God the Playwright

[Speaking of God as the universal playwright] “But using the illustration of a play is offensive to us. We say that Hamlet is a fictional character, whereas we are real. It is not a good comparison, we mutter, but notice where and why we take offense. We are much greater than Hamlet, and zeal for the glory of mankind fills the room. No one is concerned to say that God is much greater than Shakespeare. Of course the analogy is limited — just like the scriptural analogy of the Potter and the pots — and it does not completely cover every aspect of our discussion. But the illustration still works because it is pointing by means of a metaphor to something far gander and more mysterious than a mere play. ‘Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world’ (Acts 15:18).” (“The Loveliness of Orthodoxy” in Bound Only Once, p. 22)