Scriptures, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scriptures indicated NASB are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers. Wherever indicated NCV, scripture taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Who is God Almighty?
In the ancient world, empires did not only rule through armies and taxes. They also ruled through the public imagination, attaching sacred titles to rulers and powers and training people’s loyalty through worship. In that world, Scripture speaks with steady clarity about whom worship belongs to, while also acknowledging that the word “god” is sometimes used more broadly for mighty beings and authorities. Paul names the reality directly: “indeed there are many gods and many lords” (1Corinthians 8:5 NASB). Let us follow the Bible’s own vocabulary, especially elohim in the Old Testament and theos in the New Testament, to see where “god language” is applied beyond the Creator and ask: how does Scripture guide worship back to the singular God Almighty?