What does it mean that God is omniscient?

Answer

Omniscience is defined as “the state of having total knowledge, the quality of knowing everything.” For God to be sovereign over His creation of all things, whether visible or invisible, He has to be all-knowing. His omniscience is not restricted to any one person in the Godhead—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all by nature omniscient.

God knows everything «For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. », (1 John 3:20). He knows not only the minutest details of our lives but those of everything around us, for He mentions even knowing when a sparrow falls or when we lose a single hair (Matthew 10:29-30). Not only does God know everything that will occur until the end of history itself (Isaiah 46:9-10), but He also knows our very thoughts, even before we speak forth «For there is not a word in my tongue, But, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. », (Psalm 139:4). He knows our hearts from afar; He even saw us in the womb (Psalm 139:1-3, 15-16). Solomon expresses this truth perfectly when he says, “For you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind” «then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;) », (1 Kings 8:39).

Despite the condescension of the Son of God to empty Himself and make

Himself nothing «but made himself of no reputation, and took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: », (Philippians 2:7). His omniscience is clearly seen in the New Testament writings. The first prayer of the apostles in Acts 1:24, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart,” implies Jesus’ omniscience, which is necessary if He is to be able to receive petitions and intercede at God’s right hand. On earth, Jesus’ omniscience is just as clear. In many Gospel accounts, He knew the thoughts of his audience (Matthew 9:4; Matthew 12:25; Mark 2:6-8; Luke 6:8). He knew about people’s lives before He had even met them. When He met the woman collecting water at the well at Sychar, He said to her, “The fact is you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband” «for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. », (John 4:18). He also tells His disciples that their friend Lazarus was dead, although He was over 25 miles away from Lazarus’s home (John 11:11-15). He advised the disciples to go and make preparation for the Lord’s Supper, describing the person they were to meet and follow (Mark 14:13-15). Perhaps best of all, He knew Nathanael before ever meeting him, for He knew his heart (John 1:47-48).

Clearly, we observe Jesus’ omniscience on earth, but this is where the paradox begins as well. Jesus asks questions, which imply the absence of knowledge, although the Lord asks questions more for the benefit of.His audience than for Himself. However, there is another aspect regarding His omniscience that arises from the limitations of human nature which He, as the Son of God, assumed. We read that as a man He “grew in wisdom and stature” «And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.», (Luke 2:52) and that He learned “obedience through suffering” «though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; », (Hebrews 5:8). We also read that He did not know when the world would come to an end (Matthew 24:34-36). Therefore, we must ask, why would the Son not know this, if He knew everything else? Instead of viewing this solely as a human limitation, we should see it as a deliberate lack of knowledge. It was a voluntary act of humility to fully partake in our nature (Philippians 2:6-11;Hebrews 2:17) and to be the Second Adam.

Lastly, there is nothing too difficult for an omniscient God, and it is on the foundation of our faith in such a God that we can securely rest in Him, knowing that He promises never to forsake us as long as we abide in Him. He has known us from eternity, even before creation. God knew you and me, where we would emerge in the course of time, and with whom we would interact. He even foresaw our sin in all its repulsiveness and depravity, yet, in love, He marked us as His own and drew us to that love in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:3-6). We will behold Him face to face, but our understanding of Him will never be exhaustive. Our amazement, love, and adoration of Him will continue for all eternity as we revel in the radiance of His heavenly love.

Exploring, learning, and appreciating increasingly about our all-knowing God.