Nearness of God

Abstract Among Scripture’s many descriptions of God, “living God” language is at once one of the most common and least examined. Interpretations of the relevant texts have largely ignored theological categories operative within the doctrine of God, leading to a haphazard understanding of how this scriptural theme might inform theological articulation. By investigating the living God language in Rom 14:11 and 1 Thess 1:9, this study specifically responds to earlier neglect of that language in the Pauline writings and seeks to demonstrate the value of its recovery for theological interpretation. It considers relevant background texts in Israel’s Scriptures and argues that Scripture’s living God language regularly signals God’s communicative nearness—that is, God’s nearness to see, to hear, and/or to speak—sounding a note of personal engagement that interpreters often neglect.