Divine Glory

Certain attributes of God revealed in Scripture seem to summarize various facets of His character, giving us a particularly holistic view of Him. We have seen that this is true of the divine attributes of blessedness and beauty, and today we consider perhaps the most comprehensive of these “summary” attributes. This attribute is the glory of God.

Once again, the seventeenth-century Reformed scholastic theologian Petrus van Mastricht provides us with invaluable assistance. He writes that “the glory of God is nothing other than the brightness, so to speak, of his infinite eminence, which is to be acknowledged and manifested.” His definition features four key components. First, “brightness” captures the frequent biblical association of God’s glory with light. When the glory of the Lord is revealed, people often experience it as a brightly shining light (Isa. 60:1; 2 Cor. 3). Second, “infinite eminence” describes that which is revealed by God’s glory—namely, the unsurpassable greatness of God in all His attributes. He gives His inherent glory to no other because no other can deserve it or even endure it in its fullness, so great and awesome is He (Isa. 42:8). Third, the glory of the Lord must be “acknowledged.” Creation itself cannot help but declare the glory of God in its very existence, for the heavens bear witness to their creation by the glorious Creator (Ps. 19:1). Rational creatures—human beings and angels—must also actively and knowledgeably declare the glory of God, and one day all will certainly do so (1 Chron. 16:24; Phil. 2:5–11).

Finally, van Mastricht says that the glory of God is to be “manifested.” Here we see the truth that the Lord’s glory is ultimate, the final goal in all that God does. Our Creator performs His greatest work—salvation—not ultimately for the sake of rescuing us, as important as that is, but to reveal His glory (Isa. 43:1–7). God’s desire to show forth His glory motivates all that He does, for He is directing history to the day when all nations will recognize His glory (66:18). Few theologians have made this point more clearly than the American theologian Jonathan Edwards. In A Dissertation Concerning the End for Which God Created the World, Edwards says, “The great end of God’s works, which is so variously expressed in Scripture, is indeed but one; and this one end is most properly and comprehensively called, THE GLORY OF GOD.”