Mystery
The concept of a "mystery" is central to both biblical theology and modern religious discourse. While contemporary usage often associates mysteries with the incomprehensible or the fundamentally unknowable, the biblical term carries a distinct, dynamic meaning. This article explores how the scriptures define and employ the term "mystery," examining its Hebrew and Greek roots, its application to theological doctrines, its relationship to unfulfilled prophecy, and its role in the progressive revelation of God's plans. By analyzing key passages across both the Old and New Testaments, we can better understand whether a biblical mystery is a permanent riddle to be avoided or a divine secret waiting to be revealed.
A "mystery", according to the Bible, is information that is not yet revealed or not fully disclosed by God.
Strong's Concordance
In biblical study, the term "mystery" has specific linguistic roots in both the Hebrew and Greek scriptures. These definitions provide the foundation for understanding how the term is used in different contexts.
| Hebrew | |
|---|---|
| sathar | to hide, conceal |
| Original Word | סָתַר |
| Part of Speech | Verb |
| Transliteration | sathar |
| Phonetic Spelling | (saw-thar') |
| Definition | to hide, conceal |
| Greek | |
|---|---|
| mustérion | a mystery or secret doctrine |
| Original Word | μυστήριον, ου, τό |
| Part of Speech | Noun, Neuter |
| Transliteration | mustérion |
| Phonetic Spelling | (moos-tay'-ree-on) |
| Definition | a mystery or secret doctrine |
God's Essence
In theological discourse, the term "mystery" is frequently invoked when discussing the essence and nature of God. Many theologians argue that certain doctrines, such as the Trinity (the concept of one God in three persons) or the incarnation (the union of divine and human natures in Jesus Christ), are profound mysteries that surpass human comprehension. From this perspective, the human mind is finite and cannot fully grasp an infinite God. Scholars who advocate for this view often cite the theological concept of finitum non-capax infiniti (the idea that the finite cannot contain the infinite) to suggest that believers should accept these limitations rather than trying to resolve logical or scriptural difficulties.
Furthermore, proponents of this view argue that the fundamental flaw in attempting to fully analyze the divine essence is that human beings are attempting to use finite, material language and three-dimensional reasoning to define an infinite, immaterial, higher-dimensional God who exists entirely outside of our space and time.
We must point out here the difference between mystery and contradiction; the former is something that cannot be fully explained to or comprehended by the human mind, whereas the latter is just nonsense — two concepts that cancel each other out and together make an absurdity. — Roger Olson, Against Calvinism
However, another theological perspective suggests that biblical "mysteries" are not meant to be permanently incomprehensible. Instead, this view argues that a mystery in the New Testament (mysterion) refers to a divine plan or truth that was once hidden but has now been fully revealed by God. From this viewpoint, invoking mystery to explain away apparent scriptural contradictions can sometimes be used as a convenient counterargument to avoid rigorous analysis.
To support the idea that God's essence is beyond comprehension, theologians frequently cite specific passages. An examination of these verses in their historical and textual contexts, however, reveals alternative interpretations.
Note
The historical development of the Trinity serves as a primary example of this tension. When early creeds attempted to reconcile strict monotheism with the divinity of Jesus, they introduced concepts like homoousios (of the same substance) and eternal generation. When faced with logical or scriptural conflicts—such as how a derived Son can be fully co-equal to His source, or how an immortal God can die—theology frequently relies on the appeal to "mystery" to resolve the paradox.
1 Timothy 3:16
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness. — 1 Timothy 3:16 (ESV)
While some interpret the "mystery of godliness" as a reference to the incomprehensible nature of the incarnation, the context of the letter suggests a different focus. Paul was writing to a Christian congregation that already knew Jesus Christ. To these believers, Jesus was not a hidden secret. Earlier in the same letter, Paul spoke of a related concept:
They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. — 1 Timothy 3:9 (ESV)
This instruction connects directly to Paul's earlier charge to Timothy:
This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this (gospel of the Christ), some have made shipwreck of their faith. — 1 Timothy 1:18-19 (ESV)
In this light, the "mystery of the faith" or "mystery of godliness" refers to the gospel message itself. For those who reject Christ, the gospel remains an unrevealed secret. For believers, however, this mystery has been fully disclosed. It is not an incomprehensible riddle about the divine essence, but a revealed truth that must be lived out with a clear conscience.
This is supported by the historical accounts of early Christian conversions. In the New Testament, thousands of individuals were saved and baptized (e.g., Acts 2:14-47, Acts 13:13-44) immediately upon hearing the gospel. The apostles preached salvation without ever requiring converts to assent to, or even discuss, complex metaphysical mysteries regarding the inner plural essence of God. This suggests that the "mystery of the faith" was a clear, accessible, and fully explained message of salvation rather than an incomprehensible theological paradox.
1 Corinthians 13:12
For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. — 1 Corinthians 13:12 (ESV)
This verse is often used to argue that human knowledge of God will remain highly obscured and incomplete throughout earthly life. However, the surrounding context indicates that Paul was addressing the temporary nature of spiritual gifts during the infancy of the early church.
- As for prophecies, they will pass away;
- as for tongues, they will cease;
- as for knowledge, it will pass away.
For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. — 1 Corinthians 13:8-11 (ESV)
Paul compared the current era of spiritual gifts to childhood, where understanding is partial and developing. The "dim mirror" represents the indirect and partial revelation provided through temporary gifts like prophecy and tongues. When the "perfect" state arrives, this partial revelation will be replaced by direct, face-to-face knowledge. Therefore, the passage does not assert that God's essence is eternally unknowable. Rather, it promises a progressive transition from partial understanding to complete clarity.
Unfulfilled Prophecies
Another major aspect of biblical mysteries relates to unfulfilled prophecies and the future plans of God. Prophecies in the Bible often provide a partial or symbolic picture of future events. The specific details and full meaning of these predictions become clear only as history unfolds and the prophecies are fulfilled.
In the New Testament, several writers connect the word "mystery" to the progressive realization of God's grand design for humanity.
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. — Ephesians 1:9-10 (ESV)
This plan is not static. It operates according to a divine timeline, where certain elements remain hidden until the appropriate moment. For instance, Paul discussed the future status of Israel and the nations as a secret plan that was being progressively realized:
Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. — Romans 11:25 (ESV)
Similarly, the ongoing development of spiritual conflict is described as a process that unfolds over time:
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. — 2 Thessalonians 2:7 (ESV)
Ultimately, the book of Revelation points to a final completion of all prophetic declarations, where what was once hidden in the words of the prophets will be fully realized:
In the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets. — Revelation 10:7 (ESV)
These passages indicate that prophetic mysteries are not meant to remain forever incomprehensible. Instead, they are divine plans that are actively unfolding in history and will culminate in a complete, visible fulfillment.
Concealed Revelation
A biblical mystery can also refer to information that is temporarily concealed by God, or truths that were not yet fully understood when they were initially revealed. This progressive disclosure is documented throughout the Old and New Testaments.
Old Testament Foundations
In the Hebrew Scriptures, the concept of a secret or hidden matter (sathar) highlights the distinction between the infinite knowledge of God and the limited understanding of humanity. However, these passages also emphasize that God chooses to share His secrets with His representatives.
“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. — Deuteronomy 29:29 (ESV)
While some things remain hidden, God actively initiates communication to bridge this gap:
Call to Me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. — Jeremiah 33:3 (ESV)
God communicates these hidden truths specifically through chosen messengers, ensuring that His plans are not kept entirely secret from His people:
“For the LORD God does nothing without revealing His secret to his servants the prophets. — Amos 3:7 (ESV)
A prominent example of this progressive disclosure occurs in the book of Daniel. Here, a royal dream is described as a mystery that cannot be solved by human wisdom alone:
Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, — Daniel 2:27 (ESV)
Ultimately, the secret is made known through divine revelation, demonstrating that God is the source and revealer of mysteries:
But as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your mind. — Daniel 2:30 (ESV)
Teachings of Jesus
In the Gospels, Jesus explains that His use of parables serves a dual purpose: to reveal the truths of the kingdom of God to His followers while concealing them from those who reject His message.
At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; — Matthew 11:25 (ESV)
For those who are open to His teachings, the parables become windows into divine secrets:
And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. — Matthew 13:11-13 (ESV)
This concept of selective revelation is echoed across the Synoptic Gospels, confirming that the spiritual state of the listener determines whether the mystery is understood:
He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’ — Luke 8:10 (ESV)
And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, — Mark 4:11 (ESV)
Pauline Epistles
The apostle Paul writes extensively about mysteries, presenting them as once-hidden plans that have now been disclosed to the world. In the Pauline epistles, a mystery is not an incomprehensible enigma, but rather a truth that requires divine revelation to be understood.
Paul describes himself and the other apostles as caretakers tasked with sharing these revealed secrets:
This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. — 1 Corinthians 4:1 (ESV)
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, — 1 Corinthians 2:7 (NKJV)
In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul defines the specific content of this mystery. It is the groundbreaking revelation that Gentiles and Jews are united as equal members in the body of Christ:
Assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you, how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. — Ephesians 3:2-6 (ESV)
And to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, — Ephesians 3:9 (ESV)
Paul also applies the term "mystery" to other core Christian teachings. For example, he uses the relationship between husband and wife as a profound symbol pointing to the union of Christ and His church:
In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. — Ephesians 5:28-32 (ESV)
Additionally, Paul speaks of the gospel itself and the future resurrection of believers as key mysteries that have now been made known:
And also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, — Ephesians 6:19 (ESV)
I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. — 1 Corinthians 15:50-53 (ESV)
In his letters to the Colossians and Romans, Paul reinforces that this once-hidden mystery is centered on Jesus Christ, who brings hope and salvation to all nations:
Of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. — Colossians 1:25-27 (ESV)
For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. — Colossians 2:1-3 (ESV)
Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— — Romans 16:25-26 (ESV)
Finally, he summarizes the core of this revealed message as the "mystery of godliness," celebrating the historical reality and universal reach of the incarnate Christ:
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. — 1 Timothy 3:16 (ESV)
Book of Revelation
In the book of Revelation, the term "mystery" is frequently associated with highly symbolic imagery. These symbols represent hidden realities that require divine explanation to be fully comprehended. Once the interpretation is provided, the mystery is solved.
For example, the opening chapter introduces a symbolic vision of stars and lampstands, which the text immediately decodes:
As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. — Revelation 1:20 (ESV)
Later in the book, a symbolic woman and a multi-headed beast represent a complex mystery that is subsequently explained by an angelic guide:
And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth's abominations.” — Revelation 17:5 (ESV)
But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. — Revelation 17:7 (ESV)
These examples demonstrate that in apocalyptic literature, a mystery is a symbolic representation of a reality that is ultimately clarified through divine interpretation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the biblical concept of mystery differs significantly from the modern definition of a permanently unsolvable riddle.
- Linguistic Definition: The original Hebrew and Greek terms define a mystery as information that is temporarily hidden or concealed, rather than something fundamentally irrational or illogical (Strong's Concordance).
- Divine Essence: While theological traditions often associate mystery with the incomprehensible nature of the divine, biblical contexts suggest that terms like the "mystery of godliness" refer to the historical and fully revealed reality of the gospel rather than an eternal secret (God's Essence).
- Prophetic Fulfillment: Prophetic mysteries are symbolic representations of God's future plans that unfold progressively over time and achieve complete clarity upon their historical fulfillment (Unfulfilled Prophecies).
- Concealed Revelation: Across the Old Testament, the teachings of Jesus, the Pauline epistles, and apocalyptic literature, a mystery represents a temporary lack of revelation that is eventually resolved through progressive disclosure, apostolic stewardship, or divine interpretation (Concealed Revelation).
Ultimately, the scriptures present mystery not as a barrier to human understanding, but as a temporary state of concealment designed to culminate in the glorious revelation of God's plans.