Redeemer Bible Church

God the good creator of all things, in his infinite power and wisdom, upholds, directs, disposes and governs all creatures and things, from the greatest to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, to the end for which they were created. God governs according to his infallible foreknowledge and the free and unchanging counsel of his own will; for the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, boundless goodness, and mercy.

Job 38:11

and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?

Ps 145:8-9

8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.

Prov 8:22-31

22 “The Lord possessed me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. 23 Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. 24 When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth, 26 before he had made the earth with its fields, or the first of the dust of the world. 27 When he established the heavens, I was there; when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28 when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, 29 when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man.

1 Cor 8:6

yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

Eph 3:9

and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things

All Footnotes

Although in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, who is the first cause, all things come to pass immutably and infallibly; so that nothing happens to anyone by chance, or outside his providence, yet by his providence he orders events to occur according to the nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently.

Acts 2:23

this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.

Acts 4:27-28

27 for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28 to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.

Prov 16:33

The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.

Prov 21:1

The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.

Contingently

Necessarily, as an apple falls when dropped from a tree; freely, as a man may choose to drop the apple; and contingently, as the apple’s falling depends on the choosing of the man holding it. See Gen 20:1-6; 50:20; Exod 4:21 w/ 8:15.

All Footnotes

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

Isa 55:10-11

10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

Acts 27:31

31 Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.”

Acts 27:34

Therefore I urge you to take some food. For it will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you.”

Rom 9:16

So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.

Rom 10:14

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

All Footnotes

The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God so far manifest themselves in his providence that his determinate counsel extends even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions of both angels and men. This is not merely by a bare permission, but by a form of permission in which he included the most wise and powerful limitations and other means of restricting and controlling sin. These various limitations have been designed by God to bring about his most holy purposes. Yet, in all these affairs, the sinfulness of both angels and men comes only from them and not from God, who is altogether holy and righteous, and can never be the author or approver of sin.

2 Sam 24:1

Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”

Isa 45:7

I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things.

Lam 3:37-38

37 Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it? 38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?

Ps 50:21

These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.

Hab 1:13

You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he?

All Footnotes

The most wise, righteous, and gracious God often leaves, for a time, his own children to various temptations, and to the corruptions of their own hearts, in order to chastise them for the sins which they have committed, or to show them the hidden strength of corruption and deceitfulness still in their hearts, so that they may be humbled and aroused to a more close and constant dependence upon him for their support, and that they may be made more watchful against future occasions of sin, and for other just and holy ends. Therefore whatever happens to any of his elect is by his appointment, for his glory, and for their good.

Gen 22:12

He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”

2 Chr 32:31

And so in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the sign that had been done in the land, God left him to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart.

Job 1:8-12

8 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” 9 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? 10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” 12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

1 Cor 10:13

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

2 Cor 12:7-9

7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

All Footnotes

As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God as a righteous judge, blinds and hardens for former sin, from them he not only withholds his grace by which they might have been enlightened in their understanding and affected in their hearts, but sometimes he also withdraws the gifts which they had and exposes them to certain objects that their corrupt state will make the occasion of sin. God gives them over to their own lusts, the temptations of the world, and the power of Satan, so that eventually they harden themselves under the same influences that God uses for the softening of others.

Rom 1:24-26

24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature;

Rom 1:28

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

Rom 9:18

So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.

Rom 11:7-8

7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, 8 as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.”

Deut 29:4

But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear.

All Footnotes

As the providence of God in general reaches to all creatures, so, in a more special manner, it takes care of his church, and governs all things to the good of his church.

1 Tim 4:10

For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

All Footnotes

Chapter Five: Divine Providence

Living as Children of God