The Purpose of God is His eternal, wise, and unchangeable plan by which He ordains all things for His glory and the good of those who love Him.
It encompasses creation, providence, redemption, and the final consummation of all things in Christ.
Scripture presents God’s purpose as sovereign, certain, and centered on the exaltation of His Son and the salvation of a people for Himself.
Nothing can thwart it; all history moves toward its fulfillment, and the believer finds deep security in knowing that God works all things according to the counsel of His will.
From eternity God has worked all things according to the purpose of His will. He declared the end from the beginning and predetermined whatever comes to pass. His purpose is not reactive or contingent; it is the free, wise, and holy determination of the Creator who does whatever He pleases. That purpose includes the creation of the world, the permission of the fall, the election of a people in Christ, the sending of the Son to redeem them, the gathering of the church from every nation, and the final renewal of all things. At the center stands the cross, where the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God handed over Jesus to be crucified by the hands of lawless men. The same purpose guarantees that those whom God foreknew He also predestined, called, justified, and glorified. The purpose of God is therefore the believer’s greatest comfort: if God is for us, who can be against us? All things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose.
- God’s purpose is eternal, sovereign, and unchangeable.
- It encompasses all things — creation, history, redemption, and final judgment.
- The purpose of God is centered on the glory of the Father and the supremacy of Christ.
- Election, predestination, and calling are expressions of this eternal purpose.
- The cross itself took place according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.
- Nothing can separate believers from the love of God that is rooted in His purpose.
- The final goal of God’s purpose is the praise of the glory of His grace and the summing up of all things in Christ.
- Eternal – Formed before the foundation of the world and independent of time.
- Sovereign – God works all things according to the counsel of His will; none can stay His hand.
- Christ-Centered – All things are summed up in Christ; He is the focus and heir of the purpose.
- Redemptive – Includes the election and salvation of a people for God’s own possession.
- Comprehensive – Embraces every event, even those involving human sin, under God’s wise governance.
- Certain – Cannot be frustrated; what God has purposed He will bring to pass.
- Doxological – Designed for the praise of the glory of God’s grace.
- Ephesians 1:9-11 – “…making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will…”
- Romans 8:28 – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
- Romans 8:29-30 – “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son… And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”
- Isaiah 46:9-11 – “I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.”
- Acts 2:23 – “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”
- Acts 4:27-28 – “For truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.”
- Ephesians 3:11 – “This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord…”
- 2 Timothy 1:9 – “…who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began…”
- Job 42:2 – “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”
- Psalm 33:10-11 – “The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.”
- Proverbs 19:21 – “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.”
- Isaiah 14:24, 27 – “The Lord of hosts has sworn: ‘As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand… For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?’”
- Daniel 4:35 – “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’”
- Romans 9:11 – “…though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls…”
- Ephesians 1:5-6 – “In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace…”
- Revelation 17:17 – “For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled.”
- Jeremiah 29:11 – “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (spoken to the exiles in the context of God’s larger redemptive purpose)
- 1 Corinthians 15:24-28 – Then comes the end, when Christ delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power… that God may be all in all.
- Counsel of God
- Will of God
- Sovereignty of God
- Election
- Predestination
- Providence
- Golden Chain of Salvation
- All Things for Good
- Glory of God
- Summing Up All Things in Christ
- Eternal Purpose
- Definite Plan
The purpose of God stands forever. He works all things according to the counsel of His will, and none can stay His hand. That purpose is centered on Christ, includes the salvation of a people for His own possession, and moves all history toward the day when God will be all in all. The cross itself was no accident; it took place according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God. The same purpose guarantees that those whom He called according to His purpose will be glorified. Therefore rest in the purpose of God. When circumstances confuse, when evil seems strong, when the future is hidden, remember: His counsel shall stand, and He will accomplish all His purpose. The God who declared the end from the beginning is working all things for the good of those who love Him and for the praise of the glory of His grace.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.