How do you leave the presence of an omnipresent god?

Question

Genesis 4:16 Cain left the presence of Yahweh and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

Yes, I know what omnipresence means.

Yes, I know that Cain left the presence of God, not the other way around.

That is not what I am asking.

I am asking, how do you leave the presence of an omnipresent god?

Answer 1

Clearly God made some sort of cosmic exception for Nod, probably because their cable reception sucked so hard.

Good question, actually. I hadn't thought of that one.

Answer 2

Great Question!

Scripture differentiates between the Omnipresence of God in all things, and the Manifest presence of God, as he interacts with his creation.

If God were only a single point being, your question would "poke" a gaping hole in a "man-made theology". But, we learn through the progressive revelation of Scripture that God is a Triunity, a Transcendant Being with three distinct personages. (Not a dogma made by the limited thinking of man.)

The Father is always utterly transcendant. The Spirit is always Omnipresent and Omnipowerful. The Logos (or Word), which we know as "the Son" is always Manifest. Manifest in his word, and Manifest in his presence. He occupies physicality at His choosing, and can come and go through time and space. He did this at Eden, with Abraham, with Jacob and with Moses... and then finally in his incarnation as Jesus of Nazareth.

Long and short of it is: He can. However, He can because He's God - not limited by His own creation or the laws of the universe He created.

Hope that helps!

Answer 3

Easy, "God" was in Paradise or Eden. The Land of Nod, east of Eden was not where God was (which was Paradise). No one could enter the Garden because of the turning sword (a Cherubim, a class of angel) that protected the entrance.

God IS dynamic and full of energy and "could be" omnipresent, however I doubt it, since he created a Choir of angels called "The Watchers" who were covered with eyes and their jobs were "to WATCH." When the Bible verse says "that a sparrow will not fall in the woods without God knowing it," it meant that God's Watchers would keep record of everything around them and document it, down to the smallest of animals.

Answer 4

The point was made that God is not joined to sin. God is righteous and man is not therefore a seperation. It does not mean God did not know where Cain was nor does it mean God is not everywhere. But to feel God's presence one must be in union with him. We leave God's presence in a spiritual sense when we sin. Those sinners who do not repent or accept the atonement are seperated from God by sin. It is the atonement that reunites sinful man to a righteous God.

Answer 5

Let me take a stab at this. As you know, God is everywhere. And even to the little boy who points at a pile of dog doo and asks if God resides in there, it would be a fallacy to say that God does not know the very molecular structure of that pile of bile any less then he knows the number hairs on your head. So how can someone leave his presence. The only answer that comes to my mind is sin. When we sin, we effectively remove ourselves from him because God detests sin. Does he still know where we are and see everything we do? Yes, but we have created a major blockage between the perfect relationship that he wants to have with us. The presence of God is a good and loving union that is only now possibly because of the blood Jesus shed. To sin is to cut ourselves away from him. To be eternally away from God, is literally Hell.

Answer 6

God is omnipresent in divine form. Our eyes and intellect are made of matter. Therefore what we can perceive is only matter.

We need to activate the instruments that we have in this human body. When activated they start doing their work.

Some times it also happens that God decides to become physical and blesses a deserving soul. This can only be done if he is omnipresent and omnipotent.

May be we also have a chance!

Answer 7

I believe the meaning of the phrase "left the presence of God" here is meant to mean he turned away from God.

Monotheists usually phrase the state of being in communion with God, of being part of his plan as being in his presence. The usage here seems to mean that Cain was cut off from God's plan and attention.

Answer 8

It meant the physical presence of God. God lived with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God banished Cain from Eden and from his presence, but not from His bosom. You can't escape God, but the Bible meant God's physical presence

Answer 9

You technically can't leave God's presence. He knows exactly what you're gonna do and what you did. God will always be there even if you turn away from Him. God said " I will never leave you nor forsake you." So you can't leave the presence of the Lord

Answer 10

I think its your interpetation.

You quoted a text out of the Bible and I think it ment that he (cain) left God and hide himself away from Him by sinning, in a sense of knowing him. Not that God left him or for some reason forgot he was here on earth or something, if thats what you ment.

Those that sin and don't correct them selves and continue in sin can not say they know God. wow.