The 'secret things' are truths and purposes God has not yet revealed; they belong to Him alone until He chooses to make them known.
Deuteronomy 29:29 says the secret things belong unto the Lord our God, while the things that are revealed belong to us and our children. Les Feldick explains that God is sovereign and has the right to keep things secret until His chosen time. Once God reveals something, it is no longer a secret, and the people who receive it are responsible to believe it.
Deuteronomy 29:29 — This is the verse in question; it states that secret things belong to God while revealed things are given to His people.
In Deuteronomy 29:29, Moses tells Israel, The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law. The verse makes a clear distinction between what God keeps hidden and what He discloses. It does not list the contents of the secret things; it simply declares that they belong to God. The revealed matters are given to the people and to their children so they can obey all the words of this law.
Les Feldick calls Deuteronomy 29:29 a foundational verse for understanding how God reveals truth. He says it shows God's prerogative to keep things secret, and that God does not have to reveal anything until He is ready. The Lord keeps things secret until He releases them; once a secret is revealed, it is no longer a secret. When God reveals truth, He expects people to believe and live by it. Les also points out that Moses was speaking to the children of Israel, but the principle is not limited to Israel. God has used the same pattern throughout history, even revealing the Pauline doctrine after keeping it secret until His appointed time.
Les teaches that Deuteronomy 29:29 reveals an attribute of God: He is sovereign and has the right and ability to keep things secret. God does not have to reveal everything all at once; He reveals things at the right time. This is why the secret things belong to the Lord. As Les puts it, God is sovereign and the Creator of everything, so the secret things belong to Him.
When God reveals a secret, it is no longer a secret. Les points out that the revealed things belong to us and to our children forever, and God expects those who receive the revelation to believe it. Moses was speaking to Israel, but when God reveals anything to people, they become responsible to trust and live by it.
Although Moses wrote to the children of Israel, Les says the passage is not limited to them. God's pattern of keeping things secret until His chosen time applies to every generation. He also notes that the same principle applies today; God kept parts of His plan secret and then revealed them, including the Pauline doctrine.
Les explains that God does not reveal everything all at once. Instead, God reveals truth at the right time. People may ask why they did not understand something earlier, and Les says the answer is simply that it was not God's time. God opens hearts and spiritual understanding in His own time.
God's Timing in Opening Hearts
Les explains that people may not grasp a truth until God opens their hearts; the timing belongs to God, not man.
God's Prerogative to Keep Secrets
Les uses Deuteronomy 29:29 to show that God has the right to keep things secret and does not reveal everything until He is ready.
Same Principle Today
Les says the same principle from Deuteronomy 29:29 applies today; the Pauline doctrine was something God kept secret until He revealed it.
Revealed Secrets Are No Longer Secrets
Les explains that when a secret is revealed, it is no longer a secret; the revealed things belong to us and to our children.
God Expects Belief When He Reveals
Les stresses that God is sovereign and keeps things secret until He reveals them, and then He expects mankind to believe.
Revealed Truth Is to Be Believed
When God revealed the Law, tabernacle worship, and civil law to Israel, those things were no longer secret; He expected Israel to believe and live by them.
Secret Things Belong to the Sovereign Creator
Les says the secret things belong to the Lord because He is sovereign and the Creator of everything; God kept some revelations secret from the beginning.
Responsibility of Those Who Receive Revelation
Moses addressed Israel, but Les says the principle is not limited to Israel; whoever God reveals something to becomes responsible to believe it.
Deuteronomy 29:29: The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.
This is the passage Les uses to explain that God keeps certain matters secret until He reveals them.
The 'secret things' are what God has not yet revealed. They belong to the Lord because He is sovereign, and He is not obligated to reveal them until His time. The verse contrasts these hidden things with revealed things, which belong to us and our children.
Moses is speaking directly to the children of Israel, so 'us' refers primarily to Israel. Les also says the meaning is not limited to Israel; whenever God reveals something to anyone, they become responsible to believe and respond.
Because once the Law was revealed, it was no longer a secret. God made it known to Israel and expected them to believe and live by it. The verse connects revealed truth with responsibility.
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