33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! 34 “For who has known the mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor?”35 “Or who has first given to Him And it shall be repaid to him?” 36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. ~ Romans 11:33-36 NKJV
The Scripture begins with Paul’s outburst of worship praising the LORD. When you consider all that Paul had been writing about, you cannot help but realize how great our God is and, as Paul did, erupt in worship of Him because of His awesomeness. God is an awesome God.
Notice Paul’s overwhelming excitement about the two things that are mentioned here.
- The wisdom of God
- The knowledge of God
These are only two aspects of our God, but Paul is completely and totally impressed by them, and it makes him cry out in humble excitement—Oh, the depth of the riches … the riches of both God’s wisdom and God’s knowledge. Paul is in awe of God after unpacking all of his earlier arguments:
- Israel’s rejection of Jesus and God’s purposes for them
- Then he talks about God’s great mercy and the message of salvation
- And about Gentiles being grafted into God’s plan of salvation
- And the mystery of Israel’s own salvation
The words just unimpededly gush from his mouth: Oh, the depth of the riches … Paul isn’t describing God’s bank account … or His storehouses filled to the brim with gold and silver and precious stones, when he exclaims, Oh, the depth of the riches … No! He is describing an endless, bottomless ocean of abundant depth in God’s wisdom and knowledge—an ocean so vast and deep that there’s no fear of it ever running dry or being depleted in any way.
In fact, James says anyone who lacks it should ask, and God will give that person generously. He isn’t stingy or mean with what He has. No. God is generous with His great abundance. And the more we know of Him, and His great abundance and depth, the more faith we will have in Him because He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He does not change. If His depth was a plan for the redemption of Israel, even after they sinned, then His plan for our redemption after we have sinned is just as vast, for He is the God of both the Jew and the Gentile. Therefore, build your faith on His depth.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Encourage Yourself In His Wisdom.