Too Wonderful!
"Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?" - Judges 13:18 (NASB)
When I read this verse this morning, my initial response was simply, "Amen." The LORD's name is wonderful, it brings such comfort and such peace to my soul. This is most definitely true, but sometimes in our hurriedness we miss the bigger picture. In Hebrew, the word translated as "wonderful" is pil'îy. It is used only two times in the OT, both times referencing the nature of the LORD. It means, "incomprehensible, wonderful, remarkable, something which appears to be supernatural."* In this passage, the angel of the LORD appeared to Samson's parents, but they did not recognize Him (13:16). As they were trying to figure out who to give honor to they asked a "what" question, but the LORD gave them a "who" answer. The LORD was not dismissing their question, He was answering their question in a amazing manner. The problem was that Manoah and his wife did not recognize God's presence, so how could they possible understand who He was? It was only after the angel disappear into the fire of the altar that Manoah realized Who this was that had been speaking to him.
I am thankful that the LORD allows us to personally know Him, and to learn about Him through progressively revealing Himself to us and humanity in time. However, I am amazed at how often we make assumptions concerning the LORD. We "know" what He is going to do, when He is going to do it. And, sometimes, we even attempt to tell Him how. However, our trying to understand The LORD can be likened to a rocket scientist explaining physics to an infant: The infant may smile and coo, but cannot comprehend the complexities of the subject matter. Let us remove the presumptuous restraints from our understanding of the LORD. The LORD is beyond comprehension. Scripture teaches us that He is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipresent (everywhere-present). It was He who spoke all creation into existence. Furthermore, His thoughts and His ways are higher than ours, and He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly beyond anything that we can think or ask. If all this is true, then is there really anything that is too difficult for our God? Tell me, what mountain stands before you today that is bigger than your LORD?
*Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible, Spiros Zodhiates.
When I read this verse this morning, my initial response was simply, "Amen." The LORD's name is wonderful, it brings such comfort and such peace to my soul. This is most definitely true, but sometimes in our hurriedness we miss the bigger picture. In Hebrew, the word translated as "wonderful" is pil'îy. It is used only two times in the OT, both times referencing the nature of the LORD. It means, "incomprehensible, wonderful, remarkable, something which appears to be supernatural."* In this passage, the angel of the LORD appeared to Samson's parents, but they did not recognize Him (13:16). As they were trying to figure out who to give honor to they asked a "what" question, but the LORD gave them a "who" answer. The LORD was not dismissing their question, He was answering their question in a amazing manner. The problem was that Manoah and his wife did not recognize God's presence, so how could they possible understand who He was? It was only after the angel disappear into the fire of the altar that Manoah realized Who this was that had been speaking to him.
I am thankful that the LORD allows us to personally know Him, and to learn about Him through progressively revealing Himself to us and humanity in time. However, I am amazed at how often we make assumptions concerning the LORD. We "know" what He is going to do, when He is going to do it. And, sometimes, we even attempt to tell Him how. However, our trying to understand The LORD can be likened to a rocket scientist explaining physics to an infant: The infant may smile and coo, but cannot comprehend the complexities of the subject matter. Let us remove the presumptuous restraints from our understanding of the LORD. The LORD is beyond comprehension. Scripture teaches us that He is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing), and omnipresent (everywhere-present). It was He who spoke all creation into existence. Furthermore, His thoughts and His ways are higher than ours, and He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly beyond anything that we can think or ask. If all this is true, then is there really anything that is too difficult for our God? Tell me, what mountain stands before you today that is bigger than your LORD?
*Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible, Spiros Zodhiates.
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