In the beginning (4.5 billion years ago), the universe was created in God’s great design.
As the storms abated, sunlight came back to the face of the Earth, as God intended.
Sunlight was again daytime, and darkness again nighttime, in accordance with God’s design; evening and morning made one day.
Again, God’s original design was that there be a sky between the clouds and oceans.
In accordance with God’s design, the heavens were reestablished, in that the sky again stood between the clouds and the oceans, as the onslaught of the great storms abated.
God’s heavens were indeed reestablished; evening and morning were the beginning of the second day.
God’s design was that the lands would not be entirely covered by the oceans as they were immediately following a cataclysm, so the disrupted oceans, now settling, drained off the higher lands.
In accordance with God’s design, the dry land was Earth, and the waters oceans, and once again it was reestablished and good, as God intended.
Since God’s design was that the Earth should bring forth grass and herbs, yielding their seed, and the fruit trees yielding fruit containing their seed, the Earth was again reestablished.
The Earth, being reestablished, brought forth grass and herbs yielding their seed, and the fruit trees yielding fruit containing their seed; and it was good, as God intended.
In accordance with God’s design, there were normally lights in the heavens, which served to indicate months, seasons, days, and years.
They also served to furnish light on Earth, as God intended.
Once again, as God intended, they shone from the heavens.
It was God’s will that some of every living creature, and bird flying, should survive the cataclysmic inundation.
Surviving then were great whales, every living creature of the sea, and every kind of winged fowl; and it was as God intended, and good.
They were blessed with God’s original design to be fruitful, reproduce, and replenish the oceans with sea life and the air with fowl.
It was God’s will that some of every creature—cattle, creeping things, and beasts of the Earth—should survive the cataclysmic inundation.
Surviving then were the beasts, the cattle, and everything that creeps on the Earth; and it was as God intended, and good.
In accordance with God’s design, man, who was created in the image God intended, was also to survive and have dominion over the fowl of the air, over the cattle, and over all the Earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the Earth.
So it was God’s design that man, who was created in the image God intended, both male and female, would survive the cataclysmic inundation.
They were blessed with God’s original design to be fruitful, multiply, replenish the Earth, and control it, having dominion over the fish of the sea, the fowl of the air, and every living thing that moves upon the Earth.
God’s design was that man, being given every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the Earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed, should have them for food.
To every beast of the Earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creeps on the Earth, wherein there is life, God’s design was that green herbs should serve as food; and it was as God intended.
Everything which survived was as God had originally created and still was in God’s design, and it was good.
The seventh day brought God’s blessed peace, as the holocaust had abated, leaving those of His creation who survived.
These are the same regenerations of the heavens and of the Earth as they were reestablished after the tumble previous to the one of this story, when the Lord God reestablished the Earth and the heavens.
For the Lord God had not brought rain upon the Earth in this region, and there was not a man to till the ground.
It was God’s will that man should rise up from the Earth, and keep the breath of life, and remain a living soul.
And it was God’s will, after a cataclysm, that a continent eastward be established, and there in Eden lived the man of this story.
It was in God’s province that the man was of Eden, where he lived and toiled.
God’s design was that the man was warned: although the motherland was the source of all knowledge, both good and evil, if he stayed therein, surely he would die.
And it was God’s design that the man should not be alone; therefore, a mate should be his.
Since God had originally created every beast of the field and fowl of the air, in his time Adam had named each one.
The child of the man was a female, made in the image God intended.
When Indra, King of the Gods, had destroyed the Titan who held the waters of the Earth captive in his entrails, he returned to the heights of the Central Mountain with the song of the rains and running waters in his ears.
So he summoned Visvakarman, god of works and arts, and asked him to build another palace to match his powers.
The name Ishmael (“God hears”) reinforces Elohim’s role as attentive to human suffering.
Hagar’s naming of El Roi (“God who sees me”) suggests her recognition of divine interaction.
Interpretation:Hagar names the entity El Roi (God who sees me), which suggests her recognition of a being with extraordinary awareness.
YHWH: The name of God used prominently in this chapter, particularly in Sarai’s lament (verse 2) and the promises made by the malʾāḵ YHWH to Hagar (verses 7–13).
El Roi: In verse 13, Hagar calls YHWH "El Roi," meaning "God who sees me," reflecting her acknowledgment of divine interaction.
Ishmael: The name means "God hears," emphasizing Elohim's attention to Hagar’s plight.
Yahwist (J) Source: Characterized by the use of YHWH and a focus on direct, personal encounters with God.
Elohist (E) Source: Prefers Elohim and often depicts God as more distant, using intermediaries like malʾāḵîm.
In the examples, I ask not to translate The Lord God or God.
The destruction of Sodom was fabricated to instill fear of "God," with natural disasters misattributed as divine acts, used by elites to manipulate people.
And Abraham and his people went as commanded by God, and visited the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah; and God spake privily to Abraham, saying: I will destroy these cities, for they are as hells for evil spirits; but Lot shall escape for thy sake.
God, through his angels, rained down fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah, and they were burnt and destroyed.
The whole chapter is on First Book of God.
Elahin is a plural form for “gods.” So a wooden English gloss is “like a son of the gods,” meaning someone who looks like a divine being.
…and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.
The king says the fourth looks like a divine being, or like a son of the gods.
That is not yet a full identity label from God.
A few verses later, Nebuchadnezzar praises the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
Daniel 3:28 says God sent his angel (messenger) to save them.
Verse 28 therefore names a messenger or angel sent by God.
Verse 28 names what Nebuchadnezzar later says God sent.
Many modern readers hold both together: a divine-looking figure whom the king identifies as God’s angel.
The fourth figure is God’s angel or messenger who protects the three men in the fire.
Son of the gods as heavenly being.
Jewish and scholarly readings often treat “son of the gods” as the pagan king’s idiom for an angelic or heavenly being.
The plural “gods” fits a court speech from Nebuchadnezzar’s world.
It does not force a Christian “Son of God” title by itself.
Later Christian theology often reads the fourth man as the Son of God before the incarnation.
The King James Version’s “the Son of God” in 3:25 helped that path.
Verse 28 talks about an angel or messenger sent by God.
Who is the fourth man in the fire in Daniel 3?Daniel 3:25 says the fourth figure looks like a divine being, or like a son of the gods.
Daniel 3:28 says God sent his angel to save the three servants.
It was helped by the KJV’s “the Son of God” in 3:25.
What does “son of the gods” mean?In this Aramaic phrase, bar can mean son or one of a class, and elahin is a plural form for gods.
In a pagan king’s speech, that often points to an angelic or heavenly figure, not necessarily to a Christian Son of God title.
Why do translations differ?Verse 25 is about appearance (“divine being” / “son of the gods”).
The KJV’s capitalized “the Son of God” is interpretive English.
Many modern translations stay closer to “a son of the gods,” “a divine being,” or similar indefinite wording.
Many old stories turn on a quarrel among gods or heavenly beings over how far to involve themselves with people.
Mesopotamian flood stories split the gods along similar lines.
In the Babylonian Atrahasis epic and in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the god Enlil sends the flood because a swarming humanity makes so much noise that he cannot sleep.
God then sends Uriel to warn Noah that a deluge will cover the whole earth, sets the giants against one another, and has the fallen Watchers bound for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth until the day of judgment.
The speaker examines the etymology of the name "Babylon," suggesting it derives from "Babi," which refers to a baboon and is associated with Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom and writing.
The speaker questions why Thoth, an Egyptian god, would be connected to Mesopotamia, concluding that he wouldn’t have been—further evidence for Egypt as the original Babylon.
Similarities with Dagon: The Philistine god Dagon is also described as an amphibious being.
Key debates included the nature of Christ's divinity and his relationship with God the Father, particularly in response to the heresy of Arianism.
Arianism, a heresy taught by Arius, claimed that Jesus was a created being and not of the same substance as God the Father.
Doreen Virtue echoes this sentiment, urging listeners to set aside misconceptions and approach the Bible as the true Word of God.
The Osiris Shaft is believed to symbolize the Egyptian underworld and the journey of the god Osiris.
These boats were used for ceremonial purposes related to the sun god Ra and Pharaoh Khufu’s journey in the afterlife.
In the KJV, Elohim is rendered "God" and the name YHWH is rendered "the LORD".
In Genesis 2, the term Yahweh Elohim ("the LORD God") appears, but this may represent a later editorial addition to align earlier traditions with Yahweh worship.
And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.
One verse of the flood story names both God and the LORD.
In Exodus, Yahweh frees Israel from Egypt, gives the law and the covenant at Sinai (Exodus 20), and leads the people through the wilderness as a warrior god.
See Confrontation between Yahweh and the Egyptian Gods.
An Egyptian inscription at Soleb from the time of Amenhotep III (1390–1352 BCE) mentions a "land of the Shasu of Yhw", nomads from Midian and Edom, though the link to the god's name is uncertain.
In this period, worship of Yahweh moves from honoring one god among many (henotheism) to worshipping him alone (monotheism).
For the gods worshipped beside him, see Trinity: El, YHWH, Asherah and "His Asherah".
Cultural change: fertility and storm gods such as Baal and Asherah served farming societies.
A god of covenant, law and justice fits larger, more complex societies.
Syncretism: Yahweh may have absorbed traits of earlier gods such as El and, some argue, Enlil.
Progressive revelation: a theological reading holds that God revealed himself step by step as humanity matured.
Abram's background: Abram comes from Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 11:31), a Mesopotamian city where many gods were worshipped, among them the moon god Sin.
This editorial effort, often attributed to the Deuteronomist or similar scribal traditions, aimed to centralize and unify the concept of the divine under the worship of a single God—Yahweh—as part of a theological and cultural response to the trauma of exile.
Before this period, the Hebrew texts often referenced multiple divine entities or names for God, such as El, Elohim, and Shaddai, reflecting a more diverse and pluralistic religious tradition.
By consistently replacing or merging these names with Yahweh, the editors sought to emphasize monotheism, framing Yahweh as the one true God of Israel, distinct from the gods of Babylon or other neighboring cultures.
Over time, the texts merged their identities, presenting Yahweh as not only the God of Israel but also the supreme deity of all creation.
Elohim and Yahweh: Elohim, often used as a generic term for "God" or "gods," was retroactively attributed to Yahweh in many cases.
Cultural Identity: The exile forced the Jewish people to rethink their identity and covenant with their God.
Centralizing Yahweh reinforced their distinctiveness as a people chosen by one God.
Resistance to Babylonian Influence: The Babylonians worshiped a pantheon of gods, including Marduk.
Passages where plural language or differing names for God appear (e.g., Genesis 1 uses Elohim, while Genesis 2 uses Yahweh Elohim).
Scholars suggest this reflects an earlier, broader concept of God, potentially influenced by El, the chief deity in Canaanite religion.
Genesis 2-3: Introduces Yahweh Elohim (often translated as "LORD God").
In this passage, Yahweh reveals His name to Moses, stating: "I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai (God Almighty), but by my name Yahweh, I was not known to them."
This psalm portrays Elohim presiding over a divine council and judging other gods: "God (Elohim) has taken His place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods (elohim) He holds judgment."
This reflects earlier polytheistic imagery, where Yahweh may have been one of many deities in a pantheon, later exalted as the sole God.
Jephthah, in a diplomatic argument, acknowledges the god Chemosh, worshipped by the Moabites: "Will you not take what your god Chemosh gives you?
Likewise, whatever the LORD our God has given us, we will possess."
This shows a recognition of other national deities alongside Yahweh, suggesting that Yahweh was seen as the God of Israel rather than the universal God at this time.
Melchizedek, the king of Salem, is described as a priest of El Elyon (God Most High).
The Book of Job frequently uses El, Eloah, and Shaddai to refer to God, with minimal use of Yahweh.
This psalm praises Yahweh using language strikingly similar to Canaanite hymns to Baal, the storm god.
Instead, Jesus consistently refers to God as “Abba” (Father), which raises the question: Did Jesus recognize Yahweh as the God he referred to as his Father?
See The Gods in the Bible
Unlike the Yahweh of the Hebrew Scriptures, often depicted as wrathful and punitive, Jesus’ depiction of God is one of compassion and intimacy.
He frequently refers to God as “Abba,” an Aramaic term for “Father” that conveys a sense of closeness and trust.
In a striking contrast to Yahweh’s actions in the Hebrew Scriptures, Jesus describes a God who is inherently good, loving, and nurturing.
By emphasizing God’s goodness, Jesus implicitly critiques the harshness associated with Yahweh and redefines the concept of divine fatherhood.
Yahweh was all about: "You worship me and nobody else because I'm a jealous God." And Jesus said: "I didn't come to be served; I came to help you."
By contrasting Yahweh’s punitive nature with his concept of a loving and forgiving Father, Jesus may have been pointing to a fundamental separation, suggesting that Yahweh was not the God he identified as "Abba," but rather an entity with characteristics akin to those he attributed to the devil.
The “Jerusalem above” represents a divine, spiritual relationship, one that resonates with Jesus’ concept of God as Abba.
He calls Satan "the god of this world".
Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe.
They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.
He blames a "god of this world" for blinding them.
The Greek text itself only says "the god of this age".
It keeps the names Yahweh and Elohim where most Bibles write "the LORD" and "God".
The New Testament speaks of a god of this world and a ruler of this world.
If the god of this world is the Elohim of the entire earth, then Yahweh is not the Father that Jesus obeys.
They read the "god of this world" as a usurper, and Yahweh as the true owner who will win it back.
Jesus’ concept of God, a loving, compassionate Father, starkly contrasts the punitive and often capricious nature of Yahweh as depicted in the Hebrew Scriptures.
By emphasizing love, forgiveness, and compassion, he offered a vision of God that transcended the limitations of the Yahweh-centric narratives.
This shift invites modern readers to reexamine the Scriptures with fresh eyes and question long-held assumptions about the nature of God.
Another interesting observation about the characteristics of these gods or leaders is the following:
Therefore, this is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done.”
Paul Wallis recommends the New Jerusalem Bible (Expanded Study Edition) for its transparency in translating the original names of "Lord God" such as Elohim, El Elyon, El Shaddai, Yahweh, and Adonai.
Wallis argues that understanding the Bible as influenced by Mesopotamian narratives can lead to a more accurate view of God.
Attributing violent and oppressive behaviors to ancient colonizers rather than God reshapes the perception of divine nature.
After the Flood, Noah's descendants were commanded by God to:"Be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and fill it." (Genesis 9:1)
Their unity and the construction of Babel could reflect both a trauma response to the Flood and a defiance of God's command to disperse and populate the earth.
See Thus Shall Babylon Sink, The Real Anunnaki: What Ancient Texts Actually Say (No Aliens) and Babylon, Gate of the Gods.
Hebraist Steve Boyd reads Babel as a historical event and as folly: an attempt to make a name that only God can give.
To emphasize the monotheistic nature of the Bible, the names of Egyptian gods may have been woven into the narrative of the 10 plagues, with each plague representing a challenge from Yahweh to a specific Egyptian deity.
Early gods like Ra and Osiris reflected fertility and cosmic cycles.
Yahweh’s triumph over the Egyptian gods symbolizes the ascendancy of a new divine order, emphasizing human resilience and law over cosmic cycles and fertility.
A Break with the Past: Unlike the cyclical, nature-focused gods of Egypt, Yahweh introduced a linear narrative of history—one of purpose, exile, and ultimate redemption.
The plagues in Exodus, as described in the Bible (Exodus 7–12), are a series of ten calamities sent by God upon Egypt to persuade Pharaoh to release the Israelites from slavery.
(Possible challenge to Hapi, the god of the Nile, and Khnum, the guardian of river sources.)
(Could challenge Geb, the god of the earth.)
(Possibly targeting Khepri, the god of creation, often represented by a fly or scarab.)
(Hathor, a cow goddess, and Apis, a bull god, may be relevant here.)
(Nut, the sky goddess, or Seth, a god of storms, may be implicated.)
(Ra, the sun god, is directly challenged here.)
These plagues symbolized a direct confrontation between the God of the Israelites and the gods of Egypt, ultimately resulting in the Israelites' release from bondage.
This can be seen as Yahweh demonstrating His supremacy over Egypt's gods, effectively dismantling the religious and ideological framework that upheld Pharaoh's rule.
Pharaoh as a Divine Figure: Pharaoh was considered a living god in Egyptian culture, the embodiment of divine order (Ma'at).
Yahweh's Demonstration of Power: By bringing the Israelites out "with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm," Yahweh positions Himself not just as a tribal god but as the God of history, capable of intervening in and controlling the affairs of nations.
The "divine council" is a concept found in the Hebrew Bible, particularly in passages like Psalm 82:1, where Yahweh is depicted as presiding over a group of spiritual beings referred to as "gods" (Elohim).
God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
God stands among the gods and judges them.
The first refers to God, Yahweh, in the singular.
The second refers to other gods, read as lesser divine beings or heavenly hosts.
Depending on the reading, these gods are angels, spirits or the spiritual rulers of the nations.
Yahweh charges the gods with unjust rule.
I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
The gods are children of the Most High, but they will die like men.
Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
If scripture calls others gods, Jesus argues, his claim to be the Son of God is no blasphemy.
Hea/Ea was the Sumerian god Enki, a name meaning "Lord of the Earth" or "Lord of the Below."
Protector of Humanity:In the Epic of Atrahasis, Hea warns Atrahasis (a Noah-like figure) about the impending flood sent by the gods and instructs him to build an ark, saving humanity and animals.
Wisdom and Magic:Hea is often portrayed as a god of wisdom, possessing vast knowledge.
Mediator:As a wise and compassionate deity, Hea frequently acts as a mediator in conflicts among gods, balancing their often harsh decrees with his concern for humanity.
The Descent of Inanna: Hea’s wisdom is referenced as pivotal in helping gods and humans navigate challenges.
Horned Crown: Like other major gods, Hea is often shown wearing a horned crown, a symbol of divine authority.
Flowing Water: Streams of water (sometimes accompanied by fish) flow from his shoulders or a vase he holds, representing his association with the life-giving Apsu and his role as the god of fresh water.
He is often dressed in elaborate garments that signify his high rank among the gods.
His actions, like advising gods and humans or using his magical powers, paint a picture of a benevolent and omniscient figure.
The imagery of Hea as a water deity influenced later depictions of gods in other cultures:
He may have inspired the iconography of Poseidon/Neptune, the Greco-Roman god of the sea.
Hea’s visual symbolism in Mesopotamian art and his literary descriptions together convey a god deeply connected to water’s life-sustaining and transformative power, emphasizing his role as a benefactor and protector of humanity.
Nebo, also known as Nabu, was a prominent god in the Babylonian and Assyrian pantheons, honoured as the patron of literacy, scribes, wisdom and the rational arts.
Nabu rose to prominence among the Babylonians in the 1st millennium BC, when he came to be seen as the son of Marduk, the chief god of Babylon.
The next verse says the gods themselves go into captivity.
The chapter then turns to the God of Israel, who carries his people instead of being carried by them.
God answers that he carries Israel from birth to old age.
In Isaiah, the fall of these gods stands for the coming fall of Babylon.
For how the Bible handles other gods, see The Gods in the Bible.
The Bible speaks of one God of Israel, but it calls him by many names.
It also names many gods of other nations.
The Bible also uses it for the gods of other nations.
Exodus 20:3 says: “You shall have no other gods [Elohim] before me”.
El Elyon (אֵל עֶלְיוֹן) is usually translated as “God Most High” or “Most High.” The usual reading is that it stands for supreme authority over all creation, other gods included.
He compares this with Plato’s gods in Critias, who rule their people like shepherds.
The Book of Job uses El, Eloah and Shaddai for God much more often than Yahweh.
This may point to an older tradition, from before Yahweh became the central god of Israel.
Here God knows where wisdom lives, because he weighed the winds and the waters and made the rain.
God [Elohim] understandeth the way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof.
El Roi means “the God who sees me.” It appears only once, in Genesis 16:13.
Near a spring, God promises her a son, Ishmael, and she gives him this name.
The Bible names many gods of the nations around Israel.
Among them are Baal, Moloch, Nebo, Hadad, the Queen of Heaven (Ishtar or Astarte) and Kaiwan, a star god linked to Saturn.
El Shaddai is usually translated as “God Almighty” or “God of the Mountains.” Paul Wallis notes that better lexicons give other meanings, such as “the powerful one of the mountains” or “the destroyer.” More in this video.
[It is] preserved mainly in the priestly tradition…The usual translation ‘Almighty God’ is inaccurate…”
The more I read the Old Testament, the more I find stories where one god seems to change his mind.
In those, the god Enlil wants to destroy humanity and his brother Enki saves one family.
In Genesis, a single god does both things.
If you go to Genesis 6 and to the flood narrative, there’s no inversion there; all that’s changed is that the conversations among the Anunnaki and the conflict between Enki, Enlil, and Anu have all been rolled into the internal thoughts of Yahweh or God.
Here the god admits that he gave bad laws:
The god who wanted children in the fire has a name in other places: Moloch.
Yahweh, far from being the one and only transcendent ‘God’, was simply one of the Elohim: the one who, as mentioned above, was assigned the task of ruling over a well defined territory and over a portion of a family, that of Jacob (Deuteronomy 32:8).
When a god seems to change his mind now, I no longer see one confused god.
Yemoja was married to Orungan, the sky god, and had many children, who became the Orishas.
British Guiana, Trinidad, Suriname and Jamaica, for example – many Africans and Afro-creoles recognized a river god with healing powers named variously as the ‘Liba-Mama’, the ‘Watra-Mama’, the ‘water mamma’, the ‘rubba missis’, or ‘mamma dlo’.
Brian Moore, however, has placed the origins of the term ‘Komfo’ (or ‘cumfo’) among West African peoples; he sees its origin in the Dahomean word ‘Komfo’ and has clearly linked the water mamma ritual to the West African ‘[w]orship of river gods’.
In these mixed practices she is often joined with other gods.
Her tale is about beauty, pride, the anger of the gods and heroism.
They appealed to Poseidon, god of the sea.
It stands for immortality and the favor of the gods.
In Book II he describes the constellations, including Andromeda, and how the gods placed her in the stars.
Nereids: In Greek mythology, Nereids are sea nymphs, daughters of Nereus, the sea god.
They are depicted as helpful sea nymphs, often assisting gods and mortals.
Nereids frequently assist heroes and gods.
For example, their interactions with gods and mortals frequently lead to metamorphoses as acts of vengeance or preservation.
When the Sirens are named, they are usually daughters of Achelous, the river god of the Acheloos, the largest river in Greece.
Phorcys and his partner Ceto are old sea gods, linked with the dangers and monsters of the deep.
As children of a Muse, they would be related to the other gods and spirits of music and the arts.
Their family tree joins water and music: a river god or a sea god on one side, a Muse on the other.
In the mythology of the Cook Islands, Vatea, also known as Avatea, holds a central role as a creator god.
He is often associated with the creation of the world and the progenitor of gods and humans.
Vatea's imagery and myths are part of the broader Polynesian mythological tradition, which frequently features gods and demigods with transformative or dual characteristics.
Triton is the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, and Amphitrite, the queen of the sea.
He is considered a minor sea god and serves as a herald or messenger of Poseidon.
Triton embodies the personification of the sea, particularly its intermediary nature between gods and mortals.
Triton has inspired cultural and artistic depictions of mermen and sea gods in literature, art, and media.
When a man sleeps, the body tells to the soul (neshamah) what it has done during the day; the soul then reports it to the spirit (nefesh), the spirit to the angel, the angel to the cherub, and the cherub to the seraph, who then brings it before God"
In many ways, you still worship a God outside of yourself.
Spirits are created simple and ignorant by God.
When you trust what you know, you are activating the God within you.