8
Jewish people, Paul exclaimed, "Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! How unsearchable (anexereunetos) his judgments and his paths beyond tracing out
(anexichniastos)! Who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counselor?" (Ro.
11.33-34). Elsewhere Paul prayed that "the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension
(nous)" might guard the hearts and minds of the Phillipians (4.7). And in Ephesians, Paul wrote
of the unfathomable (anexichniastos) riches of Christ (3.8).
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From Old to New Testaments,
God and his understanding and salvation are perceived as "beyond our capacities," transcending
humanity's ability to fully grasp him.
None of these passages refers to the LONC; they simply show that human understanding
of God has limits (though these limits can be pushed when aided by God). Yet there is no reason
to assume that these statements do not bear in some way on the logical tension we find in human
thought about God. Rather it seems likely they refer to all the limits that our understanding
experiences before an infinite God, including the paradoxes we find in God's revelation.
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Concurrences in Scripture and Theology
Scripture also contains many examples of concurrences. The most obvious may be
Proverbs 26.4,5. "Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself.
Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes." Each verse is
meaningful, but laid side-by-side they present contradictory admonitions. Of course each verse
gives a reason for its own exhortation that points towards a harmonization. But that does not
remove the obstacle of apparently contradictory commands laid side-by-side. Why would the
editor include both, and even put them next to each other? Perhaps because together they argue
for the need for a higher understanding: the wisdom to know when to do what.