I want to take a different approach from what I took in my previous two articles in this series. With God’s hands, there did not seem to be major differences between His hands and ours, other than that perhaps His are bigger. The word picture or literary device of assigning a human body part to God the Father (who does not have a literal body) merely extended our understanding of what human hands do to what is revealed in Scripture that God does for His people. The article on God’s mouth took a similar approach. However, when I reflect on God’s eyes, there seems to be some obvious distinctions between what His eyes can do and what ours can do.
Human eyes have many limitations. We can only see clearly in one direction at a time. We have peripheral vision, but it’s always out of focus. We see a little bit to the right and left, as well as up and down, beyond what we can focus on in front of us. We can sense movements, which usually causes us to turn our heads in that direction to look more intently at the stimulus. We cannot see behind us or outside of our normal range of vision. We cannot see long distances; that requires a telescope. We cannot see objects too small for the naked eye; that requires a microscope.
Another shortcoming considers light levels. We can see in daylight, but we cannot see in pitch-black conditions. Also, we cannot see through solid objects. We cannot see what is in someone’s head or heart. Some of us need glasses with trifocals to see clearly. We can be temporarily blinded when a foreign object like dust blows into our eyes. Other limitations come to mind. We miss things. Our eyes can get tired, bloodshot, infected, tear-filled, blink, and are closed for hours at a time every night when we sleep. We cannot see everything, everywhere, all of the time.
In contrast, God’s eyes have no limitations. He sees everything, everywhere, all the time. Psalm 139:1-6 informs us that God knows what we do, think, and say because He sees us. King David writes, “O Lord, you have searched for me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar . . . Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.” He sees the far reaches of the universe at the macro level and every detail at the microscopic level because He made it all. He sees through the darkness. (See Ps. 139:12.) He knows our thoughts and the intentions of our hearts. God’s eyes do not get tired, blink, or close at night.
As I have done before, I will share my observations about God’s eyes from Ezra and Nehemiah. I will discuss a few other Scriptures where more is seen about the eyes of God so that we can know Him better. Lastly, I will ask my readers to consider how to respond to what they know about God’s eyes.
God’s eyes in Ezra
As I listed the verses I noticed that mentioned God’s body parts and man’s response to those same body parts into a chart that I hastily drew in the lower half of the last page of the book of Ezra, I found only one verse that directly referred to God’s eyes. I was somewhat disappointed in that result, as the other cells in my chart were full of references. The one verse I did find does intrigue me still. Let me unpack what is written and what is later implied in this book.
In Ezra chapter 5, we see that Jews begin rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem. the Jews encountered opposition from outsiders. Their intent was to stop this project. Ezra reports that “the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews,” and thus their work continued (Ezra 5:5). This brief observation using the literary device of anthropomorphism reveals to us much about the character of God. He is always present and is always watching His people. (See Ps. 139.) He will act on what He sees. Because He is watching and acting on our behalf when we are about His business, we can rest assured that He will provide for us and protect us when we need it.
Although I did not find any other verses that specifically mentioned God’s eyes, what God saw, etc., the many references to God’s hand that I discussed in the first article in this series seem to imply that God had to have seen what His people needed before He acted with His hand of protection and providence.
God’s eyes in Nehemiah
I only found two references to God’s eyes in the book of Nehemiah. However, what I lacked in quantity was made up for in quality. These verses were even more intriguing than the one I just discussed in Ezra.
Nehemiah gives us a great eyewitness account of the rebuilding of the walls around Jerusalem. After he was made aware of the condition of the wall, Nehemiah prayed. His beautiful expression of praise and thanksgiving, confession of sin, and supplication for success in the work which he and his people will attempt grabs the readers’ interest. Nehemiah asks God to “Let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying” (Neh. 1:6). I have to wonder, Why did Nehemiah ask the LORD to keep his eyes open in addition to His ears?
Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary sheds a little light on this verse. They indicate: “Nehemiah asked God to look at him and listen to him as he prayed. These words were designed to encourage the one praying, for God does not turn His ears from or close His eyes to His people (Exo. 2:23-25).” The prophet echoed back to God what he knew about His attributes. The verse referred to comes out of the Israelites groaning from their long period of slavery in Egypt. We read in v. 24 that “God heard”, and in v. 25 we read that “God looked”. The understanding that Yahweh heard the prayers and looked out for the welfare of the Israelites implied that He still does those things.
God’s eyes throughout the Bible
In addition to Ps. 139, there are several other references throughout the OT and NT where what God sees is mentioned. The term “eyes of the Lord” is found in 146 places. Here are just a few:
- “It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end” (Deut. 11:12)
- “The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (Judges 2:11, 3:7, 3:12, 4:1, 6:1, 10:6, and 13:1)
- “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him” (2 Chron. 16:9)
How should my eyes respond to God’s eyes?
When I reflect on what God did with His divine eyes, three appropriate human responses come to my mind: we are to consistently seek the Lord, confess our sins, and minister to those who are truly suffering.
Knowing that God watched over His people, the Israelites diligently sought after Him through forsaking unclean practices and celebrating the Passover (Ezra 6:21), and later, the public reading of Scripture, worship, and prayer (Neh. 8:1-3). God relentlessly pursued a relationship with me out of His lovingkindness; the least I can do is to make every effort to pursue my relationship with Him.
Knowing that God can see through my facade to read my fleshly thoughts, words, and desires should cause me to respond in confession of my sin. Many of those things that God sees in me just don’t belong there.
Knowing that God sees the suffering of people He loves should cause me to pray for them and look for opportunities to minister to those that usually make us uncomfortable: the lost, the last, and the least of these.
I trust that this study opened your eyes to the truth that God sees everything, which is why He is all-knowing. This brings comfort when we need it, but it brings correction and confession when we need that as well.
Written by Russell E. Gehrlein
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This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Christian Grandfather Magazine
Featured Image by Roy N from Pixabay
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