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August, 2005
“My Truth Have I Hid in My Word”
Posted by Brian Beers at 8/25/2005 11:23:00 AM (9 comments left)

For nearly a month now I have been mulling over this post on the idea of truth being hidden in Scripture (Yes. That is why posts are so few and far between), and just this morning yesterday morning I came across this Deep(ish) Post on those Magic Eye posters that…um–insightful folks such as myself enjoy. It is an illustration of how people can approach Scripture.

There is an idea that I have heard in Bible college and seminary. For lack of a better term, I will call it "the superficiality of Scripture." The basic purpose of this idea is to reassure Christians that they should continue to read Scripture. Bible school and seminary professors have observed that some folks are intimidated by references to the original languages. "The Greek means this...The Hebrew means that...and aren't you lucky I went to seminary so I could tell you..." And we certainly don't want to become like the 16th century Catholic Church with an elite clergy and ignorant peasants being told what to believe. We're Protestants. We agree with Luther that everyone should be able to read the Bible and this means in their own language.

With the development of computers and inexpensive printing over the past 40 years, Strong's groundbreaking concordance has been extended into many tools for Biblical study. We are incredibly rich. Unfortunately we still have to deal with Scripture that was written from 2 to 4 millennia ago in multiple ancient languages and cultural settings. We cannot wish these barriers out of existence, but that unspoken wish has undermined our perception of Scripture.

Several weeks ago my pastor said that there is no hidden truth in the Bible. And this has been bouncing around in my head since then. It is the same idea that I have heard before, but now I want to figure out why I am uncomfortable with it. I agree with the general sentiment – we don't want people looking for the next president in the Bible Code. We don't want people led astray by the false doctrine of a dynamic preacher.

Still, the statement leaves me uneasy. My discomfort stems from…the placement of the onus.  The statement that there is no hidden truth in the Bible puts the onus on the Bible. If it were really up to the Bible to be clear to me then if I can't understand there is a Trinity when I read Scripture then it must not be true…!

Of course not! *shudder* But to some extent this is what we (myself included) have to do with Scripture. We seek to understand it, and then we proceed based on our understanding. Our understanding is based on Scripture, but it is fundamentally different. Our understanding is not perfect. We retreat to Scripture to improve our understanding. And our imperfection is why we defend the perfection of Scripture. It is our authority. Anyone can come to Scripture and discover the truth.
The onus for understanding Scripture is on us because there is truth hidden in Scripture. I want to show from Scripture that God's character does include hiding truth. Then I want to challenge us to find it.

First exhibit from Scripture is Matthew 11:25.  We read, "At that time Jesus declared, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;" Exhibit 2 is Matthew 13:10ff which gives us the purpose of parables. In verse 13 Jesus said, "This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand." God hid the truth from those who claimed to own it. God's character includes hiding the truth albeit in plain sight. But truth does not have to be in plain site. My third exhibit is Proverbs 25:2 "It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out."

God has concealed things. It is his glory to conceal things. Perhaps it adds some excitement to his relationship with man –with kings anyway. And here in America we are the kings. We are rich in tools to study the Scripture. We have time in which we can study Scripture. We have a forum in which we can discuss Scripture and improve our understanding of it.

So, my fellow kings, do you content yourself with seeing the surface patterns or will you stand with me as we peer into the Scriptures to see our God.

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Comment 1 by Charlie:
Posted  8/26/2005 10:55:00 AM 
Comment 2 by Charlie:
Well Charlie the non-techno whiz lost his comment for missing a button a somewhere. So here is about what I said. I agree mostly with what Brian said, so the discussion will not be that interesting. But first I want to make sure that I can save this comment.
Posted  8/26/2005 11:56:00 AM 
Comment 3 by Anonymous:

Posted  8/26/2005 11:57:00 AM 
Comment 4 by Charlie:
I'm just inflating the numbers of comments for Brian's sake.

It seems to me that the question turns on "hidden". What is hidden? Geographical details? Author's intention? Truth about God and salvation? And hidden from whom? From the original reader (listener)? From the average American?

It seems clear that we need scholars for the sake of modern Americans, for a translation at the very least, due to the language-time-space-culture gap. On the other hand, it also seems to me that the basic truth about God and salvation is very clear in the text, even if the details about those topics are sometimes muddy.

But the way you state it is that God intended to hide truth even from the original audience. Perhaps this is true, depending on what "hide" means. Is it that there is a simple truth that is hidden or a complex truth that must be worked on to discover because it complex, not because it is hidden? I will say that I am not impressed with you proof texts. Maybe the second one I will grant you, but I'm still not sure on it. The first one has more to do with accepting than with intellectual understanding. The third seems more secular than spiritual.

Posted  8/26/2005 12:13:00 PM 
Comment 5 by Brian:

Thanks for inflating my comments.

While the so-called-wise did not accept the truth in my first example, Jesus' statement still seems to be the most stark. God actively hid "these things" from the wise and actively revealed them to little children. This is biting irony, but those who were truly wise (like Simeon) recognized the Messiah coming in the form of a carpenter's son.

In the third example, I am not sure that you can make the case that this is secular. The kings on hand here would be David and Solomon.

My point is that God has made fundamental truths available to children, but he has also embedded truth that is worthy of -and even requires- the scholars finest attention. This "hidden" truth is no less true than the broader truth recognized by children. It does not contradict the broader truth though it may at times contradict our understanding of the broader truth. And herein lies the value of the scholar. The scholar can call us to a better understanding of the truth because he or she is steeped in Scripture.

What do I mean when I say "hidden truth?" On one hand I mean hidden by my English translation -that the main point of the accounts of the Sermon on the Mount, the Tower of Babel, or even Creation may be missed if we ignore the structure of the passage, the language it was written in, or the customs of that time. On the other hand, I also mean that God has hidden the truth from the so-called-wise who want God to exist according to their rules.

Posted  8/29/2005 5:04:00 PM 
Comment 6 by sam:

if you guys don't mind me jumping in....

i agree with at least the first half of the last paragraph of your comment here, Brian.

i wanted to comment on Christ speaknig in parables, that is "hiding" truth.  Jesus says that he is doing to so that hearing they won't hear and seeing they won't see.  This is not new to him here...this is language borrowed from himself (as the Son) back in Isaiah 6.  Isaiah acknowledges his iniquity and the iniquity of his contemporaries.  God then purifies him because of his humility and repentance, and sends him on a mission to Ahaz, the king of Judah.  Isaiah wonders how long he has to go on this goodwill mission, and God says until the exile.  However, the promise remains that there will be a remnant.  It would be easy to say that God wants to hide truth from Ahaz and others, but a part of the rest of the story clarifies things...

Isaiah shows up and tries to talk to Ahaz, but he doesn't want to hear it, and gives a pseudo-pious response to the offer of a sign from God.  what i'm getting at is that Ahaz is already deaf and blind when God's messenger shows up.  God doesn't have to hide anything from a blind person.  More significant, in my mind, is that God does reach out to some of us.  Having been born blind, we need divine healing to begin to see.

I hope this contributes something...maybe we can understand Jesus' statement a bit better by running it through Isaiah.  Jesus is standing amongst a vast sea of blindness...even his disciples have to ask what the parables mean.  they don't even see.  i think the point is that the Father sent the Son to open eyes, and Jesus is thankful that he did.

let me have it.

Posted  8/30/2005 10:26:00 AM 
Comment 7 by Charlie:
Perhaps it would help me if you gave a specific example of what you mean by "God hiding truth". I grant that there is a time-space-language-culture gap between us and the original audience, but I certainly do not think that gap qualifies as "God hiding truth". I do think that God made the Bible to be artistic, using chiasm and such, which takes work to uncover. But that I do not think this is "God hiding truth", but instead, God making his word beautiful. As for God making his point difficult to understand simply for the sake of making it difficult to understand, that I am not convinced he does. Any specific examples you want to give?
Abou the text, I like what Sam said. I think Ahaz is a good example of a blind man who would does understand. But not because God did not give him open truth: it was because Ahaz was already blind (and what a contrast with Hezekiah his son, who actively sought out Isaiah to pray for him!).
Posted  8/30/2005 9:39:00 PM 
Comment 8 by Brian:

Thanks for your comments all.

This is a bit of a recantation.

My error is the implication that were it not for God hiding truth, we would be able to ascertain truth. We underestimate the complexity of creation. We underestimate the complexity of “knowing.” We overestimate our ability to perceive and understand in proportion to all that is within our ability to know.

I was correct in saying that Scripture contains “hidden truth.” I would have been more accurate to say that Scripture still contains hidden truth. We are learning and growing in our understanding of Scripture. The truth that I was unable to perceive five years ago (hidden truth then), is now clear to me.

Bottom line is: I tried to remove the onus of understanding Scripture away from Scripture and put it on us. I failed by drawing our attention to Scripture. Forgivable, no? We will never be able to unravel all of the meaning in any Scripture. My complaint is that our proclamations about the understandability of Scripture suggest that we can.
Posted  9/1/2005 1:06:00 PM 
Comment 9 by G. Edward:

Based upon such Scriptures as Matt. 16:17 the words of Jesus in Matt. 11:25 and Paul in Rom. 16:25-26 and 1 Cor. 2:7 and 10 God has established a manner in which some of His Truth is hidden in His Word.  This aspect of His dealing with mankind is not relative to one’s “scholarship”, it is relative to one’s ongoing relationship with their Redeemer, gaining their understanding from the Holy Spirit (John 16:13).

Scholarship becomes a part of this learning with the broadening of one’s scope of study to include the whole Bible, plus a knowledge of key words in the original language, and sometimes some extra-biblical bits of information.  But even in this, it is God who reveals His deeper truths, and that only to those who seek it in His way.

Part of the blessing of leading someone into the experience of salvation is to watch the expressions of wonder and joy that blossom in that one when they “see” the truth, the meanings of God’s Word.

Another aspect of the Holy Spirit’s revelation of God’s truth in His Word is in the ongoing revelations in time.  The older you get, along with the continuing absorption of His Word, the more you learn “new” truths (that have been there all the time.) in the Word.  I believe God has established more than enough of His ways, yes and even of Himself in His Word, to meet our increasing learning from that Word.  As His wisdom is really as much a part of Himself as love is, so the more we pursue Him, the more He reveals to us of His nature, as well as His way for us to live.  That is my experience.  At 81 years, I am yet learning these things.  That is an exciting aspect in knowing and serving Him. Yet I am impressed by an old saying - “I am too soon old and too late smart”

The more we realize the pattern of God’s revelations of Himself (in a progressive manner) through the Bible, the more we can understand His working in our own lives.  The most difficult aspects of our lives – major losses, death, extended illness, major financial reverses, etc. – these present the greatest trials, the hardest to accept as ‘God’s will’.  To accept any and every event in life as God’s will, without questioning our faith, without questioning God, is possible ONLY as we maintain a continuous, close, loving relationship with our Lord.  We may ask WHY.  But then with that, we must listen for His answer.  He has His reasons for all He allows in our lives.  IF we are to be all He wants us to be, we must accept, we must believe that He has a purpose for what He allows in our lives.  We must never question His love.  The story of Job gives us a great insight into this matter.  Even as Job did not know what was behind his losses and suffering, so it may be with us.  But our faith in God must remain unshakeable.  Romans 8:28 and 29 tell us what God’s purpose is for us – to be “conformed to the image of His Son.”  That is a process.  To look at an advanced math problem, such as in trigonometry, is a true mystery – until we have gone through the process of learning which leads to that understanding. God’s Word to us is a continuing revelation, a revealing of some things previously hidden until they fit into our ongoing development in Him.

A major aspect of the ‘mystery’ of God is expressed in Hebrews 11:6, “…without faith it is impossible to please Him (God), for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that Her is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”  I believe there are some aspects of God and His Word that will remain a ‘mystery’.  How can a finite mind absorb that of the infinite?  “As far as the heavens are above the earth, so are My ways above man’s ways and My thoughts above man’s thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9.  To me that is not a discouragement; it is a stimulus to keep “pressing on” to higher heights, to new horizons.
Posted  9/16/2005 7:59:00 AM 

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