God (A.S. and Dutch God;
Dan. Gud; Ger. Gott) is the name of the Divine Being. It
is the rendering (1) of the Hebrew 'El , From a
word meaning to be strong; (2) of 'Eloah_, plural
_'Elohim . The singular form, Eloah , Is used only in poetry.
The plural form is more commonly used in all parts of
the Bible, The Hebrew word Jehovah (q.v.), the only
other word generally employed to denote the Supreme
Being, is uniformly rendered in the Authorized Version
by "LORD," printed in small capitals. The existence of
God is taken for granted in the Bible. There is nowhere
any argument to prove it. He who disbelieves this
truth is spoken of as one devoid of understanding (Psalms 14:1).
The arguments generally
adduced by theologians in proof of the being of God are:
The a priori argument,
which is the testimony afforded by reason.
The a posteriori argument,
by which we proceed logically from the facts of
experience to causes. These arguments are,
(a) The cosmological, by
which it is proved that there must be a First Cause of
all things, for every effect must have a cause.
(b) The teleological, or
the argument from design. We see everywhere the
operations of an intelligent Cause in nature.
(c) The moral argument,
called also the anthropological argument, based on the
moral consciousness and the history of
mankind, which exhibits a moral order and purpose
which can only be explained on the supposition of the
existence of God. Conscience and human history
testify that "verily there is a God that judgeth in
the earth
."
The attributes of God are
set forth in order by Moses in Exodus 34:6,7. (see also Deuteronomy 6:4; 10:17; Numbers 16:22; Exodus 15:11; 33:19; Isaiah 44:6; Habakkuk 3:6; Psalms 102:26; Job 34:12.)
They are also systematically classified in Revelation 5:12 and 7:12.
God's attributes are spoken
of by some as absolute, i.e., such as belong to
his essence as Jehovah, Jah, etc.; and relative, i.e.,
such as are ascribed to him with relation to his
creatures. Others distinguish them into communicable,
i.e., those which can be imparted in degree to his
creatures: goodness, holiness,
wisdom, etc.; and incommunicable, which
cannot be so imparted: independence,
immutability, immensity, and
eternity. They are by some also divided into
natural attributes, eternity, immensity, etc.;
and moral , holiness, goodness,
etc.
