Man: God: Instructs
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The concept of God instructing man is a central theme throughout the Bible, reflecting the divine desire to guide humanity in righteousness, wisdom, and understanding. God's instructions are conveyed through various means, including direct communication, the Law, the prophets, and ultimately through Jesus Christ.

Direct Communication

From the beginning, God has communicated directly with man to provide instruction. In Genesis, God gives Adam specific commands regarding the Garden of Eden: "And the LORD God commanded the man, 'You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it, you will surely die'" (Genesis 2:16-17). This initial instruction underscores the importance of obedience to God's word.

The Law

The giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai represents a foundational moment of divine instruction. The Law served as a comprehensive guide for the Israelites, covering moral, ceremonial, and civil aspects of life. In Exodus 24:12, God invites Moses to receive the Law: "The LORD said to Moses, 'Come up to Me on the mountain and stay here, so that I may give you the tablets of stone, with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction'" . The Law was intended to set Israel apart as a holy nation and to instruct them in living according to God's will.

The Prophets

Throughout the Old Testament, God raised up prophets to instruct and admonish His people. The prophets served as God's mouthpieces, calling Israel back to faithfulness and obedience. In Isaiah 30:21, the promise of divine guidance is articulated: "And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it'" . The prophetic messages often included calls to repentance and reminders of God's covenant promises.

Wisdom Literature

The wisdom literature of the Bible, including Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job, provides instruction on living a life that honors God. Proverbs 1:7 states, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline" . These writings emphasize the importance of seeking God's wisdom and understanding as a foundation for righteous living.

Jesus Christ

In the New Testament, Jesus Christ embodies the ultimate revelation and instruction from God. As the Word made flesh, Jesus taught with authority and provided a perfect example of obedience to the Father. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructs His followers on the principles of the Kingdom of God, emphasizing the spirit of the Law rather than mere external compliance. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus commissions His disciples: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you" . This Great Commission underscores the ongoing role of instruction in the life of the Church.

The Holy Spirit

After Jesus' ascension, the Holy Spirit was given to believers as a guide and instructor. In John 14:26, Jesus promises, "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you" . The Holy Spirit continues to instruct believers, leading them into all truth and empowering them to live according to God's will.

Scripture

The Bible itself is a primary means of God's instruction to humanity. As Paul writes in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work" . Scripture serves as the authoritative guide for faith and practice, providing the necessary instruction for living a life pleasing to God.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Psalm 94:10
He that chastises the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teaches man knowledge, shall not he know?
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Whether a Man Can Know any Truth Without Grace
... We must therefore say that, if a man is to know any truth whatsoever, he needs divine
help in order that ... Yet God sometimes instructs men miraculously ...
//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/nature and grace/article one whether a man.htm

Whether Without Grace Man Can Know any Truth?
... Hence we must say that for the knowledge of any truth whatsoever man needs Divine
help, that ... And yet at times God miraculously instructs some by ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether without grace man can.htm

Argument. --Again from the Gospel He Proves Christ to be God.
... of everlasting life, Christ is not man only, but God also, in ... nor does the Paraclete
learn things future from man, but instructs man concerning futurity. ...
/.../chapter xvi argument again from the.htm

Job.
... (6) God intervenes and in two addresses instructs Job. ... (a) The folly of
self-righteousness,. (b) The vileness of the most perfect man in God's sight,. ...
/.../gerberding/the way of salvation in the lutheran church/chapter xii job.htm

The Letter of Agatho and of the Roman Synod of 125 Bishops which ...
... unchangeably [united], so also the rule of piety instructs us that he has two natural
wills and two natural operations, as perfect God and perfect man, one and ...
/.../schaff/the seven ecumenical councils/the letter of agatho and.htm

Description of the Perfect Man, or Gnostic.
... This, then, is the perfect man's first form of doing good ... itself loves and teaches
the ignorant, and instructs the whole creation to honour God Almighty. ...
/.../clement/the stromata or miscellanies/chapter xxi description of the perfect.htm

Whether Life is Fittingly Divided into Active and Contemplative?
... xiv super Ezech.): "There is a twofold life wherein Almighty God instructs us by
His holy word ... Wherefore also in men the life of every man would seem to be that ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether life is fittingly divided.htm

Exhortation to Abandon the Impious Mysteries of Idolatry for the ...
... instrument of music the Lord made man, after His ... The instrument of God loves mankind ...
The Lord pities, instructs, exhorts, admonishes, saves, shields, and of His ...
/.../clement/exhortation to the heathen/chapter i exhortation to abandon the.htm

Bit and Bridle: How to Escape Them
... you are saying, "Oh, the heaped-up blessedness of the man whose transgression is ...
teacher"; but he does say, "I will instruct thee." God instructs each believer ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 37 1891/bit and bridle how to.htm

Question of the Division of Life into the Active and the ...
... Great says[291]: "There are two kinds of lives in which Almighty God instructs us
by ... life of animals in their feeling and moving; while that of man consists in ...
/.../on prayer and the contemplative life/question clxxix of the division.htm

Resources
What does the Bible say about being a man? | GotQuestions.org

What can we learn from the man of God and the lying prophet? | GotQuestions.org

How is the fear of man a snare (Proverbs 29:25)? | GotQuestions.org

Man: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible ConcordanceBible DictionaryBible EncyclopediaTopical BibleBible Thesuarus
Subtopics

Man

Man Hair

Man is of the Earth Earthy

Man of Every Nation, Made of One Blood

Man of Sin

Man of War

Man Shall not Lay With Man

Man: Able to Sustain Bodily Affliction

Man: All the Ways of, Clean in his own Eyes

Man: Allowed to Eat Flesh After the Flood

Man: Approved of by God

Man: Banished from Paradise

Man: Blessed by God

Man: Born in Sin

Man: Born to Trouble

Man: Called: A Worm

Man: Called: Flesh

Man: Called: The Potsherd of the Earth

Man: Called: Vain Man

Man: Cannot be Just With God

Man: Cannot Cleanse Himself

Man: Cannot Direct his Ways

Man: Cannot Profit God

Man: Cannot Retain his Spirit from Death

Man: Christ is the Head of Every

Man: Christ was Found in Fashion As

Man: Christ: A Refuge As, to Sinners

Man: Christ: Approved of God As

Man: Christ: As Such, is the Cause of the Resurrection

Man: Christ: Called the Second, As Covenant Head of the Church

Man: Christ: Knew What Was In

Man: Christ: Made in the Image of

Man: Christ: Took on Him Nature of

Man: Clothed by God With Skins

Man: Compared to a Sleep

Man: Compared to a Wild Donkey's Colt

Man: Compared to Clay in the Potter's Hand

Man: Compared to Grass

Man: Compared to Vanity

Man: Covered Himself With Fig Leaves

Man: Created

Man: Created by Christ

Man: Created by God

Man: Created by the Holy Spirit

Man: Created in Knowledge (Inferred)

Man: Created in the Image of God

Man: Created in Uprightness

Man: Created: A Living Soul

Man: Created: A Type of Christ

Man: Created: After Consultation, by the Trinity

Man: Created: After the Likeness of God

Man: Created: from the Dust

Man: Created: Male and Female

Man: Created: On the Sixth Day

Man: Created: Under Obligations to Obedience

Man: Created: Upon the Earth

Man: Days of, As the Days of a Hireling

Man: Days of, Compared to a Shadow

Man: Design of the Creation of

Man: Disobeyed God by Eating Part of the Forbidden Fruit

Man: Dominion of

Man: Equality of

Man: Every Herb and Tree Given To, for Food

Man: Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

Man: Filled With Shame After the Fall

Man: Gave Names to Other Creatures

Man: God: Destroys the Hopes of

Man: God: Enables to Speak

Man: God: Instructs

Man: God: Makes his Beauty Consume Away

Man: God: Makes the Wrath of, to Praise Him

Man: God: Orders the Goings of

Man: God: Prepares the Heart of

Man: God: Preserves

Man: God: Provides For

Man: God: Turns to Destruction

Man: God's Purpose in Creation Completed by Making

Man: Has an Appointed Time on the Earth

Man: Has But Few Days

Man: Has Sought out Many Inventions

Man: Ignorant of What is Good for Him

Man: Ignorant of What is to Come After Him

Man: Inferior to Angels

Man: Insignificance of

Man: Intellect of, Matured by Age

Man: Involved Posterity in his Ruin

Man: Little Lower than the Angels

Man: Made by God in his Successive Generations

Man: Made for God

Man: Made Wise by the Inspiration of the Almighty

Man: More Valuable than Other Creatures

Man: Mortal

Man: Nature and Constitution of, Different from Other Creatures

Man: No Trust to be Placed In

Man: Not Good For, to be Alone

Man: Not Profited by all his Labour and Travail

Man: Ordinary Limit of his Life

Man: Originally Naked and not Ashamed

Man: Placed in the Garden of Eden

Man: Possessed of a Body

Man: Possessed of a Soul

Man: Possessed of a Spirit

Man: Possessed of Affections

Man: Possessed of Conscience

Man: Possessed of Memory

Man: Possessed of Understanding

Man: Possessed of Will

Man: Punished for Disobedience

Man: Quickened by the Breath of God

Man: Received Dominion Over Other Creatures

Man: Shall be Recompensed According to his Works

Man: Sinks Under Trouble of Mind

Man: Spirit

Man: The Help of, Vain

Man: The Whole Duty of

Man: Unworthy of God's Favour

Man: Walks in a Vain Show

Man: Wiser than Other Creatures

Man: Woman Formed to be a Help For

Man: Would Give all his Possessions for the Preservation of Life

Related Terms

Man (26072 Occurrences)

Man-servant (18 Occurrences)

Man-child (11 Occurrences)

Man-slayer (20 Occurrences)

Fighting-man (5 Occurrences)

Bond-man (6 Occurrences)

Free-man (2 Occurrences)

Mad-man (1 Occurrence)

Man-pleaser (1 Occurrence)

Man-killer (1 Occurrence)

Man-slayers (1 Occurrence)

Good-man (1 Occurrence)

Man-made (5 Occurrences)

Man-servants (1 Occurrence)

Man'unclean (1 Occurrence)

Man-whether (1 Occurrence)

Ahi'man (4 Occurrences)

Man's (347 Occurrences)

Man'ahath (2 Occurrences)

Mehu'man (1 Occurrence)

Man-servant's (1 Occurrence)

Man'aha'thites (1 Occurrence)

Soldier (16 Occurrences)

Sack (15 Occurrences)

Sinneth (25 Occurrences)

Killeth (23 Occurrences)

Youths (28 Occurrences)

Kills (38 Occurrences)

Simply (27 Occurrences)

Vine-garden (43 Occurrences)

Slayeth (28 Occurrences)

Slept (74 Occurrences)

Skilled (44 Occurrences)

Sleeps (20 Occurrences)

Shouldn't (20 Occurrences)

Valor (45 Occurrences)

Valued (27 Occurrences)

Seemeth (36 Occurrences)

Skill (26 Occurrences)

Kenosis

Skillful (42 Occurrences)

Kadmonite (1 Occurrence)

Know (8133 Occurrences)

Knowledge

Sowed (20 Occurrences)

Spareth (9 Occurrences)

Slothful (22 Occurrences)

Security (41 Occurrences)

Spared (45 Occurrences)

Soever (24 Occurrences)

Sojourning (35 Occurrences)

Sinful (61 Occurrences)

Yonder (15 Occurrences)

Young (3454 Occurrences)

You're (8 Occurrences)

Violated (23 Occurrences)

Valour (66 Occurrences)

Spirituality

Stagger (20 Occurrences)

Shutteth (17 Occurrences)

Sooner (21 Occurrences)

Seekest (12 Occurrences)

Keepeth (60 Occurrences)

Quarrel (22 Occurrences)

Seeks (48 Occurrences)

Skilful (38 Occurrences)

Soft (36 Occurrences)

Quietly (30 Occurrences)

Valiant (66 Occurrences)

Simile (61 Occurrences)

Vile (59 Occurrences)

Shouts (34 Occurrences)

Seeketh (60 Occurrences)

Questioned (57 Occurrences)

Standard (42 Occurrences)

Vanity (100 Occurrences)

Vineyard (69 Occurrences)

Killing (41 Occurrences)

Man: God: Enables to Speak
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