Knowing about God and knowing God are different things, but the second depends heavily on the first.
The attributes of God are what Scripture reveals about who God actually is: his nature, his character, and the qualities that make him distinctly and unchangeably God.
These are not abstract theological categories.
They are the specific, revealed truths about the one who made you, sustains you, and has committed himself to you in Christ.
These 21 attributes are drawn directly from Scripture and explained for the person who wants to know God more accurately.
The Incommunicable Attributes: What Belongs to God Alone
These attributes describe what makes God uniquely God, qualities that no creature shares in any degree.
1. Omniscience: God Knows All Things
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” — ESV, Romans 11:33
God’s knowledge has no limits, no gaps, and no process of learning.
He does not discover information. He possesses all knowledge simultaneously, including every thought you have had and every choice you will make.
2. Omnipotence: God Is All-Powerful
“Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” — ESV, Jeremiah 32:17
God’s power is not merely superior to other powers. It is in a different category entirely.
He spoke creation into existence. The same word that made everything from nothing is available to intervene in every circumstance.
3. Omnipresence: God Is Present Everywhere
“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!” — ESV, Psalm 139:7–8
God is not distributed across space. He is fully present in every location simultaneously.
There is no place so dark, so remote, or so private that his presence does not reach.
4. Eternality: God Has No Beginning and No End
“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” — ESV, Psalm 90:2
God does not exist within time. He created time.
He was not there before the beginning in the sense of occupying the same timeline earlier. He exists outside the timeline entirely.
5. Immutability: God Does Not Change
“For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.” — ESV, Malachi 3:6
God’s character, purposes, and commitments are not subject to revision.
This is the foundation of every promise he has made. If he could change, no promise would be secure.
6. Sovereignty: God Rules Over All Things
“The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.” — ESV, Psalm 103:19
Nothing happens outside God’s authority, knowledge, or ultimate purpose.
His sovereignty does not eliminate human choice. It governs the entire range of human choice along with every other event in creation.
7. Simplicity: God Is Not Composed of Parts
“God is love.” — ESV, 1 John 4:8
God does not have love as a component. He is love.
He does not have wisdom as a quality. He is wisdom. Every attribute of God is not a piece of him but the whole of him described from a particular angle.
The Communicable Attributes: What God Shares With His Creatures in Degree
These attributes belong fully to God but are also reflected, in limited measure, in the beings he made in his image.
8. Love: God’s Self-Giving Commitment to What He Has Made
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” — ESV, John 3:16
God’s love is not a response to something attractive in its object.
It is self-generated, self-giving, and directed toward those who have done nothing to deserve it. The cross is the measure and the proof.
9. Holiness: God Is Completely Separate From All Evil
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” — ESV, Isaiah 6:3
Holiness is repeated three times, which in Hebrew is the strongest possible superlative.
God is not only morally pure. He is set apart from everything created, above and beyond every category that defines finite existence.
10. Justice: God Always Does What Is Right
“Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.” — ESV, Psalm 89:14
God’s justice is not reactive. It is foundational.
It is the ground beneath his throne, which means every act of God is calibrated against a perfect standard that he himself defines and never departs from.
11. Mercy: God’s Compassion Toward Those in Need
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.” — ESV, Ephesians 2:4–5
Mercy is God’s active disposition toward those who deserve judgment.
It is not the suspension of justice. It is the expression of love that provided a way for justice to be satisfied and mercy to flow.
12. Grace: God’s Undeserved Favor
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” — ESV, Ephesians 2:8
Grace is a favor given without reference to merit. It is not a reward. It is a gift.
Every benefit of salvation is rooted in grace, which means it rests entirely on God’s character rather than on anything the recipient has provided.
13. Faithfulness: God Always Keeps His Word
“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” — ESV, Lamentations 3:22–23
God’s faithfulness is not dependent on circumstances. It is characteristic.
He does not become less faithful in difficult seasons or revise his commitments when they become costly.
14. Goodness: God Is Inherently and Perfectly Good
“You are good and do good; teach me your statutes.” — ESV, Psalm 119:68
God does not do good because it is required of him. He is good, and therefore what he does is good.
His goodness is not measured against an external standard. He is the standard.
15. Truth: God Is the Source and Standard of All Truth
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life.'” — ESV, John 14:6
God does not merely tell the truth. He is truth.
Every statement he makes is true because he is its source, and every lie is a departure from him.
16. Patience: God Is Slow to Anger
“The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” — ESV, Psalm 103:8
God’s patience is not indifference. It is the deliberate withholding of judgment to make room for repentance.
His slowness to anger is a mercy extended to people who have given him repeated reasons for it.
17. Wisdom: God’s Knowledge Applied With Perfect Judgment
“For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” — ESV, Proverbs 2:6
Knowledge and wisdom are not the same. Wisdom is knowing what to do with knowledge.
God’s wisdom means he not only knows everything but applies that knowledge to every situation with perfect judgment and timing.
18. Jealousy: God’s Fierce Protection of What Rightfully Belongs to Him
“You shall worship no other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” — ESV, Exodus 34:14
God’s jealousy is not envy of another’s possession. It is the fierce, protective desire to preserve what is rightfully his.
He is jealous for the worship, trust, and love that belong to him alone.
19. Wrath: God’s Settled Opposition to All Sin and Evil
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.” — ESV, Romans 1:18
God’s wrath is not emotional volatility. It is his settled, holy opposition to everything that contradicts his character.
It is the necessary reverse side of his holiness and his love for what is good.
20. Self-Existence: God Depends on Nothing Outside Himself
“For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” — ESV, John 5:26
God is not sustained by anything external. He is the self-sufficient, self-existent source of all life.
Every creature depends on him. He depends on nothing and no one.
21. Transcendence and Immanence: God Is Both Above All and Near to All
“Am I a God at hand, declares the LORD, and not a God far away?” — ESV, Jeremiah 23:23
God is not only transcendent, meaning infinitely beyond creation, but also immanent, meaning intimately near to every person and every moment.
Both are fully true simultaneously. He is exalted above everything and present within everything without being identical to it.
Frequently Asked Questions About God’s Attributes
What are the attributes of God in the Bible?
Scripture reveals two broad categories: incommunicable attributes (qualities God alone possesses, such as omniscience, omnipotence, eternality, and immutability) and communicable attributes (qualities God shares in degree with creatures, such as love, justice, mercy, wisdom, and faithfulness). Both categories are essential for knowing who God actually is.
What is the difference between God’s communicable and incommunicable attributes?
Incommunicable attributes belong exclusively to God: omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, and eternality cannot be partially possessed by creatures. Communicable attributes like love, justice, and wisdom are reflected in humans because we bear God’s image, though God possesses these perfectly and infinitely, while creatures possess them finitely and imperfectly.
What is God’s most important attribute?
Scripture does not rank the attributes, and theologians have debated this extensively. Holiness is described in the triple superlative “holy, holy, holy” in Isaiah 6:3 and Revelation 4:8, suggesting its supreme importance. Others argue that love is foundational since “God is love” (1 John 4:8). All attributes are equally real and equally essential to who God is.
Does God have emotions according to the Bible?
Yes. Scripture describes God as experiencing love (John 3:16), grief (Genesis 6:6), anger (Romans 1:18), joy (Zephaniah 3:17), and compassion (Psalm 103:13). Theologians describe these as divine passions or affections that are real but not subject to the involuntary fluctuations that characterize human emotion. God’s emotions are always perfectly calibrated to their objects.
Why is knowing God’s attributes important for Christians?
Because correct knowledge of God shapes every other belief and every practice. Theology drives worship. A person who believes God is arbitrary will pray differently than someone who knows he is faithful. A person who understands his holiness will approach sin differently. Who you believe God is determines how you live before him.
Lord, Let Who You Are Be What Grounds Every Part of My Life
Father, you are not a collection of qualities distributed across a divine personality.
You are all of these things simultaneously and completely.
Omniscient: you know me entirely.
Omnipotent: you can do what I cannot.
Faithful: you will not revise your commitments.
Holy: you are set apart and above.
Merciful: you do not give me what I deserve.
Good: everything you do flows from who you are.
Let my understanding of you be accurate rather than comfortable.
Let the attributes I struggle to accept, your justice, your wrath, your sovereignty, be as real to me as the ones I find comforting.
And let the whole of who you are be the foundation I build my life on.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
Scholarly and Theological References
Tozer, A. W. (1961). The knowledge of the holy. HarperCollins.
Grudem, W. (2009). Systematic theology: An introduction to biblical doctrine. Zondervan.
Packer, J. I. (1973). Knowing God. InterVarsity Press.
Frame, J. M. (2002). The doctrine of God: A theology of lordship. P&R Publishing.
Charnock, S. (1682). The existence and attributes of God. (Multiple modern editions.)
Bavinck, H. (2004). Reformed dogmatics: Volume 2, God and creation. Baker Academic.
Carson, D. A. (2000). The difficult doctrine of the love of God. Crossway.
Feinberg, J. S. (2001). No one like him: The doctrine of God. Crossway.
