Who is God?

The books of Genesis and Exodus serve a vital role in the Bible, developing
the identity of the Hebrew people and their relationship with God. The maturation
of peoples relationships with God also serves to develop him as a character, with
many very human traits. The first impression of God as an omnipotent, creative
force serves to drive home the celestial nature of God, to the point of two separate
creation stories. Once man is created and the first relationship with God is born, he
loses some of this ethereal ambiguity. God does issue declarations, but he also
produces all of the animals for Adam to name and select from. This almost seems to
be an act of servitude to Adam and makes God seem much more mundane. Noahs
relationship with God is key because of the covenant. An agreement between God
and man makes him accountable in some way, which is Gods submission to
something greater than his own momentary will. Abraham is the next big relational
step in defining Gods character; there is a real dialogue with God and a second
covenant similar to Noahs in scope. The link between God and Moses gives more
insight than any other, and is arguably the most human relationship any of the
Patriarchs have with God. The agreements between God and Moses are more
unique, they involve negotiation and seem much more human than divine. As
important as Moses relationship with God is, it has far less significance without the
model of some of the earlier Patriarchs, particularly Noah and Abraham.

Noah and Abraham are both key to elucidating Gods character through a few
key exchanges. Noahs interactions with God are reminiscent of Adams, generally
God treats Noah as a subject of his power and a representative to manipulate the
world. After the flood, Gods covenant with Noah changes everything. By entering
into a mutual agreement with Noah and his offspring, they become more
accountable to God but God also becomes accountable to them. This is huge in
defining God as a character, by placing himself on the same playing field as
humanity God becomes relatable. In fact, the covenant is almost an admission that
God got carried away in his mass destruction of life and an acknowledgement that
such a mistake will never happen again. Abram furthers this covenantal
relationship, God promises a lot to Abraham in return for the loyalty of his
descendents. God could have garnered support in a much more authoritarian way,
but yet again God chooses to come down to the human level. This contractual
relationship serves to put God at humanitys mercy if he does not follow through,
which almost happens on a few occasions.
Moses has a lot more freedom in his relationship with God, which allows for a
greater variety of interactions and much more insight into the character of God. In
their first interaction, God must encourage Moses in an almost fatherly way. When
the Hebrews idolatrize the golden calf, God is enraged declaring, my anger will be
kindled against them so that I will annihilate them, and I will make you into a great
nation. (Exodus 32:10) God appears to be trying to take a step back and almost turn
Moses into a new Abraham as the father of a great nation. Moses however, will not
tolerate his kinsmans obliteration and questions God with logical arguments and an

emotional plea. This is not a new kind of interaction with God; Abraham tried in
earnest to stay Gods hand in Sodom and Gomorrah to no avail. However, this is the
first time a patriarch has negotiated with God on such an equal level. Abrahams
pleas come in the company of groveling and self-deprecation while Moses plays on
Gods ego and emotions. This is also a moment where God nearly breaks his
covenant with Abraham, if all of the Hebrews are destroyed then it would be very
hard for them to be fruitful and multiply. This time, however, Moses succeeds in
checking Gods anger and he reconsider[s] the evil instead of unleashing
destruction. (Exodus 32:14) This display of Gods self-restraint is a huge change in
character, this indicates that Moses has a special relationship with God that allows
him to reach God in such a state or God has matured independently and learned selfcontrol. Either way, the changing of Gods mind is huge when viewed in relation to
Gods earlier actions. Without the context of each other, the relationships between
Noah, Abraham, and Moses with God are fairly unenlightening, but the combined
context reveals a profound, constantly developing character in God.
The Bible portrays God as a considerably deeper character than societal
religious norms. Through his relationships with people, God reveals snippets of a
very human personality. When analyzed in any depth, Gods potential character
opens up significantly. Is God learning how to interact with and maintain the world
alongside humanity? How truly mature is the character of God if he so frequently
loses his temper and threatens or commits acts which would be seen as incredibly
immoral in the realm of men? Perhaps most importantly, who is this God that is
worshipped by billions of people across the globe and is he worth worshipping?