The names of God tell us who God is; the attributes of God show us God’s nature and character. The Bible not only contains numerous names of God, showing who God is, it also contains countless words describing what kind of God He is to us. If we are willing to spend time, we could find a hundred points on the attributes of God. However, due to the limitation of time and energy, the thirty points we have found should be sufficient for now.
Among these attributes, there are five basic attributes; if we can remember these five, the rest can easily be remembered. We may say that these five attributes are primary and the rest are derivative. The primary attributes of God are the sources, whereas the other attributes are derived from these five sources.
These attributes will be listed below. As we mention each attribute, we can give only a few references; we do not have the time to explain their meaning.
1) Loving—related to His heart—1 John 4:8, 16; John 3:16; Isa. 49:15; Psa. 136.
2) Righteous—related to His works—Deut. 32:4; Psa. 7:9; Isa. 45:21; Zeph. 3:5; 1 John 1:9.
3) Faithful—related to His words—Psa. 89:33-34; Heb. 10:23; Deut. 7:9.
4) Holy—related to His nature—Lev. 11:44-45; 20:26; Josh. 24:19.
5) Glorious—related to His self—Exo. 24:16; Ezek. 1:28; 3:23; Psa. 106:20; Jer. 2:11; Rom. 1:23; Heb. 1:3.
The above five points are the sources of the following attributes of God:
6) Life—Psa. 36:9.
7) Light—1 John 1:5; Psa. 36:9; Isa. 2:5.
8) Good—Psa. 25:8; 86:5.
9) Truthful—33:4; 91:4; 57:10.
10) Pure—Job 4:17; Psa. 18:26.
11) Joyful—1 Chron. 16:27; Rom. 14:17; 1 Thes. 1:6.
12) Compassionate or merciful—Psa. 78:38; 111:4; Deut. 4:31; Exo. 34:6.
13) Gracious—22:27; Psa. 86:15.
14) Jealous—Exo. 20:5; 34:14; Deut. 4:24; Josh. 24:19.
15) Wise—Job 12:13; 9:4; 36:5.
16) Knowledgeable—1 Sam. 2:3; Job 36:4; 37:16.
17) Mighty—Gen. 49:24; Isa. 9:6; 10:21.
18) Great—Deut. 10:17; Psa. 96:4; 104:1.
19) Awesome—Deut. 7:21; Psa. 47:2; Dan. 9:4; Neh. 9:32.
20) Most High—Psa. 57:2; Dan. 4:2; 5:18, 21.
21) Transcendent—Psa. 135:5; 95:3; Deut. 33:26.
22) Perfect—32:4; 2 Sam. 22:26; Matt. 5:48.
23) Beautiful—Psa. 27:4; 90:17.
24) Majestic—104:1; 145:5.
25) Splendorous—96:6; 145:5; 104:1.
26) Eternal—Deut. 33:27; Psa. 92:8.
27) Long-suffering—Exo. 34:6; Psa. 86:15.
28) Indignant—Exo 4:14; Num. 22:22; Lam. 2:1-3.
29) Repentant—Gen. 6:6; 1 Sam. 15:11; 2 Sam. 24:16; Joel 2:13.
30) Grieving—Gen. 6:6; Isa. 63:10; Eph. 4:30.
31) Unrepentant—Num. 23:19.
32) Prayer-hearing—Psa. 65:2; 66:19-20.
33) Saving—Zeph. 3:17; Psa. 74:12.
34) Judging—Gen. 18:25; Rev. 19:11.
35) Recompensing—Jer. 51:56; Deut. 32:35.
36) Avenging and retributing—Psa. 94:1; Deut. 32:35.
37) Hidden—Isa. 45:15.
After reading the above attributes, we have some idea of the kind of God He is. We can see that God is sometimes very joyful and sometimes provoked to anger; yet He is long-suffering. He also grieves. He never repents of His words, even though He sometimes repents of His actions. He carries out salvation, judgment, recompense, vengeance, and retribution without the slightest imprudence. However, He is also a God who hides Himself; He often hides Himself. When He is hidden, arrogant men will certainly take the opportunity to speak arrogant words and godly men will undergo severe trials. It may even seem that there is not a God in the universe. However, in times of necessity, He will come forth to execute judgment and to vindicate Himself.
We should not forget that all of God’s attributes originate from these five basic primary attributes—love, righteousness, faithfulness, holiness, and glory. When speaking of His heart, He is loving; when speaking of His works, He is righteous; when speaking of His word, He is faithful; when speaking of His nature, He is holy; and when speaking of Himself, He is glorious. Countless attributes of God originate from these five points. For example, truthfulness surely originates from faithfulness and goodness from righteousness. I hope that the saints would commit these attributes to memory and consider them; this will certainly help us to know God.