How old is God?

TL;DR:

God has no age because He is eternal. God always was, is, and will be.

Though human life is measured in time, God is eternal. He has always existed. That means He is ageless. Though we cannot wrap our minds around that, Scripture teaches that God is not a created being with a beginning or end but the eternal Creator of all things, including time itself (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 90:2). God’s age cannot be measured because He has no origin. He is “from everlasting to everlasting,” and His years have no end (Psalm 90:2; Isaiah 40;28).

Scripture indicates that the difference between our concept of time and God’s provokes some people to foolishly doubt Jesus’ Second Coming because it is taking so “long” in human terms (2 Peter 3:4-8). But Jesus has promised to come and will come (John 14:2-3; Acts 1:10-11; Revelation 22:12). Until then, as we wait for our timeless Lord to take us into eternity, we’re to be faithful and fruitful.

from the old testament

Moses prays, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Psalm 90:2). Moses is saying that before creation began to exist, God eternally existed.
Likewise, Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” The phrase, “in the beginning” implies that time began with creation. This means that God existed even before time existed.
God’s eternality is confirmed when the LORD revealed Himself to Moses: “I AM WHO I AM …. This is my name forever” (Exodus 3:14-15). This designation set God apart from all the foreign gods the people knew. The statement “I AM” comes from a Hebrew “being” verb. English uses “being” verbs to explain a past, current, or future state. God, however, used a “being” verb as His name without any qualification. That is, He always … is. It’s a declaration of His self-existent, eternal, self-sufficient, self-directed, and unchanging nature. God always was, is, and will be.
Isaiah proclaims that “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary” (Isaiah 40:28). God’s eternal nature is connected to His inexhaustible power. Despite all that God does, He never gets tired because He is self-sustaining. Simply put: He never gets old.
Psalm 102:25-27 says that everything except for God wears out. Because He is eternal, He has no beginning or end and, thus, is timeless.

from the new testament

John opens his Gospel by declaring, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). In an intentional allusion to Genesis 1:1, John was saying that Christ is fully God and that His eternal existence affirms that God did not have a beginning.
Jesus, Himself, alluded to Exodus 3:14, saying, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). The Jews understood what Jesus was saying, which is why “they picked up stones to throw at Him” (John 8:59a). They did not believe Jesus was God, so they prepared to stone Him to death because in their minds, He had blasphemed. Their attempted murder proved that they understood the significance of Jesus’ “I am” statement.
Paul praised God, saying, “To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever” (1 Timothy 1:17). He was saying that God is the king over time (ages) and immortal, meaning that time is in submission to God rather than the other way around.
Paul also noted that creation declares that there is an eternal Creator (Romans 1:20).
Peter reminded believers that “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8). For an eternal God, time is nothing.
The Book of Revelation repeatedly calls God the “Alpha and the Omega,” the one “who is and who was and who is to come” (Revelation 1:8). He encompasses all time while being subjected to none of it.

implications for today

Because God has no age and is eternal, He existed before anything existed. In fact, He created everything that is (John 1:1-3). This means that everything from truth to logic to love to even time is all defined by God since He is the source of them all. That means that He, alone, deserves all glory and honor (Revelation 4:11).

This also means that He is self-existent, needing nothing outside of Himself to continue to exist. He was perfectly satisfied within Himself for all eternity. We do not add to God or complete Him. This means that He created us, placed us over the rest of His creation, and personally cares—- an unfathomable display of love (Psalm 8).

Being eternal also gives us assurance because it means that His state never changes. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Revelation 1:8). This means that we can trust in His promises and character. It also means that He is perfect. We can be assured that He will not change. Instead, He is the same holy, gracious, merciful, just, and good God that He was in eternity past. He will also be the same in eternity future. We never have to guess if God will love us less or change who He is. That is reassuring, indeed!

understand

God is eternal and uncreated.
God is unchanging and self-existent, unbound by anything, including time.
Because He never changes, we can trust God’s promises, character, and love forever.

reflect

How does knowing that God has no beginning or end shape the way you view Him?
In what ways are you tempted to measure God by human standards of time, and how might that limit your trust in Him?
How can God's unchanging nature bring you peace in a world that constantly shifts and wears out?

engage

What are some ways the eternal nature of God challenges or strengthens our understanding of time, creation, and purpose?
How does the name “I AM” set God apart from everything else we experience or are tempted to worship in this world?
What impact does it have on our faith and relationships with God to know that His character and promises remain the same forever?