What Is Peace That Passes All Understanding?
He leads me …
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7 NKJV)
This phrase is often used when we want to bless someone, especially if they are going through a tough time. But do we know what the blessing means? After all it passes all understanding.
Let us start by going back to the Greek origin. We will begin with the word passes. It is the Greek word huperecho, which is made up of the words huper and echo. The word huper gives the meaning of something that is way beyond measure.
So in Philippians 4:7, Paul is saying that the peace of God completely transcends, any other kind of peace.
Now let us look at the word understanding. In the Greek it is the word nous, meaning the mind. This word refers to the ability to think, reason, and understand, as well being the source of all human emotions. In other words it is a person’s central control centre.
Then we move on to the part that says ‘…shall keep your hearts and minds….’ The word keep is the Greek word phroureo. This word is a military term like soldiers at their post at the city gates making sure that no one entered or exited the city without their approval.
The apostle Paul says that this word phroureo clearly tells us that if God’s peace is at work in our lives, it will act like a guard to control and monitor everything that tries to enter our minds and hearts without its approval!
When we put all this together we could read Philippians 4:7 like this –
“And the peace of God — a peace that stands in a category by itself and rises far above and goes beyond anything the human mind could ever think, reason, imagine, or produce by itself — will stand at the entrance of your heart and mind, working like a guard to control and monitor everything that tries to access it through Christ Jesus.”[1]
Peace that passes understanding goes beyond just a feeling. It is actually a solid confidence and faith in God that allows us to say –
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul
"It Is Well With My Soul" is a hymn penned by hymnist Horatio Spafford and composed by Philip Bliss.
[1] Thanks to - https://renner.org/peace-that-passes-understanding/
