God&#39;s Greatness

Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree4 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 134 shared topics Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 17: Of the Perseverance of the Saints3 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 793 shared topics London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 17: Of the Perseverance of the Saints3 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 543 shared topics

First Head, Article 11: Election Unchangeable

Just as God himself is most wise, unchangeable, all-knowing, and almighty, so the election made by him can neither be suspended nor altered, revoked, or annulled; neither can his chosen ones be cast off, nor their number reduced.

Parallel passages (6+)

Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree14 shared proof texts · 12 shared topics Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 10: Of Effectual Calling11 shared proof texts · 5 shared topics London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree8 shared proof texts · 11 shared topics London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 10: Of Effectual Calling7 shared proof texts · 5 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 677 shared proof texts · 5 shared topics Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 11: Of Justification5 shared proof texts · 7 shared topics

First Head: Rejection of the Errors

Having set forth the orthodox teaching concerning election and reprobation, the Synod rejects the errors of those

Error I.

Who teach that the will of God to save those who would believe and persevere in faith and in the obedience of faith is the whole and entire decision of election to salvation, and that nothing else concerning this decision has been revealed in God's Word.

For they deceive the simple and plainly contradict Holy Scripture in its testimony that God does not only wish to save those who would believe, but that he has also from eternity chosen certain particular people to whom, rather than to others, he would within time grant faith in Christ and perseverance. As Scripture says, "I have revealed your name to those whom you gave me" (John 17:6). Likewise, "All who were appointed for eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48), and "He chose us before the foundation of the world so that we should be holy" (Eph. 1:4).

Error II.

Who teach that God's election to eternal life is of many kinds: one general and indefinite, the other particular and definite; and the latter in turn either incomplete, revocable, nonperemptory (or conditional), or else complete, irrevocable, and peremptory (or absolute). Likewise, who teach that there is one election to faith and another to salvation, so that there can be an election to justifying faith apart from a peremptory election to salvation.

For this is an invention of the human brain, devised apart from the Scriptures, which distorts the teaching concerning election and breaks up this golden chain of salvation: "Those whom he predestined, he also called; and those whom he called, he also justified; and those whom he justified, he also glorified" (Rom. 8:30).

Error III.

Who teach that God's good pleasure and purpose, which Scripture mentions in its teaching of election, does not involve God's choosing certain particular people rather than others, but involves God's choosing, out of all possible conditions (including the works of the law) or out of the whole order of things, the intrinsically unworthy act of faith, as well as the imperfect obedience of faith, to be a condition of salvation; and it involves his graciously wishing to count this as perfect obedience and to look upon it as worthy of the reward of eternal life.

For by this pernicious error the good pleasure of God and the merit of Christ are robbed of their effectiveness and people are drawn away, by unprofitable inquiries, from the truth of undeserved justification and from the simplicity of the Scriptures. It also gives the lie to these words of the apostle: "God called us with a holy calling, not in virtue of works, but in virtue of his own purpose and the grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time" (2 Tim. 1:9).

Error IV.

Who teach that in election to faith a prerequisite condition is that man should rightly use the light of nature, be upright, unassuming, humble, and disposed to eternal life, as though election depended to some extent on these factors.

For this smacks of Pelagius, and it clearly calls into question the words of the apostle: "We lived at one time in the passions of our flesh, following the will of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in transgressions, made us alive with Christ, by whose grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with him and seated us with him in heaven in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages we might show the surpassing riches of his grace, according to his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith (and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God) not by works, so that no one can boast" (Eph. 2:3–9).

Error V.

Who teach that the incomplete and nonperemptory election of particular persons to salvation occurred on the basis of a foreseen faith, repentance, holiness, and godliness, which has just begun or continued for some time; but that complete and peremptory election occurred on the basis of a foreseen perseverance to the end in faith, repentance, holiness, and godliness. And that this is the gracious and evangelical worthiness, on account of which the one who is chosen is more worthy than the one who is not chosen. And therefore that faith, the obedience of faith, holiness, godliness, and perseverance are not fruits or effects of an unchangeable election to glory, but indispensable conditions and causes, which are prerequisite in those who are to be chosen in the complete election, and which are foreseen as achieved in them.

This runs counter to the entire Scripture, which throughout impresses upon our ears and hearts these sayings among others: "Election is not by works, but by him who calls" (Rom. 9:11–12); "All who were appointed for eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48); "He chose us in himself so that we should be holy" (Eph. 1:4); "You did not choose me, but I chose you" (John 15:16); "If by grace, not by works" (Rom. 11:6); "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son" (1 John 4:10).

Error VI.

Who teach that not every election to salvation is unchangeable, but that some of the chosen can perish and do in fact perish eternally, with no decision of God to prevent it.

By this gross error they make God changeable, destroy the comfort of the godly concerning the steadfastness of their election, and contradict the Holy Scriptures, which teach that "the elect cannot be led astray" (Matt. 24:24), that "Christ does not lose those given to him by the Father" (John 6:39), and that "those whom God predestined, called, and justified, he also glorifies" (Rom. 8:30).

Error VII.

Who teach that in this life there is no fruit, no awareness, and no assurance of one's unchangeable election to glory, except as conditional upon something changeable and contingent.

For not only is it absurd to speak of an uncertain assurance, but these things also militate against the experience of the saints, who with the apostle rejoice from an awareness of their election and sing the praises of this gift of God; who, as Christ urged, "rejoice" with his disciples "that their names have been written in heaven" (Luke 10:20); and finally who hold up against the flaming arrows of the devil's temptations the awareness of their election, with the question "Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?" (Rom. 8:33).

Error VIII.

Who teach that it was not on the basis of his just will alone that God decided to leave anyone in the fall of Adam and in the common state of sin and condemnation or to pass anyone by in the imparting of grace necessary for faith and conversion.

For these words stand fast: "He has mercy on whom he wishes, and he hardens whom he wishes" (Rom. 9:18). And also: "To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given" (Matt. 13:11). Likewise: "I give glory to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding, and have revealed them to little children; yes, Father, because that was your pleasure" (Matt. 11:25–26).

Error IX.

Who teach that the cause for God's sending the gospel to one people rather than to another is not merely and solely God's good pleasure, but rather that one people is better and worthier than the other to whom the gospel is not communicated.

For Moses contradicts this when he addresses the people of Israel as follows: "Behold, to Jehovah your God belong the heavens and the highest heavens, the earth and whatever is in it. But Jehovah was inclined in his affection to love your ancestors alone, and chose out their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as at this day" (Deut. 10:14–15). And also Christ: "Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! for if those mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes" (Matt. 11:21).

Scripture proofs

John 17:6
John 17:6 I revealed Your name to the men whom You gave to Me out of the world. They were Yours, and to Me You gave them, and they have kept Your word.
Acts 13:48
Acts 13:48 And the Gentiles hearing were rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.
Eph. 1:4
Eph. 1:4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world for us to be holy and blameless before Him, in love
Rom. 8:30
Rom. 8:30 And whom He predestined, these also He called; and whom He called, these also He justified; and whom He justified, these also He glorified.
2 Tim. 1:9
2 Tim. 1:9 the One having saved us and having called [us] with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to His own purpose and grace, having been given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal,
Eph. 2:3–9
Eph. 2:3–9 3 among whom we all also once conducted ourselves in the desires of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of [its] thoughts; and we were by nature children of wrath even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His much love with which He loved us, 5 even us being dead in trespasses, made [us] alive with Christ—by grace you⁺ are saved— 6 and He raised [us] up together and seated [us] together in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages that are coming, He might display the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you⁺ are saved through faith, and this not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God, 9 not by works, so that no one may boast.
Rom. 9:11–12
Rom. 9:11–12 11 for they not yet having been born nor having done anything good or evil, so that the purpose of God according to election might stand— 12 not of works but of the One calling, it was said to her, “The greater will serve the lesser.”
John 15:16
John 15:16 You⁺ did not choose Me, but I chose you⁺, and I appointed you⁺ so that you⁺ should go and bear fruit, and [that] your⁺ fruit should remain, so that whatever you⁺ might ask the Father in My name, He may give you⁺.
Rom. 11:6
Rom. 11:6 and if by grace, no longer out of works; otherwise grace no longer is grace.
1 John 4:10
1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son [as] a propitiation for our sins.
Matt. 24:24
Matt. 24:24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will give great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen.
John 6:39
John 6:39 Now this is the will of the One having sent Me, that all that He has given Me, I should lose none of it, but I will raise it up in the last day.
Luke 10:20
Luke 10:20 But do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you⁺; but rejoice that your⁺ names have been written in the heavens.”
Rom. 8:33
Rom. 8:33 Who will bring an accusation against the chosen ones of God? God [is] the One justifying.
Rom. 9:18
Rom. 9:18 So then, He has mercy on whom He wants, and He hardens whom He wants.
Matt. 13:11
Matt. 13:11 And answering, He said to them, “Because to you⁺ it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens, but to these it has not been given.
Matt. 11:25–26
Matt. 11:25–26 25 In that time, answering, Jesus said, “I acknowledge You, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, because You hid these things from the wise and intelligent, and You revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, because of this it was good pleasure before You.
Deut. 10:14–15
Deut. 10:14–15 14 Behold, unto YHWH your God [are] the heavens and the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that [is] in it. 15 Yet in your fathers YHWH delighted to love them, and He chose their seed after them, you⁺, above all peoples, as [it is] this day.
Matt. 11:21
Matt. 11:21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles having happened in you⁺ had happened in Tyre and Sidon, long ago in sackcloth and ashes they would have repented.

Parallel passages (6+)

Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree3 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 13 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 173 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 313 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 603 shared topics Belgic Confession · Article 21: The Atonement3 shared topics

Second Head, Article 3: The Infinite Value of Christ's Death

This death of God's Son is the only and entirely complete sacrifice and satisfaction for sins; it is of infinite value and worth, more than sufficient to atone for the sins of the whole world.

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Second Head, Article 4: Reasons for This Infinite Value

This death is of such great value and worth for the reason that the person who suffered it is—as was necessary to be our Savior—not only a true and perfectly holy man, but also the only begotten Son of God, of the same eternal and infinite essence with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Another reason is that this death was accompanied by the experience of God's anger and curse, which we by our sins had fully deserved.

Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree3 shared topics

Third and Fourth Head, Article 13: The Incomprehensible Way of Regeneration

In this life believers cannot fully understand the way this work occurs; meanwhile, they rest content with knowing and experiencing that by this grace of God they do believe with the heart and love their Savior.

Parallel passages (1)

Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree3 shared topics Westminster Confession of Faith · Chapter 17: Of the Perseverance of the Saints3 shared topics London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 20: Of the Gospel, and of the Extent of the Grace Thereof3 shared topics The Cambridge Declaration · Sola Gratia: The Erosion of The Gospel3 shared topics

Third and Fourth Head, Article 17: God's Use of Means in Regeneration

Just as the almighty work of God by which he brings forth and sustains our natural life does not rule out but requires the use of means, by which God, according to his infinite wisdom and goodness, has wished to exercise his power, so also the aforementioned supernatural work of God by which he regenerates us in no way rules out or cancels the use of the gospel, which God in his great wisdom has appointed to be the seed of regeneration and the food of the soul. For this reason, the apostles and the teachers who followed them taught the people in a godly manner about this grace of God, to give him the glory and to humble all pride, and yet did not neglect meanwhile to keep the people, by means of the holy admonitions of the gospel, under the administration of the Word, the sacraments, and discipline. So even today it is out of the question that the teachers or those taught in the church should presume to test God by separating what he in his good pleasure has wished to be closely joined together. For grace is bestowed through admonitions, and the more readily we perform our duty, the more lustrous the benefit of God working in us usually is and the better his work advances. To him alone, both for the means and for their saving fruit and effectiveness, all glory is owed forever. Amen.

Parallel passages (4)

London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 2: Of God, and of the Holy Trinity45 shared proof texts · 8 shared topics Westminster Shorter Catechism · Question 423 shared proof texts · 3 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 722 shared proof texts · 3 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 612 shared proof texts · shared topic Heidelberg Catechism · Question 259 shared proof texts · 3 shared topics Second Helvetic Confession · Chapter 3: Of God; The Unity and the Trinity6 shared proof texts · 4 shared topics

Chapter 2: Of God, and of the Holy Trinity

1. There is but one only, living, and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection, a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions; immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will, for his own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek him; and withal, most just, and terrible in his judgments, hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty.

2. God hath all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself; and is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures which he hath made, nor deriving any glory from them, but only manifesting his own glory in, by, unto, and upon them. He is the alone fountain of all being, of whom, through whom, and to whom are all things; and hath most sovereign dominion over them, to do by them, for them, or upon them whatsoever himself pleaseth. In his sight all things are open and manifest, his knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature, so as nothing is to him contingent, or uncertain. He is most holy in all his counsels, in all his works, and in all his commands. To him is due from angels and men, and every other creature, whatsoever worship, service, or obedience he is pleased to require of them.

3. 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.

Scripture proofs

Deut. 6:4; 1 Cor. 8:4, 6. (See Gal. 3:20.)
Deut. 6:4 Hear, O Israel: YHWH our God, YHWH [is] One.
1 Cor. 8:4, 6 4 Therefore concerning the eating of the [things] sacrificed to idols, we know that an idol [is] nothing in the world and that [there is] no God except one. 6 yet to us [there is] one God the Father, of whom [are] all things, and we for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom [are] all things, and we through Him.
Gal. 3:20 Now the mediator is not of one; but God is one.
1 Thess. 1:9; Jer. 10:10.
1 Thess. 1:9 For they themselves report concerning us what kind of entrance we had to you⁺, and how you⁺ turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God,
Jer. 10:10 And YHWH [is] the true God; He [is] the living God, and King forever! At His wrath the earth trembles, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
Job 11:7–9; Job 26:14. (See Ps. 139:6.)
Job 11:7–9 7 Can you find out the searching of God? Or can you find out unto the limit of Shaddai? 8 The heights of the heavens—what can you do? [They are] deeper than Sheol—what can you know? 9 Longer than the earth [is] its measure, and wider than the sea.
Job 26:14 Behold, these are the edges of His ways, and how faint of a word do we hear of Him! And the thundering of His might, who can understand?”
Ps. 139:6 [Such] knowledge [is] wonderful for me; it is high, I am not able to atttain it.
John 4:24.
John 4:24 God [is] Spirit, and it is necessary for those worshiping Him to worship in spirit and truth.”
1 Tim. 1:17. (See John 1:18.)
1 Tim. 1:17 Now to the King of the ages, the immortal, invisible, the only God, [be] honor and glory to the ages of the ages! Amen.
John 1:18 No one has ever yet seen God. The only begotten God, the One being in the bosom of the Father, He has made [Him] known.
Deut. 4:15–16. (Cf. John 4:24 with Luke 24:39.)
Deut. 4:15–16 15 And guard greatly your⁺ souls, for you⁺ did not see any form when YHWH spoke to you⁺ at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, 16 lest you⁺ act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female—
John 4:24 God [is] Spirit, and it is necessary for those worshiping Him to worship in spirit and truth.”
Luke 24:39 See My hands and My feet, that I am He. Touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you⁺ see Me having.”
Acts 14:11, 15; James 1:17; Mal. 3:6; 1 Kings 8:27; Jer. 23:23–24.
Acts 14:11, 15 11 And the crowds, having seen what Paul had done, lifted up their voice in Lycaonian, saying, “The gods have come down to us, having become like men!” 15 and saying, “Men, why do you⁺ do these things? We also are men of like nature with you⁺, proclaiming the gospel to you⁺ to turn from these vain [things] to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all the things in them,
James 1:17 Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
Mal. 3:6 “For I, YHWH, do not change; and you⁺, sons of Jacob, have not been consumed.
1 Kings 8:27 But will indeed God dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain You. How much less this house that I have built?
Jer. 23:23–24 23 “[Am] I a God nearby,” a declaration of YHWH, “And not a God far away?” 24 “Can a man hide himself in the hidden places, and I shall not see him?” A declaration of YHWH. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” A declaration of YHWH.
Ps. 90:2. (See 1 Tim. 1:17.)
Ps. 90:2 In the [time] before the mountains were brought forth, or You formed the earth and the world, and from forever even to forever, You [are] God.
1 Tim. 1:17 Now to the King of the ages, the immortal, invisible, the only God, [be] honor and glory to the ages of the ages! Amen.
1 Kings 8:27; Jer. 23:23–24.
1 Kings 8:27 But will indeed God dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain You. How much less this house that I have built?
Jer. 23:23–24 23 “[Am] I a God nearby,” a declaration of YHWH, “And not a God far away?” 24 “Can a man hide himself in the hidden places, and I shall not see him?” A declaration of YHWH. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” A declaration of YHWH.
Ps. 90:2. (See 1 Tim. 1:17.)
Ps. 90:2 In the [time] before the mountains were brought forth, or You formed the earth and the world, and from forever even to forever, You [are] God.
1 Tim. 1:17 Now to the King of the ages, the immortal, invisible, the only God, [be] honor and glory to the ages of the ages! Amen.
Ps. 145:3. (See Rom. 11:34.)
Ps. 145:3 Great [is] YHWH and to be praised greatly, and of His greatness there is no searching out.
Rom. 11:34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
Gen. 17:1; Rev. 4:8.
Gen. 17:1 And Abram was a son of ninety years and nine years, and YHWH appeared to Abram and said to him, “I [am] El-Shaddai; walk before Me and be blameless.
Rev. 4:8 And the four living creatures, one by one of them had six wings respectively, full of eyes all around and within; and they do not have rest day and night, saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, the One who was and who is and who is coming!”
Rom. 16:27.
Rom. 16:27 [to] the only wise God [be] the glory unto the ages of the ages, which [is] through Jesus Christ! Amen.
Isa. 6:3. (See Rev. 4:8.)
Isa. 6:3 And this one cried to this one and said: “Holy, holy, holy [is] YHWH of Hosts; the fullness of all the earth [is] His glory!”
Rev. 4:8 And the four living creatures, one by one of them had six wings respectively, full of eyes all around and within; and they do not have rest day and night, saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, the One who was and who is and who is coming!”
Ps. 115:3. (See Isa. 14:24.)
Ps. 115:3 And our God [is] in the heavens; all that he has pleased, He has done.
Isa. 14:24 YHWH of Hosts has sworn, saying, “Surely as I have purposed, so it will be, and as I have counseled, [so] it will stand:
Isa. 45:5–6. (See Ex. 3:14.)
Isa. 45:5–6 5 I [am] YHWH, and there is no other; besides Me there are no gods. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, 6 so that they may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides Me. I [am] YHWH, and there is no other—
Ex. 3:14 And God said to Moses, “Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘Ehyeh has sent me to you⁺.’”
Eph. 1:11.
Eph. 1:11 in Him, in whom also we obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will
Prov. 16:4; Rom. 11:36. (See Rev. 4:11.)
Prov. 16:4 YHWH has made everything for its own end—even the wicked for the day of evil.
Rom. 11:36 For from Him and through Him and unto Him [are] all things. To Him [be] the glory to the ages! Amen.
Rev. 4:11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.”
1 John 4:8. (See 1 John 4:16; John 3:16.)
1 John 4:8 The one not loving has not known God, because God is love.
1 John 4:16 And we have known and have believed the love that God has in us. God is love, and the one remaining in love remains in God, and God remains in him.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave the Son, the only begotten, so that everyone believing in Him shall not perish but shall have eternal life.
Ex. 34:6–7.
Ex. 34:6–7 6 And YHWH passed before his face and proclaimed, “YHWH, YHWH God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving devotion and truth, 7 keeping loving devotion to the thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and he will surely not acquit [the guilty], visiting iniquity of fathers upon sons and upon sons of sons, upon a third and upon a fourth.”
Heb. 11:6.
Heb. 11:6 And without faith [it is] impossible to please [Him], for it is necessary for the one coming to God to believe that He is and [that] He becomes a rewarder to those seeking Him out.
Neh. 9:32–33. (See Heb. 10:28–31.)
Neh. 9:32–33 32 And now, our God—the God the great, the mighty, and fearsome, keeping the covenant and the kindness, should not all the hardship that has found us seem little before Your face—for our kings, for our princes, and for our priests, and for our prophets, and for our fathers, and for all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day. 33 And You [are] righteous over all that has come upon us, for faithfully You have acted, and we have been wicked.
Heb. 10:28–31 28 Anyone having set aside the law of Moses dies without mercies on the basis of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment do you⁺ think he will be worthy of, the one having trampled upon the Son of God, and having deemed common the blood of the covenant in which he was sanctified, and having insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know the One having said, “Vengeance [is] Mine; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge His people.” 31 [It is] a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Rom. 1:18; Ps. 5:5–6. (See Ps. 11:5.)
Rom. 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, suppressing the truth in unrighteousness,
Ps. 5:5–6 5 The one boasting shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity. 6 You will destroy those speaking falsehood; a man of blood and deceit YHWH abhors.
Ps. 11:5 YHWH tests the righteous, and His soul hates the wicked one and the lover of violence.
Ex. 34:7a. (See Nah. 1:2–3, 6.)
Ex. 34:7 keeping loving devotion to the thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and he will surely not acquit [the guilty], visiting iniquity of fathers upon sons and upon sons of sons, upon a third and upon a fourth.”
Nah. 1:2–3, 6 2 A God jealous and avenging [is] YHWH; avenging [is] YHWH and owner of fury; avenging [is] YHWH on His adversaries, and He is watching for His enemies. 3 YHWH [is] slow to anger and great in power; and YHWH does not entirely acquit. In the whirlwind and in the storm [is] His way, and the clouds [are] the dust of His feet. 6 Before the face of His indignation, who can stand? And who can stand up in the burning of His anger? His fury is poured out like the fire, and the rocks are torn down by Him.
Jer. 10:10. (See John 5:26.)
Jer. 10:10 And YHWH [is] the true God; He [is] the living God, and King forever! At His wrath the earth trembles, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so also He gave to the Son to have life in Himself.
Acts 7:2.
Acts 7:2 And he began to speak: “Men, brothers and fathers, listen! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, being in Mesopotamia before his dwelling in Haran,
Ps. 119:68.
Ps. 119:68 You [are] good, and the One doing good; may You teach me Your statutes.
1 Tim. 6:15. (See Rom. 9:5.)
1 Tim. 6:15 which He will show in [His] own times, the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of those being kings and the Lord of those being lords,
Rom. 9:5 whose [are] the fathers, and from whom [is] Christ according to the flesh, being God over all, blessed to the ages! Amen.
Acts 17:24–25.
Acts 17:24–25 24 The God having made the world and all things that [are] in it, He, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in hand-made temples, 25 nor is He served by hands of men as needing anything—He [who] gives to all life and breath and all things.
Luke 17:10.
Luke 17:10 Thus also you⁺, when you⁺ may have done all the [things] having been directed you⁺, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have done that which we were obligated to do.’”
Rom. 11:36.
Rom. 11:36 For from Him and through Him and unto Him [are] all things. To Him [be] the glory to the ages! Amen.
Rev. 4:11; Dan. 4:25, 35. (See 1 Tim. 6:15.)
Rev. 4:11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they existed and were created.”
Dan. 4:25, 35 25 That they shall drive you away from men, and with the beasts of the field shall be your dwelling; and they shall make you eat grass like oxen, and from the dew of heaven they shall wet you; and seven times shall pass over you, until that you come to know that the Most High [is] ruling over the kingdom of men, and to whom that, He chooses He gives it. 35 and all those dwelling in the earth are regarded as nothing, and He does according to His will among the host of the heaven and those dwelling in the earth; and there is no one who can strike on His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”
1 Tim. 6:15 which He will show in [His] own times, the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of those being kings and the Lord of those being lords,
Heb. 4:13.
Heb. 4:13 And there is no created thing hidden before Him, but all things [are] bare and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom [is] our account.
Rom. 11:33–34; Ps. 147:5.
Rom. 11:33–34 33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways! 34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
Ps. 147:5 Great [is] our Lord, and abundant in power; of His understanding there is no numbering!
Acts 15:18; Ezek. 11:5.
Acts 15:18 known from the age.’
Ezek. 11:5 And fell upon me the Spirit of YHWH, and He said to me, “Say, thus says YHWH: Thus you⁺ have said, O house of Israel—and the [things] coming upon your⁺ spirit I know.
Ps. 145:17; Rom. 7:12.
Ps. 145:17 Righteous [is] YHWH in all His ways, and kind in all His works.
Rom. 7:12 So indeed, the law [is] holy, and the commandment [is] holy and righteous and good.
Rev. 5:12–14.
Rev. 5:12–14 12 saying in a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb having been slain to receive the power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!” 13 And I heard every creature that is in heaven and upon the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and everything in them, saying: “To the One sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb, blessing and honor and glory and might to the ages of the ages!” 14 And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell and worshiped.
Matt. 3:16–17; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14. (See Eph. 2:18.)
Matt. 3:16–17 16 And having been baptized, Jesus immediately went up from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and coming upon Him. 17 And behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, “This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I was well pleased.”
Matt. 28:19 Therefore, having gone, disciple all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
2 Cor. 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit [be] with all of you⁺.
Eph. 2:18 For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.
John 1:14, 18. (See Heb. 1:2–3; Col. 1:15.)
John 1:14, 18 14 And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. And we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 18 No one has ever yet seen God. The only begotten God, the One being in the bosom of the Father, He has made [Him] known.
Heb. 1:2–3 2 in these last days spoke to us in [His] Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the ages, 3 who, being the radiance of [His] glory and the exact imprint of His substance and bearing all things by the word of power—through His having made purification of sins—sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Col. 1:15 [He] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation,
John 15:26; Gal. 4:6.
John 15:26 When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you⁺ from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes forth from the Father, He will testify about Me.
Gal. 4:6 And because you⁺ are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

Parallel passages (6+)

London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree38 shared proof texts · 16 shared topics Canons of Dort · First Head: Rejection of the Errors14 shared proof texts · 12 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 1315 shared proof texts · 7 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 5415 shared proof texts · 5 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 1211 shared proof texts · 4 shared topics Heidelberg Catechism · Question 2611 shared proof texts · 2 shared topics

Chapter 3: Of God's Eternal Decree

1. God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so, as thereby neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures; nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established.

2. Although God knows whatsoever may or can come to pass upon all supposed conditions, yet hath he not decreed anything because he foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to pass upon such conditions.

3. By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life; and others foreordained to everlasting death.

4. These angels and men, thus predestinated, and foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed, and their number so certain and definite, that it cannot be either increased or diminished.

5. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen, in Christ, unto everlasting glory, out of his mere free grace and love, without any foresight of faith, or good works, or perseverance in either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or causes moving him thereunto; and all to the praise of his glorious grace.

6. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath he, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained all the means thereunto. Wherefore, they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ by his Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by his power, through faith, unto salvation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only.

7. The rest of mankind God was pleased, according to the unsearchable counsel of his own will, whereby he extendeth or withholdeth mercy, as he pleaseth, for the glory of his sovereign power over his creatures, to pass by; and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their sin, to the praise of his glorious justice.

8. The doctrine of this high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special prudence and care, that men, attending the will of God revealed in his Word, and yielding obedience thereunto, may, from the certainty of their effectual vocation, be assured of their eternal election. So shall this doctrine afford matter of praise, reverence, and admiration of God; and of humility, diligence, and abundant consolation to all that sincerely obey the gospel.

Scripture proofs

Ps. 33:11; Eph. 1:11; Heb. 6:17.
Ps. 33:11 The counsel of YHWH stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation and [to] generation.
Eph. 1:11 in Him, in whom also we obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will
Heb. 6:17 in which God, willing to show more abundantly the unchangeableness of His purpose to the heirs of the promise, guaranteed [it] by an oath,
Ps. 5:4; James 1:13–14; 1 John 1:5. (See Hab. 1:13.)
Ps. 5:4 For You [are] not a God delighting in wickedness; evil shall not sojourn with You.
James 1:13–14 13 Let no one being tempted say, “I am being tempted from God.” For God is unable to be tempted by evils, and He Himself tempts no one. 14 But each one is tempted, being dragged away and being enticed by [his] own desire.
1 John 1:5 And this is the message that we have heard from Him and we announce to you⁺, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness—none.
Hab. 1:13 Purer of eyes than to behold evil, and You are not able to look on wickedness. Why do You look on those acting treacherously, [and] remain quiet when the wicked is devouring one more righteous than he?
Acts 2:23; Matt. 17:12; Acts 4:27–28; John 19:11; Prov. 16:33.
Acts 2:23 Him delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you⁺ put to death, having crucified by lawless hands—
Matt. 17:12 But I say to you⁺ that Elijah did already come, and they did not know him, but they did to him whatever they wanted. Thus also the Son of Man is about to suffer under them.”
Acts 4:27–28 27 For in truth, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together in this city against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, 28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predetermined to happen.
John 19:11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over Me if it were not given to you from above. Because of this, the one having delivered Me up to you has greater sin.”
Prov. 16:33 Into the lap the lot is cast, and all its judgment [is] from YHWH.
1 Sam. 23:11–12; Matt. 11:21, 23.
1 Sam. 23:11–12 11 Will the men of Keilah shut me up into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O YHWH, God of Israel, declare, please, to Your servant.” And YHWH said, “He will come down.” 12 And David said, “Will the men of Keilah shut up me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And YHWH said, “They will shut [you] up.”
Matt. 11:21, 23 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles having happened in you⁺ had happened in Tyre and Sidon, long ago in sackcloth and ashes they would have repented. 23 And you, Capernaum, to heaven will you be lifted up? To Hades you will be brought down! For if the miracles having happened in you had happened in Sodom, it would have remained until [this] day.
Rom. 9:11, 13, 16, 18.
Rom. 9:11, 13, 16, 18 11 for they not yet having been born nor having done anything good or evil, so that the purpose of God according to election might stand— 13 As it has been written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” 16 So then, [it is] not of the one willing, nor of the one running, but of God having mercy. 18 So then, He has mercy on whom He wants, and He hardens whom He wants.
1 Tim. 5:21; Jude 6; Matt. 25:31, 41.
1 Tim. 5:21 I earnestly testify before God and Christ Jesus and the chosen angels that you should keep these things without prejudice, doing nothing according to partiality.
Matt. 25:31, 41 31 And when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit upon the throne of His glory. 41 Then also He will say to those on [His] left, ‘Depart from Me, the cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
Jude 6 on BibleHub ↗
Eph. 1:5–6; Rom. 9:22–23; Prov. 16:4.
Eph. 1:5–6 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously gave us in the Beloved One,
Rom. 9:22–23 22 And [what] if God, desiring to display the wrath and to make known His power, bore with much patience vessels of wrath, having been fitted for destruction, 23 so that He might also make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory,
Prov. 16:4 YHWH has made everything for its own end—even the wicked for the day of evil.
John 13:18; 2 Tim. 2:19. (See John 10:14–16, 27–28; 17:2, 6, 9–12.)
John 13:18 I speak not about all of you⁺—I know whom I chose—but so that the Scripture may be fulfilled: ‘The one eating My bread lifted up his heel against Me.’
2 Tim. 2:19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God has stood, having this seal: “The Lord knows those being His,” and, “Let everyone naming the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.”
John 10:14–16, 27–28 14 I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me— 15 just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father—and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. It is necessary for Me to bring those also, and they will hear My voice, and there will be one flock [and] one shepherd. 27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and never shall they perish to the age, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
17:2, 6, 9–12 2 as You gave to Him authority over all flesh, so that all whom You have given to Him, He may give to them eternal life. 6 I revealed Your name to the men whom You gave to Me out of the world. They were Yours, and to Me You gave them, and they have kept Your word. 9 I ask concerning them. I do not ask concerning the world, but concerning those whom You have given to Me, for they are Yours. 10 And all things of Mine are Yours, and Yours Mine, and I have been glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, and they are themselves in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, which You have given to Me, so that they may be one as We [are]. 12 When I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name, which You have given to Me. And I guarded [them], and none of them perished except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
Eph. 1:4, 9, 11; Rom. 8:28–30; 2 Tim. 1:9; 1 Thess. 5:9.
Eph. 1:4, 9, 11 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world for us to be holy and blameless before Him, in love 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Him 11 in Him, in whom also we obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will
Rom. 8:28–30 28 And we know that God works together all things for good to those loving God, to those being called according to purpose, 29 because whom He foreknew, He also predestined [to be] conformed to the image of His Son, for Him to be firstborn among many brothers. 30 And whom He predestined, these also He called; and whom He called, these also He justified; and whom He justified, these also He glorified.
2 Tim. 1:9 the One having saved us and having called [us] with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to His own purpose and grace, having been given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal,
1 Thess. 5:9 because God did not set us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Rom. 9:11, 13, 15–16; Eph. 2:8–9. (See Eph. 1:5, 9, 11.)
Rom. 9:11, 13, 15–16 11 for they not yet having been born nor having done anything good or evil, so that the purpose of God according to election might stand— 13 As it has been written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” 15 For He says to Moses: “I will have mercy on whom I may have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I may have compassion.” 16 So then, [it is] not of the one willing, nor of the one running, but of God having mercy.
Eph. 2:8–9 8 For by grace you⁺ are saved through faith, and this not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God, 9 not by works, so that no one may boast.
Eph. 1:5, 9, 11 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Him 11 in Him, in whom also we obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will
Eph. 1:6, 12.
Eph. 1:6, 12 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously gave us in the Beloved One, 12 for us to be to the praise of His glory, the ones having first hoped in Christ,
1 Peter 1:2; Eph. 2:10; 2 Thess. 2:13.
1 Peter 1:2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be multiplied to you⁺.
Eph. 2:10 For we are His workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
2 Thess. 2:13 But we ought to give thanks to God always concerning you⁺, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you⁺ from the beginning unto salvation in the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth,
1 Thess. 5:9–10; Titus 2:14.
1 Thess. 5:9–10 9 because God did not set us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 the One having died for us, so that whether we may watch or we may sleep, we may live together with Him.
Titus 2:14 who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all lawlessness and might purify to Himself a people specially His, zealous for good works.
Rom. 8:30. (See Eph. 1:5; 2 Thess. 2:13.)
Rom. 8:30 And whom He predestined, these also He called; and whom He called, these also He justified; and whom He justified, these also He glorified.
Eph. 1:5 having predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
2 Thess. 2:13 But we ought to give thanks to God always concerning you⁺, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you⁺ from the beginning unto salvation in the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth,
1 Peter 1:5.
1 Peter 1:5 who [are] being guarded in the power of God through faith for the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
John 10:14–15, 26; John 6:64–65; Rom. 8:28–39. (See John 8:47; 17:9; 1 John 2:19.)
John 10:14–15, 26 14 I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me— 15 just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father—and I lay down My life for the sheep. 26 But you⁺ do not believe, because you⁺ are not of My sheep.
John 6:64–65 64 But there are some of you⁺ who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning who are those not believing and who it is who will betray Him. 65 And He was saying, “Because of this, I have said to you⁺ that no one is able to come to Me unless it shall have been given to him from the Father.”
Rom. 8:28–39 28 And we know that God works together all things for good to those loving God, to those being called according to purpose, 29 because whom He foreknew, He also predestined [to be] conformed to the image of His Son, for Him to be firstborn among many brothers. 30 And whom He predestined, these also He called; and whom He called, these also He justified; and whom He justified, these also He glorified. 31 What then will we say to these things? If God [is] for us, who [can be] against us— 32 He who indeed did not spare [His] own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring an accusation against the chosen ones of God? God [is] the One justifying. 34 Who [is] the one condemning? Christ Jesus the One having died, now rather having been raised, [is] He who is also at the right hand of God, and who is interceding for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it has been written: “For Your sake we face death all the day; we were reckoned as sheep of slaughter.” 37 But in all these things we are more than conquerors through the One having loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things present nor things about to be, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God that [is] in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 8:47 The one being of God hears the words of God; because of this you⁺ do not hear, because you⁺ are not of God.”
17:9 I ask concerning them. I do not ask concerning the world, but concerning those whom You have given to Me, for they are Yours.
1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us. But [it is] so that it might be made manifest that they are not all of us.
Matt. 11:25–26; Rom. 9:17–18, 21–22; Jude 4; 1 Peter 2:8; 2 Tim. 2:19–20.
Matt. 11:25–26 25 In that time, answering, Jesus said, “I acknowledge You, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, because You hid these things from the wise and intelligent, and You revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, because of this it was good pleasure before You.
Rom. 9:17–18, 21–22 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: “For this very thing I raised you up, so that I might display My power in you, and that My name should be declared in all the earth.” 18 So then, He has mercy on whom He wants, and He hardens whom He wants. 21 Or does the potter not have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump the one vessel indeed for honor, but the one for dishonor? 22 And [what] if God, desiring to display the wrath and to make known His power, bore with much patience vessels of wrath, having been fitted for destruction,
1 Peter 2:8 and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” [They] stumble at the word, being disobedient, to which also they were appointed.
2 Tim. 2:19–20 19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God has stood, having this seal: “The Lord knows those being His,” and, “Let everyone naming the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.” 20 Now in a great house there are not only golden and silver vessels, but also wooden and earthen; and some indeed for honor, but some for dishonor.
Jude 4 on BibleHub ↗
Rom. 9:20; Rom. 11:33; Deut. 29:29.
Rom. 9:20 But rather, O man, who are you answering against God? [Will] the thing formed say to the One having formed [it], “Why did you make me thus?”
Rom. 11:33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways!
Deut. 29:29 The things hidden are of YHWH our God, and the things revealed [are] to us and to our sons even to forever, that [we] may do all the words of this law.
2 Peter 1:10; 1 Thess. 1:4–5.
2 Peter 1:10 Therefore, brothers, be diligent, rather, to make your⁺ calling and election sure. For [in] doing these things, never at any time shall you⁺ stumble.
1 Thess. 1:4–5 4 knowing, brothers beloved by God, your⁺ election, 5 because our gospel came to you⁺ not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much full assurance, just as you⁺ know what we were among you⁺ on account of you⁺.
Eph. 1:6. (See Rom. 11:33.)
Eph. 1:6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously gave us in the Beloved One,
Rom. 11:33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways!
Rom. 11:5–6, 20; Rom. 8:33; Luke 10:20. (See 2 Peter 1:10.)
Rom. 11:5–6, 20 5 So then also in the present time, there has been a remnant according to the election of grace, 6 and if by grace, no longer out of works; otherwise grace no longer is grace. 20 Rightly so: They were broken off by unbelief, but you have stood by faith. Do not be high-minded, but be afraid.
Rom. 8:33 Who will bring an accusation against the chosen ones of God? God [is] the One justifying.
Luke 10:20 But do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you⁺; but rejoice that your⁺ names have been written in the heavens.”
2 Peter 1:10 Therefore, brothers, be diligent, rather, to make your⁺ calling and election sure. For [in] doing these things, never at any time shall you⁺ stumble.

Parallel passages (6+)

London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence61 shared proof texts · 6 shared topics Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 8116 shared proof texts Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 1813 shared proof texts · 3 shared topics London Baptist Confession (1689) · Chapter 18: Of the Assurance of Grace and Salvation13 shared proof texts · shared topic Heidelberg Catechism · Question 12512 shared proof texts Westminster Larger Catechism · Question 17211 shared proof texts

Chapter 5: Of Providence

1. God the great Creator of all things doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures, actions, and things, from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, according to his infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of his own will, to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and mercy.

2. Although, in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the First Cause, all things come to pass immutably, and infallibly; yet, by the same providence, he ordereth them to fall out, according to the nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently.

3. God, in his ordinary providence, maketh use of means, yet is free to work without, above, and against them, at his pleasure.

4. The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God so far manifest themselves in his providence, that it extendeth itself even to the first fall, and all other sins of angels and men; and that not by a bare permission, but such as hath joined with it a most wise and powerful bounding, and otherwise ordering, and governing of them, in a manifold dispensation, to his own holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness thereof proceedeth only from the creature, and not from God, who, being most holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.

5. The most wise, righteous, and gracious God doth oftentimes leave, for a season, his own children to manifold temptations, and the corruption of their own hearts, to chastise them for their former sins, or to discover unto them the hidden strength of corruption and deceitfulness of their hearts, that they may be humbled; and, to raise them to a more close and constant dependence for their support upon himself, and to make them more watchful against all future occasions of sin, and for sundry other just and holy ends.

6. As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God, as a righteous Judge, for former sins, doth blind and harden, from them he not only withholdeth his grace whereby they might have been enlightened in their understandings, and wrought upon in their hearts; but sometimes also withdraweth the gifts which they had, and exposeth them to such objects as their corruption makes occasions of sin; and, withal, gives them over to their own lusts, the temptations of the world, and the power of Satan, whereby it comes to pass that they harden themselves, even under those means which God useth for the softening of others.

7. As the providence of God doth, in general, reach to all creatures; so, after a most special manner, it taketh care of his church, and disposeth all things to the good thereof.

Scripture proofs

Neh. 9:6; Ps. 145:14–16; Heb. 1:3.
Neh. 9:6 You [are] He, YHWH, You alone; You have made the heavens, the heavens of the heavens, and all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them, and You give life to all things, and the host of the heavens gives worship to You.
Ps. 145:14–16 14 YHWH is upholding all those falling, and raising up all those bent down low. 15 The eyes of all wait for You, and You give to them their food in its time. 16 You open Your hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
Heb. 1:3 who, being the radiance of [His] glory and the exact imprint of His substance and bearing all things by the word of power—through His having made purification of sins—sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Dan. 4:34–35; Ps. 135:6; Acts 17:25–28; Job 38–41.
Dan. 4:34–35 34 And at the end of the days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to the heavens, and my understanding returned to me, and to the Most High I offered blessing, and to the One Living forever I gave praise and honor: “For His dominion [is] a dominion everlasting, and His kingdom [is] from generation to generation; 35 and all those dwelling in the earth are regarded as nothing, and He does according to His will among the host of the heaven and those dwelling in the earth; and there is no one who can strike on His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”
Ps. 135:6 All that YHWH delights in, He does, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all the depths,
Acts 17:25–28 25 nor is He served by hands of men as needing anything—He [who] gives to all life and breath and all things. 26 And He made out of one [man] every nation of men to dwell upon all the face of the earth, having determined the appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27 to seek God, if perhaps indeed they might feel after Him and might find Him. And indeed, He is not far from each one of us. 28 ‘For in Him we live and move and are.’ As also some of the poets among you⁺ have said, ‘For we are also [His] offspring.’
Job 38 on BibleHub ↗
Job 39 on BibleHub ↗
Job 40 on BibleHub ↗
Job 41 on BibleHub ↗
Matt. 10:29–31. (See Matt. 6:26–32.)
Matt. 10:29–31 29 Are not two sparrows sold for an assarion? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your⁺ Father. 30 And even the hairs of your⁺ head are all numbered. 31 Therefore do not be afraid; you⁺ are more valuable than many sparrows.
Matt. 6:26–32 26 Look at the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, nor do they reap, nor do they gather into barns, and your⁺ heavenly Father feeds them. Are you⁺ not much more valuable than they? 27 And who of you⁺, being anxious, is able to add to his lifespan one cubit? 28 And why are you⁺ anxious about clothing? Consider carefully the lilies of the field, how they grow: They do not labor, nor do they spin. 29 Yet I say to you⁺ that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these. 30 But if God thus clothes the grass of the field, being today and tomorrow being thrown into the furnace, [will He] not much more you⁺, O little of faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘[With] what shall we be clothed?’ 32 For the nations seek after all these things. For your⁺ heavenly Father knows that you⁺ have need of all of these.
Prov. 15:3; 2 Chron. 16:9; Ps. 104:24; Ps. 145:17.
Prov. 15:3 The eyes of YHWH [are] in every place, watching evil ones and good ones.
2 Chron. 16:9 For YHWH—His eyes go to and fro in all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart [is] perfect to Him. You have acted foolishly regarding this; therefore from now on there will be wars with you.”
Ps. 104:24 How many are Your works, O YHWH! All of them You have made in wisdom; the earth is full of Your creatures.
Ps. 145:17 Righteous [is] YHWH in all His ways, and kind in all His works.
Acts 15:18; Isa. 42:9; Ezek. 11:5.
Acts 15:18 known from the age.’
Isa. 42:9 Behold, the former things, they have come, and new [things] I am declaring—before they spring forth, I proclaim [them] to you⁺.”
Ezek. 11:5 And fell upon me the Spirit of YHWH, and He said to me, “Say, thus says YHWH: Thus you⁺ have said, O house of Israel—and the [things] coming upon your⁺ spirit I know.
Eph. 1:11; Ps. 33:10–11.
Eph. 1:11 in Him, in whom also we obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will
Ps. 33:10–11 10 YHWH breaks apart the counsel of nations; He has diasllowed the plans of the peoples. 11 The counsel of YHWH stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation and [to] generation.
Isa. 63:14; Eph. 3:10; Rom. 9:17; Gen. 45:7; Ps. 145:7.
Isa. 63:14 As the beast goes down into the valley, the Spirit of YHWH gave them rest—thus You led Your people, to make for Yourself a glorious name.
Eph. 3:10 so that [there] might be made known now to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God,
Rom. 9:17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: “For this very thing I raised you up, so that I might display My power in you, and that My name should be declared in all the earth.”
Gen. 45:7 And God sent me before you⁺ to make for you⁺ a remnant in the earth, and to give life to you⁺ by a great deliverance.
Ps. 145:7 The memory of the abundance of Your goodness they will pour forth, and Your righteousness they will sing out.
Acts 2:23. (See Isa. 14:24, 27.)
Acts 2:23 Him delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you⁺ put to death, having crucified by lawless hands—
Isa. 14:24, 27 24 YHWH of Hosts has sworn, saying, “Surely as I have purposed, so it will be, and as I have counseled, [so] it will stand: 27 For YHWH of Hosts has counseled, and who can break [it]? And His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?
Gen. 8:22; Jer. 31:35; Isa. 10:6–7. (See Ex. 21:13 and Deut. 19:5; 1 Kings 22:28–34.)
Gen. 8:22 Throughout all the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”
Jer. 31:35 Thus says YHWH, who gives the sun for a light by day, [and] the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who stirs up the sea when its waves roar—YHWH of Hosts [is] His name:
Isa. 10:6–7 6 I will send him against a godless nation and I will order him against the people of My wrath, to plunder the plunder and to prey [on] the prey, and to set [them] for trampling like the clay of the streets. 7 And he does not consider [it] so, and his heart does not reckon [it] so, for to destroy [is] in his heart, and to cut off nations—not a few.
Ex. 21:13 And if he did not lie in wait and God caused [it] to meet his hand, then I will appoint for you a place where there he may flee.
Deut. 19:5 and he who goes with his neighbor into the forest to cut timber, and his hand swings with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies, he shall flee to one of these cities and live,
1 Kings 22:28–34 28 And Micaiah said, “If you ever return in peace, YHWH has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Take heed, peoples, all of them.” 29 And the king of Israel went up, and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, to Ramoth-gilead. 30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and come into the battle, and you put on your robes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. 31 And the king of Aram had commanded the captains of the chariots who [were] unto him, thirty-two, saying, “You⁺ shall not fight with small or with great, except but with the king of Israel by himself.” 32 And it came to pass, the commanders of the chariots seeing Jehoshaphat, that they said, “It [is] surely the king of Israel.” And they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33 And it came to pass, the captains of the chariots seeing that it [was] not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. 34 And a man drew with the bow in his simplicity, and he struck the king of Israel between the joints and between of armor. And he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn your hand and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”
Acts 27:24, 31, 44b; Isa. 55:10–11.
Acts 27:24, 31, 44 24 saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. It is necessary for you to stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted to you all those sailing with you.’ 31 Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, “Unless these remain in the ship, you⁺ are not able to be saved.” 44 and the rest, some indeed on boards and some on things from the ship. And thus it came to pass [that] all were brought safely to the land.
Isa. 55:10–11 10 For as the rain comes down—and the snow—from the heavens, and [from] there it does not return until it has quenched the earth and made it bring forth and sprout, that it may give seed to the one sowing and bread to the one eating, 11 so is My word that goes forth from My mouth: It will not return to Me empty until it has done that which I delight, and it will prosper for that which I send it.
Hos. 1:7; Matt. 4:4; Job 34:20.
Hos. 1:7 And [on] the house of Judah I will have compassion, and I will save them, by YHWH their God; I will not save them by bow, or by sword, or by battle, by horses, or by horsemen.”
Matt. 4:4 But answering, He said, “It has been written: ‘Not on bread alone shall the man live, but on every word coming out through the mouth of God.’”
Job 34:20 [In] a moment they die, and in the middle of the night the people are shaken and pass away; and the mighty are taken away, not by a hand.
Rom. 4:19–21.
Rom. 4:19–21 19 And not having become weak in the faith, he considered his body already having become dead, being about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 Yet he did not doubt in unbelief in the promise of God, but was empowered in faith, having given glory to God, 21 and having been fully assured that what He has promised, He is also able to do.
2 Kings 6:6; Dan. 3:27.
2 Kings 6:6 And the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” And he showed him the place, and he cut off a stick and threw [it] in there; and the iron he made float.
Dan. 3:27 And gathered together the satraps, the administrators, and the governors, and the counselors of the king, and they saw these men whom the fire had no power over their bodies, and the hair of their head was not singed, and their garments were not changed, and the smell of fire had not passed over them.
Isa. 45:7; Rom. 11:32–34; 2 Sam. 16:10; Acts 2:23; Acts 4:27–28. (See 2 Sam. 24:1 and 1 Chron. 21:1; 1 Kings 22:22–23; 1 Chron. 10:4, 13–14.)
Isa. 45:7 forming the light and creating darkness, making peace and creating calamity—I [am] YHWH, the One doing all these [things]!
Rom. 11:32–34 32 For God closed up all in disobedience so that He may have mercy on all. 33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways! 34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
2 Sam. 16:10 And the king said, “What have I with you⁺, O sons of Zeruiah? If he curses because YHWH has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’”
Acts 2:23 Him delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you⁺ put to death, having crucified by lawless hands—
Acts 4:27–28 27 For in truth, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together in this city against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, 28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predetermined to happen.
2 Sam. 24:1 And the anger of YHWH added to be hot against Israel, and He moved David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
1 Chron. 21:1 And Satan stood up against Israel and incited David to number Israel.
1 Kings 22:22–23 22 And he said, ‘I will go and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And He said, ‘Entice him and also you will prevail. Go and do so.’ 23 And now, behold, YHWH has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and YHWH has declared disaster against you.”
1 Chron. 10:4, 13–14 4 And Saul said to the bearer of his armor, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and abuse me.” And the bearer of his armor was not willing, for he was exceedingly afraid. And Saul took a sword and fell on it. 13 And Saul died for his unfaithfulness that he trespassed against YHWH, against the word of YHWH, because he did not keep [it], and also because he consulted a medium to inquire. 14 [He] inquired not of YHWH. And He killed him and turned over the kingdom to David son of Jesse.
John 12:40; 2 Thess. 2:11.
John 12:40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not see with the eyes, and understand with the heart, and turn, and I will heal them.”
2 Thess. 2:11 And because of this, God sends to them a working of delusion for them to believe the lie,
Ps. 76:10; 2 Kings 19:28.
Ps. 76:10 for the wrath of man shall praise You; with the remainder of wrath You gird Yourself.
2 Kings 19:28 Because your raging against me and your tumult have come up to My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bridle in your lips, and I will turn you back by the way in which you came.’
Gen. 50:20; Isa. 10:12. (See Isa. 10:6–7, 13–15.)
Gen. 50:20 And you⁺—you⁺ intended evil against me, God intended it for good, in order to bring about a day like this, to keep alive many people.
Isa. 10:12 And it will come to pass, when YHWH has cut off all his work against Mount Zion and against Jerusalem: “I will reckon with the fruit of the magnitude of the heart of the king of Assyria and with the splendor of the loftiness of his eyes.
Isa. 10:6–7, 13–15 6 I will send him against a godless nation and I will order him against the people of My wrath, to plunder the plunder and to prey [on] the prey, and to set [them] for trampling like the clay of the streets. 7 And he does not consider [it] so, and his heart does not reckon [it] so, for to destroy [is] in his heart, and to cut off nations—not a few. 13 For he says, ‘By the power of my hand I have done [this], and by my own wisdom, for I have understanding; and I have removed the boundaries of the peoples, and their treasuries I have plundered; and I have brought down like a mighty one those sitting! 14 And my hand has found the riches of the peoples as a nest; and as a gathering of forsaken eggs I have gathered all the earth; and there has not been one flapping a wing or opening [its] mouth and chirping.’” 15 Will the ax glorify itself over the one hewing with it? Or will the saw exalt itself over one waving it—waving it as a rod of the one raising it, lifting it up as a staff not of wood!
James 1:13–14, 17; 1 John 2:16; Ps. 50:21.
James 1:13–14, 17 13 Let no one being tempted say, “I am being tempted from God.” For God is unable to be tempted by evils, and He Himself tempts no one. 14 But each one is tempted, being dragged away and being enticed by [his] own desire. 17 Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
1 John 2:16 because all that [is] in the world, the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the vaunting of life, is not from the Father but is from the world.
Ps. 50:21 These [things] you have done, and I kept silent; you thought I was just like you. I will rebuke you and set in array before your eyes.
2 Chron. 32:25–26, 31; Deut. 8:2–3, 5; Luke 22:31–32. (See 2 Sam. 24:1, 25.)
2 Chron. 32:25–26, 31 25 And Hezekiah did not repay according to the deed to him, for his heart was lifted up; and there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem. 26 And Hezekiah humbled himself for the loftiness of his heart, he and those dwelling in Jerusalem, so that the wrath of YHWH did not come upon them in the days of Hezekiah. 31 And so with the ambassadors of the heads of Babylon, those sending to him to inquire about the sign that was [done] in the land, God withdrew from him in order to test him, that He might know all in his heart.
Deut. 8:2–3, 5 2 And you shall remember the whole way that YHWH your God led you this forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you to know what [was] in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. 3 And He humbled you and allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, so that He might make you know that the man shall not live by bread alone; but by every [word] that proceeds from the mouth of YHWH the man shall live. 5 And you shall know in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, YHWH your God disciplines you.
Luke 22:31–32 31 Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asked for all of you⁺ to sift like wheat. 32 But I begged for you, that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
2 Sam. 24:1, 25 1 And the anger of YHWH added to be hot against Israel, and He moved David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” 25 And David built there an altar to YHWH, and he offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings. And YHWH heeded the prayers for the land, and the plague was withdrawn from Israel.
2 Cor. 12:7–9. (See Ps. 73:1–28; 77:1–12; Mark 14:66–72; John 21:15–19.)
2 Cor. 12:7–9 7 and the surpassingness of the revelations. Therefore, so that I should not be over-exalted, a thorn in [my] flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan, that he might buffet me, so that I should not be over-exalted. 8 Three times I entreated the Lord for this, that it might depart from me. 9 And He has said to me, “My grace suffices for you, for the power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, rather, I will boast in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Ps. 73:1–28 1 A Psalm of Asaph. Surely God [is] good to Israel, to those pure of heart. 2 And [as for] me, at a little stretching out of my feet, my steps had nearly poured out. 3 For I was envious of those boasting [when] I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 For there are no pangs until their death, and their body [is] fat. 5 They [are] not in the trouble of mankind, and with men they are not are they plagued. 6 Therefore pride is their necklace; a garment of violence is a covering for them. 7 Their eye has bulged out from fat, the imaginations of their heart overflow. 8 They scoff and speak with malice; from a high place they speak oppression. 9 They have set their mouth in the heavens, and their tongue walks through the earth. 10 Therefore his people turn here, and waters of fullness are wrung out for them. 11 And they say, “How can God know? And is there knowledge in the Most High?” 12 Behold, these [are] the wicked, and at ease always, they have increased in wealth. 13 Surely [in] vain I have cleansed my heart, and I have washed my hands in innocence. 14 For I have been stricken all the day, and chastened in the morning. 15 If I had said, “I will speak like this,” behold, I would have betrayed the generation of Your sons. 16 And I thought to know this—it [was] toil in my eyes— 17 until I came to the sanctuary of God, [and] discerned their end. 18 Surely You set them on slick ground; You make them fall to destruction. 19 How they have become a desolation in a moment! They are swept away completely by terrors. 20 As a dream from awakening, O Lord, in rousing Yourself, You shall despise their image. 21 For my heart had grown sour, and my kidneys pierce themselves. 22 And I [was] brutish and could not know; I was a beast before You. 23 And I [am] always with You; You hold my right hand. 24 May You lead me with Your counsel, and afterward You will receive me [in] glory! 25 Who [is] unto me in the heavens? And besides You I do not take delight on the earth. 26 My flesh and my heart may be consumed, the rock of my heart and my portion [is] God to the age. 27 For behold, those far from You will perish. You destroy everyone prostituting himself from You! 28 But I—the nearness of God [is] good for me—I have placed my refuge in the Lord YHWH, to recount all Your works.
77:1–12 1 For the one directing. According to Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A Psalm. My voice [is] to God—indeed I cry out [with] my voice to God—and He has given ear to me. 2 In the day of my distress I sought the Lord; my hand in the night has been stretched out, and it does not slacken; my soul refuses to be comforted. 3 I remember God, and I groan; I meditate, and my spirit becomes faint. Selah 4 You hold the lids of my eyes; I am troubled, and I cannot speak. 5 I consider the days of old, the years of ages [past]. 6 I remember, my song in the night; with my heart I converse, and my spirit searches. 7 “Will the Lord forever reject [us], and not anymore will He add to show favor? 8 Has His loving devotion ceased forever? Has [His] speech come to an end to generation and generation? 9 Or has God forgotten to show favor? Has He shut up in anger His compassion?” Selah 10 and I said, “I am grieved. Has it changed—the right hand of the Most High?” 11 I will remember the deeds of YAH; indeed, I will remember Your wonder of old. 12 And I have meditated on all Your work, and I put forth Your deeds.
Mark 14:66–72 66 And of Peter being below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest comes, 67 and having seen Peter warming himself, having looked at him, she says, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” 68 But he denied [it], saying, “I neither know nor understand what you say.” And he went forth out into the gateway, and the rooster crowed. 69 And the servant girl, having seen him, began to say again to those standing by, “This is one of them.” 70 But he denied [it] again. And after a little while, again those standing by were saying to Peter, “Truly you are of them, for you also are a Galilean.” 71 But he began to curse and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you⁺ speak!” 72 And immediately a rooster crowed for the second time. And Peter remembered the word that Jesus said to him: “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And having broken down, he began to weep.
John 21:15–19 15 Therefore when they had dined, Jesus says to Simon Peter, “Simon [son] of John, do you love Me more than these?” He says to Him, “Yes, Lord, You know that I dearly love You.” He says to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16 He says to him again a second time, “Simon [son] of John, do you love Me?” He says to Him, “Yes, Lord, You know that I dearly love You.” He says to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He says to him the third time, “Simon [son] of John, do you dearly love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you dearly love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I dearly love You.” Jesus says to him, “Feed My sheep. 18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you were girding yourself and were walking where you were wanting; but when you shall be old, you will stretch forth your hands, and another will gird you and will bring [you] where you do not want.” 19 Now He said this, signifying by what death he will glorify God. And having said this, He says to him, “Follow Me.”
Rom. 1:24, 26, 28; Rom. 11:7–8.
Rom. 1:24, 26, 28 24 Therefore God gave them up in the sinful desires of their hearts to uncleanness to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 26 Because of this, God gave up them to passions of dishonor. For even their females changed the natural use into that contrary to nature. 28 And just as they did not see fit to have God in [their] knowledge, God gave them up to an unfit mind, to do the [things] not being proper;
Rom. 11:7–8 7 What then? What Israel seeks after, this it did not obtain, but the elect obtained [it]. And the rest were hardened, 8 as it has been written: God gave “them a spirit of stupor, eyes not to see, and ears not to hear, unto this very day.”
Deut. 29:4; Mark 4:11–12.
Deut. 29:4 And YHWH has not given to you⁺ a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this day.
Mark 4:11–12 11 And He was saying to them, “To you⁺ has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but to those who [are] outside, everything is done in parables, 12 so that: ‘Seeing they might see and not perceive, and hearing they might hear and not understand, lest ever they might return, and they might be forgiven.’””
Matt. 13:12; Matt. 25:29. (See Acts 13:10–11.)
Matt. 13:12 For whoever has, [it] will be given to him, and he will be in abundance. And whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
Matt. 25:29 For everyone having will be given, and he will have in abundance. But the one not having, even that which he has will be taken away from him.
Acts 13:10–11 10 said, “O full of all deceit and all craftiness, son of the devil, enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord? 11 And now behold, the hand of the Lord [is] upon you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a season.” And immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and going about, he was seeking someone to lead [him] by the hand.
Gen. 4:8; 2 Kings 8:12–13. (See Matt. 26:14–16.)
Gen. 4:8 And Cain said to Abel his brother, [ “Let us go into the field.” ] And it came to pass in their being in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.
2 Kings 8:12–13 12 And Hazael said, “Why is my lord weeping?” And He answered, “Because I know the evil that you will do to the sons of Israel—their strongholds you will send into the fire, and their young men you will kill with the sword, and their children you will dash to pieces, and their pregnant [women] you will split open.” 13 And Hazael said, “But what [is] your servant, a dog, that he should do this great thing?” And Elisha answered, “YHWH has made me see that you [will be] king over Aram.”
Matt. 26:14–16 14 Then one of the Twelve, the one being called Judas Iscariot, having gone to the chief priests, 15 said, “What are you⁺ willing to give me, and I will betray Him to you⁺?” And they appointed to him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that time, he was seeking an opportunity, that he might betray Him.
Ps. 109:6; Luke 22:3; 2 Thess. 2:10–12.
Ps. 109:6 Appoint a wicked man over him, and let an adversary stand at his right hand.
Luke 22:3 And Satan entered into Judas, the one being called Iscariot, being of the number of the Twelve.
2 Thess. 2:10–12 10 and in every deception of wickedness to those perishing, because they did not receive the love of the truth in order for them to be saved. 11 And because of this, God sends to them a working of delusion for them to believe the lie, 12 so that all those not having believed the truth but having been well pleased in unrighteousness should be judged.
Ex. 8:15, 32; 2 Cor. 2:15–16; Isa. 8:14; 1 Peter 2:7–8. (See Ex. 7:3; Isa. 6:9–10; Acts 28:26–27.)
Ex. 8:15, 32 15 And Pharaoh saw that there was relief, and he made heavy his heart, and he did not listen to them, as YHWH had spoken. 32 And Pharaoh made heavy his heart also at this time, and he did not send out the people.
2 Cor. 2:15–16 15 For we are a sweet smell of Christ to God among those being saved and among those perishing: 16 to one indeed a smell from death to death, but to one a smell from life to life. And who [is] sufficient for these things?
Isa. 8:14 And He be for a sanctuary, and for a stone of striking and for a rock of falling for the two houses of Israel, for a trap and for a snare for those dwelling in Jerusalem!
1 Peter 2:7–8 7 Therefore the preciousness [is] to you⁺ who [are] believing. But [to] [those] disbelieving, “The stone that those building rejected, this became into the head of the corner,” 8 and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” [They] stumble at the word, being disobedient, to which also they were appointed.
Ex. 7:3 And I will harden the heart of Pharaoh, and I will multiply My signs and My wonders in the land of Egypt.
Isa. 6:9–10 9 And He said, “Go and say to the people this: ‘Be ever hearing and never understanding, and be ever seeing and never knowing.’ 10 Fatten the heart of this people, and its ears make heavy and its eyes shut, lest it see with its eyes, hear and with its ears, and understand [with] its heart, and turn back and there be healing for it.
Acts 28:26–27 26 saying: ‘Go to this people and say, “In hearing you⁺ will hear and never understand; and in seeing you⁺ will see and never perceive.” 27 For the heart of this people grew dull, and with the ears they barely hear, and they have closed their eyes, lest ever they should see with the eyes, and should hear with the ears, and should understand with the heart, and should turn, and I will heal them.’
1 Tim. 4:10; Amos 9:8–9; Matt. 16:18; Rom. 8:28; Isa. 43:3–5, 14.
1 Tim. 4:10 For unto this we toil and strive, because we have hoped on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.
Amos 9:8–9 8 Behold, the eyes of the Lord YHWH [are] on the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth—except that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob.” An utterance of YHWH. 9 “For behold, I am giving the command, and I will shake among all the nations the house of Israel, as it is shaken in a sieve, and not a pebble will fall [to] the ground.
Matt. 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Rom. 8:28 And we know that God works together all things for good to those loving God, to those being called according to purpose,
Isa. 43:3–5, 14 3 For I, YHWH, [am] your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have given Egypt [for] your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place. 4 Since you are precious in My eyes, You have been honored, and I love you. And I appoint man in place of you, and peoples in exchange for your soul. 5 Do not fear, for I [am] with you; from the east I will bring your seed, and from the west I will gather you. 14 Thus says YHWH, your⁺ Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “For your⁺ sake I will send to Babylon and bring them all down as fugitives, and the Chaldeans in the ships of their rejoicing.

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Chapter 17: Of the Perseverance of the Saints

1. They, whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.

2. This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election, flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ, the abiding of the Spirit, and of the seed of God within them, and the nature of the covenant of grace: from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof.

3. Nevertheless, they may, through the temptations of Satan and of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and, for a time, continue therein: whereby they incur God's displeasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit, come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts, have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded; hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon themselves.

Scripture proofs

Phil. 1:6; 2 Peter 1:10; Rom. 8:28–30; John 10:28–29; 1 John 3:9; 1 John 5:18; 1 Peter 1:5, 9.
Phil. 1:6 being persuaded of this very thing, that the One having begun a good work in you⁺ will complete [it] until the day of Christ Jesus.
2 Peter 1:10 Therefore, brothers, be diligent, rather, to make your⁺ calling and election sure. For [in] doing these things, never at any time shall you⁺ stumble.
Rom. 8:28–30 28 And we know that God works together all things for good to those loving God, to those being called according to purpose, 29 because whom He foreknew, He also predestined [to be] conformed to the image of His Son, for Him to be firstborn among many brothers. 30 And whom He predestined, these also He called; and whom He called, these also He justified; and whom He justified, these also He glorified.
John 10:28–29 28 And I give them eternal life, and never shall they perish to the age, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given [them] to Me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch [them] out of the hand of the Father.
1 John 3:9 Everyone having been born of God does not do sin, because His seed remains in him, and he is not able to sin, because he has been born of God.
1 John 5:18 We know that everyone having been born of God does not sin, but the One having been begotten of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him.
1 Peter 1:5, 9 5 who [are] being guarded in the power of God through faith for the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 9 receiving the outcome of your⁺ faith, the salvation of [your] souls.
Ps. 89:3–4, 28–33; 2 Tim. 2:18–19; Jer. 31:3.
Ps. 89:3–4, 28–33 3 “I have cut a covenant with My chosen one, I have sworn to David My servant: 4 ‘Even to forever I will establish Your seed, and build up for generation and generation your throne.’” Selah 28 Forever I will keep for him My loving devotion, and My covenant will stand fast for him. 29 And I will establish His seed forever, and his throne like the days of the heavens. 30 If his sons should abandon My instruction, and do not walk in My ordinances, 31 if they violate My statutes, and do not keep My commandments, 32 then I will attend [to] their transgression with the rod, and [to] their iniquity with stripes. 33 And I will not break off My loving devotion from him, and I will not be false in My faithfulness.
2 Tim. 2:18–19 18 who missed the mark concerning the truth, saying the resurrection already to have happened; and they are overturning the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God has stood, having this seal: “The Lord knows those being His,” and, “Let everyone naming the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.”
Jer. 31:3 YHWH has appeared to me from afar: “I have loved you [with] an everlasting love; upon thus I have drawn you with loving devotion.
Heb. 10:10, 14; Heb. 13:20–21; Heb. 9:12–15; Rom. 8:33–39; John 17:11, 24; Luke 22:32; Heb. 7:25.
Heb. 10:10, 14 10 in which act of will, we are having been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 14 For by one offering, He has perfected unto perpetuity those being sanctified.
Heb. 13:20–21 20 Now [may] the God of peace, the One having brought up out from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, by the blood of the eternal covenant, 21 equip you⁺ in everything good in order to do His will, doing in us that which [is] well pleasing before Him, through Jesus Christ, to whom [be] the glory to the ages of the ages. Amen.
Heb. 9:12–15 12 nor by blood of goats and calves, but through [His] own blood, He entered once for all into the holy [places], having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and of bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the ones having been defiled sanctify [them] for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, purify our conscience from dead works, in order to serve the living God! 15 And because of this, He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, death having taken place for redemption of the transgressions upon the first covenant, those having been called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
Rom. 8:33–39 33 Who will bring an accusation against the chosen ones of God? God [is] the One justifying. 34 Who [is] the one condemning? Christ Jesus the One having died, now rather having been raised, [is] He who is also at the right hand of God, and who is interceding for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it has been written: “For Your sake we face death all the day; we were reckoned as sheep of slaughter.” 37 But in all these things we are more than conquerors through the One having loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things present nor things about to be, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God that [is] in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 17:11, 24 11 And I am no longer in the world, and they are themselves in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, which You have given to Me, so that they may be one as We [are]. 24 Father, [those] whom You have given to Me, I want that they also may be with Me where I am, so that they may behold My glory that You have given to Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
Luke 22:32 But I begged for you, that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
Heb. 7:25 wherefore also He is able to save to the uttermost those drawing near to God through Him, always living to intercede for them.
John 14:16–17; 1 John 2:27; 1 John 3:9.
John 14:16–17 16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you⁺ another Advocate so that He may be with you⁺ to the age— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world is not able to receive, because it does not see Him, nor does it know [Him]. But you⁺ know Him, for He abides with you⁺ and will be in you⁺.
1 John 2:27 And you⁺, the anointing that you⁺ received from Him remains in you⁺, and you⁺ have no need that anyone should teach you⁺. But as the same anointing teaches you⁺ concerning all things and is true and is not a lie, and just as it taught you⁺, remain in Him.
1 John 3:9 Everyone having been born of God does not do sin, because His seed remains in him, and he is not able to sin, because he has been born of God.
Jer. 32:40; Ps. 89:34–37. (See Jer. 31:31–34.)
Jer. 32:40 And I will make with them a covenant forever, that I will not turn away from them My doing good, and My fear I will put in their hearts, and that they will not turn aside from Me.
Ps. 89:34–37 34 I will not violate My covenant, and a declaration of My lips I will not change. 35 Once I have sworn by My holiness—I will not lie to David— 36 His seed shall be forever, and his throne like the sun before Me. 37 Like the moon It will be established forever, even [as] the faithful witness in the sky.” Selah
Jer. 31:31–34 31 Behold, the days are coming, a declaration of YHWH, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, in that they broke My covenant, and I was a husband to them, a declaration of YHWH. 33 “For this [is] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel, after those days, a declaration of YHWH: I will give My law in their inward parts, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. 34 And they will teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know YHWH; for all of them will know Me, from the least of them and to the greatest of them, a declaration of YHWH. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
John 6:38–40; John 10:28; 2 Thess. 3:3; 1 John 2:19.
John 6:38–40 38 For I have come down from heaven, not so that I may do My will, but the will of the One having sent Me. 39 Now this is the will of the One having sent Me, that all that He has given Me, I should lose none of it, but I will raise it up in the last day. 40 For this is the will of My Father, that everyone beholding the Son and believing in Him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up in the last day.”
John 10:28 And I give them eternal life, and never shall they perish to the age, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
2 Thess. 3:3 But faithful is the Lord, who will strengthen you⁺ and guard [you] from the evil one.
1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us. But [it is] so that it might be made manifest that they are not all of us.
Ex. 32:21; Jonah 1:3, 10; Ps. 51:14; Matt. 26:70, 72, 74.
Ex. 32:21 And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you, that you have brought upon them a great sin?”
Jonah 1:3, 10 3 And Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish, away from the face of YHWH. And he went down [to] Joppa, and found a ship going [to] Tarshish, and he paid its fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish, away from the face of YHWH. 10 And the men feared with great fear, and they said to him: “What [is] this you have done?” For the men knew that he was fleeing away from the face of YHWH, because he had told them.
Ps. 51:14 Deliver me from bloodguilt, O God, the God of my salvation; my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.
Matt. 26:70, 72, 74 70 And he denied [it] before all, saying, “I do not know what you say.” 72 And again he denied [it] with an oath: “I do not know the man.” 74 Then he began to curse and to swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed.
2 Sam. 12:9, 13; Gal. 2:11–14.
2 Sam. 12:9, 13 9 Why have you despised the commandment of YHWH to do evil in His sight? You have struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and his wife you have taken [to be] your wife, and him have killed with the sword of the sons of Ammon. 13 And David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against YHWH.” And Nathan said to David, “Even YHWH has put away your sin; you shall not die.
Gal. 2:11–14 11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed [him] to his face because he was standing condemned. 12 For before certain ones came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles. But when they came, he was drawing back and was separating himself, fearing those of the circumcision. 13 And also the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that they are not walking in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before all, “If you, being a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how do you compel the Gentiles to Judaize?”
Num. 20:12; 2 Sam. 11:27; Isa. 64:7, 9.
Num. 20:12 And YHWH said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you⁺ did not believe Me, to show My holiness in the eyes of the sons of Israel, therefore you⁺ shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.”
2 Sam. 11:27 And her mourning was over, and David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore to him a son. And the thing that David had done was evil in the eyes of YHWH.
Isa. 64:7, 9 7 And no one is calling on Your name, stirring himself up to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and delivered us into the hand of our iniquities. 9 Do not be angry, O YHWH, beyond measure, and do not remember [our] iniquity forever! Behold, please, look; we [are] all Your people!
Eph. 4:30.
Eph. 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you⁺ were sealed for the day of redemption.
Ps. 51:8, 10, 12; Rev. 2:4; Matt. 26:75.
Ps. 51:8, 10, 12 8 Make me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. 10 Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me [by a] willing spirit.
Rev. 2:4 But I have against you that you abandoned your first love.
Matt. 26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, [He] having said, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And having gone out, he wept bitterly.
Isa. 63:17.
Isa. 63:17 Why do You let us stray O YHWH, from Your ways, [and] harden our hearts from fearing You? Return Your servants for the sake of the tribes of Your inheritance.
Ps. 32:3–4; Ps. 51:8.
Ps. 32:3–4 3 When I remained silent, my bones were worn out by my groaning all the day. 4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my juice was overturned, [as] in the drought of summer. Selah
Ps. 51:8 Make me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice.
Gen. 12:10–20; 2 Sam. 12:14; Gal. 2:13.
Gen. 12:10–20 10 And there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine [was] severe in the land. 11 And it came to pass when he was close to entering Egypt, that he said to Sarai his wife, “Behold now, I know that you [are] a woman beautiful in appearance. 12 And it will come to pass when the Egyptians see you, that they will say, ‘This [is] his wife.’ And they will kill me, and you they will let live. 13 Say, please, you [are] my sister, so that it may go well with me for your sake, and my soul may live because of you.” 14 And it came to pass, when Abram entered Egypt, that the Egyptians saw the woman, that she [was] very beautiful. 15 And the princes of Pharaoh saw her, and they commended her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into the house of Pharaoh. 16 And Abram he treated well for her sake, and he had for himself sheep, and cattle, and male donkeys, and menservants, and maidservants, and female donkeys, and camels. 17 And YHWH plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of the matter [of] Sarai, wife of Abram. 18 And Pharaoh called to Abram and said, “What [is] this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she [was] your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She [is] my sister,’ so that I took her to myself as a wife? And now, behold, your wife; take [her] and go!” 20 And Pharaoh commanded [his] men concerning him, and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.
2 Sam. 12:14 Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for [the word] of YHWH by this deed, also the son born to you will surely die.”
Gal. 2:13 And also the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.
Ps. 89:31–32; 1 Cor. 11:32.
Ps. 89:31–32 31 if they violate My statutes, and do not keep My commandments, 32 then I will attend [to] their transgression with the rod, and [to] their iniquity with stripes.
1 Cor. 11:32 But being judged by the Lord, we are disciplined, so that we should not be condemned with the world.

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Westminster Shorter Catechism

Question 4

Q. What is God?

A. God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

Scripture proofs

Deut. 4:15–19; Luke 24:39; John 1:18; John 4:24; Acts 17:29.
Deut. 4:15–19 15 And guard greatly your⁺ souls, for you⁺ did not see any form when YHWH spoke to you⁺ at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, 16 lest you⁺ act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female— 17 the likeness of any animal that [is] on the earth, or the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, 18 the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, or the likeness of any fish that [is] in the water beneath the earth. 19 And lest you lift up your eyes to the heavens and you see the sun and the moon and the stars—all the host of the heavens—and you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which YHWH your God has given as a heritage to all the peoples under the whole heavens.
Luke 24:39 See My hands and My feet, that I am He. Touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you⁺ see Me having.”
John 1:18 No one has ever yet seen God. The only begotten God, the One being in the bosom of the Father, He has made [Him] known.
John 4:24 God [is] Spirit, and it is necessary for those worshiping Him to worship in spirit and truth.”
Acts 17:29 Therefore, being offspring of God, we ought not to consider the Divine Being to be like gold or silver or stone, a graven thing of man’s craft and imagination.
1 Kings 8:27; Ps. 139:7–10; Ps. 145:3; Ps. 147:5; Jer. 23:24; Rom. 11:33–36.
1 Kings 8:27 But will indeed God dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain You. How much less this house that I have built?
Ps. 139:7–10 7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your face? 8 If I ascend [to] the heavens, there You [are]; and if I make my bed [in] Sheol, behold, You! 9 [If] I lift up the wings of the morning, if I settle in the furthest part of the sea, 10 even there Your hand will guide me, and Your right hand will hold me fast.
Ps. 145:3 Great [is] YHWH and to be praised greatly, and of His greatness there is no searching out.
Ps. 147:5 Great [is] our Lord, and abundant in power; of His understanding there is no numbering!
Jer. 23:24 “Can a man hide himself in the hidden places, and I shall not see him?” A declaration of YHWH. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” A declaration of YHWH.
Rom. 11:33–36 33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways! 34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?” 35 Or “who first gave to Him, and it will be given back to him?” 36 For from Him and through Him and unto Him [are] all things. To Him [be] the glory to the ages! Amen.
Deut. 33:27; Ps. 90:2; Ps. 102:12, 24–27; Rev. 1:4, 8.
Deut. 33:27 A habitation [is] the eternal God and underneath [are] the arms everlasting. And He will thrust out from before you the enemy and will say, ‘Destroy.’
Ps. 90:2 In the [time] before the mountains were brought forth, or You formed the earth and the world, and from forever even to forever, You [are] God.
Ps. 102:12, 24–27 12 But You, O YHWH, dwell forever, and Your memorial to generation and generation. 24 I said, “O my God, do not take me up in the midst of my days; Your years [are] generation [to] generations. 25 Before time You founded the earth, and the heavens [are] the work of Your hands. 26 They will perish, but You will stand; and all of them will wear out like a garment—like clothing, You will pass them on, and they will pass away. 27 And You are the same, and Your years will not end.
Rev. 1:4, 8 4 John, To the seven churches in Asia: Grace to you⁺ and peace from the One who is and who was and who is coming, and from the seven Spirits before His throne, 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, the One who is and who was and who is coming, the Almighty.
Ps. 33:11; Mal. 3:6; Heb. 1:12; Heb. 6:17–18; Heb. 13:8; James 1:17.
Ps. 33:11 The counsel of YHWH stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation and [to] generation.
Mal. 3:6 “For I, YHWH, do not change; and you⁺, sons of Jacob, have not been consumed.
Heb. 1:12 and like a robe You will roll them up, and like a garment they will be changed; but You are the same, and Your years will not come to an end.”
Heb. 6:17–18 17 in which God, willing to show more abundantly the unchangeableness of His purpose to the heirs of the promise, guaranteed [it] by an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which [it is] impossible [for] God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, having fled for refuge to take hold of the hope being set before [us],
Heb. 13:8 Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday and today and to the ages.
James 1:17 Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
Ex. 3:14; Ps. 115:2–3; 1 Tim. 1:17; 1 Tim. 6:15–16.
Ex. 3:14 And God said to Moses, “Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘Ehyeh has sent me to you⁺.’”
Ps. 115:2–3 2 Why should the nations say, “Where now [is] their God?” 3 And our God [is] in the heavens; all that he has pleased, He has done.
1 Tim. 1:17 Now to the King of the ages, the immortal, invisible, the only God, [be] honor and glory to the ages of the ages! Amen.
1 Tim. 6:15–16 15 which He will show in [His] own times, the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of those being kings and the Lord of those being lords, 16 the One alone having immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no one of men has seen nor is able to see, to whom [be] honor and eternal dominion! Amen.
Ps. 104:24; Rom. 11:33–34; Heb. 4:13; 1 John 3:20.
Ps. 104:24 How many are Your works, O YHWH! All of them You have made in wisdom; the earth is full of Your creatures.
Rom. 11:33–34 33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways! 34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
Heb. 4:13 And there is no created thing hidden before Him, but all things [are] bare and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom [is] our account.
1 John 3:20 that if our heart may condemn [us], that God is greater than our heart, and He knows all things.
Gen. 17:1; Ps. 62:11; Jer. 32:17; Matt. 19:26; Rev. 1:8.
Gen. 17:1 And Abram was a son of ninety years and nine years, and YHWH appeared to Abram and said to him, “I [am] El-Shaddai; walk before Me and be blameless.
Ps. 62:11 Once God has spoken; twice I have heard this, that strength [is] unto God,
Jer. 32:17 “Ah Lord YHWH! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! There is not anything [too] difficult for You—
Matt. 19:26 And having looked on [them], Jesus said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things [are] possible.”
Rev. 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, the One who is and who was and who is coming, the Almighty.
Hab. 1:13; 1 Peter 1:15–16; 1 John 3:3, 5; Rev. 15:4.
Hab. 1:13 Purer of eyes than to behold evil, and You are not able to look on wickedness. Why do You look on those acting treacherously, [and] remain quiet when the wicked is devouring one more righteous than he?
1 Peter 1:15–16 15 But according as the One having called you⁺ [is] holy, be holy yourselves also in all [your] conduct, 16 because it has been written: “You⁺ shall be holy, because I am holy.”
1 John 3:3, 5 3 And everyone having this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. 5 And you⁺ know that He appeared so that He should take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.
Rev. 15:4 Who should not fear [You], O Lord, and will glorify Your name? For [You] alone [are] holy. For all the nations will come and will worship before You, because Your righteous acts were revealed.”
Gen. 18:25; Ex. 34:6–7; Deut. 32:4; Ps. 96:13; Rom. 3:5, 26.
Gen. 18:25 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked. Far be it from You! Shall the Judge of all the earth not do justice?”
Ex. 34:6–7 6 And YHWH passed before his face and proclaimed, “YHWH, YHWH God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving devotion and truth, 7 keeping loving devotion to the thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and he will surely not acquit [the guilty], visiting iniquity of fathers upon sons and upon sons of sons, upon a third and upon a fourth.”
Deut. 32:4 The Rock—perfect His work [is], for all His ways [are] just; a God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright [is] He.
Ps. 96:13 before YHWH, for He is coming—for He is coming to judge the earth! He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness.
Rom. 3:5, 26 5 But if our unrighteousness proves God’s righteousness, what will we say? God, inflicting the wrath, [is] unrighteous? I speak according to man. 26 for the demonstration of His righteousness in the present time, for Him to be just and justifying the one of the faith from Jesus.
Ps. 103:5; Ps. 107:8; Matt. 19:17; Rom. 2:4.
Ps. 103:5 the One filling your beauty with the good; your youth is renewed like the eagle.
Ps. 107:8 Let them give thanks to YHWH for His loving devotion, and His wonders to the sons of man!
Matt. 19:17 And He said to him, “Why do you ask Me about the good? One is good. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
Rom. 2:4 Or do you despise the riches of His kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?
Ex. 34:6; Deut. 32:4; Ps. 86:15; Ps. 117:2; Heb. 6:18.
Ex. 34:6 And YHWH passed before his face and proclaimed, “YHWH, YHWH God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving devotion and truth,
Deut. 32:4 The Rock—perfect His work [is], for all His ways [are] just; a God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright [is] He.
Ps. 86:15 But You, O Lord, [are] a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in in loving devotion and faithfulness.
Ps. 117:2 For mighty [is] His loving devotion toward us, and the faithfulness of YHWH [is] forever. Hallelu YAH!
Heb. 6:18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which [it is] impossible [for] God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, having fled for refuge to take hold of the hope being set before [us],

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Question 7

Q. What is God?

A. God is a Spirit, in and of himself infinite in being, glory, blessedness, and perfection; all-sufficient, eternal, unchangeable, incomprehensible, every where present, almighty, knowing all things, most wise, most holy, most just, most merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

Scripture proofs

John 4:24.
John 4:24 God [is] Spirit, and it is necessary for those worshiping Him to worship in spirit and truth.”
Ex. 3:14; Job 11:7–9; Ps. 145:3; Ps. 147:5.
Ex. 3:14 And God said to Moses, “Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘Ehyeh has sent me to you⁺.’”
Job 11:7–9 7 Can you find out the searching of God? Or can you find out unto the limit of Shaddai? 8 The heights of the heavens—what can you do? [They are] deeper than Sheol—what can you know? 9 Longer than the earth [is] its measure, and wider than the sea.
Ps. 145:3 Great [is] YHWH and to be praised greatly, and of His greatness there is no searching out.
Ps. 147:5 Great [is] our Lord, and abundant in power; of His understanding there is no numbering!
Acts 7:2.
Acts 7:2 And he began to speak: “Men, brothers and fathers, listen! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, being in Mesopotamia before his dwelling in Haran,
1 Tim. 6:15.
1 Tim. 6:15 which He will show in [His] own times, the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of those being kings and the Lord of those being lords,
Matt. 5:48.
Matt. 5:48 You⁺ shall be perfect, therefore, as your⁺ heavenly Father is perfect.[]
Ex. 3:14; Gen. 17:1; Rom. 11:35–36.
Ex. 3:14 And God said to Moses, “Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘Ehyeh has sent me to you⁺.’”
Gen. 17:1 And Abram was a son of ninety years and nine years, and YHWH appeared to Abram and said to him, “I [am] El-Shaddai; walk before Me and be blameless.
Rom. 11:35–36 35 Or “who first gave to Him, and it will be given back to him?” 36 For from Him and through Him and unto Him [are] all things. To Him [be] the glory to the ages! Amen.
Ps. 90:2; Deut. 33:27.
Ps. 90:2 In the [time] before the mountains were brought forth, or You formed the earth and the world, and from forever even to forever, You [are] God.
Deut. 33:27 A habitation [is] the eternal God and underneath [are] the arms everlasting. And He will thrust out from before you the enemy and will say, ‘Destroy.’
Mal. 3:6.
Mal. 3:6 “For I, YHWH, do not change; and you⁺, sons of Jacob, have not been consumed.
1 Kings 8:27; Ps. 145:3. (See Rom. 11:34.)
1 Kings 8:27 But will indeed God dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain You. How much less this house that I have built?
Ps. 145:3 Great [is] YHWH and to be praised greatly, and of His greatness there is no searching out.
Rom. 11:34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
Ps. 139:1–13.
Ps. 139:1–13 1 For the one directing. A Psalm of David. O YHWH, You have searched me and know [me]. 2 You know my sitting down and my rising up; You discern my thought from afar. 3 You have fanned My wandering and my lying down, and You are aware of all my ways. 4 For [there is] not a word on my tongue—behold, O YHWH, You have known it all. 5 Behind and before, You hem me in, and You have laid Your hand upon me. 6 [Such] knowledge [is] wonderful for me; it is high, I am not able to atttain it. 7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your face? 8 If I ascend [to] the heavens, there You [are]; and if I make my bed [in] Sheol, behold, You! 9 [If] I lift up the wings of the morning, if I settle in the furthest part of the sea, 10 even there Your hand will guide me, and Your right hand will hold me fast. 11 And I said, “Surely the darkness will cover me, and the light [become] night around me”— 12 even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night shines like the day—as the darkness, so [is] the light. 13 For You have possessed my kidneys; You covered me in the womb of my mother.
Rev. 4:8; Gen. 17:1; Matt. 19:26.
Rev. 4:8 And the four living creatures, one by one of them had six wings respectively, full of eyes all around and within; and they do not have rest day and night, saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, the One who was and who is and who is coming!”
Gen. 17:1 And Abram was a son of ninety years and nine years, and YHWH appeared to Abram and said to him, “I [am] El-Shaddai; walk before Me and be blameless.
Matt. 19:26 And having looked on [them], Jesus said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things [are] possible.”
Heb. 4:13. (See Ps. 147:5.)
Heb. 4:13 And there is no created thing hidden before Him, but all things [are] bare and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom [is] our account.
Ps. 147:5 Great [is] our Lord, and abundant in power; of His understanding there is no numbering!
Rom. 11:33–34; Rom. 16:27.
Rom. 11:33–34 33 O, the depth of riches, both of wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and untraceable His ways! 34 “For who knew the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”
Rom. 16:27 [to] the only wise God [be] the glory unto the ages of the ages, which [is] through Jesus Christ! Amen.
1 Peter 1:15–16; Rev. 15:4; Isa. 6:3.
1 Peter 1:15–16 15 But according as the One having called you⁺ [is] holy, be holy yourselves also in all [your] conduct, 16 because it has been written: “You⁺ shall be holy, because I am holy.”
Rev. 15:4 Who should not fear [You], O Lord, and will glorify Your name? For [You] alone [are] holy. For all the nations will come and will worship before You, because Your righteous acts were revealed.”
Isa. 6:3 And this one cried to this one and said: “Holy, holy, holy [is] YHWH of Hosts; the fullness of all the earth [is] His glory!”
Deut. 32:4; Rom. 3:5, 26.
Deut. 32:4 The Rock—perfect His work [is], for all His ways [are] just; a God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright [is] He.
Rom. 3:5, 26 5 But if our unrighteousness proves God’s righteousness, what will we say? God, inflicting the wrath, [is] unrighteous? I speak according to man. 26 for the demonstration of His righteousness in the present time, for Him to be just and justifying the one of the faith from Jesus.
Ex. 34:6; Ps. 117:2; Deut. 32:4.
Ex. 34:6 And YHWH passed before his face and proclaimed, “YHWH, YHWH God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in loving devotion and truth,
Ps. 117:2 For mighty [is] His loving devotion toward us, and the faithfulness of YHWH [is] forever. Hallelu YAH!
Deut. 32:4 The Rock—perfect His work [is], for all His ways [are] just; a God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright [is] He.

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Question 13

Q. What hath God especially decreed concerning angels and men?

A. God, by an eternal and immutable decree, out of his mere love, for the praise of his glorious grace, to be manifested in due time, hath elected some angels to glory; and in Christ hath chosen some men to eternal life, and the means thereof: and also, according to his sovereign power, and the unsearchable counsel of his own will, (whereby he extendeth or withholdeth favor as he pleaseth,) hath passed by and foreordained the rest to dishonor and wrath, to be for their sin inflicted, to the praise of the glory of his justice.

Scripture proofs

1 Tim. 5:21.
1 Tim. 5:21 I earnestly testify before God and Christ Jesus and the chosen angels that you should keep these things without prejudice, doing nothing according to partiality.
Eph. 1:4–6; Eph. 2:10; 2 Thess. 2:13–14; 1 Peter 1:2.
Eph. 1:4–6 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world for us to be holy and blameless before Him, in love 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously gave us in the Beloved One,
Eph. 2:10 For we are His workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
2 Thess. 2:13–14 13 But we ought to give thanks to God always concerning you⁺, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you⁺ from the beginning unto salvation in the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth, 14 to which also He called you⁺ through our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be multiplied to you⁺.
Rom. 9:17–18, 21–22; Matt. 11:25–26; 2 Tim. 2:20; Jude 4; 1 Peter 2:8.
Rom. 9:17–18, 21–22 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: “For this very thing I raised you up, so that I might display My power in you, and that My name should be declared in all the earth.” 18 So then, He has mercy on whom He wants, and He hardens whom He wants. 21 Or does the potter not have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump the one vessel indeed for honor, but the one for dishonor? 22 And [what] if God, desiring to display the wrath and to make known His power, bore with much patience vessels of wrath, having been fitted for destruction,
Matt. 11:25–26 25 In that time, answering, Jesus said, “I acknowledge You, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, because You hid these things from the wise and intelligent, and You revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, because of this it was good pleasure before You.
2 Tim. 2:20 Now in a great house there are not only golden and silver vessels, but also wooden and earthen; and some indeed for honor, but some for dishonor.
1 Peter 2:8 and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” [They] stumble at the word, being disobedient, to which also they were appointed.
Jude 4 on BibleHub ↗

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Question 79

Q. May not true believers, by reason of their imperfections, and the many temptations and sins they are overtaken with, fall away from the state of grace?

A. True believers, by reason of the unchangeable love of God, and his decree and covenant to give them perseverance, their inseparable union with Christ, his continual intercession for them, and the Spirit and seed of God abiding in them, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

Scripture proofs

Jer. 31:3.
Jer. 31:3 YHWH has appeared to me from afar: “I have loved you [with] an everlasting love; upon thus I have drawn you with loving devotion.
2 Tim. 2:19; Heb. 13:20–21; 2 Sam. 23:5.
2 Tim. 2:19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God has stood, having this seal: “The Lord knows those being His,” and, “Let everyone naming the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.”
Heb. 13:20–21 20 Now [may] the God of peace, the One having brought up out from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, by the blood of the eternal covenant, 21 equip you⁺ in everything good in order to do His will, doing in us that which [is] well pleasing before Him, through Jesus Christ, to whom [be] the glory to the ages of the ages. Amen.
2 Sam. 23:5 For not so [is] my house with God; yet an everlasting covenant He has made with me, ordered in all things and secure; for [this is] all my salvation, and all [my] desire, for will He not make it sprout?
1 Cor. 1:8–9.
1 Cor. 1:8–9 8 who also will confirm you⁺ until the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 Faithful [is] God, by whom you⁺ were called into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
Heb. 7:25; Luke 22:32.
Heb. 7:25 wherefore also He is able to save to the uttermost those drawing near to God through Him, always living to intercede for them.
Luke 22:32 But I begged for you, that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
1 John 3:9; 1 John 2:27.
1 John 3:9 Everyone having been born of God does not do sin, because His seed remains in him, and he is not able to sin, because he has been born of God.
1 John 2:27 And you⁺, the anointing that you⁺ received from Him remains in you⁺, and you⁺ have no need that anyone should teach you⁺. But as the same anointing teaches you⁺ concerning all things and is true and is not a lie, and just as it taught you⁺, remain in Him.
Jer. 32:40; John 10:28.
Jer. 32:40 And I will make with them a covenant forever, that I will not turn away from them My doing good, and My fear I will put in their hearts, and that they will not turn aside from Me.
John 10:28 And I give them eternal life, and never shall they perish to the age, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
1 Peter 1:5.
1 Peter 1:5 who [are] being guarded in the power of God through faith for the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

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