God's Omniscience and Foreknowledge of Human Life's Details

God's omniscience refers to his infinite and absolute knowledge of all things, a divine attribute that is beyond full human comprehension ^[1]. This knowledge extends to all past, present, and future events, including the intricate details of human life ^{[1, 13]}. The Bible describes God's understanding as "unsearchable" and his ways "past finding out" ^[2].

Scripture frequently affirms God's comprehensive knowledge. For instance, Psalm 139:1 states, "O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me," indicating that God's omniscience applies to individuals ^[11]. This knowledge is not merely a general awareness but a detailed understanding, as if God has "searched" a person ^[11]. The prophet Jeremiah records God's knowledge of future events and human responses, such as the potential repentance of cities ^[1]. Similarly, Jesus speaks of God's knowledge of the unrepentant cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida, implying a foreknowledge of their choices ^[1].

God's foreknowledge is particularly emphasized in relation to his decrees and providence. The "decrees of God" are described as his eternal, unchangeable purpose that comprehends all things, determining their future existence and relations ^[6]. This includes God's knowledge of all his works "from the beginning of the world" ^[3]. His providence, which literally means foresight, denotes God's active preservation and governance of all things through secondary causes ^[4]. This divine oversight extends to the natural world, the animal kingdom, and crucially, the affairs of humanity, including the free actions of individuals ^[4]. For example, God's providence is seen in the actions of men in Exodus 12:36 and 1 Samuel 24:9-15 ^[4].

The concept of God's omniscience also encompasses his omnipresence. Proverbs 15:3 declares, "The eyes of the Lord are in every place," signifying his full, clear, and perfect knowledge of all creatures and things ^[14]. This means nothing is hidden from him, whether in heaven, earth, or even "hell and destruction" ^{[12, 15]}. Matthew Henry, a Nonconformist commentator, explains that God knows where every person is buried, even Moses, indicating the depth of this knowledge ^[12].

While God's foreknowledge is absolute, its relationship to human free will has been a subject of theological discussion. John Gill, a Baptist commentator, clarifies that God's foreknowledge in passages like Romans 8:29 does not merely refer to his general prescience of all future events, which would imply that all people are predestined, called, justified, and glorified ^[9]. Instead, he suggests a more specific foreknowledge related to God's particular people ^[9]. However, the broader understanding of omniscience maintains that God knows the future before it happens and has comprehensive control over all events ^[13]. This divine knowledge is a distinguishing characteristic of God, setting him apart from all other gods ^[10]. The names "Eliada," "Eldaah," and "Deuel" in Hebrew all mean "knowledge of God," reflecting this fundamental attribute ^{[5, 7, 8]}.

Sources

Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Foreknowledge of God — Acts 2:23; Rom. 8:29; 11:2; 1 Pet. 1:2), one of those high attributes essentially appertaining to him the full import of which we cannot comprehend. In the most absolute sense his knowledge is infinite (1 Sam. 23:9-13; Jer. 38:17-23; 42:9-22, Matt. 11:21, 23; Acts 15:18).”
Romans “Romans 11:33 (Tyndale) — O the depnes of the aboundaunt wysdome and knowledge of God: how vnserchable are his iudgementes and his wayes past findyng out.”
Acts “Acts 15:18 (Geneva1599) — From the beginning of the worlde, God knoweth all his workes.”
Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Providence — Literally means foresight, but is generally used to denote God's preserving and governing all things by means of second causes (Ps. 18:35; 63:8; Acts 17:28; Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3). God's providence extends to the natural world (Ps. 104:14; 135:5-7; Acts 14:17), the brute creation (Ps. 104:21-29; Matt. 6:26; 10:29), and the affairs of men (1 Chr. 16:31; Ps. 47:7; Prov. 21:1; Job 12:23; Dan. 2:21; 4:25), and of individuals (1 Sam. 2:6; Ps. 18:30; Luke 1:53; James 4:13-15). It extends also to the free actions of men (Ex. 12:36; 1 Sam. 24:9-15; Ps. 33:14, 15; ”
Hitchcock's Bible Names “Hitchcock's Bible Names: Eliada — knowledge of God”
Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Decrees of God — "The decrees of God are his eternal, unchangeable, holy, wise, and sovereign purpose, comprehending at once all things that ever were or will be in their causes, conditions, successions, and relations, and determining their certain futurition. The several contents of this one eternal purpose are, because of the limitation of our faculties, necessarily conceived of by us in partial aspects, and in logical relations, and are therefore styled Decrees." The decree being the act of an infinite, absolute, eternal, unchangeable, and sovereign Person, compre”
Hitchcock's Bible Names “Hitchcock's Bible Names: Eldaah — knowledge of God”
Hitchcock's Bible Names “Hitchcock's Bible Names: Deuel — the knowledge of God”
Romans (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Romans 8:29: For whom he did foreknow,.... The foreknowledge of God here, does not intend his prescience of all things future; by which he foreknows and foretells things to come, and which distinguishes him from all other gods; and is so called, not with respect to himself, with whom all things are present, but with respect to us, and which is eternal, universal, certain, and infallible; for in this sense he foreknows all men, and if this was the meaning here, then all men would be predestinated, conformed to the image of Christ, called by grace, justified and glorified; whereas t”
Ezekiel (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Ezekiel 12:13: And they shall know that I am the Lord,.... God omniscient, and can and do foresee and foretell future events, when the above things shall come to pass; and omnipotent, able to do what he purposed and declared he would; and true and faithful to his word, and holy and righteous in all his ways and works: when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries; of Egypt, Babylon, Media, and other places.”
Psalms (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Psalms 139:1: O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. The omniscience of God reaches to all persons and things; but the psalmist only takes notice of it as respecting himself. God knows all men in general, and whatever belongs to them; he knows his own people in a special manner; and he knows their particular persons, as David and others: and this knowledge of God is considered after the manner of men, as if it was the fruit of search, to denote the exquisiteness of it; as a judge searches out a cause, a physician the nature of a disease, a philosopher the reason of things; w”
Proverbs (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Proverbs 15:11: This confirms what was said (Pro 15:3) concerning God's omnipresence, in order to his judging of evil and good. 1. God knows all things, even those things that are hidden from the eyes of all living: Hell and destruction are before the Lord, not only the centre of the earth, and its subterraneous caverns, but the grave, and all the dead bodies which are there buried out of our sight; they are all before the Lord, all under his eye, so that none of them can be lost or be to seek when they are to be raised again. He knows where every man lies buried, even Moses, ”
Isaiah (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Isaiah 46:10: 46:10 God knows the future before it even happens; he has comprehensive control over all events, and all his acts match his words (41:4, 26). He is the First and the Last (44:6; 48:12).”
Proverbs (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Proverbs 15:3: The eyes of the Lord are in every place,.... Which are expressive of his omniscience, of the full, clear, distinct, and perfect knowledge, which he has of all creatures and things; so that nothing is hid from him, but all open and manifest to him; as they are to Christ the essential Word, Heb 4:13; and also of the providence of God with respect to all persons in general, and to his own people in particular; and as he is infinite and immense, omnipresent and in all places of the world, so his omniscience and providence reach everywhere, to places most distant and sec”
Job (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Job 28:23: For he looketh to the ends of the earth,.... In this and some following verses, reasons and are given, which abundantly show that God must know the way and place of wisdom; since all the parts and places of the earth, even to the ends of it, are seen by him, and all creatures and things in it; nor is there anything in heaven, earth, and hell, that is hid from him; and therefore if there is a way to it, or a place for it, he must needs know it; where its direction is, or where it steers its course, and takes up its abode and seeth under the whole heaven; the fowls of t”

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