GOD’S OMNISCIENCE SEEN IN THE BIBLE
The word “omniscience” comes from the Latin word “omniscient” meaning “all knowing.” The word is not found in the Bible. However, theologians correctly use the term to convey one of God’s attributes, the fact that He is all-knowing.
The fact that God is all-knowing is declared, demonstrated and illustrated throughout the Bible, and clearly seen in creation. As Creator He knows every intimate detail about His creation. He knows all things.
For example, the psalmist wrote about God’s knowledge in Psalm 147:4 when he said, “He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them.” This is an incredible statement when we consider that astronomers today estimate there are at least ten trillion trillion stars. The Orange County Register in Orange County, California, published an article on January 20, 1996, about photographs taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. The article states: “The photos vastly increased the estimated number of galaxies in the universe from 10 billion to 50 billion, each containing from 50 billion to 100 billion stars.” That is a lot of stars. However, it is only an estimate. God knows exactly how many stars there are and He gives each one a name. He knows their composition, size and position in their galaxy. He knows all things.
God said, in Isaiah 40:25-28, “‘To whom then will you liken Me that I would be his equal?’ says the Holy One. ‘Lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these stars, the One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, not one of them is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD, and the justice due me escapes the notice of my God’? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable.’” God not only names the stars and holds the universe together by His power, He also knows our every thought and all of our actions. He knows every step we take and why we take it. Nothing is hidden from the LORD. He knows what we deserve and what we don’t. Thank God for His mercy; not giving us what we deserve. And, thank God for His grace; giving us what we don’t deserve because of our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.
In Psalm 44:20-21 the psalmist wrote, “If we had forgotten the name of our God or extended our hands to a strange god, would not God find this out? For He knows the secretes of the heart.” God knows whether we are faithful to Him or not. He knows if we are sitting down on the outside, but standing up on the inside. In other words, He knows if we live like a saint on Sunday, saying and doing all the right things, but live like the devil the rest of the week. God knows if we are rebellious or not. “But You know me, O LORD; You see me; And You examine my heart’s attitude toward You” (Jeremiah 12:3). As David said in Psalm 139:1-4, “O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it all.” There is absolutely nothing about you and me that God does not know. He even numbers the hair on our head (Matthew 10:30). He knows if our hearts are hurting or not. He knows if our bodies are in pain or not. He knows what we are passionate about. He knows if we are hungry, in need of clothes or shelter. “There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” (Hebrews 4:13). Our Creator knows all things.
Therefore, it is not surprising that the Bible reveals that Jesus, who is God the Creator of all things, has infinite knowledge and understanding of all things. In Colossians 2:2b-3 we read, “...God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Jesus knows all things and He is all wise in understanding and applying that knowledge. In Matthew 9:4 we are told, “And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, ‘Why are you thinking evil in your hearts?’” Then, He went on to heal the paralytic so they would know He had “authority on earth to forgive sin” (Matthew 9:5-8). Please don’t miss this. Jesus knows our thoughts. We see that in Matthew 12:25, Luke 6:8 and Luke 9:47. Jesus knows what we are thinking before we put our thoughts into words or action. He also knows our character.
John 1:47-49 says, “Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and said of Him, ‘Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!’ Nathanael said to Him, ‘How do You know me?’ Jesus answered and said to Him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.’” Though Jesus was physically removed from Nathanael and had never met him before, He saw Him sitting under the fig tree and knew everything about his character. Jesus knows all things.
Jesus is all-knowing because He is God the Creator. Like an artist and his painting. The artist knows his painting intimately. He knows every line, every color, every perfection, every flaw and every thought behind every stroke of the brush. God the Father and God the Son are all-knowing. Omniscience is one of their attributes.
DIGGING DEEPER INTO GOD’S OMNISCIENCE
The following Bible study helps us see what is taught about God’s omniscience. Look up each verse and write down what is
mentioned about what God knows. These verses serve as an introduction to the Applying God’s Omniscience section at the end of this Bible study.
- Psalm 103:14. ___________________________________________________________
Note: The human body is an amazing creation and certainly demonstrates God’s omniscience. According to Genesis 2:7, God made man out of the dust of the ground. Therefore He knows our frame completely. He created about 206 separate bones that make up our skeletal system. He created about 640 muscles that form our muscular system. He created the 10,000 taste buds found in our mouth. He formed all of our vital organs. He created the 100 billion nerve cells in our brains that put out 10 to 100,000 connecting fibers that result in about 120 trillion connections. He created 60,000 miles of blood vessels in our bodies. He created the blood and the 5 million red blood cells, 300,000 platelets and 10,000 white cells found in very tiny droplet of blood. He knows every mineral that He used to make our bodies and why He used them, such as: Calcium, Iodine, Iron, Beta-carotene, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Potassium, Selenium, Sodium, Zinc and of course water.
With all of that said, the Lord knows we are finite beings and one day our bodies will return to dust (Genesis 3:19), yet our spirit will return to Him (Ecclesiastes 12:7). Therefore, He pardons our iniquities (Psalm 103:3), He redeems our life, and He crowns us with lovingkindness and compassion (Psalm 103:4). He satisfies our years with good things, so that our youth is renewed like the eagle (Psam 103:5). “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him” (Psalm 103:11-13). “Bless the LORD, O my soul!” (Psalm 103:1, 2 and 22).
- Psalm 138:6. ____________________________________________________________
Note: Look at the ethical standards king David set for himself in Psalm 101:5. He said, “...No one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart will I endure.” This is the result that comes when someone understands the omniscience of God. God knows the proud and the arrogant, and has nothing to do with them, and neither should we. As we are told in James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” “...the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:16). “The world” is a reference to that organized system headed by Satan that leaves God out and is a rival to Him. The proud and the arrogant, the one with a haughty look, says, “Look at me.” “See what I accomplished.” “See how wonderful and great I am.” The proud want the glory. The humble in spirit says, “Look at God and see what He has accomplished.” “See how wonderful and great He is.” “To Him be the glory.”
- Jeremiah 29:23. _________________________________________________________
Note: God sees and knows all of our ways (Proverbs 5:21, Jeremiah 16:17). No one can hide from Him (Jeremiah 23:24). God knows what people think, say and do including their lies and sinful acts. He knows those who misrepresent or misinterpret His Word. He knows those who claim to have a knew revelation from Him, but actually don’t. He is a witness against them. God’s judgment will fall on those who deliberately speak falsely in His name and those who are unrepentant in their sins and hurtful behavior. God is a witness against everyone who has rejected Him, His Word and His moral standards. As God said in Malachi 3:5, “‘Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widows and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,’ says the LORD of hosts.”
- Matthew 6:8. ____________________________________________________________
Note: Verse 8 begins by saying, “So do not be like them...” This statement refers to what we are told in verses 5-7, which says, “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secrete, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” The application is made to our prayer life. There are people who repeat their prayers over and over again thinking this will get the attention of God, much like some of our praise songs today. We don’t need to take this approach to God. There is no place for shallow repetition of words in prayer. God knows our hearts, our thoughts and our every need before we even think to ask Him, and certainly, we should ask Him (verse 11). Privacy (verses 5-6), directness (Hebrews 4:16), sincerity (verse 7), recognizing God’s holiness (verse 9), desiring His will to be done in our lives and on earth (verses 10), asking forgiveness and offering forgiveness (verse12), desiring to live holy lives (verse 13) and praying in the name of Jesus (John 14:13, John 15:16) are the directions given for true prayer.
God does not condemn public prayer or prayer meetings. There were about 120 people in the upper room praying in Acts 1:14-15. Public prayer has value. Unfortunately, some people tend to be concerned with what people think about their prayers when in a public setting. They become more concerned about how they express their prayers then about what they are praying. Some people won’t pray allowed in public and that is okay. Private prayer allows us to focus on God and not on ourselves.
- Acts 15:8. _______________________________________________________________
Note: In this verse Peter was defending Paul and Barnabas, and the Gentile’s salvation “through the grace of the Lord Jesus” and not by the Law or works (verse 11). In so doing, Peter reveals God’s omniscience. God knows the spiritual condition of every heart and gives accordingly. To those who sincerely believe with all their heart in Jesus’ redemptive work upon the cross and confess with the mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in His resurrection from the dead are saved (Romans 10:9-13). They are given the Holy Spirit as proof of their salvation. As we are told in Ephesians 1:13-14, “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation – having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.” “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16). “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of theHoly Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1Corinthians 6:19-20). God knows His children, those adopted into His family through faith in Jesus Christ, and He holds on to them (John 10:27-30). As we are told in 2 Timothy 2:19, “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, ‘The Lord knows those who are His.’”
- 2 Peter 2:9. _____________________________________________________________
Note: Keeping this verse in context, the point is this: If God committed the angels who sinned to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment (verse 4), and if God preserved Noah and seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world (verse 5), and if He rescued Lot from Sodom and Gomorrah before reducing them to ash (verses 6-8), then He certainly knows how to rescue us from temptation (verse 9). With that said, please understand, we have a responsibility as well. In 1 Corinthians 10:13 we are told, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” The “way of escape” that God is talking about might require turning off the television or computer. It might require running in the opposite direction, changing priorities or changing the crowd we gang out with (1 Timothy 6:9-11). It may require controlling our actions, controlling what we look at or modifying our intentions (Matthew 5:27-28). It may require more time in God’s Word, letting it sink in, letting it change our lives and our relationship with God (Psalm 119:9-11). It will require us controlling our thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5). So, the question is: Do we look for the way of escape in the midst of temptation? God provides the way to escape temptation. That is His responsibility. Our responsibility is to look for it and pursue it diligently.
APPLYING GOD’S OMNISCIENCE
The fact that God is all-knowing should have a profound affect on how we live. The following are some areas to consider in light of God’s omniscience.
Understanding that God knows all and sees all should cause us to give check to iniquity. We are told in Proverbs 5:20-21, “For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress, and embrace the bosom of a foreigner? For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He watches all his paths.” Joseph understood this when he was tempted to commit adultery with Potiphar’s wife in Genesis 39:7-9. He said, “How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” This too should be our response to iniquity before our all-knowing God. As Paul instructed Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:19b, “‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.’”
The omniscience of God should make us watchful over our hearts and thoughts. The apostle Paul understood very clearly the omniscience of God when he walked on the road to Damascus. He heard the all-knowing all-seeing Jesus speak to him from heaven. Jesus said, in Acts 9:4-5, “‘...Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ And he said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.’” Jesus knew Paul’s heart and his threats of murder against His disciples. However, that was going to change as Paul received Jesus as his Lord and Savior. This encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus had a tremendous affect on Paul’s life. Even to the point that Paul would say in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ...” This should be our conviction as well before an all-knowing God. We should take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. I like the direction king David gave to his son Solomon in 1 Chronicles 28:9a. He said, “As for you my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts.”
Knowing that God watches all that we do should cause us to give good preparation to every task we endeavor to accomplish. As we are told in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” When we desire to bring glory to God and approach our every endeavor with this resolve, then we put in the effort and preparation required. We become sincere in all we do. We make sure our motives are pure before we speak or act. We make sure that what we do is God-serving and not self-serving. We give God our best.
When we come to the understanding that God is all-knowing it should result in complete submission to Him. We are the ones who must conform to God and His Word, not the other way around. We must seek His will rather than desire Him to bless ours. We must recognize our limitations and His greatness. He is the one to be exalted, honored and glorified, and not us. God is omniscient, therefore we must submit ourselves to His authority. After all, He knows if we do or not.