The God who Sees

7.9 Billon = current world population.

108 Billion = estimated world population throughout history.

Billions upon billions. It is easy to feel lost in that number. How can God know me personally? Sometimes, I feel as though I’m just a number to God. Just another person in the billions of people. We aren’t alone in that feeling. Hagar experienced that feeling acutely.

Not able to bear children and unwilling to wait for the Lord, Sarai convinced Abram to take Hagar, her maidservant, as his concubine to sire a son. Then much to Sarai’s chagrin, Hagar did in fact conceive a child with Abram. Sarai despised her for it. Filled with jealousy and anger, Sarai complained to Abram that God was punishing her for her decision to give him Hagar. Instead of telling Sarai to be kind to Hagar (since it was Sarai who initially concocted this idea) and accept the realities of the decision they both had made, Abram told Sarai she could do with Hagar how she wanted. With the permission of her husband, Sarai dealt treacherously with Hagar. Hagar, pregnant with Abram’s child and a servant of Sarai for over 10 years, was treated so harshly she fled in the wilderness and no one came to help her. Alone, abandoned, and forsaken, a pregnant Hagar wandered and cried out to God. It is then that an Angel of the Lord appeared to her and promised her that if she would return and submit again to Sarai, the Lord would take care of her. In response to her conversation with the Angel, Hagar declared:

El-Roi. The God Who Sees Me.

Hagar returned and God kept His promise. She bore a son, Ishmael, and God protected them both. God saw Hagar. He saw what Abram and Sarai had done to her. How they had used her, treated her, and forsook her. He heard her cries in the wilderness as she fled Sarai. Alone, scared, and upset, Hagar believed no one saw her suffering. No one cared. But God heard her. God saw her.

The conversation between Jesus and Nathanael in John 1 demonstrates the same concept. When Jesus saw Nathanael walking toward him, he called out “Behold, an Israelite indeed in whom is no deceit!” To which Nathanael appropriately questions, “Do you know me?” Jesus then tells Nathanael “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” (John 1:48). Jesus knew Nathanael before He ever met him. We have no idea what Nathanael was doing under the fig tree or why he had been there, but Jesus did. Not only did he see Nathanael under the fig tree but he saw him. He knew Nathanael “A man without deceit.” He knew who Nathanael was – his core being and defining trait – honesty. That was all into took for Nathanael to know Jesus was the Lord. He proclaims, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God, the KING of Israel.” Nathanael looked at Jesus and knew – God saw him. It was all it took to be seen by God for Nathanael to forsake everything else in this world and follow the Lord. Jesus even comments on his belief, “Because I’ve said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” All it took for Nathanael was to be seen under a tree. God saw him.

Truthfully, we have all felt unseen and misunderstood in our lives. Between the faces we put on for our families, friends, strangers, and coworkers & the demands of this physical life, it is easy to feel like we are never really seen. We cry out to God like Hagar or the Psalmist in Psalm 102:

Hear my prayer, O Lord,
And let my cry come to You.
Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble;
Incline Your ear to me;
In the day that I call, answer me speedily.

We often wonder if God is really there. Does He really see me? But Hagar and Nathanael’s stories show us – God does in fact see us. The creator of the universe, JEHOVAH GOD, knows each and every one of us. He knows us personally. God knows my name, my dreams, my hopes, my sorrows, my fears, my secrets, and my worries.

God’s knowledge of my existence may seem like a small detail considering He is God and He made the universe but it isn’t. He knows each one of us personally. When we feel alone or believe that no one truly understands us in this crowded, busy, and often cruel world, all we need to do is stop and remind ourselves that there is always someone who knows and cares about us. One of my favorite Bible verses tells us not only does God knows us personally, but He cares about us so much He decided to save us. “But now, thus says the Lord God, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name; You are mine.” Isaiah (43:1)

God calls us by our own names. He sees into our innermost hearts and knows us in a way no one else in this world can possibly ever know us. So, when we feel alone, misunderstood, and as a small fish in the giant ocean of people that is this world, Remember: God has called you by name, and no matter who you are or what you’ve done or what’s been done to you or where you are or where you’re going God is El-Roi and He sees you.