The term "encompasses" in the biblical context refers to the act of surrounding, encircling, or enveloping something or someone. This concept is often used metaphorically in Scripture to describe God's protection, presence, and the comprehensive nature of His attributes and actions.

Divine Protection and Presence

One of the most profound uses of "encompasses" in the Bible is to illustrate God's protective and comforting presence around His people. In Psalm 125:2, the psalmist writes, "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds His people, both now and forevermore." This imagery of God encompassing His people like mountains around a city conveys a sense of security and steadfastness, emphasizing His eternal guardianship.

Similarly, in Psalm 32:10, the psalmist declares, "Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but loving devotion surrounds him who trusts in the LORD." Here, the encompassing love and faithfulness of God are contrasted with the plight of the wicked, highlighting the blessings of divine favor for those who place their trust in Him.

God's Omnipresence and Omniscience

The concept of God encompassing all things also speaks to His omnipresence and omniscience. In Jeremiah 23:24, the Lord declares, "Can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill the heavens and the earth? declares the LORD." This rhetorical question underscores the truth that God's presence is all-encompassing, leaving no place hidden from His sight.

Encircling in Judgment and Wrath

While "encompasses" often conveys protection and presence, it can also describe the encircling nature of God's judgment. In Lamentations 3:5, the prophet Jeremiah laments, "He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship." This verse reflects the comprehensive nature of God's judgment upon Jerusalem, where the city is encompassed by the consequences of its disobedience.

Encouragement and Assurance

For believers, the idea that God encompasses them is a source of encouragement and assurance. In 2 Kings 6:17, when Elisha's servant is fearful of the surrounding enemy forces, Elisha prays, "O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see." The Lord opens the servant's eyes, revealing the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. This divine army, unseen by the natural eye, symbolizes God's encompassing protection and serves as a reminder of His sovereign power over all circumstances.

Conclusion

The biblical use of "encompasses" richly illustrates the multifaceted nature of God's relationship with His creation. Whether in protection, presence, judgment, or assurance, the concept underscores the comprehensive and all-encompassing nature of God's character and actions throughout Scripture.

And the Trespass which came by the Tree was Undone by the Tree of ...
... Now seeing that He is the Word of God Almighty, who in unseen wise in our midst
is universally extended in all the world, and encompasses its length and ...

The Revelation of Peter. Introduction.
... earth,' it says, shall present all men before God at the day of judgment, being
itself also to be judged along with the heaven also which encompasses it.'" And ...

Fragments of the Apocalypse of Peter.
... the Apoc. of Peter) says, "shall present all men before God at the day of judgment,
being itself also to be judged, with the heaven also which encompasses it.". ...

The Philosophers
... I shall have no more if I possess worlds. By space the universe encompasses and
swallows me up like an atom; by thought I comprehend the world. 349. ...

My Savior Whose Infinite Grace
... My Savior whose infinite grace. Most kindly encompasses me,. Whose goodness
more brightly I trace,. The more of my life that I see. ". ...

Third Tractate. On Providence (2).
... under the Universal Reason-Principle of which they are parts " strictly "included"
for this Universal Idea does not engender them but encompasses them. ...

The Beauty of Paradise.
... and after that divides into four heads; of which the two called Pison and Gihon
water the eastern parts, especially Gihon, which encompasses the whole land of ...

Now this World is Encompassed by Seven Heavens, in which Dwell ...
... Now the heaven which is first from above, [92] and encompasses the rest, is (that
of) wisdom; and the second from it, of understanding; and the third, of ...

The Suffering of Love.
... It encompasses eternity, yet there is no outcast, however degraded, too low for
its compassions. And what reception did the world prepare for Him? ...

Letter ii. To Theodosius and the Rest of the Anchorites.
... so much to abandon my vices as to desire to abandon them, the devil now ensnares
me in new toils, he puts new stumbling-blocks in my path, he encompasses me on ...

Encompasses (1 Occurrence)
... Multi-Version Concordance Encompasses (1 Occurrence). Deuteronomy 33:12 Of Benjamin
he said, "The beloved of Yahweh shall dwell in safety by him. ...

Encompass (20 Occurrences)
... (vt) To surround closely; to encircle; to enclose; as, a ring encompasses the finger;
an army encompasses a city; a voyage encompassing the world. ...

Encompassed (34 Occurrences)

Waistband (15 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The band which encompasses the waist; esp., one
on the upper part of breeches, trousers, pantaloons, skirts, or the like. ...

Encompasseth (5 Occurrences)

Circumference (4 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The boundary that goes encompasses a circular
figure; a periphery. 2. (n.) A circle; anything circular. ...

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