Does God have a plan, or does everything just happen by chance?

Genesis 45:4-8“Don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me [Joseph] to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. . . . So it was God who sent me here, not you!”

We cannot figure out God’s plan on our own, or even fully understand those parts that we do know. God used even the unjust treatment of Joseph by his own brothers to fulfill his future plans for his people.

Isaiah 14:26“I [the Lord] have a plan for the whole earth, a hand of judgment upon all the nations.”

2 Timothy 1:9God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.

Because of God’s sovereignty, foreknowledge, and will, he has a plan that is unfolding even when it may appear to us that events are happening by chance.

1 Corinthians 2:6-8The wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.

God’s plan of redemption was established even before Creation itself. It cannot be thwarted, though human beings have certainly tried to do so or been deceived into doing so.

Ephesians 3:2-7This is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

God’s plan to save humankind included a provision for all people, both Jews and Gentiles. It was unfolding long before it was fully revealed in Jesus Christ or fully understood by those through whom God was working out that plan.