
goal for you is abundant life.” “Fact one. A loving God sent His Son, Jesus,
into the world to bring men to a new and abundant life.” “God loves you
and created you to have a personal relationship with Him.” While for Paul
the controlling gospel truth was “the righteousness of God,” today it has
become “the relationship that fulfills.”
(4) The relationship between justification and regeneration.
While it may sound like a contradiction in terms, or worse, a regression into
error, it is suggested that to focus, concerning the gospel, solely on the
glorious truth of justification by faith, is itself a dangerous path to follow.
Certainly history offers proof that this statement is true. The rise of German
Pietism toward the end of the seventeenth century under Spener and Francke
was surely a reaction to a scholastic and creedal Lutheranism that was
devoid of warmth of experience. 70 Thus it is true that to somewhat isolate a
doctrine such as justificaton by faith is to drain it of its essential life giving
properties. For a sinner must not only be right with God in a legal sphere,
but also alive unto God in a vital sphere. The child of God must be both
justified and regenerated. And this leads us to the conclusion that such a
right understanding of the gospel’s address to man has its root in the truth
that God must be appreciated as both holy and living. Such a passage as
Titus 3:5-7 well illustrates this point where regeneration in v. 5 and
justification in v. 7 are united in v. 6 by means of Jesus Christ as the
essential, central fulcrum. But today, while justification by faith has ebbed,
regeneration has flowed into these decades in the form of rootless sensuality
with the balance being lost.
2. The present controversy.
More recently there have arisen a number of factors that have caused the doctrine of
justification by faith to arise in prominence, though not always with the result of hoped
for approbation. In both England and the United States, it has been the issue of
Williston Walker, A History Of The Christian Church, pp. 444-9.

71
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CONCLUSION 299
rapprochement between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism that has stimulated the
need to reconsider the essential differences concerning the gospel that divide these
historic movements.
a. In England, the agreed statement in 1987 of the Second Anglican-Roman Catholic
International Commission (ARCIC II), while acknowledging difficulties, yet
claimed that an amicable process of frank discussion was on a course of
convergence, and that the doctrine of justification by faith ought to be considered
on a broader basis with a hoped for synthesis in view. Consequently one Anglican
evangelical theologian, renowned for his doctoral expertise in the area of the
doctrine of justification by faith, Dr. Alister McGrath, attempts a revisionist
approach in this regard. He suggests that as the Reformers declared the doctrine
of justification by drawing upon the “experiences, hopes, and fears of their own
day and age,” thus by means of the existential process and ethical dimension the
doctrine of justification must today be “liberated [from] the forms of theological
expression used in the sixteenth century.” 71 For a detailed rejoinder to this
accommodation, refer to Philip Eveson’s, The Great Exchange. 72
b. In the United States, at the initiative of Charles Colson, with the cooperation of J.
I. Packer, Os Guinness, Mark Knoll, Bill Bright, and seven Roman Catholics, there
was published in 1994 Evangelicals and Catholics Together: The Christian
Mission in the Third Millennium. Again, the aim of such interaction was that in
spite of obvious disagreements in doctrine and practice, yet consideration of
common factors of faith ought to stimulate “brothers and sisters in Christ” to
confess a degree of agreement in being “justified by grace through faith because of
Christ.” In a 1995 response has come forth the volume Justification by Faith
Alone, Affirming the doctrine by which the church and the individual stands and
falls, with contributions by John MacArthur, R. C. Sproul, Joel Beeke, John
Gerstner, and John Armstrong.
3. The solution, more than a statement.
It is vigorously maintained that a return to the purity of the gospel as expressed in the
doctrine of justification by faith will not come about either be means of redefinition,
linguistic flexibility, existential application, or even faithful exposition on key texts.
Rather, it will most naturally and inevitably emerge, or better erupt, when the fullness
of the doctrine of God is regained in the realms of both Bible truth and evangelical
experience. When a man begins to see God as He really is, in all of His glory and
holiness and greatness, then he begins to see himself as he really is, that is as a
“maggot, . . . [a] worm” (Job 25:6). He will behold the holiness of God and bemoan
his unholiness; he will be overwhelmed with a sense of the life and power of God and
bewail his deadness and impotence. This man will then understand that only a great
gospel of purest grace can ever bridge such a vast chasm, and that such a bridge will of
necessity be a work wholly of God.
A. E. McGrath, Justification by Faith, What it means to us today, pp. 10-17, 92, 113, 117, 142-7.
Philip H. Eveson, The Great Exchange. Justification by faith alone in the light of recent thought, 227 pp.

300
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
Hence the solution demands more than an agreement that the attributes of God receive
greater emphasis. Rather, it is the fulness of God’s person that must be sought with
singular passion, humble submission, and reverent adoration in lip and life. The
biblical setting of the doctrine of justification by faith demands this.
a. The God of Habakkuk 2:4 who is the God of Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:10-14;
Hebrews 10:32-39.
In a small span of chapters, Habakkuk describes God with such an awesome and
full manner that the reader finds it difficult not to tremble with the prophet (3:16).
Habakkuk’s justification by faith is triumphant in the midst of the most
depressing of circumstances, and that chiefly because the object of his faith is
altogether glorious and affecting. Consider His:
(1) Holiness, 1:13; 2:20.
(2) Justice, 1:5-11; 2:6-19.
(3) Salvation, 2:4; 3:18-19.
(4) Wrath/mercy, 3:2.
(5) Saving power, 3:3-15.
b. The God of Habakkuk 2:4 in Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:10-14; Hebrews 10:32-
39.
This God is identically the God of Habakkuk, who in the New Covenant
revelation likewise manifests holiness (Heb. 7:26), justice (Matt. 21:5; cf. Zech.
9:9), salvation (Matt. 1:21), wrath/mercy (Rom. 3:25-26), saving power (Rom.
1:16), and yet in particular through the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ.
(1) In Romans 1:17, justification through faith alone is in the Son of this only
God of Habakkuk. This is the heart of the gospel of the saving, gratis
righteousness of God, received through faith alone, that meets the demands
of God’s essential righteousness.
(2) In Galatians 3:10-14, justification apart from the works of the law is through
faith alone in the Son of this only God of Habakkuk. This is a gospel
qualification, namely that attempted conformity to the Law, as a transcript
of the demands of God’s righteousness, brings a curse, not justification.
(3) In Hebrews 10:32-39, justification in the midst of an afflicting world is
through faith alone in the Son of this only God of Habakkuk. This is a
gospel application concerning the ongoing, sanctifying role of justification by
faith with regard to endurance in the midst of various trials.

F. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND CHRISTIAN MUSIC
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CONCLUSION 301
Since the creation of man, music seems to have been of innate interest to him as the most
dominant of the arts. As God gave man a capacity to be literate, so it seems He also gave
man an ability to be musical. In this regard it is not surprising that Martin Luther should
declare, “Next after theology I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor. . . .
Experience proves that next to the Word of God only music deserves to be extolled as the
mistress and governess of the feelings of the human heart” 73 For the Reformer, music was of
great importance to him personally, yet he recognized that its ability to stimulate the senses
required that it be regulated by the truth of Scripture. So for the child of God, since the
invention of the “lyre and pipe” by Jubal in Genesis 4:21, music has been an integral part of
life lived under the keeping of His saving grace. While Israel showed little interest in
painting, and especially sculpture since it suggested idolatry, yet music appears to have been
the chief art in social gatherings (Gen. 31:27), civil celebration (I Sam. 18:6-7), but
preeminently religious worship (I Chron. 25:1-8).
However, our concern is with the content emphasis of the music of the Hebrew in the Old
Testament and the Christian in the New Testament. What accounts we have in this regard in
the Bible, by their very nature of being recorded words, focus chiefly on what was sung
rather than the type of melody employed. Thus there stands out in the most obvious relief
the priority of the character and activity of God, for while the medium was employed by
means of a variety of instruments as well as the individual and choir, yet the singular passion
was the worship and praise of the blessed Jehovah. It is this predominant factor that
confronts the contemporary world of Christian music with both stark contrast and
inevitable judgment.
1. God-centeredness in the music of the Bible.
From the beginning it is maintained that at its foundation, Christian music is concerned
with Jehovah/Yahweh according to both stimulation and occupation. He provokes the
musical capacity of the child of God (Ps. 40:3) and as a consequence becomes the chief
object of devotion in music (Ps. 33:1-3). It is further proposed that participation in
Christian music is for every Christian and not simply the accomplished instrumentalist
or soloist. While the vocal cords and lips may struggle to keep a tune, nevertheless the
heart can. Hence, the highest form of Christian music is congregational or fellowship
singing in which every child of God may participate.
a. Old Testament music.
It was predominantly vocal with instrumental or orchestral accompaniment. This
included stringed instruments (lyre, psaltery, sackbut), wind instruments (pipe,
flute, organ, horn, trumpet), and percussion instruments (bells, cymbals, timbrel).
(1) The songs of Moses.
We should not forget that in his youth, Moses was highly educated in Egypt
(Exod. 2:10-11), in which case he would most likely have been instructed in
poetic and musical composition as well as the playing of instruments.
Roland H. Bainton, Here I Stand, p. 267.

302
(a) Ex. 15:1-21.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
Following the deliverance of Israel from the Egyptians through the Reed
Sea, Moses is immediately moved to lead his people in a song that
praises God for His salvation and redemption, vs. 2, 13. Note in v. 2 the
words, “The LORD is my strength and my song.” Here the attributes of
God are to be intrinsic to true hymnody. The distinctive character of
God is the dominant emphasis in this passage, including His
omnipotence and sovereignty, vs. 2, 6, 13, 16, transcendent majesty, v.
7, anger, v. 7, uniqueness, v. 11, holiness, v. 11, lovingkindness, v. 13,
imminence, v. 17, eternity, v. 18.
(b) Deut. 32:1-43.
(2) The Psalms.
Just prior to Moses’ ascent of Mt. Nebo where he was to view the
promised land and then die, he leads Israel in a farewell song of warning
and promise. Again, the character of God dominates, especially in the
opening and closing segments of vs. 3-4, 39-43.
Though it would appear difficult to deny that the pervasive theme of Psalms
is the praise of God, nevertheless it ought to be considered that while praise
is the predominant activity of the psalmist, yet the supremely grand theme
and object is the character and consequent activity of that God of praise, that
is the Jehovah of Israel. Thus God, His glorious being and doing, under the
believer’s appreciative eye, is the theme of Psalms. And it is man’s
appreciation in this realm, though in Hebrew poetic form, that focuses
almost continuously on the attributes of God, as evidenced in the following:
(a) His name.
Most of the one hundred and fifty psalms sing the praise of God by the
means of His primary name as LORD revealed exclusively to Israel (Ex.
3:13-15). So Psalm 8 begins and commences, “O LORD [Jehovah], our
Lord [Adonai], how majestic is Thy name in all the earth.” The
intervening verses expound on aspects of God’s character including His
“splendor” v. 1, “wisdom” v. 2, “creative finesse” v. 3, “dominion over
man and beast” vs. 4-8. So Isaac Watts encourages us to sing this Psalm
as follows:
I sing the almighty power of God,
That made the mountains rise.
That spread the flowing seas abroad,
And built the lofty skies.
I sing the wisdom that ordained
The sun to rule the day;
The moon shines full at His command
And all the stars obey.

(b) His being.
CONCLUSION 303
I sing the goodness of the Lord,
That filled the earth with food;
He formed the creatures with His word,
And then pronounced them good.
Merely as representative, Psalm 145 provides a vast panorama of His
attributes that are awe-inspiring, including “greatness” vs. 3, 6, “glory,
vs. 11, 12, splendor, majesty” vs. 5, 12, “awesome power” vs. 6, 11,
“goodness” vs. 7, 9, righteousness” vs. 7, 17, “grace” v. 8, “mercy” vs.
8, 9, 17, “lovingkindness” v. 8, “eternity” v. 13, “benevolence” vs. 14-
16, “immanence” v. 18. Thus Isaac Watts has expressed this glorious
panorama of truth as follows:
Long as I live I’ll bless Thy Name,
My King, my God of love;
My work and joy shall be the same
In the bright world above.
Great is the Lord, His power unknown,
And let His praise be great:
I’ll sing the honors of Thy throne,
Thy works of grace repeat.
Thy grace shall dwell upon my tongue,
And while my lips rejoice,
The men that hear my sacred song
Shall join their cheerful voice.
Fathers to sons shall teach Thy Name,
And children learn Thy ways;
Ages to come Thy truth proclaim,
And nations sound Thy praise.
Thy glorious deeds of ancient date
Shall through the world be known;
Thine arm of power, Thy heavenly state,
With public splendor shown.
The world is managed by Thy hands,
Thy saints are ruled by love;
And Thine eternal kingdom stands,
Though rocks and hills remove.
From another perspective, some psalms concentrate more upon one
aspect of God’s character, such as His holiness (Ps. 99:3, 5, 9), or
righteousness (Ps. 71:2, 15, 16, 19, 24). Further consider the declaration
of God’s great being in Psalm 147, and particularly verse 5, “Great is
our LORD, and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.”
Thus Watts’ provides an expanded hymnic version, found on page 128,
that especially focuses upon God’s attribute of infinity.

304
(c) His doing.
b. New Testament music.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
According to the being of God, so is His resultant doing. Because He is
righteous, so He responds with justice; because He is good, so he
responds with lovingkindness in a multitude of ways. Thus in Psalm
136, David was moved to compose an antiphonal or two-part type of
psalm that would suit the choral praise of God, particularly His
exploits. In other words, one part of the choir would lead with a
proposition about thanksgiving and praise for God’s activity, such as in
v. 5, “[Give thanks] to Him who made the heavens with skill;” the
second part of the choir would respond twenty-six times to each
distinctive item, “For His lovingkindness is everlasting.” Especially note
in this psalm that vs. 1-3, 26 first deal with God’s essential attributes,
then in vs. 4-25 the thanksgiving focuses on His active attributes. So
Isaac Watts leads us to sing this psalm in a “Chrisianized” form.
Give to our God immortal praise;
Mercy and truth are all His ways:
Wonders of grace to God belong,
Repeat His mercies in your son.
He built the earth, He spread the sky,
And fixed the starry lights on high:
Wonders of grace to God belong,
Repeat His mercies in your song.
He sent His Son with power to save
From guilt and darkness and the grave:
Wonders of grace to God belong,
Repeat His mercies in your song.
The events that surround the annunciation and birth of Jesus Christ are described
in a hymnic form, especially in Luke, that draws heavily upon the Old Testament.
In Matthew 26:26-30, at the conclusion of the Upper Room gathering of passion
week we are told, “And after singing a hymn, they [Jesus and his disciples] went
out to the Mount of Olives.” Undoubtedly this singing would have been based
upon a Psalm. In all of these instances, the specific character of God is a dominant
feature, and thus so it is to be in the exhortations of Ephesians 5:15-21;
Colossians 3:15-17. The singing of Jesus Christ in Hebrews 2:12 is a direct
reference to the Son of God singing the praises of his Father, and the human mind
surely cannot fathom the depth of regard for the Father’s character that consumes
His Son in this regard.
(1) The songs of Luke.
The fact that the Gospel of Luke is so distinctively hymnic is reflective of the
significant role of music, not only with regard to heavenly beings, but also in
the Christian Church from its very inception.

74
(a) The Ave Maria, Luke 1:26-38.
CONCLUSION 305
The conversation between Gabriel and Mary speaks of “the Lord
[Jehovah]” v. 28, “the Lord God [Jehovah Elohim]” v. 32, “God’s
favor” v. 30, “the Most High” vs. 32, 35, God’s sovereignty, since
nothing is beyond His power, v. 37.
(b) The Magnificat, Luke 1:46-55.
For Mary, God is “Lord [Jehovah]” v. 46, “Savior” v. 47, “the Mighty
One” v. 49, “holy” v. 49, “merciful” v. 50, omnipotent being “strong
armed,” vs. 51-52, benevolent in “filling the hungry,” v. 53-54.
(c) The Benedictus, Luke 1:68-79.,
For Zacharias, God is “Lord God [Jehovah Elohim],” vs. 68, 76,
“Savior, Redeemer” vs. 68-69, 77, “merciful” v. 72, 78, “faithful” vs.
72-73, “holy [implicit]” v. 75, “righteous [implicit]” v. 75, “the Most
High” v. 76, “pardoning” v. 77, “providential,” vs. 78-79.
(d) The Gloria In Excelsis, Luke 2:8-20.
The encounter between an angel of the Lord and the shepherds speaks
of “the glory of the Lord,” v. 9, “God in the highest,” v. 14, “the Lord
[Jehovah],” v. 15, God’s “praise” v. 13, 20.
(e) The Nunc Dimitus, Luke 2:29-32.
For Simeon, God is “Lord [Jehovah]” v. 29, “peace giver” v. 29,
“faithful,” v. 29, “Savior” v. 30, “light giver,” vs. 31-32.
(2) The songs of the church.
Manton, Works, XIX, p. 414.
In Ephesians 5:15-20, Christians are to “be filled with the Spirit, speaking to
one another in psalms [yalmo,j, psalmos] and hymns [u[mnoj, humnos] and
spiritual songs [wv|dh, ōdē], singing and making melody with your heart to the
Lord.” At the same time they are to be, “always giving thanks for all things
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.” In Colossians
3: 16-17, Christians are to “let the word of Christ richly dwell within you,
with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
What is to be the substance of this singing? It is to be “to the Lord,” even “to
God,” that is in praise of the Lord, after the manner of the Psalms, and this
means in praise of the glories of His being and doing. Thomas Manton
comments, “Surely, if there be anything pleasant in the world to a gracious
heart, it is the praises of God that flow from a believing and loving soul, that
is full of the sense of the mercy and goodness and excellencies of the Lord.” 74

306
(3) The songs of Revelation.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
The hymnic emphasis here, as with the Gospel of Luke, is likewise significant
in that it describes the domain of heaven as being occupied with Godcentered
music, even as are the saints upon earth.
(a) The elders’ new song, Revelation 5:8-14.
Here the Lord Jesus Christ is the object of “a new song,” a song that is
transcendentally superior and different from singing in general (cf. Ps.
33:3; 40:3; 98:1), for it declares the glory that is his due. Christ in the
midst of the throne of God is exalted by a great multitude as Lamb and
God, yet the focus is on his humiliation and exaltation to be judge at the
end of the age. Isaac Watts describes part of this scene as follows:
Come, let us join our cheerful songs
With angels round the throne;
Ten thousand thousand are their tongues,
But all their joys are one.
“Worthy the Lamb that died!” they cry,
“To be exalted thus”;
“Worthy the Lamb!” our lips reply,
“For He was slain for us.”
Jesus is worthy to receive
Honor and power divine;
And blessings more than we can give
Be, Lord, for ever Thine.
(b) The song of Moses and the Lamb, Revelation 15:2-4.
The song of Moses in Exodus 15:1-21 now becomes adapted as the
basis of the song of the Lamb, with other Old Testament passages being
incorporated (Ps. 86:9; 111:2; 145:17; Isa. 2:2-4; 66:23). All of these
references are saturated with regard for the character of God. William
Hammond writes concerning this scene:
Awake, and sing the song
Of Moses and the Lamb;
Wake every heart and every tongue,
To praise the Savior’s name.
Sing of His dying love;
Sing of His rising power;
Sing how He intercedes above
For those whose sins He bore.

2. God-centeredness in the music of church history.
a. The Early and Medieval era.
CONCLUSION 307
Ambrose, Bishop of Milan and mentor of Augustine (340-397), is usually
regarded as being the father of hymnody within the Western church. He writes:
Splendor [Christ] of God’s glory bright,
Thou that bringest light from light,
Light of light, light’s living spring,
Day, all days illumining.
The Father, too, our prayers implore,
Father of glory evermore;
The Father of all grace and might,
To banish sin from our delight.
However, on through the medieval period, and whatever great deficiencies
accumulated during that time, yet such writers as Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-
1153) and Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) are all characterized in their writings
with high and exalted views of God.
b. The Reformation era.
Under the stimulus of Luther, hymnody takes on new significance especially as the
gospel of free grace, in conjunction with the priesthood of all believers, loosens the
tongues of the laity. However, the resultant musical awakening was reflective of
not only life in the justified, but also the praise of God’s mercy that at the same
time was reverently adored. So the theme hymn coming from the pen of that
volcanic Reformer well represents the regained vitality of God-centeredness.
c. The Great Awakening era.
A mighty Fortress is our God,
A Bulwark never failing;
A Helper he amid the flood
Of mortal ills prevailing.
For still our ancient foe
Doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and pow’r are great;
And armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.
Surely this eighteenth century period remains the golden age of church hymnody
since such a galaxy of luminaries shone forth as never before. And it should be
noted that this flood of God-centered praise and worship was a consequence
rather than a cause of true revival that so profoundly affected Great Britain,
Europe, and the United States. Consider the influence of Watts, Wesley,
Doddridge, Cowper, Toplady, Rothe, Zinzendorf, followed into the next century
by Bonar, Faber, Monsell, Montgomery, Rossetti, etc. However it was, above all
else, the preaching of this time and onward that so stimulated the outburst of
gospel truth in song. The regained message of the evangel led to hearts singing a

308
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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
new song of saving grace and, as with Scripture, that new song was about the
glorious character of a righteous and redeeming God. Representative of this
theocentric priority, Charles Wesley writes:
Thee will I praise with all my heart,
And tell mankind how good Thou art,
How marvellous Thy works of grace;
Thy name I will in songs record,
And joy and glory in my Lord,
Extolled above all thanks and praise.
In another of his over 6,500 hymns he declares:
Praise the Lord who reigns above,
And keeps His court below;
Praise the holy God of love,
And all His greatness show;
Praise Him for His noble deeds,
Praise Him for His matchless power:
Him from whom all good proceeds
Let earth and heaven adore.
3. God-centeredness lacking in twentieth century music.
That change has come to Christian music, especially during the latter part of the
twentieth century is undeniable. The reason for this, broadly speaking, is based upon
one of two options. Either the change is a result of degeneration from certain fixed
standards that are inherent in music, or it is merely a reflection of cultural differences,
of fluctuation of style and change of taste. The latter view might be designated as
musical relativism, which denies that there is really universal and innate appreciation of
harmony and discord since music is essentially neutral. Thus John Blanchard responds
to this proposition:
[I]f music is neutral, if it can say whatever the hearers want it to say, then why are certain
kinds chosen as background music played on aeroplanes, in supermarkets, or in places
likely to be stressful? If music is neutral, why would we consider the theme music from
Alfred Hitchcock’s film Psycho unsuitable to be played in a dentist’s waiting room? The
obvious reason is that the music is chosen to do something; and the reason it can do
something is that it is not neutral. 75
We might further enquire if, merely through conditioning, the hitting of several random
notes on a piano might be acknowledged as harmonious to the ear while acknowledged
chords would be objected to as discordant? Certainly John Cage has attempted this
with his “chance music.” But as Francis Schaeffer explains, “in Cage’s universe nothing
comes through in the music except noise and confusion or total silence.” 76 Further,
could it ever be said that repetitive screeching, resulting from fingernails being rapidly
scraped across a blackboard, would eventually be regarded as the production of
pleasant sound?
John Blanchard, Pop Goes The Gospel, pp. 102-6.
Francis A. Schaeffer, The God Who Is There, p. 73.

CONCLUSION 309
The former view, while not denying a variety in musical style, yet maintains that there
are certain fixed elements, related to human nature, that establish inviolate standards
for primitive and mature music. In support of this perspective, in terms of secular
music, reference should be made to Dionysus Rising by E. Michael Jones subtitled,
“The Birth of Cultural Revolution out of the Spirit of Music” in which he details the
descent from harmony to dissonance via Wagner, then Nietzsche to Schönberg to Mick
Jagger. 77
Francis Schaeffer has also written in a similar vein. 78
Concerning the fixity of
the effects of rock music, whether it be secular or religious, John Blanchard refers to a
university study in which it was concluded: “There is simply no such thing as Christian
rock that is substantively different in its impact [from secular rock].” 79
a. Man-centeredness invades the church.
With regard to current standards of music in the Christian church, it is obvious
that the new styles are a result of influence from the world in its downgrade
course concerning the arts in general. The church has not, with the originality of
the new song that it is to sing, introduced music that is compatible with redeemed
souls. Rather it has imported style from secular man, arguing that such a method
finds justification from Martin Luther who borrowed tunes from the barroom and
adapted them to church hymn singing. But this is simply not true as David W.
Music explains in his article, “Getting Luther out of the Barroom.” This myth
arose from a misunderstanding over musical terminology. Many of Luther’s tunes
were composed according to a “Bar form,” which described a certain musical
phraseology that had nothing at all to do with places of entertainment.
Luther’s hymns were designed for popular use, but were not radically different in
style from the sacred art music of the time. . . . He [Luther] even advocated the
continued use of Latin in church music, a point that is often overlooked by those
who view Luther as the ‘patron saint’ of contemporary Christian Music. 80
b. Truth yields priority to sensuality.
It is significant that so much of modern Christian music is cacophonous, and
consistently so. The rationale is that of using “praise songs” according to certain
Psalms that exhort, “O clap your hands, all people; shout to God with the voice of
joy” (Ps. 47:1), and “Praise Him with loud cymbals; praise Him with resounding
cymbals” (Ps. 150:5). But at the same time there is little music of a contemplative
nature, and this leads us to suggest that once again, it is the clamor for high
decibel music in the world that has led many in the church into being seduced
with the same priority. Therefore, as the world, because of the noise and the
sensual satisfaction that is produced, is not overly concerned about the meaning of
words, so modern Christian music likewise pays less attention to truth while
majoring on sensational effect. Certainly contemporary Christian music has
words, but the point is that the truth content is at best childish, and at worst
77 E. Michael Jones, Dionysus Rising, 204 pp.
78 Francis A. Schaeffer, The God Who Is There, pp. 37-43, 70-4.
79
Blanchard, Pop Goes The Gospel, p. 191.
80
David W. Music, “Getting Luther out of the Barroom,” The Hymn - A Journal Of Congregational Song, July
1994, p. 51.

310
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THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
vague, man-centered sentimentality. Most obvious is the fact that while God is
mentioned, yet the perspective of the composer is spiritually bland and shriveled.
The issue is not simply one of a new mode of expression, but a pale appreciation
of the glory of God according to a writer that pens his spiritual poverty.
John Blanchard writes:
Two very competent musicians, very much a part of the Christian pop scene, put it
to us like this: “The major problem of rock music is the noise level. The words are
often inaudible and even if they were audible the degree of truth in them would be
negligible.” . . . But in evangelism the words are vitally important. The Bible speaks
of “the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation” (Eph. 1:13). . . . How then can
the work of evangelism be helped by something which makes the message more
difficult to hear? 81
Thus biblical music starts with truth, and in the realm of Christianity, that truth is
grounded upon the knowledge of God. Therefore biblical music will always be
God-centered.
2. God-centeredness the requisite for twentieth century music.
Take the examples of men like Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, and Horatius Bonar. First
and foremost these were profound men of God. The well of their souls was deep with
the experiential knowledge of God; it was from this fullness that they drew and as a
result composed hymns which the redeemed soul loves to sing. These men were
thoroughly taught in the Bible, even the original languages, as well as systematic
theology. But all of this truth, centering on the grace of God in the gospel, had been
ignited in their souls through the Holy Spirit.
a. The well of good music composition is a consecrated soul.
A Christian gives first priority to a saving and sanctifying knowledge of God; then
he discovers the Spiritual gift(s) that God has freely bestowed upon him. He does
not first opt for being a musician, rather he discovers his area of giftedness which
may or may not involve musical ability. However, even with an acknowledged
talent for music, it is vital that the child of God give priority to Christian graces or
fruit that best regulate Spiritual gifts, for when this fruit is well cultivated, then the
music will indeed be nourishing to hungry souls. But giftedness in music with an
obvious lack in spiritual graces will result is music that lacks glory and sweetness;
it will tend to be more man-centered rather than God-centered. Psalm 87:7 well
describes the Christian singer or instrumentalist: “Then those who sing as well as
those who play the flute shall say, ‘All my springs of joy are in you [God].’
b. The components of good music should direct us toward God.
Good music depends upon the mix of certain elements just as good cooking
depends on the right balance of ingredients. Just as we need a variety of food,
whether bread or cake, so also the Christian will be blessed with a variety of
music, yet a mix of certain basics will remain necessary. Some cooking, with an
Blanchard, Pop Goes The Gospel, pp. 26-7.

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imbalance of ingredients ends up as stodge, even as does some modern music
which is mainly comprised of beat and primitive melody that is usually fortissimo
(very loud), with the vocalist slipping and sliding around in a manner that is not
new; it is simply crooning as the world has so effectively taught. The first
ingredient in good Christian music is that of truth that focuses on God, His being
and doing, and establishes the parameters of the tune rather than contrariwise.
Second, the tune must have a melody that is appropriate to the truth since it
provides a musical story-line; integral to this are the elements of mood, timing,
rhythm, color, etc. Third, the accompanying instrument must be suitable to
singing by a congregation. In 1761, John Wesley published a tune book titled
Sacred Melody which, he said, “contains all the tunes which are in common use
amongst us.” He further included directions for the use of this volume by
Methodist singers. They are certainly intended to promote the priority of Godcenteredness
in congregational singing.
I. Learn these Tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as
you please.
II. Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at
all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can.
III. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let
not a slight degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it
up, and you will find it a blessing.
IV. Sing lustily and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half
dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your
voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of
Satan.
V. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest
of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your
voices, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
VI. Sing in time. Whatever time is sung, be sure to keep with it. Do not run before
nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as
exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally
steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from amongst us, and
sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first.
VII. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at
pleasing Him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend
strictly to the sense of what you sing and see that your heart is not carried away with
the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord
will approve of here, and reward you when He cometh in the clouds of heaven. 82
James T. Lightwood, The Music of The Methodist Hymn-Book, pp. xix-xx.

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F. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND LOCAL CHURCH MATURITY
Among all of the assemblies of human beings in the world, whether they be for the purpose
of government, entertainment, or religion, it is the gathering of Christians in local church
fellowships that distinguishes itself, and principally because God is specially present in such
meetings of His redeemed children (Eph. 2:19-22). But how are such Christians to respond
to this presence? How are children of God to behave before their Father in His spiritual
dwelling place? First and foremost, while being involved in loving fellowship and a holy
lifestyle, they are to worship God according to their knowledge of Him.
1. The character of God as a model of righteousness.
In Christian family relationships, it is the proper moral conformity to and proper
honoring of parents by their children that establishes a home where harmony and
loving order reign. The parents are seen to be genuine in the wholesome standards they
maintain and not hypocrites. Hence the children, in the light of the good character or
attributes of their parents, have both proper models and encouragement with integrity
as they grow into this likeness. Likewise in the fellowship of a local church, there ought
to be similar constraint upon the children of God as they behold both the righteous and
gracious character of their Father in heaven. Indeed, Paul directs us in Ephesians 5:1, to
“be imitators [mimhtai,B mimētai] of God as beloved children.” That is, as believers
comprehend that God is love and that they are loved by God, they are to model their
lives according to this truth, but especially as this truth is embodied in the person of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Hence, there is the fitting subsequent exhortation in Ephesians 5:2,
namely, “walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us.” As
believers behold that God is holy, so they are to emulate their Father by means of holy
behavior (I Pet. 1:15).
2. The character of God as the object of worship.
However, in such godly family life, there is yet something else that even transcends in
importance generated and modeled likeness in the healthy growth of children. It is not
enough that our sons and daughters should reflect their parents, even morally and
spiritually. For beyond this is the desire that our children should spontaneously admire
and adore their father and mother, yes even rightly worship or honor them. Here surely
is the ultimate reward and delight for any parent. And so it is with regard to authentic
children of God. For not only are they to be godly or “God-like” (Matt. 5:48; Luke
6:36; Eph. 4:32), but also, supremely they are to worship their Father in heaven who
has begotten them (John 4:23-24). With such a principle in mind then, consider the
following instructive comment of A. W. Tozer with regard to this priority of worship.
The purpose of God in sending His Son to die and rise and live and be at the right hand of
God the Father was that He might restore to us the missing jewel, the jewel of worship;
that we might come back and learn to do again that which we were created to do in the
first place—worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness, to spend our time in awesome
wonder and adoration of God, feeling and expressing it, and letting it get into our labors
and doing nothing except as an act of worship to Almighty God through His Son Jesus
Christ. I say that the greatest tragedy in the world today is that God has made man in His
image and made him to worship Him, made him to play the harp of worship before the

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face of God day and night, but he has failed God and dropped the harp. It lies voiceless at
His feet. 83
3. What is biblical worship?
Now while true Christian worship is essentially an internal and individual matter, yet
the Bible more often describes it as a corporate response whereby believers are
strengthened and encouraged in their common adoration of God. Hence, it is
customary parlance for church attenders to describe their gathering as a “worship
service.” But what exactly is meant by this expression? The usual Hebrew word for
worship is hx'v', shachah, which describes prostration or stooping in submissive
adoration, while the Greek proskune,w, proskuneō, speaks of bowing to kiss with
obeisance and reverence. The English word means acknowledgment of “worth-ship” or
“worthiness” with regard to the admirable value and revered estimation of God.
Hence, all in all, to worship God means to adoringly, reverently, and submissively
admire what we personally, intimately know about Him, and such knowledge brings us
to the necessity of a full and rich understanding of His attributes. True worship and a
profound appreciation of the character of God are inseparably related, especially with
regard to biblical rather than contrived worship in a local church. John MacArthur
says it well:
If our worship is to be meaningful, if it is to be acceptable, we must seek to conceive of
God as He has revealed Himself to us. . . . An intimate knowledge of the person of God is
perhaps the greatest motivation to true, overflowing, whole-life worship. When we begin
to know God as He is, our response has to be that of magnifying Him, giving Him glory
for who He is and what He does for us. 84
a. Modern evangelical worship.
With this point firmly in mind, it should not surprise us today that much so-called
worship is in fact a reflection of widespread ignorance amongst professing
Christians concerning the attributes of God, and that within the nucleus of local
church fellowship. Hence, it is this spiritual myopia which produces a blurred
vision of God that has caused the body of Christ in this century to become
immature and stunted rather than full-grown (Eph. 4:13). The spirit of the
Samaritans has come among us, for the Son of God could, with greater
justification, declare to our shameful condemnation that: “You worship that
which you do not know” (John 4:22). This being true, then what is the essence of
modern evangelical worship? Peter Masters perceptively suggests that the devil has
artfully redirected worship away from God towards man.
The devil wants to stop humble, reverent, rational praise rising from the creature to
the Creator. To achieve this he has introduced into evangelical fellowships various
forms of worship which are earthly, sensual and selfish. The object of this worship is
that worshipers should enjoy themselves as they thrill to music, or work up exciting
emotional sensations. Some people will throw themselves into orgies of ecstasy,
while others will indulge their appetite for vainglory by appointing themselves as
prophets. Significantly, the new approach to worship is chiefly promoted by the
A. W. Tozer, Worship - The Missing Jewel Of The Evangelical Church, pp. 12-3.
John MacArthur, Jr., The Ultimate Priority, pp. 35, 46.

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healing [Charismatic] movement. The new worship is “all-for-me” worship. It is a
thrill; a season of uninhibited release. It is a time when the rational part of a person
may be subdued or discarded in favor of emotional escapism. This new worship is
purely subjective, for it is all about my feelings, my moods, my health. It is not
looking at God, leaning on Him, worshiping Him. If the devil can pervert true,
rational worship what a wonderful triumph he scores! If he can make people
subjective and petty, how pleased he will be. If he can reduce a congregation of
born-again people to superficial emotionalism, mystical mutterings, trembling and
weeping, experience of physical sensations, clapping and dancing and banal,
repetitive singing, then he will rob God of worship and render the church offensive
to Him. 85
b. Evangelical worship that is biblical.
How then does a church that is weak through being bent over in man-centered
navel gazing become upright, mature, and adult? Only by means of an uplifting,
mind-enlarging, soul stimulating proclamation of the grandeur and blazing glory
of God that snatches the attention of man away from his own mere flickering
flame.
(1) The Corinthian model.
Consider how in I Corinthians 3:1-9, 21-23, Paul first judges the church at
Corinth to be carnal and childish. Next he condemns that form of ministry
which focuses attention on men such as Apollos, Peter, or himself. Then he
redirects the Corinthian believers towards the priority of God in everything,
and later offers the stern rebuke: “Become sober-minded as you ought, and
stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your
shame” (I Cor. 15:34). Concerning the unsettling mania with regard to
charismatic gifts in this same troubled church, it is significant that Paul
directs the believer, not further along an emphatically pneumatic path, but
rather toward a balanced understanding of God’s triunity (I Cor. 12:3-6).
(2) The Father as the adorable Head.
The testimony of the former Charismatic spokesman, Anglican Thomas
Smail, is most relevant at this juncture. While he does not repudiate this socalled
renewal movement as a whole, having been deeply involved in it for
many years, he does confess to becoming increasingly disenchanted and
distant from it as the result of returning to a balanced understanding of the
triune God. In The Forgotten Father he writes:
Peter Masters, The Healing Epidemic, pp. 16-7.
[It is] my conviction that the relationship between the divine Father and his
equally divine and incarnate Son is at the very heart of the gospel. If that
relationship is removed or eroded, the good news of the gospel will inevitably
be obscured or destroyed. For me the central contemporary issue for Christians
is not about signs and wonders but about how we shall answer the primary
and crucial question of Jesus, “Who do you say that I am?” . . . The
charismatic experience can most certainly rejuvenate people and churches, but

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how much evidence is there that it can mature them, by delivering them from
their insidious self-concern and making them profitable and outward members
of the body of Christ? The answer to that depends in considerable measure on
how they relate to the Father. [The] doctrine, worship, fellowship and witness
of the Church needs to be related equally and appropriately to the Father, the
Son and the Spirit. . . . All one sidedness in the faith or practice of the churches
can be understood in Trinitarian terms as a failure to do due honor to one of
the persons of the Trinity, or to realize their proper relationship to one
another. There is a thirst for miracles and a disinclination to ask in whose
name they are being performed, . . . and to my mind it is largely a diversion
and distraction from spiritual renewal rather than an expression of it. In the
New Testament there is no such autonomous realm in the Spirit, which evolves
from inside itself, building on its own experiences and developing its own
techniques. The realm of the Spirit is entirely subordinate to that of the Father
and the Son. 86
This is a profoundly significant statement that should not be limited in
application to the Charismatic Movement. Countless evangelical churches,
that would reckon on their being doctrinally and confessionally sound, are
yet blindly directed according to a distorted trinitarianism resulting in a
misplaced Pneumacentricity or Christocenticity that is in fact an insult to the
orphaned Father of that same Spirit and Son. This being the case, it is not
surprising that contemporary worship is vague, confused, and distorted.
(3) The Jewish restoration model.
If the church of Jesus Christ is to experience genuine renewal that is
productive of authentic worship, then it must return to an earnest seeking
after the knowledge of God as did Israel under the direction of Ezra and
Nehemiah. When the remnant that had returned from Babylon was convicted
of its spiritual ignorance and lethargy, the people asked that Ezra instruct
them in the Word of God, and this he did at length with great faithfulness
(Neh. 8:1-8). As a result, the sons of Israel not only repented of their torpor,
but also continued to thirst for the truth of God, so that, “they read from the
book of the law of the LORD their God for a fourth of the day; and for
another fourth they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God” (Neh.
9:3). In other words, three hours of confession and worship freely flowed
forth after three hours of expository teaching! And what so permeated this
ministry, presumably of Levites under Ezra (Neh. 9:5-38), as we have already
seen in pages 5, 266-267, was a graphic portrayal of the perfections and
great glory of God as reflected in the history of Israel.
Should we be surprised then today if evangelical churches are so bereft of
true worship when they hear so little about the triune God of the Bible? And
what shall we say to comfort those passionately faithful preachers who
proclaim the attributes of God with power and application, when their
congregations rise up in opposition under the pretext that they are not
interested in theology? Might we not more realistically conclude that such
people are not seriously interested in God?
Thomas A. Smail, The Forgotten Father, pp. 9-10, 24-6.

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c. Evangelical worship that is intelligent.
The truth is that the worship of God is fundamentally a matter of the mind
involving our intelligence rather than our emotions. Undoubtedly there ought to
be fervent, intense emotional response in worship, but it is nevertheless a response
to the truth about God, and that means the knowledge concerning who He is. We
might say that true worship is certainly visceral because it is firstly cerebral! This
principle is nowhere better illustrated than in the Book of Psalms where a
superficial appraisal might suggest the preeminence of emotion over doctrine.
However, consider Sinclair Ferguson’s comments in this respect with regard to
Psalm 92.
The basis of worship in these words is obvious. The worship of the psalmist is the
direct consequence of the God-centeredness of his heart and life. His lips make music
and are full of praise (verse 1). But notice that he is not interested in the music for its
own sake, nor even because of its influence on his emotions, beneficial though they
may be. No! What dominates his thinking is that his praise is directed to the Lord,
and his music is made “to your name, O Most High.” That is the difference between
going to a service “for worship” and going to a service “to worship the Lord.” The
distinction appears to be a minor one, but it may imply the difference between the
worship of God and the worship of music! The foundation of worship in the heart,
therefore, is not emotional (“I feel full of worship” or “The atmosphere is so
worshipful”). Actually, it is theological. Worship is not something we “work up”, it
is something that “comes down” to us, from the character of God. 87
4. The character of God as the stimulus to worship.
Hence, if local church worship is to be God-centered, then it is the pastoral
responsibility of the elders to be careful in maintaining true worship services where the
perfections of God radiate forth from the various ministries, not in a contrived way,
but as a result of the elders themselves being, in the best sense of that term, men of
God.
a. In the preaching and teaching of the Word of God.
b. In prayer, both corporate and individual.
c. In congregational singing.
d. In the administration of the ordinances.
e. In evangelistic outreach.
In other words, if God exhorts His children, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (I Pet.
1:15), then it is incumbent upon the church leadership for the holiness of God to be
evident in both demeanor and doctrine. Only then will the congregation be stimulated
to sing as they ought. Anglican vicar and hymn writer John Monsell declared, no doubt
decrying formal restraint, that,
Sinclair Ferguson, A Heart For God, pp. 109-10.

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we are too distant and reserved in our praises, we sing not as we should sing to Him and
of Him who is chief among ten thousand, the altogether lovely.” [Of his ministry it was
said that] his Guildford Rectory was “an ideal household, full of the beauty of holiness,
with genial brightness and gaiety playing like sunshine over all the troubles of life. 88
So he wrote of that which he embodied.
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Bow down before Him, His glory proclaim;
With gold of obedience and incense of lowliness,
Kneel and adore Him, the Lord is His name.
John Telford, The Methodist Hymn-Book Illustrated, p. 11.

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G. THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD AND INDIVIDUAL CHRISTIAN MATURITY
When Moses ascended Mt. Sinai alone to intimately commune with God, we are told that,
“the LORD descended in the cloud and stood there with him as he called upon the name of
the Lord. Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD
God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and
truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin;
yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the
children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.’ And Moses made
haste to bow before the earth and worship” (Ex. 34:5-8). It appears that the attributes of
God were so gloriously embodied before Moses’ eyes that they constrained him to quickly
prostrate himself in worship before this theophany in a setting that was intensely private.
1. The primacy of the individual before God.
Now while the corporate adoration of God in the fellowship of the saints is of great
encouragement to the Christian, yet it must be said that it is the individual and private
encounter with God that is the most awesome and soul-enriching. To be alone with
God forces us to throw away any pretense and come to grips with just how real is our
faith and knowledge. Hence, having studied the attributes of God in some detail to this
point, it is now suggested that nothing is so important as grappling with this truth
alone in the depths of one’s soul. Of course the Christian is not alone, and his Savior
has obtained for him a way of access to the Father calling for boldness (Eph. 3:11-12).
Nevertheless, no Christian is to presume with regard to his newfound sonship, “for our
God is [remains] a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:29), even as He was for Moses (Deut.
4:23-24; 9:3), and Isaiah (Isa. 33:13-14). Therefore, with a sense of sober yet blissful
anticipation, we ought to pursue God with such a singleness of purpose that He alone
becomes the most serious and consuming interest of our life. We ought to so esteem
and admire God, in this greatest of all quests, that we sing with Asaph: “Whom have I
in heaven but Thee? And besides Thee, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my
heart may fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Ps. 73:25-
26). And the result will surely be that in this “aloneness” with God we will find heaven
opened before our eyes.
a. The example of John Bunyan in solitude with God.
When John Bunyan was imprisoned in Bedford jail for twelve years, he recounts
that not only did his carnal weaknesses confront him, but also he had such intense
blessings in that depressing and solitary place that they appeared to be
incomparably greater than those blessings enjoyed in liberty. He recounts in Grace
Abounding To The Chief Of Sinners:
So being again delivered up to the jailer’s hands, I was had home to prison again,
and there have lain now ‘complete twelve years,’ waiting to see what God would
suffer these men to do with me. In which condition I have continued with much
content, through grace, but have met with many turnings and goings upon my heart,
both from the Lord, Satan, and my own corruptions. . . . I never had in all my life so
great an inlet into the Word of God as now; those Scriptures that I saw nothing in
before, are made in this place and state to shine upon me; Jesus Christ also was
never more real and apparent than now; here I have seen him and felt him indeed: O
that word, We have not preached unto you cunningly devised fables (II Pet. 1:16);

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and that, God raised Christ from the dead, and gave him glory, that your faith and
hope might be in God (I Pet. 1:21), were blessed words unto me in this my
imprisoned condition. . . . I have been able to laugh at destruction, and to fear
neither the horse nor his rider (Job 39:18). I have had sweet sights of the forgiveness
of my sins in this place, and of my being with Jesus in another world. . . . I never
knew what it was for God to stand by me at all turns, and at every offer of Satan ‘to
afflict me,’ &c., as I have found him since I came in hither. 89
b. The example of the biblical saints in solitude with God.
What more shall we say then of Jacob wrestling alone with God at Peniel (Gen.
32:24), of Elijah alone in the wilderness of Beersheba confronted with God in, “a
sound of gentle blowing [stillness]” (I Kings 19:2-14), of Paul isolated with God in
Arabia (Gal. 1:17), of John the evangelist banished to Patmos, yet in fellowship
with Christ (Rev. 1:9-18), of Jesus Christ alone in the garden of Gethsemane while
his disciples slept, yet communing with His Father (Matt. 26:36-40),)? Only that
we are not commending a mystical flight that beckons us to embark on the life of
an incoherent recluse. However supremely we take the pattern of the Lord Jesus
Christ as our example for he was frequently seeking to be alone in communion
with his Father (Matt. 14:23; Mark 6:46; Luke 6:12; John 6:15). For if God is
really our Father, then the delight of His children will be to enjoy intimate
fellowship with Him.
2. The priority of returning to God.
So we are calling for a vital, intimate, humbling encounter with, dare we say it in
today’s existential world, the definitive God of Holy Scripture, the God of
propositional revelation who saves sinners out of this present evil age (Gal. 1:3-5), the
only living God of Moses, Jacob, Elijah, Paul, and John. So Tozer cautions us.
But the God we must see is not the utilitarian God who is having such a run of popularity
today, whose chief claim to men’s attention is His ability to bring them success in their
various undertakings and who for that reason is being cajoled and flattered by everyone
who wants a favor. The God we must learn to know is the Majesty in the heavens, God
the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, the only wise God our Savior. He it is
that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, who stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain and
spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in, who bringeth out His starry host by number and
calleth them all by name as vanity, who putteth no confidence in princes and asks no
counsel of kings. 90
a. The basis of revival.
While the plight of the Christian Church today is critical, and this is not to be
forgetful of Jesus Christ’s promise that, “the gates of Hades shall not overpower
it” (Matt. 16:18), yet if individual Christians will return to the primacy of the love
of God, that is love towards God, by means of the constraint of gospel grace, then
there will result not only a stemming of the tide of sterile, ineffectual religion, but
also a contrary flood of holy, godly life that will astound a watching world. Surely
Bunyan, Works, I, §§ 319-322, p. 47.
Tozer, Knowledge Of The Holy, pp. 121-2.

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the history of revivals has taught us that this is true. In Jonathan Edwards’, The
Distinguishing Marks Of A Work Of The Spirit Of God, which concerns his close
observation of awakenings in eighteenth century New England, he concludes:
If the spirit that is at work among a people operates as a spirit of love of God and
man, it is a sure sign that it is the Spirit of God. . . . When the spirit that is at work
amongst the people brings many of them to high and exalting thoughts of the Divine
Being, and his glorious perfections; and works in them an admiring, delightful sense
of the excellency of Jesus Christ; representing him as the chief among ten thousand,
and altogether lovely, and makes him precious to the soul; winning and drawing the
heart with those motives and incitements to love; . . . there is the highest kind of
evidence of the influence of a true and divine spirit. 91
b. The basis of the great commandment.
Of course, in today's climate in which the language of belief is so often vague and
plastic, the imperative of Jesus Christ, “You shall love the LORD your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37-38),
needs careful explanation. Specifically, we are to exclusively love the only living
God, who is the LORD, the God of Israel (Deut. 6:5). Where then shall we learn of
this Hebrew God? First, in the Hebrew Scriptures, though subsequently in the
New Testament. Why should we love the LORD as commanded? Because our
accumulating knowledge of Him, both revealed and experiential, will constrain us
to love Him. What degree of devotion does this love call for? Absolute and
unqualified admiration that knows no rivals, and erupts as a fountain from the
depths of our being with praise and obedience (Matt. 22:39). Thus, to love God as
He requires is to know Him intimately, that is to know His attributes in such a
way that we respond with the same passion and fervor as does David on
numerous occasions: “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants
for Thee, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; . . . O GOD, Thou
art my God; I shall seek Thee earnestly; my soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns
for Thee, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have beheld
Thee in the sanctuary, to see Thy power and Thy glory” (Ps. 42:1-2; 63:1-2).
c. The basis of every Christian concern.
In other words, Christians today have fallen away from the chief thing, and not
merely some peripheral issue. With regard to biblical preaching, prayer,
evangelism, justification by faith, Christian music, local church and individual
maturity, we have, like the church at Ephesus in the midst of much legitimate
activity, yet neglected our first love. Therefore, the Lord Jesus calls upon this
church of Asia Minor and us today, to turn our minds back to what is of primary
importance, that is the worship and love of the triune God before all else: “I know
your deeds and your toil and your perseverance, and that you cannot endure evil
men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not,
and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for
My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you
have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and
Jonathan Edwards, Works, II, p. 268.

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repent” (Rev. 2:2-5). While this widespread decline in the precedence of God in all
of our activities may not be so noticeable to many in this present man-centered
generation, yet consider the mere nominal acknowledgment that the Almighty
currently receives. Especially note the way we pray to God with quick patronage
before getting down to our innumerable affairs and needs. Or recall our
conversation in Christian fellowship that is so often light-hearted, lacking in
seriousness, reverence and awe. Then think about our contemporary church music
that is more concerned with a subjective, titillating sensuality rather than the
objective glories of our Father in heaven. But further, look at our feverish activism
by which we deceive ourselves into thinking that this exertion is an acceptable
substitute for the quiet pursuit of God in the study of His Word. J. I. Packer gives
us further illustrations of our diversion from the supreme issue of life as follows:
From current Christian publications you might think that the most vital issue for any
real or would-be Christian in the world today is church union, or social witness, or
dialogue with other Christians and other faiths, or refuting this or that -ism, or
developing a Christian philosophy and culture, or what have you. But our line of
study [concerning the attributes of God] makes the present-day concentration on
these things look like a gigantic conspiracy of misdirection. Of course, it is not that;
the issues themselves are real and must be dealt with in their place. But it is tragic
that, in paying attention to them, so many in our day seem to have been distracted
from what was, is, and always will be the true priority for every human being—that
is, learning to know God in Christ. ‘Thou hast said, ‘Seek ye my face.’ My heart says
to Thee, ‘Thy face, Lord, do I seek’ (Psalm 27:8, RSV). 92
3. The primacy of God Himself.
When you study the Bible carefully with regard to the character of God, you wonder
how we could possibly be distracted from something so incontestably foundational. But
further when you plunge into the depths of His attributes, you wonder how anything
else so soul-possessing could be a rival for man’s attention. After all, if God be God,
then nothing but nothing could be more important for man than, “the high and exalted
One who lives forever, whose name is Holy” (Is. 57:15). Henceforth, let us be more
consecrated in our contemplation of the truth about God, more eager in our growing
relationship with the person of God, and more spiritually fervent in our desire to
worship, praise, and obediently serve God, for, “the people who know their God will
display strength and take action” (Dan. 11:32).
J. I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 254.
Lord, close to Thee we would cleave,
And rest on Thy promise alone,
Thy righteousness only receive,
And never place trust in our own.
For Thou art our Shepherd divine,
Whose word on our hearts we shall keep—
‘This flock has the Father made Mine;
I lay down My life for My sheep.’

322
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD
This God is the God we adore,
Our faithful, unchangeable Friend!
Whose love is as great as His power,
And knows neither measure nor end!
’Tis Jesus, the First and the Last,
Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home;
We’ll praise Him for all that is past,
And trust Him for all that’s to come.
Joseph Hart, 1712-68
IS
FATHER
IS
GOD
SON IS NOT SPIRIT
IS