download android app mobile version available »

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Knowing God

4.24 of 5 stars 4.24 · rating details · 10,622 ratings · 312 reviews

In 2006, Christianity Today voted this title to be one of the top 50 books that have shaped evangelicals! During the past 20 years, J. I. Packer's classic has revealed to over one million Christians around the world the wonder, the glory and the joy of knowing God. This anniversary edition is completely retypeset, with Americanized language and spelling, and a new preface...more

Paperback, 286 pages

Published June 24th 1993 by InterVarsity Press (first published January 1st 1973)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

The Book of Mormon by The Church of Jesus Christ ...

Books (Besides the Bible) Recommended for Christian Readers

30th out of 1,905 books — 1,849 voters

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Favorite Christian Books

22nd out of 764 books — 612 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Mar 26, 2013 Dkovlak rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book should be a textbook. The author is truly a genius. One of the great benefits of reading this book is that the author goes into deep analysis in many areas.

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 06, 2012 Ellen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Absolutely the most significant book I've read in the past year, and, next to the Bible, probably had the biggest impact on me of any book I've ever read. I don't even know what to say about it. I could detail/analyze the contents, but others have done that already, and better than I could; I think I'll just say that the Lord used Knowing God (in conjunction with a few other books) to re-calibrate my focus, adjust my priorities, and teach me some huge, huge lessons, at a time when I was in great...more Absolutely the most significant book I've read in the past year, and, next to the Bible, probably had the biggest impact on me of any book I've ever read. I don't even know what to say about it. I could detail/analyze the contents, but others have done that already, and better than I could; I think I'll just say that the Lord used Knowing God (in conjunction with a few other books) to re-calibrate my focus, adjust my priorities, and teach me some huge, huge lessons, at a time when I was in great need of those things happening. J.I. Packer is straight-forward, hard-hitting, and very, very wise -- and it's obvious that he writes from the standpoint of someone who really does know God in the truest sense possible here on earth.

There are so many things in this book that I wish I could write about -- Packer's incredible exposition of each of God's attributes (for example, a quote on God's love: "So the love of God who is spirit is no fitful, fluctuating thing, as human love is, nor is it a mere impotent longing for things that may never be; it is, rather, a spontaneous determination of God's whole being in an attitude of benevolence and benefaction, an attitude freely chosen and firmly fixed"); his amazing, amazing explanation of propitiation and the atonement (so clear and plain and beautiful -- I honestly don't think I understood half of it all before); his reprimand to us for largely forgetting the Holy Spirit and overlooking his incredible role in our redemption ("Is it not a hollow fraud to say that we honor Christ when we ignore, and by ignoring dishonor, the One whom Christ has sent to us as his deputy, to take his place and care for us on his behalf? Ought we not to concern ourselves more about the Holy Spirit than we do?"); his wise, clear-sighted explanation of how we as Christians should think about the difficult things that happen to us ("Every single thing that happens to us expresses God's love to us, and comes to us for the furthering of God's purpose for us. Thus, so far as we are concerned, God is love to us---holy, omnipotent love---at every moment and in every event of every day's life. Even when we cannot see the why and the the wherefore of God's dealing, we know that there is love in and behind them, and so we can rejoice always, even when, humanly speaking, things are going wrong. We know that the true story of our life, when known will prove to be, as the hymn says, "mercy from first to last"---and we are content"); and his reminder of what will be the incredible fruit of those tough times, if we respond to them with faith ("This is the ultimate reason, from our standpoint, why God fills our lives with troubles and perplexities of one sort and another; it is to ensure that we shall learn to hold him fast") -- but you really must read the book for yourself, because I can't do it any sort of justice.

I guess if I tried to put down the summation of what I came away with, it would be this: All of the secondary things, all those good things that we/I spend so much time thinking and talking about (high moral standards, good relationships with people, our forays into history or economics or music or law or even theology) are all rubbish -- pure trash -- if they don't have as their foundation and driving-force a living, breathing, active knowledge of, and relationship with, God. We're so weak and stupid and forgetful, and we pour all our energies into "good things" and forget why we're even doing them in the first place. We don't know anything if we don't know our God. God is ultimately the only important thing.

I don't know if I'm making any sense, but Packer sums it up beautifully: "What makes life worthwhile is having a big enough objective, something which catches our imagination and lays hold of our allegiance, and this the Christian has in a way that no other person has. For what higher, more exalted, and more compelling goal can there be than to know God?"

"Thus says the LORD: 'Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.'" [Jer. 9:23-24](less)

7 likes · like · see review

Oct 17, 2007 Jacky rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian

One of the best books on describing God and how much we need to KNOW Him as a crucial aspect of our worship of Him. There is today far too much heretical teaching even within churches, disabling us from worshiping an objective truth, leading us to worship a variety of different Jesuses instead.

It is crucial for any Christian to read books like this, and familiarise themselves not just with the Bible but with a variety of systematic commentaries and test the Word day-in, day-out.

JI Packer hits sh...more

3 likes · like · see review

Mar 04, 2008 Rob rated it 3 of 5 stars

Knowing God is a modern Christian classic about the basics of Christian theology, yet it is written at a level that the public can understand. It is pastoral in tone, exhorting the believer to know God truly as He is, not as humans often misconceive. The book is especially good for someone who has never studied theology, but even the person who has will gain something.

Perhaps the most edifying portion of the book comes at the beginning, when Packer stresses the dangers of studying theology for i...more

3 likes · like · see review

Oct 14, 2012 Tung rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-seminary

I read this book almost two decades ago as a young Christian and found it fine – but I didn’t really understand why it was considered a classic work of the faith. Rereading it for a seminary class 19 years of faith later, and I finally understand its significance. Theologian J.I. Packer forcefully argues the position that the whole of our lives was created for one purpose: having a relationship with God. Packer likens our living in a world created by a sovereign God to kidnapping an Amazonian tr...more

like · see review

Apr 07, 2012 Barry Wallace rated it 5 of 5 stars

I initially bought and read Knowing God almost 35 years ago. I was a new Christian, young and ignorant; but as is true of many young people, I had no idea just how ignorant I really was.

I don't think I can adequately express how thankful I am for Packer's book. It was a Godsend to me. It taught me not simply how to approach theology, but how to approach God himself. It shaped my heart and my mind in ways that I'm certain saved me from making even more mistakes than I did in my exuberant, youthfu...more I initially bought and read Knowing God almost 35 years ago. I was a new Christian, young and ignorant; but as is true of many young people, I had no idea just how ignorant I really was.

I don't think I can adequately express how thankful I am for Packer's book. It was a Godsend to me. It taught me not simply how to approach theology, but how to approach God himself. It shaped my heart and my mind in ways that I'm certain saved me from making even more mistakes than I did in my exuberant, youthful ignorance.

We do ourselves a tremendous disservice, and our souls incalculable damage, if we casually dismiss the study of God. Or, as Packer put it in chapter one:

"Disregard the study of God, and you sentence yourself to stumble and blunder through life blindfolded, as it were, with no sense of direction and no understanding of what surrounds you. This way you can waste your life and lose your soul."

Another thing I realized was that theology was a two-edged sword--having on the one hand immense value, and on the other potentially damning dangers. Packer went on to issue a warning in that first chapter that probably needs to be trumpeted more often (and more loudly) than it is.

"If we pursue theological knowledge for its own sake, it is bound to go bad on us. It will make us proud and conceited. The very greatness of the subject matter will intoxicate us, and we shall come to think of ourselves as a cut above other Christians because of our interest in it and grasp of it; and we shall look down on those whose theological ideas seem to us crude and inadequate and dismiss them as very poor specimens. For, as Paul told the conceited Corinthians, "Knowledge puffs up.... The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know" (1 Cor 8:1-2).

"To be preoccupied with getting theological knowledge as an end in itself, to approach Bible study with no higher a motive than a desire to know all the answers, is the direct route to a state of self-satisfied self-deception."

By the grace of God my goal is to do everything in my power to avoid self-satisfied self-deception. I know I haven't always succeeded, but I have no intention of giving up the fight.

Those are just a few of the reasons that I'm thankful for Knowing God. If I could make it required reading for every new Christian, I would.(less)

3 likes · like · see review

Mar 02, 2012 Johannes Ardiant rated it 4 of 5 stars

In this book, Packer argues that knowing God is at the very core of our Christian belief. It humbles ourselves, and provide the utmost consolation to us by knowing that our entire life is in the hand of God, a Spirit infinite and eternal, unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. However we need to be aware of the danger of falling into the pitfall of just "knowing about" God.

He stresses the importance of "knowing God," not just "knowing about God." If we...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 02, 2012 Josh L rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I cannot recommend J.I. Packer’s Knowing God too highly, primarily because I have never read a book that has more practically changed my own life. No work – obviously excepting the divinely inspired Word of God – has taught me more truth, opened my eyes more often, or spurred me to love God more strongly. As the dustcover says, “J.I. Packer’s classic has revealed to over a million Christians around the world the wonder, the glory and the joy of knowing God.” I can’t think of a better, more entic...more I cannot recommend J.I. Packer’s Knowing God too highly, primarily because I have never read a book that has more practically changed my own life. No work – obviously excepting the divinely inspired Word of God – has taught me more truth, opened my eyes more often, or spurred me to love God more strongly. As the dustcover says, “J.I. Packer’s classic has revealed to over a million Christians around the world the wonder, the glory and the joy of knowing God.” I can’t think of a better, more enticing tagline to put on a book than that.

Quoted on the cover of another book is Packer’s sentiment that, “To rush to God…with no pause to realize his greatness and grace and our own sinfulness and smallness, is at once to dishonor him and to make shallow our own fellowship with him.” I believe that the true worth of Knowing God is that it leads the reader to meditate on each of those issues by sharing Dr. Packer’s own meditations on God. The book builds up God’s greatness and glorifies his grace, while it forces the reader to realize his own sinfulness and smallness in light of God’s character. In so doing, this book leads the reader to honor God rightly, thereby deepening his fellowship with the Lord.

In a chapter entitled “The Majesty of God,” Dr. Packer asks, “How may we form a right idea of God’s greatness?” His answer is that the Bible shows us the two steps we must take:

"The first is to remove from our thoughts of God limits that would make him small. The second is to compare him with powers and forces which we regard as great."

To serve this end, the author gives a stirring exhortation at the end of the chapter: “How slow we are to believe in God as God, sovereign, all-seeing and almighty! How little we make of the majesty of our Lord and Savior Christ! The need for us is to ‘wait upon the Lord’ in meditations on his majesty, till we find our strength renewed through the writing of these things upon our hearts.”

I, personally, have committed to reading this book at least once a year, because it has done more in bringing me to meditate upon God’s majesty rightly than has any other book I have read. I feel strongly that every Christian ought to read through Knowing God at least once, for Dr. Packer’s simultaneous uses of wisdom and encouragement lead the reader into a deeper knowledge of God. It seeks to drive the reader from a passive, intellectual knowledge ‘about God’ to a powerful, life-changing knowledge ‘of God.’ This book, more than any other, has taught me what it means to seek to be “knowing God.”(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 16, 2012 Mathew rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: theology

Read more reviews at www.graceforsinners.blogspot.com

Packer's writing style is fluid and devotional--which paired with the nicely with his discussion about God. Packer sums up the intent of knowing God: "No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God. . . ." (18). And later he warns:

If we pursue knowledge for its own sake, it is bound to go bad on us. It will make us proud and conceited. The very greatness of the subject matter will intoxicate us, and we sha...more

like · see review

Nov 28, 2011 Read1000books rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: christian-living

This is really a tremendous book and I truly got a lot out of it, giving it 3 stars over all. There was, however, one chapter that almost undid all the blessings I had received up to that point. It was chapter 15 entitled "The Wrath Of God". I was extremely disappointed to find that the author does not believe the orthodox Bible doctrine that the lost are consciously and eternally punished. Unlike the claim of the critics, true Christians take no glee in the reality of Hell and the Lake of Fire,...more

like · see review

Mar 17, 2010 Catherine Martin rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: to anyone who wants to go deep and truly know God

Shelves: top-ten-books

If you want to read a deep book, this is it. J.I. Packer helped me understand that the greatest thing in life is knowing God. Knowing God became my pursuit in life after reading this book many years ago. I have many favorite chapters and quotes and I read sections of this book again and again. In fact, when I go on retreats with the Lord, I always take this book with me. I especially like the edition with the study guide. There is a great definition of "meditation" in the study guide that I ofte...more

2 likes · like · see review

Jul 23, 2011 Kurt rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have finally found a work of contemporary classic Christian literature that I really enjoy. While I like the ideas of the greats like Bonhoeffer, Lewis, Piper, and others, I have never actually enjoyed the process of reading their books. Packer's book, though, is thorough without ever being repetitive, covering a variety of topics with a skillful blend of academic and compassionate insights. He weaves in long quoted hymns that really add nothing to his discussions, but they are easy to skim or...more I have finally found a work of contemporary classic Christian literature that I really enjoy. While I like the ideas of the greats like Bonhoeffer, Lewis, Piper, and others, I have never actually enjoyed the process of reading their books. Packer's book, though, is thorough without ever being repetitive, covering a variety of topics with a skillful blend of academic and compassionate insights. He weaves in long quoted hymns that really add nothing to his discussions, but they are easy to skim or skip entirely, so the harm is minimized. The book really is a tour through various aspects of who God is and what it means to follow Him, and it's something I could recommend to anyone interested in Christianity.

I was warned about chapter four before I started this book, but it still struck me as the most controversial. Packer interprets the second commandment's prohibition on images to mean that Christians should not in any way try to graphically represent God, not even with an image of Jesus on a crucifix, not even with an image in our minds as we pray. This is a big deal, and I think Packer goes a bit overboard here. It is true that no image can completely capture God's whole character, and we need to be aware of the limitations (and I'll admit, some of those limitations can be dangerous, as with liberals and conservatives who will refuse to see Jesus as the returning conquering king or the humble Galilean peasant, when in fact those are both aspects of his nature), but does that mean that Jesus was breaking a commandment when he told the parable of the prodigal son and clearly represented God as a loving father, or when he told the dramatic parable of the sheep and the goats and clearly represented Himself as a king on a throne? I appreciate Packer's enthusiasm to give God all the glory due to Him, and I agree with just about every other point that Packer makes in this book, but I think chapter four is a misfire.

I highly recommend this book. It can be exhausting to read more than two chapters in a sitting, so you may want to space it out (perhaps read a chapter or two a week and meet with a friend to discuss them), but it is worth the time and effort.(less)

like · see review

May 31, 2012 Cheri added it

Packer writes out of a deep concern for the weakness of the church. He defines this weakness as an inability to hold to the realities of the gospel. He cites two trends that have contributed to this weakness. First, Christian minds have been conformed to the modern spirit in that Christians think much of man but little of God and that those who truly seek God are leaving churches to go it alone; secondly, Christian minds have been confused by modern skepticism to the point where God’s direct and...more Packer writes out of a deep concern for the weakness of the church. He defines this weakness as an inability to hold to the realities of the gospel. He cites two trends that have contributed to this weakness. First, Christian minds have been conformed to the modern spirit in that Christians think much of man but little of God and that those who truly seek God are leaving churches to go it alone; secondly, Christian minds have been confused by modern skepticism to the point where God’s direct and complete control of his world is denied and people think in terms of total separation between religion and science (12, 13). Knowing God was originally written as a series of small studies for Evangelical Magazine (11). Ultimately the book was compiled into its present form with appended study guide to be used by lay people in local church small groups (283).

Ignorance of God, states Packer, both of his ways and how to commune with him is the root problem in today’s churches (12). Note that he is careful to make a distinction between knowing God’s ways as versus knowing how to commune with him. It is not enough just to know about God (intellectual), one must also know of God (experiential) (22, 23). He quotes Jer. 6:16 where the Lord advises the reader to “ask for the ancient paths where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls” as the invitation of his book to reclaim the Gospel. Truth about God and a return to biblical spiritual practices are the solution to ignorance. A Christian should study God just as anyone seeking to understand man would study mankind. He views knowledge about God’s ways like a roadmap to his world, without which the world can be a very confusing place (19). As an evangelical theologian and, according to his Wikipedia biography, Board of Governors Professor of Theology at Regent College (Vancouver, B.C.), this would seem a logical and indeed is quite a direct and nonsensical approach to the problem of ignorance. If you don’t know anything about a subject, study it!

Before Packer gets to the meaty part of theology, he takes care to paint a picture of what people who know God are like. He speaks of knower’s of God as people who have great energy for God, have great thoughts of God, show great boldness for God and have great contentment in God. Not only does this set the reader to aspiring to be such a person, the picture sets the reader to looking for such knower’s of God to show up in their lives. Then he outlines what is required of a person who wants to attain the status of being a knower of God and beyond that, what it means on a personal basis to be known by God!

Having set forth these enticements, Packer presents his theology starting with what could be called a general exposition of the Shema and Exodus 20:3-4 regarding God’s oneness and his stand against idolatry. With this warning in place, Packer tackles doctrines that are keystones for the Christian faith and yet can be stumbling blocks for many people, namely the Incarnation and the Trinity. Having done the hard work of explaining the Incarnation and Trinity, Packer moves to the attributes of God most likely to comfort and instill trust: immutability, majesty, wisdom, truth, love, and grace in Chapters 7-13. After dealing with the easier, more comforting attributes of God, Packer unflinchingly tackles some of the more difficult to understand attributes like the necessity for God’s judgment, his wrath, and being able to understand his goodness juxtaposed with his severity.

Having gotten through key doctrines and explained seeming contradictions in the nature of God and how he relates to humanity, Packer now holds out to the reader the greatest hope of mankind in the last book as he unfolds the doctrines of propitiation and adoption. The believer is then taught how God guides the Christian’s faith and life, warns of the falseness of thinking the Christian life is a bed of roses all the time, and ends with an acknowledgment that the pursuit of knowing God in Christ Jesus is to be pursued at all cost simply because there is nothing better in this world or the next. Knowing God in Christ grounds the Christian soul in joy even in the midst of economic ruin or natural disaster.

As a neophyte theologian, I truly don’t feel qualified to critique Packer’s theology so I will limit my comments to an area where Packer’s words addressed struggles within my own experience. Until recently, whenever I meditate on God I am usually brought to tears. I think the tears are the longing of my soul to experience true intimacy with God: I see myself as such a sinner I cannot even exclaim, as Isaiah did, “Woe unto me for I am undone; for I am a human of unclean lips.” I dare not come close to the throne of God though my heart and soul longs for it with every breath. I have been stuck in an Old Testament concept of God, seeing only the need for whispering “Holy, Holy, Holy” from afar. I long for the “rest” that coming close to God brings.

When I read Packer’s chapter on adoption I dared to think of God in more intimate terms and found that the new –to-me stance before God relieved me of fears that I must experience some magical type of supernaturalism before any ministry efforts would be blessed by God. I began to think of what I do as “the family business” and began to address God with a more familiar feeling. My idea of God as Father has become more intimate and genuine. I rest in his love, secure as his child. Now perhaps my tears will be tears of joy that I am his daughter.

From my own personal experience I can say that Packer’s goal of educating the ignorance of my mind was accomplished. And not just in the one instance quoted above. I will continue to reread Packer’s book and possibly teach it because his rare understanding of what order to present and which doctrines to present to help believers mature provides a guideline for discipleship.
My prayer for myself and for any who read J. I. Packer’s Knowing God would be the echo of Hab. 3:17-19. May we all become joyful people who can say “yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength” and mean every word as Packer hoped as well.

(less)

like · see review

Mar 29, 2009 John rated it 3 of 5 stars

I keep thinking that if I just paid closer attention, I'd get a lot more out of "Knowing God." It's not as if Packer uses a lot of big words. But "Knowing God" is maybe a little too theological for me. Books that are more or less of this genre that seem to be more effective for me include C.S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity" and Charles Colson's "Loving God."
But there is much to appreciate about "Knowing God." Packer relentlessly leads us to an understanding of the God revealed in the Bible, as oppo...more

like · see review

Jun 26, 2009 Shelley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: christianity, theology, non-fiction, favorites

Now I understand why this book is often hailed as a "Christian classic."

Theologically robust and faithful to both the Old and New Testaments, this text, originally published as a series of articles, covers a wide spectrum of biblical topics, ranging from God's justice and wrath, to His grace, to the trinity, to predestination, to adoption - all with the goal of helping readers who are "fed up with facile Christian verbiage" gain a deeper and fuller understanding of the God of the Bible.

This bo...more

3 likes · like · see review

Jun 06, 2010 Kelly Belvis rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-interest

The final 42 pages of 'Knowing God' had a profound effect on me. It was one of those instances where you are reading something at the precise moment when you are experiencing it's topic. The best advice for me from these pages: "Think against your feelings, argue yourself out of the gloom they have spread; unmask the unbelief they have nourished; take yourself in hand, talk to yourself, make yourself look up from your problems to the God of the gospel; let evanelical thinking correct emotional t...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 03, 2012 Brendan rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: theology, nonfiction

Knowing God was a good book. A quick read, but it is still a goldmine of theology; Packer does a great job at condensing a "systematic" theology into a 279 page book. It starts on epistemological ground-the need to know God, and how we must know something about God in order to know him, and Packer moves swiftly throughout the rest to show that God is the One who reveals. The best part of this book was the last chapter on the book of Romans. I found myself blanking out during the middle portion (...more

like · see review

Feb 25, 2010 Brandy Painter rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: theology

This book is too big to completely convey the essence of in one short review. I mean, look at the title. That's a pretty big subject to cover in one book. Yet J.I. Packer does a remarkable job with it. He begins by discussing the difference between knowing about God and actually knowing God. He is working on the premise that Christians can claim the former but few can truly claim the latter. The book goes on to discuss various attributes of God, misconceptions Christians have about Him and the t...more

like · see review

Feb 09, 2010 Shep rated it 3 of 5 stars

Overall, “Knowing God” is a tremendously helpful resource. Christians who are new to the faith should especially pick it up and read it and meditate on it. More mature, theologically sound Christians would also do well to read the whole book through once and then reread the first part on occasion just to keep their theological studies in the proper perspective. The book will be misused if Christians simply read it and leave that as the extent of their theological studies; the book is not to be a...more

like · see review

Mar 17, 2013 Abigail Hartman rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: christianity

An excellent work that I really should have read much sooner. Packer, in the pointed style of many solidly theological British authors before him, carries the reader through the nature of the Triune God; the attributes or perfections of God; and the work of God through justification, sanctification and glorification. I particularly appreciated his emphasis (certainly not excessive or unbalanced) on the work of the Holy Spirit, frequently overlooked, and on the gift of adoption and its implicatio...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 06, 2012 Patrick rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I started reading this book I expected to exercise my mind. This book ended up doing so much more than that. No other book has ever challenged me the way this book did. It exercised my mind but also my heart. By studying the attributes of God it becomes impossible to not be totally and completely amazed by Him.

J.I. Packer is a very intelligent man who also has such a heart for God. He continually reminds the reader to not just know ABOUT God, but to also know Him in a way where we are in a...more

2 likes · like · see review

Jun 03, 2011 Eric rated it 3 of 5 stars

Just read chapters 15-18; Dr. Packer in chapters 15, 18, and 19 in Knowing God, writes about the wrath of God, propitiation, and adoption through Christ. He emphasizes the importance of rightly understanding each, so that we may know God more. His chapter on the wrath of God shows God as just and we greatly deserve His wrath. In his chapter on propitiation, Dr. Packer talks about expiation only being half of what Christ did, and that propitiation also settles the wrath of God. In the next chapte...more

like · see review

May 30, 2010 Brian rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: doctines-of-grace, christian, doctine-of-god

From a calvinist position, by a man who is revered in the Christian community. A foundational work.

This mans introductions to other christian books could fill many volumes. The insight here into the Character of God makes it worth exploring. I bought this book as a young Christian and never read it because it seemed to deep. Well, it is, but many years later I forced myself to read it and nothing else till I was finished. I was blessed by the information within. Do yourself a favor and leave it...more

like · see review

May 08, 2013 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian, non-fiction, books-every-christian-should-read, books-i-own

If, like me, you were raised going to a Christian church, reading the Bible, and participating in Bible studies, you might think you know all there is to know about God. But the goal of the Christian shouldn't be merely to know about God. We must realize, first, how little we know God and secondly, why it's important to do so. In "Knowing God," Packer stresses the importance of really understanding who God is and attempts to excite and motivate the Christian to strive towards knowing Him better....more If, like me, you were raised going to a Christian church, reading the Bible, and participating in Bible studies, you might think you know all there is to know about God. But the goal of the Christian shouldn't be merely to know about God. We must realize, first, how little we know God and secondly, why it's important to do so. In "Knowing God," Packer stresses the importance of really understanding who God is and attempts to excite and motivate the Christian to strive towards knowing Him better. Theology is often downplayed and seems to receive little attention in many churches these days. But every professing Christian should have as a lifelong pursuit the subject of theology, which is simply the study of God. And as a student of God's Word, Packer says, the Christian must ask himself, "What do I intend to do with my knowledge about God, once I have got it?" Packer points out that one may know a lot about God and godliness, and still hardly know Him.

Possessing a true knowledge of God will have an effect on and be evident in a person's life. Packer names four things that will be the result of knowing God: Great energy for God, Great thoughts of God, Great boldness for God, and Great contentment in God.

In order to really know God, He has to speak to us and teach us about Himself. We must come to know God as He revealed Himself to the prophets and apostles as given to us in the Scriptures. The Westminster Catechism tells us, "The scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man."

With this in mind, Packer discusses why it is important to know who God, what God is like, and God's relationship with and actions towards man. Packer discusses and explains the important doctrinal concepts of propitiation, regeneration, justification, and adoption doctrines of Christianity that set it apart from all other religions and belief systems.

A favorite quote of mine from the book is this one:

"To be right with God the judge is a great thing, but to be loved and cared for by God the father is a greater...We do not fully feel the wonder of the passage from death to life which takes place in the new birth till we see it as a transition not simply out of condemnation into acceptance, but out of bondage and destitution into the 'safety, certainty, and enjoyment' of the family of God."

Packer ends his book with a chapter on the adequacy of God. He expands on the ideas that God is adequate as our sovereign protector, benefactor, champion, and keeper. To the person who has come to trust Christ as his Savior and who has come into a personal relationship with God, He is all these things and more, and we need no other beside Him.

For a more thorough discussion of this book, visit my blog: ImAllBooked.com
(less)

1 like · like · see review

Sep 24, 2012 Raychris8901 rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

Jun 07, 2012 Hao Guang rated it 5 of 5 stars

Finally finished this; although I don't feel qualified to give a review I think I still ought to. The reputation of Knowing God (and indeed J. I. Packer) precedes itself, and although I tried not to, I dug into it with great expectations. Packer writes beautiful academic prose, both strong and supple enough for the Christian of average bible knowledge and reading skills to grasp the picture of God he paints. This picture runs the theological gamut from sovereignty to wisdom to Fatherhood to suff...more Finally finished this; although I don't feel qualified to give a review I think I still ought to. The reputation of Knowing God (and indeed J. I. Packer) precedes itself, and although I tried not to, I dug into it with great expectations. Packer writes beautiful academic prose, both strong and supple enough for the Christian of average bible knowledge and reading skills to grasp the picture of God he paints. This picture runs the theological gamut from sovereignty to wisdom to Fatherhood to sufficiency, and there really is no point for me to poorly replicate his arguments here. I agree with much of what he says and implies, but not all of it.

One of the things which stuck me as being far too iconoclastic is Packer's belief that using any image of God in worship is tantamount to idolatry. He rightly points out that any image of God is necessarily limited, but goes on to say that using these limited devices is unacceptable worship. As I suggested in the above paragraph, Packer paints pictures with his words too, even though he might not know it and might disagree. Words are no more adequate than images when it comes to encompassing the Christian God who is supposed to be infinite. Yes, we have revelations of Him through scripture, and this picture of God is adequate for His purposes for man. And to use inferior representations of God is not the best way to please HIm. But to believe that it is idolatrous to use images in worship is akin to saying that it is idolatrous to sing anything other than the most theologically rich and sound hymns. Simply speaking, Packer defines idolatry in a manner that I believe is inconsistent with his views on grace (as freeing us from legalism) and with man's God-given, inferior, creativity in the realm of worship.

But what do I know? My only other quibble is that he treats Roman Catholics with diffidence bordering on disrespect, tarring them all with the Romanist brush. Otherwise, this is a truly awesome book, a treatise that surely places Packer among the ranks of latter-day Pauls, and a great encouragement and affirmation for Christians who have nagging doubts about the God they worship.(less)

like · see review

Feb 02, 2012 Travis rated it 5 of 5 stars

Knowing God by J. I. Packer is one of those books that is often recommended as a modern classic, and for good reason. In what is often considered Packer’s signature work, he helps believers to understand several important attributes of God. Unlike some other authors, Packer is not writing about God’s attributes to merely fill our heads with theological concepts, but is instead challenging believers to allow their understanding of the person of God to lead them to greater devotion and holiness.

...more

like · see review

Jun 23, 2012 Christopher M. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Some books that are hyped up by everyone turn out to disappoint. Knowing God probably exceeded my expectations. I don't remember ever taking so many notes on a book (that wasn't for a class), and usually that's a good gauge of how much I enjoyed it.

Packer does a fabulous job of nailing the "highlights" of how we know God, what it looks like to know God, who God is, and how God relates to his people. It's not really a book about the attributes of God (though he does emphasize some), or a book on...more

like · see review

Jan 10, 2012 Alexis Neal rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion, audio

This. Book. Rocks. Solid, dense, and hard-hitting, Packer presents the reader with a crash course on Christian theology. He starts with the importance of knowing God, then introduces the three persons of the Trinity. From there, he walks through the attributes of God and then clearly, thoroughly, and repeatedly explains the gospel and its effect on the lives of Christians. The end result is both deeply convicting and extremely encouraging.

Packer is particularly focused on the gospel as adoption...more This. Book. Rocks. Solid, dense, and hard-hitting, Packer presents the reader with a crash course on Christian theology. He starts with the importance of knowing God, then introduces the three persons of the Trinity. From there, he walks through the attributes of God and then clearly, thoroughly, and repeatedly explains the gospel and its effect on the lives of Christians. The end result is both deeply convicting and extremely encouraging.

Packer is particularly focused on the gospel as adoption--that is, that Christians are not only justified before God and saved from the wrath their sins deserve, but that we have been brought into an intimate relationship with God through the blood of His Son. I was particularly encouraged by this aspect of the book, as I can sometimes forget the personal and relational nature of salvation. It is all well and good to know that your sins have been forgiven, but to be welcomed into a holy family is a different experience altogether. This kind of immutable acceptance and affection is what ultimately breeds love in us toward God, and it is a useful lens through which we can rightly perceive hardship, suffering, and doubt.

Honestly, I cannot recommend this book highly enough--for the young and old in the faith alike. Packer's writing is clear, and he speaks with gentle and straightforward authority about some extremely complex issues. Still, the book is simple enough to be understood by newer Christians, yet substantive enough that I suspect even spiritual giants would benefit from its wisdom. Be warned, however: there's so much here it's almost impossible to glean it all in one go. Fortunately, the book improves on re-reading--I discovered things I missed the first few times around and was blessedly reminded of things I noticed before but had sadly forgotten.

If you haven't read this book, read it. You will not regret it. And if reading isn't really your thing, the audiobook version, read by Simon Vance, is quite good. Vance's slower reading pace allows for maximum absorption of the meaty text, and his British accent helps focus the wandering mind. (less)

like · see review

May 04, 2011 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: christianity, own, 2011

A very articulate and thorough overview of the ways in which God has revealed Himself through Scripture. I read this as part of a book study and the questions were good in pulling out the key points of each chapter.

Favorite quotes:

...there can be no spiritual health without doctrinal knowledge; but it is equally true that there can be no spiritual health with it, if it is sought for the wrong purpose and valued by the wrong standard.

The words of human beings are unstable things. But not so the w...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Reformed Readers: * Knowing God - May BOTM	2	10	May 19, 2013 02:05pm
Christian Apologe...: Do we make God in our personal image?	20	22	Apr 11, 2013 10:17pm
Godly Walk	2	28	Sep 05, 2008 04:18am

combine
Other Editions (20)

More editions...

Genres

Religion > Theology

254 users

Christian

187 users

Religion > Christianity

81 users

Non Fiction

49 users

Religion

35 users

Religion > Faith

28 users

Spirituality

20 users

Classics

12 users

Religion > God

9 users

Philosophy

5 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About J.I. Packer

What do J. I. Packer, Billy Graham and Richard John Neuhaus have in common? Each was recently named by TIME magazine as among the 25 most influential evangelicals in America.

Dr. Packer, the Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College, was hailed by TIME as “a doctrinal Solomon” among Protestants. “Mediating debates on everything from a particular Bible translation to the acceptabi...more

More about J.I. Packer...

Books by J.I. Packer

In My Place Condemned He Stood: Celebrating the Glory of the Atonement

Keep in Step with the Spirit: Finding Fullness in Our Walk with God

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Knowing God

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Knowing God

“Your faith will not fail while God sustains it; you are not strong enough to fall away while God is resolved to hold you.” — 58 people liked it

“Wait on the Lord" is a constant refrain in the Psalms, and it is a necessary word, for God often keeps us waiting. He is not in such a hurry as we are, and it is not his way to give more light on the future than we need for action in the present, or to guide us more than one step at a time. When in doubt, do nothing, but continue to wait on God. When action is needed, light will come.” — 41 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Knowing God
avg rating	preview: Knowing God Goodreads rating: 4.24 (10622 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/139855.Knowing_God?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348545196l/139855.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/139855.Knowing_God?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Knowing God by J.I. Packer[/url]

Knowing God

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website