The Holiness of God: Set Apart and Pure

Of all God's attributes, holiness is the one Scripture emphasises perhaps most emphatically — the angels cry it endlessly before his throne. Here's what it means that God is holy, and why it matters.

Set apart and pure

To be holy means to be set apart, utterly distinct, and morally pure. God is holy in that he is completely separate from all evil and infinitely above his creation. There is no flaw, no shadow, no compromise in him. His holiness is his blazing purity and majesty.

'Holy, holy, holy'

In Isaiah's vision, the angels never stop declaring, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts.' The threefold repetition is the Bible's way of expressing the superlative — God's holiness is beyond compare. It's the attribute heaven dwells on forever.

Called to be holy

God calls his people to reflect his holiness: 'Be ye holy; for I am holy.' This means being set apart for God and pursuing purity of life. Not to earn his love, but as those who belong to a holy God and want to be like him.

Holiness and grace together

God's holiness makes his grace all the more amazing. Because he is holy, our sin is serious and separates us from him — and yet, in Christ, the holy God made a way to bring sinners near. His holiness and his love meet at the cross.

The holiness of God means he is set apart, utterly pure, and infinitely above us — the attribute the angels praise without ceasing. It reveals the seriousness of sin and the wonder of grace, and it calls us to be holy as he is holy. To glimpse God's holiness is to be filled with awe — and to marvel that such a God would draw near to us in love.