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God’s foreknowledge seems a stumbling block to some that may have incorrect understandings about what God knows and why He knows what He knows.
Knowledge of all things is properly attributed to God (2 Cor. 12:2–3; cf. Acts 2:23; Rom. 8:29; 11:2; 1 Peter 1:2). The idea of foreknowledge can be used in two ways: as an expression of knowledge of all things, even prior to their happening in time, and as an act of choice or ordaining. The former is the subject for consideration here.
The idea of foreknowledge relates to the things known by God and the order in which they stand to each other as they are, whether they be to us past, present, or future. All of these things God knows equally vividly from eternity. Things that to us are yet future have been known by God from eternity; His knowledge of the future is so real that when events become “past” to us (based on their actual occurrence in time), God knows them in the same way He always did. Nothing is altered in His knowledge by the passage of time; His understanding is infinite and unchanging.
Some have objected to the premise of God’s perfect and complete knowledge of all things prior to their occurrence. Such challengers point to passages in Scripture that appear to suggest God’s lack of knowledge: God’s fearing or being afraid (Gen. 3:22–23; Ex. 13:17; Deut. 32:26–27); His repentance (1 Sam. 15:10–11); a change or alteration of His mind (Num. 14:27,30; 1 Sam. 2:30); or His testing of men’s hearts to discover their contents (Judg. 3:1,4; 2 Chron. 32:31; Dan. 12:10).
However, each of these passages speaks of God in a figurative fashion, or anthropomorphically. Thus these passages do not describe the nature of God as He is. Rather, God condescends to speak at our level, that is He accommodates our finitude, to express reality in human terms. This idea could be likened to a father’s talking to a newborn. The father babbles in “baby talk” to accommodate himself to the baby’s level.
In other places of Scripture God is directly said not to do these things, for He is not a man (1 Sam. 15:29). Such traits would destroy God’s immutability. How, for example, could God in His omnipotence and true nature properly be termed afraid in the sense that we ourselves experience fear? Furthermore, the abundance of scriptural evidence in favor of God’s knowledge overwhelmingly demonstrates the truth of the doctrine of His foreknowledge.
Scripture attests that God knows all things in all details, whether past, present, or future. He understands all the ways and actions of men, even before their occurrence (1 Sam. 2:3; Ps. 139:2–4; 147:5; Isa. 40:13–14,28; Acts 15:18; Rom. 11:36; Heb. 4:13; 1 John 3:20).
The countless miraculous predictions in Scripture necessitate a detailed knowledge of all things. By His holy prophets God foretold the free actions of men, what they would do and what they should do, long before they were born (Gen. 15:13–14; 18:18–19; Deut. 31:16–18; 1 Kings 13:2; 22:28; Matt. 24:5; Mark 13:6; 14:30; Acts 20:29; 2 Thess. 2:3,4; 1 Tim. 4:1; 2 Tim. 3:1; 2 Peter 2:1). Thus God perfectly knew from eternity all of the free actions of men before they performed them. This knowledge extends even to those things that deal with the secrets of men’s hearts (Deut. 31:21; 1 Sam. 16:7; 23:12; 1 Kings 8:39; 2 Kings 8:12–13; Job 31:4; Ps. 38:9; 94:11; Prov. 15:11; Isa. 48:4; Jer. 17:9–10; Ezek. 11:5; Matt. 6:4,6,8; Luke 16:15; Acts 1:24; Rev. 3:15).
Some wrongly view God’s foreknowledge of all men’s actions as the logical, a priori cause of His predetermining all things. God’s knowledge, they incorrectly assume, caused Him to shape His plan for eternity. However, while both God’s foreknowledge and His predeterminate counsel occur from eternity (temporally considered), God’s foreknowledge must be viewed as coming after His predetermination (logically considered). God’s knowledge of all men’s future free actions did not cause Him to adapt His workings accordingly—for this would have placed God below man, as One reactive and subject rather than determinate and sovereign. Surely, what is not pre-decreed cannot be certain and therefore cannot be known. Yet upon the determination of God’s sovereign counsel out of eternity, His foreknowledge extends to a grasp of all things—also from eternity.
The above has been adapted from John Owen, Vindiciae Evangelicae, ch. 5, freely available here or from Amazon here.
AMR
Knowledge of all things is properly attributed to God (2 Cor. 12:2–3; cf. Acts 2:23; Rom. 8:29; 11:2; 1 Peter 1:2). The idea of foreknowledge can be used in two ways: as an expression of knowledge of all things, even prior to their happening in time, and as an act of choice or ordaining. The former is the subject for consideration here.
The idea of foreknowledge relates to the things known by God and the order in which they stand to each other as they are, whether they be to us past, present, or future. All of these things God knows equally vividly from eternity. Things that to us are yet future have been known by God from eternity; His knowledge of the future is so real that when events become “past” to us (based on their actual occurrence in time), God knows them in the same way He always did. Nothing is altered in His knowledge by the passage of time; His understanding is infinite and unchanging.
Some have objected to the premise of God’s perfect and complete knowledge of all things prior to their occurrence. Such challengers point to passages in Scripture that appear to suggest God’s lack of knowledge: God’s fearing or being afraid (Gen. 3:22–23; Ex. 13:17; Deut. 32:26–27); His repentance (1 Sam. 15:10–11); a change or alteration of His mind (Num. 14:27,30; 1 Sam. 2:30); or His testing of men’s hearts to discover their contents (Judg. 3:1,4; 2 Chron. 32:31; Dan. 12:10).
However, each of these passages speaks of God in a figurative fashion, or anthropomorphically. Thus these passages do not describe the nature of God as He is. Rather, God condescends to speak at our level, that is He accommodates our finitude, to express reality in human terms. This idea could be likened to a father’s talking to a newborn. The father babbles in “baby talk” to accommodate himself to the baby’s level.
In other places of Scripture God is directly said not to do these things, for He is not a man (1 Sam. 15:29). Such traits would destroy God’s immutability. How, for example, could God in His omnipotence and true nature properly be termed afraid in the sense that we ourselves experience fear? Furthermore, the abundance of scriptural evidence in favor of God’s knowledge overwhelmingly demonstrates the truth of the doctrine of His foreknowledge.
Scripture attests that God knows all things in all details, whether past, present, or future. He understands all the ways and actions of men, even before their occurrence (1 Sam. 2:3; Ps. 139:2–4; 147:5; Isa. 40:13–14,28; Acts 15:18; Rom. 11:36; Heb. 4:13; 1 John 3:20).
The countless miraculous predictions in Scripture necessitate a detailed knowledge of all things. By His holy prophets God foretold the free actions of men, what they would do and what they should do, long before they were born (Gen. 15:13–14; 18:18–19; Deut. 31:16–18; 1 Kings 13:2; 22:28; Matt. 24:5; Mark 13:6; 14:30; Acts 20:29; 2 Thess. 2:3,4; 1 Tim. 4:1; 2 Tim. 3:1; 2 Peter 2:1). Thus God perfectly knew from eternity all of the free actions of men before they performed them. This knowledge extends even to those things that deal with the secrets of men’s hearts (Deut. 31:21; 1 Sam. 16:7; 23:12; 1 Kings 8:39; 2 Kings 8:12–13; Job 31:4; Ps. 38:9; 94:11; Prov. 15:11; Isa. 48:4; Jer. 17:9–10; Ezek. 11:5; Matt. 6:4,6,8; Luke 16:15; Acts 1:24; Rev. 3:15).
Some wrongly view God’s foreknowledge of all men’s actions as the logical, a priori cause of His predetermining all things. God’s knowledge, they incorrectly assume, caused Him to shape His plan for eternity. However, while both God’s foreknowledge and His predeterminate counsel occur from eternity (temporally considered), God’s foreknowledge must be viewed as coming after His predetermination (logically considered). God’s knowledge of all men’s future free actions did not cause Him to adapt His workings accordingly—for this would have placed God below man, as One reactive and subject rather than determinate and sovereign. Surely, what is not pre-decreed cannot be certain and therefore cannot be known. Yet upon the determination of God’s sovereign counsel out of eternity, His foreknowledge extends to a grasp of all things—also from eternity.
The above has been adapted from John Owen, Vindiciae Evangelicae, ch. 5, freely available here or from Amazon here.
AMR