Written by Peter Rodriguez
Introduction
Available in other languages: Português
Reading time: 8 minutes
The Son Is not the Father
What one believes a doctrine says and what it actually teaches are not always the same.
Also, only through a true testimony about a belief is possible to actually know what that belief teaches. Furthermore, the best way to learn about the doctrine of the Trinity is by learning it from firsthand sources (from Trinitarians). Before forming any judgment, it is necessary to have an accurate definition of the doctrine being discussed. Otherwise, any discussion on the topic will be unproductive.
So, what do Trinitarians actually believe?
- The Bible presents the Son as a distinct person from the Father (John 8:17-18 and Matthew 11:27)
- The Bible teaches that both the Father and the Son are a single God, as we will see in this post.
Trinitarians simply accept both of these facts.
You can learn about what Trinitarians themselves teach regarding their doctrine in their official statements of faith. They and the Bible never said that the Son is the Father or that the Father is the Son. While they are both a single God, they are not the same person. As that famous creed states, “For there is one Person of the Father; another of the Son; and another of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is all one.” (Athanasian Creed)
So, during his prayers, for example, Jesus was not talking to himself.
The truth is that Tinitarians do not claim that Jesus is the Father.
Colossians 1
12: ΜΕΤΑΧΑΡΑΣΕΥΧΑΡΙΣΤΟΥΝΤΕΣΤΟΝΠΑΤΕΡΑΟΣΤΙΣΕΚΑΜΕΝΗΜΑΣΑΞΙΟΥΣΤΗΣΜΕΡΙΔΟΣΤΟΥΚΛΗΡΟΥΤΩΝΑΓΙΩΝΕΝΤΩΦΩΤΙ giving thanks to the Father, to the one who has made us fit for the participation of the inheritance of the saints in the light,
13: ΟΣΤΙΣΗΛΕΥΘΕΡΩΣΕΝΗΜΑΣΕΚΤΗΣΕΞΟΥΣΙΑΣΤΟΥΣΚΟΤΟΥΣΚΑΙΜΕΤΕΦΕΡΕΝΕΙΣΤΗΝΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΑΝΤΟΥΑΓΑΠΗΤΟΥΑΥΤΟΥΥΙΟΥ who delivered us out of the authority of the darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of his love,
14: ΕΙΣΤΟΝΟΠΟΙΟΝΕΧΟΜΕΝΤΗΝΑΠΟΛΥΤΡΩΣΙΝΔΙΑΤΟΥΑΙΜΑΤΟΣΑΥΤΟΥΤΗΝΑΦΕΣΙΝΤΩΝΑΜΑΡΤΙΩΝ in whom we have the redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of the sins,
15: ΟΣΤΙΣΕΙΝΑΙΕΙΚΩΝΤΟΥΘΕΟΥΤΟΥΑΟΡΑΤΟΥΠΡΩΤΟΤΟΚΟΣΠΑΣΗΣΚΤΙΣΕΩΣ who is image of the God, the invisible, genitor of all creation,
Genitor of all creation: Literally, “firstborn of all creation”.
“the ‘first Parent’, or bringer forth of every creature into being, as the word will bear to be rendered, if instead of we read which is no more than changing the place of the accent, and may be very easily ventured upon, as is done by an ancient writer [Isidior. Pelusiot. l. 3. Ep. 31], who observes that the word is used in this sense by Homer [an ancient Greek poet] and is the same as ‘first Parent’, and ‘first Creator’; and the rather this may be done, seeing the accents were all added since the apostle’s days, and especially seeing it makes his reasoning, in the following verses, appear with much more beauty, strength, and force: he is the first Parent of every creature, ‘for by him were all things created’, &c. Colossians 1:16, […]” (John Gill, Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible)
“it [the term ‘firstborn’] is given as a title to God Himself by R. Bechai on the Pentateuch, fol. 124. 4, […].” (J. B. Lighfoot, St Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon)
God was termed the firstborn of all creation because he is the Creator.
“As the Jews term Jehovah בכורו של עולם becoro shel olam, the first-born of all the world, or of all the creation, to signify his having created or produced all things; (see Wolfius in loc.) so Christ is here termed, and the words which follow in the 16th [‘because in him were the all things created’] and 17th [‘he himself is before all things’] verses are the proof of this. The phraseology is Jewish; and as they apply it to the supreme Being merely to denote his eternal pre-existence, and to point him out as the cause of all things; it is most evident that St. Paul uses it in the same way, […].” (Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible)
Even if we disregard the linguistic context, the apostle Paul himself will now explain what he meant by referring to Jesus as the ‘firstborn’ of all creation:
16: ΕΠΕΙΔΗΔΙΑΥΤΟΥΕΚΤΙΣΘΗΣΑΝΤΑΠΑΝΤΑΤΑΕΝΤΟΙΣΟΥΡΑΝΟΙΣΚΑΙΤΑΕΠΙΤΗΣΓΗΣΤΑΟΡΑΤΑΚΑΙΤΑΑΟΡΑΤΑΕΙΤΕΘΡΟΝΟΙΕΙΤΕΚΥΡΙΟΤΗΤΕΣΕΙΤΕΑΡΧΑΙΕΙΤΕΕΞΟΥΣΙΑΙΤΑΠΑΝΤΑΔΙΑΥΤΟΥΚΑΙΕΙΣΑΥΤΟΝΕΚΤΙΣΘΗΣΑΝ because in him were created the all things in the heavens and upon the earth, the visible things and the invisible things, whether thrones, whether lordships, whether principalities, whether authorities; the all things through him, and for him, have been created,
Because: The apostle will now explain why Jesus is the firstborn of all creation (please reread verses 15 and 16 with this in mind).
Because in him were created the all things: This is the biblical explanation of why Jesus is the genitor (literally, “firstborn”) of all creation: “because in him were the all things created”.
As we can see, both the linguistic context and the immediate context indicate that the word πρωτοτοκος (literally, “firstborn”) should not be understood in a literal sense. Not everything should be always understood in a literal sense, as it can sometimes lead to meanings that differ entirely from what the biblical author intended. Reflect on this: it does not make sense to say that Jesus is the eldest son of all creation since he created everything. However, it does make sense to say that Jesus is the genitor—another meaning of πρωτοτοκος—of all creation because he created all things.
Therefore, this is the meaning Paul intended here for the word πρωτοτοκος (firstborn), and the context (Colossians 1:15-17) prevents us from understanding it in a literal sense.
Instead, it points to Jesus as the source and originator of every created thing.
17: ΚΑΙΑΥΤΟΣΕΙΝΑΙΠΡΟΠΑΝΤΩΝΚΑΙΤΑΠΑΝΤΑΣΥΝΤΗΡΟΥΝΤΑΙΔΙΑΥΤΟΥ and he himself is before all things, and the all things in him have consisted.
Part 1: Genesis 16, 17, and 18
Reading time: 15 minutes
Genesis 16: Hagar Meets the Angel of Jehovah
7: וימצאה מלאך יהוה על עין המים במדבר על העין בדרך שור And the Angel of Jehovah found Hagar by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
8: ויאמר הגר שפחת שרי אי מזה באת ואנה תלכי ותאמר מפני שרי גברתי אנכי ברחת And he said, “Hagar, Sarai’s handmaid, where have you come from, and where are you going?” And she said, “From the presence of Sarai, my mistress, I am fleeing.”
9: ויאמר לה מלאך יהוה שובי אל גברתך והתעני תחת ידיה And the Angel of Jehovah said to her, “Go back to your mistress and submit yourself to her hands.”
10: ויאמר לה מלאך יהוה הרבה ארבה את זרעך ולא יספר מרב And the Angel of Jehovah said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants, and they will be too many to count.”
11: ויאמר לה מלאך יהוה הנך הרה וילדת בן וקראת שמו ישמעאל כי שמע יהוה אל עניך And the Angel of Jehovah said to her, “Behold, you are pregnant, and you will bear a son; you will name him Ishmael, for Jehovah has heard your affliction.
12: והוא יהיה פרא אדם ידו בכל ויד כל בו ועל פני כל אחיו ישכן And he will be a wild-ass man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him; and he will dwell before the face of all his brothers.”
13: ותקרא שם יהוה הדבר אליה אתה אל ראי כי אמרה הגם הלם ראיתי אחרי ראי And she called the name of Jehovah, the one who was speaking to her, “You are a visible God;” for she said, “Here also I looked after him seeing me.”
Jehovah, the one who was speaking to her: As we can see in the text, the one who was speaking to her was the Angel.
Therefore, according to the Bible, both the Father’s name and the Son’s name are Jehovah.
You are a visible God: By titling the Angel ‘a visible God,’ she acknowledges that Angel as God.
The Angel of Jehovah indeed is the image of the invisible God, and in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead in a visible form.
Therefore, whenever people in the Bible see someone called Jehovah, it is that Angel they are seeing.
Genesis 17: Abram sees God
1: ויהי אברם בן תשעים שנה ותשע שנים וירא יהוה אל אברם ויאמר אליו אני אל שדי התהלך לפני והיה תמים And Abram was a son of ninety-nine years, and Jehovah was seen by Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk habitually before me, and be perfect.
Was seen: The verb in the original is the passive form of the verb to see.1Asher Intrater, Who Ate Lunch with Abraham? A Study of the Appearances of God in the Form of a Man in the Hebrew Scriptures. See also: Smith’s Literal Translation
Jehovah was seen by Abram: The Jehovah seen by Abraham cannot be the Father, since he is invisible.
This can only be that Angel who the Bible frequently refers to as Jehovah and whom Hagar called visible God.
I am God Almighty: He is not saying, “Thus says Jehovah, I am God Almighty.”
What he is actually saying is, “I [the one speaking to you] am God Almighty.”
The Son of God is here declaring that he himself is God Almighty.
Genesis 18: Abraham Has Lunch with God
1: וירא אליו יהוה באלני ממרא והוא ישב פתח האהל כחם היום And Jehovah was seen by Abraham among the oaks of Mamre. And he was sitting at the opening of the tent, about the heat of the day;
Was seen: Again, the verb in the original is the passive form of the verb to see.2Asher Intrater, Who Ate Lunch with Abraham? A Study of the Appearances of God in the Form of a Man in the Hebrew Scriptures. See also: Smith’s Literal Translation
2: וישא עיניו וירא והנה שלשה אנשים נצבים עליו וירא וירץ לקראתם מפתח האהל וישתחו ארצה and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood in front of him, and he saw, and ran to meet them from the opening of the tent, and bowed himself to the earth,
3: ויאמר אדני אם נא מצאתי חן בעיניך אל נא תעבר מעל עבדך and he said, “My Lord, if I have found grace in your eyes, do not pass by your servant;
4: let, I pray thee, a little water be accepted, and wash your feet, and recline under the tree;
5: and I bring a piece of bread, and support ye your heart; afterwards pass on, for therefore have ye passed over unto your servant;’ and they say, `So mayest thou do as thou has spoken.’
6: And Abraham hasteth towards the tent, unto Sarah, and saith, `Hasten three measures of flour-meal, knead, and make cakes;’
7: and Abraham ran unto the herd, and taketh a son of the herd, tender and good, and giveth unto the young man, and he hasteth to prepare it;
8: and he taketh butter and milk, and the son of the herd which he hath prepared, and setteth before them; and he is standing by them under the tree, and they do eat.
