The Westminster Confession of Faith (Chapter 2, Sections 1–2) presents a comprehensive portrait of the divine attributes, drawn from Scripture's own self-disclosure. These attributes are not arbitrary predicates attached to a generic deity but necessary expressions of God's self-existent being.
WCF 2.1 declares that there is "but one only, living, and true God" — a direct echo of the Shema (Deut 6:4) and Jesus' own confession (John 17:3). This God is:
God is immutable, immense, and eternal — He does not change (Mal 3:6, James 1:17), is not bounded by space (1 Kings 8:27), and transcends all temporal succession (Ps 90:2). This stands in sharp contrast to every creature, which exists in time and is subject to constant change. God's immutability is the foundation of the believer's security: His covenant promises cannot be altered because His character cannot change.
The Divines confess God as almighty (omnipotent), most wise (omniscient), most holy, most free, and most absolute. These attributes belong to God alone and are not shared with creatures in the same mode. God's power is exercised according to His will; His wisdom is unsearchable (Rom 11:33); His holiness is the pattern and standard for all creaturely holiness.
The Confession moves from God's majesty to His moral character: most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin (Ex 34:6-7). These attributes are not in tension with His justice but are displayed together in the work of redemption. The same God who is "most just and terrible in his judgments, hating all sin" is the God who "will by no means clear the guilty" — yet provides atonement through Christ.
WCF 2.2 unfolds God's aseity (self-existence): God "hath all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself" and "is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creatures." This is grounded in Scripture's own claims — the Father "hath life in himself" (John 5:26), and God is not served by human hands "as though he needed any thing" (Acts 17:24-25). ^[raw/en/wcf-ch02-s02.md]
The doctrine of aseity is the death of every form of works-righteousness: God does not need our worship, though He commands it for our good. As the Puritan Thomas Watson wrote, "God is the fountain that is never drawn dry."
Because God is the alone fountain of all being, He has "most sovereign dominion" over all creatures. His knowledge is "infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature" — nothing is contingent or uncertain to Him. This exhaustive knowledge grounds the eternal decree, for God knows all things because He has ordained them.
The Confession closes its treatment of God's attributes with a call to worship: "To him is due from angels and men, and every other creature, whatsoever worship, service, or obedience he is pleased to require of them" (cf. Rev 4:11, Rev 5:12). The regulative principle of worship flows from this: God alone determines how He is to be worshipped.
The Reformed tradition distinguishes between: - Incommunicable attributes — those God does not share with creatures (simplicity, immutability, infinity, eternity) - Communicable attributes — those reflected in creatures, especially humans (knowledge, righteousness, holiness, love, goodness)
Both categories find their unity in the person and work of Christ, who is "the express image of [God's] person" (Heb 1:3).