“O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” – Romans 11:33
A popular saying is, “God works in mysterious ways.” This phrase is shared in many circumstances, most often when there is no answer to the question, “Why?” This popular phrase is not found in the Bible. It is most likely a misquote from the hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way” by William Cowper, 1774.
The Bible is filled with many references that seem close to this popular phrase. In his letter to the Romans, Paul writes, “O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” Paul does not write this phrase to dismiss a difficult question, but instead to remind the readers that God often works in ways contrary to our desires.
In Romans 11 Paul is reminding the people of Israel and the Gentiles that, through Jesus, Salvation has now come to all people. He must make a very strong statement to both groups because they each believed they had something to boast in as it came to salvation. Each group also seemed to think their salvation was somehow primary, and greater than the other. Paul writes this section in Romans to remind the people that salvation is the work of God. Boasting would be out of line, because salvation is because of God’s good nature, full of mercy and grace.
We spend a lot of time asking the question, “Why?” Often, answers about our faith become quite clear to us, and other times we are left in the dark with the answers beyond our knowing or understanding. When questions arise, it is good to be reminded that although we don’t always know why, we can trust who the answers come from. God is the originator of our faith. In Jesus, we see nature of God in his merciful actions on earth. Some things are, indeed beyond our knowing, but the love and mercy of God is always before us.
Rev. Keith King, Online Campus Pastor
