Journeying Through the Bible: Comprehending the Glory of God

Ever wondered about the true essence of 'glory' in the Bible? Prepare to gain a profound understanding as we unravel this mystery, walking you through its origins and usage in scriptures. We dissect the concept, bringing to light its three main associations with God - as an attribute, His divine presence, and as our humble action towards Him. We dive deeper to comprehend how the life, teachings, and the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus mirror God's glory. 
Join us on this enlightening voyage to grasp the essence of God's glory and our response to it.

Have questions about what it means to follow Jesus?
Whether you’re just starting your faith journey or exploring what the Bible teaches, we’d love to walk with you. God’s invitation is real, personal, and full of grace.

💬 Reach out to Jacqui at info@bible-basics.org
📖 Talk to a trusted Christian in your life
🏠 Or visit a Bible-believing church near you

You are not alone. God’s Word is alive, and He is still drawing people to Himself today. Don’t hesitate to take the next step.

Thank you for tuning in!
Bible Basics is now streaming on Youtube. Please subscribe now!

Feel free to contact us at info@bible-basics.org. We would love to hear from you!

Note: All scripture references are from the NIV translation unless otherwise indicated.

Transcript

Jacqui: 0:27

Now you all know why I'm not in the choir. Okay, glory, glory, hallelujah. We all know this line from the course of the battle hymn of the Republic. It evokes images of power, praise and reverence. The song commemorates important moments in history. But what exactly lies beneath those words? Specifically, what is glory? What does it mean? Stay tuned to this episode of the Bible Basics Podcast where we'll answer those questions and more Well, welcome everyone. I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where weekly, we break down the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks.

Jacqui: 1:25

I can't think of the last time I used the word glory in my day-to-day conversation. Maybe when I see something magnificent like the sunset over Montego Bay or a mesmerizing ballet performance, I might describe it as glorious. However, in the context of church or other Christian discourse, glory takes on a special role, from worship songs to hymns and prayers. We use it often. Also, it's thrown out easily in Christian speech what I call churchisms, like when you compliment or congratulate someone and they say to God, be the glory." And, most importantly, the word is used approximately 600 times in our Bible. But what exactly does glory mean and how does understanding glory help us develop a deeper relationship with the God of the Bible. Let's discover those answers together.

Jacqui: 2:28

To understand the concepts of glory in the Bible, we'll first look at the word origins. Recall that the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, aramaic and Greek. If you need a refresher on that, check out the podcast episode on Bible translations. It'll be in the show notes. There are 20 Greek and Hebrew words that are each translated in the scripture to the English word glory. Each of them have different shades of meaning related to God, man and things. This allows glory to be used in a number of different ways. There are three most frequent usages associated with God. Those are the ones we're going to be focusing on today. The first one is related to God's attributes. They include God's weightiness, his honor and beauty. Then there's the second that describes the tangible presence of God as glory. The third use of glory is an action, such as to give glory to God or to glory in God. We'll categorize the most frequently used meanings into these three distinctive focuses First, as an attribute of God. Second, regarding his presence. And thirdly, as an action towards God. So let's start with glory as an attribute.

Jacqui: 4:05

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word kabod, spelled K-A-B-O-D, describes glory as a heavy weight, like the possessions of a wealthy individual. If you weighed them, they'd be very heavy. The richer he was, the more his possessions would weigh. With this wealth came a degree of clout or a heavy influence upon others in the community. He was honored. Now, if you were a teenager of my generation and you would see someone who's just excelling, doing amazing in their particular field, you might say, wow, that dude is heavy, it's something. Or someone that's beyond belief, say. You might use the word awesome. That's a similar concept to glory but falls far short, as we'll see in passages like Genesis 31,.

Jacqui: 5:02

Glory was attributed to humans as well, underscoring their significance. But the most common usage of the words glory in the Bible is not referring to people but to God. His glory encompasses weightiness. His weightiness is defined as greatness and it includes every aspect of his character. It includes his honor and indescribable beauty. There is none like him. He is beyond human understanding. We can never even perceive this. Romans 3:" 23 says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Now let's go a little further and discuss the second usage. That refers to the tangible presence of God.

Jacqui: 5:58

The Old Testament often links God's glory with His presence. It was seen in occurrences like clouds and fire, for instance at Mount Sinai. God's glory was shown to Israel as both a cloud and fire. His divine glory is also associated with the tabernacle and the temple. Exodus 40, 34 reads, " Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Prophetic visions describe this glory as well, as the prophet Ezekiel was proclaiming visions about the fate of Jerusalem and the temple. He said in chapter 10, verse 4, then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The clouds filled the temple and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of God.

Jacqui: 7:02

In the New Testament the most common Greek equivalent word is doxa d-o-x-a. Here we see the glory of God, the Father, fully expressed in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ. Hebrews 1:3 reads the Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word. Peter, James and John had a glimpse of this unveiled glory on the Mount of Transfiguration in Matthew 17. Jesus' life, teachings and sacrificial death radiate God's glory. Notably John 1:14 captures this idea. It states the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and only Son who came from the Father full of grace and truth. So in Jesus, the fullness of God's glory is made visible to humanity.

Jacqui: 8:10

One writer said that glory is when God goes public with His beauty. Now, the third usage of the word glory is as an action To glory is to place confidence in someone or something. It could mean to boast or praise. When directed towards God or Christ, this is an appropriate act. However, glorifying in yourself is considered sinful.

Jacqui: 8:40

Most biblical references to giving glory to God occur within the context of worship. The appropriate human response to God is to give Him glory. That's why we say To God, be the glory. This confesses our unworthiness and expresses respect for His majesty, his power and His authority. It takes the focus off of us and to God, where it belongs. We see that in the book of Psalms. In Psalms 86, David says "All the nations you have made will come and worship you, lord. They will bring glory to your name. In Psalms 191 says the heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaim His handiwork. And 115-1, not to us, lord, not to us, but to your name, be the glory because of your love and faithfulness. Finally, in 1 Corinthians. So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. And that is what's happening. When we proclaim glory, glory, hallelujah, we're giving God's complete praise for all that he is.

Jacqui: 10:07

Now, in conclusion, we want to break down these ideas and we find that the Bible's meaning of glory comes together in three important ways as an attribute of God, describing His weightiness, beauty and honor. Second, regarding His tangible presence. And thirdly, as an action towards God. Reflecting on that multifaceted nature of God's glory, it deepens our understanding of His character. It shifts our perception of Him to being a God who transcends His creation and, at the same time, is intimately involved with us. Do you know? There's even a scripture that says he has numbered the very hairs on our head. This realization leads us to develop a deeper relationship with God and to align our lives with His purposes and live in a way that reflects His glory to others.

Jacqui: 11:12

Let's end this episode with a reading from Jude 24 and 25. Those are the last two verses before the book of Revelation. These verses are a doxology, that's, a hymn or a verse that glorifies God. Doxology is a combination of two Greek words doxa, which we just discovered, means glory, and logos, which means word, and it reads "To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without thought and with great joy. To the only God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, power and authority through Jesus Christ, our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore. Amen. As we listen to that doxology, we can see that, ultimately, glory reminds us of God's immeasurable worthiness of all of our worship and praise. Thank you for tuning in. If this has been beneficial to you, please share it with others, subscribe or follow, and all of you Apple Podcast listeners, drop us a review.