Presence of God in Scripture and Theology
The presence of God is a foundational concept in Scripture, often described in terms of God's pervasive being and specific manifestations. The Bible takes the existence of God as a given, referring to the Divine Being with terms such as 'El, 'Eloah, and 'Elohim, and also Jehovah, which is often rendered as "LORD" in English translations [1].
God's presence is understood in various ways. One aspect is His omnipresence, meaning He is everywhere. However, Scripture also speaks of God's special presence, particularly in relation to His people. For instance, Christ is described as being "in the midst of" His church, providing support, supply, and protection through His gracious presence [8]. This presence is distinct from His essential presence, which is everywhere, and His providential presence, which concerns all creation [8].
The concept of God's presence is also deeply intertwined with the person of Jesus Christ. Christ is identified as "the Word" (Greek: Logos), a title found in the writings of John, which designates His divine nature [2, 4]. As the Word, Christ is the revealer of God, making God known to humanity, for "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18) [2]. He is described as the "brightness of his glory" and the "express image of his person" (Hebrews 1:3), indicating His essential unity and co-eternality with God the Father [11]. The Word was "with God" and "was God" from the beginning and was the Creator of all things [2, 4].
The "word of God" can refer to Christ himself, who is described as "quick and powerful" and a discerning judge of the secrets of men [9]. It also refers to the entirety of Scripture, which is considered inspired by God and testifies about Christ [10]. This divine revelation, particularly through the written Word, is considered of greater benefit to humanity than the natural world, especially for recovering from a fallen state [5].
The presence of God is also anticipated in future events. The second coming of Christ is referred to as "the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour" (Titus 2:13) [3, 6]. This event is associated with "times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord" (Acts 3:19) and the "restitution of all things" (Acts 3:21) [3]. In the book of Revelation, the temple and the altar symbolize God's presence [7].
Sources
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: God — (A.S. and Dutch God; Dan. Gud; Ger. Gott), the name of the Divine Being. It is the rendering (1) of the Hebrew 'El, from a word meaning to be strong; (2) of 'Eloah_, plural _'Elohim. The singular form, Eloah, is used only in poetry. The plural form is more commonly used in all parts of the Bible, The Hebrew word Jehovah (q.v.), the only other word generally employed to denote the Supreme Being, is uniformly rendered in the Authorized Version by "LORD," printed in small capitals. The existence of God is taken for granted in the Bible. There is nowhere any argume”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Word, The — (Gr. Logos), one of the titles of our Lord, found only in the writings of John (John 1:1-14; 1 John 1:1; Rev. 19:13). As such, Christ is the revealer of God. His office is to make God known. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" (John 1:18). This title designates the divine nature of Christ. As the Word, he "was in the beginning" and "became flesh." "The Word was with God " and "was God," and was the Creator of all things (comp. Ps. 33: 6; 107:20; 119:89; 147:18; Isa. 40:8).”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Second Coming of Christ, The — Time of, unknown -- Mt 24:36; Mr 13:32. Called the Times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord. -- Ac 3:19. Times of restitution of all things. -- Ac 3:21; Ro 8:21. Last time. -- 1Pe 1:5. Appearing of Jesus Christ. -- 1Pe 1:7. Revelation of Jesus Christ. -- 1Pe 1:13. Glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour. -- Tit 2:13. Coming of the day of God. -- 2Pe 3:12. Day of our Lord Jesus Christ. -- 1Co 1:8. Foretold by Prophets. -- Da 7:13; Jude 1:14. Himself. -- Mt 25:31; Joh 14:3. Apostles. -- Ac 3:20; 1Ti 6:14. Angels. -- A”
- John “John 1:1 (YLT) — In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God;”
- Psalms (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Psalms 19:7: God's glory, (that is, his goodness to man) appears much in the works of creation, but much more in and by divine revelation. The holy scripture, as it is a rule both of our duty to God and of our expectation from him, is of much greater use and benefit to us than day or night, than the air we breathe in, or the light of the sun. The discoveries made of God by his works might have served if man had retained his integrity; but, to recover him out of his fallen state, another course must be taken; that must be done by the word of God. And here, 1. The psalmist gives”
- Titus (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Titus 2:13: (Phi 3:20-21). Looking for--with constant expectation (so the Greek) and with joy (Rom 8:19). This will prove the antidote to worldly lusts, and the stimulus to "live in this present world" conformably to this expectation. The Greek is translated, "waiting for," in Luk 2:25. that--Greek, "the." blessed--bringing blessedness (Rom 4:7-8). hope--that is, object of hope (Rom 8:24; Gal 5:5; Col 1:5). the glorious appearing--There is but one Greek article to both "hope" and "appearing," which marks their close connection (the hope being about to be ”
- Revelation (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Revelation 14:15: 14:15-18 The Temple and the altar represent God’s presence (see 9:13; 11:19; 16:7).”
- Zephaniah (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Zephaniah 3:17: The Lord thy God in the midst of thee [is] mighty Every word carries in it something very encouraging to the church and people of God; and is an antidote against those fears and faintings they are subject to; Christ "is in the midst of" them; near at hand to support and supply them, to assist and strengthen them, to protect and defend them; he is not only near by his essential presence, which is everywhere; and by his providential presence, which is concerned with all his creatures; but by his gracious presence, peculiar to his church and people; and which gives th”
- Hebrews (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Hebrews 4:11: For the word of God is quick and powerful,.... This is to be understood of Christ, the essential Word of God; for the Word of God was a known name of the Messiah among the Jews; See Gill on Joh 1:1 and therefore the apostle makes use of it when writing to them: and the words are introduced as a reason why care should be taken, that men fall not off from the Gospel, because Christ, the author, sum, and substance of it, is the living God, omnipotent and omniscient; for not a thing, but a person is spoken of, who is a Judge, and a critical discerner of the secrets of me”
- Colossians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Colossians 3:16: Let the word of Christ dwell in you,.... The Alexandrian copy and Arabic version read, "the word of God"; by which may be meant the whole Scripture, all the writings of the Old and New Testament, which are by inspiration of God, were endited by the spirit of Christ, speak and testify of him, and were written for his sake, and on his account, and therefore may be called his word; and are what should be searched into, carefully attended to, diligently read, and frequently meditated upon; and which are able, under a divine blessing, to furnish with all spiritual wisd”
- Hebrews (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Hebrews 1:3: Who being--by pre-existent and essential being. brightness of his glory--Greek, the effulgence of His glory. "Light of (from) light" [Nicene Creed]. "Who is so senseless as to doubt concerning the eternal being of the Son? For when has one seen light without effulgence?" [ATHANASIUS, Against Arius, Orations, 2]. "The sun is never seen without effulgence, nor the Father without the Son" [THEOPHYLACT]. It is because He is the brightness, &c., and because He upholds, &c., that He sat down on the right hand, &c. It was a return to His divine glory (Joh 6”