I translate the phrase as "all of the words," but all the approved English translations write "every word."

Humanity lives by "all of the words" from the mouth of God. This remark silences Satan, so it must have serious power behind it. If we can't see that power & instead only see a platitude, we must be reading it wrong.

So let's start with a simple question: "What are all the words of God?" A thorough answer will help us appreciate the power in Christ's response.

The first Word of God is the Second Person of the Trinity, The Son. The Son is incarnate as Jesus Christ but exists eternally with the Father & the Holy Spirit.

In the original Greek New Testament, Christ is repeatedly called the λογος, which means "The Word" in English. The Greek speakers in the Early Church loved to call Christ "λογος του θεου."

In English, that means "the Word of God." The Church calls Christ "The Word of God" because it's a biblical name for Him.

The first thing Saint John does in his Gospel is name Christ the "Word of God":

Near the end of his life, Saint John again calls Christ the Word of God. John has a mystical vision and sees Christ leading an army from heaven:

"his name is The Word of God." (Revelation 19:13)

Psalm 33:6 mentions the Word of God:

"By the word (λογω) of the LORD were the heavens made, and all creatures by the breath of His mouth."

King David, the author of the psalm, couldn't have known about Christ or the Trinity. It was not until a century after Christ's Ascension that the Early Church realized the psalm was about Christ.

Now you might be wondering why the biblical authors chose this name in particular for Christ. It's a good question, and the answer needs a whole blog series.

The short answer: Greek philosophers & Jewish prophets searched for a divine "word" since the beginning of recorded history. Both Greeks and Jews believed that the divine Word is the cause of the entire universe.

The Bible is a collection of sayings from the Word of God, His prophets, & His witnesses. Christ hasn't walked the Earth for nearly two millennia, yet we still have access to eyewitness Gospel accounts about Him.

The Old Testament history, laws, and prophets provide additional information about Him, and the New Testament Epistles give even more.

The Bible is vital for any authentic Christian practice. People in every generation have spent their lives pouring over the Scriptures. Yet the Scriptures continue providing new wisdom & continue transforming lives. Most books lose their appeal after the first read.

The Orthodox lectionary completes the Bible in a year, & the Catholic lectionary completes the Bible in 2 years. We have been reading the Bible non-stop through recorded history & wisdom continues flowing out of the pages. That alone should be an argument for Orthodox Christianity.

The Scriptures are essential, and they are words of God, but they aren't the only words of God. I'm not saying there's some secret holy book that the Church conspired to keep from the public. There isn't. People who say otherwise are wrong. Avoid them.

The Scriptures contain the words of God that are expressible in human language. However, most of God's words can't be spoken or written into human language because most of God's words are living things.

The Word creates all things (John 1:2-3) & all things live & move & exist in The Word (Saint Paul in Acts 17:28).

If the Word sustains creation, then the Church concludes that creation reveals The Word. We can learn about the Creator through Creation.

The Word creates words, & those words are living things. The Big Word is revealed in His little words.

The Early Church loved to meditate on Christ as the Word who sings creation. Early saints saw each creature as words sung by the Word. Over time, their meditations brought them to the conclusion that God must be a Trinity.

Creation is a constant effort. Creation is not a single event finished 13.8 billion years ago. The Word is continuously at work in every human, snake, & worm as you read this.

God holds the nature of every creature in Himself. All creatures depend on God to "breathe out" life to them at every moment.

Creation is a continuous action. Nothing can exist for a single moment without God giving it existence.

You might imagine creation in a few different ways. You can say God breathes life into creation or that God is bleeding into creation.

Or you can say God sings creation to life. Imagine it however you like, as long as you imagine God in continual action.

Satan suggested Christ support Himself through His own power by making artificial bread. Christ responded that man lives "not by bread, but by all the words that proceed from the mouth of God."

All God's words demonstrate God's unfailing commitment, and Christ invoked all these words to testify. Christ was meditating on the highest truths: God's Nature, Christ's Nature, and God's creation of nature.

All reality is a testament to God's unfailing commitment, what we also call His grace. Christ didn't silence the Lord of Pride with a platitude. He silenced Satan by observing God's graces all around them, the graces without which Satan himself wouldn't exist to challenge God.

Now we understand what "all the Words of God" are. In the next post, I'll explain why Satan suggested turning stones into bread and why declaring God's unfailing commitment was the proper response. How do all the Words of God have the power to silence the Lord of Pride?

Read Part 2 here