Nobody understands what God looks like, but His revelation to the prophets and Bible authors depicts His nature. There were numerous reasons why God revealed Himself to the Bible writers. For instance, God exposed Himself to Moses to demonstrate His glory. He termed Himself as a consuming fire, as well as a jealous God (Deut. 4:24). According to Watson, revelation is the only way that people can understand what pleases God and what angers Him.[1] When God revealed to Isaiah, He wanted to express His holiness by letting people understand their sins. The recurrence of the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” denoted that God is quite different from His creation, and nothing could influence his decisions.[2]
God’s revelation to humanity is essential because it helped humanity to value His nature and will. During the time of Moses, God appeared to Moses in the form of a burning bush and declared Himself holy (Exodus 3:5). God used Nehemiah to achieve His will and intention to His people. He used the Bible writers to express His will on how to live a righteous life. By revealing Himself to humanity, God intended to make people understand Him and follow the righteous way. People heeded God’s words whenever He revealed himself to prophets.
In the Old Testament, God exposed Himself to prophets because had already convinced that they were God’s messengers. In ancient times, most prophets were linked to specific deities, and were utilized by deities to reveal certain messages.[3] Most prophets used the phrase “thus says the Lord” to emphasize a voice of authority, a judgment, or a prohibition of practice, based on the divine will.[4] Thus, whenever the prophets used the voice of authority, people were keen to heed their words. Prophets were perceived as covenant-mediators because they used to confront people when they breached certain covenants.
Bibliography
Merrill, Eugene H., Mark F. Rooker, and Michael A. Grisanti. The World and the Word: An Introduction to the Old Testament. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2011.
Walton, John. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Pub. Group, 2006.
[1] John Walton, Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Pub. Group, 2006), 145.
[2] Eugene H. Merrill, Mark F. Rooker, and Michael A. Grisanti, The World and the Word: An Introduction to the Old Testament. (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2011), 376.
[3] Watson, Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible, 241.
[4] Merill, Rooker and Grisanti, The World and the Word: An Introduction to the Old Testament, 95.