God Moves in a Mysterious Way

We need to be willing to let go of our own desires, timetables, and allow God decide how, when, and where to try us.

Hymn 142 is one of my favorite hymns. I believe it is good to base an exhortation on a hymn, especially when the Bible references may be traced. We are told to exhort one another in “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” (Colossians 3:16). So, when we sing with one another, we are also exhorting one another.

One of the benefits of our Christadelphian hymnbook is that all the hymns are based on the Bible. This is partly because a significant portion of the words have been composed by Christadelphians, and partly because the words of non-Christadelphians have been selected only when they are truly Bible-based.

The words of Hymn 142 were written by the poet and non-Christadelphian, William Cowper, pronounced “Cooper,” (1731-1800). Throughout his life, William Cowper was frail and emotionally sensitive. At an early age, he lost his mother, after which he suffered a mental breakdown. He spent time in a mental institution, and in later years, he continued to be plagued by depression. But in the times between such spells, he devoted himself to reading the Bible and composing hymns that are characterized by a strikingly vivid use of Bible imagery.

Something To Consider

It may be that Cowper, with his poor physical and mental health, saw himself in the story of Job. So, like Job, he too was also asking God, “Why? Why? Why am I suffering, and not getting satisfactory answers?” The Book of Job, with its observations, may have led Cowper to write the lyrics to the hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”.

Cowper’s Hymn 142 praises the one God, who dwells in and rules over all parts of His creation. As we look at the hymn, we see that:

• Stanza 1 is about the sea.
• Stanza 2 describes things under the earth, and
• Stanza 3 describes the heavens, while…
• Stanza 4 discusses the crops and plants that grow in the earth; and
• The final stanza is a summary, exhorting us to consider all God’s work.

The hymn is based largely on Job 28. Its theme is that one day, God will make everything plain to us.

This is not only an idea found in Job 28, but also one of the main points in the whole Book of Job. It is God’s central theme when He finally speaks directly to Job.

The suffering Job asks, “Why? Why?” in ever-increasing pain and bewilderment. Job’s angry complaints come very close to sin. We shouldn’t be too hard on Job, however. Most of us haven’t come close to experiencing the depth of suffering and loss of family that Job had.

Toward the end of the Book of Job, God reveals Himself to him. Ironically, even when He speaks directly to Job, God doesn’t give him point-by-point answers to his questions about his losses and trials. Instead, God tells Job to look at the world around him, with its natural phenomena: Job, were you there when I created the heavens and the earth? Can you feed the wild animals? Can you explain how the child grows in the womb? Can you tame the mighty beasts and sea-creatures, and get them to do your will? In short, and rather bluntly paraphrased, God tells Job: “I am God, and you are not!”

Evidently, Job finds that answer satisfactory, for he repents “in dust and ashes” (Job 42:6), and then he is forgiven for his indiscretions and his speaking against God. God, at last, blesses Job once more. Even then, Job gets no definitive answer from God as to why he needed to suffer as much as he did. Instead, the real answer is: “Job, you let Me worry about that!”

God’s answer is not much different from the parents’ answer, familiar to every child. The child asks, “Why? Why? Why do I have to go to school today? Why do I have to eat my broccoli? Why do I have to go to bed at 7 pm? Why? Why?” The parent says, “Because I said so!” Or perhaps, “I’m the parent, and you aren’t.”

Which is another way of saying, “Trust in me to do the right things with your life, and one day, I will explain it all to you. That will be the day when you will be prepared to understand what I will tell you. Until then, you’ll just have to be patient and believe in me.”

It is a hard answer to accept. At every stage of our lives, we imagine ourselves to be so intelligent that we can understand the Bible as we read it. But we can’t, evidently! God tells us, “You can’t handle the facts! I’ll tell you what you need to know for now. The rest will have to come later.”

Let’s take a look at what this hymn is all about.

Stanza 1: The Sea

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea,
and rides upon the storm.

The profound thought of this stanza is the image of God’s footsteps in the sea. Paul concludes a main section of his letter to the Romans with praise to God, in these words:

The wisdom of God, Paul says, is in the “depths” of the sea, and it is “unsearchable” or “mysterious.” It is a place where man can scarcely venture without sinking into oblivion. There was a time when the Israelites followed the footsteps of God through the sea. That was when He led them out of Egypt. Psalm 77 alludes to this:

The footprints were unseen because, after the glory of God led the Israelites through the seabed, the waters closed over their path, drowning the Egyptian army that attempted to follow them there. The only way we are safe in the “depths” of the sea is when our Heavenly Father takes us by the hand to lead us. Even there, we must stay close to Him, just as the flock of sheep had to stay close to the shepherd. Those who attempt to walk through that “sea” on their own initiative, like Pharaoh’s army, will surely sink and drown in their own pride and ignorance.

Stanza 2: Under the Earth

Deep in unfathomable mines
of never-failing skill,
He treasures up His bright designs, and works His sov’reign will.

Here we get even closer to Job 28, an extended parable. The miner tunnels underground to find the precious metal ore or gems which are hidden from ordinary view, where “wisdom be found.” (Job 28:12 NIV). Wisdom cannot be bought, yet it is worth far more than any gold or jewels:

God understands the way to wisdom, “and he alone knows where it dwells.” (v. 23). It is buried, as far as natural man can see. It can be found in the wonderful word. In “unfathomable” places. We cannot reach the “depths” where God’s wisdom is hidden!

Elsewhere, however, Job himself has spoken about this theme, for he says, in Job 23:8-10 NIV:

There is an irony here, and it contains a powerful exhortation. Wherever Job seeks to find God, he fails: “I look for Him like I might seek a man, but He is never there.” However, even though Job cannot “find” God, Job is never out of God’s sight. God is always with him, seeing him, and watching over every step he takes. “Even though I can’t see him, He sees me, and He knows the way that I take.”

God is always there, though never seen. All the while, Job is asking his questions and seems to get no answers, and looking for the face of God, he seems to find nothing. All that time, God was mining and extracting the most precious metals from Job’s life: “When He has tested me, I will come forth as gold!” Out of the unfathomable mine of human nature, God by His never-failing skill is extracting and refining His own special treasure: the tried faith of His servant Job, a faith that is like gold tried in a furnace (1 Peter 1:7)!

The treasure to be desired, as Job 28 (and Proverbs) says, is “wisdom,” but it is not wisdom in abstract. Instead, it is wisdom that has been tried and tested, traveled in the way of God, and sought for God: “He knows the way I take.” (Job 23:10).

Wisdom is not so much the “object” one finds somewhere along the way. Rather, it is the “journey” one takes in the quest for that wisdom.

What a wonderful thought, and what a remarkable irony! Wisdom is not so much the “object” one finds somewhere along the way. Rather, it is the “journey” one takes in the quest for that wisdom. It is through the journeys of our lives in the Truth, and arising out of those journeys, that God Himself, in His wisdom (what William Cowper calls His “bright designs” and His “sovereign will”) extracts the “treasure” which He is seeking. We thought we were seeking God and His wisdom, but all the while He was seeking us and developing our wisdom! In His providential guiding of our lives, our heavenly Father has been molding our character, putting that character to the test, purifying and preparing it for eternity with Him.

This scenario reminds us that God’s work of “creation” did not end on the sixth day. It is an ongoing work of “creation,” called in the New Testament the “new creation” (Galatians 6:15; Ephesians 2:11-22; 4:17-24). By His “never failing skill” God is turning us into something worth preserving, something worth His love and time and effort. “Behold, I create all things new.” That includes all of us!

Stanza 3: The Heavens

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take. The clouds ye so much dread
are big with mercy, and shall break
in blessings on your head.

From a discussion of “wisdom” being mined out of the earth, the Book of Job moves to a consideration of the heavens. Elihu finally speaks, and he describes a God who is beyond our understanding, even as the phenomena of the sky are beyond our understanding or control.

The storm clouds bring rain, which nourishes the earth and humans. But those clouds can be frightening, even to the children of God! In Job 37, Elihu seems to be describing, in great detail, an approaching storm (vv. 1-5, 11-13). Closer and closer it comes, and fiercer and fiercer it grows, until finally the Lord Himself speaks out of the storm (Job 38:1).

The scene here is similar to the one described in 1 Kings 19, where the prophet Elijah fled for his life to Mount Horeb. There, he experienced a “theophany,” a manifestation of God that was frightening in the extreme. A great and terrible wind (something like a tornado?) tore the mountains apart, and a savage earthquake shook them even further. Then came the great fire (lightning?), so the prophet retreated into the cave to escape. All this served to introduce the Lord Himself, who finally spoke to him, in “a still, small voice” (KJV, RSV), or by a “gentle whisper.” (NIV).

The way God acts, in the world at large and with the nations, or in the individual trials of our lives, can at first seem fearsome, like the rumbling of thunder or the crash of lightning. But we find, in time, that the “clouds” we so much dreaded are in fact filled with the mercy of God. All that He does is, ultimately, for our blessing. When He speaks to us in a gentle voice, then we understand. All that went before, even what seemed “bad,” was for our own good (Romans 8:28). He is truly in charge and has a design and a purpose for each of us, in every particular.

Stanza 4: Upon the Earth

His purposes will ripen fast,
unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
but sweet will be the flower.

The parables of the farmer, the seed, and the harvest, found throughout the Bible in many forms, are the basis of this stanza. The farmer must sow his seed, and then trust in God to bring the sun and the rains at the proper times to produce a harvest, even though he cannot understand how it all works together (Ecclesiastes 11:1, 5, 6). The poor family, down to their last stores of grain, must sow in faith, trusting that God will give them an increase to support their lives in the coming year (Psalm 126:5, 6). The gospel preacher must cast his “seed” into all kinds of soil, trusting that some of it will take root and produce a good harvest (Matthew 13; Mark 4).

It is the same with Almighty God Himself. He must cast the single kernel of wheat (the seed representing Jesus Christ himself) into the ground, where that seed will die and be buried before that seed can produce the harvest of much grain. (John 12:23-28). For each of us, discipline, and correction from God, though unpleasant, will “produce a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:11 NIV). The “bud” may be exceedingly “bitter,” but the “flower,” the final result, will be “sweet” beyond all reckoning. What blessings He has in store for those who love Him.

Stanza 5: Summary

Blind unbelief is sure to err,
and scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
and He will make it plain.

God will make it all plain, in His own time. What we need is patience, faith, and trust in Him. We need to recognize that all the answers to our questions are not immediately available, and that we may need to wait for them to be given to us. Our heavenly Father is working in all aspects of our lives, for our personal benefit.

This, I believe, also has a bearing on how we consider Last Days prophecies. When we sing, “God is his own interpreter, and he will make it plain,” we are really saying we can’t understand all the prophecies in the Bible, nor do we need to know how or when everything will work to fulfill the prophecy of the Last Days. The details can surely be left to God, and He will make it plain when it is being fulfilled. In those cases, where we are uncertain now, we can safely wait to see how He brings it to pass when the time comes. After all, it’s His plan, not ours! Our Bibles remind us, quite often, that this privilege rests solely with Him. (Mark 13:32; Matthew 24:36; Acts 1:7).

Isaac Newton, the extraordinary scientist and Bible scholar, wrote that God did not give us prophecy so we can predict the future, but rather that we will know when the prophecy is being fulfilled.

Again, what we need is the patience and faith to “wait for the Lord.” (Proverbs 20:22; Psalm 27:14). We need to be willing to let go of our own desires, timetables, and preconceived ideas of how things ought to be. We need to let God decide how, when, and where to try us, mold us, and discipline us. He alone, a loving Father, knows best what we need.

George Booker,
Austin Leander Ecclesia, TX