Sovereignty of God

Outline.

1. The Sovereignty of God and the Human Heart.

2. The Sovereignty of God and “Chance.”

3. The Sovereignty of God Extends Over Everything — Including Misfortune.

3.1. The Freedom of the Potter.

3.2. God’s Reign Extends Over All Things.

4. Human Inability: The Will — Cannot Incline Itself Toward God.

4.1. Human Nature — Sinfulness.

4.2. The Human Condition — Slavery to Sin.

4.3. The State of the Fallen — Deadness.

5. God is Able.

5.1. All is of God.

5.2. God Who Reigns.

5.3. God Who Wills.

5.4. God Who Chooses.

5.5. God Who Authors The Story.

6. Appendix: προορίζω (Predestined).

1. The Sovereignty of God and the Human Heart. Return to Outline.

Note: See further: Compatibilism — God’s Sovereignty and Human Responsibility, and Compatibilism, A Biblical Defense.

Proverbs 21:1 (NASB95) — The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes.

Proverbs 16:9 (NASB95) — The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps. 

Psalm 37:23 (NASB95) — The steps of a man are established by the LORD, And He delights in his way.

Proverbs 16:1 (NASB95) — The plans of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.

Proverbs 19:21 (NASB95) — Many plans are in a man’s heart, But the counsel of the LORD will stand.

Proverbs 20:24 (NASB95) — Man’s steps are ordained by the LORD, How then can man understand his way?

Jeremiah 10:23 (NASB95) — I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not in himself, Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps.

Psalm 127:1 (NASB95) — A Song of Ascents, of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.

Cf.

Daniel 1:9 (NASB95) — Now God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials,

Exodus 34:23-24 (NASB95) — Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel. For I will drive out nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no man shall covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the LORD your God.

1 Samuel 10:9 (NASB95) — Then it happened when he turned his back to leave Samuel, God changed his heart; and all those signs came about on that day.

1 Kings 8:50 (NASB95) — and forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You, and make them objects of compassion before those who have taken them captive, that they may have compassion on them

Psalm 106:46 (NASB95) — He also made them objects of compassion In the presence of all their captors.

Proverbs 16:7 (NASB95) — When a man’s ways are pleasing to the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

Psalm 147:14-15 (NASB95) — He makes peace in your borders; He satisfies you with the finest of the wheat. He sends forth His command to the earth; His word runs very swiftly.

Note: See further: The “Will”; also Free Will (Libertarian?); and Does God Drag Unwilling Sinners to Heaven?

2. The Sovereignty of God and “Chance.” Return to Outline.

Proverbs 16:33 (NASB95) — The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD. (Cf. 1 Samuel 14:42-43; Jonah 1:7; Acts 1:26; cf. 1 Kings 22:34.)

Proverbs 21:31 (NASB95) — The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But victory belongs to the LORD.

1 Samuel 17:47 (NASB95) — and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD’S and He will give you into our hands.”

Psalm 33:16-17 (NASB95) — The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

3. The Sovereignty of God Extends Over Everything — Including Misfortune. Return to Outline.

Note: See further: Concurrence (Concursus) — Primary and Secondary Causes.

Ephesians 1:11 (NASB95) — also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

Romans 8:28 (NASB95) — And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Proverbs 16:4 (NASB95) — The LORD has made everything for its own purpose, Even the wicked for the day of evil.

Psalm 76:10 (NASB95) — For the wrath of man shall praise You; With a remnant of wrath You will gird Yourself.

Ecclesiastes 7:13-14 (NASB95) — Consider the work of God, For who is able to straighten what He has bent? In the day of prosperity be happy, But in the day of adversity consider— God has made the one as well as the other So that man will not discover anything that will be after him.

Ecclesiastes 1:15 (NASB95) — What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.

Isaiah 45:7 (NASB95) — The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the LORD who does all these.

Lamentations 3:37-38 (NASB95) — Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass, Unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High That both good and ill go forth?

Amos 3:6 (NASB95) — If a trumpet is blown in a city will not the people tremble? If a calamity occurs in a city has not the LORD done it?

Numbers 24:13 (NASB95) — ‘Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything contrary to the command of the LORD, either good or bad, of my own accord. What the LORD speaks, that I will speak’? (Cf. Numbers 22:38; 23:12, 20.)

3.1. The Freedom of the Potter. Return to Outline.

Romans 9:19-23 (NASB95) — You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, 

Isaiah 29:16 (NASB95) — You turn things around! Shall the potter be considered as equal with the clay, That what is made would say to its maker, “He did not make me”; Or what is formed say to him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?

Isaiah 45:9 (NASB95) — “Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker—An earthenware vessel among the vessels of earth! Will the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’ Or the thing you are making say, ‘He has no hands’?

Jeremiah 18:2-6 (NASB95) — “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will announce My words to you.” Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something on the wheel. But the vessel that he was making of clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he remade it into another vessel, as it pleased the potter to make. Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, “Can I not, O house of Israel, deal with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Behold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.

Isaiah 64:8 (NASB95) — But now, O LORD, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand.

Isaiah 10:15 (NASB95) — Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it? That would be like a club wielding those who lift it, Or like a rod lifting him who is not wood.

Matthew 20:14-16 (NASB95) — Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ So the last shall be first, and the first last.”

3.2. God’s Reign Extends Over All Things. Return to Outline.

Psalm 60:3 (NASB95) — You have made Your people experience hardship; You have given us wine to drink that makes us stagger.

2 Kings 21:14 (NASB95) — I will abandon the remnant of My inheritance and deliver them into the hand of their enemies, and they will become as plunder and spoil to all their enemies;

Amos 8:11 (NASB95) — “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the LORD.

Luke 8:32 (NASB95) — Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons implored Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission.

Luke 22:31-32 (NASB95) — “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when [ποτε] once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 

1 Timothy 1:20 (NASB95) — Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme.

1 Corinthians 5:5 (NASB95) — I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

2 Corinthians 12:7 (NASB95) — Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself!

Lamentations 3:32 (NASB95) — For if He causes grief, Then He will have compassion According to His abundant lovingkindness.

Psalm 44:11 (NASB95) — You give us as sheep to be eaten And have scattered us among the nations.

Psalm 44:22 (NASB95) — But for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

Romans 8:36 (NASB95) — Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.”

1 Peter 4:19 (NASB95) — Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.

Cf.

Genesis 3:15 (NASB95) — And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”

Genesis 3:16 (NASB95) — To the woman He said,“I will greatly multiply Your pain in childbirth, In pain you will bring forth children; Yet your desire will be for your husband, And he will rule over you.”

Genesis 24:14 (NASB95) — now may it be that the girl to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar so that I may drink,’ and who answers, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels also’—may she be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown lovingkindness to my master.”

Proverbs 19:14 (NASB95) — House and wealth are an inheritance from fathers, But a prudent wife is from the LORD.

Matthew 19:6 (NASB95) — “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”

Genesis 16:2 (NASB95) — So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

Genesis 20:17-18 (NASB95) — Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech and his wife and his maids, so that they bore children. For the LORD had closed fast all the wombs of the household of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

Genesis 29:31 (NASB95) — Now the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, and He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.

Genesis 30:2 (NASB95) — Then Jacob’s anger burned against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

Genesis 30:22 (NASB95) — Then God remembered Rachel, and God gave heed to her and opened her womb.

John 9:2-3 (NASB95) — And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

Exodus 4:11 (NASB95) — The LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?

Ruth 1:3, 5, 13 (NASB95) — Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. …Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband. …would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is harder for me than for you, for the hand of the LORD has gone forth against me.”

2 Samuel 12:15 (NASB95) — So Nathan went to his house. Then the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, so that he was very sick.

Cf.

Leviticus 10:1 (NASB95) — Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD.

1 Chronicles 13:9-10 (NASB95) — When they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzza put out his hand to hold the ark, because the oxen nearly upset it. The anger of the LORD burned against Uzza, so He struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark; and he died there before God.

1 Samuel 3:12-14, 18 (NASB95) — In that day I will carry out against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons brought a curse on themselves and he did not rebuke them. Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.” …So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the LORD; let Him do what seems good to Him.”

2 Samuel 6:6-7 (NASB95) — But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God.

2 Kings 17:25 (NASB95) — At the beginning of their living there, they did not fear the LORD; therefore the LORD sent lions among them which killed some of them.

2 Kings 2:23-24 (NASB95) — Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up by the way, young lads came out from the city and mocked him and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead; go up, you baldhead!” When he looked behind him and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the LORD. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore up forty-two lads of their number.

Acts 5:4-5, 7, 9-10 (NASB95) — While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came over all who heard of it. …Now there elapsed an interval of about three hours, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. …Then Peter said to her, “Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out as well.” And immediately she fell at his feet and breathed her last, and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband.

Luke 13:1-5 (NASB95) — Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And Jesus said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

4. Human Inability: The Will — Cannot Incline Itself Toward God. Return to Outline.

Romans 8:7 (NASB95) — because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,

Ephesians 2:3 (NASB95) — Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

Jeremiah 13:23 (NASB95) — “Can the Ethiopian change his skin Or the leopard his spots? Then you also can do good Who are accustomed to doing evil.

1 Corinthians 2:14 (NASB95) — But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

1 Corinthians 1:18 (NASB95) — For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Matthew 7:18 (NASB95) — A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.

Luke 6:43, 45 (NASB95) — For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor, on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit. …The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.

John 6:37, 44, 65 (NASB95) — All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. ...No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. ...And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

John 3:6 (NASB95) — That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

John 3:3 (NASB95) — Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again [ἄνωθεν, lit. from above] he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 6:63 (NASB95) — It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (NASB95) — And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Luke 8:12 (NASB95) — Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved.

John 8:43, 47 (NASB95) — Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. ...He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

John 18:37 (NASB95) — Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

John 14:16-17 (NASB95) — I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

Matthew 12:34-35 (NASB95) — You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil.

1 Samuel 24:13 (NASB95) — As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Out of the wicked comes forth wickedness’; but my hand shall not be against you.

Proverbs 17:11 (NASB95) — A rebellious man seeks only evil, So a cruel messenger will be sent against him.

Romans 5:6 (NASB95) — For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.

4.1. Human Nature — Sinfulness. Return to Outline.

Romans 3:10-18 (NASB95) — as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.” “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,” “THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”; “WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS”; “THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD, DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS, AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN.” “THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”

Psalm 14:1-3 (NASB95) — The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; There is no one who does good. The LORD has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there are any who understand, Who seek after God. They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.

Psalm 53:1-3 (NASB95) — The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God,” They are corrupt, and have committed abominable injustice; There is no one who does good. God has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there is anyone who understands, Who seeks after God. Every one of them has turned aside; together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.

Romans 7:18 (NASB95) — For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.

Psalm 5:9 (NASB95) — There is nothing reliable in what they say; Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave; They flatter with their tongue.

Psalm 51:5 (NASB95) — Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.

Psalm 58:3 (NASB95) — The wicked are estranged from the womb; These who speak lies go astray from birth.

Psalm 143:2 (NASB95) — And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, For in Your sight no man living is righteous.

Genesis 6:5 (NASB95) — Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Genesis 8:21 (NASB95) — The LORD smelled the soothing aroma; and the LORD said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground on account of man, for the intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.

Ecclesiastes 7:20 (NASB95) — Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins.

Ecclesiastes 9:3 (NASB95) — This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.

Isaiah 1:5-6 (NASB95) — Where will you be stricken again, As you continue in your rebellion? The whole head is sick And the whole heart is faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head There is nothing sound in it, Only bruises, welts and raw wounds, Not pressed out or bandaged, Nor softened with oil.

Isaiah 53:6 (NASB95) — All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.

Isaiah 64:6-7 (NASB95) — For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls on Your name, Who arouses himself to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us And have delivered us into the power of our iniquities.

Jeremiah 4:22 (NASB95) — “For My people are foolish, They know Me not; They are stupid children And have no understanding. They are shrewd to do evil, But to do good they do not know.”

Jeremiah 9:5 (NASB95) — “Everyone deceives his neighbor And does not speak the truth, They have taught their tongue to speak lies; They weary themselves committing iniquity.

Jeremiah 17:9 (NASB95) — “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?

Luke 18:19 (NASB95) — And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.

Micah 7:2-4 (NASB95) — The godly person has perished from the land, And there is no upright person among men. All of them lie in wait for bloodshed; Each of them hunts the other with a net. Concerning evil, both hands do it well. The prince asks, also the judge, for a bribe, And a great man speaks the desire of his soul; So they weave it together. The best of them is like a briar, The most upright like a thorn hedge. The day when you post your watchmen, Your punishment will come. Then their confusion will occur. (Cf. James 3:8; 1 John 1:8; 5:19; Job 14:4; 15:14-16; Proverbs 20:9; Psalm 130:3; 143:2; Romans 5:18-19.)

Cf.

Matthew 7:11 (NASB95) — If you then, being evil [πονηροὶ], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!

Luke 11:13 (NASB95) — If you then, being evil [πονηροὶ], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

4.2. The Human Condition — Slavery to Sin. Return to Outline.

John 8:31-36 (NASB95) — So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. “The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Romans 6:7, 16, 20 (NASB95) — for he who has died is freed from sin. …Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? ...For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.

Romans 8:2 (NASB95) — For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

2 Peter 2:19 (NASB95) — promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved.

Acts 8:23 (NASB95) — For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”

Isaiah 61:1 (NASB95) — The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;

4.3. The State of the Fallen — Deadness. Return to Outline.

Colossians 2:13 (NASB95) — When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,

Ephesians 2:1, 5 (NASB95) — And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, ...even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Ephesians 5:14 (NASB95) — For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.”

Genesis 2:17 (NASB95) — but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

5. God is Able. Return to Outline.

Ezekiel 37:5, 14 (NASB95) — Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life. ...I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken and done it,” declares the LORD.’”

Jeremiah 32:39-40 (NASB95) — and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.

Ezekiel 36:25-27 (NASB95) — Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.

Ezekiel 11:19 (NASB95) — And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,

Jeremiah 24:7 (NASB95) — I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.

Psalm 51:10 (NASB95) — Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Acts 3:26 (NASB95) — For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”

Jeremiah 31:33 (NASB95) — “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Jeremiah 32:40 (NASB95) — I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.

Luke 24:45 (NASB95) — Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,

5.1. All is of God. Return to Outline.

1 Corinthians 4:7 (NASB95) — For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?

John 3:27 (NASB95) — John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.

James 1:17 (NASB95) — Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

1 John 4:19 (NASB95) — We love, because He first loved us.

5.2. God Who Reigns. Return to Outline.

2 Chronicles 20:6 (NASB95) — and he said, “O LORD, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand so that no one can stand against You.

1 Samuel 2:6-7 (NASB95) — “The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. “The LORD makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts.

Deuteronomy 32:39 (NASB95) — ‘See now that I, I am He, And there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, And there is no one who can deliver from My hand.

Job 42:2 (NASB95) — “I know that You can do all things, And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.

Job 9:12 (NASB95) — “Were He to snatch away, who could restrain Him? Who could say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’

Job 12:14 (NASB95) — “Behold, He tears down, and it cannot be rebuilt; He imprisons a man, and there can be no release.

Job 23:13 (NASB95) — “But He is unique and who can turn Him? And what His soul desires, that He does.

Revelation 3:7 (NASB95) — “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this:

Daniel 2:21 (NASB95) — “It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men And knowledge to men of understanding.

Daniel 4:17, 26, 34-35 (NASB95) — “This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers And the decision is a command of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, And bestows it on whom He wishes And sets over it the lowliest of men.” …And in that it was commanded to leave the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will be assured to you after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules. …“But at the end of that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever; For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom endures from generation to generation. “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’

Isaiah 8:9-10 (NASB95) — “Be broken, O peoples, and be shattered; And give ear, all remote places of the earth. Gird yourselves, yet be shattered; Gird yourselves, yet be shattered. “Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us.”

Isaiah 14:24-27 (NASB95) — The LORD of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand, to break Assyria in My land, and I will trample him on My mountains. Then his yoke will be removed from them and his burden removed from their shoulder. This is the plan devised against the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out against all the nations. For the LORD of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”

Isaiah 40:17-18, 23-24 (NASB95) — All the nations are as nothing before Him, They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless. To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare with Him? …He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.

Isaiah 41:21-23 (NASB95) — “Present your case,” the LORD says. “Bring forward your strong arguments,” The King of Jacob says. Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; As for the former events, declare what they were, That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming; Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together.

Isaiah 43:13 (NASB95) — “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”

Isaiah 44:24-28 (NASB95) — Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, “I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself And spreading out the earth all alone, Causing the omens of boasters to fail, Making fools out of diviners, Causing wise men to draw back And turning their knowledge into foolishness, Confirming the word of His servant And performing the purpose of His messengers. It is I who says of Jerusalem, ‘She shall be inhabited!’ And of the cities of Judah, ‘They shall be built.’ And I will raise up her ruins again. “It is I who says to the depth of the sea, ‘Be dried up!’ And I will make your rivers dry. “It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd! And he will perform all My desire.’ And he declares of Jerusalem, ‘She will be built,’ And of the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid.’”

Isaiah 46:9-11 (NASB95) — “Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, ‘My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’; Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man of My purpose from a far country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, surely I will do it.

Isaiah 48:3 (NASB95) — “I declared the former things long ago And they went forth from My mouth, and I proclaimed them. Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.

Isaiah 55:11 (NASB95) — So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

Psalm 2:2-4 (NASB95) — The kings of the earth take their stand And the rulers take counsel together Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!” He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them.

Psalm 22:28 (NASB95) — For the kingdom is the LORD’S And He rules over the nations.

Psalm 33:9-12, 15 (NASB95) — For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. The LORD nullifies the counsel of the nations; He frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance. …He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works.

Psalm 75:6-7 (NASB95) — For not from the east, nor from the west, Nor from the desert comes exaltation; But God is the Judge; He puts down one and exalts another.

Psalm 103:19 (NASB95) — The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all.

Psalm 115:3 (NASB95) — But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.

Psalm 135:6-12 (NASB95) — Whatever the LORD pleases, He does, In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps. He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; Who makes lightnings for the rain, Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries. He smote the firstborn of Egypt, Both of man and beast. He sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt, Upon Pharaoh and all his servants. He smote many nations And slew mighty kings, Sihon, king of the Amorites, And Og, king of Bashan, And all the kingdoms of Canaan; And He gave their land as a heritage, A heritage to Israel His people.

Numbers 23:19 (NASB95) — “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

Numbers 24:23 (NASB95) — Then he took up his discourse and said, “Alas, who can live except God has ordained it?

Matthew 10:29 (NASB95) — Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.

Ezekiel 36:36 (NASB95) — “Then the nations that are left round about you will know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted that which was desolate; I, the LORD, have spoken and will do it.”

Revelation 22:13 (NASB95) — I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Romans 11:33-36 (NASB95) — Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

5.3. God Who Wills. Return to Outline.

John 1:12-13 (NASB95) — But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Romans 9:16 (NASB95) — So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.

Matthew 11:27 (NASB95) — All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

Matthew 16:17 (NASB95) — And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

James 4:13-15 (NASB95) — Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.”

Acts 16:6-7 (NASB95) — They passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them;

James 1:18 (NASB95) — In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.

1 Corinthians 3:6-7 (NASB95) — I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.

John 5:21 (NASB95) — For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.

Ephesians 1:5, 11 (NASB95) — He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, ...also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

Acts 2:39 (NASB95) — For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

2 Timothy 1:9 (NASB95) — who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity,

5.4. God Who Chooses. Return to Outline.

John 15:16 (NASB95) — You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

John 13:18 (NASB95) — I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.’

John 10:3, 11, 14, 16, 26-29 (NASB95) — To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ...“I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. ...I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, ...I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. ...But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

John 17:6, 9, 11, 24 (NASB95) — “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. ...I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours; …I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. ...Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1:4 (NASB95) — just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love

2 Thessalonians 2:13 (NASB95) — But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.

Romans 9:10-13 (NASB95) — And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.” Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.” What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.”

Romans 11:2-5 (NASB95) — God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? “Lord, THEY HAVE KILLED YOUR PROPHETS, THEY HAVE TORN DOWN YOUR ALTARS, AND I ALONE AM LEFT, AND THEY ARE SEEKING MY LIFE.” But what is the divine response to him? “I HAVE KEPT for Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL.” In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God’s gracious choice.

Exodus 33:19 (NASB95) — And He said, “I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the LORD before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.”

2 Timothy 2:10 (NASB95) — For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.

1 Corinthians 1:23-24, 26-31 (NASB95) — but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. …For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”

Psalm 65:4 (NASB95) — How blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near to You To dwell in Your courts. We will be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, Your holy temple.

1 Peter 1:1-2 (NASB95) — Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.

Titus 1:1 (NASB95) — Paul, a bond-servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness,

Matthew 22:14 (NASB95) — For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Deuteronomy 7:6 (NASB95) — For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.

Isaiah 45:4-5 (NASB95) — “For the sake of Jacob My servant, And Israel My chosen one, I have also called you by your name; I have given you a title of honor Though you have not known Me. “I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God. I will gird you, though you have not known Me;

Isaiah 65:1 (NASB95) — “I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ To a nation which did not call on My name.

Romans 10:20 (NASB95) — And Isaiah is very bold and says, “I WAS FOUND BY THOSE WHO DID NOT SEEK ME, I BECAME MANIFEST TO THOSE WHO DID NOT ASK FOR ME.”

Deuteronomy 10:15 (NASB95) — Yet on your fathers did the LORD set His affection to love them, and He chose their descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day.

Psalm 33:12 (NASB95) — Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.

Isaiah 43:20-21 (NASB95) — “The beasts of the field will glorify Me, The jackals and the ostriches, Because I have given waters in the wilderness And rivers in the desert, To give drink to My chosen people. “The people whom I formed for Myself Will declare My praise.

Acts 15:14 (NASB95) — Simeon has related how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name.

John 3:8 (NASB95) — The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5 (NASB95) — knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you; for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

Nehemiah 9:7 (NASB95) — “You are the LORD God, Who chose Abram And brought him out from Ur of the Chaldees, And gave him the name Abraham.

Genesis 18:19 (NASB95) — For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.”

5.5. God Who Authors The Story. Return to Outline.

Revelation 13:8 (NASB95) — All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.

Revelation 17:8 (NASB95) — “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.

Revelation 20:15 (NASB95) — And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:27 (NASB95) — and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Daniel 12:1 (NASB95) — “Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued.

Psalm 139:16 (NASB95) — Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.

Jeremiah 1:5 (NASB95) — “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Galatians 1:15 (NASB95) — But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased

Psalm 31:15 (NASB95) — My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.

Job 14:5 (NASB95) — “Since his days are determined, The number of his months is with You; And his limits You have set so that he cannot pass.

Acts 17:26 (NASB95) — and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,

Romans 9:29 (NASB95) — And just as Isaiah foretold, “UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY, WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH.”

Isaiah 1:9 (NASB95) — Unless the LORD of hosts Had left us a few survivors, We would be like Sodom, We would be like Gomorrah.

Genesis 15:7 (NASB95) — And He said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it.”

Cf.

Genesis 20:6 (NASB95) — Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also kept you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.

2 Kings 19:28 (NASB95) — ‘Because of your raging against Me, And because your arrogance has come up to My ears, Therefore I will put My hook in your nose, And My bridle in your lips, And I will turn you back by the way which you came.

Acts 5:38-39 (NASB95) — So in the present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or action is of men, it will be overthrown; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; or else you may even be found fighting against God.”

6. Appendix: προορίζω (Predestined). Return to Outline.

Acts 4:28 (NASB95) — to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined [προώρισεν] to occur.

Romans 8:29 (NASB95) — For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined [προώρισεν] to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;

Romans 8:30 (NASB95) — and these whom He predestined [προώρισεν], He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

1 Corinthians 2:7 (NASB95) — but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined [προώρισεν] before the ages to our glory;

Ephesians 1:5 (NASB95) — He predestined [προορίσας] us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,

Ephesians 1:11 (NASB95) — also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined [προορισθέντες] according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

καὶ αὐτός ἐστιν πρὸ πάντων καὶ τὰ πάντα ἐν αὐτῷ συνέστηκεν ~ Soli Deo Gloria