The ways of the Lord are mysterious - what does this mean? A parable about God and a young monk who wanted to find out why the ways of the Lord are inscrutable. How to understand: The ways of the Lord are mysterious and what does this mean?

The wisdom of the Bible is not questioned even by those who do not consider themselves believers. In a difficult situation ordinary people enjoying earlier worldly life, turn to the Holy Scriptures to find comfort and hope in it. Quite often those who suffer come across the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious.” What does it mean? How to understand and interpret this very common expression? In this article we will try to make sure that you never again wonder what “The ways of the Lord are mysterious.”

The Bible is a source of wisdom

Preachers say that the Lord himself directs a person to right moment to the Bible and opens before him that very page, the lines from which will flow like balm onto the wounded soul. Therefore, do not think, when you find the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” in the Holy Scriptures, what it means. Rest assured - this is directly related to your life and the events taking place in it. Otherwise, why would this expression have caught your eye?

Not every average person correctly understands what the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” means. More less people know where she came from. Let's clarify this difficult issue.

Where did the expression “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” come from?

This phrase is used by both clergy and ordinary laity. Most often it is used as a word of comfort in sermons and in personal conversation. Few people think about where in the New Testament it can be found and in what context it was first used.

If you open the Bible to Paul to the Romans, you will find the following text there: “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are His destiny and unsearchable His ways!” This verse can be considered the first use of the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious,” the meaning of which does not change depending on the wording of the expression itself.

The fact is that the interpretation of many words from the Bible has no analogues in the Russian language. That's why Orthodox clergy I had to select substitute words that were more understandable and similar in sound. It is not surprising that it has undergone some changes and now sounds different than in the original source.

What does the expression “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” mean?

It is difficult to interpret biblical wisdom because preachers believe that it must be received with the soul and heart. But we will still try to understand the true meaning of the expression.

If you read the original source carefully, that is New Testament, then it will be clear that he admires the Lord’s plans. He does not offer to follow His plans, but admits that they are difficult for people to understand. ordinary person. And you shouldn’t even try to figure out which path God will lead you. Moreover, many Christian preachers warn people against trying to peer into God's plans. Otherwise, a person’s pride can be punished, which is why they teach a person with phrases about the unsearchability of God’s providence.

In modern Russian, the word “unsearchable” has long been replaced by “inscrutable”. It is much clearer in sound, but the meaning of the phrase remains the same - a person must trust God and perceive everything that happens in his life with gratitude and humility. According to Scripture, the Lord reveals His plans to the humble, but not always.

If it is still difficult for you to understand what the expression “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” means, then draw a parallel with the no less famous folk proverb“Everything that is done is for the better.” Both of these expressions indicate that everything in a person’s life goes according to God’s planned plan and his will simply must be trusted.

In what sense is this common biblical phrase used?

We already understand where the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” came from among the “people.” What does this mean in the modern world? How different is the understanding of the expression by today's people from Orthodox believers of past centuries? The clergy believe that the difference is significant.

Previously, people more easily trusted God's plans and submitted to all changes in their lives. The believers were confident that their path was determined from above, and it led only to the salvation of the soul. There was practically no desire to argue with God and His plans. There are known cases when the most difficult trials that befell a person, passed with dignity, prayer and gratitude, brought the person to new level life. And then people said that God led man to happiness, or they said that the ways of the Lord are inscrutable. No one even thought about what this meant, so strong was the faith in God’s plans.

Of course, now few people can boast of such strong faith. It is not for nothing that so many troubles and misfortunes occur in people’s lives. According to the priests, until a person gives his life into the hands of God and passes all the planned milestones along the way, he will be subjected to tests. In the modern world, we quite often say a well-known phrase as sympathy or consolation when we don’t know how to explain an unpleasant incident and encourage a person. There is no sound in her of the former admiration and awe of God’s plans, only recognition of her weakness and defenselessness before higher powers.

“The ways of the Lord are mysterious” - a fundamental phrase of Christianity

Many theologians who pay great attention to the study of the Bible believe that there is a list of phrases that most accurately characterize the meaning of Christianity. What does the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” mean in this sense?

Everything is more than simple, but at the same time surprisingly difficult to understand for independent and self-confident residents of the twenty-first century. Theologians say that humility before God is expressed in gratitude for everything that comes into life. After all, only the Lord knows the past, present and future. He knows how to avoid dangers and temptations or which path to take. Therefore, many parables explain how it is necessary to undergo trials in order to find happiness. They are able to allegorically convey the importance of accepting the will of the Lord.

Parable of the Elder and the Angel

There are many legends on the topic of our article, but one parable very colorfully characterizes how little we see and understand in what is happening around us. According to this parable, the gray-haired old man could not understand the injustices of our world and constantly appealed to the Almighty with questions and lamentations. One day he discovered an angel nearby, who ordered the old man to climb a tree and watch for three days what would happen below. The sage obeyed and on the first day he saw how the rich horseman lost a bag of gold. On the second day, the gold was found by a farmer who sat down to have a snack under a tree. On the third day, a beggar came to the tree and greedily began to eat the food that the happy peasant had forgotten. But to his misfortune, the horseman returned and killed the beggar, believing that he had stolen the lost bag of money. After these events, the old man climbed down from the tree in tears and deep indignation. He was ready to renounce his faith, seeing such injustice, but an angel stopped him and explained the essence of what was happening. He said that the rich horseman is a cruel tax collector who ruins the people. And he killed a former robber who begged for death to atone for his past sins. After this murder, the tax collector will repent of his crime and turn to God. And the farmer was practically ruined by exorbitant taxes, and a bag of gold saved his entire family from inevitable death.

“The ways of the Lord are mysterious” - what this means, we think, will become even more clear after reading the next parable.

The Dream of a Hermit Monk

In one of the caves long years The hermit monk lived righteously and in prayer. But he was haunted by God’s plans; he dreamed of penetrating their essence and possessing knowledge. One day in a dream a man came to him and called for him. The monk spent three days with him on the road, and each of them brought him more and more disappointment in his faith. On the first night, the monk's companion stole a golden cup from the peasant's house, given by a neighbor in honor of reconciliation after a long quarrel. After the second night, he set fire to the hut of the poor man who sheltered them. And on the morning of the third day he asked the son of one of the peasants, who had given them shelter, to be a guide, and threw him into wild river. He suppressed all the monk’s disturbances with a phrase about God’s plans.

At the end of the journey, the man revealed to the elder the true meaning of the things that happened during the journey. As it turned out, the golden cup was poisoned, and on the ashes of his house the beggar would find a rich treasure hidden by his ancestors and completely change his life. And the dead child, at the instigation of his father, was to become a bloodthirsty robber and destroy several thousand innocent souls. After death only son the father will grieve greatly and become the most devout man in his village. He will be able to help many with advice and deed and will die at an old age.

After this story mysterious person disappeared, and the monk woke up. From then on, he learned to trust the Lord without asking for explanations.

Conclusion

To sum up everything that has been written, I would like to say that faith in God presupposes blind trust. Don't look for meaning in what's happening in your life. After all, even negative situations lead to a happy ending. Do not allow yourself to be proud and do not try to decide your destiny on your own. Remember - the ways of the Lord are mysterious.

After the greeting, I ask the listeners one biblical riddle: which of the characters in the Bible told a lie three times, and God was with him, and as soon as he told the truth once, God left him. To answer, let’s just open the book of Judges 16:4-22.

Let us now turn to the 11th chapter of the book of Job, verses 7-8. “Can you find God by searching…” We can also read about this in Romans 11:33 “…how incomprehensible are His destiny and unsearchable His ways!”

In the book of Joshua we can read about Rahab the harlot (Joshua 2:1 and 6:16-24), in the 2nd book of Samuel, chapter 11 about David and Bathsheba.

In this amazing dream, a man approached him and simply demanded that the monk go with him. They immediately, without much preparation, left the shelter of this hermit, and in the evening they spent the night in a remote village with some person who shared great joy with them. There was a long-standing enmity between him and his neighbor, there were no visible ways to make peace, no common ground, but literally today (on this day) the neighbor came to him in peace and gave him a golden cup as a sign of reconciliation.

But in the morning, when they set off on their journey, the hermit was very surprised when his companion showed him the most beautiful cup that he had stolen from this hospitable host. Taken aback by such deceit, the monk barely opened his mouth when this man sternly told him: “Be silent, these are the ways of God...”
So they walked for another whole day and in the evening they came to one hut that was almost falling from disrepair. It seemed inconvenient for them to disturb such a poor man, but the owner received them very friendly and even treated them to what he himself had for dinner - a bowl of lean stew.

The next day, when they set off again, the hermit saw that his companion was a little behind. When he heard the steps of his fellow traveler, he turned around and saw the hut in which they had spent the night burning. To a direct question, this incomprehensible companion clearly answered that it was he who set fire to the hut. Upset by his behavior, the hermit wanted to turn away and leave him, but he again uttered yesterday’s phrase: “Understand, these are the ways of God...”

They walked on in silence, and the hermit reasoned to himself - well, how can this be God’s ways, God would never do that!
In the evening they had to spend the night in the first house they came across, although the look of the gloomy owner did not inspire confidence at all. But it quickly got dark, and they still stayed overnight in this house. It seemed to them that this man was hardly capable of anything good; they should, apparently, be wary of this owner. His face brightened only briefly when he made some request to his little son, who was fiddling around in the corner. The night passed, and the next morning our monk’s companion asked the owner to have the boy accompany them to main road in this area.

The owner did not agree for a long time, but was still forced to let the baby go with them. After some time, they approached a narrow bridge spanning a mountain river. And, to be more precise, these were just a few perches, while below the river roared and gurgled with rapids and waterfalls. The hermit risked going first.
Having reached the opposite bank, he turned around. Oh God! His companion pushed the boy into the raging stream. The noise of the stream drowned out his dying screams, and soon he completely disappeared from view.

The completely indignant monk shouted in his hearts: “Yes, you are Satan himself! I won’t take another step with you...” But this time the companion repeated to him:
“Be silent, these are the ways of God!” At the same time, an indescribable heavenly light illuminated his face.

Wanting to reassure the hermit, he continued to say: “Do you want to know the reason for these events?!” Yes, I took the cup from the first house, since the reconciliation was feigned, and the cup was poisoned. As soon as the owner tried to use it, he would immediately die on the spot. The second case was not clear to you either. And it’s even simpler...

In the rubbish of a burnt hut, the owner must find gems, left by one of his ancestors. They will help the poor and rebuild new house, and start a new one, this time comfortable life. Now comes today's incident. The owner, out of love, would inspire the boy to become just like him, a robber and murderer.
Grief about lost son can still help him change, it will be a blessing to his father. Isn’t it?.. You see, God had good and wise intentions in each case, although they were incomprehensible to you and even seemed displeasing to God.”

Having finished his story, the mysterious companion (and it was an angel of God!) simply disappeared into thin air. The hermit woke up with tears in his eyes. This dream taught him to trust God, without trying to reason and comprehend His, God’s, actions.

Finally, I would like to give you one more example from the Bible. Let's open Genesis, chapter 43. The steward, the ruler of Joseph's house, unquestioningly accepted the commands of the owner. “Throw these people into prison!” or “Go invite them to dinner with me!” or “Give them back their silver!” or “Bring them back quickly!..” He knew how to trust and accept all decisions and requests, no matter how strange and contradictory they might look at first glance. Much later, he saw God's great plan for Joseph. I think that each of us should develop this important habit - trusting the Lord to go to the end. It is not for nothing that it is written in the Epistle of James: “A man with double thoughts is not firm in all his ways.” (James 1:8)

When trouble comes to the house, what matters to God is how we meet it. If we begin to feel sorry for ourselves, fall into despondency, or begin to blame and curse someone, become embittered and take revenge, then we move even further away from God and faster - we fall into the net of the devil.

In misfortunes, we must ask the Lord to deliver us from trouble and come to terms with the idea that nothing in our lives happens without God’s permission. Perceive trouble as a Test sent by the Lord. I experienced all this myself. When I was still an atheist. My husband met a woman whose mother practiced Witchcraft. The husband lost his head and became the aggressor in the house. He kicked me out of the house, wanted me dead, and even my son got it from him. His mother could not stand this hell and left us to live with her daughter. He started accusing me of allegedly kicking her out of the house. My good husband was turned into an angry and bilious man. Everything happened as in Andersen’s fairy tale “ The Snow Queen" I started to get sick. And on August 28, 1992, when I walked past the Church of Peter and Paul, I heard the name of my mistress. I looked back and saw three women in white raincoats. One of them explained to the other that this was the woman whose friend Olga was from Lomonosov. Three women headed to the Temple, and I ran after them. Upon entering the Church, I lost sight of them. There was no one in the Church since the service had ended. And only the nun was sitting on a chair near the entrance. I approached her with the words: “I’m an atheist, I don’t believe in anything supernatural, but something unusual is happening to me in Lately" The nun looked at me and said: “Darling, I came here because I buried my husband and son. “Yours” comes here and lights candles for the repose of your soul. Come to the priest."

I approached the priest, emphasizing that I was a materialist. Father smiled, and I heard: “Okay, materialist. Is everyone in the house baptized? What is happening in your house can be explained very simply: there are demons in your husband, and Satan in his woman. And Satan controls his demons." To my question how you can be saved, the priest answered: “Read the Gospel, the works of the Holy Fathers and go to Church.” He told me about the sacraments of Confession and Communion, but I remembered then that due to my weakness I could not fast for three days, but only one. It was Thursday and I promised to come on Saturday. Father shook his head and noticed that the demons would still twist me. I walked down the street and wondered who wouldn’t let me into Church and what did any of this have to do with it? fairy tale characters- demons. But it turned out that the priest was right, and for three weeks I could not come to Church. Like a sleepwalker, I went into the kitchen at night to eat or drink something. Only 3 or 4 weeks later I was able to confess my sins, and after unction during Lent, the Lord healed me of cancer.

God works in mysterious ways! And if now some troubles happen to me, then I already understand that the Lord wants me - to enlighten me and guide me on the right path.

Sin always leads to one or another - Unpleasant consequences. And you must have the courage to take full responsibility upon yourself and admit that this trouble is your own fault. Confess your sins and repent of them in the Church. Don't pay attention to the father's personality. You come to Church not to the priest, but to God. And no matter what kind of priest he is in the world, no matter what shortcomings he has, this does not concern you. Never judge anyone, especially priests.

Once on the radio, singer Zhanna Bichevskaya said that if we, mere mortal people, CANNOT cope with 2-3 demons, then the priests are attacked by a hundred demons, and the monks are attacked by more than a thousand, and with some demon and them can be difficult to cope with. In the Orthodox Church there is the Sacrament of Ordination, where, starting from the Apostles, Jesus Christ gave the priests the right to forgive our sins. Any priest will forgive your sins; if you meet a spiritual father on your way, you will be lucky.

It is often difficult for us to understand and accept many of the events that happen in our lives, especially at the moment when we are inside these events. But time passes and we understand that what seemed like misfortune at that moment was actually beneficial for us. We want something, we strive for it, but for some reason we don’t get it. And after a while we realize that we actually didn’t need this “something”. We simply cannot know for sure what is better for us, what is healthier for us.

Here's just one example. My friend entered Polytechnical Institute. And she didn’t. It was tragic at that moment. She “had” to go to economics. But by the time she graduated from university, everyone only needed accountants, and engineers were not in demand at all (this was the 90s). That's how God took care of her. But it is possible to see and realize this providence of God only through time.

At the same time, we should not think that everything is predetermined and we cannot change anything. It's a delusion. Our life depends on us, on our choices and our decisions. And each subsequent event or circumstance appears depending on our previous decisions. But how to accept correct solution? Can you read about this in this article?

The parable of a young monk who wanted to find out why the ways of the Lord are mysterious

One day, a young monk decided to go to a distant country to a wise, perspicacious elder, so that he could explain to him what the words THE WAYS OF THE LORD ARE UNMYSTERABLE mean. The path was long and dangerous, and so he began to look for a travel companion. On the way, he met an old monk and learned that he was also going to the same old man. They continued their journey together.

After long journey two monks came out to big river and saw a house on its shore. We asked to spend the night. The owner of the house turned out to be a pious and hospitable merchant. He fed the travelers and gave them lodging for the night. In the morning, seeing off travelers, the owner brought it to them on a silver platter provisions for the journey. The young monk began to thank the hospitable host, and the old monk suddenly grabbed the dish and threw it into the river. The owner of the house wept bitterly and left, and the young monk began to reproach the old monk for ingratitude.

Their next stop was at an even richer house. Its owner also warmly and hospitably greeted the travelers. In the morning, seeing them off, the owner of the house asked the old monk to bless his son. The same one instead grabbed young man and strangled him. The young monk was perplexed and no longer asked his fellow traveler anything.

They made their last stop at an abandoned house in the forest. The house sheltered them from the rain. But in the morning the old monk destroyed the house to the ground. The young monk began to reproach him that now the travelers would not be able to shelter from the rain and get an overnight stay. But the old monk did not answer.

When they came to the perspicacious elder, the young monk told him about the evil and incomprehensible actions of the old monk. To which the elder answered him: “Didn’t you understand that it was not a monk who accompanied you, but God himself!”

He threw away the silver dish, because the owner of the house who received you was truly pious and this the dish was the only thing he had acquired by deception. But due to human weakness, he could not get rid of it. When he began to cry, he was glad that he got rid of the dish and went to sincerely repent of this sin of his.
He took the son of a kind and rich owner at a time when he was still young and pure. A if he had left him alive, his father's wealth and fornication would have destroyed his soul. For which both father and son would be responsible.
He destroyed the house because that house belonged to robbers. The robbers kept the looted treasures within the walls of the house. Many people were looking for this house in the forest. AND if the house had remained intact, many would have found it and the gold would have destroyed the souls of many.

One of the philosophers has the idea that even if God revealed to us all the secrets of the universe, which we still could not contain. Because all events happening in the universe and with us can be compared with a storm raging in the ocean. We can be compared to a passenger on a ship that is rushing through this storm. This passenger, looking through the narrow gap, can only see a narrow strip of the 9th wave of the raging ocean. So we cannot embrace the immensity. But we can still see and understand at least a small part of what God would like to reveal to us. You just have to want it!

After all, we know that many ascetics, for example, monks and philosophers of antiquity, were able to achieve insight and vision of what is inaccessible to us, ordinary lay people.

We never know what is best for us. Therefore, in the tradition of both Western and Eastern religions, it is considered correct in prayer not to ask for something specific from God, but to give thanks for what we have and ask to send what is best for us. Only God knows what is best for us!

My spiritual father, a monk, advises that if you ask for something, say the following Christian prayer: “Do Thy will, O Lord!”

I think you also liked this rare parable. Which explains so clearly that there is no need to rush to cry and be upset about what happens to us. It's better to accept it all. Because over time it becomes clear that it was better for us!

Watch the wonderful video at the end of the article IT'S HARD TO BE A GOD. This clip makes you think in just a few minutes and really shows how difficult it is to be God.

I wish everyone not to give up, believe in themselves and in people!

Be happy with what you have, enjoy life, love and forgive all people!

Clip (7 minutes) How difficult it is to be a god!

The great wisdom of Biblical stories, which lies in the lives of many, even unbelievers, is undeniable. Every person we meet at life path misfortune or inexhaustible melancholy, looks into the Bible and finds support and a lot of valuable advice there. While searching, people often come across the following phrase: "God works in mysterious ways". What does it mean?

The sound of the phrase different languages(Latin/English and Russian):

Investigabiles viae Domini or Viae Domini imperceptae sunt.
God works in mysterious ways.

Analysis and origin of the phrase

What does the expression “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” mean?

As a rule, people hear “The ways of the Lord are mysterious” during personal conversations with a clergyman as a word of support and moral consolation. But only the vast minority of people think about the origin of this phrase and its location in the New Testament.

If you pick up the Bible and open it to the epistle of the Apostle Paul, you will see a verse that is the first mention of “the ways of the Lord.” Although the wording is slightly different, the meaning does not change. The fact is that many phrases from the Bible are difficult to translate into Russian verbatim, and clergy have to slightly distort the text for ease of understanding.

It is quite difficult to interpret this saying, since it needs to be felt with soul and heart, without adding an ounce of analytics. in the verse felt admiration for the actions of the Lord and admits that his plans are extremely difficult for ordinary mortals to understand. And there is no need to even try to figure out the path along which God can send a person. Many are convinced that there is no need to try to look into God's plans, they are inscrutable and must be treated even with caution, otherwise you can bring trouble.

For those who have difficulty understanding the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious,” we can draw an analogy with the Russian proverb, known to everyone, “Everything that is done is done for the better.” They say approximately one thing - in the life of every person, the path is outlined by God and everything is decided.

What is the meaning of the phrase “The ways of the Lord are mysterious”

What do they mean? modern people while saying these words? How has the interpretation changed after several hundred years? In times past, people believed more easily that life's path is planned from above and each person, without doubting for a second, trusted the planning of life to the Lord.

In the present, few people can boast of such a degree of faith. People still continue to say the well-known phrase as sympathy or in search of consolation, but the former admiration has completely disappeared, giving way only to weakness and defenselessness before the forces of the Creator.

The phrase is both simple and difficult to understand modern man, since in the twenty-first century people try to be as independent as possible, mistakenly, not obeying the laws of God.

The clergy believe that humility before the Lord is expressed in gratitude for all the little things that come along life's path.

People who actively study the Bible can confidently identify a list of phrases that are embedded in the basis of this religion. Naturally, the list also includes the phrase discussed in this article.

Parables that will help you understand the meaning of the famous phrase:

Parable about the old man and the angel.
Parable of a hermit monk.

Parable of the Elder and the Angel

There are many different tales about the power of faith, but one of them most colorfully describes the topic of this article.

One elder could not come to terms with the hardships of fate; his mind was tormented by thousands of questions, the answers to which he tried to find from the Lord, asking them every day during prayer. On one of these days, an angel descended on him and told him to sit on a tree for three days, watching what was happening below. And the elder fulfilled the instructions.

On the first day, a picture appeared before his eyes - a rich horseman losing a bag filled with gold. On the second day, a farmer who came to that place for lunch finds the bag. On the third day, a beggar came to the place to eat the food left by the farmer. Next a horseman appeared and killed the beggar, confident that it was he who had stolen the purse of gold.

After such injustice, the sage climbed down from the tree, full of indignation. He was ready to renounce faith and God for allowing such chaos to happen, but the angel stopped him by telling him what had happened.

He said that the rider was a cruel tribute collector who legally robbed the people. And he killed not just a beggar, but a robber who begged for death in order to atone for past sins. And the tax collector will then repent of his sins and turn to God, begging for forgiveness. The farmer was ruined, and the bag will save his family from hunger.

Parable of the Hermit Monk

IN deep cave, on the outskirts, a hermit monk settled, praying and leading an extremely righteous lifestyle. The idea of penetrating into the plans of God did not let him go. One day, while he was sleeping, a stranger came to him and called for him. They walked for three days, and with each passing hour the monk became more and more disillusioned with his faith.

On the first night, before his eyes, his companion stole a golden cup from a peasant’s house, given by a neighbor in honor of reconciliation.

The second time, he set fire to the house of a poor man who was sheltering them for the night.

On the third day, he asked one of the peasants to give his son as a guide and threw him into the river.

And only at the end of the journey did he tell the monk about the true meaning of his actions, about God’s plans. It turned out that the cup was poisoned, and the next morning the peasant would find the treasure and become rich. The dead boy would have grown up to be a terrible sinner and would have taken many souls with him. And after the death of his son, the father will begin to suffer and grieve so much that he will become the most devout person and will help many with advice.

It is worth blindly believing in the Lord, completely relying on the will that he chose even before a person was born.