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A few decades ago, a particular genre of biblical literature was somewhat popular for a while. This genre posited that there are hidden meanings contained within the text of Scripture—usually the Hebrew text—that can be unlocked through selecting a starting point and noting the letters that appear at some particular interval, such as every five letters. Proponents of this method asserted that it reveals names and events that came centuries after the text was written.
I actually read a book in this genre once. The authors recounted their search for messages and claimed to have found some alarming things. They didn’t know exactly what the messages meant, but they decided that the knowledge was so explosive and important that they had to publish their findings even before coming to any conclusions.
Yet the Bible doesn’t work this way. It’s not a code to be cracked or a collection of hidden messages. It’s actually quite plain; anyone can understand the basic message of Scripture. But true, deep understanding, in the sense of accepting and loving that message, is personal, not impersonal like a code. It is personal in that it comes through the person of the Holy Spirit.
In Ephesians 1:15–22, Paul tells his readers of his prayer for them. He prays
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might. (vv. 17–19)
Paul prays that the Ephesians would have knowledge, and that God would grant them that knowledge. The knowledge that Paul prays for comes from God and is granted by God. God has already revealed saving knowledge of Himself to the Ephesians, and now Paul prays that He would see fit to continue to give them knowledge and wisdom to sustain them in the Christian life.
It is “the Spirit of wisdom” who comes and grants us wisdom and knowledge. The Spirit is the One who works faith in us and applies the salvation accomplished by Christ, and He also is the One who gives us understanding of the revelation of who God is and what He has done for us.
God does not reveal everything about Himself. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever.” God doesn’t reveal everything, but He has given His people saving knowledge of Himself, and by His Spirit, He continues to teach His people. So let us pray for ourselves and each other that the Spirit will lead us ever deeper into the knowledge of who He is.