Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Acknowledge God

The Hebrew and Greek languages are the perfect languages for the divine word. There is no accident that God’s word was revealed through a language that would be descriptive by its own style and interpretation. The reader must be careful not to make false assumptions based on word studies alone without contextual examination, but many times, the unveiling of a word opens the meaning of a passage with vivid descriptions. Sometimes, in the English language, the emphasis of a word can be lost without a closer examination.

Solomon wrote many proverbs preserved in the Bible to teach how man must walk with his God. The wise man shows the value of trusting in the Lord with his whole heart. There is danger in trusting human wisdom because the human spirit cannot guide the heart with truth and righteousness apart from God. Solomon suggests the man of God must acknowledge his Lord in all his ways so that God can direct his steps. What does the word “acknowledge” mean for the child of God?

The Hebrew word Solomon used has a long list of meanings. It helps to look at other passages where the same word is used to grasp the deeper meaning. For example, the same Hebrew word is used in the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Satan begins by suggesting to Eve to challenge the word of God. The Lord told Adam and Eve to eat of all the trees of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they were not to eat. God warns them that if they eat of the forbidden fruit, they will die.

Eve is fully aware of the command of God, reciting the words to the serpent. She knows she can eat of all the trees of the garden, but of the fruit of the tree, which is in the midst of the garden, she is not permitted to eat it nor touch it, lest she die. In his tempting manner, the old dragon assures the woman she will not die because God knows that on the day they eat of the fruit, their eyes will be open, and they will be like God. Adam and Eve will then know good and evil.

Eve looked at the fruit and ate and gave some to Adam, and he ate. The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked. This knowledge severed the relationship between God and man because of sin. They had disobeyed the clear command of God, and now they were filled with fear and shame. Hiding from God, they sought to cover up their transgression but to no avail. Their decision would spiral the world into darkness until the light of Jesus Christ came to redeem man back to God.

In the account of the fall of man, the Hebrew word for “acknowledge” is used in various ways, which should help clarify how Solomon used the word in his proverb. Satan said that God knew (acknowledged) that if they ate of the fruit, their eyes would be opened, knowing (acknowledging) good and evil. When Adam and Eve ate the fruit, their eyes were both opened, and they knew (acknowledged) they were naked. After God told them the consequences of their sin, He spoke to Jesus and the Holy Spirit, saying, “Adam and Eve had become like them, to know (acknowledge) good and evil.” After they were expelled from the garden, Adam knew (acknowledged) his wife, and she conceived.

The purpose of the word study is to examine the idea of what it means to acknowledge God. This is not merely saying there is a God, and that is all. To acknowledge God requires a deeper, more faithful view of how the Lord must work in our lives. It is the will to understand what is right and wrong from the will of the Lord. Satan knew that, and he lied. To acknowledge the Lord is to learn what is right and wrong, which cannot be known apart from God’s word. Adam and Eve felt guilt when they sinned and were fearful. To acknowledge God in all our ways is to understand how sinful we are and lost with God’s grace. God recognizes that man knows good and evil, which acknowledges His will. The Hebrew uses the same word to speak of the union of Adam and Eve in the flesh.

Solomon impresses upon the heart that acknowledging the Lord takes more than a casual reference. It requires complete faith and devotion as the union of God’s will and man’s will unite as one. To acknowledge God in all ways is to fully immerse the spirit under the hand of the Lord in all things. When someone says they love God and fail to obey His word, they do not acknowledge Him. Trusting in the Lord will give all the heart that is needed. To lean on one’s own understanding is a failure. In all the ways of life (no exceptions), the heart must KNOW God as intimately as a man and woman. God will direct the steps of those in union with His word.