God's self-disclosure is manifested in various manners, natural and supernatural, personally and propositionally, historically and perpetually. God's need to reveal Himself issues from a rupturing in the relationship between Creator and creation which obscured man from God. The purpose of God's self-disclosure is to reconcile this in the ultimate salvific act of redemption so that his creation may know and enjoy Him as was His intent. This understanding, as derived from Scripture, reason, tradition and experience, impinges on the interpreters approach to drawing out the meaning of the biblical text.

Exegesis as a science is similar to other fields of science in that certain assumptions are made in the approach. These "assumptions" may or may not be valid, because in many instances they are unverifiable, for each field of science has some form of "belief" to their premise and the Christian exegete is no exception in this regard. The concept of revelation is one which falls into this category of a priori, and as such effects the resultant exegesis of Scripture. An example may be drawn from James Barr's suggestion that revelation was of "marginal importance to both the Old and the New Testaments" (McGrath,1994:152), as the language used to convey the idea of revelation was neither consistent or fundamental. Scripture, however, is unique in many respects and one those is the authoritative claims which it makes of itself from which the interpreter can draw a well founded premise with which to approach Scripture for the purpose of interpretation.

The reason we know God, and know about Him is because He has taken the initiative and made Himself known to us (Childs,1985:29). Childs (Ibid) suggests that there is no historical point, as such, from which to begin a discussion like this, but rather is something we enter into as that which has already long been in process, that is God's continuous revealing of Himself. As suggested in the above thesis God reveals Himself to the inner sense of men and also the outer works of nature (Vos,1975:), the premise for this is that it is assumed in Scripture (Childs,1985:29). Ultimately this is the only reason the OT can speak of God - He has made Himself known (Ibid:30). Somewhat paradoxically the revelation given to man can never be fully or clearly understood because of the marring which has occurred (La Sor,1982:10) that God is progressively dealing with, and has, in Christ, dealt with. Yet irregardless of our feeble attempts to come to terms with these events of disclosure, God by His immeasurable grace continuously comes to us again and again. Even though God chooses to reveal Himself, He, within that self-disclosure, still remains concealed and this dichotomy is all wrapped up within His ultimate purpose in revelation (Childs,1985:37). This highlights two restrictions to the understanding of God's self-disclosure Ways in which God discloses Himself can be seen in; creation, wisdom, history, His name(s), dreams, visions, relationships, covenant, prophecy and His Word.

God has, according to the OT, resoundingly made Himself known through His creation (Childs,1985:30). Yet even the meaning of this, as mentioned above, is obstructed by the entrance of sin into humanity, so to come to an understanding of God through creation "has also been made subject to error and distortion" (Vos,1975: ). Scripturally this is seen in the various Psalms which ascribe the handiwork of the universe to YHWH which in effect reveal His glory; "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands" (Psalm 19:1ff). The creation as spoken of by the prophets is a way whereby God's omnipotence is revealed to the people for the dual purpose of assurance and judgement , depending on this situation at hand. This mode of revelation is closely related to the mode of God's wisdom as revelation.

The wisdom of God is an important mode of self-disclosure. Von Rad (in Childs,1985:35) describes this mode as the " 'self-revelation' of creation", as according to him creation not only reveals to us the kind of God who creates, but that in fact the creation itself "discharges truth" concerning God. Weber (1989:77), however, is not convinced,

It is not through the 'self-revelation of creation' as we perceive it now that we can find God's wisdom. The transfiguration of creation alone reveals God the Creator. Therefore wisdom leads to worship.

This is why many psalms express a wisdom theme that aim to uncover the mysteries of God's creation and God the Creator (Psalm 111) (Ibid).

A further, and uniquely dynamic, mode of self-disclosure is through God's dealings in history (Childs,1985:36). Childs (Ibid) doesn't see a difference in 'kind' when comparing this mode with that of His self-disclosure in creation, but as already mentioned this is a very dynamic mode for it means that God directly interacts with man, as opposed to that which is evoked from within man by, what could be largely be considered as, objective observation - an empirical understanding of God. The most profound OT act of God within history was undoubtedly the exodus of Israel out of Egypt, with became paradigmatic of all of God's salfivic acts, declaring Him to be revealed above all as the God who rescues (La Sor,1982:8). This is claim consistent throughout the OT text, that is, "God has revealed Himself to His people through His great actions in history and personal experience" (Drane,1987:234). Along with His deeds God speaks, for without the word of God the acts of God would be considered somewhat sterile but His word gives the act it's full meaning and significance (La Sor,1982:8). This self-disclosure is in no way exclusive to Israel for God also shows Himself to the other nations, which in itself reveals God as not only the God of Israel, but of the whole world (Childs,1985:37).

In conjunction with God's self-disclosure in history, and in particular the exodus, came the revelation to Moses of the divine name which Dyrness (1979:30) describes as "... one of the most striking and decisive moments in God's self-revelation". The most powerful aspect of this mode of disclosure is not that God had revealed His name to Moses, but that Moses becomes the recipient of God's grace by being given access to this God and partaking in the mystery of the Divine being. Of the name La Sor (1982:134) points out its obvious "great theological importance" among which is that the name of YHWH is largely defined by his acts within history, in particular the exodus act of liberation, which in essence links these two modes of self-revelation strongly. It also highlights once again that God is not a static being (Childs,1985:39), but a God who breaks into, not only history, but into the very lives of individuals.

Along with the modes of creation, wisdom, history and God's name, is what La Sor (1982:10) terms "propositional revelation", which includes God disclosing Himself and His will through dreams, visions and verbal communications. Much of this phenomena was usually associated with the prophetic tradition, but not exclusively. Dreams played a significant role in the Jewish tradition, "the Jews believed that God communicated His will through dreams" (D. A. Black quoted in Green,1992:199). This is highlighted in Numbers 12:6,

Then He said, "Hear now My words:

If there is a prophet among you,

I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision;

I speak to him in a dream.

Isaiah's vision in the Temple (Isaiah 6) also depicts this mode. God reveals Himself to Isaiah in glorious majesty and also imparts propositionally information to Him regarding His purpose, but in this also discloses who He is to the prophet. This mode of self-disclosure was how God broke into history and made Himself known to Abraham (Childs,1985:28).

God's self-disclosure to the patriarch's marked the point of departure for God's special revealing of His nature and will for His creation. This is an emphasis throughout Genesis, but not only Genesis it is consistent throughout the whole of the OT text. God shows Himself to be the One who takes the initiative and through His gracious acts, makes Himself known to people so that they can have a "meaningful relationship with Him" (Drane,1987:234). From this point God began a progressive self-disclosing of Himself and His will, right through this patriarchal period (Enns,1989:53), until the Mosaic period and, as mentioned above, the mighty exodus of Israel out of bondage, where from this point God began to reveal Himself as the God of Israel and covenanted with them at Sinai.

The covenant which God formed with His people furthered the revelation of Himself, and the relationship He had with Israel. Through the mode of self-disclosure He shows Himself to be a God who is faithful to His word (Childs,1985:43), and the gift of the Law to the people becomes an expression of His grace. The Law was not only a self-disclosing of God but also of the people themselves, as it revealed both the righteousness and holiness of God and the sinfulness of man. The Law was a gift of grace in the sense that God showed His people that He considered them as a holy people, and obedience to the Law did not cause them to become holy, but God declares them holy and decrees that this is the way in which holy people live. The Law though must be understood not only as a gift, but also a summons (Zimmerli,1978:109). It shows that God is not only a gracious God, but also a God who calls for a response to His goodness and to be of that same nature, and somewhere in between this seeming antinomy the were to live their lives. This calling to holiness became a constant point of contention that YHWH had with the people He loved, and this is most fully developed in the prophetic tradition.

The prophetic tradition developed into a indispensable mode of self-disclosure where God would speak via the mouth of the prophets and declare His purposes and character, which invariably issued out of a present setting and situation. This shows God to be not only the God of History, but the God who is present and that His word is a "now" word, a relevant word (Childs,1985:29). In terms of self-disclosure this means God is continually revealing Himself, and shall continue to reveal Himself.

There are salient aspect to God's self-disclosure which warrant highlighting. Firstly, God's self-disclosure of Himself focus' attention on the God revealing Himself, and takes the focus away from the individual(s), or situation in which His self-revealing takes place (Childs,1985:28). Secondly, it is God who always takes the first step in self-disclosure, He is the One who comes to man time and again, and the manner in which He does come is, as discussed, many and varied and also somewhat unpredictable. It is quite distinctive that in the appearing of God to individuals, in His varying modes and forms, that His word shortly follows (Childs,1985:41), and in most every instance has a sense of urgency about it. Finally, in every self-revealing act God never discloses His full counsel or His fullness, He always remains hidden within His revelation (Childs,1985:41). God's self-disclosure is constantly on a "need to know" basis, yet as Childs (Ibid) states, "His transcendence does not undercut His immanence, nor his mysterious otherness His gracious presence".

God's self-disclosure is not an end in itself, as He has a goal and purpose in mind in His revealing of both Himself and His will. This is not overtly stated in Scripture, it is something which progressively unfolds as the process of revelation continues (Childs, 1985:43). One thing which can be determined is that God is moving toward a particular point of consummating that which He progressively reveals, in this sense His goal is distinctly eschatological (Ibid:48). A point which relates not only to the nation of Israel, but encompasses all the nations of the earth. Much of God's reason for this, which incorporates His ultimate purpose, lay within His own counsel and wisdom, it doesn't seem to exceed the truth that God simply desires to reveal Himself to man, and is essentially what the OT conveys to us (Ibid:44). This is prevalent throughout the prophetic material in particular, but is quite evidently present throughout the whole text. Not only to "know" that He is YHWH, but to know that He is the One who, as mentioned, rescues. In this respect it may well be suggested that God's purpose in self-disclosure is redemptive, and to restore that which was lost proceeding His initial creatorial activity. It may be further suggested that each mode of revelation, and event of revelation is salfivic in nature, as this is the goal toward which God unabatedly moves.

In considering God's self-disclosure it has been seen that a myriad of modes are present and utilised by God for the goal and purpose of revealing Himself, both as He is, which is most typified by His desire to be Saviour of the oppressed and Champion of the defenceless, the totality of which was not revealed until the Incarnation of Christ. In light of exegesis this dictates to us the nature of the Bible which "contains a source and record of God's self-communication to the world He created-" (Boadt,1984:12), so that the exegete might more firmly be convinced of the divine aspect of this book. Being conscious of this will cause the interpreters approach to be one which allows a more balanced drawing out of the meaning of texts, but also one which allows the bible right of way in the manner in which it is to be understood, in stead of the fancies of man.

Boadt,L., Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction , ( Paulist Press , 1984 ).

Childs,B.S., Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context , ( SCM: London , 1985 ).

Drane,J., Introducing the Old Testament , ( Lion , 1987 ).

Dyrness,W., Themes in Old Testament Theology , ( Inter-Varsity , 1979 ).

Enns,P., The Moody Handbook of Theology , ( Moody , 1989 ).

Green, McKnight(Ed's), Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels , ( IVP , 1992 ).

La Sor, Hubbard, Bush, Old Testament Survey , ( Eerdmans , 1982 ).

McGrath,A.E., Christian Theology: An Introduction , ( Blackwell , 1994 ).

Vos,G., Biblical Theology , ( Banner: London , 1975 ).

Weber,H-R, Power: Focus for a Biblical Theology , ( WCC , 1989 ).

Zimmerli,W., Old Testament in Outline , ( T.&T. Clark , 1978 ).

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