The Doctrine of the Trinity Part 1:
The Title of ”God”
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all they soul, and with all thy might.” (Deut. 6:4-5)
“And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear O Israel; The LORD our God is one LORD:” (Mark 12:29)
“…let God be true, but every man a liar…” (Rom. 3:4)
This series on the doctrine of the Trinity will be a fairly weighty series. I ask that the reader keep in mind that my opinions expressed in this series, stem from a desire to know the God of the Bible and to seek truth over tradition. Unanswered questions are far less dangerous than unquestioned answers. If you are like me, you were likely raised in a Trinitarian belief system. When I began to scripturally study the doctrine of the trinity, it was necessary for me first to fully apprehend what the trinity doctrine espouses. To do this, it was required to read extra-biblical writings as you cannot find any explanation or description or definition of “trinity” anywhere in the entirety of the Bible. Further, you will not find the word, “trinity” itself, anywhere in the Bible.I was actually surprised at some of the things explicitly and implicitly expressed in this doctrine. I only ask that you consider my opinions and go to the scriptures to determine if my opinions on this topic are scripturally sound.
Prior to jumping into what the doctrine of the Trinity states, we need to look at the actual word “God”. Is it a name? Is it a title? What does the word “god” really mean and is it only to be used of God, The Most High, the absolute Deity of the Christian Bible? How does the Bible, itself, use this word? If we are to determine whether or not God is by nature, “triune”, we need to know the scope of the word “god” when we come across it in the scriptures.
In this first article, it will be not only helpful, but essential to take a look at the Hebrew and Greek words that are translated as “God”, “god”, “LORD”, “Lord”, and “lord”, in the scriptures and to whom those titles may be applied. As Christians, using the noun “god” for anyone other than the Christian God, becomes uncomfortable, at least. But, it may likely surprise you as to how the inspired writers of the scriptures used that title and of whom the term was used. In looking into this subject, it is important to have an understanding as a Hebrew would have had an understanding. After all, with the exception of approximatelythree books in the canon of scripture, all of scripture was penned by Hebrews. Much of the misunderstandings and even detrimental false teachings have arisen from applying a Greek and/or Western mindset to concepts which are very differently viewed through the ancient Hebrew lens.
First, in the ancient Hebrew, there was a singular and plural form of the word for “god”; “El”( אֵל) Strong’s # H410 and “Elohim” (אֱלֹהִים), Strong’s # H430; respectively. According to usage, these words are rendered as either “god”, “God”, or “gods”. For the sake of brevity, the scope of this article will be limited to the general usage of both singular and plural forms and not explore what is sometimes referred to as the “majestic plural” usage, in which although the plural form of god (Elohim) is used, it is thought to have a singular meaning. There is significant debate among Hebrew scholars as to the validity of that position; and being that I have no formal training in ancient Hebrew, do not believe myself equipped to academically weigh in on that subject. It should also be noted that capitalization as opposed to lower case letters was non-existent in the ancient Hebrew and Greek languages. As we come across “god”, “God”, “gods”, “Lord”, “LORD”, and “lord” in the English Bible, we must understand that the translators chose how to deal with each of these words and that decision was informed by the context of the passage in which the word is found and the theological bias of the translator. In this series of articles, I will remain faithful to the particular translation’s capitalization of these various words, but will use my own judgment on capitalization in my commentary and opinion as I make my argument on the doctrine of the Trinity.
Let’s now look at the first usage of the Hebrew word for “God”.
In Genesis 1:1, we read,
CLT “Created by the Elohim were the heavens and the earth.” (Gen. 1:1)
KJV “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Gen. 1:1)
The first example (above) from the CLT, probably seems odd. This is a literal translation. Where the KJV (and most other English translations), use the word “God” in Genesis 1:1, the Hebrew indicated the plural form of God, “Elohim” which is detailed in the previous paragraph. So, in the case of verse 1 of Genesis, the CLT is a more accurate rendering, if we want what the original Hebrew text actually states.
After understanding that the word “Elohim” (plural) which is most often translated as “God” in the English Bible, it is then interesting when reading Genesis 1 through 3, to note the personal pronouns used and the variation in key places. For example, in the first three chapters of Genesis, when modifying “God”, the singular personal pronouns “he” and “him” and “his” are used a total of 25 times. The plural personal pronouns, “us” and “our” when modifying “God” are used only a total of 4 times. It is also interesting to note that the plural personal pronouns in Genesis 1 through 3 are used within the context of two events. The first is God/Elohim creating mankind in His image and also when the man has eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; when the LORD God says, “Behold, the man is become as one of us; to know good and evil…”
Throughout the Old Testament, singular personal pronouns are used thousands of times when being used of God. The instances in which plural personal pronouns are used of God are limited to a very minute handful. Other than the two instances I referenced in Genesis 1 and 3, plural personal pronouns and nouns are used in a very interesting narrative in Genesis 18. That narrative will be taken up in great detail in an upcoming installment in this series.
What is the definition of the word, “god”? Let’s look at a few sources for a definition.
Merriam-Webster defines “god” in the following ways:
1 capitalized : the supreme or ultimate reality: such as:
a : the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped as creator and ruler of the universe
b Christian Science : the incorporeal divine Principle ruling over all as eternal Spirit : infinite Mind
2 : a being or object believed to have more than natural attributes and powers and to require human worship
specifically : one controlling a particular aspect or part of reality
//Greek gods of love and war
3 : a person or thing of supreme value
//had photos of baseball's gods pinned to his bedroom wall
4 : a powerful ruler
//Hollywood gods that control our movies' fates
When considering the Hebrew word for “god” (Elohim-plural) and (El-singular); Strong’s Concordance defines “god” as:
1 : (pluaral) a. rulers, judges b. divine ones
2 : (singular) a. god, goddess b. godlike one c. works or special possessions of God d. the (true) God e. God
Strong’s Concordance defines the Greek word for “god” (theos) as:
1 : a god or goddess, a general name of deities or divinities
2 : The Godhead, trinity a.) God the Father, the first person in the trinity b.) Christ, the second person of the trinity. C.) Holy Spirit, the third person in the trinity.
3 : spoken of the only and true God. a.) refers to the things of God. b.) his counsels, interests, things due to him.
4 : whatever can in any respect be likened unto God, or resemble him in any way. a.) God’s representative or viceregent
Are you surprised at any of the above definitions? There are many verses of scripture in which the word “god” is applied to not only God, Almighty but to angels, men, and even Satan. As I mentioned earlier, in the original languages of the scriptures, there was distinction by use of lowercase letters. Distinction (which seems to be a lost art) was determined by context and usage of the word.
Below are some verses of scripture, preceded by who is being described as either “El”, “Elohim”, or “theos” (god):
God, Almighty. God, The Father-
“Thus saith Yahweh—King of Israel, Even his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts,—I, am, First, and, I, Last, And besides me, there is no God.” (Isaiah 44:6)
“And, this, is the age-abiding life, That they get to know thee, the only real God, and him whom thou didst send, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3)
Jesus Christ-
“For, A Child, hath been born to us, A Son, hath been given to us, And the dominion is upon his shoulder,—And his Name hath been called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Father of Futurity, Prince of Prosperity.” (Isaiah 9:6)
“Thomas answered, and said unto him—My Lord, and my God!” (John 20:28)
Angels, spirits, and Satan-
“And the king said unto her—Be not afraid, but what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, A god, saw I, coming up out of the earth.” (1 Sam. 28:13)
“:And Jacob was left alone,—and there wrestled a man with him, until the uprisings of the dawn. 25 And when he saw, that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh,—and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was put out of joint, as he wrestled with him. 26 Then said he—Let me go, for uprisenhath the dawn. And he said: I will not let thee go, except thou have blessed me 27 Then he said unto him—What is thy name? And he said—Jacob. 28 Then he said—Not Jacob, shall thy name be called any more, but Israel,—For thou hast contended with God and with men and hast prevailed. 29 Then asked Jacob and said, Do, I pray thee, tell me thy name! And he said—Wherefore now, shouldest thou ask for my name? And he blessed him there, 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel; For I saw God face to face; and my soul was delivered, 31 And the sun rose on him as soon as he had passed over Penuel,—he, moreover was halting upon his thigh, 32 For this cause, the sons of Israel eat not of the nerve of the large hip-sinew, which is by the hollow of the thigh, until this day,—because he touched the hollow of the thigh of Jacob, in the nerve of the hip-sinew.” (Gen. 32:24-32)
“In whom, the god of this age, hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving, to the end they may not discern the radiance e of the glad-message of the glory of the Christ—who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4)
Judges/Kings-
“I, said, Gods, ye are, Yea, sons of the Highest, are ye all;” (Psalm 82:6)
“Jesus answered them—Is it not written in your law: I, said, Ye are, gods?” (John 10:34)
Other men, representing God-
“Then said Yahweh unto Moses—See! I have appointed thee to be God unto Pharaoh,—and, Aaron thy brother, shall be thy prophet!” (Exodus 7:1)
As you can see, “god” as a term and title is quite elastic and can and does include many in the scriptures, other than God, Almighty. In Western Christianity, this broad use of the title, “god” is almost never touched on in churches or bible study and this results in skepticism and even anger, when this fact is first brought to light. Gaining an understanding, a scriptural understanding of the word “god” is necessary to a proper analysis of the question of the Trinity Doctrine and whether or not the Trinity, as a doctrine, is scripturally sound; unscriptural or even anti-scriptural.
“For, if indeed there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or upon earth,—as indeed there are gods many and lords many, 6 [Yet], to us, there is one God the Father, of whom are all things, and, we, for him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and, we, through him.” (1 Cor. 8:5-6)
I would argue (and I believe scripture will support) that there is only one God, literally; but many figuratively. And it is the distinction between the literal usage and the figurative usage of the title, “god” that we should next look at and examine as we attempt to gain a scriptural understanding of the title, “god”.
Abram was an idolator (worshipping false gods) when God called him out of the lands of his father. God intended to reveal Himself, as the “only true God” (a phrase that Jesus Christ used to describe His Father in John 17:3) to Abram and to create a priesthood through Abraham’s seed who would be used to bring all people to a knowledge of the “only true God”.
As chronicled in the books of the law, God gave instructions and commandments to Moses which were to be adhered to by the seed of Abraham, the Israelites. These laws and commandments were to be followed in order to set apart Israel from the nations and make them a “peculiar people”.
From the times of the exodus from Egypt, and up to and continuing through the ministry of our Lord, Jesus Christ, how did Israelites understand the title, “god”? God, Almighty, was presented to the Israelites with a specific name. In the Hebrew scriptures, “God” when in reference to the Creator and in His sovereign capacity, the name of “Yahweh” was used. There were seven instances when “Yahweh” was paired with other words to better describe what He was doing for Israel. Examples are: “Yahweh will provide”, “Yahweh that heals”, “Yahweh, our banner”, “Yahweh, our peace”, “Yahweh is the way, my shepherd”. It is in Exodus 3 that we read the following exchange between the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and Moses:
“And Moses said unto God—Lo! as surely as, I, go in unto the sons of Israel, and say unto them, The God of your fathers, hath sent me unto you, So surely will they say unto me—What is his name? What shall I say unto them? 14 And God said unto Moses, I Will Become whatsoever I please, And he said—Thus, shalt thou say to the sons of Israel, I Will Become hath sent me unto you. 15 And God said yet further unto Moses—Thus shalt thou say unto the sons of Israel, Yahweh God of your fathers. God of Abraham God of Isaac and God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you. This, is my name to times age-abiding, And, this, my memorial to generation after generation. 16 Go—and thou shalt gather together the elders of Israel and shalt say unto them-Yahweh. God of your fathers, hath appeared unto me, the God of Abraham Isaac, and Jacob saying,—I am, concerned, for you, and for what is done to you in Egypt;” (Exodus 3:13-16)
The Israelites, through Moses, understood that the God of their fathers has a name. And we should understand that as well. “God” speaks more of what Yahweh is as opposed to WHO Yahweh is. The Israelites, understanding that God is self-existent and the only self-existent Sovereign, knew that this fact made Him The Subjector and The Placer of all things. The buck stops at His desk. Nothing was created apart from Him and nothing created Him. He is the self-existent One and the “only true God”.
Hundreds of verses are recorded in scripture spoken by God through His prophets and through His Son, and through apostles speaking to His sovereignty in that He is the Supreme and only Sovereign. Below are just a handful of these verses:
“Thus saith Yahweh—King of Israel, Even his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts,—I, am, First, and, I, Last, And besides me, there is no God.” (Isaiah 44:6)
“Are not, two sparrows, for a farthing, sold? And, one from among them, shall not fall upon the ground, without your Father; 30 But, even the hairs of, your, head, have all been numbered. 31 Then be not in fear—than many sparrows, better are, ye!”(Matt. 10:29-31)
“Because, of him, and through him, and unto him, are all things:—unto him, be the glory, unto the ages. Amen!” (Rom.11:36)
This brings us to the Shema. The Shema is a liturgical Jewish prayer which is recited each day. It comes from Deuteronomy 6:4. And, when asked by a scribe, “Master, what is the first (greatest) commandment”? Our Lord, Jesus Christ, answered with the Shema:
“Hear, Israel! Yahweh is our Elohim; Yahweh the only One.”(Deut. 6:4)
This answers who the literal, one God is, according to the scriptures. What does it mean that there are also gods, figuratively?
If we look back at one of the definitions of “god” provided by Strong’s Concordance,
4: whatever can in any respect be likened unto God, or resemble him in any way. a.) God’s representative or viceregent
In the scriptures, we find many times that God does not do things directly. He often times uses intermediaries. These intermediaries will often carry out orders or are delegated duties by God. We saw that the Kings and Judges of the Old Testament, and even Moses was given the title, “god”. God places all who rule in their place. This is God delegating authority in a matter or government to man. It was and is a common thing.
Yes, a representative/agent of God, can and sometimes is, in scripture referred to directly as “God”. From my studies on this subject, this concept is either lost on or ignored by many theologians. All sorts of alternate explanations are given, giving rise to contradictions and impossibilities due to the failure to recognize a concept that the 1st century (and prior) Israelites understood very well, the concept of Agency. The concept of Agency as it pertains to God working through representatives and agents will be the focus of part 2 in this series.