Who is God? The Bible does not answer with a definition, but with encounters: God introduces himself to Moses by name, Israel experiences him as a savior, and the New Testament simply says: God is love. Here you will find 22 Bible verses about God – about his nature, his greatness, and his nearness.
Who God is
This is how the Bible describes God's nature: eternal, holy, gracious, and faithful.
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God spoke to Moses: I AM WHO I AM TO BE. And said: Therefore you shall say to the children of Israel: I AM.
Exodus 3:14I-am-words
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God is love; and he who remains in love remains in God, and God in him.
1 John 4:16bGod's loveWedding
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God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in Spirit and in truth.
John 4:24
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And the LORD passed by before his face and called: LORD, LORD, GOD, merciful and gracious, patient, abundant in lovingkindness and truth!
Exodus 34:6
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Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.
Deuteronomy 6:4ConfessionHearing
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And one called to another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; all the earth is full of his glory!
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Before the mountains were formed, and before you, God, created the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting.
Psalm 90:2Mountains
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Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD, the eternal God, who has made the ends of the earth, will not be weary or faint; his understanding is unsearchable.
Isaiah 40:28
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For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways, says the LORD; for as high above the earth as the heavens are, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9ThinkingUnderstanding
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And this is the testimony which we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him there is no darkness.
1 John 1:5Light
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For I am the LORD, and I do not change.
Malachi 3:6aChangeReliability
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Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above, from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
James 1:17God as FatherThankfulness
God is near
The great God is no distant God – that is the surprising message of the Bible.
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He is not far from any one among us. For in him we live, are woven, and exist.
Acts 17:27b-28a
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The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him sincerely.
Psalm 145:18God's nearnessPrayer
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Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you also, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.
Isaiah 41:10God's nearnessFear
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What shall we say now about this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans 8:31
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The LORD is merciful and gracious, patient and abundant in goodness.
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God is our confidence and strength. A help in the great troubles that have befallen us.
Psalm 46:2God's nearnessStrength
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It is the goodness of the LORD that we are not utterly consumed; his mercy has no end, it is new every morning, and his faithfulness is great.
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For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16JesusGod's love
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O, what depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and how inscrutable his ways!
Romans 11:33Understanding
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I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, says God the LORD, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
Revelation 1:8
Bible texts: Luther Bible 1912 (public domain), carefully adapted to modern spelling.
Related Topics
This Goes Well Together
The Bible knows many names for God, and each shows a different side of his nature. Our Name-of-God posters capture them – find out more in the post The Names of God.
Elohim - Name of God PosterPoster on the name of God Elohim – the Creator from Genesis 1:1.€12
YHWH - Name of God PosterPoster on the name of God JHWH – “I am who I am to be.”€12
El Shaddai - Name of God PosterPoster on the name of God El Shaddai – the Almighty God.€12
Alpha & Omega - PosterPoster on Revelation 22:13: I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.€10
How the Bible Speaks of God
The Bible does not begin with proof that God exists, but with the sentence “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). God is the one who acts: He creates, calls, delivers, comforts. Therefore, if you want to know what God is like, it is best to read what he does. In Exodus 34:6, God describes himself – merciful, gracious, patient, abundant in lovingkindness and truth. This verse is so often quoted in the Old Testament that it can almost be read as God's self-introduction.
The New Testament condenses it into three words: “God is love” (1 John 4:16). And it shows this love in one person: Jesus. He who sees him sees the Father, says Jesus himself (John 14:9). Find out more at Bible verses about Jesus and Bible verses about God as Father.
The Names of God
In Hebrew, God has many names. Elohim emphasizes the Creator, El Shaddai the Almighty, JHWH – in Luther Bibles as “LORD” in capital letters – is the name God revealed to Moses at the burning bush: “I am who I am to be” (Exodus 3:14). It means: I am here, and you will see who I am. Further verses about God's greatness can be found at Bible verses about God's omnipotence and Bible verses about God's glory.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Bible say about who God is?
The Bible describes God as eternal (Psalm 90:2), holy (Isaiah 6:3), merciful and gracious (Exodus 34:6), and as love (1 John 4:16). In the New Testament, God is revealed in Jesus Christ.
Why is “LORD” written in capital letters in the Bible?
This is how the Luther Bible denotes the Hebrew name of God JHWH. Out of reverence, it was not pronounced in Judaism and was replaced by “Lord.”
What does “I am who I am to be” mean?
With these words, God tells Moses his name (Exodus 3:14). He does not describe a distant God, but one who is here and reveals himself in the history of his people.
